/connie is 
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| # ? Sep 17, 2024 05:52 |
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I will be the first to say that I love airplanes, and I have since I was a little kid*, but I don't get so many people's fascinations with plain-jane every day planes. I'm talking about websites like airliners.net that have page upon page of pictures of 747s, DC10s, and the like. I realize that they are still marvels of engineering and all that, but I don't go down to the Greyhound bus terminal and marvel at the coaches traveling in and out of there. Same reason I don't go crazy over pictures of the newest Camry. Crazy fighter jets, insane experimental aircraft and so on are so much more exciting! * Did anyone else used to get those little info cards in the mail each month? They were like 2 page fold out things that profiled a jet or helicopter, and you got a stack of like 10 of them each month in the mail. I had huge honkin binders full of those things. I wish I could find them now, but they've probably been long-since garagesaled. Having said all that, here's a sample of whats in my computer desktop rotation right now:  Click here for the full 1440x900 image.  Click here for the full 1200x812 image.  Click here for the full 1600x1078 image. And if you couldn't tell, I'm totally gay for A-10s
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Mar 8, 2010 01:52
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Voting 5 for this post alone      
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Mar 8, 2010 01:59
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I was considering posting something like this, but looks like you beat me to it. I'm a pilot and flight instructor myself (as well as a huge airplane and history nerd), so I'd be happy to answer any questions, especially about smaller aircraft. To contribute:  Click here for the full 1280x1020 image.  Click here for the full 1900x1492 image. The SR-71 Blackbird is quite possibly the most amazing aircraft ever to take to the skies. Developed in the 1950's in complete secrecy, the SR-71 still holds several speed records and achieved a level of performance that hasn't been seen since. Most modern fighters can reach speeds of Mach 2 (twice the speed of sound) over a short dash, and the F-22 can cruise at slightly over Mach 1, but the SR-71 spent most of it's life cruising in excess Mach 3 above 80,000ft. The SR-71 was powered by a pair of Pratt & Whitney J58-P4 engines, which produced 32,500lbs of thrust each, and were designed to spend most of their time running on afterburner. When running at Mach 3, the actual turbine blades of the engine produced very little power, with the engine intakes producing most of the thrust by manipulating a trapped shockwave to function like a ramjet. Since navigating at 2,500MPH and 80,000ft is a bit tricky, the SR-71 also featured an ingenious navigation system that used the stars for navigation. Once told it's starting location, date, and time, the system used a telescope run by an analog computer to search the sky for one of 56 stars in a database, which it then used to figure out where the aircraft was. Well before GPS was invented, this system could keep the aircraft within 300ft of a straight line course, and within .2 miles of a course while turning, even on 12 hour missions spanning half the globe. Despite carrying over 80,000lbs of fuel, the SR-71 consumed it at such a prodigious rate that refueling was required about every 90 minutes on a mission, and there was a fleet of KC-135 tankers dedicated to supporting SR-71 operations. The SR-71 operated from 1964 to 1989, when it was killed by political infighting over the massively over-budget B-1 and B-2 projects. However, three SR-71's were reactivated from 1994 to 1997, with the last SR-71's (two NASA operated examples) ceasing flight operations in 1999. Edit: fixed table breakage. azflyboy fucked around with this message at 02:05 on Mar 8, 2010 |
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Mar 8, 2010 02:02
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I like the SR-71 and all, but there's nothing like the sound of a four-engined Douglas. I'd post pictures, but I'm usually busy gawking when I see one fly by. I actually chose my dorm room so I could see the C-54s, DC-6s and C-46s flying by. Anyone who can tell whether it's a DC-4 or DC-6 just by the sound of the engines is all right in my book.
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Mar 8, 2010 02:20
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Advent Horizon posted:I like the SR-71 and all, but there's nothing like the sound of a four-engined Douglas. Big piston engines (especially radials) are some of the best sounding things on earth. A couple of years ago, I had the chance to see something like a dozen Spitfires flying together, and the sound of 144 Merlin and Griffon cylinders doing past is almost indescribable.
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Mar 8, 2010 02:25
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gently caress yes, airplanes! Well, I always loved planes when I was a boy, and right after high school I got a job refinishing them. 2 years later I decided my boss was a loving rear end in a top hat, but by then it was too late, I was hooked on planes. Anyway, I'm sure every cool rear end plane is going to be posted, so I won't go for that. Instead, I'm going to give a shoutout to my local ANG wing, the 105th. They primarily fly (and fix) C-130s and C-5s, and I don't think it's debatable that C-5s are the cooler of the two. loving largest plane the US military uses, largest plane "mass produced", and second largest to a plane the Russians are proud of but only exists in glorified prototype form. That's right, gently caress you Antonov.  vid from the 105ths home base, hosting the NY air show in 2003 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwMFIjMPb0E
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Mar 8, 2010 02:26
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here is this little beauty. the XB-42 Mixmaster.  from Wiki quote:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XB-42_Mixmaster A unique aircraft which may have played a big role in WWII had it been designed earlier and entered production.
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Mar 8, 2010 02:28
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Petekill posted:* Did anyone else used to get those little info cards in the mail each month? They were like 2 page fold out things that profiled a jet or helicopter, and you got a stack of like 10 of them each month in the mail. I had huge honkin binders full of those things. I wish I could find them now, but they've probably been long-since garagesaled. I have a couple binders of those laying around here somewhere... I dropped some money on a bunch of books from Amazon on the SR71, 3 or 4 books total. I have always loved that airplane since my grandpa took my brother and I to an airshow 15-20yr ago and we got to touch one! he picked us each up and held us out to touch it behind the red velvet ropes I had no idea how much technology and skill was behind the aircraft until I started reading the books.
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Mar 8, 2010 02:32
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Needs more videos... Perfect emergency landing, except for the cow... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pfZiTDchH0 We've got this runway, so we're going to use all of it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWtdtuspnoM&feature=related Crosswind testing for a 777 and 747, these guys are good http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljOxo0s33sI A 747 making the infamous "checkerboard approach" at the old Kai Tak airport in Hong Kong with a hefty crosswind. The approach required a 47 degree turn less than two miles from the runway and well below 1000ft, and whacking an engine on the asphalt was a distinct possibility if the rollout was mistimed. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtnL4KYVtDE Some very impressive low level flying by Mirage pilots, set to surprisingly good music. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9T51UsuaPU&feature=related Zero G dog! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jU9USxJ9vPs Zero G Vomit! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8gPRgw5_y8 EDIT: fixed broken links azflyboy fucked around with this message at 05:15 on Mar 8, 2010 |
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Mar 8, 2010 02:39
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Speaking of crosswinds, here's a Concorde pilot making GBS threads his pants and pushing the throttle all the way forward. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79LE4ty_gkM&NR=1
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Mar 8, 2010 02:53
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 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-35 Supersonic STOVL aircraft, AKA JSF
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Mar 8, 2010 03:02
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azflyboy posted:Big piston engines (especially radials) are some of the best sounding things on earth. To experience the ultimate in pistons and propellers, you guys need to take a week off work in September and go to the Reno National Air Races. There are several classes of aircraft racing, but the headliners are in the Unlimited category, populated with highly modified WWII-vintage aircraft, such as these: "Rare Bear" - modified Grumman F8F Bearcat:  Bad Attitude - modified Hawker Sea Fury:  But the bread and butter of this class has always been the P-51 Mustang:  In terms of modifications, huge amounts of work goes into preparing these aircraft, with most of the work done in the engine. The Merlin engine in the P-51D produced 1490 horsepower out of the factory in WWII; the engines in these aircraft produce something more than 3500 hp. Manifold pressure in a stock Merlin engine at takeoff is about 65 inches of mercury (absolute) - no one will say exactly how high the pressure is in any of these air racers (as it essentially gives away how much power you have), but 150 inches of mercury is about where the best aircraft will start. Ever wondered what an Unlimited air racer sounds like? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsWqHsLlIT4 Most of that noise is from the propeller. Also, here's a pretty good article of what kind of work goes into an unlimited air racer: http://machinedesign.com/article/unlimited-air-racers-the-ultimate-hot-rods-1103
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Mar 8, 2010 03:14
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Some Guy From NY posted:here is this little beauty. the XB-42 Mixmaster. Did someone say dual V12s and contra-rotating props? how about the Macchi Castoldi MC-72?  Click here for the full 1024x585 image. Why is it cool outside the sleek looks? Well for one, it's really loving fast: wiki posted:The M.C. 72 held the world speed record for all aircraft for five years. In 1933 and 1934, it set a world record for speed over water which still stands to this day. It's also a pretty awesome feat of engineering and packaging: wiki posted:The design of the Macchi M.C. 72 was unique with a fuselage partly metal to the cockpit and wood monocoque bolted to the front tubular portion by four bolts. The streamlined nose contours enclosed an oil tank with its outside wall exposed to the airstream. The wing was all metal with flat tubular water radiators smoothly faired into the wings. The twin pontoons had three smoothly-faired radiators on the outer surfaces, the forward radiator for water and the centre and rear radiators for oil cooling. The float struts also featured water radiators and another radiator was fitted during hot conditions under the fuselage running from cockpit to tail. But mostly, it's that that row of holes down the side of the nose are the open headers from its 2,850 hp Fiat AS.6 Liquid-cooled V24 engine.  http://www.aviationtrivia.info/Macchi-Castoldi-MC-72.php posted:Two Fiat V-12 engines were linked together, one behind the other. A shaft from the rear engine ran through the front engine and on through it's hollow drive shaft to power the front propeller in one direction. The front engine powered the rear propeller in the opposite direction. Which made it sound like this: http://www.aviationtrivia.info/documents/MC72.wav
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Mar 8, 2010 03:17
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MrChips posted:To experience the ultimate in pistons and propellers, you guys need to take a week off work in September and go to the Reno National Air Races. There are several classes of aircraft racing, but the headliners are in the Unlimited category, populated with highly modified WWII-vintage aircraft, such as these: There was an article in Air and Space a couple of years ago that mentioned the Reno teams are running into trouble finding replacement engines because of how fast they destroy them. Since Merlin parts haven't been manufactured for 60 years, parts are getting rare, and there are only a few people that supply spares for those engines still flying. Several of those individuals simply won't sell to Reno teams, since racing destroys in about 30 minutes an engine that would last decades on a stock P-51 or Spitfire. As impressive as the Reno Unlimiteds are, I'd really like to see the class evolve into something that didn't destroy increasingly rare engines for one race per year.
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Mar 8, 2010 03:32
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azflyboy posted:There was an article in Air and Space a couple of years ago that mentioned the Reno teams are running into trouble finding replacement engines because of how fast they destroy them. I've heard that this was more or less a misconception - most suppliers are happy supplying the air racers. The guys who really need to be strung out are the tractor pullers; they've destroyed hundreds of times more engines than the handful of air racers ever have - remember, even though they might be hard on engines, they're still keeping historic aircraft flying. And in their ever increasing search for power, the air racers are turning to making their own parts, or having them made for them. On that note, it seems as though with every passing year, more and more companies are entering the market for replacement parts - with the worldwide fleet of P-51s reaching almost a hundred (and growing), there are now enough essentially enough aircraft to support a base of parts suppliers; I would even go as far as to say there might even be a market for all-new engines being made in the not-too-distant future.
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Mar 8, 2010 03:51
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Some Guy From NY posted:here is this little beauty. the XB-42 Mixmaster. forgive my ignorance, but how do you land something like that? it seems very difficult
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Mar 8, 2010 04:08
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I like pretty planes :3
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Mar 8, 2010 04:19
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CornHolio posted:I like pretty planes :3 Then why don't you post one?  No seriously, what the gently caress is that thing?
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Mar 8, 2010 04:44
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VikingSkull posted:gently caress yes, airplanes! My grandfather was actually the director of research at Lockheed back in the day. Apparently, when they were developing the C-5, the runner-up name for it was the Jesus Christ, because that was what everybody said the first time they saw it. EDIT: Also, I don't really know all of the details, but apparently, after the cancellation of this program, some sort of cockpit mockup for the XV-4 ended up in his basement. My mom was still a kid, and she's only mentioned it a couple times, but apparently it was a really really rough mockup and it was made primarily out of plywood. i'm not really sure what it was for. Eventually, when he needed more space for all of the other cool poo poo he acquired over the years, my grandfather chopped it up and burned it (I wish he hadn't). EDIT EDIT: Wow, no one probably cares but me, but I just googled my grandfather's name and found an antique magazine ad about him. Unfortunately I just bought it so it's gone now, I'm trying to find it in my cache. WT Wally fucked around with this message at 05:16 on Mar 8, 2010 |
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Mar 8, 2010 04:49
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Blue Footed Booby posted:Then why don't you post one? It's a Saab Draken, a Swedish interceptor used from 1960's through the 1990's, with the last examples (flown by Austria) being retired in 2005. Unlike American interceptors, the Draken was intended to operate from reinforced public roads during wartime, and could be rearmed and refueled in about 10 minutes by conscripts with only basic training.
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Mar 8, 2010 04:54
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Also if you were wondering what the heck the plane was in that one Soundgarden video... that.
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Mar 8, 2010 05:00
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i'm doing this while it's still the first page: THE F-14 ISN'T AS GREAT AS YOU THINK, YOU ONLY LIKE IT BECAUSE IT WAS IN TOP GUN.
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Mar 8, 2010 05:20
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azflyboy posted:
Don't forget the Jet class! But I'm pretty sure they have gone to making their own parts now.
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Mar 8, 2010 05:38
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azflyboy posted:Unlike American interceptors, the Draken was intended to operate from reinforced public roads during wartime, and could be rearmed and refueled in about 10 minutes by conscripts with only basic training. The Swedish air force (Flygvapnet) still maintains their highway airstrips, and regularly trains on them.  Switzerland also feels the need to maintain a strong defensive stance in support of their neutrality. Instead of dispersing to roads, they've dug their air force into the mountains:  FullMetalJacket posted:i'm doing this while it's still the first page: Couldn't agree with you more. Between an incredible amount of maintenance required and the overweight, underbuilt and unreliable Pratt & Whitney TF30 engines fitted, the F-14A really was a dog (the F-14B/D went some way to rectifying the issues with the F-14, but many still remained). When the type was finally retired in 2006, you can bet that no one in maintenance shed a tear.
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Mar 8, 2010 05:39
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FullMetalJacket posted:i'm doing this while it's still the first page: Actually the f-14 is awesome because it's wings loving MOVE.  Click here for the full 903x705 image.  Click here for the full 980x705 image.
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Mar 8, 2010 05:40
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FullMetalJacket posted:i'm doing this while it's still the first page: While the F-14 did have a bunch of problems with the early production models, the fact that it could (theoretically) hit another aircraft with a missile from 100 miles away is pretty cool.
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Mar 8, 2010 05:44
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C-17 doing a very short takeoff under full power, with bonus good ol' boy color commentary and one  pilot.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQyGd6F2SKI
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Mar 8, 2010 05:50
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Hmm what's this Interesting...    Woah..   Hey... Wait a second    My friend got to mess around in an original mock-up of the space shuttle. His dad got appointed director of a new NASA museum and now is in charge of this and some Apollo capsules.
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Mar 8, 2010 06:05
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WT Wally posted:EDIT EDIT: Wow, no one probably cares but me, but I just googled my grandfather's name and found an antique magazine ad about him. Unfortunately I just bought it so it's gone now, I'm trying to find it in my cache. I found the photo in my cache. Here's my grandfather: 
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Mar 8, 2010 06:14
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I am a sucker for big bombers. Especially big fast cool looking bombers. I have a soft spot for the Hustler, but my  is with the B70. Imagine the sky full of these beautiful beasts, streaking at Mach 3+ towards Moscow. Of course, it would have meant the end of the world as we know it but drat, we would have gone out with fuckin' style.Over half a million pounds in weight, 6 engines, droop wings, Mach 3.1 and 74,000' cruise and the mere thought of it made the soviets poo poo their pants. What's not to love? It and and A12/SR71 should have got together and made babies. 
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Mar 8, 2010 06:21
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I also had a binder full of those airplane mini-booklets. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d4HQ8ZM_2k Wright 3350 mounted on the back of a truck. True AI would be rigging up a variable pitch reversible prop and driving around.
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Mar 8, 2010 06:38
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjD67VZuYNU turn THE GODDAMN HEAT OFF. O.F.F.
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Mar 8, 2010 06:48
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azflyboy posted:While the F-14 did have a bunch of problems with the early production models, the fact that it could (theoretically) hit another aircraft with a missile from 100 miles away is pretty cool. but it never did and the phoenix was an expensive paperweight! i know what we can trash on, and agree upon though: piper navajo's!
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Mar 8, 2010 06:52
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The Lockheed D-21 drone is pretty awesome   Basically a camera glued to a ramjet, capable of mach 3+ (when it wasn't crashing or blowing up.)
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Mar 8, 2010 06:56
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MrChips posted:Switzerland also feels the need to maintain a strong defensive stance in support of their neutrality. Instead of dispersing to roads, they've dug their air force into the mountains:
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Mar 8, 2010 08:01
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Forward swept wings and canards always get me hot and bothered. The sole reason I bought Ace Combat 6 was to fly this plane. Sukhoi Su-47  
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Mar 8, 2010 08:15
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Any of you guys remember a series of T-shirts in the 80's which featured all these different fighter jets on them in wireframe, with a black background? I REALLY want one of those.
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Mar 8, 2010 08:55
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The x-31: A U.S. government test plane used to develop thrust vectoring. This was done in the 1980s, before the JSF, before the F-22, before the Su-37. It used three paddles sitting around the jet nozzle to redirect the thrust and control the plane's attitude; it has no conventional control surfaces (aside from ailerons for roll control. It's like if you took a car, got rid of the steering rack and pointed where you want to go using nothing but torque steer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YA8QXenJzgA Also, completely unrelated: 
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Mar 8, 2010 09:00
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| # ? Sep 17, 2024 05:52 |
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MrChips posted:To experience the ultimate in pistons and propellers, you guys need to take a week off work in September and go to the Reno National Air Races. I know exactly what it sounds like! Everyone should go at least once in their lifetime, and you MUST spend the extra money to get the pit pass. unfortunately the last time i went to the races was 2005 - we camped at one of the last un-developed parts on the track and the planes were about 500 yards from us in a full bank. The one thing that upsets me is rare bears new paint job - I liked the white and gold a lot better my favorite air racer is "precious metal" http://www.warbirdaeropress.com/articles/PMmods/PMmods.htm We were lucky enough to see and hear precious metal twin fly  My love of aircraft started early, my grandfather worked for Douglas aircraft from the late 20s-60s. He had great stories to tell about having lunch with Howard Hughes and Charles Lindbergh at various hubs around Los Angeles, from Santa Monica to Burbank. He was involved in many aircraft including the SBD Dauntless divebomber, Thor missile, X-3 and my favorite the C-47/DC-3 and its prop driven variants.  This is a beautiful print I bought of dc-3's in Burbank ca  ive never had the opportunity to take a ride in one, but from what ive heard, its not that hard to find someone willing to take you up. clay lacey owns one and i often see it flying around the San Fernando valley. Although my grandfather was a Douglas man, I love the Constellation too. Ive been aboard a few of the remaining flying examples, but never actually been up in one.  One of the best experiences in my life was when I got to take a ride in this 42 Ryan PT-22 in the Florida everglades. Sorry for the lovely photos.   More recently I took a day off to visit the wildfires to see the martin mars in action. I didn't take this photo, but i was close enough hear something that not too many people get to experience.  If you guys want to see a beautiful documentary about the history of flight in Los Angeles I suggest finding this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Six_Right I even learned that Marilyn Monroe worked for "Radioplane", a company that made remote control target drones at the van nuys airport  Apparently this photo was seen by the modeling agency that started her career. Somewhere around here i have a propeller for one of these raidoplanes that was given to me by my grandfather. I also learned of the Glendale airport that was the first municipal airport in Los Angeles, it was closed down in the 50s but the terminal building still stands, sadly its owned by disney its future is somewhat unknown (stupid fucks). It was used in many movies, inducing casablanca. I saw this documentary one night on PBS, the whole night I could not sleep so I waited until it was light out and went out and found it.   its surrounded by industrial buildings and the only thing left of the original tarmac is a parking lot for one of the neighboring buildings. When I arrived a guy that worked in one of the other buildings told me that no one had been there for years aside from repairing the fence and giving it a dull gray paintjob. Another poster in my collection showing the airport in its former glory, this poster is HUGE.  Also, for those of you in the Los Angeles area - Here is a great restaurant that has a lot of history and a great view of the airport while dining. http://www.94thvannuys.com/index.html I could go on all day - I'll post more later Not to boast, but my girlfriend hinted to me that my mom and her might be buying me a ride on the b17 for my birthday http://www.b17.org/ http://www.collingsfoundation.org/menu.htm LobsterboyX fucked around with this message at 10:53 on Mar 8, 2010 |
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Mar 8, 2010 10:13
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