Back from Jedi (With pics)

Ventured back down to Palmdale and spent a few days at the canyon May 1-2. My main reason for being in the area was after a years wait I finally got a spot on the Edwards AFB tour and the storied Flight Test Museum. There were about the 25 some odd planes over two days. Some fo the highlights included catching a CAG bird of VFA-137 and an OT F-35 went full burner when running the canyon. If you thought the lightning was loud you should hear it at full burner AND in a canyon. It was deafening. For the F-35's, the C model and the OT A models did NOT have Lunberg lenses on but AF-3 and other did. The first day it was almost all F-18F's and F-16D's. A BE20 flew over the canyon but did not make a run as did an F-16 agressor aircraft. The big odity was the NASA F-18 that came in Mid canyon and dipped down as opposed to a more traditional run. The pics were shot with a Nikon D7500 and a AF-S FX NIKKOR 80-400mm f.4.5-5.6G ED lens

The F-35C I found a bit odd. Note that both rudders are canted inward.

a reply to: FredT

Holy cow! you took all these photos? Great pics!

Nice pics!

Is the lizard really a cloaked plane?

a reply to: FredT
Nice job with the photos. Your timing appears to be spot on. Unless you took burst shots? Either way, I'm impressed.

a reply to: FredT

Those sir, are amazing pics!

Lt. Jessica Chitts...
Musta got it in high school.
Now she’s showing all those who made fun of her name, who’s the boss.

originally posted by: Zona
a reply to: FredT
Nice job with the photos. Your timing appears to be spot on. Unless you took burst shots? Either way, I'm impressed.

Zona, all of the shots were burst. The planes are moving pretty fast and the sun angle makes it difficult to spot and keep in frame from my location. The D7500 can shoot up to 8 fps

Sweet pics man! This is the kind of stuff that keeps the aircraft forum at the top of my "myATS" page.

ETA: By the way, what exactly is Jedi?

a reply to: face23785

It's the transition into the Star Wars Canyon low level training area. The official name is Rainbow Canyon.

Great pictures, the closest we have to this over here in the UK is the mach loop in Wales. Supposedly some locals have been making the odd complaint about the low flying planes and noise.

Out of curiosity not that I intend to take a trip any time soon but how easy is it to get to such a place to get views like this at the canyon

a reply to: ThePeaceMaker

Easy as hell. There's a paved parking lot that they go screaming by, and a fairly easy dirt road you can go down to get further out. On Google Earth, look up Father Crowley's Rest Area in Death Valley. That's where the transition is.

a reply to: Zaphod58
Thanks, that does look easy indeed. I was expecting it would be a 4x4 job to get there. At some points by in the not so distant future I'd love to do a mini road trip around some of the desert states

a reply to: ThePeaceMaker

There are multiple points along the canyon you can go to with some requiring short hikes, but we prefer the drop in.

a reply to: FredT

Nice pics....i think the 35 rudder position is a speedbrake. Not 100%

I've gotta plan a trip out there.

originally posted by: lakenheath24
a reply to: FredT

Nice pics....i think the 35 rudder position is a speedbrake. Not 100%

Yeah but he was accelerating at the time. I asked one of the navy pilots at our museum (Moffett) and he thinks that it may help with angle of attack? But im no aerodynamasist so I can't say one way or another

originally posted by: ThePeaceMaker
a reply to: Zaphod58
Thanks, that does look easy indeed. I was expecting it would be a 4x4 job to get there. At some points by in the not so distant future I'd love to do a mini road trip around some of the desert states

But as Zaphod will attest you still need to exercise diligence. Last July, Zaphod, Sam, and myself watched someone high center their sedan for a while

a reply to: FredT

And more than a few try to. Although I think my favorite was the poor family we terrorized.

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: FredT

And more than a few try to. Although I think my favorite was the poor family we terrorized.

LOL ah memories. Yeah they looked really freaked out. Next time don't park between hard core av guys and their prey

Still my favorite sequence:

This fool got stuck

Then was arguing and his wife stormed off and Im betting it was a frosty ride to the hotel