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Belgian F16's low level?...Surely not!
When I heard that three Belgian F16's were flying
into RAF Valley to stay for a few days, I would of
put money on it that they would not fly low level,
not to mention through the loop. They were due in on
the Tuesday (2nd of August) and fly out on the 4th.
I decided to have both the Wednesday and Thursday up
the hills just in case we would get lucky. On the
Thursday morning I set up camp on Cad East. The
weather was pretty poor, low cloud with the
possibility of rain but we decided to hang around.
We'd heard that they were due to fly out at 11am and
at 10.30 we picked them up on the scanner. We
thought we heard them say that they were flying in
formation to RAF Marham so it looked as though there
was no chance of us getting them low level. A phone
call a few minutes later seemed to confirm this so
we decided to head down and call it a day. After we
packed our gear in the car we headed down the road
for a few miles when I noticed a missed call off a
friend that was up on the Bwlch. We pulled over and
gave them a ring, what we were told was that the one
F16 had departed but the other two were taking off
at 12pm and hoping to fly through the loop before
heading home.The time was now 11.50am, we had ten minutes to
drive nearly 5 miles to where we just came from, get
our gear and climb back up the hill. We managed it
in record time, luckily there's very little hiking
to do on Cad East. We unpacked our gear, caught our
breath and not three minutes later caught sight of
two F16's fly in towards us from Dolgellau. They
looked to be high but both dropped in making for
some land locked shots. A few minutes later they
appeared again this time much lower and in a tight
formation. Although the light wasn't brilliant I
really can't complain, the first time I've ever shot
F16's low level :-) |
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Royal International Air Tattoo 2011
My first and probably last airshow of the 2011,
where does the time go? I headed down to Fairford on
the 15th of July to photograph some of the arrivals
that would be taking part in this years show. I met
up with a few friends at Rhymes farm which is
located at the opposite side to the main viewing
area. The one thing I wanted to see was the USAF A10
Warthog display and it didn't disappoint. The day
was filled with F16's, Tornado's, Rafales plus many
more movements. I was hoping to be at RIAT for the
Saturday show but the weather forecast looked a
little unsettled so I decided to head home and
return on the Monday (18th) for the departures. I
spent Monday inside the main Park and View enclosure
on the East side. Although we got there for 6am
there were many already queuing at the gate. At
7.30am the gates were opened and we set up camp
ready for the first aircraft to taxi down. Things
started to move at around 8.30am and it was non stop
until gone 2.30pm. We packed up not long after as
most of the tasty stuff had left so it was back to
the car for the 180 mile journey home. |
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Latest trips to the Mach Loop
Although things have seemed pretty quiet lately
around the Mach Loop I've been extremely fortunate
to photograph some great flying from the likes of
USAF F-15E's, RAF Typhoons plus the Warton camo RSAF
Tornado IDS. The 19th of May was spent on the top
ledge of the Bwlch, its a location I'm not that keen
on but it has a great height advantage to some of
the other locations so anything that comes through
high can usually be land locked. Our day started
very early with a nice pass from a 17sqn Eurofighter
Typhoon, my first for 2011. It wasn't long before a
pair of USAF F-15E Strike Eagles from RAF Lakenheath
came screaming around the corner only to turn the
wrong way and miss our location.....bummer! An
MC-130 appeared not long after and gave two lovely
passes in superb light, they're becoming a regular
visitor lately. Things slowed up during the
afternoon and just as we thought our day was over we
were blessed by the appearance of another two
F15E's, this time both were spot on with their
flying and came around twice. |
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On the 9th and 14th of June I perched myself up on
Cad West., a location I dearly love. I'd heard that
the camo Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) Tornado IDS
from Warton was going to be through mid afternoon on
a test flight. Fingers were crossed that we'd get
another chance photographing her as I'd not seen it
since January 2011. At 14:45 we caught sight of a
swept wing Tornado coming straight in
from Bala, was this the Saudi camo? As it got closer
it was plain to see that it was what we'd been
waiting for. A fantastic fully swept wing run
through Cad was an awesome sight and sound. Three
minutes later out they popped from the Bwlch Exit,
still in the swept wing position. Just as they got
to us the pilot did a superb 'pull out' manoeuvre
and rocketed skywards before heading back towards
Bala.
On the 14th of June I arrived back up Cad West. I
didn't arrive until 3pm but it wasn't long before
the Boscombe Alpha Jet appeared, the first time I'd
seen it for some time. The next hour or so saw a
couple of Hawk passes one being the new T2. At 17:15 we
caught sight of a Typhoon heading our way from Bala.
It turned out to be a Warton aircraft and flown by
the same pilot as the Saudi Tornado we'd had the
week before. He came past in the usual 'Warton'
style, one normal run then a fantastic 'pull up'
manoeuvre on his second pass....brilliant! |
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F15E's from Lakenheath - May 2011
On the 6th of May 2011 I made my way over to RAF
Lakenheath where the F-15E Strike Eagles are based.
I'd been kindly invited a while ago by Guy Leach who
works on the 48th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron
maintaining the E-models and keeps them flying. I'd photographed
him going through the Mach Loop in
the back of an F-15E back in 2009. It was my first time at Lakenheath and
I was surprised in just how big the base was'
although according to Guy it was relatively small
compared to others. It
holds over 50 F15's, they have the C, D and E model
but it was the E's I'd gone to see. I've
photographed many of these aircraft low level in the
past but was amazed in just how big they are close
up. We were shown around the whole aircraft,
underneath, on top, you name it we looked at it. It
was a Friday so there was very little flying in the
afternoon, this worked out a treat for us as all the
aircraft were on base, many of them on the pan but a
few still sitting in their hangars. I must admit I
was like a kid in a sweet shop, I just wanted to
photograph everything. We were very lucky with the
weather too, the morning started a little dull but
the afternoon was glorious with unbroken sunshine.
RAF Lakenheath is a Royal Air Force Military Airbase
near Lakenheath in Suffolk. Although its an RAF
station it hosts the United States Air Force units
and personnel. The host wing is the 48th Fighter
Wing (48 FW), also known as the Liberty Wing. The
48th Fighter Wing at RAF Lakenheath is the Statue of
Liberty Wing, the only USAF wing with both a number
and a name. Tactical squadrons of the 48th
operations group are the 492d Fighter Squadron
(F15E), 493d Fighter Squadron (F15C/D) and 494th
Fighter Squadron (F15E). |
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RAF Mildenhall May
6th 2011
After we'd left Lakenheath we decided to head over
to RAF Mildenhall for an hour which was only a
stones throw away. We got there to find a KC-135
performing touch and goes and a MC-130 Hercules
taxiing out before he took off only to come around a
couple of times before landing. The highlight and
catch of the day at Mildenhall was a C5 Galaxy which
was preparing itself for take-off. This is one big
aircraft and the first time I'd seen one on the
ground. He spooled up the four engines and headed
down the runway before taking off. |
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Mach Loop 25/28th
March 2011
Its been a couple of months since I was last out in
the hills so thought it was about time I paid a
visit. On the 25th I decided to head to the Snakepit
which is located a little further down from Cad
East. With the recent events in Libya I didn't know
whether we would get to see much activity but things
kicked off early when a 19Sqn Hawk from RAF Valley
turned up at 8.30am. Things looked promising when a
few Hawks from 208Sqn started to come through in
pairs. The weather was fantastic, it felt more like
June than March. Throughout the morning we had many
more Hawks from 208Sqn, it was turning into a Hawk
fest and certainly one of the busiest mornings I've
ever had in the loop. At 11am we were almost caught
out by a Hercules C-130 as it headed in from
Dolgellau, luckily these don't fly that fast. The
rest of the day was made up by a few more Hawks,
unfortunately we didn't get to see any frontliner
aircraft but we couldn't really complain, we still
had a great day.
The 28th saw me back at the Snakepit. The sun was
out yet again and our fingers were crossed that we'd
have another good day. A pair of 19Sqn Hawks came
through at around 8.30am, was this going to be
another Hawk fest? A couple more Hawks made an
appearance, one being a T2 but things still seemed
very slow. Just before 1pm a Hercules C-130 came in
from Dolgellau and f headed down over Tal-Y-Llun
lake and out to see. We had nothing else through for
a while so it was time to sit back, relax and
enjoy the sun. At 2pm something was seen coming out
of the Bwlch which was heading our way. Once they
got closer it became clear that a pair of Extra 300L
aerobatic prop planes were flying in a nice tight
formation. As they came past us the second aircraft
decided to put on the smoke which looked superb as
they headed down the Cad pass, turning at Corris
Corner. Around 10 minutes later they appeared again
from the Bwlch and headed in towards us. Although
these were not military aircraft they were still
great fun to photograph. We ended up with a couple
more Hawks before we all decided to pack up and call
it a day. Another enjoyable day but the lack of
frontliners was certainly felt.
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RNAS Culdrose -
March 11, 2011
Another
aircraft to be retired from service are the 750 Sqn
Jetstreams. These are based at RNAS Culdrose in
Cornwall and have been in service for over 40 years.
750 Squadron conducts flying training in the
Jetstream T Mk2, a radar equipped version of the
civilian Series 200 Jetstream. The aircraft is
powered by two Turbomeca Astazou 16D turbo-prop
engines, giving a maximum speed of 214 knots at sea
level and a service ceiling of 25,000 feet. The
minimum crew is one pilot and an observer, but there
is a third crew seat in the cockpit and two
radar/navigation consoles on the right hand side of
the cabin from where the students conduct most of
their training. Three additional seats are also
available, giving the aircraft a normal passenger
capacity of six. Combined with the aircraft's four
hour endurance and 1000 mile range, this makes it a
useful personnel carrier.
My day started at 2.30am, another early start as its
a 350 mile trip to Culdrose from home. We were
fortunate to be able to photograph from the main
tower, a little extra height always helps. The
Jetstreams took off in a 6 ship formation at 10am
where they would disappear for a couple of hours
whilst they performed a few fly-by's for some local
venues. This gave us a chance to meet some of the
crew and to have a closer look in the hangars. Once
the Jetstreams arrived back we took some final shots
of them taxiing in and ended our day photographing
some of the Merlin and Sea King helicopters. |
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Cottesmore Harriers -
March 1st 2011
Just as I thought I'd never get to photograph a
Harrier again I was surprised to find that an ex
Harrier pilot was organising a photo shoot for a
limited number of photographers at RAF Cottesmore. I
couldn't resist another chance to photograph these
aircraft so I had my name down straight away.
The weather didn't look as if it was going to be
wall to wall sunshine (anything but) but it didn't
stop me from setting out at 3.30am for the 215 mile
trip. After picking up a couple of friends on the
way we arrived at around 8am and met up with a few
other mates. The photo shoot wasn't until 12pm so we
had plenty of time to grab a bite to eat and take in
some of the sights around the area. It wasn't the
same being at Cottesmore and not hearing the sound
of
Rolls-Royce Pegasus
turbofans both in the air and on the runway.
After having our morning breakfast in what can only be
described as an oversized portaloo we grabbed our gear
and headed off to the main gates. Once all cars had
formed a queue we were allowed in, driving past the
static GR3 that now looks a little worse for wear. Once we
parked up we were met by
Flt lt Jim
Calvert
who had organised the event. After a quick chat we
headed over to where they had parked up a few Harriers. They had parked the four special
tail Harriers on the pan, one being the newly painted camo scheme. Another Harrier had been set up which gave
us the opportunity to sit in the cockpit and take some
photographs.
The organisers had placed some raised platforms so
that we get some different angles on the aircraft,
this was a huge bonus. As the weather was a little
gloomy I decided to use my flash. It would be a
gamble as I've not used much flash in the past but I
was pleased with the results. I took two shots of
everything, one using flash and one without, I could
then blend these two shots together in PS to get the
desired result. I tried to get as many different
angles as possible, I had an idea what sort of thing
I was looking for but when it came down to it I
think the excitement took over. Once we'd finished
it was time to head over to one of the hangars for a
cup of tea and a chat with many of the Air crew.
Everybody was extremely friendly and were more than
happy to answer any questions that were thrown at
them.
We packed up at around 3pm and headed off back home
knowing that we'd probably never photograph a
Harrier again. The Harrier had been in service for
over 40 years.
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20th
January 2011 - Bwlch Exit (Mach Loop)
Well I wasn't going
to come out again so soon after having such a great
day on the 19th but with the weather forecasting
sunshine all day I just couldn't resist. Decided to
head back to the Bwlch Exit as the light is the best
all day this time of the year. With the news that
the previous day had been so good I expected a lot
of togs to be out. I set off at 6am and arrived at
the Bwlch car park at around 7am. It wasn't long
before a few other cars turned up so we got kitted
up and took the trek up the hill. I came out again
with my D3 and 600mm, I'm using this setup more and
more lately, its simply fantastic. The weather was
glorious, there was some low mist hanging around
Bala but everything else was crystal clear with
hardly a cloud in the sky.
It was another slow start to the day with the first
movement being a very high Hawk T1 climbing out from
the Bwlch at 11.20am. He came around again and
although a little lower this time he was still too
high to get any good photos. It wasn't long after
that we heard a Chinook in the distance. We had
heard that there was going to be one going to the
old Power Station at Trawsfynydd to do a quick touch
and go, and as they normally use the Bwlch route when
heading out that way we knew we'd get lucky.
After the Chinook we had quite a few Hawk movements
between 11.50 and 14.20, one being the 2010 display
Hawk. At 14.29 we had a great pass by a Tornado GR4
that came out from the Bwlch and headed south
towards Cad, this really lifted our spirits. Not
long after that we had another Tornado GR4 at 14.34,
this time the crew pulled the wings back to their 67
degree angle (swept wing) and made a beautiful pass
heading around towards Cad. We heard the Tornado
F3's on the scanner stating they were heading to
Wales, could we be lucky again?
We didn't have long to wait before our next visitor,
this time being an Alpha Jet from Boscombe at 15.01.
The Alpha Jet hasn't been around the loop for a
while so it was a welcomed sight. We were still
waiting to see if the F3's would make an appearance
but it wasn't looking good. Not long after the Alpha
Jet had gone through we had a Hawk T1 at 15.03 which
turned right and headed for Bala. It looked like it
was going to be another Tornado day when another
Tornado GR4 appeared from the Bwlch at 15.32 and
headed around to Cad. Things went quiet after that,
the light started to go and we knew there was no
chance of the F3's paying us a visit. we all RTB'd
at 16.25, ah well :-) |
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19th
January 2011 - Bwlch Exit
My first outing in
2011. Although the weather forecast looked as if the
whole of Wales would be covered in fog I still
decided to head out to the Bwlch Exit in the Mach
Loop. I set off off at 6.30am, although still dark
the stars were out and there didn't seem to be any
sign of mist never mind fog. I arrived up the Bwlch
at around 7.30am and was greeted by some fellow
photographers who had also taken the gamble and
ignored the forecast. We climbed to the top of the
Bwlch Exit and were greeted by crystal clear skies
and a fantastic sunrise, things looked promising. I
pitched my beloved pop-up tent and got the D3 and
600mm out ready for the days offering.
The day started pretty slow, the weather and light
were perfect and for once there wasn't even a breeze
and it felt more like June than January. Things got
really exciting when the first shout of "INCOMING!!"
was heard at 11.24am and out pooped two 2sqn Tornado
GR4's which flew straight past the Bwlch Exit and
headed around to Cad.
We didn't have to wait long before our next aircraft
came through. At 11.40am a BAe Hawk T1 from RAF
Valley came in from the Bwlch, flew past us and
banked right towards Bala. At 12.15pm we caught
sight of a 31sqn Tornado GR4 head in from Dinas
only to pull out before it reached us at the Bwlch
Exit, luckily he came around again and gave us
a lovely pass before heading left towards Cad.
Between 12.55 and 13.30 we had another four Hawk
T1's from both 19sqn and 208sqn.
At 13.37 a Hercules C-130 from RAF Lynham flew past
the Bwlch Exit and headed south through Cad, things
were getting better and better :-)
Just before 14.00 we could hear the distinct sound of a
Chinook helicopter in the distance. These can be heard
when they're miles away but we knew we had a chance of
them coming through. As helicopters usually go through
the loop very low (around 100ft) I decided to dash down
the hill before they appeared. As I was heading down the
hill I could hear them getting closer and closer so it
was time to catch my breath and prepare for them to
show. No sooner had I got myself sorted when two
Chinooks appeared really low as if they were hugging the
main road below. They flew straight on and headed out
towards Dolgellau and Barmouth.
A few more Hawks filled the gap between 14.30 and 15.30
but at 15.39 we were all shocked when a 111sqn Tornado
F3 from RAF Leuchars hurtled in from the Bwlch being
chased by a Hawk T1. The F3 is a very rare aircraft to
be seen around the loop as they are based in Scotland
but it was a welcomed sight as these will no longer be a
part of our RAF fleet of frontliner aircraft after March
2011. Just as we thought our day couldn't get any better
what should come through at 15.49 but the RSAF (Royal
Saudi Air Force) Tornado IDS in its fantastic Camo paint
scheme. She came around again at 15.53 before heading up
towards Bala and back to Warton where she's based. I've
wanted to photograph that aircraft for a very long time
and it couldn't of come at a better time as the light
was golden. This was probably the best day I've spent up
the loop in over three years. |
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10th November 2010 - RAF Cottesmore
With the sad news that our fleet of Harrier aircraft
were going to be retired from our fleet of frontliner
aircraft I just had to make a trip to RAF Cottesmore in
Rutland. I tried to go a month or so before but the
weather had taken a turn for the worse so things were
put on hold. Luckily the weather had improved a great
deal by November so I packed all my camera gear and
headed off for the 220 mile journey. I started out at
3.30am and arrived at 7.30am after having a hassle free
drive (well I say hassle free, I ended up with a huge
crack along my windscreen due to a stone on the M54).
Anyway, I parked up and had a bite to eat and a nice cup
of coffee whilst waiting for a few close friends to arrive.
As Cottesmore is only good for photography at the
'22' end of the runway you really need the wind to come
from the West. Unfortunately according to the wind sock
the wind was coming from an Easterly direction (oh,
crap). The forecast had said that the wind direction
should change during the morning so my fingers were
firmly crossed.
Everybody had arrived by 8.30am so we took a walk along
the fence line down towards the '22' end of the runway.
The weather was superb with hardly any cloud in the sky
and just a gentle breeze (still coming from the East).
By 9.30am we heard the sound of jets spooling up their
engines. We could see a few Harriers sitting on the pan
and the chap in his 4x4 was checking the runway to see
if everything was clear. Unfortunately their was no
caravan down at the '22' end which meant they were going
to come in from the opposite end (d'oh). It wasn't long
before we saw the first jet lift off going right above
our heads, no chance for any good photograph
At this point my heart started to sink, was a round trip
of nearly 450 miles a complete waste of time? Anyway, we
decided to stick it out even though a few people decided
to pack up and go home. We spent most of the morning
watching Harriers fly around at around 1000ft when all
of a sudden the Caravan drove down and parked at our end
of the runway. It wasn't long before we had our first
Harrier GR9 taxi down towards us, the pilot giving us a
nice wave as she went past. |
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As the day went on we had many movements from both the
Harrier GR9's and T12's. The sun was shining and we
couldn't of asked for a better day. All the pilots put
on a great show, we had them hovering right above our
heads at around 100ft which although deafening was a
great experience and showed just what these fantastic
aircraft are capable of.
With the late afternoon sun starting to set it made for
some great light and photographs. Many of the late
Harriers were making touch and goes and hovering in the
one spot for some time which allowed us to get the shots
we were after. At around 5.00pm the light was starting
to disappear and the final Harriers were coming in to
land. It was at this point I realised that these were
probably the last Harriers I'll ever see fly again, a
very sad thought which stuck with me for the rest of the
day. We packed up at around 5.30pm after the last
aircraft had landed. You could hear a pin drop, nobody
was talking, the aircraft had shut their engines down
and it was the end of an era for me.
It was a long drive home, especially since I took a
wrong turn thanks to my Sat Nav which added a good hour
onto my journey but it was well worth it. We had a
fantastic day which will never be forgotten. I've lived
in Wales all of my life and have seen and heard the
Harriers fly low level on a daily basis, they will be
surely missed by many.
A big thanks to all the crew that gave us plenty of
waves and thumbs up on the day.
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can call me on 07817 905537
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