gary1701

Thanks for the kind comments. About the chutes - it is quite common, although unfortunately not when I've had the camera on one. Straight after those two Italian jets came back on tuesday evening I was walking back, with stepladder to the car park and a regular RAF example landed and he popped the chute on landing - which was great timing!! Why, I have no idea, as they hardly need it's use for stopping as the shot of three taxying out shows (and I've seen other shots with more on the runway than that). Gary

Hi, While visiting Coningsby earlier this week to photograph the pair of Italian Typhoon's that were in, the QRA jets were unexpectedly launched late in the morning. Typhoon's had only just replaced detached Tornado's at Coningsby in this commitment less than a month ago so it was a opportunity not to miss with the camera. I still don't know if it was a real 'shout' or not though and they returned later that morning. The first jet delivered to the RAF with the IRST turret on the nose The two Italian aircraft One angle I've always wanted to try - just need them to stream t

Hi, Thought a few pic's from last week might be of interest. These were taken on the Marham approach early in the week when a little sunshine was about and was lucky to catch a few of the flashy colour schemes about at the moment. The later batch were taken at the families day on thursday when the heavens opened (again!). There's a couple of close up's on static jets with stores (Brimstone, RAPTOR and LGB's) that be helpfull to anybody modelling GR4s. Chasing Typhoon's at Coningsby tomorrow... Gary

Hi, As hinted above the 81st Fighter Squadron of the 52nd Fighter Wing has been TDY at Lakenheath since the middle of June and are expected to be here until the end of this month when they return to Spangdahlem which is inactive due to runway and/or taxiway work at the moment. I think one of the F-16 outfits is in the US on exercise and the other has gone to a German base which is a pity as Lakenheath has the room to take the lot at the moment as most of the 48th FW is away as well. They've been very active operating daily over the UK ranges and low fly area's where they have a lot more free

Hi all, Saw the other Waddington shots, marveled that they were blessed with something that was in very short supply whenever I saw a Su-30 during a two day visit last week - sunlight! Also a couple of the usual residents at RAF Waddington, including the first of five Sentinels. The scenarios seem quite interesting as the RAF F-3 Sqn flying with them said that the Sukhoi's that have been deployed have been stripped of sensitive equipment and are conducting the exercise with radar off, at the request of the Russians and are limited to flying visual ACM with both nations simulating a generic IR

Hi all, Haven't posted any pics from sunny (?) East Anglia for a while but the deployment of the Spangdahlem A-10 outfit to Lakenheath for about a month gives me a excuse. These are all from the first week of them returning from using the UK ranges. Gary

Hi again, It's been a while since I put any pics up from East Anglia but caught this going into Mildenhall yesterday morning. A regular USN P-3C was expected under a USN callsign and this turned up as 'Navy Lima Kilo 26'. I'm not up on these unusual Orion variants so wasn't that suprised to see the underside pod. I put a couple of these up on the UK aviation forum I usually frequent and the reaction was quite suprising. I'm told they are rather covert and are rarely photographed, either operating out of Dallas Love Field unmarked or recently spotted showing more usual USN markings (like here)

Hi, Austria has not cancelled it's Typhoon order. The new goverment pledged it would, and has come out with some soundbits for the Austrian public indicating that it would still like to but the programme is well advanced now. The first batch of aircraft are in assembly and these early deliveries are aircraft diverted from existing Tranche 1 orders (including two from the UK's batch). Gary

Hi, Hope you guys don't mind me jumping in here but might be able to help on the WAH-64 front. There's a couple of other options to consider other than the rounded CRV-7 pod. First, and the link below is a example - either we used the US pod or the CRV-7 pods were initally deployed with the straight front as it took a couple of years of service before the rounded pod became standard. http://www.airliners.net/open.file/0511013/M/ The other is to model the Apache in the pure Hellfire fit as it seems to be a common enough configuration that I've seen, as below; The comments about the colou

Glad they've gone down ok. I actually felt a bit guilty taking them as I turned up about 10 minutes before they departed where as some of the guys had been there, in the open and frost for several hours! Bit lucky really but I am less than a hours drive from Mildenhall. You notice the D model is one of the new big spine variants. The question about the blanked out insignia is quite interesting and I've never heard the definitive reason as to why although the prevailing opinon seems to be that that is indeed the reason as to why they carry US markings. Mind you that also seems to be the same f

Hi, Thought these might be of interest. 'Retro' flight of 3 Polish F-16s which went into Mildenhall late yesterday afternoon coming out this morning on the final leg of their journey. They caused a bit of confusion for the assembled photographers by having their ANG '135 go off one way and then come out the other - mass panic with people changing ends quickly! The first batch of these went via Leuchars recently so be interesting to see where the next go. Gary

Hi, Don't know if these will be any help. They were taken at Marham in April last year just before they went upto Waddington for a exercise. 31 is, I believe the lead unit on Brimstones although some pics taken at Lossiemouth recently have shown them working out of there as well. This is a GR4A with 4x ALARM on the wing stations as well as 12x Brimstones on the fuselage stations. Stern shot is another jet marked for 12 Sqn configured the same, just missing the outboard ALARMs - the actual sqn markings on the jet don't mean a lot nowadays!! Also, more and more flights seem to carry 2x BOZ pods

Hi, The UK Apache's out in Afghanistan are deployed from 9 Regiment, AAC at Dishforth, They're due to be relieved by 3 Regiment at my local field of Wattisham (former F-4 base, sob!) in the first half of this year when they become operational soon. The third and final frontline AAC regiment to recieve Apache's is 4 Regiment (also here at Wattisham) which has just started to recieve aircraft from storage. Not having military access, I'm not sure exactly why the UK Apache programme fell so far behind but it certainly wasn't through unavailability of the aircraft, as many went straight to stor

No photoshopping. Here they are taken from the Coningsby approach as they came back late that friday afternoon. Would have had better pics as they got closer but two shots in "battery empty" flashed up! This wasn't done for any of the London flypasts the following weekend as they were a four ship and a three ship with a RNZAF 757. Looked good though... That pic on the first link doesn't do it justice - try here; http://www.eurofighter.com/ Gary

It's been into Wattisham today apparently. It may be about later in the week and hopefully I can get a pic!

Thanks for the comments everybody. I don't model nowadays but can appreciate that it wouldn't just be a re-badging job on a existing AH-64D kit. As already mentioned the HIDAS fit is now virtually standard, the last one I photographed without it was some months ago but I imagine some of the training birds at Middle Wallop probably don't have the fit yet, nor some of the dozen or so still in storage at Shawbury. If somebody is thinking of modelling a Apache AH.1 then besides a few months early in UK service when the US pods were seen the CRV-7 rocket pod would be required, although I have seen

Hi, I noticed the US and Dutch Apache were quiet popular on this site so as I'm near to the future main operating location of the British Army Apache I thought I'd put up a selection of shots taken in the last year or so. Hope there isn't too many as I've taken hundreds of them. The main difference's are the CRV-7 rocket pods the UK uses and the defensive aids system that can be seen at various positions around the airframe (not all had this fitted when photographed although it's been a long time since I've seen one without). These are mostly 3 Regiment aircraft stationed at Wattisham althoug

Hi again, Many thanks for the kind comments. I realise this is a model forum rather than photography so won't put to many pics up unless it's for something specific. I'm a regular with the camera at the USAF bases at Mildenhall/Lakenheath as well as RAF bases at Marham and sometimes Coningsby. I live just a few miles from the AAC base a Wattisham so anything Army I can help out with as well. I don't know if any decal sheet has been released for 3 Squadron Typhoons but I couldn't help noticing this on "QO-Y"; You see the difference? The wrong decal for the sqn badge has been added to the fi

Hi, When I came onboard the forum earlier in the week I promised I'd post some Typhoon images to help a modelling project, in particular the centreline tank now being carried by some of the inservice jets. Well, I got upto Coningsby on tuesday - weather was bad rest of the week - so here's a few examples. If you're a fast jet photographer as well as a modeller Coningsby is the place to go in the UK. Gary

Hi again, and thanks for the kind comments. Although I don't model nowadays I do spend a lot of time photographing military aircraft in the UK - mainly East Anglia - and will help out where possible. Going through the airliners.net files I came across this one taken at Warton which may help; http://www.airliners.net/open.file/1054660/M/ The tanks look similar so I'm guessing they're the same. Be advised though, that is a development airframe with BAE and not a current RAF fit (same with the centre wing AMRAAM station), and has yet - as far as I have seen - to be carried operationally. As

Hi, I just signed up after following the link on the Typhoon pic quoted above. I'm the photographer who took that shot - airliners.net has a facility that allows us too follow links to our pictures. Just some info that may help. The configuration that you see on that pic, centreline tank and outboard ASRAAM rails is the current standard configuration for RAF Typhoon's operating out of Coningsby - both T.1 and F.2. Often the centreline is not carried either. Jets have flown out of Warton with BAE in other configurations and a search on airliners for shots at Warton should give some good exam