[Llarry]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

Thank you... and do you know the aircraft used in the 2004 re-make? (Very similar to the C-82)

Well if it's very similar, might it be the C-119?

[Lady Jane]

Originally Posted by Llarry

Well if it's very similar, might it be the C-119?

♪Ding♫ ♫Ding♪ ♪Ding♫ Boxcar it is! Good movie BTW.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairch..._Flying_Boxcar

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

[B]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairch..._Flying_Boxcar

Attachment 3198612

One of the interesting and unique features of the C-119 was that early models had the larger and more powerful Pratt & Whitney R-4360 28-cylinder radial engine, and later models had the smaller Wright R-3350 18-cylinder radial engine. The R-3350 was more reliable and had better fuel consumption. Despite the fact that there were several aircraft that used the R-4360 throughout their service lives (B-36, C-124, etc.) that engine never had the reliability of the R-3350.

[Llarry]

A couple of reminders that aircraft need and get upgrades until the end of their service lives:

-- A photo of a Navy Boeing E-6B Mercury coming out of a modification center with upgrades to systems in 2023. The E-6B is scheduled to be replaced for strategic communications by a C-130 variant in coming years. This photo of the rear of the E-6B shows the two long antenna outlets: one at the very rear of the tail and the other partially hidden behind the crowd on the rear belly of the aircraft. I believe the successor EC-130 will use the same transmission system: Two very long trailing wires that are deployed while the aircraft flies a circular pattern and become essentially vertical.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_E-6_Mercury

-- A photo of a U.S. Army UH-60V Blackhawk, a modification of an older UH-60L with glass cockpit and integrated avionics, delivered to a unit in Europe and replacing UH-60Ms. The Army has chosen a new tilt-rotor design to replace the large number of Blackhawks in service, but that process will take years.

Over 5,000 Sikorsky model S-70 helicopters have been built since the first flight in 1974 and the type remains in production, making the UH-60 -- and its many derivatives serving armies, air forces, navies and civilian users around the world -- ubiquitous in the world of rotary-wing aviation. As I previously posted, the Chinese armed forces have now begun production of a modified copy, ensuring that the S-70/H-60 will be seen in the skies for many years to come.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikorsky_S-70

[Lady Jane]

Macchi M.C.99 aka the Baby Sunderland.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macchi_M.C.99

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

Macchi M.C.99 aka the Baby Sunderland.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macchi_M.C.99

Wooden construction and rather archaic placement of the engines on struts above the wing -- it seems understandable that the type was unsuccessful.

[Llarry]

There's some funny business going on with U.S. government Boeing 757s, designated C-32 in the military system. I heard long ago that some of these aircraft were involved in moving terrorist prisoners around the world, e.g., to Guantanamo Bay, etc. They are still active and some may be involved in more conventional support activities. Some are ostensibly civilian and do not bear military markings. See two photos -- one of a USAF C-32B of the 150th Special Operations Squadron of the New Jersey Air National Guard and one that is virtually unmarked.

[vreihen16]

Originally Posted by Llarry

There's some funny business going on with U.S. government Boeing 757s, designated C-32 in the military system.

There used to be an unmarked one based in NJ that was apparently flying touch-and-go's for hours at our nearby airport about 6 years ago. It flew right over my office at work, and my ADS-B tracker logged a lot of their movements.....

[M-technik-3]

Originally Posted by Llarry

There's some funny business going on with U.S. government Boeing 757s, designated C-32 in the military system. I heard long ago that some of these aircraft were involved in moving terrorist prisoners around the world, e.g., to Guantanamo Bay, etc. They are still active and some may be involved in more conventional support activities. Some are ostensibly civilian and do not bear military markings. See two photos -- one of a USAF C-32B of the 150th Special Operations Squadron of the New Jersey Air National Guard and one that is virtually unmarked.

They are used for relocating migrants at the present time usually late at night. Vs the bussing that other states are doing. As non political as I can say it.

[Llarry]

I've recently subscribed to the excellent Dutch site scramble.nl and am getting all sorts of info and photos -- in some cases, enough to make my eyes glaze over.

Offutt AFB, Nebraska, is the home of the reconnaissance RC-135V and RC-135W Rivet Joint SIGINT aircraft that deploy world-wide -- the news reported several days ago that an RC-135 got "thumped" by a Chinese fighter in international airspace off China. Offutt is also home to weather recon WC-135Rs. Here are a couple of photos showing the Rivet Joint with its many antennas and a WC-135R.

[Llarry]

Canada has committed to procuring 88 Lockheed Martin F-35A fighters, although the process has been long and convoluted. Two options that have been discussed are probe and drogue refueling (as fitted to F-35B and F-35C variants) instead of a boom refueling receptacle and a braking parachute (as fitted to Norwegian F-35s) to assist in landing on icy runways.

By "long and convoluted" I mean really, really long and convoluted. The details can be found on Wikipedia, but suffice it to say that Australia, which like Canada started with an F-18 force, will be accepting its 72nd and final F-35A by the end of 2023, whereas Canada will not see its first delivery of an F-35A until 2026 and its first squadron will be operational in 2029.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockhe...5_Lightning_II

and if you've got a day free for detailed reading try:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockhe...an_procurement

The photo is of a mockup from 13 years ago.

[Llarry]

Four-engine transports don't usually come to mind when thinking about the U.S. Navy, but the Naval Reserve has five small transport squadrons flying a mix of C-130T and KC-130T aircraft. There are also 5 active ex-Marine KC-130T transport/refuelers that support Navy air test activities.

The first photo is of a C-130T transport with the older four-blade propellers that have become a maintenance issue. The second photo is of a KC-130T transport/refueler with the replacement 8-blade props. (The current C-130J uses six-blade props.)

The Navy wants to buy 32 new C-130J and KC-130J aircraft to replace these older ones, but the program is not in the budget; whether the funds will be found is an open question.

[Llarry]

In addition to the five C-130/KC-130 squadrons operated by the Naval Reserve, the Reserve also has five small squadrons operating Boeing C-40A transports. These are modified B737-700 aircraft with extra fuel tanks for extended range and can carry up to 121 passengers or cargo or a combination of the two. Unlike the Air Force's C-40Bs and C-40Cs, these are not command or VIP aircraft.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_C-40_Clipper

[Lady Jane]

The Caproni Campini N.1 was the first Italian jet and the first jet with an afterburner.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caproni_Campini_N.1

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

The Caproni Campini N.1 was the first Italian jet and the first jet with an afterburner.

1940!

[RobotDoctor]

PDX

[vreihen16]

Given the huge wildfires in eastern Canada choking out your neighbors to the south, it seems appropriate to show the Canadair CL-215 Scooper and CL-415 Super Scooper some love today.....






.

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by vreihen16

Given the huge wildfires in eastern Canada choking out your neighbors to the south, it seems appropriate to show the Canadair //snipped//

Oh, oh! (Raises hand.) Lady Jane already corrected me on that -- they started out as Canadairs, but are now Viking Airs. Anyway, I wish them great success!

[Lady Jane]

Originally Posted by Llarry

Oh, oh! (Raises hand.) Lady Jane already corrected me on that -- they started out as Canadairs, but are now Viking Airs. Anyway, I wish them great success!

Old models were made by Canadair, then De Havilland and now Viking. Nobody is technically wrong. It's all in the links provided.

[vreihen16]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

Old models were made by Canadair, then De Havilland and now Viking. Nobody is technically wrong. It's all in the links provided.

Designed in Canada as the first purpose-built water bombers by Canadair, and still to this day made in Canada.....

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

Interesting set-up.

Attachment 3174795

Photoshop job. Here is the original photo without the radome and without the shark art on the tail. The photo with the radome has been troubling me for a month -- it's good to put it to rest.

[Lady Jane]

Originally Posted by Llarry

Photoshop job. Here is the original photo without the radome and without the shark art on the tail. The photo with the radome has been troubling me for a month -- it's good to put it to rest.

It drove you nuts, didn't it? I fully understand the feeling.