![]() Following in trail was Terry Tarditi in his P-51, Comfortably Numb, and Steve Coutches flying a highly polished P-51D, once used by NACA as a chase plane. Kent Carlomagno in his P&W powered, race-modified Yak-11. First up, a four-ship formation, led by Ellsworth Getchel in his Centaurus-powered Hawker Sea Fury, followed closely by Dan Martin in his P-51D Mustang, RidgeRunner III, and Mike McKinney in another P-51D, Little Sandra. This is what people come to Minter to see-WWII fighters. Somes initially chased the Hellcat, but then overshot Barber, allowing the Hellcat to get on his tail. Navy Grumman F6F Hellcat piloted by Steve Barber. The Commemorative Air Force’s Southern California Wing put on a mock WWII dogfight, featuring a Japanese-built Mitsubishi A6M3 Zero flown by Jason Somes and a U.S. Amazingly, he returned to flying within six months and since then has accrued more than 2,800 hours of flight time. While he was hang gliding over mountains in 1981, a crash landing paralyzed both of his legs. Buchanan is a true inspiration to anyone with a physical disablilty. The next group of trainers was a group of North American T-6/SNJ Texans four flew in formation while one made a few single passes.Įddie Van Fossen, flying Miss TNT, is a seven-time Reno T-6 champion.ĭan Buchanan and his Flying Colors hang glider went up at the same time as Rob Harrison in his Zlin 50LX, creating a comedic traffic jam in the sky. Following the BT-13s was a T-34 Mentor and an Australian-built CAC CA-25 Winjeel. Another one of the BT-13s, piloted by Ken Bohrman, had been based at Minter during the war. Lloyd Tincher flew a plane painted in the original markings of the Army Air Corps at Minter Field. This unique group is one of a very few civilian jet teams performing within the U.S.įollowing the Thunder Delfins, several groups of WWII training aircraft went up, including four BT-13 Valiants. ![]() The Thunder Delfins L-29 jet demonstration team flew a four-plane formation display along with solo passes. The sound of four large radial engines roaring over the field was a treat for the crowd. The two B-25s made several mock bombing run demonstrations, both low- and high-level attacks as well as high-speed passes. George Hulett, flying Mike Pupich’s B-25N, Heavenly Body, flew in the lead position John Garlinger flew the American Aeronautical Foundation’s B-25, Executive Sweet, on the wing. Next, for a reenactment of the Doolittle Raiders, two North American B-25 Mitchells took to the air for some formation flying. Navy’s test pilot school.Įddie Van Fossen and Al Goss started the show in their North American T-6/SNJ aircraft, making several passes down the center of the field. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering. Besides being an outstanding aerobatic pilot, Harrison has a certificate in flight test engineering and is an aerobatic competency examiner and a licensed attorney. After watching Harrison flipping and tumbling his airplane through the air, it’s easy to see how he got his nickname. Rob Harrison, “The Tumbling Bear,” flew his bright yellow Zlin 50LX as the first of the regular performers. Van Fossen, piloting Miss TNT, has won the T-6 Class Gold Race seven times and Goss, flying Warlock, has been racing at Reno for 27 consecutive years. ![]() Van Fossen and Goss are two of the most recognizable names at the Reno National Championship Air Races. ![]() Right on cue, as the anthem finished, veteran pilots Eddie Van Fossen and Al Goss made a formation pass down the center of the field in their North American T-6/SNJ aircraft. The show got off to a patriotic start with an ROTC color guard presentation and the national anthem. Shafter-Minter Field Airport (MIT), located in Shafter, Calif., hosted its Warbirds in Action Air Show on April 19. An impressive lineup of aircraft at Minter Field included a Hawker Sea Fury, seven P-51 Mustangs, T-6s, a Yak-11, an F4U Corsair, a Howard, BT-13s, B-25s, an A-26 Invader, a C-53 and many more.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |