Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Indy Transponder 30-NOV-2011 2345z

Season One US Ratings Figures Are In - The Aviators | The ratings data from the U.S. airings of season one of The Aviators are in. And the numbers are extremely encouraging!  Average weekly household viewership in the US was an incredible 3,590,899....

Clap for the end aerobatic de France 2011 - Maritima.info | "This is a very special day," said Captain Stephen Azou, officer in charge of public relations teams have the PAF. "Pilots are leaving, others will happen is a page in the history of the Patrouille de ...

Iconic Red Arrows jets could be built in overseas factories - This is Lincolnshire | THE Red Arrows' iconic jets could soon be built overseas at the cost of hundreds of British jobs, MPs have warned.  MPs warned that future generations of the plane, used by the RAF Aerobatic Display Team, which is currently based at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire, will be built in India, the US and other overseas factories....

Civil Air Patrol approaches 70th anniversary, looks to honor World War II's 'unsung heroes' - Air Combat Command | MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- On Dec. 1, Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, observes 70 years of vigilant service. But the celebration won't be complete until CAP's earliest members -- now in their eighties and nineties -- are "rightly honored" with the Congressional Gold Medal.  CAP, an all-volunteer service of more than 61,000 members, was founded 70 years ago on Dec. 1, 1941, less than a week before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor led to America's involvement in World War II....

MO Aviation Historical Society Meeting December 8 Celebrates Civil Air Patrol Birthday - The Aero Experience | The Missouri Aviation Historical Society is a group of folks with a love of aircraft, and we are striving to record and document the rich aviation history that has been a part of the great state of Missouri for the past century. From Benoist to Zenith, the aviation industry in the "Show Me" state has always been at the forefront of....

Pearl Harbor observed Sunday - NeighborNewspapers.com | On Sunday, the Commemorative Air Force Dixie Wing will host its fourth annual observance of National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. According to spokesman, Chris Madrid, attendees will get the opportunity to meet actual Pearl Harbor...

Fly to be Free - Nuts About Southwest | ...Recently, I was privileged to receive a letter from the daughter of such a hero.  Vickie Clark wrote to Southwest Airlines on behalf of her father, Lieutenant James Decker.  Although Lt. Decker is 88 years old, his memories of World War II are vivid, and he had a desire to once again be able to sit in the cockpit of a P-47D Thunderbolt as he did during the war.  Although he downplays the title of “hero,” he fits the role perfectly.  This modest gentleman spent four years with the 27th Fighter Bomber Group in the 523rd Fighter Squadron, piloting his P-47D through 69 missions over Germany, Spain, France, Italy, and Yugoslavia.  He also helped provide escort protection for General George Patton....

Ruston man recalls B-17 raid during World War II - KTBS | ...One man from Ruston, La. knows all too well the power the B-17 bomber had when used in Hamburg.  After a short stay in an internment camp, Wesselhoft, German by descent, American by birth and at heart - and his family were shipped to Hamburg Germany during the war.  It was there where he experienced first hand what the B-17 can do....

PHOTOS: New pics of Shinshin, the stealth fighter - The Dew Line | New photos have appeared showing the wingless full-scale radar cross section model of Japan's Mitsubishi ATD-X Shinshin (or, ??, which Google somehow translates to "Mind and Body" -- can any Japanese speakers explain how "Shinshin" translates into two different words?).  These photos were snapped surreptitiously (see the "no camera" sign in front of the model!) at...

T-50-3 Photo Bank - Black Horizon | The aircraft is equipped with a fifth-generation brand new avionics, integrating the function of "electronic pilot" and promising radar with a phased antenna array. This greatly reduces the load on the pilot and...

Stanford Rain - US Army Golden Knights | ...Usually, when Golden Knights make a parachute demonstration, we use the aid of smoke or a cold-burning pyrotechnic to help the audience watch the events unfold. However, to ensure no damage was made to the grass in Stanford Stadium, we made a unique change to our performance. We stepped out into complete darkness without any pyrotechnics, simulating a live military insertion...

"The Middle People" UCAP #263 from Uncontrolled Airspace: General Aviation Podcast | Three odd aviation stories... Dave & Jeb squabble about ADS-B... Jack rambles on about his recent airlines trip.

A Lot of People Out Flying from aroundthepattern.com by Tracy | ...This is just another shot of our high desert area around Reno – taken just west of Pyramid Lake as I headed back to the airport. The previous photos were taken just past the second ridgeline  visible on the left side of this shot. The lighter v-shaped area is a glider port that I’ve mentioned in previous articles....

Aviation club makes children’s spirits soar - The Utah Statesman | When it comes to service, members of the Society of Aviation Maintenance Professionals (SAMP) decided to think outside the aviation box. Teaming up with the Happy Factory on Oct. 28, the USU club donated toys to young children.  "Our club wanted to do something outside of just aviation maintenance," said Cade Cross, a senior majoring in aviation technology maintenance management and this year's SAMP president. "We came across this great service opportunity donating wooden cars and toys to elementary kids."...

Getting Girls On Board: WAI Chapter Outreach from WAI Connect Blog by Amy Laboda | NEW BEDFORD — Members of Girl Scout Junior Troop 65323 and Brownie Troop 80011 spent a recent Saturday morning at the New Bedford Municipal Airport with members of Atlantic Aviators, the Southeastern Massachusetts chapter of Women in Aviation, International. Led by chapter President Tammie Irwin, the girls toured the hangar at Colonial Air, sat in several different types of airplanes, and spoke with women pilots, such as Cape Air's Elin-Mari Heggland....

Blue Devil Airship is Getting a Super-High-Speed Optical Laser Downlink Upgrade - POPSCI | The Air Force’s Blue Devil airship--a recent PopSci Best of What’s New recipient and a potential answer to the military’s expanding data glut problem--is getting yet another high-tech upgrade. Via a federal announcement put out last week, The Register reports that DARPA will outfit the Blue Devil Block 2 ISR airship with up to two Free-space Optical Experimental Network Experiment (FOENEX) systems. Think of them like optical lasers that move through the air with the fidelity of a fiber optic cable....

December’s issue of The Magazine by www.AirShowsReview.com


Download our FREE ecologically friendly electronic publication featuring Air shows from North America and Europe such as the:
  • Selfridge Air National Guard Base Air Show
  • Canadian International
  • Winston-Salem 100th Anniversary
  • Windsor International
  • Royal Netherlands AF Open Days at Leeuwarden AFB
  • FedEx Memphis
  • Ostrava NATO Days 2011 Czech Republic
  • Duxford Autumn Air Show
In addition, the SkyHawks 40th Anniversary and our BEST of the year Air Show Award. You will find the above and more with outstanding photography from our contributors.
At AirShowsReview, we review air shows, aviation Museums and aviation related events and exercises. Download and ENJOY!

Indy Transponder 30-NOV-2011 1415z

Blue Angels overcome plane trouble in city - Sea Coast Online | ...The pair of pilots arrived at Portsmouth International Airport at Pease on Monday night, hours later than anticipated. The delay was due to a mechanical issue with their aircraft. The F/A-18 Hornet was once again delayed on Tuesday, after both Tedrow and Royles encountered a similar mechanical issue while taxiing on the runway....

Air show to return in 2012 with Blue Angels this time - The Journal Pioneer | SUMMERSIDE - After a successful 2011 show, the Atlantic Canada International Air Show is returning to the Summerside airport next August.  The Air Show has been held in four different locations since 2003 but will be back in Summerside in 2012, said Colin Stephenson, executive director of the Air Show....

Blue Angels announce next trip to New England - WCSH6 | PORTSMOUTH, New Hampshire (NEWS CENTER) - The Blue Angels came to Portsmouth Tuesday to announce their Summertime plans.  Members of the Blue Angels spoke at the Portsmouth International Airport at Pease to detail the 2012 "Service Credit Union Boston-Portsmouth Air Show". That takes place in June and July....

Avro Canada CF-100 Mk 3 Canuck - Planeshots | Avro Canada CF-100 Mk 3 Canucks stand ready to protect North America from the “Red Menace”

Extraordinary slice of history comes to Shreveport - Shreveport Times | Shreveport-area locals have one final day to tour and even fly in a historic, restored B-17 World War II-era bomber.  The Experimental Aircraft Association brought the B-17 "Aluminum Overcast" to the Shreveport Downtown Airport as part of the bomber's national tour. A handful of enthusiasts took the opportunity to participate in a "mission flight" in the craft Tuesday morning to experience the piece of history as only the airmen of the 1940s could....



CAP looks to honor World War II’s ‘unsung heroes’ - General Aviation | On Dec. 1, Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, observes 70 years of service. But the celebration won’t be complete until CAP’s earliest members – now in their 80s and 90s – are “rightly honored” with the Congressional Gold Medal....

Gutless was the Cutlass — or was Vought’s F7U something better? - Travel for Aircraft | I vividly
recall, as a boy, when I saw the Vought F7U Cutlass model kit. The fighter looked futuristic, slick and the pilot sat high with a commanding view all around. I was too young to realize the troubled history of the aircraft. The Cutlass was an evolutionary transition from straight wing jets to swept wing jets as turbojets were now the future, instead of piston engines, for high performance combat aircraft. The U.S. Navy needed a high performance fighter quickly and Vought designed the F7U. Though turbojets would be the future they were unreliable and the Cutlass was underpowered though it had a pair of Westinghouse turbojet engines. The original engines did not come to be so lesser performing....

Swept-Wing P-47 - The Unwanted Blog | The Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory reported in April 1947 on spin tunnel testing on a swept wing model of a P-47. The modifications were made to an existing Langley spin tunnel model, and it appears that the design was a NACA-Langley design rather than a Republic Aircraft design. By 1947, a swept wing piston...

Prepping for the 2012 ARC - The Racing Aces

An uncensored goodbye... - Runway Girl | Flightglobal's journalists and staffers are renowned in the aerospace industry for being among the hardest working, most dedicated and congenial group of people one could ever hope to meet. I'm not exaggerating when I say that some of the most thrilling moments of my life - and some of the most uproariously funny moments - happened during the near 12 years I have worked at this....

Airplane Geeks - Episode 175 - Bits and Pieces VIII - Airplane Geeks Podcast | This is another Bits and Pieces episode. Occasionally, we take holiday weekends off and instead of recording a new episode together, we each...

Here's My Version of Airplane Heaven...What's Yours? - AIRPLANISTA | ...So what does this movie have to do with airplanes? Great question…read on....

Today in Aviation History – November 30 - CRUFC

Indy Transponder 30-NOV-2011 0145z

Blue Angels Excited to Perform at Pease - Patch.com | US Navy Lt. Mark Tedrow and Lt. Cmdr. Todd Royles discuss Blue Angels role as headliners of the 2012 Service Credit Union Boston-Portsmouth Air Show. By Robert Cook The two pilots had planned to depart Pease shortly after their morning press conference ...

Blue Angels Returning To NH For Air Show - WMUR |World-Famous Flight Team To Be Featured At Summer Air Show | PORTSMOUTH, N.H. -- The world-famous jet team the Blue Angels will be the featured attraction at the Service Credit Union Boston-Portsmouth Air Show this summer at the Portsmouth International Airport at Pease.  Blue Angel 7, with Lt Mark Tedrow, and Blue Angel 8, with Lt. Todd Royals, were at a news conference Tuesday morning to announce the return....

Living Legends of World War II are honored at the Stuart Air Show - TC Palm | STUART — A special highlight at this year’s Stuart Air Show on Nov. 13 and 14 were the speakers and displays at the Living Legends Tent sponsored by Crown Car Care. Volunteers of the Stuart Air Show, including Todd Harris and Mark Smith of Crown Car Care, coordinated the activities in the tent.  Since their involvement with the Stuart Air Show last year, Smith and Harris have been involved with the Road to Victory Military Museum, the non-profit organization....

Alden Rigby Selects The “Honor Flight” Winner – Warbird Radio LIVE! – Wednesday from WarbirdRadio.com by Matt | WEDNESDAY – WWII fighter ace Alden Rigby joins Matt Jolley to select the winner of the Honor Flight print by John Mollison on Warbird Radio LIVE....

Impressive video: behind the scenes of world’s largest aerobatic display team. Flying with the Frecce Tricolori 10-ship formation - The Aviationist | Even while most people like to attend air shows to see aerobatic display teams performances, they usually don’t know what happens inside the formation, which are the main roles of the team, which are the solo radio calls, and which flight instruments are used during the display.  Last week I was invited to attend the traditional dinner with the pilots of the Frecce Tricolori, the Italian Aerobatic Team, organized by the 1° Club Frecce Tricolori, the first of more than 120 fan clubs all around the world, that was....

Air Show Committee Asks for Loan - KMVT | Twin Falls (KMVT)-The Twin Falls Air Show committee is asking Twin Falls City for financial help. The money would go to next years show featuring the Blue Angels. It will act sort of like a loan and would be paid back after the show. ...

Historic control tower to be dedicated Dec. 7 from General Aviation News | The newly stabilized Ford Island Control Tower at Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor will be dedicated in a ceremony Wednesday, Dec. 7, at 11 a.m., as part of the Pearl Harbor 70th Anniversary Ceremonies...

National Museum of the U.S. Air Force Virtual Tour expanded to include Southeast Asia War Gallery from Air Force Link Top Stories | Experience the Southeast Asia War Gallery online on the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force's Virtual Tour, just in time for the 50th anniversary of the first U.S. Air Force campaign during that war.  The gallery is now fully embedded with audio and video hotspots and touch-screen devices located throughout the gallery ....

$14m museum expansion takes flight - The Press | Plans for a $14 million expansion of Christchurch's Air Force Museum, including a massive aircraft display gallery, will be launched today.  The museum plans to expand its Wigram base with a 4200-square-metre aircraft display gallery, which is estimated to cost $11m. A second stage would see the construction of a restoration facility.  Construction of the aircraft gallery is expected to take a year....

Air Museum to host educational program on Pearl Harbor - The Desert Sun | The Palm Springs Air Museum is scheduled to host an event that discusses how the United States changed as a result of the attack on Pearl Harbor, organizers announced. The event is set for 1 pm Saturday at the museum, 745 N. Gene Autry Trail. ...

November 29, 2011 The B-17 Flying Experience - Ely Air Lines | ...Over the East Texas landscape while deviating around, over and under clouds I studied the layout of the cockpit and the view out along the massive wings. The control inputs required a little heavy-handedness to roll the big airplane right and left but overall not too heavy. Just a little pressure to maintain or change altitude. Though this airplane never actually saw wartime service, I thought about the history of airplanes like it that had been so thick in the skies over Europe during WW II that they cast an Aluminum Overcast, the name of this Boeing B-17G I was given the privilege to fly....

The Best Podcasts For Student Pilots From Our Friends At MyTransponder.com - Aviation Queen | One of the great benefits of my new job is that I get flying lessons, which start tomorrow (weather permitting).  As a new student pilot with a longish commute to and from work, I wondered if there were podcasts I could listen to for tips, tricks and information.  At this year’s EAA AirVenture show, I got to meet the folks behind the great MyTransponder.com website, and they are now one of my favorite go-to spots for all things.  You can click here to see a guest post they did for me over at Aviation Week’s Business Aviation Now blog on Sept. 16 covering the top 10 iPad apps for aviation....

An Art Installation Sculpted by a Team of Swarming Autonomous Flying Robots from PopSci | Regular readers of PopSci are no strangers to robotic quadcopters, or even to quadcopters that work together to build things. But now, the quadcopters are out of the lab. A new art installation opening this weekend at the FRAC Centre in Orléans, France, will be built entirely by quadcopter robots, marking the first time such an exhibition has been constructed by flying robots.  "Flight Assembled Architecture" aims to inspire new ways of thinking about architecture and the process of building things. It also aims to be very, very cool. The robots will swarm together to collaboratively assemble a....

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Indy Transponder 29-NOV-2011 1415z

US Navy Blue Angels announce their 2012 show schedule - Examiner | The US Navy's high-performance jet team, the Blue Angels, has announced their 2012 show schedule and will be returning to headline the 2012 Chicago Air and Water Show. The show is scheduled for August 18th and 19th and will be the only appearance for the Blue Angels in the region. There are currently no other appearances scheduled in the states of Illinois, Wisconsin or Indiana....

20 More Hawk AJTs for IAF - Siliconindia.com | This new order of 20 AJTs is to swap ageing aircraft of the Indian Air Force's (IAFs) crack Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team (SKAT). The Suryakirans are the successor of the Thunderbolts Aerobatic Team. This aerobatic team had been formed in year of 1996....

Boeing KC-97L Stratotanker refueling A-10s - Planeshots

Video: To get your blood pumping… -  The Pilot's Wife | Take 2 minutes and watch the following promotional video for Patrick’s air show partner, Brian Correll.  Patrick will, most likely, not be flying air shows next season since he’ll be starting his Air National Guard training.  This video shows off their daring flying skills and the awesome cameras!...

“Last Call For Entries” – Warbird Radio LIVE! | Tuesday – 10am (EASTERN) | TUESDAY – Matt welcomes aviation artist and historian John Mollison on Warbird Radio LIVE!  It’s the final day to enter the “Honor Flight” print giveaway courtesy of Mr. Mollison....

Get a glimpse behind the scenes at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force from National Museum of the USAF Top Stories | Have you ever wondered how the parts of an airplane that have been sitting in storage for years become worthy of display in a museum? If you're curious about the aircraft restoration process, get a first-hand look during the Behind the Scenes Tours at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. Registration for tours from January through May 2012 opens on Monday, Dec. 5. The free tours take place every Friday from 12:15 p.m. to 3 p.m. Space is limited, so advance registration is required.

Keeping the monsters flying from Bayou Renaissance Man | A few days ago I posted an article about a custom-built car in England powered by a Rolls-Royce Meteor V-12 engine, a derivative of that company's legendary Merlin aircraft engine that powered so many great Allied aircraft of World War II....

Victoria’s Secret Helicopter Full of Angels - Blades Magazine | Thankfully the angels won’t have to deal with some pilot eyeing them the entire ride, as we expect Gisele Bundchen to be flying the helicopter

USCG US Army Spec Forces PURPLE HALO Operations from HC144A - Military Photos | The USCG's new HC-144A platform (anyone see any similarity to the C-27?) is being used to help keep US Army Spec ops guys current in HALO drops.

Video: Carrier Suit - Neptunus Lex | The Navy’s F-35C is going through EMALS-assisted catapult launches.

Today in Aviation History – November 29 - crufc.ca

Amazing NASA Video From The International Space Station - submitted by a loyal reader | Time lapse video sequences taken by the crews of Expeditions 28 & 29 onboard the International Space Station from August to October, 2011 | http://vimeo.com/32001208 | Images Courtesy of the Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, NASA Johnson Space Center and The Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth - http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov

Indy Transponder 29-NOV-2011 0130z

VIDEO: Smoke Squadron will perform amazing air show on the anniversary of 60 years - Cavok | The Air Demonstration Squadron of the Air Force, better known as Smoke Squadron, will be held on 12 and May 13, 2012 an amazing air show in the Air Force Academy in Pirassununga, São Paulo, where he will celebrate his 60th birthday. The air show, according to the Smoke Squadron is the largest in Brazil, and will have already confirmed the...

Blue Angels to perform at Va. Beach oceanfront - WSET | VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) - The Navy's Blue Angels will perform an air show at the Virginia Beach oceanfront as the Navy celebrates the bicentennial of the War of 1812.  The elite flight demonstration team will perform on June 1st, 2nd and 3rd.  Navy officials said it has been several decades since the Blue Angels performed an air show along the resort area....

Airshow announces additional directors - The Californian | The California International Airshow has announced the addition of three new members to its board of directors....

News: 10 questions with country music star Aaron Tippin - DVIDS | After his performance at Forward Operating Base Spin Boldak, Afghanistan, country music star Aaron Tippin performs push-ups as members of the 2nd Squadron, 38th Cavalry Regiment, apply the honorary spurs to his boots. A traditional within the Army Cavalry, spurs are given to soldiers within the unit who have been to combat. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Corey Sparks.)

Welcome New Team Member: Chris Porter - Goulian Aerosports | Mike Goulian Aerosports (MGAS) is pleased to welcome Chris Porter to the organization as its Media and Sponsor Relations Coordinator.  Mike Goulian has spent 20 years performing for air show audiences around the globe. His list of achievements include winning the United States Unlimited Aerobatic Championship, competing in the popular Red Bull Air Race, and receiving both the prestigious Art Scholl Award for Showmanship in 2006, and Bill Barber Award for Showmanship in 2009....

MCAS Miramar Air Show 2011 - Mack Photography

Fifty years of Tricolour Arrows on display at Montecitorio - Translated | The Chamber of Deputies is hosting the exhibition "50 years of Tricolour Arrows in the 150 th anniversary of the Unification of Italy", held in the Sala della Lupa. "The patrol - said Gianfranco Fini, speaker of the House, inaugurating the exhibition - is a legitimate source of pride in the world. There is no place where it is not known its excellence and dedication. The envy of every other country there ... especially the French cousins. " Founded in 1961, the Arrows are a patrol of ten aircraft, including one solo. The exhibition will be open to the public until December 4, with time to browse the site www.camera.it.

Former prisoner of war receives Purple Heart - Air Force Public Affairs Agency | Almost 67 years after being shot down during a bombing raid during World War II, former 1st Lt. Edward J. Moppert Jr. received his Purple Heart medal Nov. 26 at the World War II Memorial here....

SAN MARCOS: Former WWII POW Harold Stock dies at 89 - North County Times | Harold Stock, a San Marcos resident who was a prisoner of war during World War II, died Nov. 18. He was 89.  The North County Times profiled Stock in a May 2010 story that recalled his ordeal as an Army airman whose B-17 Flying Fortress crashed during a bombing run on a German oil refinery. Author Boguslaw Zieba also recounted the story in "Blechhammer," a historical book about the mission.  Stock, the 22-year-old co-pilot of the plane, was...

Electric Amphibious Lazair - Wasabi Air Racing | We had an amazing opportunity recently to fly arguably the most operational electric airplane out there.  Dale Kramer is a master builder of all kinds of interesting projects.  His shop was extensive and impressive.  He designed the Lazair in the 70’s during the boom in the...

Murky waters slow efforts to salvage Italian plane wreckage - Gulf News | ...The prototype aircraft crashed off Deira Palm Island on November 18 while on its way back to Italy after participating at the Dubai Air Show.  The two crew members managed to eject safely from the aircraft prior to the crash....

APM American Eaglet to be Restored by EAA Chapter 211 - Antique Aircraft | EAA Chapter 211, in Michigan, is taking on the restoration of the APM's American Eaglet. The APM board is very enthusiastic about this restoration, which will be to flying condition....  Other Posts: APM Restoration Center Concrete Slab Poured Florida Cub Flyers and FABA November 2011 Newsletters

Wings Across the Continent - Hiller Aviation Museum | ...Aviation long held the promise of bringing east and west together. In 1910, William Randolph Hearst offered a prize of $50,000 for the first pilot to fly across the United States in 30 days or less. The Hearst Transcontinental Prize was one of many prizes offered by newspapers and other supporters of aviation achievement in the early days of flight. Louis Bleriot crossed the English Channel in 1909 to win a prize offered by London’s Daily Mail, and in later years the Orteig Prize inspired Charles Lindbergh to cross the Atlantic Ocean....

Royal Belgian military museum - Military Photos | Some pics I took some time ago, have been going there for years, But in the past there were always a lot of signs forbidding taking pics, but last time I was there everybody was taking them, so ran back to the car to get the little digicam...

EAA president to speak at Sebring LSA Expo - General Aviation News | Rod Hightower, president of the Experimental Aircraft Association, will be the keynote speaker at the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association (LAMA) dinner during the 8th Annual U.S. Sport Aviation Expo Jan. 19, 2012....

Barry Schiff joins Wolf Aviation Fund - General Aviation News | Captain Barry Schiff is now serving as honorary spokesperson for the Wolf Aviation Fund, which provides grants to people doing great work in general aviation....

Hawk's Eye View - Ares | Training and simulation advances have been revolutionary since the U.S. Air Force bought its T-38s starting in the 1960s. With an average age of 43.5 years, service officials are looking to begin a replacement program as soon as possible. How soon depends on debt reduction efforts in Washington, whether the Air Force has the money to start a new program and how high a priority the service will put on that effort. With major...

Northrop begins flying second X47-B drone - Sign On San Diego | Northrop Grumman has expanded its effort to create powerful drones for the Navy, adding a second X-47B unmanned aerial vehicle to the flight testing schedule at Edwards Air Force Base. The tailless drone, which was largely designed in Rancho Bernardo, first flew on Nov. 22....

Aviators tell Scouts: Reach for the sky - South Coast Today | NEW BEDFORD — Members of Girl Scout Junior Troop 65323 and Brownie Troop 80011 spent a recent Saturday morning at the New Bedford Municipal Airport with members of Atlantic Aviators, the Southeastern Massachusetts chapter of Women in Aviation.  Led by chapter President Tammie Irwin, the girls toured the hangar at Colonial Air, sat in several different types of airplanes, and....

Photos: Watching the Mars Rover Curiosity Blast Off - Space.com | NASA's Curiosity Mars rover and its Atlas 5 rocket roll out from Launch Complex 41's Vertical Integration Facility at Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on the morning of Nov. 25, 2011. The rover launched on Nov. 26.

Monday, November 28, 2011

Indy Transponder 28-NOV-2011 1700z

Cape officials hopeful about 2012 air show - Southeast Missourian | The air show is likely to return to Cape Girardeau skies in 2012, but airport officials on Friday stopped just short of making it a promise.  But they did say they want the Cape Girardeau Regional Air Festival to return next summer, following this year's cancellation due to difficulty booking the performers they wanted.  "We're really wanting to do a show in 2012," airport manager Bruce Loy said. "But we really can't confirm it just yet. We're working as if it's going to happen, but you never know."....

Tatton survives stunt ride - Sunshine Coast Daily | SPORTING a shiny-green tinge, Paul Tatton proudly held up his barf bag from the front seat of an aerobatic stunt plane.  "I was sick all the way," the Sunshine Coast councillor yelled to family and friends who had watched in awe as the German-made Extra 300 was put through a series of loops, rolls, spins and stall turns 3000 feet above the ground....

Classic World War II bomber to fly here - Shreveport Times | A fully restored, classic warbird from World War II, a B-17 bomber, will visit the Shreveport Downtown Airport next week.  "Aluminum Overcast," restored and operated by the Experimental Aircraft Association, will be at the airport Tuesday and Wednesday in one of almost 70 stops across the nation in the EAA's "Salute to Veterans" tour....

Yuma Aeromodelers plan Dec. 3 model airplane airshow - Yuma Sun | Helicopters, jets, gliders and airplanes will be landing en masse on a local airfield Saturday and Sunday, and Yumans are invited to come out and watch the excitement.  A regional Radio Control Model Airplane Airshow will be held at the Yuma Aeromodelers' Model Airfield located at...

Tuskegee Airmen exhibit gets new home at aviation museum - Macon.com | WARNER ROBINS -- The Museum of Aviation’s Tuskegee Airmen exhibit has a new and improved home, and as a result the Vietnam War now has its own hangar.  The museum recently completed the move of the Tuskegee exhibit from Hangar One to the World War II hangar. The new location includes the addition of a replica of a hangar from Moton Field in Tuskegee, Ala., along with several other improvements....

Film crew finds body of WWII airman - The Canberra Times | A British film crew has stumbled across the remains of a long-lost Australian fighter pilot who vanished over northern France and lay undisturbed in his Spitfire for 70 years.  Royal Australian Air Force Sergeant William James Smith was just 24 when he fell from the skies in May 1942....

USS Enterprise - 50 years in service and still going strong! - Bayou Renaissance Man | On November 25th, 1961, USS Enterprise, the world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, was commissioned into the service of the US Navy. On Friday, November 25th, 2011, she marked her 50th year of service to this nation....
Additional Coverage:  Alabama Aviator

Vintage Flyers III - An Interview with Eric Presten - Fly to Another Time | When I am researching vintage aircraft out of personal interest, an article for this blog or to answer a friends question about a rare type I grab one of the books off my shelf published by Eric Presten.  Eric has traveled the globe to fill his self published books with quality photos of rare aircraft types.  His newest release, VINTAGE FLYERS III is a must have for the vintage aircraft enthusiast....

The TBM-3U Avenger - Moose Peterson Aviation Photography | Another of the amazing aircraft to come out of Grumman factory to see service in WWII was the TBM Avenger. This massive torpedo bomber first came on the scene at the Battle of Midway where, despite 5 of 6 being shot down, became the torpedo bomber of WWII. You’d think being a torpedo bomber that...

Fly with the Sporty’s Foundation - General Aviation News | The Sporty’s Foundation, in conjunction with the Aircraft Electronics Association, will offer two $3,500 scholarships to AEA member technicians to be used toward a Recreational Pilot Certificate. Administered through the AEA Educational Foundation, the purpose of these....

The heart — and art — of aviation - General Aviation News | Sam Lyons is an institution. You might go so far as to say he is a brand name. So much so that in 2010 Sun ’n Fun created an Artist in Residence position and awarded it to Sam.  He and his wife, Mindy, now live in Lakeland, Florida, home to Sun ’n Fun, and enjoy an official, and much appreciated, relationship with one of aviation’s proudest institutions....

Video: GE Aviation And The Fascinating World Of Building Jet Engines - AirPigz | I saw the short version of this video as a TV commercial yesterday and I really liked it. Even tho I have big issues with the mega corporate side of GE, GE Aviation seems to have its head screwed on pretty straight. The video also reminded me of an article from several years back that I had read that told of the unique manufacturing environment for jet engine building at GE... a quick search found the article: Engines of Democracy from Fast Company Magazine. If you've got an interest in how things get done, and especially in a very....

Aeroplanes & Airships: Artistic Displays of Quantitative Data, 1914 - JF Ptak Science Books | In another adventure in infographics and the artistic display of quantitative data we find this pair of very distinctive images that seems to work, a little:...

VIDEO: Little Bird - Shortfinal.tv | This short 1 minute video has been getting a lot of attention on YouTube the last few days. It's of an unmanned Little Bird helicopter landing on a trailer moving along a runway at speeds up to 15 knots.

Today in Aviation History – November 28 - CRUFC

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Indy Transponder 27-NOV-2011 2115z

A festival that soars high - New Straits Times  | Hot weather no obstacle to thousands who want to see daredevil stunts | THE  Malaysia Air Festival  left thousands of visitors spell-bound on its first day yesterday. The air show provided guests with an opportunity to get up close to more than 50 new-generation aircraft at  Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport....

Now that's a real wingman: Aviation pioneer 'Jetman' flies in formation alongside two planes over Swiss Alps - Daily Mail | A daring Swiss pilot has completed his latest dramatic stunt by flying with just a jet-propelled wing alongside two planes over the Swiss Alps.  Yves Rossy, also known as 'Jetman', took to the skies for the latest remarkable solo flight where he flanked two L-39C Albatros planes....

Martin says its jetpack is 'practical,' offers crappy computer animation as evidence - Engadget | Transportation | Ever wonder what a jetpack is good for, besides fulfilling dreams and fighting Nazis? Well, Martin wants you to know there are, in fact, practical applications for its $86,000 personal propulsion system. According to the aviation company everyone from emergency responders to search and rescue teams to military personnel could find a place for the dual-engine craft in their arsenal of tools. Sure, we could see....

Check the skies Monday for the Blue Angels - Sea Cost Online | The U.S. Navy Blue Angels will return to the Seacoast on Monday to promote the 2012 Service Credit Union Boston-Portsmouth Air Show.  Blue Angel 7 Lt. Mark Tedrow of Willow Grove, Pa., and Blue Angel 8 Lt. Cmdr. Todd Royles of Charleroi, Pa., are expected to do a flyover of Portsmouth International Airport at Pease in...

The Latest from Alabama Aviator

Museum Acquires Tern As Second Sailplane Exhibit - Greater St. Louis Air and Space Museum | The Greater St. Louis Air & Space Museum has acquired a home-built Tern sailplane from the Prairie Aviation Museum in Bloomington, IL for display in historic Curtiss-Wright Hangar 2 at St. Louis Downtown Airport.  The aircraft was built by Steve Steckler of Evansville, Indiana in 1981, and later donated to the Prairie Aviation Museum.  The aircraft will soon take...

F-111 jet welcome in Caloundra - Sunshine Coast Daily | Retired F-111 fighter planes, buried in an Ipswich mine site, would have been welcome by Caloundra's Air Museum. IT IS the photo that broke the heart of every airman in the country - eight of the nation's proud fleet of retired F-111 fighter planes...

Prairie Aviation Museum in Bloomington, IL Is Must-See Midwest Air Museum from The Aero Experience - Celebrating Midwest Aviation by Carmelo Turdo | The next stop on the Aero Experience Midwest Air Museum road trip was the Prairie Aviation Museum in Bloomington, IL.  Open Tuesday-Sunday, this museum offers a presentation of aviation history, primarily from the surrounding...

Heritage In Flight Museum Air Park Part of Midwest Museum Tour from The Aero Experience - Celebrating Midwest Aviation by Carmelo Turdo | The Aero Experience recently hit the road through central Illinois, and one of the stops was the air park at the Heritage In Flight Museum at Logan County Airport in Lincoln, IL.  Although the museum tours are by appointment, the air park is always accessible and a welcome opportunity to stretch after hours on the road.  A variety of aircraft were on display, including a UH-1D Iroquois, C-45F Expeditor, F-4B Phantom II (in USAF colors), and A-7E with Desert Storm...

A Pearl Harbor Mystery - Air & Space Smithsonian | How a 1940s Interstate Cadet trainer sent a famous airshow pilot on a journey to find a kindred spirit.

Masters of the V-12 - Air & Space Smithsonian | They're like highly specialized surgeons: there are few of them and they're in great demand.

FlightTime Radio Show 202 from The FlightTime Radio Show | Charlie and Milford broadcast from the comforts of the Key Auto Studio, high atop the AM600 WBOB tower in Jacksonville. Listen to find the details about Sailplane Ride Gift Certificates and other fun facts and details about the joy of flight!

Today in Aviation History – November 27 - CRUFC

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Indy Transponder 26-NOV-2011 2300z

100 years of aviation - New Straits Times | For the first time, more than 50 new generation aircraft will be lined up on the Subang Skypark tarmac, where visitors can see them from up close. Visitors can also experience flying in one of the monoplanes or helicopters for a fee In the terminal, the New Straits Times Press (NSTP) is holding a mini expo called "100 Years of Aviation Pictorial Journey" where....

Afterburner - Planeshots 

Yves Rossy Meets TED (Video) - AVweb | In June of 2011, TED, a nonprofit "devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading" interviewed Yves Rossy, popularly known as JetMan, and detailed how Rossy flies the two-meter rigid wing he straps to his back -- they've now released video. Rossy explains that the most recent incarnation of his wing is powered by four microturbines that together generate roughly 200 pounds of thrust and...

Britain's first seaplane to fly again as enthusiasts make replica of Manchester-built Waterbird - Manchester Evening News | Enthusiasts are to relive one of the landmark moments in aviation history by building – and flying – a replica of the Manchester aircraft that became Britain's first seaplane.  The Waterbird, which was designed and built at the AV Roe factories in Ancoats, completed its successful maiden flight 100 years ago today from the waters of Windermere....

WWII pilot joins in 70th anniversary of Columbia Army Air Base - Columbia Star | Alvin Strasburger read about the upcoming 70th anniversary commemorating the opening of the Columbia Army Air Base (CAAB) in The Columbia Star and immediately called the office of host organization, South Carolina Historic Aviation Foundation www.schistoricaviation.org for details.  Strasburger did the last leg of his WWII aeronautics training at...

Honor Flight Fort Worth takes WWII vets to D.C. memorial - Star_Telegram | Former Army cook J.J. Davidson had never walked around the 7 acres of the World War II Memorial or seen the massive pillars and reflecting pool that honor the millions who won that war.  Neither had Orpha Mae Blood, an Army nurse who tended to badly wounded men as they returned home from fighting in Italy and France.  Certainly neither had received a....

Daredevil pilot drives Staunton 'aviation wild' - News Leader | On Oct. 11 and 12, 1912, aviation pioneer Oscar Brindley tried to become the first flier to take off from Staunton. He did, in a way. On the 11th he had to land in a farmer's field shortly after takeoff, and on the 12th he crashed within moments of becoming airborne.....

God's strong, eternal love is able to overcome fears - Detroit News | ...The memorial was dedicated in 1943 to the name and heroics of a B-17 pilot whose plane was shot down just days after Pearl Harbor. Few people know the statue's namesake, however. It is better known as the "Four Freedoms Monument."...

Curtiss-Wright C-46 Commando – ‘Citius, Altius, Fortius’ - Shortfinals's Blog | It might seem odd to quote the words of Baron Pierre de Coubertin on the creation of the International Olympic Committee in 1894 - ’Citius, Altius, Fortius’- (Faster, Higher, Stronger), but that’s exactly what the Curtiss-Wright C-46 Commando was, when compared to its main competitor, the C-47 Skytrain.  The....

Memories of the cold war from Barrow to the Arctic Ocean ice islands - The Arctic Sounder | "Those are the Russians," a local person told me. "They fly over just to test our defenses. Later you'll likely see U.S. jets from the Alaska bases responding."  Sure enough — the U.S. fighters did come by. Both sides just testing each other.  But it took much longer to hear about a secret mission (Project Coldfeet) to a hastily abandoned deteriorating Soviet ice station (or drift station) in the Arctic Ocean back in 1962. It involved two U.S. intelligence officers parachuting into the station because the airstrip had broken up.  Their job was to collect data on the Soviet facility, equipment and technology. They were flown out to the drift station in a B-17.....

The AirPigz Photography Studio Is Now Open For Business! - AirPigz | The plan was to have this print (framed or unframed) available for purchase for Black Friday. Ha! I got it up and with PayPal buttons for purchase, but with only a few minutes to spare! No worries tho, I'm just really pleased to be able able to make this first print available...

Aviation history in Cumbria celebrated with monuments - BBC | Six former airfields in Cumbria are to be commemorated with granite memorials.  The Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust (ABCT) said the monuments would acknowledge the locations as heritage sites and highlight their contribution....

Holiday fun comes to Vancouver - Oregon Live | Vancouver Rotary's Festival of Trees offers several family events (most this weekend) to kick-start the Christmas season.  On Friday, Vancouver's Community Tree Lighting begins at 5:30 p.m. in Esther Short Park with live music and hot drinks. Santa shows up at 6 p.m.  Esther Short Park, West Columbia and Eighth Ave.  Also on Friday evening, director Bert....

Today in Aviation History – November 26 - CRUFC

Happy Thanksgiving from Ghana - Flight to Success | "Thank you all for your giving happily to MoM all year, may your Thanksgiving day be a wonderful one.... we give thanks for you all being our friends, supporters and encourager's from the USA - you and your families!....

‘Friends’ aim to protect facility, educate public - Santa Maria Times | Lifelong passions for flying and a love of general aviation airports spurred two local pilots — Jolie Lucas and Mitch Latting — to start an all-volunteer organization to save the Oceano Airport.  Lucas and Latting, who were married in 2005 and hosted their wedding reception at the beachside airport, co-founded Friends of Oceano Airport in...

Scott Harper, competitive swooper from Skydive San Diego is grinding the pond ! - Bonjour Blue Sky

Aviation school investing €500,000 in new hangar and aircraft - The Malta Independent Online | Malta Wings and its sister company and Malta’s largest flying school, the Malta School of Flying, said they will be investing €500,000 on a new hangar and aircraft.  The school intends to upgrade its fleet with the new twin-engined P2006T....

Girl Who Named NASA's Mars Rover Excited to Watch It Blast Off - Space.com | When NASA's next Mars rover launches toward the Red Planet tomorrow (Nov. 26), the girl who gave the huge robot a name will be there to see it off....

Indy Transponder 26-NOV-2011 0445z

Skydiving, aerobatic stunts today - New Straits Times | Pic by Sharul Hafiz Zam THE public can witness the largest ever aviation celebration in the country when the two-day Malaysia Air Festival (MAF) begins today. The air show, to be held at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah International Airport in Subang,...

Annapolitans not happy about chance of losing annual performance - Annapolis Capital | The Blue Angels perform at Annapolis almost annually, although the 2011 show was canceled when the squad temporarily suspended performances due to a mistake in a maneuver at another air show. The Blue Angels also are not slated to perform in Annapolis...

Axalp 2011 - some more pictures Bookmark and Share - Flightglobal | Yes, Axalp (Ebenfluh) Shooting Demo/Airshow 2011 was cancelled due the flooding of some valleys in the area - but a complete Airshow was shown on Tuesday and I was one of the few who where lucky enough to see it....

VIDEO: 'Jetman' Takes Flight Over Swiss Alps - ABC News | Yves Rossy aka “Jetman,” took to the skies recently to perform aerobatic figures with two L-39C Albatros planes over the Swiss Alps. Rossy, a Swiss pilot, became the first and only man in aviator history to fly with a jet-propelled wing in November...

Jimmy Leeward Triburte - EAA Sport Aviation

Giving Thanks for Angel Flights - CAF Red Tail Squadron's Blog | I don’t have a pilot’s license - and will be envious of those who do until the day I die - so you would be correct in wondering why I’d devote a Red Tail Squadron blog entry to “angel flights” since there’s no chance I could ever participate as a pilot and give a first-person account.  There is no direct connection to the Tuskegee Airmen or World War II or history, either....

Tuskegee Aviator Exhibit Moves to Tulsa in January - Afro American | The Test, The Tuskegee Project, an exhibit about the first Black aviators in the US military, will open at the Tulsa Air and Space Museum and Planetarium Jan. 14, 2012. The Tulsa stop is the latest in a national tour that started in December 2009 to...

Approach with Falcon #4 - Shortfinal.tv | So we took off with Beau in the video below and now we come into land with Falcon #4, Gerhard Lourens as he lines up for AFB Ysterplaat. This particular vid was filmed on a GoPro helmet cam....

Awaiting the sound of the Bell - The Vintage Aeroplane Writer | One of the several airworthy restorations I'm very keen to see completed, the Planes of Fame Bell P-59 Airacomet, seen here at the...

7th Annual Not-So-Snooty Beer and Wine Tasting Adventure Held at New England Air - Examiner.com | Last Friday (November 18th) the CT Beer Trail helped sponsor the 7th annual Not So Snooty Beer and Wine Tasting Adventure at the New England Air Museum, Windsor Locks CT. As far as tastings go, it was one of the most unique that I have ever been to....

How to become an astronaut? - Spaceports | NASA is looking for the NeXtGen astronaut flying orbital commercial spacecraft, testing NASA-designed spacecraft, flying to the International Space Station, to an asteroid, to the Moon and beyond within this and the next decade. The NASA astronaut ranks need to be replinished. Make it so....

Friday, November 25, 2011

Indy Transponder 25-NOV-2011 1145z

BATTLE FOR BRITAIN’S RED ARROW JET JOBS - Express | THE Red Arrows’ iconic jets could soon be built overseas at the cost of hundreds of British jobs, angry MPs warned yesterday.  Defence giant BAE Systems is scrapping the manufacture of the Hawk trainer aircraft at its factory in Brough, East Yorkshire, the House of Commons heard....

Schools at Warbirds Over Wanaka - Voxy | Cadets from the Air Training Corps 50th Squadron based in Alexandra will be offering their services as airshow guides to Upper Clutha school students on a free day out the Warbirds Over Wanaka International Airshow next Easter.  For the second time students from local schools are being offered free tickets to the first day of the three day event....

It’s lift-off for city’s first air festival  - The News | A FREE air festival which organisers say will rival the best aviation shows in the world is being planned to take place in Portsmouth next summer.  The world’s only aerobatic wingwalking team, the Breitling Wingwalkers, Second World War Spitfire planes and an old Royal Navy Sea Vixen fighter jet are just some of the star attractions being lined up for a seven-hour extravaganza of soaring displays over Southsea Common on Saturday, August 18, 2012.  Organisers of the first-ever Portsmouth Air Festival have pledged the event...

Air show could return to Suffolk skies for 2013 - Bury Free Press | THE return of Mildenhall Air Fete could be in sight after planning to bring back the popular aviation show in 2013 got under way.  RAF Mildenhall confirmed on Wednesday that tentative plans to bring back the show –- which pulled in more than 500,000 visitors before being cancelled in the wake of 9/11 – were being looked at....

Turkey Drop Aborted, "Pilot" Vows Return - AVweb | Thanksgiving Day feels like the right day to confirm that the town of Yellville, Arkansas, this year did break with tradition and did not punctuate its October Turkey Trot Festival by dropping live turkeys from an airplane ... though it may next year. According to the Arkansas Times blog, the drop was effectively discouraged when the FAA promised to send observers and to enforce FAR 91.15. (The regulation prohibits pilots from dropping any object....

A flight on a B-17 - Boing Boing | When the B-17 Aluminum Overcast appeared on the horizon above a Houston suburb sky last week, her shape was immediately recognizable. She was curvy, substantial and down right gorgeous. At almost 70 years old, she was also a little creaky and sputtered and smoked a bit as she pulled in on the runway. This was our ride for the afternoon, and I was giddy like a 10-year-old as we prepared to board....

C130J Display Flight at Paris International Airshow 2011 - vimeo.com | Video we filmed using an Iphone 4 as Pilots Wayne Roberts and Steve Knoblock put the C130J through its paces over the Parisian sky

Congratulations to San Francisco NAACP honorees, ‘Red Tails’ lifts off - San Francisco Bay View | The San Francisco NAACP Annual Gala was held Nov. 5 honoring the legacy of the 1961 Freedom Riders, Danny Glover and the Tuskegee Airmen. Carol Ruth Silver and Claude Albert Liggins received the SF NAACP Freedom Riders’ Legacy Award. Actor, producer and humanitarian Danny Glover and Cheryl Dawson, MA, MDiv, received the San Francisco NAACP Philanthropist/Activist Award....

Local man flies cargo over Himalayas during World War II - Enid News | When the United States joined the Second World War, Henry Buller had no way of knowing the role he would play in history’s largest armed conflict.  In early 1942, Buller was farming family land near Orienta in Major County and preparing to marry his sweetheart, Clarabelle. Three years later, he had flown more than 250 hours over “The Hump,” flying cargo missions across some of the world’s roughest terrain in the Himalayas....

WWII Flying Museum to mark 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor - Times-Herald | The Commemorative Air Force - Dixie Wing and local veterans organizations will join forces on Dec. 4 to host Peachtree City's fourth annual observance of National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.  The program will be held at the Historical Airpower Facility, Falcon Field, from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m....

Kansas Aviation Museum plans Cessna exhibit - The Wichita Eagle | The Kansas Aviation Museum is working on the final stages of an exhibit focusing on the Cessna Aircraft Co. and its long history in Wichita.  The exhibit is a way to preserve and present information on founder Clyde Cessna and the company bearing his name, museum officials said....

My 2nd Distinguished Flying Cross - Shotgun15e | Lt Col Daren Sorenson was the flight lead of a flight of two F-15Es, callsign Dude 05, providing Close Air Support (CAS) in support of Coalition Forces, Operation Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan on 25 May 2011. On that day, Dude 05 flight had just completed kinetic support of a Troops in Contact (TIC) situation in the Konor province when they were retasked to support a second TIC 60nm west in the Nuristan province. Approximately 50 dismounted friendly...

Powder Puff Derby Virtual Museum: Paper Awards - You Fly Girl | For the 1967 Powder Puff Derby, which ran from July 2-10, 1967, Mary Rose Myers received a "citation of appreciation" from the City of Atlantic City and...

WWII Wrecks Discovered Off Maui - Honolulu News and Opinion | Off the southern shore of Maui, 70-year-old war relics hid beneath the ocean surface, unknown except to local divers. This year, however, the sites of six historic World War II wrecks have been uncovered and recorded for posterity by a team from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and students from UH Manoa.  “I love history. A lot of what happened on the ocean can still be read through historic properties underwater,” says Hans Van Tilburg, a maritime historian and archaeologist for NOAA’s office of national marine sanctuaries....

de Havilland Canada U-1 Otter - Travel for Aircraft | De Havilland Canada (DHC) had such success with the DHC-2 Beaver (the ¼-ton truck) they evolved the design to a ½-ton truck for the skies — it had twice the Beaver’s capacity and became known as the Otter. DHC began producing Otters in 1951 while also manufacturing Beavers. The Otter production ended in 1967 about the same time as Beaver construction also ceased....

A sad end to a great plane's career - Bayou Renaissance Man | Regular readers will recall the two part Weekend Wings article I wrote on the General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark strike aircraft. The last of them were retired by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) last year....

This gives me warm fuzzies! - Bayou Renaissance Man | I'm awestruck by the craftsmanship and sense of adventure displayed by Petersen Engineering of England. They've come up with a modern variation on the famous Bentley Speed Six, but with a difference. This one's powered by a Rolls-Royce Meteor, a derivative of the Rolls-Royce Merlin aircraft engine, immortalized as the powerplant of the Spitfire and Hurricane fighters of World War II, as well as the Mustang Mk. X conversion that inspired what would become the world-famous P-51 Mustang escort fighter of 1943-45....

Barry Schiff: Friday's Fabulous Flyer - Flight for Success | ...Barry may have started his flying career by ducking a flying shoe—but he ended it as a Captain with TWA in 1988. And ending his career is open for debate, as Barry is actively involved in writing, teaching and mentoring young pilots... and getting checked out in new (old) planes....

Training Tomorrow’s Warriors - Pacific Wings | Training tomorrow’s warriors is what the 23rd Flying Training Squadron at Fort Rucker, Alabama, is all about. Pacific Wings joined the squadron to see how the US Air Force trains its future helicopter pilots using the UH-1H Iroquois and TH-1H Huey II....

Pilot gives back to youth, remembering his first opportunity to fly By Scott Kirk Special to the Reporter-News | Fred Novak can remember to the day when he decided that, if given the chance, he would offer young people the opportunity to fly.  "I was always the kid who would go to the airport and look over the fence and wonder what it would be like to fly," said Novak, a retired Air Force maintenance officer. Today, as a member of the Experimental Aircraft Association, Novak has been recognized by the organzation after offering 300 young people a free airplane ride to help introduce them to aviation....

Today in Aviation History – November 24 - CRUFC
Today in Aviation History – November 25 - CRUFC

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Indy Transponder 24-NOV-2011 1130z

The Indy Transponder
Wishes all our U.S. Readers
a Very Happy Thanksgiving!

Budget woes may steal thunder of Air Force aerial team - LVRJ | Questions surfaced Wednesday about defense budget cuts affecting the Thunderbirds air demonstration team at Nellis Air Force Base after news out of Florida that the Navy's Blue Angels team might face cutbacks.  Speculation about cutbacks to public shows put on by the Blue Angels, the Thunderbirds and the Army's Golden Knights paratroopers swirled as the Pentagon looks for ways to trim $450 billion over the next decade.... [photo via Thunderbirds website]

Thunderbirds Website

Showthrough P-40 - Vintage Aeroplane writer | During Alan Arthur's practice display at Temora on the Friday for the Warbirds Down Under airshow this last weekend, I noticed due to him....

Centennial of Naval Aviation - US Fleet Forces | Team, This year marks the 100th anniversary of Naval aviation. There have been many events (air shows, Fleet weeks, ceremonies, and expositions) over the past year across our nation to celebrate this historic milestone and showcase the talent, capabilities and contributions of Naval aviation over the years.  The first aircraft was launched at sea from the deck of the cruiser USS BIRMINGHAM (in Hampton Roads!) on 14 November 1910. This achievement...

Just One Life - Vintage Wings of Canada | The stark, compelling aerial photograph above was taken on July 3, 1944, during an American bombing mission over Timisoara, Rumania. Unlike so many aerial combat photos, whose exact date and location are at best the subject of educated guesses, we know the specifics of this one because the crewman who snapped it later took the time to add the information on the back of the original 3x5” photo -- presumably for the benefit of his mother and father back in Kingston, Ontario. There’s certainly more than a hint of pride in the inscription he wrote:...

Two EAA Women Fly Mooney Through India and Thailand - EAA | Next month, former EAA staffer Judy Rice, EAA 458303, who helped develop EAA AirVenture’s KidVenture area, will join fellow pilot CarolAnn Garratt as they fly Garratt’s Mooney 201 through India and Thailand. Garratt is currently in Kenya (as of this writing) on her second “Dash for a Cure” global flight around the world to raise awareness for Lou Gehrig’s disease; her first was in 2008. Rice is preparing for her own global flight in which she hopes to raise the profile of aerospace education around the world.  It’s always nice to have company on a global flight but....

Why Do Helicopter Pilots Sit in the Right Seat? - Air & Space Smithsonian | Patrick McCourt of Huntington, New York writes: “On fixed-wing aircraft, the pilot in command sits in the left seat, but on helicopters, the PIC seems to sit in the right seat. Is this always the case, and if so, why?”  For the answer, we turned to Roger Connor, curator of vertical flight in the aeronautics division of National Air and Space Museum.....

Forget any security concern and welcome Air Force One on Flightradar24! - The Aviationist | ...Although even the Flightradar24 FAQs confirmed that the Air Force One, the world’s most famous and important aircraft, should NOT be visible on their website, for a few seconds around...

Video Blog: The lesser-seen face of business aviation (jumping from a perfectly good airplane) - Flightglobal | BOULDER CITY -- Journalists are advised never to get emotionally entangled in a story, and certainly not physically. Though this assignment found your correspondent unavoidably invested.  I'm about to get thrown out of a perfectly good aircraft with five other people.  "Why gamble with your money when you can gamble with your life???" asks Skydive Las Vegas, with two extra question marks added for emphasis.  Based at Boulder City Airport southeast of  The Strip, and just south of Lake Mead, Skydive Las Vegas has been asking that provocative question of its customers since 1993.  When you think of business aviation....

Our 1st Scholarship Winner passes her checkride! - Girls with Wings | It was September 26th when I made the call to schedule my Private Pilot checkride. I sat in front of my phone with a paper and pencil for a good 5 minutes. Just thinking about what was about to happen. I never thought I would get nervous about making a simple call!...