The local US Air Force base recently held the annual Open House, offering everyone an opportunity to see up close the impressive machines that make all that noise throughout the day. The experience was somewhat nostalgic for me given the years during my youth of taking in the Open House and Air Show put on by McChord AFB in Tacoma, WA. What was more eerie was the weather: clouds, cold, and overcast......a typical summer day sometimes found in the Pacific Northwest. In spite of the less than perfect weather we had ourselves a great time and enjoyed the demonstration put on by the F-16 and A-10 jets. Of course many pictures were taken......below are just a few.
Looking into the nose of the A-10....and the massive gun mounted in the nose. Wow.
They brought in jets from Germany and Poland for the event.....which was pretty cool to see.
Old school
A-10 in flight for one of the demonstrations
F-16 and A-10 flying in formation....a rare event to see.
A-10 at max speed and an F-16 at near stall speed.......
F-16 landing
The impressive gun mounted in the nose of the A-10 that can fire up to 50 rounds per second.
F-15's were flown in from the AFB in England that made the F-16's look very small.
Rear-view of the F-15
F-16 flown by the base Colonel
F-16 preparing to takeoff for the final demonstration
F-16 doing a fly-by
Although the weather was not ideal for the event it was a great opportunity to see up close a variety of different fighter jets. There is something about fighter jets that draws people......I can't exactly say what it is....but I know that it was fun to watch young kids marvel in the same way as parents and grandparents. And yes, you can count me as one of those mesmerized by these million dollar machines.
Looking into the nose of the A-10....and the massive gun mounted in the nose. Wow.
They brought in jets from Germany and Poland for the event.....which was pretty cool to see.
I was very impressed to see an F-35 at the event....until later when I learned that this particular plane did not fly and was transported in for the event in four different pieces. Come on!
Demonstration of loading weapons onto an A-10.
Old school
A-10 in flight for one of the demonstrations
F-16 and A-10 flying in formation....a rare event to see.
A-10 at max speed and an F-16 at near stall speed.......
F-16 landing
The impressive gun mounted in the nose of the A-10 that can fire up to 50 rounds per second.
F-15's were flown in from the AFB in England that made the F-16's look very small.
Rear-view of the F-15
F-16 flown by the base Colonel
An engine from the F-16
F-16 preparing to takeoff for the final demonstration
The F-16 can take off in under 1,000 feet with the after-burners going.....although it can be a little loud when it does.
F-16 doing a fly-by
Although the weather was not ideal for the event it was a great opportunity to see up close a variety of different fighter jets. There is something about fighter jets that draws people......I can't exactly say what it is....but I know that it was fun to watch young kids marvel in the same way as parents and grandparents. And yes, you can count me as one of those mesmerized by these million dollar machines.
The stall speed of F-16 is 150mph and the maximum speed of a A-10 is 500mph...
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