The C-17: When A Lot Of Stuff Absolutley Positively Has To Be Delivered Anywhere, Anytime

When you need a lot of stuff delivered around the globe, you use a C-17.

Selfridge featured a demonstration of the capabilities of the C-17 Globemaster III.

A four-engine transport par excellence, the Globemaster demonstrated a hot takeoff and with a roar of all its engines it up in less than 2,500 feet and climbing.

Turns out its also pretty darn maneuverable for a plane that size.

It made some pretty tight turns and was very photogenic.

It then came in for a landing and demonstrated a minimum distance landing as well.

 

It came to a stop show center and then taxi'id off the runway, 

Quite an impressive and nimble display for such a large aircraft.

The C-17 can carry 170,900 lbs of cargo and the aircraft has even been known to carry a whale to its destination.

A Perfect (A-) 10

Selfridge didn't just showcase their A-10 squadron, the 107th Red Devils only on the ground, although they did have an impressive ground display of multiple A-10s:

They also showcased the gun that the A-10 was built around.

You could enter the ready area where the planes are prepared for their sorties:

You did, however, have to cross this rather serious warning and red line to do so:

It was very neat to get to see the A-10s up close, in their native environment, including a demo of their tactical load-outs.

The A-10s did not stay on the ground however.

They also took to the air, with four of them airborne at once, and demonstrated the A-10s impressive low-level maneuverability.

 

The A-10s then performed a 4-ship mock ground support mission, complete with full radio communication with a JTAC controller running the simulated mission.  Basically pairs with good separation between aircraft would engage the target and approached from different directions.

This was impressive to see, especially as the squadron had deployed to Afghanistan and seen extensive missions providing ground support to troops in contact combat there.

 To finish it off, they formed up with a KC-135 Tanker to perform a refueling demonstration.

Simply an awesome display of A-10s in flight, and you don't get to see formations of A-10s flying at many airshows, much less doing a simulated combat mission.  Generally they're static on the ground.  

The A-10s in flight were a crowd favorite - not only did they put on one heckuva demonstration of skill in their awesome aircraft but they're our hometown heroes, based right out of Selfridge.

That was an incredible demonstration by Selfridge's A-10s.

A Nest Of Hornets

Selfridge played host to a nest of hornets this last weekend on the flight line.

 

There were Canadian Hornets in demonstration livery:

 

US Navy Hornets represented by a EA-18 Growler from Electronic Attack Squadron VAQ-131.:

And the rare US Air Force Hornet:

 

Up until this weekend I did not realize the Air Force had the Hornet in inventory. They do.  Yes, the US Air Force operates the Growler as part of the 390th Electronic Combat Squadron.

Unfortunately, both Canadian CF-18 Hornets were down-checked and unable to fly at the show due to maintenance issues.

But we did get to see the Growlers fly as they left Selfridge at noon.

They then formed up and did a loud and fast flyby.

Then they headed back to base.

Given the Super Hornet's popularity due to it's featured role in Top Gun: Maverick, the extra and unscheduled flyby was appreciated by the crowd.  

The Skyraider Roars At Selfridge

The Douglas A-1 Skyraider took to the skies at the Selfridge Air Show.

To say it's a big and powerful beast of a prop plane is an understatement.

Even on the tarmac, it exudes an air of power and menace just waiting to be unleashed.

It can certainly could carry a lot of ordnance on its ground attack missions. With 15 external hardpoints with a carrying capacity of 8,000 lb, it could bring a lot of bombs, rockets and other armaments on its missions.

The name of this particular Skyraider is Bad news, and it sure brought bad news to anyone who stood in opposition to its mission on the ground.

 

The Skyraider was in service from 1946 to the early 80s with reamrkable service in boththe Korean and Vietnam wars. The aircraft also served in the South Vietnamese Air Force, with the French in Algeria and Chad, in the Royal Navy, and even were put into service by the Swedes.

It's 18 cylinder radial engine carried it through the skies rather effortlessly, if loudly.

It put on quite an impressive demonstration.

More People Whose Takeoffs In A Plane Do Not Equal Their Landings In A Plane

To open the show after the lunch break, the US Army Golden Knights demonstrated why they are one of, if not THE, best parachute teams in the world.

First they dropped in a paratrooper with streaming the US Army flag.

 

The Golden Knights were not content with merely demonstrating how your landings can fail to equal your takeoffs.  

They decided to demonstrate how your landings via parachute can fail to equal the number of parachutes you started with.

They did this by deliberately fouling a chute and cutting it away.

Step One: Foul up a perfectly good chute:

Step Two: Cut off the main chute and watch it floating away:

Step Three: Deploy the reserve chute.

He landed faster using his reserve rather than the main chute, due to it being a smaller size, and quite likely also due to the additional weight from carrying a couple big brass ones.

He then nonchalantly landed right on the mark like it was just another day at the office.

Next was a jump of two jumpers who deployed the chutes together while staying connected almost all the way to the ground.

They disconnected seconds away from landing and each made a perfect landing.

The final jumper carried the Michigan flag to earth.

That was one heckuva impressive display of skill, precision, and daring by the Golden Knights.

People Whose Takeoffs In A Plane Do Not Equal Their Landings In A Plane

When is it that your number of takeoffs in  a plane do not equal your landiongs in a plane, but the plane still lands just fine?  It's when you jump out of a perfectly good working aircraft.

The Selfridge Air Show opened with a performance from The Misty Blues.

The Misty Blues are an all-female parachute team from Michigan, 

They opened the show by parachuting in during the playing of the national anthem with the American flag.

Soon followed by the Canadian anthem and flag for our neighbors also attending and watching the show.

Both jumpers landed on their marks with precision. The rest of the team then landed with their own streamers matching their parachute coloration.

An impressive opening to the show.

A Trio of Trainers At The Selfridge Open House

Three Trainers were featured at the air show (there were some others and we'll get to them later.)

These three are special as all three were in active service at Selfridge through the years,

First to fly was the first aircraft that operated from Selfridge Field, back before it was an Air National guard base and literally had a field for a runway.

The Curtis JN04 Jenny:

 

The Curtis JN-4 Jenny was how America learned to fly, with 95% of all US pilots in World War One having trained in a JN-4 Jenny.

With a max speed of 75 mph, and cruising at a sprightly 60 miles per hour, this aircraft trained America's pilots to fight in the air in the Great War. Over 6,000 were manufactured to teach pilots how to fly.

After World War 1, thousands of JN-4s were sold off on the surplus market and pilots coming home from the war spread aviation far and wide with them across America and the golden age of barnstorming was born.

JN-4s in flying condition are now extremely rare.

The Jenny opened the show as the first aircraft flying at Selfridge this year to mark the 100 years of the base as an airfield.

The T-6 Texan. 

This bird as the T-6 Texan trained America's pilots for World War Two, and as the Harvard it trained the pilots of the British Commonwealth as well.  Over 15,000 T-6s of all models were built to serve the needs of the Allies' growing air arms.

This T-6 is in colors commemorating the Tuskegee Airmen, who trained and learned to fly in the T-6 before moving on to the P-51 Mustang. 

The 332nd fighter group (The Tuskegee Airmen) served at Selfridge in 1943.

The third trainer was the Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star.  

The trainer for the jet age.  

Developed from the United State's first jet fighter, the P-80, the T-33 was a long-serving two-seat sub-sonic trainer with the US armed forces.  Nicknamed the "Ace Maker",  the plane trained the majority of Korean War jet fighter  aces.

The T-33 has a top speed of 600 mph or 520 knots.

The T-33 was in service with the USA from 1948 to 1997, though phased out of front-line triangle service in the 1970s.  The last user of the T-33, the Bolivian Air Force retired its T-33s in 2017 - after 44 years of service in their Air Force and 69 years after the type was introduced. A total of 6,557 T-33 were produced by Lockhhed, Canadair, and Kawasaki.

All three trainers had served at Selfridge and all three were very successful as training aircraft in their respective eras.

Selfridge Open House And Air Show 2022

After many cancellations due to Covid,  Selfridge Air National Guard Base opened up this weekend to the public for it's 100 Year Anniversary Open House and air show.

To say it was an awesome show would be an understatement.

One of the highlights was the flight demonstration put on by the very last F-100 Super Sabre in the world that is in flying condition:

Many more pics to follow. 

Oh, and the 10,000 steps I took at the air show may have proven to be a tad ambitious.

Nothing But Blue Sky

The Blue Angels and Air Force Units from Selfridge Air Force Base including both A-10s and KC-135s did a flyover of the state of Michigan.

Unfortunately both skipped the majority of Oakland County while doing so, and I saw neither wing nor exhaust from any of them as the flight paths were way outside of my viewing area.

Much sadness.

Yep no sign of them and air show season is toast this year for much sadness all around.

Alert The Tin Foil Hat Brigades

While the TFHB types are all aflutter over the Jade Helm exercise in Texas, it looks like the military will be doing some intensive exercises right here in Michigan so local TFHBs can join in the fun of a good panic.

The Detroit News: Army, Air Force exercises ahead at Selfridge.

I'm kinda hoping they named the exercise up here Jade Mitten.

More Blue Angels Pics

The show was so good I wanted to share more of the Blue Angels in action.

Chasing the angels:

Showing some burner action:

Coming in head on in Delta formation:

How close can they get?

That formation then shifted into two tight pairs:

Passing by the POW/MIA flag:

All six Blue Angels passing by: