[Busemann]

Certainly seems so, but I actually think it's real. Cool picture nonetheless.

[RAILhead]

real

[Adam Betts]

Looks real to me. You can see river water through the nose fan which isn't easy to do in photoshop unless you recreate most of the area.

[Sky Captain]

It's real.
Over at my pilots forum, one fella posted pics of the whole airshow.

[Daracle]

That is a very cool shot though....Links on more or the name of the air show I can check out?

[Wiskedjak]

Warthog seems kinda out of place in the company of the fighters

[greenamp]

If it weren't for the Warthog those fighters would all get shot down by surface-to-air ballistics

[euphras]

Originally Posted by Adam Betts

Looks real to me. You can see river water through the nose fan which isn't easy to do in photoshop unless you recreate most of the area.

Maybe the Mustang is real. I have a friend that is nuts about aircrafts and he showed me a web page where all modern US airfighters are arranged as a collage in a manner that they all seem to fly in parallel towards the observer. And these three machines remind me strongly of that (high res) pic.

[hart]

that's NYC isn't it? I saw those go over head. It was a wierd grouping tho. It was actually a bit ... offputting? disconcerting? to have jets overhead. NPR made an announcement that it was just an airshow after receiving a number of worried calls.

[RAILhead]

People, you see this all the bloody time at airshows all over the country.

[christ]

Originally Posted by greenamp

If it weren't for the Warthog those fighters would all get shot down by surface-to-air ballistics

Surface to air munitions are not usually ballistic.

[Salty]

Wow those are all pretty close aren't they? I didn't realize planes could fly that close, I would have thought they'd be worried about hitting one another.

[alphamatrix]

I'm perfectly willing to believe the photo is real.

Two things to consider anyway:
While the P-51 was a fast plane for its time and still is by prop-drivin standards (I would assume) but its not nearly as fast as the F-15 or the F-16. This means in-order to fly in formation like that the jet fighters have to fly slower than normal. We've learned quite a bit about aerodynamics as well as propulsion since the Mustang and the result is aircraft that are not as forgiving at low speeds as your uncle's Cessna. This is made up for with computerized systems (fly-by-wire) that do a lot of the thinking as well as interpret input give by the pilot via the controls.
The A-10 is an older design and serves a different purpose, it needs to have good handling characteristics at low speeds so this is less applicable to it.

The second is that I'd expect to see some distortion/turbulence from heat in the areas behind the jet engines, and I don't see anything obvious.

[Mastrap]

The picture has been shot with a long lens, creating the impression that the planes are closer than they actually are. Cool pic.

[Wiskedjak]

Originally Posted by greenamp

If it weren't for the Warthog those fighters would all get shot down by surface-to-air ballistics

Fair enough. Still, it looks a bit funny in that company (Warthog is one of my favorite planes). Never much cared for the Falcon or Eagle.

[ThinkInsane]

Originally Posted by Salty

Wow those are all pretty close aren't they? I didn't realize planes could fly that close, I would have thought they'd be worried about hitting one another.

Have you ever seen a military flight demo team preform? Blue Angels, Thunderbirds or your own Snowbirds? The maneuvers and formations they fly are taught to all fighter pilots. As Mas said, it seems that they aren't likely as close as the appear in that picture, but it wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility that they can fly in that tight of a formation, or even tighter.

Originally Posted by Wiskedjak

Fair enough. Still, it looks a bit funny in that company (Warthog is one of my favorite planes). Never much cared for the Falcon or Eagle.

Warthog is my favorite plane as well, always has been. In the early 90's they replaced the A-10's at the local airbase with F-16's, and I really miss seeing them in the sky.

[Dork.]

Originally Posted by hart

that's NYC isn't it? I saw those go over head. It was a wierd grouping tho. It was actually a bit ... offputting? disconcerting? to have jets overhead. NPR made an announcement that it was just an airshow after receiving a number of worried calls.

That's a picture looking South along the East River at the 59th Street bridge, I think.

[macroy]

I saw a documentary on the blue angels on either Discovery or INHD... I think they fly as close as 6' from each other (wing tip to wing tip) in formation.

Those military demo teams are pretty much the best pilots among their peers. Although the Thunderbirds seems to have had an unusually high number of incidents throughout their history (I think).

[Buckaroo]

Originally Posted by Busemann

Certainly seems so, but I actually think it's real. Cool picture nonetheless.

Wow, I guess it is real

1:14 pm - 1:24 pm F-15, F-16, A-10, P-51 Heritage Flight


I'll bet that P-51 was pushing it to the max, and the F-15 and F-16 were almost ready for fall out of the sky.

[Buckaroo]

While searching for the P-51 specs, I stumbled across a web site dedicated to the P-51 can opener.

A whole web site for a little metal can opener.

I am sure there is nothing unusual, but I thought it was worth posting.

http://www.georgia-outfitters.com/page52.shtml#e

[Kevin]

Revvin' up your engine
Listen to her howlin' roar
Metal under tension
Beggin' you to touch and go
Highway to the Danger Zone
Ride into the Danger Zone
Headin' into twilight
Spreadin' out her wings tonight
She got you jumpin' off the track
And shovin' into overdrive
Highway to the Danger Zone
I'll take you
Right into the Danger Zone
You'll never say hello to you
Until you get it on the red line overload
You'll never know what you can do
Until you get it up as high as you can go
Out along the edges
Always where I burn to be
The further on the edge
The hotter the intensity
Highway to the Danger Zone
Gonna take you
Right into the Danger Zone
Highway to the Danger Zone

[greenamp]

Originally Posted by christ

Surface to air munitions are not usually ballistic.

Thanks. I bet you're great at parties too.

[loki74]

Originally Posted by Adam Betts

Looks real to me. You can see river water through the nose fan which isn't easy to do in photoshop unless you recreate most of the area.

correction--this type of scene could be done in 3D and composited in photoshop, as the 3D app would output an alpha channel which would recognize motion blur as well. And I really can't imagine how or why anyone would make such a fabrication but with 3D.

Looks real to me.

[christ]

Originally Posted by greenamp

Thanks. I bet you're great at parties too.

Nope. Na-ah. Not me.

What's a party?

[Peter]

incredible photo.

[ghporter]

Buckaroo, you're wrong about these planes not being compatible in formation. The F-16 and F-15 can fly quite slowly-figure around 230-250kts is comfortable for them (if a bit mushy). The P-51's stall speed is around 100MPH, so 230-250kts is comfortable for that too. The A-10 can go very slowly, and I believe (but can't find hard facts on it) that it won't stall at 100MPH. These aircraft were flying in a nice, tight formation, so nobody was having problems.

And the P-51 can opener is a larger, more robust version of the simple P-38 can opener. A classic.

[FeLiZeCaT]

Great pictures!

Now, what was the fifth plane?

[christ]

Originally Posted by ghporter

The A-10 can go very slowly

78 kts

The P-51 can go 400+ (270 cruise)

[ghporter]

Originally Posted by christ

78 kts

The P-51 can go 400+ (270 cruise)

Where do you find stuff like that? Most modern military jets don't have a "stall speed" per se, but they have a landing envelope speed that describes how slowly they can fly and still be manuverable-but I haven't found anything like that for the F-15, F-16, F-4, or A-10... And that's very frustrating.

[Buckaroo]

I didn't mention the A-10 since it can almost just hang in the air. The A-10 with it's Tank killing 30mm gatling gun can make a mess of most tanks, if not all.



As far as the P-51 can fly at 400+ at 25,000 feet altitude. I couldn't find what it's max speed was at 4,000 feet.

I'm not sure what the stall speed of the F-15 and F16, but I'm sure it will do fine at 250 knots. I've seen them fly by slower at air shows (with flaps and gear down).

[ink]

Originally Posted by Buckaroo

I didn't mention the A-10 since it can almost just hang in the air. The A-10 with it's Tank killing 30mm gatling gun can make a mess of most tanks, if not all.

Yeah, that's something you won't find on the other three.

[Spliff]

The P-51 Mustang is a thing of beauty. My god, what a gorgeous plane.

[ghporter]

Originally Posted by Buckaroo

I didn't mention the A-10 since it can almost just hang in the air. The A-10 with it's Tank killing 30mm gatling gun can make a mess of most tanks, if not all.

THAT is a GAU-8. It's longer than an original VW bug. It has two rates fo fire-3000 and 6000 rounds per minute. It can fly slowly enough to make pass after pass after pass on an armored column or mass of armor and utterly destroy it. And it can turn on the proverbial dime. Back in the mid-80s, I was stationed at Bergstrom AFB in Austin TX, and that's where these planes were delivered from the factory. I set up the audio system for a demonstration flight by an A-10 for a bunch of TAC generals. That thing can turn completely around at battle speed in less than 100 yards. It can fly inverted flat and level, unlike the F-15 and F-16 which have to pitch up to fly inverted. And it's QUIET. A great plane!

[chabig]

Originally Posted by macroy

Those military demo teams are pretty much the best pilots among their peers. Although the Thunderbirds seems to have had an unusually high number of incidents throughout their history (I think).

I have to disagree. The military demo pilots are not the best pilots among their peers, just the most famous. All fighter pilots can fly formation as well. It's a basic skill that has to be mastered by everyone. The demo pilots are not hired for their flying skills, but rather their ability to look good in public and schmooze at cocktail parties and receptions. Their job is 99 percent public relations and 1% flying.

Chris

[keekeeree]

Originally Posted by Mastrap

The picture has been shot with a long lens, creating the impression that the planes are closer than they actually are. Cool pic.

Actually you can tell from the perspective that it was shot with a medium wide angle lens...like a 28mm or a 35 mm.

But yeah, pretty spiffy picture. I wonder what the photographer was flying in.

[FeLiZeCaT]

Originally Posted by Buckaroo

I didn't mention the A-10 since it can almost just hang in the air. The A-10 with it's Tank killing 30mm gatling gun can make a mess of most tanks, if not all.



As far as the P-51 can fly at 400+ at 25,000 feet altitude. I couldn't find what it's max speed was at 4,000 feet.

I'm not sure what the stall speed of the F-15 and F16, but I'm sure it will do fine at 250 knots. I've seen them fly by slower at air shows (with flaps and gear down).

The difficult love for the marvels of engineering and their evil effects...

[f1000]

Originally Posted by ghporter

Buckaroo, you're wrong about these planes not being compatible in formation. The F-16 and F-15 can fly quite slowly-figure around 230-250kts is comfortable for them (if a bit mushy).

Indeed. I've seen these planes practically hover on their tails at airshows.