Video: Want To Fly A Lightning, And Take Your Own Thunder With You?

 The English Electric Lightning is a truly remarkable Mach 2 jet fighter from the U.K. that originated in the late 50's and remained in service until the 80's. The unique over-and-under twin engine design definitely set it apart from your ordinary fighter, and capabilities like being the first ever to supercruise (fly supersonic without afterburners) and the ability to climb at 50,000 feet per minute are pretty much astounding. Possibly even more impressive is the airplane's ability to fly while extremely campy 1960's music is played in the background... it just doesn't seem possible! And yet, there's a lot of that going on in this old promo film from the Central Office of Information for the Air Ministry. It's both weird and extremely cool stuff.

 My favorite line from the film is: Want to fly a Lightning, and take your own thunder with you? It's at 4:18. Enjoy.

Video screenshot showing the English Electric Lightning's unique planform

I. Want. One. Boeing 787 Demo At Farnborough 2012 - Wow!

 The youtube channel of PlanesTV has some great stuff to watch here lately, including this fabulous video of the Boeing 787 flight demonstration at Farnborough on July 9, 2012. Wow, the plastic airplane that so many loved to hate sure looked awesome when pushed a little hard. So incredibly graceful and with a quite impressive roll rate. And when she's light, she'll sure go up in a hurry if you ask her to!

 Congratulations Boeing - this flight demo has convinced me... I want one!

Video screenshot showing the Boeing 787 in Qatar paint showing off at Farnborough

Goodyear Blimp Coming To OSH12 (With Retro OSH71 Blimp Pic)

(click pic to enlarge) Goodyear Blimp & N8407 Ford Tri-Motor (now EAA's) at Oshkosh 1971

 The Goodyear blimp will be coming to Oshkosh 2012 and that makes me very happy! I think having an airship overhead while living the avgeek life at the greatest place on Earth is both calming and exciting.  The Zeppelin NT was awesome last year and the Goodyear Blimp will be fabulous this year. Looks like it's scheduled to arrive on Wednesday, July 25th and then will be departing Saturday, July 28th.

 I did a little digging thru the AirPigz family photo album and found this nifty pic of the Goodyear Blimp 'America' from way back at the second Oshkosh in 1971. The annual EAA fly-in and convention was held at Rockford Illinois before making the move to Oshkosh in 1970. I was fortunate to make the last Rockford in 69 as an 8 year old. Then I caught the first Oshkosh in 1970, and every one after that until I finally missed one in the early 90's. This year is something like my 35th Oshkosh experience... and I can hardly wait for it to start!

 Another interesting part of that pic above is the Ford Tri-Motor... it's N8407, the 4-AT (slightly smaller than the 5-AT) that wound up being blown over in a wind storm a couple years later. It's the one that the EAA rebuilt and has at Oshkosh every year. Pretty cool seeing it way back in the day here. It's especially cool for me because my dad and I got to know Chuck LeMaster really well about a year later. Chuck flew this Tri-Motor at Oshkosh and let me take the control wheel that year when I went for the co-pilot ride! A few years later I had the amazing opportunity to travel with Chuck and his crew several times in the 5-AT N414H that he operated in the ride business thru the mid 70's. And I got to do even more of the same with them when he operated N7501V, one of only two Bushmaster 2000's built.

 So I think an old 1971 pic of N8407 and the Goodyear Blimp is a perfect way to keep our eyes on July 23rd and the start of Oshkosh 2012!

Circa 1982: My Dad's 'Breezy' Feet Following A Piper Cub!

(click pic to enlarge)  Following a Cub on a '70 Knotters' tour back in the early 80's

 With the 75th anniversary of the Piper Cub sitting on our doorstep (and some celebration and mass arrival plans scheduled to take place at Oshkosh in a few weeks) I thought now might be a good time to post this old picture I found of my dad's feet following a Piper Cub over some random hills. It's from a '70 Knotters' low-and-slow adventure trip he went on back in the early to mid 80's with a variety of older vintage aircraft and homebuilts originating out of Fort Wayne... he went on two of them back in those days on the Breezy, but I'm not sure which this is from. My guess it's the trip that went from Indiana to Kitty Hawk NC and back, but I'm just not sure. But just imagine the fun he was having following that Cub pretty closely for an extended time while bouncing along at about 80mph. It's just the kind of thing he absolutely loved to do

 A view like that of your feet was very common for both him and I back in those days. We put a lot of time on that hot rod Breezy, and took hundreds if not thousands of people for a ride on it. It had Stinson 10A wings (with flaps), Aeronca Champ tail surfaces, spring steel landing gear and a Lycoming O-290 125hp engine. It was by far the best looking and best performing Breezy I've ever seen... and it was a pure joy to fly. I miss those days. A lot.

 You can see some pix of the Breezy and even listen to a wild journey to Oshkosh I had on it in this podcast: AirPigz Podcast #4 'Breezy To Oshkosh' 300 Miles, 13 Airports And 2 Days (1982). I really miss those days... or did I already mention that?

Will OSH12 Be As Hot As OSH88? (With Concorde Video!)

 I actually posted this Mach 1 Concorde ride video on day number 1 in the life of AirPigz.com back on December 8, 2008. It was the first real piece of content that I produced for AirPigz and it's actually from an old VHS tape I shot way back in 1988. I'd do a better job with the editing here 3-1/2 years later, but it's not bad. Anyway, 1988 was a very hot and dry year, much like it's been for a large part of the country this year. So I thought it might be interesting to wonder if OSH12 will be as hot as OSH88 was. Ha! No way to know til we live it, but one thing we'll sure miss this year at Oshkosh is Concorde. What an airplane, and what an amazing opportunity it was at Oshkosh back in the 80's and 90's for us to see the airplane up so close, flying multiple times, and then for a very few fortunate ones like me (thanks dad!) getting to actually ride Concorde!

 So please check out my primitive video of the incredible ride on Concorde at Oshkosh 88, the ride where we hit Mach 1 while traveling over Lake Michigan! It's all explained in the video. I hope you check it out... I hope you enjoy it : )

 Lastly, my OSH12 Will Be The Best Oshkosh Ever post should be coming soon as well as some info on the upcoming Bacon Parties at CampBacon in the EAA campgrounds. I'm currently cramming 48 hours of work into every 24 hours that passes by so I'm a little strung out at the moment, but that stuff will be up soon. Oshkosh is coming, Oshkosh is coming!!!!!!!

Caption Contest #76 Winner - Born To Be Wild!

 Congrats to Tim C. for winning the moon minibike caption contest - I hope he'll be able to make it to OSH12 to enjoy his bacon sandwich prize! And as always, thanx to everyone who submitted captions and voted. This will probably be the last contest until after Oshkosh, but we'll pick it up again sometime in August.

 And I'm thinking you'd have to be pretty wild to be riding a NASA minibike in low-g (and zero-g?) conditions in a vomit comet. Especially with that spacesuit on restricting your ability to control the thing. But NASA really did consider the possibility of a minbike on the moon - you can read a little about it in this AmericaSpace.com post: How NASA Didn't Drive on the Moon.

 I love motorcycles, but I think the 4-wheel Lunar Roving Vehicle was the better idea for moon cruisin' : )

CoolPix: Michael Goulian In Formation With The Blue Angels - Wow!

(click pic for hi-res)  An amazing display of blue and yellow paint!  (photo: facebook)

 Last night, Michael Goulian posted this amazing picture on his Goulian Aerosports facebook page, and it just happened to be hi-res enough that I was able to make it into a CoolPix. What a fantastic display of aerobatic blue and yellow paint as Michael flies formation with the incredible Blue Angels! His caption for the pic on facebook reads: Some days are just better than others. Thanks to "Boss" & The Blues for the honor and the privilege!!!!!!

 I was already really enjoying the new Goodyear paint on his Extra 330SC, but when you put it in front of the similar colors of the Blues you wind up with a stunning combo. I'm not sure, but I think this pic is from the prep days for the Dayton Air Show this weekend July 7-8 where both the Blue Angels and Michael are performing, so I'm guessing it's from yesterday or the day before.

 I knew right away when I saw this pic that it would make for an excellent desktop image, so I've prepped up the standard sizes for y'all... I hope you enjoy this awesome pic as much as I do : )

Desktop Downloads: Michael Goulian with the Blue Angels 2012

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(check out the AirPigz 'Desktop Pic' category)

(check out my 2010 podcast interview with Michael Goulian)

Celebrate Independence Day With A New Spaceport America Logo & Website

All new Spaceport America logo gives a great look to the future of reaching into space

 I'm a logo freak (possibly a snob) so anytime a new logo emerges I'm very interested (and usually disappointed) - wow, not this time! I love this all new Spaceport America identity named 'Spirit'. I think it perfectly embodies the emerging efforts here in the United States to reach for the final frontier. Its release is also well timed to go along with Independence Day... I hope you catch the spirit : )

(check out this recent Virgin Galactic update)

Spaceport America hangar with Virgin Galactic mothership and spaceship inside

Press Release announcing the new logo and the launch of their new website:

(Las Cruces, NM) - Spaceport America, the world’s first purpose-built, commercial spaceport, has launched a new look for its brand on Independence Day. "Spaceport America is helping a new American Revolution take place in the commercial space industry, and what better time to showcase our new brand than the Fourth of July," said Christine Anderson, Executive Director of the New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA).

Spaceport America’s new look was unveiled in time for Independence Day on July 4, 2012, simultaneous with the launch of an all-new website (http://www.spaceportamerica.com) on that day, marking the beginning of a new marketing effort to introduce Spaceport America to the world.

The new identity, named "Spirit", represents two stars coming together; the collaboration of innovative efforts to propel man's reach into space. The Spaceport America identity is created from the colors of our nation with red symbolizing energy, strength, and power and blue symbolizing trust, loyalty and wisdom. It reflects Spaceport America’s core commitment to the spirit of exploration, the promise of human potential, and the powerful combination of vision and courage as it launches the next generation of space.

Also this week, the NMSA announced it has obtained a temporary Certificate of Occupancy from the New Mexico Regulations and Licensing Department for the Spaceport Operations Center (SOC), a dome-shaped building adjacent to the Virgin Galactic Gateway to Space that will support operations. The design of the interior SOC fit-out is underway and final build out construction is expected to begin by the end of 2012. When complete, the SOC will house NMSA staff and their primary contractors that will handle facilities operations, security, fire and EMT service.

"Our new identity emphasizes our dedication to the highest level of service to both our launch customers and the hundreds of thousands of expected annual visitors from around the globe," said Anderson. “We look forward to soon adding access to the newly finished SOC facility to our guided ‘Preview Tour’ this summer.” Anderson continued, "Once Phase Two construction is completed in 2013, we will have created a whole new kind of visitor experience, and the new Spaceport America brand identity and website are key steps along the path of offering the world an invitation to space."

Preview Tour days, times and reservation information can be found by going to: www.ftstours.com.

Caption Contest #76 - Ends Wednesday 7.4.12 At 9PM EDT

 It's a little risky posting a Caption Contest with the holiday coming up (especially when I'm getting it posted late in the day) but I'm gonna trust that there's plenty of creative avgeeks out there just waiting for a chance to have some fun with this NASA Moon minibike concept from way back in the day. Just imagine how much fun this was doing low-g testing in a vomit comet!

 And with Oshkosh coming in just a few weeks, this may be your last chance to win this silly little avgeek game and fetch up your very own bacon sandwich at OSH12 just for being voted the winner!

 So, you've got til Wednesday evening at 9pm EDT to submit your clever/funny/cool captions. Then, I’ll pick the best 5 and put ’em in a poll for everyone to vote on for all day Thursday and Friday so we can find the winner. 

 The Rules: 

1) Max of 3 submissions per person

2) Submissions go in the 'comments' area 

3) Game ends Wednesday at 9pm EDT 

4) Keep it clean!

 Then, anyone can cast their vote starting Thursday morning and running thru til 9pm EDT Friday. The winner will be posted Saturday morning 7-7-12. And remember, if you're gonna ride that thing, I want you wearing your helmet!

Virgin Galactic: On Track For Powered Flight By The End Of 2012

SpaceShipTwo glide test yesterday in the very blue Mojave sky  (photo: facebook)

 Virgin Galactic is progressing nicely toward the first powered flight of the suborbital space transport system by the end of 2012. Yesterday, a successful glide test with Virgin Galactic chief pilot Dave Mackay as co-pilot marked the first time a non Scaled Composites pilot has flown the SpaceShipTwo prototype, also known as VSS Enterprise. And a few days earlier on June 26, 2012, VSS Enterprise completed a glide test in addition to the team completing a full duration test firing of the rocket motor for the spacecraft - the first time these two large tasks have been conducted in one day.

Awesome front view of the gliding SpaceShipTwo from yesterday  (photo: facebook)

 The rocket motor firing was performed by Sierra Nevada Space Systems, the prime contractor for the RocketMotor2 (RM2) system. The 55-second test was the thirteenth full-scale flight design RM2 hot fire. All objectives were completed. In addition to this test, on June 20 a full-scale RM2 test firing took place for the first time at Scaled Composites’ test site in Mojave California, under full direction of the spaceship’s Rocket Motor Controller. This firing provided an end-to-end test of the rocket motor systems – a critical step in preparation for powered flight.

Virgin Galactic chief pilot Dave Mackay after his first flight in SS2  (photo: facebook)

 The tasks and goals to be achieved are huge in this test phase for the entire system of mothership, spaceship and rocket motor, but tremendous progress is being made with great success. It sure appears that it won't be long before an actual powered flight takes place which will bring this commercial space venture much closer to putting paying passengers in the cabin of SS2 and giving them the ride of their life! Godspeed Virgin Galactic and Scaled Composites!