On November 29, 2012, I rode aboard the Verde Canyon Railroad from Clarkdale to Perkinsville and back. The trip starts with views of remnants of the mining industry around Clarkdale. The ride features spectacular views of the geology of the area. Trees along the route were still displaying fall colors in late November. Several Bald Eagles were seen soaring high above the canyon. Perkinsville was one of the filming locations for the cinerama production of How the West Was Won.

On Wednesday, October 24, 2012, I participated in a photocall at Naval Air Facility el Centro with photographers from Arizona Aviation Photographers, Aviation Photographers of Southern California, and Fencecheck. We were greeted by a Lockheed-Martin KC-130J of VMGR-352 Raiders shooting a series of touch-and-go landings. We photographed F/A-18 Hornets and Super Hornets from VFA-106 Gladiators, VMFA(AW)-533 Hawks, and VFA-115 Silver Eagles. Red and white McDonnell-Douglas T-45C Goshawks of TW-2 and Grumman EA-6B Prowlers of VAQ-129 Vikings shared the runway with the Hornets. The day was sunny and quite warm.

On my way to a photocall at NAF el Centro, I stopped off at MCAS Yuma and photographed operations associated with WTI 1-13.

On October 17, 2012, I toured the Mogollon Rim near Payson, Arizona to photograph the fall colors. I followed the Rim Road and other forest roads from Woods Canyon Lake to Highway 87 north of Strawberry. The weather was sunny and warm.

The town of Camp Verde celebrates Fort Verde Days on the second weekend in October each year. Fort Verde was a base for General Crook’s U.S. Army scouts and soldiers in the 1870s and 1880s. Fort Verde Days is part county fair and part historical reenactments.

Scattered thunderstorms blew through the east valley on Thursday, October 11, 2012. The speed of the action has been increased by a factor of 27.5

A variety of airplanes landed at Los Angeles International Airport while I waited for the arrival of the Space Shuttle Endeavour. I took up a position at the west end of long term parking Lot C while I waited for the 747/Shuttle stack to fly along Runway 24 Right on the north side of LAX. After the first pass of the 747/Shuttle stack over the north runway, I moved to Lennox Park, east of the 405 Freeway to wait for its pass over Runway 25 Right on the south side of the airport.

A variety of airplanes took off and landed on Runway 22 Left while I waited for the arrival and departure of the Space Shuttle Endeavour.

Boeing 747 Carrier Aircraft N905NA landed at Edwrds Air Force Base with Space Shuttle Endeavour on its journey to Los Angeles. This was the first time that a Shuttle Carrier aircraft brought a shuttle to Edwards froa nother airport The Space Suttle endeavour made the last leg of its cross-country journey from the Kennedy Space center to Los Angeles International Airporton September 21, 2012. The 747/Shuttle stack conducted a tour of California before landing at Los Angeles.

I spent twelve days in Pioneer Valley, northeast of Flagstaff, Arizona photographing the summer thunderstorms associated with the monsoon weather. I shot over 70,000 exposures to assemble a dozen time lapse movies. It was the most spectacular monsoon weather I have seen in many years. Every day brought new phenomena. Each mountain creates its own orographic clouds. Look for cumulonimbus clouds that spread out when they reach the stratosphere. Lenticular clouds hover over the mountains when the speed of the air mass increases.

Tragically, Bob Odegaard and Race 74 were lost in a crash at Barnes County Municipal Airport in North Dakota on September 7, 2012 while preparing for the Wings and Wheels Airshow.

Time lapse movie of a brief but very active lightning storm that blew through Scottsdale from 1:25 to 2:18 on the morning of August 23, 2012.. The speed of the action has been increased by a factor of 27.5.

Business Aero Tupolev Tu-204-300A visited Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport on August 6, 2012. It departed at 11:25 AM on August 7.

The NB-52A 52-0003 and NB-52B 52-0008 that launched the North American X-15 rocket planes carrried mission marks commemorating each flight. This display illustrates the changes to the mission marks on both of the Stratofortress motherships over the course of their careers.

Lockheed C-5B Galaxy 87-0038 delivered Convair XC-99 components to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base on June 1, 2012. Steve Bazar provided pictures of the delivery. Its components have been stored outside at the Naitonal Museum of the US Air Force for several years. Exposure to the weather in Ohio is corroding the airframe. Storage at AMARG will reduce the impact of weather on the airplane.

Time lapse movies of rainfall and turbulence on the underside of a cumulonimbus cloud over Scottsdale on July 28 and the approach of a cumulonimbus cell toward Phoenix on July 29, 2012. The speed of the action has been increased by a factor of 150

I spent several days in Pioneer Valley, northeast of Flagstaff, Arizona photographing the summer thunderstorms associated with the monsoon weather. Warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico moved into the area on Thursday, July 19.

The Grand Canyon Planes of Fame Museum at Valle Airport, Arizona hosted the High Country Warbirds Fly-in on Saturday, June 23, 2012. The weather was warm and very windy. The flybys were lower and closer to that audience than any other show that I know of, and the sun was behind the audience during the morning. It's a small show. The crowd was just a few hundred people, so there was always a lot of room on the crowd line. The Planes of Fame annex has many rare antique planes, including VC-121A Bataan, the Pacific Air Martin 404 that used to be at Camarillo, and the Western Convair 340 that used to be at Chino. There is also a remarkable collection of vintage automobiles in the Airport terminal building. Some of the attendees bought rides aboard the P-51D Mustangs.

The Arizona Wing of the Commemorative Air Force hosted a gtoup of Arizona Aviation Photographers for a night shoot at Falcon Field on June 16, 2012. The CAF staff graciously moved two Mig-15s, a North American P-51D Mustang, and a Stearman N2S onto the flightline for the photographers.

On Friday, June 15, BAE-146-200A N146FF Tanker 40 arrived at the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport from Albequerque. It dropped a load of fire retardant on the Poco Fire near Payson on its way. It joined Lockheed P2V-5E Neptune N69278 Tanker 05 and 10 Tanker Air Carrier McDonnell-Douglas DC-10-30 N17085 Tanker 911.

On June 5, 2012, the planet Venus passed between the Earth and the Sun. This will not happen again until the year 2117.

On May 20, 2102, the Moon passed between the Earth and the Sun. The Moon was near Apogee, the high point in its orbit, so it did not cover the entire face of the Sun, resulting in an annular eclipse.

Balls Eight: History of the Boeing NB-52B Stratofortress Mothershipis now available as an eBook (ePub for Adobe Digital Editions) for just $34.95, less than half the cost of the paperback edition.

It has been asserted that the Boeing NB-52B Stratofortress, carrying Air Force serial 52-0008, can lay claim to being the airplane that has seen and participated in more history than any other single airplane. For forty-five years, the NB-52B was a fixture at Edwards Air Force Base. While the NB-52B is most famous for launching the three North American X-15 rocket planes, it continued to serve in the role of launch platform for a multitude of programs until its final mission on November 16, 2004. It was the oldest flying B-52 by nearly ten years.

The NB-52B launched the three X-15 hypersonic rocket planes.
It launched 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) and Spin Research Vehicles (SRV).
It launched a Ryan Firebee II drone and the Ryan Firebee based Drones for Aeroelastic Structures Testing (DAST).
It launched the Highly Maneuverable Aircraft Technology (HiMAT) RPRVs.
It dropped the 48,000-pound Space Shuttle Reusable Booster Drop Test Vehicle (SRB/DTV).
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.
It launched the X-43A Hyper-X Supersonic Combustion Ramjets.

The book contains 246 color photographs, 89 black and white photographs, and 2 other illustrations.

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The General Electric Air Research Laboratory at the Schenectady, New York Airport hosted an open house on June 22, 1946, less than one year after V-J Day. It was an overcast day with intermittent rain. The event featured a variety of prototype airplanes and helicopters and some modified testbed airplanes. Many of the airplanes were pinnacles of piston-powered aircraft technology. Examples of early jet fighters foreshadowed the coming transition to jet power. The first jet air mail service was carried by a pair of Lockheed P-80 Shooting Stars that departed from the open house.

Richard Lockett, a General Electric employee, photographed the aircraft participating at the open house. He documented the evolving technology of the day. He also captured the behavior and fashions of the people attending the show.

The book is 32 pages long. It contains 59 photographs.

You can preview the photos that appear in the book.

Books are printed on demand by Lulu.com. When you order one, it is placed in your Lulu.com shopping cart. Lulu.com prints, packages, and ships the book direct to you.

Put a copy of General Electric Air Research Demonstration, June 22, 1946 in your Lulu.com shopping cart for $13.95.

The Barry M. Goldwater Ranges are used for bombing and gunnery training for military aircraft based around Arizona. Frequent visitors include General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcons from Luke Air Force Base and Fairchild-Republic A-10 Thunderbolt IIs from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. These pictures were taken on Range 2, 22 miles south of Gila Bend, on Thurdsay, May 3, 2012.

I recently toured the Boyce Thompson Arboretum near Superior, Arizona on sunny spring day. Many types of Agave were sending up flower spikes. Flower buds are appearing on the Saguaros, but only a few have bloomed.

I recently went for a 90 minute cruise on Saguaro Lake aboard the Desert Belle. Saguaro Lake is located east of Phoenix on the Salt River, downriver of Canyon Lake and Apache Lake. The landscape is dominated by Four Peaks and the Goldfield Mountains. It is reached by way of the Bush Highway.

Davis-Monthan Air Force Base hosted Thunder and Lightning Over Arizona to commemorate the state centennial. On Sunday, April 15, I photographed the static displays at the open house.

The Boeing YAL-1A Airborne Laser Testbed was placed on public display for the first time at Thunder and Lightning Over Arizona 2012 at Davis-Monthan AFB on April 14 and 15.

Davis-Monthan Air Force Base is hosting Thunder and Lightning Over Arizona to commemorate the state centennial. On Friday the thirteenth, the day before the open house, participants in the flight demonstration program practiced their acts and several airplanes arrived to be placed on static display.

The Boeing YAL-1A Airborne Laser testbed was recently retired to AMARG following the cancellation of the program. During the early phases of the program, it flew out of Edwards Air Force Base as Boeing Company Flight BOE1.

In the early 1970s, Western Airlines, American, and TWA were among the primary air carriers servicing Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. The Arizona Air Naitonal Guard flew Boeing C-97 Stratofreighters and KC-97 Stratotankers from a base on the south side of the airport.

While I waited for the arrivals and departures of the baseball charters at Sky Harbor, I photographed the comings an d goings of other airliners. The bulk of air traffic at Sky Harbor is single aisle, twin-engine airliners.

A pair of charter airliners came to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport to take the Seattle Mariners and Oakland As baseball teams to Japan for exhibition games an March 22. 777-246ER JA705J Japan Airlines Flight JAL8808 broght the Mariners back to Sky Harbor on March 30. It returned to Narita, Japan as Flight JAL8007 later in the day.

A pair of charter airliners came to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport to take the Seattle Mariners and Oakland As baseball teams back to Japan for exhibition games. Atlas Air 747-481 N263SG arrived at Sky Harbor from Bush International Airport as GTI8472 at 9:10 PM on Thursday, March 21. It departed for Narita International Airport at 12:41 PM on March 22. 777-346ER JA736J Japan Airlines Flight JAL8008 arrived at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport from Los Angeles International Airport at 9:58 AM on March 22, 2012. It departed for Narita International Airport as JAL8807 at 1:31 PM.

I photographed morning departures from Sky Harbor on March 12, 2012 while I waited for the Boeing 787 to take-off.

The An-225 Mriya is in the United States as Flight ADB1248. It arrived at Goose Bay at 0828 GMT on March 10. It departed from Goose Bay at 1053 GMT on March 11. Its intended destination was Minneapolois-St.Paul International, but it diverted to Montreal-Mirabel, arriving at 1325 GMT. It departed from Montreal-Mirabel at 0905 GMT on March 12. It arrived at Minneapolois-St.Paul at 1130 GMT and departed for Grant County International at Moses Lake, Washington at 1521 GMT. It arrived at Grant County at 1845 GMT. It departed from Grant County at 1358 GMT on March 13 and arrived at Calgary International at 1454 GMT.

Boeing 787-8 N787BX was the first 787 to visit Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. It arrived from Mexico City on Friday, March 9 and departed for San Diego on Monday, March 12.

Airplanes started arriving for the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport hosted Aviation Day on March 9, 2012. A variety of military aircraft stopped by the airport for gas-n-go.

The Cactus Fly-In kicks off the airshow season with a large collection of Antiques, Classics, Warbirds, Replicas, and Homebuilt aircraft.

March 2

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March 3 - Page 2

A popular feature at airshows is the Air Force Heritage Flight, in which modern jets fly in formation with vintage warbirds. Each year civilian warbird pilots from all over the country bring their mounts to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base to practice flying in formation with General Dynamics F-16 Viperws, Fairchild-Republic A-10 Warthogs, and McDonnell-Douglas QF-4E Phantom II drones from Holloman Air Force Base. Several Norrth American P-51D Mustanges, aCurtiss P-40N Warhawk, a Republic P-47D Thunderbolt, and three North American F-86 Sabres participated in the conference.

On Thursday, February 16, 2012, I participated in a photocall at Naval Air Facility el Centro with photographers from Arizona Aviation Photographers, Aviation Photographers of Southern California, and Fencecheck. We photographed a practice session of the US Navy Blue Angels and then moved to the active runway to take pictures of Hornets from VFA-106 Gladiators and VFA-122 Flying Eagles. The day began overcast and rainy, but cleared up by mid-morning.

The Parada del Sol is an annual parade through Scottsdale. It ia a showcase for a wide variety of horses. It also features vintage cars, firetrucks, and some notable local celebrities. This year the parade celebrates the centennial of the state of Arizona.

Oak Creek meanders through Red Rock State Park near Sedona. The creek is lined with Sycamore and Cottonwood Trees. Several hiking trails provide access to the hills that surround the park.

On the first Saturday of every month (except June, July, August and September), Coolidge Aviation, LLC sponsors a fly-in. The February 2012 Fly-in attracted several Cessna 140s, Vans RVs, Beechcraft Bonanzas, and modern construction Piper Cub variants.

The Goldwater Ranges, south of Gila Bend, are used for bombing and gunnery training for military aircraft based around Arizona. Frequent visitors include General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcons from Luke Air Force Base and Fairchild-Republic A-10 Thunderbolt IIs from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. These pictures were taken on Range 2 on Thurdsay, February 2, 2012.

Over the years, a variety of airplanes have served as presidential transports including a Lockheed Constellation, Lockheed Super Constellation, Boeing 707s, and Boeing 747s.

Boeing VC-25A 82-8000 carried President Barack Obama to the Valley of the Sun on Wednesday, January 25, 2012. It landed on Runway 30 Right at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport at 3:17 PM. The President gave a speech at the Intel plant in Chandler.

EC-121T N548GF was flown from Camarillo to the Yanks Air Museum at Chino on Saturday January 14, 2012. This may have been the last flight by Constellation or Super Constellation in the United States. I updated the display on January 17 with more pictures of its arrival at the Yanks Air Museum.

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