Aircraft, Glider and Balloon Pics - Anything real, military or civil, that flies!

[mbauer]

The UH60 must be from a guard unit. Doing some kind of testing with a paint job like that!

Much as I would like to fly a helicopter again, would have to think real hard about flying that egg beater style.

AWESOME Photos!

Mike

[whulsey]

There were several of the UH60s there. From the AZ state flag decal would say they're AZ National Guard pressed into water drop duty. Imagine the paint is just for visibility and id. Last week we had around 5 major fires burning including 2 north of here that merged into one a few days ago and has had US60 to northeast AZ and into New Mexico closed down for a week now.

[murphyaa]

I've been following a few of the fire reports around here, and yeah, the orange paint is something all National Guard eggbeaters are wearing while fighting fires.

[Kevin WS]

Great pics - thank you! A very interesting selection and nicely captured.

That was a worthwhile outing!

[Kevin WS]

An interesting plane taken two weeks ago while spraying bananas.

It's a Thrush S2R-H80. This is a variant of the Thrush/Turbo Thrush series and is powered by the 800 hp General Electric H80 turbine.

It is sold by Thrush as the Thrush 510G (a hopper of 510 gallons + a GE engine).

[Isaac]

Crop dusters in the morning is what got me into aviation as a child. Love the low level swoops and sharp banks of the Piper Pawnee back in the 60's.

However, it's been many years since I purchased any food that is sprayed or chemically treated. All poison. A pity.


I know this plane well as my company ( GE ) makes the engine for this plane. It is based on the former Czech Walter engine ( similar in layout to the Canadian PT-6 turboprop ).


Isaac

[Isaac]

Originally Posted by Don Boose

Thanks for these images, Mike!

.................

We heard aircraft engines and saw, off to our right, three C-123s in formation over the tree line heading south. A few kilometers south of us they made a wide shallow turn to the left, dropped down to just above the trees, and began spraying Agent Orange.


Don

Don

Back then, no one really thought much about Agent Orange or any other chemical spraying. Defoliants never win battles or wars. Militaries around the world even today fail to understand the long term lingering effects on humans for generations.

Isaac

[Don Boose]

Isaac - As I mentioned in the post you quoted from, that mission was immediately deadly for the pilot of the lead aircraft. The Agent Orange took longer for its insidious work.

Kevin - I had no knowledge of this (to my eye) strange-looking airplane. Thanks for the post.

Don

[mbauer]

Some photos as I was moving snow, then chipping ice as the clouds went away.

Short Skyvans, C46 Commandos and my airplane. A few closeups and then some more as I was Taxiing out for fuel. $5.81 per gal for avgas.....
















Plan to post more photos of flight on other things we do and make. Today was a great day for flying once the plane was freed from the Ice Chocks!

Mike

[mbauer]

Waiting to refuel here is a photo of the C46's, taken from my waiting to refuel cockpit:


Now here is the Noseart photo, should have zoomed more. Dumbo actually has a Walt Disney Dumbo and the Hot Stuff is a devil with pitch fork. These are actual noseart from WWII when both of these flew the hump. A friend of mine flies them, in the back ground is MT Redoubt a volcano, last went off in 2009!


Now you can see my footprints in the snow as I'm getting ready to crank up and go fly for the second time today 24 JAN 2021:


If anybody is interested. That is a 12:30 pm High Noon sun. Doesn't clear the horizon very much, but we are already gaining a couple of minutes of more sun per day, over 20-mintes in 10-days.

Mike