Good Morning, Oppo

"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn) 02/27/2018 at 09:27 • Filed to: planelopnik

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Blue Angels No. 6 taking off during practice at El Centro for this season’s show. Click through for video.

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davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > ttyymmnn 02/27/2018 at 09:37

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Uh, yeah... The click was worth it!!

ttyymmnn > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 02/27/2018 at 09:39

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Here’s another one.

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KingT- 60% of the time, it works every time > ttyymmnn 02/27/2018 at 09:43

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Murrica!

Ash78, voting early and often > ttyymmnn 02/27/2018 at 09:59

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I’ve seen the Blues practice twice at NAS Pensacola, it’s amazing since they don’t have to follow traditional airshow rules (they fly right over your heads). If you plan your spot just right, you don’t even have to go on base, you can set up on the beaches along the barrier islands. If you get lucky, this happens — wingtip vortices for the win:

ttyymmnn > Ash78, voting early and often 02/27/2018 at 10:18

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My tax dollars at work. I’m okay with this.

f86sabre > ttyymmnn 02/27/2018 at 10:47

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epic

Bo Knows > Ash78, voting early and often 02/27/2018 at 10:54

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I haven’t seen them fly since the early -00s. Actually, make that haven’t seen anyone fly at an air show in a long time. I had a chance to see Glacier Girl at her home airfield in Middlesboro, KY, but I missed out. :(

ttyymmnn > Bo Knows 02/27/2018 at 11:01

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I got to see them back in October when they came through Fort Worth. Great show, as always. Here are some pics if you’re interested.

Bo Knows > ttyymmnn 02/27/2018 at 11:16

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Those are great pictures. Maybe it’s just me, but the engine on the A-1 seems small. It’s like the engine guys and the “rest of the plane” guys worked separately.

ttyymmnn > Bo Knows 02/27/2018 at 11:28

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Thanks. As for the engine on the Spad, it’s a Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclone, an 18-cylinder monster of a radial. They put four of them on the B-29, but with just one, the Skyraider could carry the same bomb load as a maxed-out B-17. The Skyraider has an interesting design history. It started life as sort of an ultimate dive/torpedo bomber for the Navy, the XB2D Skypirate.

I wrote a piece about this aircraft, and its transformation into the A-1, a couple of years ago.

Bo Knows > ttyymmnn 02/27/2018 at 11:44

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I’d never heard of the Skypirate. Very interesting. There are certain angles of the A-1 that remind of a P-47. It’s like the younger, stronger, and a little bit uglier version of a 47. Didn’t mean to hijack the original post but lots of good content in both write-ups

ttyymmnn > Bo Knows 02/27/2018 at 11:46

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Hijacks welcome. I’ll talk about airplanes all day. Lots more airplane stuff on my Wingspan blog, as well as all the posts on Aviation History .