PhanCon 2009

[f4_phantom_fan]

Thanks guys!

So Brian and Craig, how was it?  No photos yet?  Or scans of slides from Craig.  

It was great! Cold and overcast, but I kind of half-expected that. Day one included the 82nd ramp, T-38 ramp, The Canyon (where the F-117s used to be kept - it now houses their 16 Raptors), and the GAF hangars. Apparently some of the Phantoms and T-38s now go up against the Raptors as adversaries, which was cool to hear. There were some limits on photography - no shots of the test squadron T-38s, no shots in or near The Canyon or inside the hangar where we saw an F-22 on display, and no shots of one particular Tornado being worked on, that had it's nose cone off. Other than that, we could shoot anything else. Some of the base's Raptors still wear the AK tail code from Elmendorf, but will get the HO code when they go in for depot maintenance. Saw one Predator go up, saw a Reaper fly over us later on. The next day we went to Heritage Park, then out to a runway to see some Raptors go up (and noticeably closer to the runway than at Edwards South Base    ), then over to an area near the Phantom ramp again to see four of them launch, and then over to the high speed test track which actually turned out to be quite interesting after all. About 90 people attended this year - mostly U.S., U.K., Netherlands, and Japan. Looks like it will be Tyndall next year.

[f4_phantom_fan]

Here's some more.........

[f4_phantom_fan]

Phantoms everywhere!  Seems like every year somebody gets the group into a little hot water. A ladder had been set up next to this hangared Heritage aircraft, and I guess somebody got there before our escorts could stop him and he proceeded to climb right into the front seat. Our PAO escort was quite unhappy about it, too.

[f4_phantom_fan]

Here's some non-Phantom stuff........the F-117 is actually #782, the one that did the flyby at the 2005 Edwards show sporting the American flag on the bottom. They also have a false SN# on the C-model Phantom at the park.

[f4_phantom_fan]

Some more non F-4 images.......the two middle shots are of the test track.

[aero-engineer]

I guess somebody got there before our escorts could stop him and he proceeded to climb right into the front seat. Our PAO escort was quite unhappy about it, too.

You would think that person would be smarter than that being an alleged airplane guy.

It's not a pretty picture when you impact the hanger roof.


Kevin
aero-engineer

[aero-engineer]

Did anyone get a closeup of the marker in front of the YF-117A for Capt. Ken Levens?

Kevin
aero-engineer

[f4_phantom_fan]

First shot here is the view from one of the EORs where we watched some Raptors go up.

[phantomphan1974]

In the second to last pic is a Tyndall heritage bird that looks a little forelorn, is it on death row or just tired paint?

[f4_phantom_fan]

Yeah it's tired paint. That's #1490, another of the original group of Heritage aircraft.

[aim9xray]

Or scans of slides from Craig. 

[f4_phantom_fan]

ROFL, Damon ya walked right into that one...........

[phantomphan1974]

I know.  RIP Kodachrome 64

[f4_phantom_fan]

I know.  RIP Kodachrome 64

AMEN.........did you know that Doug is going to retire after he's used up his remaining rolls? No Fuji, no digital conversion........

[phantomphan1974]

AMEN.........did you know that Doug is going to retire after he's used up his remaining rolls? No Fuji, no digital conversion........

WHAT!!!! ARE YOU SERIOUS??? Wow!!!  Is he still going to do the book selling?