Thunder Over Michigan 2010

[AIRIC]

[Roger Cain]

a lower angle Eric, and I think you might have been able to blend the C-47 with the Yaks tail for an interesting shot.

[Canso42]

Lots of great photos there, gang! WIXerGreg, Steve S. and I are in your photo of Thunderbird B-17. We both have out backs to the camera but we were working tours at the time. Im right behind the #2 prop blade in the blue Lone Star shirt and Steve S is to my imediate left next to the sign.
rcaf_100, we were probably next to each other at the fence shooting.
Wish I'd gotten to meet more WIXers but I duty called. Roger Cain came by Thunderbird Sunday a.m. and we chatted a bit. Bomber Flight was also around the bomber line.

Special thanks to Steve S for generously letting me use his 70-300mm zoom lens Sunday, to Greg Morehead of WD for showing me some techniques with my camera and to my crew mate Gene for arranging our flight on the DC-7 sunday.

I had a fantastic time at the show and YAM takes first class care of their guests. I enjoyed my first trip to the state of Michigan. A six hour flight home on the 17 was also a new experience.
Ill try to post some pix after I get sorted out. Ive never taken 800+ photos at one event before and not being electronically inclined, photobucket is a frustrating chore for me to use.


The high point of it for me was seeing the Missing Man formation with B-17's. I knew it was coming but this was the first time since my dad, a naval airman, died that I've seen the missing man. The Fort I was crew on, Thunderbird, flew the breakaway Sunday and I'm not ashamed to admit that I lost it at that point. I finally dealt with my grief over Dad's loss.
Afterwards our copilot Bill Goeken asked me how it looked and I told him it looked good up till the breakaway. I noticed his worried look and told him why I only saw half the action.
He gripped my shoulder and said " It's for men like your dad that we fly this."
Thank you Bill.

[SPANNERmkV]

Thunder was just THE BEST of a long trip.
To Kevin and Mike and ALL the people who put TOM on the CAF-Gulf Coast Wing thanks you.
We are sorry for all our problems, but we made the most important of the missions and it wasn't for lack of effort that we missed out on the Sunday flying.

It took a day and half of wrangling with the local FSDO and OKC- Office of Registration for our paperverke to be in order, but we now seem to be bulletproof in THAT regard.

It was great meeting up with BomberFlight and Hang The Expense as well as Don Brooks and Ray.

Yankee Lady's Norm Elickson saved our bacon when we started having landing gear problems. He loaned us what we HAD to have to get back in the air.

Finally, I have to extend special thaks to Sentimental Journey -Arizona Wing of the CAF and the folks from Liberty Belle for helping us get back to the sky again.

Amazingly enough, I still have a job after being gone for three weeks.

Semper Fly,

SPANNER

[the330thbg]

[quote="Clanky"]First time posting here.... We just wanted to thank everyone involved with Thunder over Michigan, it was a pleasure to be there.

Frank & Lori

A few pics from Saturday...

[quote]

Love the shot of the "F-82"!!!! LOL.., i can dream, can't I?

[51fixer]

First time posting here.... We just wanted to thank everyone involved with Thunder over Michigan, it was a pleasure to be there.

Frank & Lori

A few pics from Saturday...

Love the shot of the "F-82"!!!! LOL.., i can dream, can't I?

Merlin or Allison?
Don't know how many more British Engines I can handle?

Rich

[Matt Martin]

[racing girl]

Hello All-
First post here and I just wanted to say thanks to everyone involved in making TOM happen every year, and also thanks to the dedicated group of amazing people who keep these beauties flying. I'm lucky to live only 20 mins North of Willow Run and have been attending this event for many years, next years event is already marked on the calendar, and as it has a Naval theme perhaps I'll persuade my husband to wear his Gt Uncle's WWI medals and Royal Navy Long Service and Good Conduct Medal!

I have questions and never knew where to get answers from before so if I may indulge myself!!

There was a plane on static display (I was only there on Saturday, didn't know if she flew on Sunday), please don't ask me what it was and no, I stupidly didn't get a photo of it.... but what interested me the most were the pilot names on it of John and Erin Shuttleworth (I think it was John). I'm English, and any English person interested in aviation knows the name Shuttleworth and it's associations with The Shuttleworth Collection at Old Warden in Bedfordshire, which celebrates the first 50 years or so of flight (the only place I've ever seen 9 Tiger Moths flying in formation). Just couldn't help but wonder who they were when I saw their names, or perhaps it's just one of those weird coincidences in life?

Also, can anyone identify this plane because I didn't note what it was and now I can't remember, and no, I didn't take a side or front picture either, I'm always looking for odd angles!!



I'm pretty sure this was the artwork that went along with it.





And finally, along with a lot of other people, I had my photo taken with the crew of the MMB (Movie Memphis Belle) and later, looking through my photos I got to wondering just who these people are... who flies these amazing old planes? What do they do outside of these events? I'm currently sitting here at my desk in Ann Arbor MI, helping keep the Michigan automotive industry ticking along and all I can think about is just how do you end up flying/crewing a B17, or a B24, B25, Wellington, Lancaster etc, etc! And what are these boys doing today? Sitting behind a desk just like me probably!!






Thanks all,
Brenda (Looking forward to next year already)

[M.P.]

...Also, can anyone identify this plane because I didn't note what it was and now I can't remember, and no, I didn't take a side or front picture either, I'm always looking for odd angles!!

This Plane is a Yak-52.

[b17warbirdguru]

John & his wife hail from Indiana. They are both some of the nicest people you will ever meet. I believe John comes from a line of pilots and also is one of the pilots that volunteers his time and flies Liberty Belle throughout the touring season. My money would be on one of those "weird coincidences".

There was a plane on static display (I was only there on Saturday, didn't know if she flew on Sunday), please don't ask me what it was and no, I stupidly didn't get a photo of it.... but what interested me the most were the pilot names on it of John and Erin Shuttleworth (I think it was John). I'm English, and any English person interested in aviation knows the name Shuttleworth and it's associations with The Shuttleworth Collection at Old Warden in Bedfordshire, which celebrates the first 50 years or so of flight (the only place I've ever seen 9 Tiger Moths flying in formation). Just couldn't help but wonder who they were when I saw their names, or perhaps it's just one of those weird coincidences in life?






Thanks all,
Brenda (Looking forward to next year already)

[TimAPNY]

Here are a few shots from Friday. Still working on Saturday and Sunday

























Tim

[TimAPNY]

3 more I find interesting

B-24 and P-51 pass





And the one and only shot I got of the .50 muzzle flash at the waist.



Tim

[racing girl]

To M.P. and b17warbirdguru thanks for the extra info!

Tim, and everyone else who has posted photos, absolutely fantastic, thanks for the pics of Witchcraft, you got some great shots of her.

Brenda

[Pogo]

Yeah, Witchcraft still thrills me every time I see her. The upper and ball turrets appear operational in the photos. Are they manned or being operated remotely?

[JimH]

We had a crew person in the ball turret...christine to be exact. The top turret was just repositioned for the flight...it can be hand cranked though. What a great day of flying that was!! Something I will never forget!

jim