Monday, September 22, 2014

Winston-Salem Airshow 2014

Hi Kids, The show was last weekend, although the weather was crappy the show must go on!  So it did!  Low clouds and threatening rain can't keep some good performers down!

 
Might as well start out with a mega-heavy, a B-17 Flying Fortress!  You could buy a ride in this bad boy too!  God only knows what kinda fuel burn we're talking here, so don't expect it to be cheap!  This one is painted like the Memphis Bell, and is an early model.  No chin turret!


 There was a B-25 too, also offering rides!
 This P-51 was painted up like the one shot down over Czechoslovakia whose pilot later stole a FW-190 and fly it back to friendly lines, where he was almost shot by suspicious solders.

 A C-46!  Bet its airworthy, it would've been pretty tough to push the damn thing here!
 A T-6, Focke-wulf 149, and T-34; all civilian ownership.
 
 
Sure, why not buy a Harrier?  I think this one is an ex- USMC AV-8B.
 A jet right out of a James Bond 007 movie!  The world's smallest jet, and yes, the pilot DID fly it through a hanger for the movie.
 We're all accustomed to aeronautics in tiny little planes, why don't we try it in a converted AG plane?  Yep, it used to be a cropduster called an AGCAT.  Now its called the Show Cat!
 Getting weird with Cubs.




 You could get rides in both the Huey and the Cobra.  Bring a healthy wad o' cash.
 Flaring for landing!


 Turbo-Mooney!
 A C-54, nice!
 And yes, we were in the business of saving the world back then too!

 A Czech trainer called a L-39.

 Getting ready to crank em up!
 Yeah, some maniac is trying to land his Cub on a moving pickup truck.  Well, it better be moving!
 And yes, it worked!
 It's a lot easier to take off again!








 The Show Cat had to be my favorite performer!  It looks huge even up there!
 And the warbirds take off!



 And do a few low level passes.  They even had ground explosions rigged up.
 A stunt plane of a more normal size, a Pitts Special!  There was a time I wanted one of these myself.  Then I realized the maintenance was BIG $$$ for any airplane.








 
As I was driving away, they were still setting off explosions!  The smoke was much more impressive earlier, but it took me a few secs to grab my camera!
 
 Yeah, that sez $480 for a Cobra ride 7-10 minutes long.  A half ride is also offered.  I guess that means they throw you out half way through the ride.
 

 
 And we had some military trucks on display too!  There was a time I wanted one of these things, too.  But I can barely keep normal cars running, I figured this would be a bit much.  I still kinda Jones for an M35A3 with super singles, though.

 There's an outfit in NC that modifies M35's to 4x4 configuration.  If they shortened it a bit more and made it look a little more Baja buggy-ified it would be way cool!
 Re-enactors!  The Huns don't seem so bad 60+ years after the fact.


 Oh so simple.  Except for getting replacement parts maybe.
 Brand new and rarin' to go!
 I dig the single-seater!
 Red necks rejoice!
 1965 Mustangs!
 66 Chevelles!  My uncle had one of these, a 1966 SS 396/375! 
 Camaros!
 Assorted other hot rods!
 And some rods not so hot.


 
I've seen this one driving around on Country Club road all summer long! Very straight!
 
Some poor sap got this thing here, so I might as well take a picture of it.  A 2CV, France's idea of the VW Beetle.  I think these things had about 15 horsepower when first released, clawing its way up to about 23 by the time production blessedly stopped.  Reminds me of the time we rented a Renault 4 on vaca in Europe.  Ugh.