Pictures Of The Week

Week 26, June 2013

Pictures of the Week
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Clockwise from top left:

  1. Hunter WV372 has made a return to display flying this year, and is seen here performing at Old Warden. A favourite venue of UKAR's due to the curved display line which leads to beautiful topside images like this!

    Image © Phil Chaplin
    Canon EOS 1D MkII + Canon EF 400mm ƒ5.6 lens

  2. This week we feature three images from Wittmund, where the mighty Phantom has recently retired from German Air Force service. This image beautifully captures the F-4's infamous smoke trails perfectly and was therefore an easy choice for POTW!

    Image © Mark Rouse
    Canon EOS 7D + Canon EF 35-350mm L lens

  3. Seeing a Phantom thrown around the sky was a highlight of the 'Phantom Pharewell' for many visitors. This in-your-face image of the aircraft turning in full afterburner certainly caught our eye!

    Image © Alex van Noye
    Nikon D600 + Nikkor 200-400mm lens

  4. WTD-61 have painted their fair share of impressive special schemes (who can forgot the orange Phantom & Tornado from a few years ago) but their F-4 retirement scheme was something really special. Seen here departing Wittmund after the 'Phantom Pharewell' event.

    Image © Marcel "Tigerspoon" Bartwicki
    Nikon D7000 + Nikkor 70-300mm VR lens

  5. Zeltweg is another airshow venue high on UKAR's list for top photogenic locations, though it doesn't feature the mountainous background we've grown used to from Airpower, this capture of the Orange Lion is still incredibly impressive.

    Image © Peter Steelhouwer
    Nikon D3X + Nikkor 400mm ƒ2.8 VR lens

  6. Rounding off this week's selection, a pair of Hawk T2 arriving at RAF Lossiemouth with their new 4(R) markings looking impressive in the sunshine and blue skies.

    Image © Chris Milne

Pictures Of The Week

Week 25, June 2013

Pictures of the Week
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Clockwise from top left:

  1. The Turkish Air Force hosted a number of photographers on base during the 'Anatolian Eagle' exercise earlier this month, which provided brilliant access to a selection of exotic aircraft. This capture of a Royal Saudi Air Force F-15D Eagle flaring to land captured our eye both for the rarely seen type and dynamic nature of the image.

    Image © Arnold ten Pas

  2. Another image from Turkey which captured our eye was another landing shot from 'Anatolian Eagle', this time featuring a Turkish Air Force F-4E Phantom '2020 Terminator'. With the drag chute in tow and front wheel still raised, it's the kind of shot most of us dream about capturing.

    Image © Kevin Daws
    Nikon D800 + Nikkor 70-200mm VR II lens

  3. More exotic types next, showcasing the quality of rarity of images posted on our forums. This image from Pingtong North AFB in Tawain shows a pair of Mirage 2000-S taxying past some rather colourful aircraft shelters. Check out the rest of Mark's thread for more colourful Taiwanese types!

    Image © Mark Rourke
    Canon EOS 7D + Canon EF 600mm ƒ4 IS lens

  4. This beautiful shot of the SAAB B17A was captured from the control tower at Linköping Airport as the aircraft was operating to train a new pilot on the type. Hopefully we can see this Swedish beauty over in the UK again soon!

    Image © Daniel Nilsson
    Nikon D300S + Nikkor AF-S 80-400mm VR II lens

  5. Manston Airshow returned this year, and despite problems with the traffic the line-up the organising committee put together for the ticket price of just £12 was exceptional. This shot from the show captures three British aviation icons, the Supermarine Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane and Avro Vulcan.

    Image © Anthony Baines
    Nikon D300 + Nikkor 200-400mm ƒ4 VR II lens

  6. Another Spitfire next, this time the beautiful Mk9 painted in Dutch markings. Photographed on an Air to Air sortie to celebrate 322 Squadron's 70th anniversary, there's just something about silver Spitfires that makes them that extra special.

    Image © Cristian Schrik (Aimhigh Aviation Photography)
    Canon EOS 1D MkIV + Canon EF 24-105mm ƒ4 L IS lens

  7. Finally this week, what must be one of the first photographs of a Do-17 posted on UKAR. The RAF Museum recently completed a high-profile recovery of this airframe from the Goodwin Sands and the airframe is now at Cosford for restoration.

    Image © Lee Broadbent
    Canon EOS 600D + Canon EF-S 18-55mm lens

Pictures Of The Week

Week 24, June 2013

Pictures of the Week
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Clockwise from top left:

  1. The airshow celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the Royal Netherlands Air Force, held at Volkel AB, boasted excellent line-ups for both the flying and static displays. Amongst the aircraft in the static park was this specially painted German Air Force F-4F Phantom, making one the last air show appearances of the type before the Luftwaffe retire them at the end of this month. On departure the pilot delighted the assembled photographers, including Alex van Noye, by treating them to this topside pass before heading home.

    Image © Alex van Noye

  2. Andrzej Rogucki was another person who ventured to Volkel where he bagged this chance photo of the Belgian Air Component F-16 display with a British Airways World Cargo 747-8F flying overhead heading for Frankfurt. It may well be a lucky shot by Andrej's own admission, but that detracts nothing from the quality.

    Image © Andrzej Rogucki
    Canon EOS 1Dx + Canon EF 500mm ƒ4 L IS lens & Canon 1.4x TC

  3. You wait ages for an F-16 and then ten turn up at once! Markus Altmann was another forum member who journeyed to Volkel and witnessed this memorable formation. Onboard the KLM 737 were 125 sick children who were given a flight over Holland before being escorted into Volkel by ten F-16s, which were preparing to take part in the air power demo.

    Image © Markus Altmann
    Canon EOS 600D + Canon EF 100-400mm L IS lens

  4. 'The Baby Blue' of the Royal Danish Air Force are one of the lesser known European display teams. Cristian Schrik flew an air-to-air sortie with the team and their four Saab T-17 Supporter aircraft over northern Denmark last summer, which is when this photo was taken.

    Image © Cristian Schrik (Aimhigh Aviation Photography)
    Canon EOS 1D MkIII + Canon EF 24-105mm ƒ4 L IS lens

  5. Sean Kelly went to the Canadian Warplane Heritage's annual airshow in Hamilton, Ontario, where one of the stars of was the Messerschmitt Me262 reproduction. No original 262s remain airworthy and this reproduction is painted as “White 3”, flown by Ens. Hans Guido Mutke and is operated by Fighter Factory.

    Image © Sean Kelly
    Canon EOS 50D + Canon EF 300mm ƒ4 L lens & Canon 1.4x TC

  6. Finally this week Ralph Lunt didn’t let a family holiday to Corfu stop him taking aviation photos. This Air Berlin 737-800 is seen on final approach into Corfu airport was our favourite from a fine set of photos.

    Image © Ralph Lunt
    Canon EOS 5D MkII + Canon EF 100-400mm L IS lens

Pictures Of The Week

Week 23, June 2013

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Clockwise from top left:

  1. At the beginning of June the French Securite Civile marked the 50th Anniversary of firebombing and Tony Osborne's extensive coverage of the celebrations caught the attention of many UKAR members, with a great variety of exotica that is rarely seen outside of France. This CL-415 was snapped at Marseille-Marignane about to touch down on the water, quite a magnificent sight!

    Image © Tony Osborne
    Canon EOS 7D + Canon EF 300mm ƒ4 L IS lens

  2. The Swedish Air Force Historic Flight's AJS-37 Viggen was the undoubted highlight of the Göteborg Aero Show. Grzegorz's stunning image shows the Thunderbolt aptly creating its own cloud in the skies over Gothenburg City airport. Captain Stellan Andersson was able to fly the full display on both days, which even included with a small demonstration of the aircraft's reversing abilities!

    Image © Grzegorz Kozak
    Nikon D700 + Nikkor 400mm ƒ2.8 lens & 1.4x TC

  3. Aircraft seem to be grey, grey and more grey these days, so it is incredibly refreshing to see a type moving in to a brighter scheme. Markus Altman captured this Canadian Air Force CC-150 Polaris in its new colours on departure from Cologne airport.

    Image © Markus Altmann
    Canon EOS 600D + Canon EF 100-400mm L IS lens

  4. Many enthusiasts dream of the day that the Russian Air Force once again bring one of their hugely impressive long range bombers to the UK, but with that remaining exactly that, just a dream, it's great that Chris Lofting was able to share a wealth of images of the rarely seen Russian beasts. In amongst the Fullbacks, Fencers, Bears and Blackjacks it was this Tu-22M Backfire at Shaikovka Air Base that caught our eye. Security for Chris' visit was so tight that the aircraft seen here was kept well away from the other ramps, and his party were driven to it in a bus with the curtains drawn!

    Image © Chris Lofting
    Canon EOS 7D + Canon EF 24-105 ƒ4 L lens

  5. Another low angle image from another Chris. It's difficult to do different things at airshows with static aircraft, so the RAF Cosford Airshow organisers must be applauded for setting up this little scenario. The Harrier GR3 looks incredibly smart in this hide, with 'Remove Before Flight' tags and intakes bungs making the aircraft seem as though it's ready and waiting for its pilot!

    Image © Chris Gibson
    Nikon D5100 + Nikkor 18-55mm lens

  6. With an airshow regular such as the Vulcan it's tricky to capture an image that really stands out. However, Gavin has managed exactly that with this photo of XH558 displaying at the RAF Cosford Airshow. With the majority of the airshow season still ahead of us we'll be looking out for your unusual images of this Cold War beauty.

    Image © Gavin Weaver
    Canon EOS 40D + Canon EF 100-400mm L IS lens

  7. A weathered Sea King and a whole lot of dust, you'd be forgiven for mistaking it for Afghanistan. This image of a Royal Navy HC4 caught our eye due to the unusual conditions, the aircraft practicing "brown out" landings on Salisbury Plain whilst conducting pre-deployment training. Hiding in the dust is another Sea King, ZA298/Y, which is the Navy's own "Bravo November". In her career she's been hit three times, most recently by a rocket-propelled grenade to the side of the cab in Afghanistan.

    Image © Rick Ingham

Pictures Of The Week

Week 22, June 2013

Pictures of the Week
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Clockwise from top left:

  1. Hard, and sad, to believe that the mighty A-10 Warthog's days as a European-based type appear to be over, but luckily you can still see some great images of this ugly-beautiful machine on UKAR. This image is one you can almost hear, as this Hawg live-fires its mighty Vulcan cannon on the Barry M Goldwater range in Arizona, splitting, no doubt, Søren's eardrums!

    Image © Søren Augustesen
    Canon EOS 1D MkIV + Canon EF 300mm ƒ2.8 L lens

  2. Peter Teichman's eagerly-awaited new P-40N paint scheme has, it must be said, met with a pretty mixed reception. This Staffer's take is, well, at least it's better than the God-awful "CGI" paint it wore from its role in filming Red Tails. The level of research that has gone into this facelift is clearly extremely deep, but we're just not that taken with the choice of nose-art. "Lulu Belle" nonetheless will be one of the must-see warbirds on this year's display circuit. Andy was there to witness the grand unveiling, at Hangar 11's home at North Weald.

    Image © Andrew Critchell
    Nikon D200 + Nikkor 18-200mm VR lens

  3. From Essex, next we go to Romania, for a tremendously sunny shot from Bogdan Movileanu. This medevac-configured IAR-330M Puma pushes all our buttons, for rarity, composition and vibrancy of colours. Photographed at Clinceni Aerodrome during the "Child's Day Aviation Airshow", organised by the Romanian Airclub every year since the 1960s, the IAR-330M is modernised version of the Puma with a 'glass cockpit', upgraded navigation systems, Modular Integrated Display-And-Sight Helmets (MIDASH) and a weather radar.

    Image © Bogdan Movileanu
    Canon EOS 7D + Sigma 17-70mm lens

  4. As does our next image. Sit back and savour the majesty of the F-15 Eagle, but not just any Eagle! This is the Israeli Air Force F-15I variant, captured by UKARian Arnold ten Pas on a tour of Israel. His thread is well worth checking out - other types featured include A-4 Skyhawks, F-16I Falcons and AH-1 HueyCobras. You don't see variety like that too often, even on our pages!

    Image © Arnold ten Pas

  5. POTW really does come from far and wide this week - evidence of the global reach UKAR enjoys. This next shot comes from the Rainbow Nation - South Africa, and the Newcastle Air Show in Kwa Zulu Natal province. The image, taken air-to-air by John Talman, from a humble Cessna 182 shows the Extra 300s of the Mazda Aerobatic Team, flown by Brad Bennetts and Ellis Levin (nearest the camera).

    Image © John Talman

  6. Staying overseas, though rather closer to home, Alexandre, got lucky at Marseille's Merignane airport. He was hoping to catch Plane Sailing's Catalina, but instead this Pakistan Air Force Ilyushin Il-78MP happened to get in the way of his lens. For sheer rarity value alone, this was an easy choice for POTW.

    Image © Alexandre Buonomo

  7. We're a little out of season for dusk shots, normally they're a staple of our winter selections, but Martin Jordan gets a deserved nomination for this silhouetted Etihad Airways Airbus A330 departing Manchester's Ringway airport, against a fiery summer sunset.

    Image © Martin Jordan
    Canon EOS 7D + Canon EF 70-300mm L IS lens