THUNDER OVER MICHIGAN 2018

[Pogo]

THANKS for the photos guys!!

Don't know if I can ever get used to TR looking so slick, it just doesn't seem right. In all the years I was glued to that bird, it looked battle-weary, fair and square. Always thought it looked pretty cool that way, too. I'm happy she's as well cared for as she ever was, though, that's nice.

[RV8er]

Unfortunately Texas Raiders didn't fly. I'm not sure why..possibly due to time. The warbird action had to be cut to the bone so the T-birds could fly (the T-birds pushed their start time to 3:15, but the announcer said that was the best they could do.)

Texas Raiders was ready to fly the show and do a few formation passes with Yankee Lady on Sunday afternoon, but... several glitches happened that kept us (TR crew) on deck. As y'all know, the weather was cruddy, damp and everything got a late start; but methinks the big problem was that the tug crews were overwhelmed. With the B-29 gear problem and air return, the E-2 Hawkeye being stuck in the mud, plus the assorted departing B-25s, P-47, P-63, etc, there were not enough tugs to move the planes to a hot ramp. Also, there were 3 Navy T-45s plus 2 F-15s that were towed out to the hot ramp during the show. So, at our engine start time, we were still on the crowded spectator ramp with no tug/towbar in sight. By the time we begged for a tug and were towed into start position, Yankee Lady was done with her passes and was taxiing in... and that was that.

The one thing that I just don't understand is why 5 military jets that weren't even flying in the show were towed to the hot ramp while a B-17 on the show schedule was completely forgotten...

[Xray]

Unfortunately Texas Raiders didn't fly. I'm not sure why..possibly due to time. The warbird action had to be cut to the bone so the T-birds could fly (the T-birds pushed their start time to 3:15, but the announcer said that was the best they could do.)

Texas Raiders was ready to fly the show and do a few formation passes with Yankee Lady on Sunday afternoon, but... several glitches happened that kept us (TR crew) on deck. As y'all know, the weather was cruddy, damp and everything got a late start; but methinks the big problem was that the tug crews were overwhelmed. With the B-29 gear problem and air return, the E-2 Hawkeye being stuck in the mud, plus the assorted departing B-25s, P-47, P-63, etc, there were not enough tugs to move the planes to a hot ramp. Also, there were 3 Navy T-45s plus 2 F-15s that were towed out to the hot ramp during the show. So, at our engine start time, we were still on the crowded spectator ramp with no tug/towbar in sight. By the time we begged for a tug and were towed into start position, Yankee Lady was done with her passes and was taxiing in... and that was that.

The one thing that I just don't understand is why 5 military jets that weren't even flying in the show were towed to the hot ramp while a B-17 on the show schedule was completely forgotten...

Think it might have something to do with proximity to the Tbirds staging area and worries exhaust blasts could make a mess of the area ?

Just a guess, was glad I got to see TR in the air after the show, looks very pristine.

[Davo87]

Hey Steve.
Looks like you got a couple of photos of me photographing DOC Sunday morning.
My first chance to see DOC as well. My first visit to Thunder Over Michigan.
Here are the photos I was taking at the time you shot photos of me.

DR

Some of my pics from Thunder. First, a few on the ramp. I didn't take a lot, mostly due to the rather dreary conditions. This is what greeted us as we walked in from the parking area around 10:00 a.m..visibility was less than a mile with a low, solid overcast.



Still, it was a huge thrill getting to see Doc in person for the first time.







Texas Raiders always draws a crowd.





Super Rabbit and Georie's Gal looking fine. I've always liked the dual nose art on Georgie's Gal.







<more to come>

[Steve Nelson]

Texas Raiders was ready to fly the show and do a few formation passes with Yankee Lady on Sunday afternoon, but... several glitches happened that kept us (TR crew) on deck. As y'all know, the weather was cruddy, damp and everything got a late start; but methinks the big problem was that the tug crews were overwhelmed. With the B-29 gear problem and air return, the E-2 Hawkeye being stuck in the mud, plus the assorted departing B-25s, P-47, P-63, etc, there were not enough tugs to move the planes to a hot ramp. Also, there were 3 Navy T-45s plus 2 F-15s that were towed out to the hot ramp during the show. So, at our engine start time, we were still on the crowded spectator ramp with no tug/towbar in sight. By the time we begged for a tug and were towed into start position, Yankee Lady was done with her passes and was taxiing in... and that was that.

The one thing that I just don't understand is why 5 military jets that weren't even flying in the show were towed to the hot ramp while a B-17 on the show schedule was completely forgotten...

Thanks for the info! I assumed it was just a case of everythibg getting disorganized due to the late start. I noticed that TR was still parked in the spectator area well after the flying finally got started. Fortunately I got a good TR 'fix' when you folks were in Kalamazoo last week.

SN

[kennsmithf2g]

More from Friday's Photo Pit




[imghttps://photos.smugmug.com/Airplanes/2018-Thunder-Over-Michigan/Grumman-FM-2-Wildcat/i-hnvNN7z/0/f3ecd439/XL/180824-TOM_0583-XL.jpg][/img]

[Steve Nelson]

Great pics, guys, thanks for sharing. Steve - looks like it's time for a sensor cleaning!

August

Thanks. I noticed some of my shots were a bit spotty. How do you clean the sensor? Do you do it yourself, or take it to a cemera shop? I'm always worried about doing anything to the sensor, bcause I've heard they're incredibly fragile.

SN

[WIXerGreg]

Are you still using the Rebel T3? I seem to remember you buying one not long after me.

[Steve Nelson]

Yep..bought it in 2012. It serves my needs just fine and I have no plans to replace it in the foreseeable future.

SN

[WIXerGreg]

With your lens off press the menu button. On the third menu page from the right, second from the bottom highlight 'clean manually' and press set. This will open up the shutter and expose the sensor for cleaning. You can use a hand held blower bulb (like a kids' snot sucker) to gently blow dust off. There are also kits that come with a swab and cleaning agent where you take a single swipe over the sensor to remove particles. The problem with the blower is other crap in the camera can get moved around from the air you blow, the problem with the swab is contact with the sensor can damage it. Use a lot of light and be careful! It can be frustrating and may take several tries to get it clean.

https://www.amazon.com/VSGO-Camera-Full ... ZKQV8K87V9

https://www.amazon.com/Giottos-AA1900-R ... B00017LSPI

If you don't want to try it yourself, yes, you can have a camera shop clean it for a few bucks.

[myteaquinn]

Its been a while since I last posted. I was able to enjoy the night photography event Saturday night and this is my favorite image.

[AG pilot]

Quite stunning!

[Avnut]

Steve, nice pictures. I'm in the shot of Texas Raiders towards the lower right, just to the right of the orange t-shirt with the hat. Thanks. I remember seeing you take the picture and thinking how many good shots do you get using one of those poles?

The T-birds and Blues are good, and I enjoyed seeing the Breitling jet team as a change of pace. What about getting the Snowbirds? Its been over 10 years since I've last seen them in Pittsburgh.

[Steve Nelson]

Steve, nice pictures. I'm in the shot of Texas Raiders towards the lower right, just to the right of the orange t-shirt with the hat. Thanks. I remember seeing you take the picture and thinking how many good shots do you get using one of those poles?

Thanks! It often takes several tries to get the shot framed correctly, but that's the beauty of digital..you can instantly know if you got the picture, and you've got virtually ulimited number of shots for retakes. I'm still kicking myself for not buying the next model 'up' from camera, which had a flip-out viewscreen..that would make it a lot easier to frame those remote shots.

SN