The Super Hornet!

[Dave Shutter]

About the Andrews air show, I'm not sure if I missed it when I first read the list of displays, but it's there now, A Hornet "E/F" will be at the show! I'm not sure which one or maybe both models, but one will be there, with a pilot answering questions I assume! I don't know if OPEEVAL squadrons have PAO officers so I'm quessing it's from VFA-122, so that poor pilot who got stuck with air show duty over the weekend gets to listen to my hundred or so questions. I'm hoping to get some good info on Tomcat and Hornet"C" replacement as well as the RAG, God knows their website hasn't changed in over a year!

Flyers over Devils in NJ: 3-1!!! Flyers lead series 3-1, going back to Philly!!! One more win till they play for the cup!!! Go Flyers! F**K THE!!!

Had to say it...

D

 

[Tripp]

Speak of the Devil...(HA! I kill me!)

Buffalo needs to trade Miroslav Satan (Rt. Wing) to New Jersey. That way, the headlines would read, "Satan Leads Devils to Victory." That would be way too funny.

 

[Dave Shutter]

You should be on a comedy club tour Tripp...

Shawn Q: You might be down about missing the Andrews AFB show, but I just got back and am very dissapointed, not at the performers or any of the exhibits but the weather! We were there for about six hours with six hours total drive time and only five of the twenty planned flights flew: an aerobatic plane, a Harrier, F-4, some helo's and the Blue Angels flew but due to the low ceiling they only did two or three maneuvers and then landed. The Golden Knights were grounded, The Thunderbirds and Snow Birds didn't fly and neither did any other jet demo's, including the F-14 which I desperately wanted to see. There were all the static displays including the Stealth planes and the Superhornet which I felt were worth the tripp but to see and the Angels and T-Bird lined up on the ramp and not really see them fly was a huge bummer, I know that safety has to be the paramount issue, especially at an air show, and I still consider the day as a whole a plus but still...

Oh well, Oceana in Sept!(sigh)

Ens. Wickham: Saw a P-3 up close and personal, Wow man, that's a whole lot of airplane ya got there!

Go Flyers!

D

 

[webmaster]

Dave, I would agree about that! But I still have at least 6 more months, and one training pipeline segment (Advanced) to get through before I get there. If you have any good pictures of the Air Show, why don't you send them in (if your interested and can), and we will post them so the rest of us can see.

 

[Tripp]

ENS Wickham,

Thought you might appreciate this, being a "modified Electra" driver...
quote:
Lockheed L 188 Electra Still Hot Property

Atlantic Airlines (Coventry, Great Britain) has purchased a further two [of the world's fleet of 60 or so flying] Lockheed Electra cargo aircraft. The first will be available for charter in about two months, and the second by the end of the year. The acquisition brings the West Midlands (Coventry) International Airport based freight airline's fleet up to nine aircraft.

"The Electra is an ideal workhorse for a variety of cargo uses," said Atlantic Airlines' Managing Director Russell Ladkin. "It can accommodate up to eight and a half 108" or six 125" containers or pallets and its large freight door makes for ease with the loading of unconventional sized pieces. The Electra has a 15,000 kg payload, modern jet reliability and meets all Stage 3 noise restrictions [in fact, it meets Stage 4 --ed.] without the large capital commitment of similar sized newer equipment. In addition it has transatlantic capability. We fully expect the Electra to give us at least ten years more service life - there is simply no logical replacement for it at present."

Ladkin said that there was engineering work required on each of the new aircraft in order to bring them up to the standard of the existing Atlantic Airlines' fleet. "We will be taking the opportunity of modifying the Electras to two crew operation and adding modern navigation and technical equipment," he said.

Atlantic Airlines acquired its first Lockheed Electra in 1994 and has steadily built up the fleet since that time. The airline also operates two Douglas DC6 freighters (13 ton capacity) and recently committed itself to a Convair 440 (6.25 ton capacity) in order to give cover at the lower end of the market. Last week Atlantic announced that it was setting up a satellite base at Vitoria in Spain in order to focus on the southern Europe market.

The Electra, the parent of the Orion [in the old Lockheed, the Vega was the parent to the Orion --ed.] are set up for two crew operation, which makes the old birds really quite economical. The RR engines are quite similar to the ones on the Lockheed Martin Hercules. The big four-engine turboprops are valued on the used market at about $2 million each.