Red Arrows in Camera - Haynes Publishing 2012 - recommended aviation books

Lovely book just published (July 2012) by Haynes. Comprising 208 full colour pages, in slightly larger than A-4 format, this book has a surprising amount of text for a work entitled '..in camera'. Aviation photographer and journalist Keith Wilson was given privileged official access to the Red Arrows team, offering the unique opportunity to photograph all aspects of the world of the Reds - its pilots, ground crew and support staff, its Hawk aircraft, and the precision flying by the pilots themselves during displays. The book opens with a chapter devoted to the history of the 'Reds', while subsequent chapters are entitled 'The People', 'The Programme', 'The Engineering' etc etc. The book concludes with a look at famous Reds locations and formations. The book is officially endorsed and published in association with the Red Arrows with 50p from each sale going to the RAF Benevolent Fund.Formed in 1965, the RAF's world-famous aerobatic team, the Red Arrows, has flown more than 4,000 displays in 53 countries. A selection of page views follows or check out the great Red Arrows airshow pics on this blog courtesy Nico Charpentier. Another great selection of Red Arrows shots on this blog here. These are easily some of the best on the Net!

crash of 90th BG B-24 Little Eva, Queensland 1942

..on 'Dave' this afternoon a Ray Mears interview with Les Hiddins the well-known 'Bush Tucker Man'. The two are filmed visiting the wreck of 'Little Eva', a 90th BG B-24 bomber which crashed in a remote area of northern Queensland returning from a mission against a Japanese troop convoy on Papua New Guinea on 2 December 1942. "Little Eva" lost touch with the other aircraft on the mission and attempted to return to base at Iron Range alone. A severe thunderstorm then disabled the radio, resulting in the crew losing their bearings and the aircraft finally ran out of fuel. Lieutenant Norman Crosson, the pilot, gave orders to bail out. Most of the crew members parachuted to safety, however one was killed when his parachute snagged on the aircraft and another who did not jump was killed when the plane crashed at about 2:45am near the Burriejella waterhole. Although the crew had been instructed to rendezvous at the wreckage only two men including the pilot made it back to the crash-site and from there subsequently walked back to civilisation after 12 days in the bush. Of the other group of four men, only one survived. Staff Sargeant Grady Gaston was only found after an amazing one hundred and fifty day odyssey through the barren north Queensland landscape, one of the longest survival treks in history.

http://home.st.net.au/~dunn/ozcrashes/qld206.htm

Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey Fairford RIAT 2012

Over at his Airplane Geek’s blog David Vanderhoof’s  recent ‘Airplane of the Week’ was the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey.  There were two examples of the type at the RAF Fairford RIAT this year. Not a particularly impressive demo by all accounts. The transition phase seems to be far too laborious and it would be difficult to imagine this occurring anywhere near defensive ground fire. The venerable Chinook with its fast steep approach and touch-and-go was far more impressive. The death toll/accident rate suffered by the Osprey is a matter of record too. I’m told that the Japanese declined to have the type stationed on Japanese soil for this reason. Those are Rolls Royce engines by the way – so the aircraft obviously has something going for it -and a single engine can drive both props in case of an engine malfunction. Airshow photos by Nico Charpentier, click on the images for a larger view.

Bronco Demo Team crash - and some pics from last years shows

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-18793165

"We wanted to inform you that there was an incident on the 10th July 2012 at Kemble (Cotswold Airport, UK) concerning Tony (De Bruyn) and the Bronco. At approx. 15:00 in good flying conditions, Tony choose to take the opportunity to practise a standard display program. Unfortunately, shortly into the flight there was a problem and Tony and the Bronco had a crash landing from low altitude into the grass strip in front of the control tower.

The Bronco was destroyed on impact, but Tony managed to open the cockpit himself and was helped out by the fire crew. He was talking and moving all limbs and taken by helicopter to Franchay hospital in Bristol. He is presently in a stable condition with some burns and back injuries. Following on from his initial assessment he has subsequently had a successful operation on his back injury and is receiving treatment for his burns.

All the signs are for a positive full recovery; we will keep you updated.

Hereby we would like to thank the fire, rescue and hospital services for their professional assistance and care. Thank you to everyone for your help, support and kind wishes at this time.."

The Bronco Demo Team Released on 12th July 2012"

Best shots Fairford 2012 !

 ..Fairford 2012 was back to its best - but the weather was appalling, it rained continuously all day on the Friday and Saturday was very cloudy. Here's a selection of the best shots from the show courtesy airshow photographer 'extraordinaire' Nico Charpentier including a look at the immaculate South Korean 'Black Eagles'. Click on the pic to see the full image..

RAF types crash-landed during the Battle of France - Westfeldzug

Spitfire wreck photographed on Braye dune near Dunkirk in June 1940 and a couple of interesting shots of a belly-landed Fairey Battle - note the strange location of the roundel, apparently over-painted - perhaps as Allied forces retreated - and re-painted on the rear fuselage behind the codes- by the Germans for a few photos ?.. just a theory. I would love to hear any thoughts on this one....

Polish Fitters - Sukhoi Su 22 M tactical demo and MiG 29 at Florennes airshow June 24 2012

 Some nice shots from the Polish Sukhoi Su 22 M Fitters tactical demo and the Slovak MiG 29 display at Florennes airshow June 24 2012, pics courtesy of Nico Charpentier. Click on the images for the full version..

More of Nico's Florennes images

http://obteam.forumsactifs.net/t1272-florennes-airshow-2012