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Yup, I'm still on vacation, how can you tell?
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And yeah, I am a Gerard Butler fan (fellow Scot he is) and I like this video as it shows the preparation required before actually getting in the cockpit. Just for a ride! (Imagine the training it takes to actually do this full time!)
Back to spoiling the grandkids. Enjoy!
Mr. Butler said it better than I ever could when he speaks at the end of the video. "Bordering on spiritual." And he may have understated his experience and the experience of high speed flying just a bit.
ReplyDeleteI can only imagine and dream.
Great videos and a great post.
Thanks John, I too liked Mr. Butler's description of the experience.
DeleteI'll watch the videos later, but any post with the Thunderbirds and Blue Angles is a great post.
ReplyDeleteHave fun being a good Grandfather.
Thanks for the post.
Paul L. Quandt
I am enjoying myself whilst I neglect my blogging "duties."
DeleteOk, having watched, I have to say that the videos exceeded my expectations. Thank you for making them available to me/us.
ReplyDeletePaul
I'm glad you liked them Paul.
DeleteThe first T-Bird vid explained to me how they flew into the ground years ago. I imagined how I would keep my spacing and interval, and lining up the wing rails with #2's helmet or #3's is the only way I could keep it. Getting up under #1 was crazy close at speed and doing aerobatics too. Then it snapped into place: you can't pay ANY attention to ground reference unless you are lead. Everyone else is taking their cues from him. Total trust. It left me in awe.....
ReplyDeleteThat's the key, you have to trust lead.
DeleteStuff is breathtaking, innit?
I'm still thinking about it. Truth be told, it scared the tar outta me. You can't have an inkling of mistrust or questions about lead. And your focus is totally on spacing on lead. What happens outside that tiny envelope cannot be your concern, or you'll kill yourself and someone else... Awe inspiring.
DeleteIndeed it is!
DeleteI doubt I will ever tire of watching the precision flight teams.
ReplyDeleteMy first experience was the T-birds in '57, second time was the Blues in '61. I've seen both numerous times since, even from the comfort of my own back yard. I've also see the Red Arrows, Snowbirds, and Royal Albanian Team (Arbanian?).
Now that was funny!
DeleteI am looking forward to when they are both flying F-35s. The Thunderbirds with F-35As and the Blue Angles primarily with F-35Cs and a couple of F-35Bs for the STOVL (Short Take-Off Vertcal Landing) Wow Factor.
ReplyDeleteNow that would be interesting. Not sure if that will happen in our lifetimes!
DeleteAhhhhhhh.....Thanks, I needed that!
ReplyDeleteSaw the Blues and the T-Birds many times in California. The Blues are stunningly precise, a true aerial ballet.
The T-Birds are more like a rock concert!
And I loved every second of every time I saw them.
Same here. First saw the Blues when they were flying the F11F Tiger, the Birds when they were flying the Hun (F-100). Saw the Blues first, so they are special to me, even though I'm retired Air Force.
DeleteI first saw the Blues when they were flying the F11F Tigers, though I have no memory of it. No doubt, I was sleepy that warm afternoon at Sherman Field. I saw them the next year when they were flying F-4s and nothing that came after can quite match that. I freely admit the Thunderbirds have the better paint scheme, but the Angels were something else back then with 3' of separation. I love them both, but my heart belongs to the Angels. Whitney has yet to see them both (and first saw the Angels flying F-18s). Why, oh why, does the DFW area decide temps must be 98-105° and 90+% humidity to hold outside events? It must be pure masochism. Or the sort of dain bramage that led people to think this was a nice area to settle. Give me altitude over 5,000' for this latitude and I might agree. 6,000' plus surrounding mountains several thousand feet higher and you've got yourself a deal. I have no use for the flatlands. I'm just glad the Angels and Thunderbirds occasionally think of those of us trapped here.
ReplyDeleteOne regret I have in life is never having seen the Blues or the 'Birds when they flew the Phantom. Sad seeing as how I worked on Phantoms for nearly eight years.
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