‘Keeping up’…well, just about! I’ve been very busy recently, as you shall see soon enough, and July was similarly so; the middle of the year always is.
In a first for me, I attended the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) at RAF Fairford at the beginning of the month. Whilst Friday was filled with torrential rain, the following two days were only showery, and allowed the majority of the air displays to go ahead, where many had been cancelled on the first day. This air show was a particularly interesting experience for me as there were so many international aircraft, and the sheer variety of the displays means that a picture snake can’t even begin to cover it. Even if I limit the output here to one image per aircraft that I hadn’t seen before, it’s still a lot. The thought that I’ll have to pick just one of them to represent this segment in the Gallery tab truly frightens me!
The theme of this year’s RIAT was ‘Skytanker’, and there were several air-to-air ‘refuelling’ displays- mock, of course, but most with drogues and booms extended. Right: One Panavia Tornado refuels another. Middle left: an Airbus Voyager formates with a McDonnell Douglas F-18 Hornet. Middle right: a Lockheed C-130 Hercules refuels a Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey. Bottom left: An Airbus A400 Atlas refuels two Panavia Tornadoes. Bottom right: An Airbus Voyager formates with a Saab Gripen.
There were also a number of international display teams in attendance, who all gave a number of fantastic performances. The Saudi Falcons, who operate BAE Hawks, are the aerobatic display team of the Royal Saudi Air Force. Their display was highly reminiscent of the Red Arrows, having been trained by ex team members. As they ran in from behind the crowd line, I managed to capture them overhead their accompanying Stratotanker (left). Fursan Al Emarat, the aerobatic display team of the United Arab Emirates Air Force And Air Defence, operate Aermacchi MB-339s, and gave an excellent display with their mix of four smoke colours (bottom left). Their routine was, I felt, the most varied, with a number of formations and moves which I hadn’t seen displayed before. Patrulla Águila, the aerobatic demonstration team of the Spanish Air And Space Force, fly Casa C-101 Aviojets, and also gave a great display with their unusual yellow smoke (bottom right).
Also in attendance were a pair of aircraft not previously seen in friendly formation, and probably not in such close proximity since 1945. A Messerschmitt 262 Schwalbe (below left) was parked beside a Gloster Meteor (below right), each the first jet aircraft to enter operational service on their respective sides of World War Two, making an unlikely scene on the ground which drew many viewers. Owned by Messerschmitt Stiftung, the Me 262 currently lives in Germany, whilst the Meteor is operated by Martin Baker and still used for some of their ejection seat tests. I timed my visit to the Meteor just right to see the Me 262 taxiing into position, and was even able to talk with the pilot briefly when he got out.
Another major feature of this year’s Air Tattoo was the celebration of the Italian Air Force’s centenary. A wide range of their aircraft, including trainers, fast jets, transports, and helicopters, were on static display on the ground, and their search and rescue air display was particularly inventive, as well as an excellent display of their abilities (below left). I also managed to capture a very good summary scene of the air show: an AMX International AMX A-11 Ghibli in front of the Red Arrows smoke trails, with a Tornado and some showgoers in the background (below right). Despite not being of my usually preferred style, it’s one of my favourite pictures of the show.
Among the other displays, a big highlight (literally!) was seeing a Boeing B-52 Stratofortress flying. After being cancelled on the first two days of the air show, it was finally able to do a very short display at the end of the final day, and I fought my way to the front of the crowd line to watch it land afterwards. Having to taxi back to its dispersal down the entire length of the runway into a heavy crosswind, it did a ‘crab walk’ taxi, where the undercarriage wheels rotate separately to the fuselage, and with such a large angle, it was a rare sight. Below left: The B-52 landing with a drogue drag parachute. Below right: The famous ‘crab walk’ taxi.
The international aspect was really the highlight of this air show for me, particularly seeing aircraft which the RAF has previously operated such as the Hawker Siddeley Harrier (below top middle) and the Tornado. The variety of colourful liveries and markings were also a bonus, particularly as the cloudy sky didn’t offer much in the way of an interesting backdrop!
Below: Top left: A German Army NH90 TTH. Top right: A Boeing Chinook. Middle left: A Finnish McDonnell Douglas F-18 Hornet taking off. Middle middle: An Airbus A400 Atlas taking off; I was particularly happy to notice in post-production that I had caught the propeller-tip adiabats! Middle right: The Red Arrows turn behind an American McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. Bottom left: A Saab Gripen. Bottom middle: An Italian Army Agusta Mangusta. Bottom right: A Finnish McDonnell Douglas F-18 Hornet.
My time at RIAT was studded with first sightings for a lot of aircraft- I would say the majority of the flying program- and defined by my ability to react quickly to the aircraft displaying, as well as the ever-changing order of events and inclement weather. None of these photos are from the Friday, when it rained torrentially the entire time, and I didn’t let my camera out of its drybag in my rucksack. However, I made the best of the last two days, as well as the departure day, and have a lot to show for it! I’ll definitely be returning next year, and hoping for an even more diverse range of displays.
Left: a Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning pops out of some low cloud whilst departing on the Monday after the air show.
I’ve merged two brief encounters at North Weald for this section, as both shared many limiting factors. As well as the usual task of shooting a fast-moving subject, a large challenge of this airfield is the lack of plain backgrounds. Although it is home to aircraft such as the North American P-51D Mustang and Folland Gnat which I saw, among many other historic aircraft, the perimeter is crowded with buildings, other aircraft, and lots and lots of permanently parked cars and other vehicles. It’s very annoying, but does make getting a good picture without any of those even more satisfying.
The Mustang, 44-72035 ‘Tall In The Saddle’ is part of the Hangar 11 Collection, which is owned and operated by Peter Teichman. Apart from my love of the type, this aircraft is very distinctive with it’s red nose and tail, the scheme of the Tuskegee Airmen squadron if first flew with. The airframe still has battle scars and bullet holes today! As I caught it right after emerging from the hangar and before starting up, that at least provided a good background for some initial shots. After that, there were a small handful of moments before it took off and disappeared over the horizon.
The Gnat had the very appropriate registration of G-FRCE, though was previously XS104 whilst in RAF service. It also had a red paint scheme, though did more flying in the overhead of the airfield and the circuit than the Mustang, giving a number of good aerial opportunities. The silhouette was good to capture against some approaching inclement clouds, though for an as yet undetermined reason, not very much of the red colour survived. It’s something that I’ll have to look into in a future slack moment- if one ever comes…!
A brief visit to Greenwich Park gave me an opportunity to overlook London from the hill on which the Prime Meridian sits. The vista afforded to me was quite unexpected! As shown on the left below, it stretches all the way over the Queen’s House and the Old Royal Naval College to Canary Wharf in the middle, from the high-rise of the City on the left, including the Walkie-Talkie and the Gherkin buildings, to Greenwich Power Station on the right and, partially in shot, the O2. The picture on the right below is from the bottom of the same hill, looking up to one of the old telescope domes and Flamsteed House. I liked how both of these pictures also caught park-goers in freeze-frame, capturing that moment in time with a human aspect, not just landmarks.
I also spent a few moments in Cambridge. There was a lot of hopping about this month! I pitched up on Garret Hostel bridge and watched for almost an hour as punts came and went below me. My aim was to capture a very picturesque side of the university town, with the stereotypical River Cam, punts, bridges, and aged college buildings. I did achieve this, even though King’s College chapel is still partially under covered scaffolding, as the ever changing formations of punts offered a number of different compositions, and I just had to wait for them to line up with each other and their surroundings.
A lot of travel means that I also have a few good incidental shots. Overall a very busy month gave me lots of opportunities for practicing my photography in a number of different settings, and I now can’t wait to get back to RIAT next year! Also, as my visits to North Weald may become more frequent, I’ll hopefully get to know some more of the aircraft that live there.
Top left: Some highly developed cumulus clouds in a clear blue sky. Top right: A Red Admiral butterfly resting on a speckled leaf. Bottom left: A pink rose captured after a rain shower. Bottom right: A night-time landscape caught in colour. 10s, f/8, ISO 5000.
