THUNDER OVER MICHIGAN 2016

[Dizzle729]

MiG-17PF From Photo Pit Friday or Bomber Club Saturday

These are great shots!

I sat in the bomber club on Saturday as well. Great seats, was really impressed with the whole set up. Its a shame the Hinds didn't make it in but still a really good show. Thought the air performances were really entertaining this year.

[kennsmithf2g]

Thanks for the pictures! You had sexy light for the Hun -- I love sunlit airplanes in front of stormy skies. That's Cutter's airplane, right? Is that the only one flying?

I haven't seen Dean since he was racing his Mustang. I saw a picture of him somewhere recently and literally didn't recognize him. I think I'm getting old...

Yes, that was Cutter's F-100.

Here are a few more from Friday's Photo Pit or Saturday's Bomber Club....took a while to get thru to pick out my better shots.

[Boeing666]

So 3 different F-18s went up Friday? I had been too busy to check the tail numbers to confirm, but that is awesome since I haven't even really looked at my photos yet.

Xray - that F-14 that buzzed you had to have been flown by Dale "Snort" Snodgrass who flew F-14 demos for years into the 90s at air shows before he started flying the air show circuit retired in various aircraft such as the P-51, F-86 and various other birds, he was also part of a civilian jet team based out of Lakeland Florida known as the Black Diamond Jet Team made up of a few ex Blue Angel and Thunderbirds pilots that flew a mix of L39s, T-33s and Mig-17s, which Snort flew each of as a solo pilot before the team disbanded and they went on to form Draken Intl based out of Lakeland, a gvt contractor with A-4s, Mig 21s, MB-339s and I think some F-5s.


Most of the people that I see on Ecorse that I talked to with cameras on Sunday said that they went in the show on Saturday. They are doing it for the same reason as me - just get the planes from a different angle instead of the exact same angles as you would if you went back on Sunday. I go to a lot of airshows in Michigan area in the summer and Florida in the fall and winter months and I don't go inside any airshows 2 days in a row with the exception of Sun N Fun, which has much different acts each days of that week long scaled down Osh Kosh type show.

I saw 3-4 different ice cream trucks go down Ecorse selling ice cream on Sunday with lines of people getting ice cream. I think if you get a couple Rosies on the back of an old Army jeep with buckets you'd be surprised what you could make on Ecorse.

[kennsmithf2g]

I looked at my pictures from Friday of the F/A 18 Flights

F/A-18F #156 with #6 and Kuss on it's wing as a memorial to Blue Angel Captain Jeff Kuss Flew at 2:00 and 3:30
F/A-18E #252 flew about 2:40

From the photo pit on Friday:

F/A-18E #252 2:40 flight


F/A-18F #156 2:00 Flight




F/A-18F #156 3:30 flight



The time on my camera was off by 12 hours so the time stamp shows as AM on 8/20 instead of PM om 8/19

F/A18E #250 taken on Saturday on the ramp:

More here: https://kennsmithf2g.smugmug.com/photos ... Key=hfwDJk

[Boeing666]

Saturday must have been 252 because I don't remember the #6 Kuss on the wings

[BK]

Saturday must have been 252 because I don't remember the #6 Kuss on the wings

Saturday was F/A-18F #156 with "6 Kuss" on it's wings. Sunday was F/A-18E #252.

[kennsmithf2g]

Saturday from the Bomber Club

[Xray]

So 3 different F-18s went up Friday? I had been too busy to check the tail numbers to confirm, but that is awesome since I haven't even really looked at my photos yet.

Xray - that F-14 that buzzed you had to have been flown by Dale "Snort" Snodgrass who flew F-14 demos for years into the 90s at air shows before he started flying the air show circuit retired in various aircraft such as the P-51, F-86 and various other birds, he was also part of a civilian jet team based out of Lakeland Florida known as the Black Diamond Jet Team made up of a few ex Blue Angel and Thunderbirds pilots that flew a mix of L39s, T-33s and Mig-17s, which Snort flew each of as a solo pilot before the team disbanded and they went on to form Draken Intl based out of Lakeland, a gvt contractor with A-4s, Mig 21s, MB-339s and I think some F-5s.

Could have been Snort who knows, these buzz jobs happened at Selfridge when they used to host Wolverine Flag, sort of like a mini Red Flag type operation that lasted a few days.

Incredible, far, far better than any airshow. Last one was probably 15/20 years ago, I went to 2 of them and they had dozens of fighters, everything in the inventory at the time including Phantoms, F-14's, F-15's, A-6, F-111's, Harriers, AWACS, Tornados from Europe and more. Just non stop action from dawn to dusk, and many would buzz the field and do multiple approaches before landing.
The F-14 was doing a touch and go, was watching him head towards me and I was thinking, Ok, pull up ,,, Nose up a bit, C,mon, pull up .... After a certain point I knew he was going to very very low over my head, he was pouring it on but just didn't seem to want to get his nose up until he passed me, whereupon he did much the same as the F-18 and pitched straight up.
I estimate he was 25ft or less over my head, Phantom even less. Also saw [heard] an F-15 mess up and go supersonic, only the 2nd time in my life that I had the pleasure of hearing a sonic boom.

[Neal Nurmi]

Kennsmith -- Thanks for the F100 pictures! What a great looking airplane. It and the F86 make anything modern (except maybe the F15) look like grey lumps. The F-35 is embarrassingly ugly and the F-22 not far behind.

And before I get flamed I'm just talking about looks, not capability. Though everybody I know who's ever flown the F-86 says it was the best flying jet fighter ever.

[kennsmithf2g]

US Air Force Legacy Flight either from Friday Photo Pit or Saturday Bomber Club

[Xray]

I think the F-22 looks reasonable attractive and mean, though I think the F-23 was superior in both regards, and also more innovative.

F-35 does look kinda fugly, probably be more impressive in person though.

I remember as a kid when F-100's were based at Selfridge, saw them alot along with F-106's. All OD, worn out Vietnam veterans and didn't care for them back then, but nice to see one in the air now.
106 probably one of the most attractive fighters ever. Then they retired both and went all Phantom for a while which was Ok with me, then Phantoms and A-7's, one of the dumpiest looking jets ever. Went all F-16 for few years, and currently flying A-10's.