Ken and I spent Saturday at the annual Wings Over Houston show. A little off topic on an old truck forum, but maybe some of you would enjoy these.
I missed the Airshow but usually try and go. I always have such respect and admiration for those who fought to protect our freedoms. All Heroes to me. Thank You.
Awesome photos, Bill. Was that "FIFI?" The last I knew, "FIFI" was the only flight-condition B-29 left. Boeing has restored another one, but it's currently sitting outside their museum facility in Seattle, awaiting construction of a special hanger for the aircraft's reassembly. Are those Grumman F8F Bearcats shown on the far side of the B-29? Damon
Yes, FIFI. And a good eye on the F8Fs. Just a little further down the ramp was the even more rare F7F Tigercat. It made a high speed, low altitude pass, then pulled up into two consecutive loops.
Now you've done it, You blended my love for old trucks with a passion for aircraft. Part of the reason I've neglected my ol' chevy is a 20 year aviation habit. I've made many a trip to Oshkosh Wisconsin, for EAA Airventure. Many, Many, old warbirds there to see. If you want to see and HEAR those old engines at full battle power settings, you really need to go to the National air races in Reno in mid-September. THANKS for the photos!
Here's another shot of the line of warbirds. There was a B-25 Mitchell, a B-24 Liberator, and a B-17 Flying Fortress (the B-17 lives about 5 miles from me!).
Nice ! Thank you for sharing Bill . I remember when there were still loads of these old birds flying .
Thanks again for the photos, Bill. I don't suppose there was an F6F Hellcat there, eh? The Hellcat is by far my favorite War Bird. No aircraft has even approached its kill to loss ratio of 19:1. Everyone loves the Mustang (rightfully so, of course), but it seems the Hellcat doesn't get much recognition for what it accomplished in the Pacific Campaign. Several years ago I was hooked on flying in online combat flight simulators, complete with "squadrons" of guys who would fly together on a regular basis, and participate in online tournaments and online war games. What a fun time. I was a member of the VF-8 "Ghostcats" whose namesake was an actual naval combat squadron from WWII. I really got into the history of the group (imagine that...) and used some vacation time to visit the National Archives in Washington, D.C. to further my research on the group and the ship on which they served (the U.S.S. Bunker Hill, CV-17). I love to go watch old war birds fly, but I haven't had too many opportunities to do so. Our town hosts the annual convention for "Bird Dog" aircraft (aircraft used for liaison and reconnaissance) during the Korean and Viet Nam Conflicts. I took a ride in an L-19 this year... first time I went for a ride... I WILL be making that an annual event, if at all possible. Got to take some aerial photos of my workplace, home, etc. The pilot was a great guy, and even performed some aerial combat/recon maneuvers common to the aircraft. My uncle did his multi-engine training in the B-25 Mitchell... lots of cool stories there, and flew the first air refueling tanker (Boeing KC-97 Stratotanker... based on the B-29 airframe) from 1958-1960. Great stuff!! Thanks again for sharing. Damon
The one with the #205 on it looks like an F8, Bearcat to me. The one closer to the '29 may be an F6 Hellcat. Of course, I could be wrong, too.
Beautifull Airplanes Some times these militairy guys play with there Herculess airplaines when coming over the fjords here ( 300 m in hight). You can hear them coming from a long distance in this valley , these airplaines are big. My wifes grandfather started the first civil commercial Aircraft comp. in our country in 1912 together With 5 others. Here are some photos to illustrate for those whom might be intrested. The number 1 photo is Ing. Hans Grade him self in his monoplane . He build 2 stroke 3 cyl. cars aswell and many famous german bigger passenger airplaines in modern time. The number 2 photo is the actual airplain Hans Grade monoplane the grandfather Halstein Sj?lie and 4 others bought in Germany in 1912 . The pilots name on the photo is Christian Lie from Elverum/Norway. Number 3 is a Tri plane made by Hans Grade Number 4 a dual plane made by Hans Grade Thanks Bill and Ken for sharing.
Hey Martinius, Great photos, and historical information. A friend of mine who lives near San Antonio, Texas, works with a group of men who build exact replicas of WWI aircraft. They've got a Fokker D VII, and a Breitling that I know of. The Fokker was used in the movie about Howard Hughes a few years ago. Really neat stuff. Thanks.
