Navy Skins Retro Paint For 2011 'Centennial Of Naval Aviation' (Awesome!)

F-18 Hornet wearing the colors of a 1945 F6F Hellcat from VBF-17

(9 pix + 1 video) 

 For the 100th anniversary of Naval Aviation taking place in 2011, the U.S. Navy has painted up several operational aircraft in retro colors. It's an awesome idea for so many reasons, but most of all for what it does in connecting the old with the new... for helping us to better know where we're headed by remembering where we came from. This one simple act of putting great heritage paint on a nice handful of aircraft has done more to get me excited about Naval Aviation than the movie Top Gun did - a big high five to the Navy for a stroke of genius! 

 The best part is that many of these military flying machines will be attending events around the country so we can take a nice close look. Oshkosh 2011 is one of the events where many of the special aircraft will be in attendance. So if you still needed one more reason to get Oshkosh on your summer calendar, I think you just found it. (get more OSH info on these special Naval aircraft here)

 This events listing at 100NavalAviation.org is a good place to start checking to see if any of the retro aircraft might be coming to another event your area. Different activities will be taking place at each event so you might have to dig a little deeper to be sure. All I know for sure is that in looking at the partial list of retro painted aircraft in the fleet that I'm posting here, these airplanes look fantastic! 

T-45 Goshawk trainer in a pre-World War II tactical aircraft paint scheme

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Back In The Day Video: Lockheed L-1011's At LAX

 This little 3-and-a-half-minute video that was relatively recently uploaded by youtube user RyanBomar shows Lockheed L-1011 TriStars from several different airlines operating out of LAX way back in the day. It's funny how something so common to see in the 70's and 80's is now a bit of a precious moment. The L-1011 was a much loved commercial airliner, and had things gone differently with getting the Rolls Royce engines on time, and without such direct competition from the 'cheaper' (aka cheaper) DC-10, the L-1011 would probably have wound up a much bigger success. Still, it's looked back on as one of the safest, most solid flying, and truly comfortable airliners ever. So take a couple minutes and watch the L-1011 earn a few bucks : )

 The prototype Lockheed L-1011 - first flight was November 16, 1970

F-35 (A,B And C) CoolPix Triple Play + Afterburning Video!

(all photos and video: Lockheed Martin)

(click pic for hi-res)  F-35A: Conventional Takeoff & Landing (CTOL) USAF variant 

(3 CoolPix and 1 video) 

 Not a lot of words here, the images and video will do most of the talking. But I will say that while I'm about as far away from being an industry insider as you can get, when I look into the F-35 program I'm still encouraged. I think it's a great airplane that's gonna do just what we need it to. Our bigger issues have to do with our government, and whether there's any fight left in the people for "truth, justice and the American way". No doubt, it's a critical time... I hope we all take it serious, before it's too late.

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A C-133 Cargomaster: Last Flight But Not The End Of The Line

One of the 50 Douglas C-133 Cargomasters built between 1956 and 1961

 The Douglas C-133 Cargomaster was the heavy airlifter thru the early 60's for the USAF. While it seems many people don't know it even existed, and a large number of people would simply think it was a C-130, the C-133 was a pretty important aircraft in its day. It was also significantly larger than the C-130. Compare the C-130 max takeoff weight of 155,000 pounds with the 286,000 pounds of the C-133. Even more important, compare the C-130's 45,000 pound payload to the C-133's 110,000 pounds. The C-133 was big, fast (325 mph cruise, almost 100mph faster than the C-124 Globemaster II) and was the first of the heavy lifters to offer the low deck height and easy rear loading.

 The airplanes worked very hard thru the 60's, but with C-141's coming into service in 1965, and then the C-5 in 1970, the Cargomasters were pretty much ready to give up. Unlike the C-130 that found a niche that it could easily adapt to over the years, the advent of the really big jet airlifter sent the C-133 to a relatively early retirement in 1971. But many people who knew the C-133 have a soft spot in their heart for this workhorse that was powered by 4 Pratt & Whitney T34 turboprops cranking out 7,500 shp each. 

 The video below is of C-133 serial number 56-1999 and its last flight which was actually made fairly recently in August 2008. It's a great HD video that works well in full screen mode. There's no narration, but somehow that actually makes it very cool. It gives a really nice, quick look at elements of the flight from Alaska, where the airplane had continued to work occasionally thru as recently as 2006, on down to Travis Air Force Base northeast of San Francisco where it's being refurbished for display in the Travis Air Museum. Unfortunately, since 9-11, base access has been handled at Travis in such a way that the museum hasn't been open for unlimited public access. It's located right on the base, so they've limited access to a number of people that can be escorted. However, a plan is in the works to move the museum to a larger all new facility nearby that will solve the security issues. That'll make getting to see this Cargomaster and the rather extensive collection of aircraft in the museum easy... like it used to be when the museum attracted 60,000 people each year.

 I hope you'll take a few minutes and watch the video, it's a little different than you see everyday... and it's an airplane from a whole different era. I found it to be a really interesting experience. You can also see some nice pix and explanation about this final flight here. 

Last Flight of the C-133 Cargomaster from INVERSION on Vimeo.

Caption Contest #48 - Ends Wednesday 1.19.11 At 9PM EST

 

 It's time for humor and airplanes to mix it up again in the AirPigz Caption Contest. I'm thinking we should see some pretty good ideas bubble up on this pic! Actually, I can imagine a variety of directions for captions to go on this one. Keep your mind open... then watch for something really funny to fall out of it! And as always, a hot and tasty bacon sandwich at Oshkosh 2011 is on the line for the winner. 

 So, you've got til Wednesday evening at 9pm EST 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 that bacon lovin' winner. 

 The Rules: 

1) Max of 3 submissions per person

2) Submissions go in the 'comments' area 

3) Game ends Wednesday at 9pm EST 

4) Keep it clean!

 Then, anyone can cast their vote starting Thursday morning and running thru til 9pm EST Friday. The winner will be posted Saturday morning 1-22-11. So c'mon, hop on in here... the water's fine : )

2010 AirPigz 'HOTY' - Algie Composite Aircraft LP1

Also check out my extensive report on the Algie LP1 from November 2010

The AirPigz 2010 'Homebuilt Of The Year': the LP1 from Algie Composite Aircraft

 You might already know that the AirPigz Homebuilt Of The Year award is not a conventional accolade. The 2009 HOTY award was presented to Sonex Aircraft for their Waiex, but that took place on January 7, 2009... the year was just underway and an award winner was already being announced. That's because 2009 was sure to be a really tough year from an economic point of view, and I felt that the time was right to acknowledge a homebuilt aircraft that excelled at being just what people needed. The Waiex is extremely affordable while also being relatively easy to build and has fabulous performance. Those three lines don't very often cross.

 For 2010, things were a little better financially across America so I decided that the 2010 HOTY award would wait to be presented until the year was over, you know, like everyone else would do it. So here we are in early 2011 and I've picked the new HOTY for 2010, but you can be sure that I haven't made the choice in a conventional manner. The LP1 from Algie Composite Aircraft is the winner, but there's one fairly obvious snag. It hasn't even been off the ground yet. For many people in the position of picking a winner for an award like this, that fact would be a bit of a problem. I understand, I really do. But I've got some really important and interesting reasons why picking the LP1 makes perfect sense. Please read on to see if you agree.

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Video: Oshkosh Night Airshow 2010 - & It's Coming Back For 2011!

 The EAA just recently announced that the night airshow that was a big success at Oshkosh 2010 will indeed be back for 2011. I've seen a lot of airshows in my life, but that night show was a real stand out. Being on the flightline with friends as darkness settled in was absolutely wonderful. And the performers did an excellent job of providing a show well worth watching. Plus, there's something very special about hearing radial engines wind out in the still night air! I'm really looking forward to watching again this year, and highly encourage you to be sure to get there and take it in. Check out this EAA announcement about 2011 night airshow performers.

 In the video above from youtuber airphotopro, you'll first see some highlights of the AeroShell team flying their T-6's when there was still a bit of light in the sky. At :32 it transitions to a full night sky with Bob Carlton flying the V-tail jet-powered sailplane with some pretty nice pyrotechnics on the airplane. Then, at 1:50 it moves on to Gene Soucy in the ShowCat. That's some serious smoke, fireworks, and noise going on there! At 6:18 it finishes up the flying with Matt Younkin in the Twin Beech. The only thing better than a big radial engine tearing up the night sky is two of 'em! Love that sound... and the smoke, pyro, and onboard lighting push it all over the top. BTW, check out podcast #8 to hear Matt talk about flying the Twin Beech at night.

 The first video above did a great job of capturing the flying and the finale fireworks right after the airshow, but they missed the huge wall of fire that closed it all off. This second video from youtuber minky103 is just that big wall of fire - and it was awesome! Enjoy, my pyromaniac friends : )

Spotted For Sale: 100HP Clip Wing CUBy Homebuilt - Wish I Could!

A beautiful Clip Wing CUBy homebuilt spotted for sale on Barnstormers.com

(click the pic to see the listing)

 It's true, my heart rate might increase more than yours at the sight of this gorgeous looking Clip Wing CUBy, but c'mon, what could be more fun than sweet 100 hp taildragger that can fly all day with the door open and costs less than half of a Cessna Skycatcher? Yeah I know, the Skycatcher would be new, and this is a used homebuilt. Whatever. This thing is awesome! If I had some bucks in the bank or a credit score that wasn't in a flat spin, I'd be hopping in the car right now to go check this little gem out. Ultimately, in my opinion, it's the clipped wings that really make this airplane special... more on that in a minute.

 If you check out the listing for this airplane you'll see it called a 'Cubby', but to be accurate it's really a CUBy, by Wag-Aero. It's pretty interesting that Dick Wagner was on the cutting edge way back in 1975 when he introduced the homebuilt Cub clone that he named CUBy. There's quite a bit of story that goes with all the CUBy development, and hopefully one of these days I'll research it up and post the details. But for now it's good to note that while the Cub clone frenzy has been booming in the last dozen years or so, it really had its beginning with Dick Wagner and the CUBy back in the 70's.

 But the real story here to me, is in this next picture!

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Poll: 80's Era Lear Fan - Love It, Hate It, Or Just Don't Care?

(click pic to enlarge)

 The last project that Bill Lear attempted to advance was the Lear Fan. Combining a carbon fiber airframe, two turbine engines driving one pusher prop, and extreme efficiency at 350 knots for 8 souls was some pretty hot thinking for the late 70's and early 80's... in fact, that's still some pretty hot thinking. But for whatever reasons, the Lear Fan just wasn't able to clear all the hurdles on the way to certification/production. The fact that Bill Lear passed away over 2 years before the first flight certainly didn't help the project. 

 I wondered if things would be different today. With carbon fiber common place, and with some fresh thinking to solve the gearbox problems that had gotten in the way, maybe there's still some hope for this specific configuration. The simplicity of just one prop, and especially twin engine safety while still getting centerline thrust are just two of the really great concepts that the Lear Fan promised. Honestly, I still think this idea if fantastic (no pun intended), and it seems like someone would be pursuing it. 

 I also wondered what you think. So if you know some of the Lear Fan history, vote now in the poll. If you need more info, check out this Flying Magazine article on the Lear Fan. Then, come back and vote based on what you've learned. I'm curious to see if a lot of others agree with me that this is one airplane that should have made it.

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What's The Deal With The Chinese Chengdu J-20 Gear Doors?

(click pic to enlarge)

 After a couple weeks of of 'spy photos' showing up on aviation blogs all around the world, the J-20 Chinese fighter aircraft seems to becoming a fast reality. Updates from Aviation Week and Flightglobal confirm its first flight today, 1-11-11, as does the video below. I certainly find the airplane interesting, but not too surprising considering we've seen the Chinese become an economic and technology powerhouse in the past 15 years. Sure, they may have a way to go yet to catch up, but c'mon, when you've got billions and billions of dollars and a world culture where anything is for sale for the right price, why would we expect anything different. The world, my friends, is changing very fast.

 My biggest issue with the J-20 doesn't have anything to do with how it compares to the F-22, or is it really embracing 'stealth' technology. Nope, I'm all about those bizarre gear doors. I'm really confused as to why they would have them extend so close to the ground. Maybe I'm just a weirdo, but that doesn't make any sense to me at all for a fighter aircraft that may encounter damaged runways to operate from during battle. From looking at several different photos, it appears to me that the lower edge of the gear doors is only a foot from the ground, maybe less. And considering max gear compression on a hard landing, it would seem those doors would get extremely close to the ground.

 So, the weird gear doors, that's my big mystery about this new development in Chinese military hardware. Anybody have any thoughts on this? I guess it'll be interesting to see what more we learn in the coming weeks. Even more interesting, I'm wondering what this whole display really means... as in, is it really a distraction of some sort. Hmm?

Video of the first flight of the Chinese Chengdu J-20 fighter aircraft