(Download a higher resolution picture
by clicking on any picture below.)
2005 Edwards AFB Open House
|
(Download a higher resolution picture
by clicking on any picture below.)
The Edwards Air Force Base Open House was held the weekend of October 22-23. During the two-day event, visitors saw new and unique aircraft in the Air Force inventory, and some of the best aerial demonstration pilots performing today. The various demonstrations included Air Force aircraft such as the F/A-22, F-117, F-16, KC-135, C-17, B-1, B-2, several NASA aircraft including the NF-15B, F/A-18A, T-34C and ER-2. This was an opportunity for taxpayers to see the kind of equipment they buy for the Air Force and NASA, and the abilities of the people who test, fly and maintain this equipment.
Fairchild-Republic YA-10B Night/Adverse Weather (N/AW) Thunderbolt, 73-1664 has recently been restored for display at the Air Force Flight Test Center Museum. It is the only two-seat example of the A-10.
Two years ago, the Fairchild-Republic YA-10B N/AW Thunderbolt, 73-1664 was parked on the south base flightline.
Link to the Air Force Museum page about the YA-10B N/AW Thunderbolt.
Convair F-106B Delta Dart, 59-0158 has recently been restored for display at the Air Force Flight Test Center Museum. It was retired to to MASDC as FN0019 on Oct 21, 1983. It was later converted to a QF-106 target drone, but fortunately it escaped destruction. It was retired to AMARC again as FN0205 on Feb 23, 1998.
NASA McDonnell-Douglas F/A-18A Hornet N853NA Active Aeroelastic Wing (AAW). It carries Navy BuNo 161744.
Link to the NASA Dryden fact sheet about the F/A-18A Active Aeroelastic Wing.
Link to the NASA Dryden page of F/A-18A Active Aeroelastic Wing Photos.
Link to the NASA Dryden press release about the first flight of the F/A-18A Active Aeroelastic Wing
Mitsubishi A6M5 "Zero" NX46770 is registered to the Planes of Fame Museum of Chino. Its Mitsubishi construction number is 5357. It was captured by U. S. troops at Asilito Airfield, Saipan on June 18, 1944. It was shipped to the U. S. for evaluation, arriving in San Diego, California on July 16, 1944. It was flown for approximately 190 hours by Navy pilots at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Maryland. Ed Maloney acquired it for the Air Museum in Claremont in 1950. It first flew after restoration on June 28, 1978. It is powered by an original Sakai 21 radial engine.
A6M5, NX46770 leads a pair of Corsairs and a Mustang at the Chino Airshow on May 20, 1984.
Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless, NX670AM of the Planes of Fame Museum. It was built as Navy BuNo 28536 but delivered to the Royal New Zealand Air Force as NZ5062. After the war it was used as a wind machine by MGM Studios. Wings from another SBD were recovered from Guadalcanal to return this Dauntless to flying condition in 1987. It flew its first flight after reconstruction on February 7, 1987. It is powered by a Wright R-1820 radial engine.
Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless, NX670AM was painted as an Army Air Force A-24 in commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Air Force when it appeared at the Golden Air Tattoo at Nellis AFB on April 25, 1997.
Boeing X-45A Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV).
Link to the Federation of American Scientists page about the X-45A UCAV.
Silhouettes of the X-45A on the nose gear door record its flights and bomb dropping missions.
Now that there are two X-45As, tests have begun of their ability to coordinate their autonomous operations.
Full-scale mockup of the Boeing X-45C. The first X-45C will be completed in 2006, with flight-testing scheduled to begin in 2007. It is expected that the X-45C will demonstrate autonomous refueling from a KC-135 Stratotanker in 2010. How many of us can say what we will be doing five years from now?
Lockheed-Martin F-22A Engineering, Manufacture, and Development (EMD) Raptor, 91-4002 is the second F-22A.
U.S. Navy Ryan RQ-4A Global Hawk, BuNo 166510.
U.S.A.F Bell-Boeing MV-22B Osprey carries U. S. Navy BuNo 165839.
MV-22B Osprey, BuNo 165839
Link to the Federation of American Scientists page about the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey. .
NASA's Boeing NB-52B Stratofortress Mothership, 52-0008 was retired in a ceremony at the Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base on Friday December 17, 2004. The NB-52B has been a fixture at Edwards AFB for forty-nine years. It first launched a North American X-15 rocket plane on January 23, 1960. Its final mission was the launch of the third X-43A Hyper-X, which demonstrated that an air-breathing engine can propel a vehicle at Mach-10 on the afternoon of November 16, 2004. NASA's Boeing NB-52B Stratofortress Mothership was the oldest Stratofortress still flying, yet it had accumulated the fewest flying hours, just 2,443 hours since it first flew in June 1955.
The NB-52B launched the three X-15 hypersonic rocket planes and the Northrop HL-10, Northrop M2-F2/F3, Martin Marietta X-24A and Martin Marietta X-24B lifting bodies. It simulated the steep, power off approach to landing used by the Space Shuttles. It assisted in the collection of data about wake turbulence from large aircraft. It served as an air-to-air gunnery target. It launched 3/8-scale F-15 Remotely Piloted Research Vehicles (RPRV), a Ryan Firebee II drone, Ryan Firebee based Drones for Aeroelastic Structures Testing (DAST), and the Highly Maneuverable Aircraft Technology (HiMAT) RPRVs. It dropped the 48,000-pound Space Shuttle Reusable Booster Drop Test Vehicle (SRB/DTV) and it released a simulated F-111 crew module from its bomb bay to evaluate new parachute recovery systems. It was the first airplane to launch a satellite into orbit on the Orbital Sciences Pegasus booster. It tested the drag chute used to decelerate space shuttle orbiters. It tested pollution reducing fuel additives with a pair of jet engines mounted under its bomb bay. It launched the X-38 Space Station Crew Return Vehicles and the X-43A Hyper-X Supersonic Combustion Ramjet.
The NB-52B will be placed on permanent display just outside the North Gate of the base, where it will be accessible to the public.
Lockheed-Martin-General Dynamics F-16XL #1 Cranked-Arrow Wing demonstrator, NASA 849 was fitted with a Digital Flight Control System in 1997.
F-16XL, NASA 849.
This F-16XL wore Air Force serial 75-0749 when it was first displayed to the public at the October 23, 1982 Open House.
Link the NASA Dryden F-16XL #1 Photo Gallery.
Link the NASA Dryden F-16XL #1 Fact Sheet
Boeing 747-Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, N911NA was delivered to Japan Airlines as 747-SR46, JA8117 on September 26, 1973. NASA acquired it on October 27, 1988.
Link the NASA Dryden Shuttle Ferry Flight Photo Gallery.
Canadair CT-133A Silver Star, N306CW is restored as a U.S. Air Force T-33A. It is owned by Wallasch Aviation, Inc of Acton, California. It was built in 1955.
Canadair Sabre Mk.6, N38453 is restored as U.S. Air Force F-86F, 51-13487. It is flown by Al Hansen. It flew for the South African Air Force as #378. It was registered by Flight Systems in October 1983 and then to Global Aerospace of Newport Beach, California in September 1992.
Rockwell OV-10B Bronco, N338RC is restored as Marine Corps BuNo 158301. It has been registered to Cactus Air Force LLC of Carson City, Nevada since July 21, 2004.
Douglas DC-3C, N2805J served the Army Air Corps as 43-16369. Its Douglas construction number is 20835. Warbirds of America Squadron 14, Inc. has restored it as AC-47, 43-48770 Spooky.
Link the American Flight Museum Squadron 14 web page.
North American T-28A Trojan, N81643 served the Air Force as 49-1643. Its construction number is 159-155. Norman B. Dennis Jr. of Brookneal, California registered it as N9674C in 1966. Robert Eggmann of Belleville, Illinois registered it as N28RE in 1978. Edward A. Buerckholtz of Chesterfield, Missouri registered it as N81643 in 1985. It has been registered to Round Power Limited of Reno, Nevada since March 4, 2004. Its owner, Gregg Weitzman, recently had it restored in the colors of a T-28A that was flown by the Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base in the 1950s. It is based at the Santa Barbara Airport.
North American T-28C Trojan, N2053C was delivered to the Navy as BuNo 138366 and it still carries that number on its tail. Its North American construction number is 200-437.
Grumman HU-16B Albatross, N7141S was delivered to the Air Force as 51-0025.
The North American Eagle landspeed attempt vehicle is based on the fuselage of Lockheed F-104A-10 Starfighter, 56-0763.
General Dynamics F-16C Block 25 Fighting Falcon, 83-1120 of the 412th Test Wing.
AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) and AGM-84 Harpoon anti-shpping missile on F-16C Block 25, 83-1120.
Norwegian Air Force General Dynamics F-16A Fighting Falcon, 80-3666 is participating in the European Participating Air Forces (EPAF) mid-life update evaluation program.
AIM-120 AMRAAM and IRIS-T short-range, infra-red imaging seeker missile on the wing of F-16A, 80-3666.
General Dynamics F-16A Block 15AQ OCU Fighting Falcon, 92-0407 was manufactured for the Pakistani Air Force, but their airplanes were embargoed. It was placed in storage at AMARC on September 28, 1993 as FG0036. It was delivered to the 416th Flight Test Squadron (FLTS) in January 2003.
Beech C-12A Huron, 76-0166.
General Dynamics NF-16D, 86-0048 Variable Stability In-flight Simulator Test Aircraft (VISTA).
Northrop T-38A-45 Talon, 62-3715 of the 412th Test Wing.
Lockheed U-2S, 68-10336 is based at Palmdale. It wears the WR tail code because the Air Force U-2 Program Management office is at Warner-Robins Air Force Base, Georgia.
U-2S, 68-10336 is carrying superpods of unusual configuration.
This Camaro serves as a pace car for the U-2S. The occupants inform the U-2 pilot of his altitude and help him keep his wings level during the approach to landing.
Lockheed-Martin F-117A Stealth Fighter, 85-0831 of the 412th Test Wing.
F-117A, 85-0831.
Raytheon T-6A Texan II, 02-3648 of the 85th Flying Training Squadron Tigers based at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas.
Cessna T-37B Tweety, 67-14671 of the 80th Flying Training Wing based at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas.
Fairchild-Republic A-10A Thunderbolt II, 81-0974 of the 354th Fighter Squadron based at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona.
Boeing C-135C Stratolifter, 61-2669 Speckled Trout was delivered to the Air Force as a C-135B and later converted to a WC-135B. Subsequently, it served as the personal transport of the Air Force Chief of Staff.
Link the Edwards AFB page about the C-135C Speckled Trout.
Boeing NB-52H Stratofortress, 61-0025 has been transferred to NASA. It was intended to launch the X-37, but the Scaled Composites White Knight has taken on that task.
Boeing Rockwell B-1B Lancer, 85-0068 of the 412th Test Wing.
Nose art of B-1B, 85-0068 Dragon's Fury.
General Dynamics F-16C Block 42C 88-0445 of the 412th Test Wing.
McDonnell-Douglas YC-17A Globemaster III, 87-0025 of the 412th Test Wing was the first C-17 built.
McDonnell-Douglas KC-10A Extender, 86-0030 of the 305th Air Mobility Wing and the 514th Air Mobility Wing based at McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey.
Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion, BuNo 165503 of HMH-769 based at Edwards AirForce Base.
Boeing-Vertol CH-46D Sea Knight, BuNo 154803 of HMM-744 was the helicopter that evacuated the U.S. Ambassador from the U.S. Embassy roof in Saigon in April 1975. It has been painted as it appeared in 1975.
North American B-25J Mitchell, N3675G Photo Fanny has been registered to James Maloney of Corona Del Mar, California since January 10, 1978. Its Army Air Corps tail number was 44-30423. It joined the Air Museum in Ontario, California in 1965. It is often used for air-to-air photography sessions of the warbirds flying out of Chino. It is powered by a pair of Wright R-2600 radial engines.
Convair C-131D Samaritan, N131CW of the Southern California Wing of the Commemorative Air Force.
Paralift Incorporated's Douglas DC-3-G202A, N20TW leads a parade of round engines.
DC-3-G202A, N20TW carries Douglas construction number 2236. It is 65 years old. It was delivered to Eastern Airlines as DC-3-201C, NC25648 in June 1940. It flew for North Central Airlines from May 1967 until April 1978. It has been registerd to Paralift Incorporated since February 1988. It provides students of the Air Force Test Pilot School with proficiency training in unfamiliar airplane types.
Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat, N1078Z Minsi III. Its Grumman construction number is A-5634. John Sandberg recovered it from the Fergus Falls Airport in Minnesota in 1962. It was subsequently owned by Lloyd Nolan and Ed Messick.
General Motors FM-2 Wildcat, N5833 has been restored in the colors of a Royal Navy Martlett. It originally carried U.S. Navy BuNo 86819. Its General Motor construction number is 5877. It crashed in 1955 while flying as a sprayer for Butler Aviation of Redmond, Oregon. The rebuild project took many years and the airframe passed therough the hands of several owners. It received its current registration in August 1983. It was returned to the air on April 24, 1987 by Air Group One at Ramona, California. It spent a short while in the hands of Military Aircraft Restoration Corporation at Chino. It is now registered to the American Airpower Heritage Flying Museum and based with the 3rd Pursuit Squadron of the Commemorative Air Force at Upland.
Mitsubishi A6M3 Model 22 "Zero", NX712Z is part of the collection of the Southern California Wing of the Commemorative Air Force. It has been registered to the Liberty Aero Corporation since February 1998. Its Mitsubishi construction number is 3869. It was found on New Guinea near the town of Babo. Its restoration was begun in Russia and completed in the United States. It is powered by a Pratt & Whitney R-1830 radial engine.
North American P-51D Mustang, NL7715C Wee Willy II also gave rides to paying passengers before the airshow. It has been owned by Steve Hinton since September 1985. This Mustang has adopted the identity of the Red Baron RB-51 racer, once the fastest piston powered aircraft in the world. Its original serial was 44-84961, but it carries 413334 on its tail. The Air Force disposed of it at McClellan Air Force Base, California in 1958. It
was purchased by Capitol Airways of Nashville, Tennessee and registered as N7715C. In July 1964 it was acquired by Charles Willis Jr., Frank Lynitt, and Charles Hall of Seattle, Washington. They raced it as #5, first named "Red Baron", then "Miss RJ". Gunther Balz of Kalamazoo, Michigan bought it in July 1971 and changed its name to "Roto-Finish", keeping race number 5. John Sliker of Wadley, Georgia picked it up in October 1973, but sold it to Ed Browning of Brownings Incorporated in
Idaho Falls the following February. Brownings Inc. installed a Rolls Royce Griffon engine with contra-rotating propellers and called it the "Red Baron" RB-51. It first flew with the Griffon engine on March 6, 1975. It set the world's piston engined speed record of 499.018 miles per hour on August 14, 1979. It crashed with Steve Hinton at the controls at the Reno Air Races that September. Hinton survived the crash. Richard Ransofer of Grapevine, Texas acquired the wreckage in 1980. Steve Hinton and Fighter Rebuilders at Chino transferred the dataplate and probably a small section of the fuselage of the
"Red Baron" wreck to P-51D, 44-73053 to reconstruct "Wee Willy II". It first flew after reconstruction in September 1985. Some of the hulk of the RB-51 was acquired by Terry and Bill Rogers of Sherman, Texas in 1989 to be used in another Griffon powered race conversion, but Rogers' efforts were diverted into the rebuilding of Vendetta into Miss Ashley II.
Curtiss P-40N Warhawk, NL85104. Its Army Air Corps serial was 42-105192. It was delivered to the Royal Canadian Air Force as 858. Fred Dyson bought it and 42-106396 at Boeing Field, Seattle, Washington on October 23, 1947. It was owned by W. Bridges in Jackson, Mississippi from 1952 to 1954. Louis Rice of Marysville, California bought it in 1954 and very quickly sold it to Richard Rowlette of Riverside, California. Walter Brockin, also of Riverside, acquired it in 1955 nd then sold it to W. Keith Larkin of Weather Modification Company in San Jose, California. It was damaged in a wheels up landing near Denver, Colorado in 1958. The Air Museum in Ontario restored it to static display condition in 1959. Restoration of the airframe was begun in 1977. It made its first flight after restoration in 1981, when it acquired its current registration. It is powered by an Allison V-1710 twelve-cylinder engine.
U.S. Army Bell UH-1H Huey, 73-21702 serves as a threat simulator at Fort Irwin in the Mojave Desert.
Sikorsky UH-60A Blackhawk, 87-24623 taxis into position on the flightline.
MiG-15, NX87CN has been registered to the Air Museum at Chino since February 1999. It was operated by the Chinese Air Force as 83277. Tom Friedkin first registered it in the U. S. in June 1991.
North American F-86F Sabre, NX186AM has been registered to the Air Museum at Chino since March 1999. Its Air Force serial was 52-5012. Its North American construction number is 191-708. Tom Friedkin of Cinema Air Corporation registered it as N4TF in April 1990.
On Tuesday, October 18, the Edward Air Force Base Public Affairs Office provided representatives of the media with a glimpse of some of the equipment to be displayed at this weekend's Open House. A 25-year-old Norwegion General Dynamics F-16A Fighting Falcon undergoing European Participating Air Forces (EPAF) mid-life update will be displayed with three different short-range, infra-red seeking missiles. NASA will be showing off Lockheed ER-2, N809NA and one of the presure suits used by the ER-2 pilots.
The Air Force Flight Test Center Museum boasts a collection of airplanes and helicopters that have contributed to the vast history of flight testing that has occurred at Edwards Air Force Base. The AFFTC Museum is part of the tours hosted by Edwards AFB public affairs on the first and third Fridays of each month.
Edwards Air Force Base hosted an Open House over the weekend of October 22-23. During the two-day event, visitors saw new and unique aircraft in the Air Force inventory, and some of the best aerial demonstration pilots performing today. The various demonstrations included Air Force aircraft such as the F/A-22, F-117, F-16, KC-135, C-17, B-1, B-2, several NASA aircraft including the NF-15B, F/A-18A, T-34C and ER-2. Airplanes scheduled to perform at the Open House rehearsed their flights on Friday, October 21.
Airshow Page 1
Airshow Page 2
More Edwards AFB displays.
You can buy a 2020 calendar featuring my photographs of Lockheed-Martin F/A-22A Raptors at Edwards Air Force Base.
A dozen photos of Lockheed-Martin F/A-22A Raptors at Edwards Air Force Base. Raptors pictured include F-22A Engineering, Manufacture Development (EMD) Raptors, 91-4003, 91-4005, 91-4006, 91-4007, and 91-4009 of the 412th Test Wing and F/A-22A Production Representative Test Vehicle (PRTV) Raptor, 99-4010 of the 53rd Test and Evaluation Group.
Put a copy of the Lockheed-Martin F/A-22A Raptors at Edwards Air Force Base: 2020 Calendar in your Lulu.com shopping cart for $14.95.
Go to the Airshow Page of the Goleta Air and Space Museum.
Send a message to Brian.
