Mos Eisley-Airport

Last night I received a Top Secret Communique from El Jefe. It went like this:

"juvat, are you ever going to be posting pictures of airplanes taken at Udvar Hazy?  The natives, led by Beans, of course, are starting to circle Chant HQ and they're carrying pitchforks and torches! I 'm sending you the video I took of it. I wonder what Beans did to his arm."
 
Shortly thereafter, my phone dinged and this video downloaded.

I responded (in Spanish because it confuses the Imperial Storm Troopers):

"Por supuesto, mi extremadamente viejo sargento de la Fuerza Aérea. Inmediatamente."
 
So, marching orders in hand, I present the Air Order of Battle for the Mos Eisley air forces.

We arrived at the museum a few minutes before it opened, but were able to go to the mezzanine and scope things out.  One commenter had spoken about the first things you see as you walk in the door.

The above would be that shot.  An SR-71 with the Space Shuttle in the background.  Unfortunately, the cell phone camera, doesn't do it justice.

Later, when we were down on the floor, I noticed something familiar on the nose gear.  This airplane had set a record when it was delivered to the museum.  It had flown from Los Angeles to Dulles in 1 hour and 4 minutes.  Heck it took me longer than that to transit the Y at Oak Hill in Austin.  In any case, Ed Yeilding had been in my Squadron at Moody (might have been Holloman).

One of the differences between Udvar Hazy and the DC museum is the airplanes are much closer to you, or maybe that's because we were virtually alone in the museum early on.

But, standing on the mezzanine, two of my favorite WWII fighters were up close and personal.

I actually had to step back a bit to get each in the shot.

The museum now opened and we headed down the ramp to the main floor.

One of my favorite Century Series Jets, the Thud.  The other is the F-104.  Both fast and sleek looking and can't turn worth a damn!

Double Hiss and Boo!  Mig-21 against which I'm 1-1-1 (First engagement I started turning with him,  He ate my lunch.  Second engagement, I was able to extend out of the fight successfully, third engagement I took a high angle gunshot with four frames on his aircraft and then managed to escape.  All at Red Flag in an F-4E.)  In the foreground is an SA-2.  Not an especially good missile, but it did tend to force you to lower altitudes where AAA (HISS!) was more effective.

 The Hun.  This is what I mean about getting up close and personal.  I couldn't get far enough away to get the entire aircraft.  The wing at the top is from a Sikorsky flying boat that is being restored.

A Navy Phantom

A RF-8 Crusader

When you're dropping nuclear depth charges, it might be useful to have an unmanned drone do it.

Highway to the "Danger Zone"  (you know you've got that running through your head now, doncha?)

A sight I'm immensely grateful never to have seen.

Then we're going into the WWII section.  An ME-163 Komet, rocket powered interceptor.  300 built. shotdown between 9 and 18 Aircraft with 10 losses.  Fast though.

Dornier DO 335 Pfeil (Arrow), a German Interceptor that didn't make it into production during the war.  The only one in existence.  Again, I couldn't get far enough away.

 A Japanese Night fighter J1N1-S "Irving".  the protrusions on the nose are radar antenna.  The weapons were upward firing from the gunner position behind the pilot.  The Irving would use the radar to position itself directly under the target, then shoot into him.  Seems to me that when things, like airplanes, or pieces thereof, stop flying, they come down.

But...what do I know?

Aichi M6A1 Seiran. A submarine carried float plane.  Given the long distance from Japan to the United States, the plane was designed to be carried within range and then launched to carry out it's attack.  Never saw combat.  Desperate times call for desperate measures.

This was our way of solving the distance issue with Japan.  Also, the payload of this particular aircraft was slightly larger than could be carried by the Seiran.  Just sayin'.

B-26 Flak Bait being restored.  According to the museum's literature, this particular aircraft flew more combat missions (202) than any other Allied aircraft.

Heinkel HE 219 Uhu.  Armed with 8 cannons and radar guided.  It was the first aircraft to become operational and have ejection seats.

Kawanishi N1K3 "George" fighter.  Later in the war, significant improvement to the Zero.

P-38 recovered and restored after a forced landing on a glacier in Greenland

Flight jackets with personal talismans.  This one must have worked.

F-6F Hellcat.  I've given up on trying to get far enough away.

WWI Spad XVI

Nieuport flown by the "Hat in the Ring" 94th Aero Squadron on initial arrival in Europe.  Squadron now flies the F-22.  This aircraft was TINY.  I'm pretty sure that cockpit would be chest high on me.  Brave men flew these aircraft.


That put us all the way around the museum and it was starting to get crowded.  So,  we decided to make our exit.

As we did.....

That was the line waiting to get in.  The Mos Eisleyians outnumbered the good guys, so we beat a hasty retreat in search of replenishment and adult recreational beverages.

Two more Mos Eisley posts to go.