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Gents,

 

As I'm sure many of us know, the 493rd FS (the Grim Reapers) are in the process of winding down on the F-15C/D at RAF Lakenheath, although they will stand up again on the F-35 as the second squadron in the 48th FW to operate the type in the future. Half the jets have already gone back to the US and with the few remaining working in mixed flights with the 495th FS F-35s for the the last few weeks and this week rumoured to be their last routine training week a trip over was in order. Combine that with a deployment of Aviano F-16s and the poor guys from Seymour-Johnson still stuck over here after seven months then there was quite a bit to hopefully photograph even if both the resident F-15E sqn's have deployed. I'd also hoped to see the black tailed and specially marked F-15 the 493rd have marked up for disbandment but unfortunately they picked a bit of a hangar queen and '172 has been broke for over two weeks and isn't apparently going to be fixed anytime soon. As it turned out I was able to get two days over at Lakenheath this week, Wednesday with them being on 06 and launching towards me and yesterday with them back onto 24 and landing at the viewing end. 

 

I'll concentrate on the Reapers for this thread and put other types elsewhere. So Wednesday saw them coming off towards the Eastern end and the hope was for some low and hopefully banked climbs. Although the other types weren't up for it on the day the Reaper four ship was.

 

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As can be seen the well known 'LN' and all sqn markings have been removed from most of them in readiness for them to be passed over to a new owner in the US.

 

Reaper 02 was quite keen. Unfortunately, despite the sunny conditions it was still quite misty.

 

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Reaper 03 was slightly better.

 

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The No 4 kept it flat but was low.

 

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That was pretty much it for the Wednesday as they landed straight in on the other end and the sun goes around making shots difficult from here after late morning when they're on 06. Yesterday found them back on the more normal 24 end. I also heard on the grapevine that a number of the 493rd pilots were on their fini flights today so hoped for some spirited returns.

 

If anything it was even more misty than the previous day!

 

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Same routine with the two four ship flights consisting of a pair each of F-15Cs and F-35s, although the second flight was a hour late as both F-15s broke after taxiing and had to go in, although they did come back out again.

 

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We may not have seen the marked up jet, but some improvised nose art seems to have appeared, 'Machette'.

 

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84-0027 has been the sqn flagship for most of the time it's been here, and I've photographed it many times. Now stripped of sqn markings, LN codes and even it's two 1991 Gulf victory markings, hopefully to be reapplied by a new owner.

 

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That covers the F-15Cs from the last few days and probably the final time I will photograph them at Lakenheath. I have many more of other types to put under a different thread in the next few days.

 

Gary

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by gary1701
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Hi,

 

Not sure what the plan is at this moment in time. I have heard that one of the F-15Cs may stay and replace the old F-15A on the pole at the main gate, which would fit as F-15A's never operated from here. However, I suppose it depends on how much these are in demand back stateside for the ANG units. The jets that have gone back have I believe been allocated around other units, as they are late production C and D models which would be newer than the existing airframes in use. The oldest 84-0001, hasn't been seen or flown for probably a year now so that may be a candidate for the pole, if they do decide to replace the existing airframe. 

 

I'll put the F-35s up here after all. These are only seven in strength at the moment, and all three of the second batch are included here. First day with them coming off 06 I had hopes of some spirited quick climb departures, inline with some of the excellent shots that some of the guys got last week. Unfortunately, it was straight and level.

 

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Next day we were back around the other way, and trying to photograph them between the heat haze and obstructions on departure.

 

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Showing the emblem for the liberty wing.

 

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Another one of the new batch with some newly applied green on the nose wheel door. Somebody with more knowledge of USAF types than me reckoned this was the very first colour to appear on any USAF F-35, not sure if that's accurate or not though.

 

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Returning about 90 minutes later. 'Hang tough' from the driver in the lead jet on the go around to the 50 odd photographers in the field!

 

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'5485' with the name plate in green, no idea what the badge is.

 

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Nice curved approach for the guys from the last one in.

 

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I was asked about security on another forum I post at, a ex-USAF guy who I don't think is familiar with the culture here and that this is just a routine day at Lakenheath. He wondered if the operations by the 48th would change now that we've got the F-35 here. From my experience so far and others who have been over more often that i have in the last couple of months, it's the same as before. The 495th seems to be just as keen to show the new jet to the photographers outside as the F-15 drivers have for years. Viewing and parking around the base is unchanged, which is nice as there were some fears that maybe some of the spots would be lost. This was taking it to a level I have never seen before. Most of us take a normal household ladder to shoot over the fence - something that Lakenheath and the USAF has no problem with as long as it's free standing and not leaning on the fence - but I have never seen this before!

 

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I never spoke to him but apparently he's brought that set up over from Germany! The cherry picker is permanently attached to the back of a trailer towed behind the car and is purely used for aviation photography...wow!

 

I still have a few more which I'll post in due course.

 

Gary

 

 

Edited by gary1701
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Thanks gents,

 

Just a few more odds and ends.  Two flights of Seymour-Johnson jets returned from Poland on the Wednesday, coming in from the other end. This is the third time since October that they've deployed out somewhere else and returned to Lakenheath, they must be sick of the place! 'Siege 75' put in a overshoot with excellent timing.

 

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'Siege 76' was a little late on the turn.

 

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The 510th FS from Aviano has also been deployed here and hopes for some banked F-16 shots on the Wednesday as they came towards us were dashed as their climb outs were high and straight, which was surprising as previous F-16 deployments have always been great for photography with a little showboating for the camera. 

 

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The D model they brought was doing the usual incentive rides separate from the regular flights and he did pull some turns by the usual spot.

 

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He then caused a bit of a stir when he landed and taxied back to EOR which already had a bunch of SJ F-15s on de-arming and his steering failed! Luckily he got it stopped or it could have been interesting to say the least.

 

Back again on the Thursday and  this Omni 777 nearly caught me by surprise as I was still unloading the car early on. Apparently out of Baltimore, maybe starting to pick up personnel from the long running Seymour-Johnson deployment that must be due for rotation home. The Aviano's messed off to Leeuwarden and the Frisian Flag exercise there so no chance of catching them coming back. Surprisingly, the Seymour-Johnsons flew a four-ship locally late morning, and they appeared to have fallen victim to the artists whilst in Poland.

 

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Finally, the old Polish C-130 that came in, these have been flying pretty much daily sorties for a while now.

 

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That pretty much sums up two days at Lakenheath which was good, although it could always be better. Below is a link to some photos shot by a friend of mine just a couple of days the previous week, and the F-35 climbs were taken exactly where I was standing!

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/craigstuarthollis

 

Gary

 

 

Edited by gary1701
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Thanks gents,

 

Nearly forgot after the two day session at Lakenheath. I moved over to Mildenhall for the late afternoon on the second day to catch the sole remaining WC-135 as it concluded a air test at Mildenhall. The aircraft has been deployed to Mildenhall amongst several other Offutt 'white' tops and has been heavily tasked since the Ukrainian war started. This air test was after a engine change.

 

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Rumour has it that the 100th ARW at Mildenhall may be activating a second KC-135 squadron to handle the workload.

 

Gary

 

 

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8 hours ago, gary1701 said:

Thanks gents,

 

Nearly forgot after the two day session at Lakenheath. I moved over to Mildenhall for the late afternoon on the second day to catch the sole remaining WC-135 as it concluded a air test at Mildenhall. The aircraft has been deployed to Mildenhall amongst several other Offutt 'white' tops and has been heavily tasked since the Ukrainian war started. This air test was after a engine change.

 

2G5A0997.jpg

 

2G5A1002.jpg

 

Rumour has it that the 100th ARW at Mildenhall may be activating a second KC-135 squadron to handle the workload.

 

Gary

 

 

Can I post the WC-135 pics on a FB page (Wx Recon Assoc)?

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On 3/27/2022 at 6:57 AM, gary1701 said:

I never spoke to him but apparently he's brought that set up over from Germany! The cherry picker is permanently attached to the back of a trailer towed behind the car and is purely used for aviation photography...wow!

That looks like my friend, Dalibor Ankovic. He's quite the aviation photographer and this really doesnt surprise me. He's crafty and dedicated, if not a bit eccentric. 
Great stuff!

 

-Jeff

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Hi gents,

 

Feel free to grab the images on a facebook page. If you want a bigger edit, PM me with a direct email and I'll send it over. Hi Jeff! I wish I'd spoked to the guy now but there was a lot of people about those two days. I must admit it didn't really help much at Lakenheath as distance and height is not really a problem there. When I moved over to Mildenhall he'd beaten me too it and the lift was already up and that does help clearing the parked tankers on the Southern stands to get a clear view of the runway, which a basic ladder struggles to do.

 

Gary

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