plane buffs

[Bill B]

This morning I was touring SoCal air spaces using the ADS-B flight information website and found NASA's U-2 DragonLady on the "scope".  Looks like it was on the ground preparing for a flight.  Pretty cool, at least in my book. Here's a screen shot from ADS-B and Google maps. The map screen shot is a satellite shot of the airport in Palmdale that's pretty close to Edward's Air force base.

[Keta]

Several years ago we had a SR-71 take off from the airbase and fly over our house lower than 200'.  We are 1 mile north of the airstrip.

[MarkT]

You can see a B-2 at the Northrup Grumman plant there at Palmdale and several B-52's and B-1's at Edwards on google maps!

[Crab Pot]

I see and HEAR U-2's everyday at work.

And T-38's & K-135's.

The occasional transient C-5, C-17, KC-10, from Travis.

And on a good day transient F-15, F-16, and even a Navy F-18 every now and then.

GO NAVY

I work at Beale Air Force Base in the Civil Engineering Squadron as a defense contractor.

Any of you local guys ever want to get a U-2 chase car ride I can hook you up!

Steve

[Keta]

We lived on the bluff above the American River in Orangevale in the early 60's and had B-52s strafe us often.  I think they were flying out of Mather AFB.  Where did the Orangavle airport go to, it looks like houses now.

[Bill B]

Years ago a friend and I were riding dirt bikes in the desert north of Edward's AFB and saw a B-2 flying low enough for us to see the seams on the underbelly.   It was the usual windy day and 8 believe they were testing be a use a B-2 had crashed 8n Kansas during windy weather.  Could be wrong.  What was impressive also, were the two F-16's flying chase.  Biĺl

[Brewcrafter]

You can see a B-2 at the Northrup Grumman plant there at Palmdale and several B-52's and B-1's at Edwards on google maps!

Mark - That "B-2" in Palmdale is actually the "next-gen" B-21 Raider that took it's initial test flight in November of this year. 
And I haven't looked in awhile but if you hit Google Earth for Whiteman AFB and zoom in really close, about 1/2 down the runway you can still see the B-2 that Lee refers to that ran off the runway.  I'm sure it is long gone but they only refresh those photos every so often... - john

[foakes]

Here is the B-2 that John & Lee were referring to that ran off the runway at Whiteman AFB, in Missouri.

Best, Fred

[happyhooker]

Lived in Tucson after 'Nam & for a couple weeks straight, I saw I don't know how many B-52s flying in to Davis Monthan.  A buddy had flown in those babies during the war & knew all the models, etc. coming thru.  Heading to the "boneyard" in the desert.

Frank

[Keta]

We are just north of a Oregon Airguard base and have several friends that are stationed or work there.  We get free F-15 flyovers weekly, often right over the house but more often 400-800 feet west of us in the actual flight path.

[El Pescador]

I had the distinct honor of spending 2 days and ONE night on the USS Ronald Reagan Air Craft Carrier in late 2006.

Here is an F-18 landing @ 160 mph 30 feet off my left shoulder.  How cool is that???



For those of you asking, the Naval Aviator tail hooked the 1st wire.

Very cool.

Wayne

[Dominick]

Jueno, that looks like fun. the closest I get to aviation is YouTube.    Dominick

[Keta]

It is very cool.

[Crab Pot]

Wayne,

I served 4 years on the USS Ranger CVA-61, Air Department, V-1 Division, Crash and Salvage.

I was on the first ever deployment, for Ranger, with F-18's in 1986.

We also had F-14's which were being phased out.

I had six salvages in four years including two barricade arrestments.

There are guys who career in the Navy and never seen a single barricade catch.

I also drove the flight deck fire truck, the P-16.

We'd tell all the lady's back in San Diego we were P-16 pilots!

Those were good times.

During my last San Deigo tuna trip in August the Reagan paid us a visit by San Clemente Island.

Steve

PS:

You know how you can tell when your in the presence of a Naval Aviator?

They'll tell you...

[day0ne]

Years ago, we were wandering around Ellington Field near Houston waiting to meet someone. The guy we met took us into a NASA hanger and showed us the plane they had modified to train shuttle pilots. It was some cargo plane that they had chopped the wings short and made all sorts of mods so that it flew like a rock (or a shuttle). It may have been an early attempt as I don't believe it was a modified Gulfstream. The shuttle cockpit was also duplicated on the plane. There was also some of what appeared to be high altitude NASA gliders that were neat.  There was all kinds of neat NASA stuff out there.