Additional Pictures From The Ramp

Joe

Well-Known Member
It wasn't all that long ago since I last posted some photos from work, but I've taken quite a few in the past month or two. Because there are so many, I didn't post everything, but the rest can be seen on flickr. Everything is taken with a 6 MP Canon PowerShot S3 IS, and like last time, I'm still considering entering the world of DSLR, but this time I'm a bit more serious about it - Not so much because of the rejections from Jetphotos.net, but the reasons - too much noise, which is something I've been noticing for a while, even in daylight conditions. I use ISO 100 for just about everything, so I don't know if it's another setting, or if it comes from editing (I use Ulead PhotoImpact 12), or what. For a while, I've also noticed that, especially at longer focal lengths, the bottom left corner of pictures tends to be out of focus and blurry. I had already sent the camera back to Canon almost two years ago shortly after getting it because of another lens issue involving a line showing up on pictures due to a crack or hair or something inside the camera.

As a result, I've been leaning towards Nikon. First I thought the D40 was cheap enough, but I figured I might as well go for a megapixel upgrade, so I considered the D60. But, then I discovered the D5000, which is a step above the D60 but below the D90, and has video and other additional features, so I'm leaning towards that right now. I'm also looking for lens suggestions; I can get it with an 18-55mm kit lens but I'm also considering a 55-200mm lens.

Anyway, here are the pics:


Dassault Falcon 50


A Ryan International Airlines Boeing 757-200 military charter flight landing on Runway 16.


Caught with one of the mains off the ground.


This Learjet 31A was in our hangar even before we moved into our new building... RIAC was more than happy to begin making money off their new hangar!


This was the night a coworker and I discovered we could actually fit a Gulfstream V (specifically a Navy C-37B, which is the military variant of the G550) in the hangar. Sure, based on the hangar and aircraft specs, we knew it would fit on paper, but had to see that tail clear the door with less than 3 feet to believe it. We had plenty of experience repositioning planes on the ramp, but we've yet to have any formal training on the hangar so we've been learning as we go.


Another angle... we took a scissor lift left in the hangar for a joy ride to get these shots.


N929RD returns to OQU two weeks later to pretty much the same weather as before. Anyone from around here can tell you this summer has basically sucked.


An F-16 taxies past the ramp after its practice demonstration before the air show.


An F-22 doing the same thing.


An A-10 arriving for the air show.


Taxiing to parking with the canopy open.


Another F-16 taxiing to parking for static display.


One of two V-22s taxiing to parking for static display. They were supposed to fly during the show, but for some reason got cancelled at the last minute. I was still happy to see them, though!


The air show as seen from where I work. A CF-188 from the Canadian Armed Forces was parked in front of our hangar, with a McDonnell Douglas KC-10A Extender behind it.


The Snowbirds parked on the hot ramp.


Blue Angel #1


The F-22 demo was incredible.


Not my best shot, but a cool one nonetheless with a cloud of condensation forming over the wing during a high-g maneuver.


A better shot.


Turnin' and burnin', setting off car alarms and making small children cry.


A shot of an F-16 taxiing past the crowd taken from the control tower catwalk.


Not quite eye-level with the top of the tail of this C-5. This is similar to this picture of a C-17 in its place last year, except I could fit the entire C-17 in.


A view of the crowd and some of the static displays from the 2009 Rhode Island National Guard Open House & Air Show.


A C-23 taking off with the Black Daggers parachute team.


An L-39 clearing Runway 16.


An A-10 taxiing out to participate in the combined arms demonstration. Unfortunately, they didn't blow anything up this year. This was taken from the top of a fuel truck before someone from the ANG told me I couldn't sit on top of my own fuel truck...


A UH-60 carrying a humvee.


The Blue Angels preflighting, as seen from the other side of the orange fence...


I was told the P-51s needed fuel, so I brought the avgas truck over. I bonded to the airplane, unreeled the hose, took a quick picture, and then was told we couldn't be out there as the Blue Angels were getting ready to go up. The lack of communication made my job that weekend frustrating at times...


The Blue Angels in Diamond Formation.


Taxiing to parking.


During Sunday's show, Blue Angel #5 had some sort of mechanical problem and landed, and #7 was used for the rest of the performance. After the show, #5 went up again for a test flight.


Thundering down Runway 34.


[Billy Mays voice] "...and it folds for easy storage!"


Blue Angel #5 on final for Runway 34.


An E-2 taxies out for departure after the air show.


The KC-10 backtaxies on Runway 16. Don't forget to close the door, guys...


The KC-10 departing Runway 16.


A C-17 departing the day after the air show.


A two-seat CF-188 taxiing out to Runway 16 via Taxiway A. The McDonnell Douglas CF-18 is a variant of the F/A-18 developed for the Canadian Forces. Visible differences include the night identification spotlight on the left side of the nose, and the "dummy canopy" painted on the bottom to confuse and disorient enemey aircraft in air-to-air combat.


The Canadian CF-188A departing Runway 16 with condensation forming in the wingtip vortices.


The CF-188B rocking its wings and retracting its landing gear while departing Runway 16.


One of the V-22s made a few circuits around the traffic pattern before they departed.


I patiently waited to get a picture of the B-1 taking off only to get smoke from a V-22 starting its engines in my way...


Another shot of the V-22.


A Rhody C-130 landing on Runway 34. The air show is over; this is a normal sight at OQU.


The V-22s taxiing out for departure. I would've gotten a nice shot of them taking off at the same time if my batteries didn't die right after this (or I at least had the common sense to carry a spare set)...


The C-5 backtaxiing on Runway 16.


Most of the C-5's wheels have made it off the ground.


Four General Electric TF39 turbofan engines screaming past my head.


A Coast Guard HU-25 (Dassault Falcon 20) sitting on the ramp during a thunderstorm. I got soaked this day just so a bunch of multi-million dollar jets could stay dry...


Fat Albert taxies past the small lake that formed on the ramp.


The Blue Angels were with us until Wednesday.


Blasting down a wet runway with visible wingtip vortices.


The low-altitude chemtrail dispersal test was a success, and an unsuspecting public enjoys another air show. (Doug will appreciate that comment when the Google-bot reaches this thread...)


The Blue Angels departing OQU for BGM.


#5 and 6 quickly banked away from each other after takeoff.


Fat Albert on the go on Runway 34.


Rotating on Runway 34 with visible propeller tip vortices.


During a thunderstorm with torrential downpours and small hail, we found out that we could fit a Gulfstream V, two Learjet 31s, a Cessna Citation Excel, a Cirrus SR22, a Cessna 172 and a 182 in our hangar. After the three Cessnas left, we still had plenty of room.


A Coast Guard Lockheed HC-130H Hercules landing on Runway 34. This aircraft took about 4,000 gallons of Jet-A every day for over a week, which not only helped us beat our record for the month (we pumped almost 100,000 gallons in July), but allowed us to start off the fiscal year with black ink instead of red. This aircraft is based at Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater at PIE.


A Coast Guard CASA HC-144A Ocean Sentry (a variant of the CN-235) landing on Runway 34. This is a new aircraft type for the Coast Guard, and it spent a little over a week undergoing flight tests along with the C-130. This aircraft is based at Coast Guard Aviation Training Center Mobile at MOB, and will eventually replace the HU-25.

That's it for now! Thanks for looking!
 
Excellent shots. I'd say now is just as good time as ever to bit the bullet on a DSLR. It appears to me that your skill has exceeded the limitations of your equipment.

One thing to remember; don't skimp on glass. The common notion is that its the camera that makes the shot. It couldn't be farther from the truth. Obviously, its the person holding the camera that is the most important factor. Then comes the lens. You can take a simple old D60 and put a $2000 lens on it and the average critic couldn't tell the difference between your set up and a D3x with the same lens.

The last thing to consider is comfort. All the "pro-sumer" models from Canon and Nikon have very similar specs. It came down to size for me. I have big hands, and the Canon just felt more comfortable for me. The body is slightly thicker than the D90, so my fingers didn't have to curl so much. My suggestion is to go in to a camera store...a real camera store, not Ritz or Wolf, and hold both models. Get them to stick some bigger lenses on it to see how it balances. My 50D with a 70-200 f2.8L IS is a HEAVY S.O.B. I don't know how a D90 with a comparable lens would feel, but I'd be curious to know.
 
"Turnin' and burnin', setting off car alarms and making small children cry."

haha great caption for the F-22. Awesome pictures man. :clap:
 
Gorgeous pictures sir thanks so much for sharing! I always get tingles when I see pudgy on the tail of an airplane, even if it is not the one I used to fly in.
 
Simply stunning pics. Not sure which ones I liked thebest.

In regards to the V 22s. I worked on 166494 and I believe it went to Iraq with us. A/C 10, if it was 166496, was "my" aircraft. By this I mean I was responsible for making sure it was clean at all times inside and out as well as always knowing what were the current gripes written up on it. In the pics I can't see if it is 6496 or not, if so, that aircraft was our hangar queen and literally allowed my squadron to make it through our deployemnt as a "Cann %$^@#".
 
In fact, not to take away from your pics at all, but here are two pics I found on my external. In their "true colors" of course of the Thunder Chickens.

166494
12inhangar.jpg


166496
ac10inpieces.jpg


Forgot to add, for anyone who cares, 166496 was the first ever V22 to land in a combat zone.
 
Excellent shots. I'd say now is just as good time as ever to bit the bullet on a DSLR. It appears to me that your skill has exceeded the limitations of your equipment.

You really want the Nikon D300 though, it is so sweet. You really need two though, one for your 17-35, and one for your 70-200VR...
 
Excellent pics. I saw the F22 demo at Aviation Nation here in Vegas. Coolest fighter ever.
 
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