Air Power Park, Hampton, VA (October 30, 2010)

Made a visit to the Virginia Air and Space Museum (previous post), and after exploring some of the area around it and especially Riverwalk (which will be my next and third post) headed back to Richmond. A sign on the highway which told of "Air Power Park" caught my eye, so I took the exit, and headed up the road. I came to this roadside park which featured a number of interesting and rare aircraft, plus missiles of various types. The combination was both interesting and amazing. I saw a great many rare and unique items, and spent quite a bit of time walking around the site. Many of the items could use a coat of paint, and some repair, but it was still amazing to check out.
Rare planes such as this F-100 Super Sabre were common. This plane was in pretty good shape as many were, though some had seen some damage from the weather. There were a number of Vietnam era planes, some dating to the Korean War and before (though nothing earlier than just after World War II). There was even a NASA flown Hawker Kestrel which was the direct forerunner of the AV-8B Harrier which is (still) flown by the United States Marines, and the Royal Navy. In the background of this photo you can see (left to right) a US Army Jupiter missile, and a US Navy Polaris submarine missile. This is stuff you just don't see everyday!
In much better than typical shape, was this Mercury/Little Joe combination. Very, very rare, the Little Joe was made to save money (costing some $200,000 each) in testing of the Mercury escape system. The orange rockets at the very top were designed to pull the spacecraft (and its single astronaut) away from an exploding or failing rocket in the event of an emergency. Some eight Little Joe's were used to test the system. Though this system (also used on the Apollo Spacecraft) was never used in the US, a Russian crew was saved when their rocket exploded and rockets much like this lifted their capsule away and parachutes lowered them back to earth away from the blast. Such a system is being developed for the Orion spacecraft which looks much like Apollo and is planned to replace the Space Shuttle (though that program is facing some problems due to being behind schedule and over budget. Plans are to let private companies run flights into Earth orbit outside of the government (who would pay for their services) rather than running "government spacecraft".
Many of the planes were common type aircraft such as A-7's, F-86's, and F4's (not that it was not neat to see them) but also very rare types such as this F-89 Scorpion which first flew in 1948! Neat to see a very early US jet fighter (this one built by Northrop) as well as a research aircraft such as the NASA flown Kestrel. Throw in rockets such as the Jupiter (seen behind this plane) as well as some "badly needing paint" rockets such as the Nike-Ajax and the Nike-Hercules and you have a very interesting park to visit. I should also mention that admission was free, and you can't beat that in times such as these. From the condition of many of the items, it was apparent that they do get attention from time to time, so while some may need some work, others have gotten some. Air Power Park was a neat and very fun find indeed!

Virginia Air and Space Museum (October 30, 2010)

Day in Hampton, Va turned out to be most amazing; and will be the theme of three posts; starting with this one. On a cool, crisp Saturday morning, got in the car and headed to the Virginia Air and Space Museum in Hampton, Va. A nice pleasant drive and less than 90 minutes later and I was paying the admission price plus the cost of the IMAX 3-D movie (that was " Frontiers of Flight" and I enjoyed it a great deal) for a total of $18. Liked the very striking building that houses the museum, and enjoyed the walk up to it. Inside though was what I had come to check out, and was amazed at the variety of sights inside the massive complex.

Have been a fan of the space program for a number of years, so was excited to see the Command Module of Apollo 12. Apollo 12 launched on November 14, 1969 and landed on the moon in the area known as the "Ocean of Storms" November 19 in the Lunar Module "Intrepid". Richard Gordon orbited alone in the "Yankee Clipper" seen here. Both were Navy names, as the crew was all-Navy. The LM left the moon on November 20, and the three men landed back on Earth in this ship on November 24. Many other space items can be found in the museum, including some other spacecraft such as a Mercury capsule and many unmanned craft.

Of course, there are a number of interesting aircraft, such as these seen at right. Not just warplanes though, they include civilian aircraft, replica aircraft (including a good replica of the 1903 Wright Flyer), and a number of rockets of various types. Also of interest to me were a number of space and flight simulators covering a wide range of air and spacecraft. I was pretty good on the aircraft simulators, not so good on trying to land the Lunar Module (managing to crash it into the moon in all three modes). I did have a great time trying it. There is a lot of things of note for just about anyone with any interest in space or aviation.
Many of the displays can be seen up close, many others from the raised walkways around the displays. The aircraft and other displays were all in good working order (in the case of those items that simulated or demonstrated something of aviation interest) and and the planes being indoor were in very good shape (that will be of note in my next post on the Air Power Park in Hampton, VA). There were also a number of other items such as flight suits, and other aviation artifacts of note. I thought the museum did a good job of covering flight from its earliest days, to future missions to Mars and beyond. I felt it was well worth the money. The IMAX had good comfortable seats, and was in good repair.
Finally, had to close this section with this moon rock. Seen here, the photo does not do it justice, it was the largest one I have seen on display (and I have seen a few. Brought back from Apollo 17's mission in December 1972 it was found to be some 3.67 billion years old. There was also a piece of Mars which came from the famous Mars meteorite of many years back.
I did not know quite what to expect, but found the visit very worthwhile, the museum staff friendly and helpful, and my time spent there very enjoyable. The variety of items and the quality of what was on display made me glad I went, and I can see myself returning for another visit in the future.

Fall in the Carolinas (October 23-24)

Previous post was of the first day of the visit home (sounds so funny to say that, but that is much of how it is) was to the airport. On Sunday October 24, took a ride on the motorcycle around the area. Liked the place at right, which is on Popular Tent Road, very fall like with the pumpkins (the official fruit of the Halloween season I suppose) and lots of good food (which will be part of my meals for the next few weeks; jam and apple butter). I like country stores, and this is a nice one to visit. It was just a great day to be out, with clear blues skies, warmer than normal (for late October) and the light traffic that comes with a Sunday morning motorcycle ride.
Did a lot of backroads cruising on the fine day. Photo at left of the tractor was taken at the Bost Grist Mill which is outside of Concord, NC on NC200. That is one of the many great roads in the area (for a motorcyclist anyhow) with a lot of curves. It is also a very scenic road running past a number of farms, animals, and some nice small towns. Enjoyed getting out and experiencing some places that I have not had the pleasure of visiting for a while. Sometimes it seems with the long breaks between visits, and the short time I am there, that it is like seeing many of these places for the first time...again. Sounds strange, but that is how it feels.
Course being Halloween (getting close anyhow) went with my wife Patty to see this Halloween display on Union Street in Concord. Lots of sights in this yard, including the rather scary characters on the front porch in the distance. This house is a Bed and Breakfast, and puts on some great displays. Looking forward to seeing what they do this Christmas...year before it was quite a sight. Union Street does a lot of interesting things for the holidays; it is one of the oldest streets in the area, and has some fine big houses.
Enjoyed a very fine visit home, looking forward to the next one. Seemed like it lasted all of 15 minutes, but a great time with family, great dogs that I am lucky to have in my house, and good friends as well.

Warbirds! At Concord Regional Airport(October 23, 2010)

Got out to Concord Regional Airport on October 23, 2010 after driving from Richmond, Va to my home. In my last post I had photos of the three planes that visited Chesterfield Airport in Chesterfield, Va, today I saw Aluminum Overcast, which is a B-17 owned and operated by the Experimental Aircraft Association, flying over the airport. This great plane is a flying museum, and one of the few (along with the Collings Foundation planes and a very few others) of the thousands of B-17's which flew above the skies of Europe and the Pacific during the Second World War. It was amazing to see, and to hear, the plane seen at left.
This is Aluminum Overcast here at Concord Regional Airport. The Boeing built bomber is a big plane. Typically they flew around 24,000 feet, in thin air and under very cold conditions. This plane had no pressurization; so you had to deal with the elements. They also for a long time did not have fighter escorts, but relied on the guns on the plane. There were turrets top and bottom, also guns front and rear and on the sides. They also kept tight formations to protect themselves with massed guns against enemy aircraft. Nonetheless, the big planes were relatively easy prey for German fighters. Later in the war longer range escort fighters such as the P-51 were able to protect the big planes. Ground fire and accidents also took a toll on the planes.
Other planes were also at the airport, including this C-130 transport which is flown by the Air National Guard unit based in Charlotte, NC. Notable in that the Air Force (and also many other branches of the military) fly this aircraft, which like the B-17 has four propeller engines. Now though the engines are turboprops, and the plane is used as a transport. The C-130 in fact has been flying for some 50+ years! It is a most remarkable plane, and has even been used in direct combat roles. The C-130 is built by Lockheed Martin, and is still currently in production. It is also flown by many other nations.
There were a number of T-28's at the Open House, which back around the time of Vietnam were used as trainer aircraft for the pilots of the day. This type of plane also saw combat in South East Asia during the war.
In addition to these planes, saw a number of other aircraft, including some modern general aviation aircraft on display. I will be posting some of those photos, and more photos from this event on my photo page.
Had a great time, and remarkable to see aircraft from the Second World War (and other periods) over the last few days at the General Aviation airports of my two cities.

Warbirds! At Chesterfield! (October 21, 2010)

This Thursday is cleanup night at work; which means its going to be a wet and messy night...not a lot of fun (to put it mildly). So was pleased to drive out to the Chesterfield County Airport to see the WWII classic aircraft on display there. They have been flown in by the Collings Foundation. These were three of the premier US combat aircraft of the Second World War. The two bombers were the heavy bombers used in the air war over Germany. The P-51 Mustang was the only escort fighter able to escort the bombers from England to Germany and back, preventing German fighter attacks on the big planes.

The P-51 is a legend in aviation. This is the P-51C Mustang, the later P-51D had a bubble canopy. Built by North American Aviation, the P-51 was mated with the British Merlin engine and became a war winning fighter. It was the first escort plane with the range to fly entire missions. Before that, planes such as the P-47 and the P-38 had to pull off due to lack of range near German targets, leaving the bombers at the mercy of German fighter aircraft. This P-51C is one of few flying and the only one with duel-controls (two cockpits) of what was a single seat fighter normally. Very few of the thousands built are still flying today.
The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress was the best known bomber of the Second World War. The big four engined bomber had a number of machine guns and would form boxes to prevent (as much as possible) fighter attacks. However, many planes were lost from enemy fighters, ground attack (also known as flax) from German guns, and also a number of accidents. The crews flew around 24,000 feet on the raids over Europe, where the air was thin, and it was very cold. The B-17 was a rugged aircraft, and many came home with heavy damage, but many were also lost. Thousands of crewmen died or were captured during the war.
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was actually produced in greater numbers than the B-17. It was a faster plane, and could carry a heavier bomb load. The twin tailed plane has a sort of "flying boat" look, which comes from the fact that Consolidated was known for building those types of planes. Like the B-17, crews flew in an un-pressurized plane, in the cold, under fire, and like with the B-17 though rugged, many were lost in the skies over Germany with the crews killed or captured. It was a great thing to see these amazing historic aircraft, and I enjoyed it a great deal. My next post will feature even more, though in a different state and a different place. This is going to be a great time to see some legendary aircraft at some fine local airports. I greatly enjoyed the visit today of these planes in which so many gave so much, so we could have the world we have today!

Some Favorite Richmond Places (October 16, 2010)

Took my friend Keith (from work, another transfer from Louisville and Concord, NC) on a tour of Richmond today (our second time, he came down for the IndyCar race in Richmond last year). First stop was a favorite place: Buz and Ned's Real Barbecue. Real good Richmond style barbecue, and a fun place to eat. I find the food really reasonable, and the service is good as well. Just before that, we walked over to Velocity Motorcycles to check out the very interesting motorcycles to be found over there. It is my favorite motorcycle shop in the Richmond area, and the fact that both places are across the street from each other is a real plus.
At left is a view of Belle Isle. I was just there a couple of weeks ago, but it was fun to show it off to Keith. There is a lot of nature to enjoy there, but also a great deal of history; that Island has seen a lot of uses since it was owned by the Indian's (John Smith was there in the early 1600's). Indian camps, rock quarry, various factories, power plant, civil war prison, and now a playground for the people of Richmond and visitors from all over. The walk across the bridge under the highway and over the James River is a real fun walk with great views of the Island, and also of the city of Richmond. This was my third trip there, and will not be the last one.
Third photo is of Keith and I exploring Malvern Hill. This field was the site of a battle with some 150,000 soldiers (on both sides) during the Civil War. One of my favorite local battlefields; it has a lot of information and history to be found there. We wandered around much of the battlefield and there is quite a bit to see there. Good information on the battle can be found on the web.
Following that, we made a final stop for a cold Legend Brown Ale at the Legend Brewing Company; enjoying that Richmond made beer on their beer deck outside. Did a very interesting ride up Hull Street before dropping him off at his apartment, and then I returned to mine on a very fine night in Richmond, VA. Of note, on this Saturday night I am enjoying the Bank of America 500 live broadcast from Concord, NC...where my family (and I often) live. Certainly this "tale of two cities" gets interesting sometimes; especially when you live it as I do.

Bears/Panthers in Charlotte, NC (October 10, 2010)

Game day was hot and sunny, though happy for the carolina blue skies for the game in the open air of Bank of America stadium. Parked at the usual place we found a few games ago, and Robby and I took a walk toward the arena. Took a few photos of Charlotte. I really enjoy that city, its a fun and interesting place with a lot to do (such as football games for instance) . I have been there a number of times, and enjoyed the walk on Sunday. Had a "country" sort of day on Saturday, nice to have a "urban" one on Sunday. Cities are special places and usually packed with many things of interest.

Did a number of pre-game things, we got some free nachos at one booth, checked out the music all over the place, people partying, and had fun amid all the sights and sounds. Near Bank of America Stadium, Mike Rucker was signing autographs. My son Robby posed for a photo with him, and I thought that was pretty cool. We like to get to the game early; we rolled into our parking space earlier around 11am. Don't do the whole tailgate thing (though we have in the past, and may again in the future) but did enjoy a few frosty adult beverages (as well as some cola drinks later on) . Did notice a large number of Chicago Bears fans were on hand.
The game started at 1pm with the kickoff seen here. I had hoped for a flyby (kind of fond of aircraft, especially loud and pointy nose jets) but no such luck. The Chicago Bears came out swinging and scored with just under two minutes in the game; and it was downhill for the Panthers after that. Cutler was out for the Bears, Todd Collins was the QB for Chicago and despite throwing four interceptions, the Panthers could do nothing with it, scoring all of their six points with field goals. Chicago mixed it up more, for their twenty-three game winning points. Carolina went to 0-5 in what is looking to be a dismal season. Fan reaction from the stands was understandably negative (except from the Chicago group which was loud and happy) , but it was great watching the game with my son, and we had a great if hot time. Did not have a hat unfortunately, did drape a handkerchief on my head to shelter it from the 90+ degree heat. May have looked silly, but there was a lot of silly looking going on at the game along with the colored hair and face paint. Football games bring out all the interesting people.
At any case, we left a bit before the end, as had most of the people though in the photo at left from our lofty seats, there was still hope alive when I took this photo (and a neat view of Charlotte above the crowd). Enjoyed a nice walk back to the car; a few blocks in which we also saw a Bear fan arrested for something during the post-game fun. Had a nice ride back in the car, checking out the post game show, and enjoying seeing the city. Lots of routes out of Charlotte, and having been there a few times, was easy getting home. Sure beat years ago when games in Indianapolis, and Cincinnati took a major road trip to get in. It was a very fun time even with the loss spent with one of my favorite and most loved people.