McCord Air Force Base celebrated Air Expo 2008 with vintage and modern aircraft, These three show speed, agility, and raw power. The FA-18 Super Hornet is flying just short of the speed of sound. The Halo around the aircraft is air and water vapor. The F-15 is showing raw power as it takes off and goes into a power climb topping out about three miles up. The Thunderbirds demonstrate flying in very close quarters.
"Halo" around aircraft
Gallery
McCord Air Expo 2008
By: robpollock66Subscribe
Channel: On the Scene
Location: McCord Air Force Base, Tacoma, Washington
13 Comments
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says ... on Monday, Jul 21 at 6:22 PM
Nice picture! I saw the Saturday show, and the super hornet did go through the sound barrier. I got it on video too. I felt the ground thump twice. It's much louder when the aircraft is up higher. It was a great show, I really enjoyed it!
says ... on Monday, Jul 21 at 9:37 PM
hmm your photo sure looks a lot like mine. Pretty amazing we got an identical shot?? http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3233/2687241196_0d1fae252e.jpg?v=0 feel free to email me at sixty6chevy@hotmail.com to discuss
says ... on Monday, Jul 21 at 10:32 PM
disregard my last comment. We had to have been almost standing next to each other at the event. As my F15 shot is almost identical to yours as well, but there is enough variation to tell they are different. Sorry!
says ... on Wednesday, Jul 23 at 5:09 AM
Only problem I see folks is you don't know your base. The spelling is McChord AFB
says ... on Wednesday, Jul 23 at 4:50 PM
I was there... In uniform pulling crowd control with my fellow CAP cadets. And it really doesn't matter how you spell it, McChord AFB for the military minded and McChord or McChord Air Base for the civilians. Same difference. :)
says ... on Wednesday, Jul 23 at 4:55 PM
ooh I see the fuss about the spelling. Totally skimmed over that. Yea, the "h" is a sneaky one. I thought you guys were dueling t about the MCAFB stuff. :)
says ... on Thursday, Jul 24 at 8:26 AM
The F-18 did not break the sound barririer, if it did, the jet would have been over SR512 and then you would have heard the ear shattering boom. You would feel a smart punch in your chest if it did. He was cruising around .98 - .99 mach.
says ... on Thursday, Jul 24 at 9:07 AM
so I can blame you, Mitch, for the 3 hours I sat in the parking lot after the show saturday? =) Thanks for serving our country though.
says ... on Thursday, Jul 24 at 1:51 PM
What you are seeing is the Prandtl-Glauert singularity effect. Read more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prandtl-Glauert_singularity
says ... on Thursday, Jul 24 at 3:29 PM
Actually, due to the proximity of the jet to the crowd, it's entirely possible that he did break the sound barrier. The sound still originates from the jet, and even if he was supersonic you'd still hear the sound almost the instant he passed you
says ... on Thursday, Jul 24 at 9:30 PM
He did not break the SB. I was with the jet crews on the flightline.... if he did so that low the windows would have shattered and ear drums would be blown. He backed off when he was close though. Great picture anyway though.
says ... on Friday, Jul 25 at 8:34 AM
good
says ... on Thursday, Jul 31 at 8:31 PM
Why does everyone keep saying the jet broke the sound barrier? There was no sonic boom, no broken windows. Just your average high speed pass. With maybe a few extra knots of airspeed. BTW awesome shot! :)
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