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Pre-Digital Aviation Photos


Jessie The Jeep

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Here's a view of the N.E. Aircraft Museum around 1982/83 when the museum was all out doors and located on Usworth airfield. Soon after the picture was taken, Nissan bought the airfield ( which dated back to 1917 ), and began to flatten it in preparation for the car plant.

 

The museum was re-located over a road to where the wartime accomodation/admin sites were. Two of the Usworth hangars were also relocated onto the museum site. The large Lamella hangar, a listed building ( which would have housed the whole museum collection ), was left to rot and then pulled down in the last few years.

 

neam.jpg

 

Inside the Lamella hangar

lamella_hangar1.jpg

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Now for some of my favourite US fighter, the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. The P-47 arrived in the UK in 1986, but since P-47 'No Guts No Glory' went back to the USA fairly recently, I've missed it on the show circuit. The Fighter Collection at Duxford are rebuilding another P-47 which should be on the show circuit in the next year or two.

 

p47a.jpg

 

p47b.jpg

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very nice piccys, the shots of the B17's at Duxford bring back memories, I was on a Royal Observer Corps course that year at RAF Watton, on the day off we got the chance to go to Duxford and then into Cambridge, I took some piccys there. Also like the Harrier shots

 

Mark

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I havnt had time to go through all my aircraft slides, but when I do......... Boscombe Down 1990 (50th Anniversary Battle of Britain)........various Great Warbirds (West Malling).......Fighter Meet...........RAF Mildenhall......... these where the main airshows I attended in late 1980's, early 1990's

 

Mark

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Now time for some more B-17 pictures ( I'm feeling self-indulgent )

 

B-17 'Sally B' in 1982 seen at Usworth, while wearing the 'Ginger Rogers' colour scheme. This was applied for the TV series "We'll Meet Again", filmed at West Malling airfield. Turrets were fitted for the first time for this filming. Prior to that, the aircraft was missing the top, chin and ball turrets which were just faired over with aluminium.

 

Since I don't have a slide scanner, these two images were photographed held up against the window to allow the natural light to illuminate them. The camera was mounted on a tripod close to the slide, zoomed in and focussed as close as it would go.

 

sally_b1.jpg

 

sally_b2.jpg

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As we have previously seen, in 1989, 'Sally B' was converted to a B-17F for the 'Memphis Belle' film which involved removing the chin turret, removing the glazing from the waist windows, and reconfiguring the tail turret from the short 'Cheyenne' type to the longer B-17F 'Stinger' turret. All the B-17's in the film were converted in this way except the genuine B-17F. The Ball turret was also replaced with a remotely operated version complete with blank firing 50 cals, so any scenes in the film where you see the ball turret firing was 'Sally B'.

 

sally_b3.jpg

 

sally_b6.jpg

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Bandits! The OFMC Buchon and 'Sally B' at RAF Finningley.

 

sally_b5.jpg

 

The scene at the end of the film where the 'Belle' lands all shot up was done with a combination of models and 'Sally B'. The final approach and touchdown was a 1/6 scale radio controlled model. Stationary propellers were fitted behind the real ones so it looked like three engines had stopped because the model wouldn't fly on one engine.

 

Once the model had touched down, the cameras cut to 'Sally B'. For this scene, the B-17's fin was removed and a badly shot up fibreglass version fitted instead. The outer two engines had their propellers feathered and the B-17 was accelerated along the runway using the two inner engines. Once up to about 50mph, one inner prop was feathered to simulate the B-17 only having one engine running at the point of landing. The cameras then followed the B-17 as it slowed, the tailwheel lock released and a kick on the brakes swung the B-17 off the runway and onto the grass as the last engine was shut down. Apparently it took several takes to get the shot they wanted.

 

sally_b8.jpg

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Now for a couple more dramatic pictures. The first, taking off at a wet Duxford, complete with faint prop vortices from all the moisture in the air.

 

sally_b13.jpg

 

and a textbook short landing in the wet at Elvington. Rolling along the runway with the tail high creates more drag and puts more weight on the wheels which helps to prevent skidding when braking. I caught a video of a short landing at North Weald which can be seen here -

 

sally_b14.jpg

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Here's another example of the pictures I've been working with. Dusty and chipped emulsion on the first image, plus a bit over exposed reddening the image on the Kodak paper. Fuji films/paper always tended to be more blue/green sensitive. The second picture is the restored version. This picture was taken at the Fighter Meet at North Weald in 1992.

 

sally_b15a.jpg

 

sally_b15.jpg

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While I was working at Newcastle Airport several lifetimes ago, one of the BBMF Spitfires dropped in to our hangar overnight on the way to a show. Several light aircraft had to be taxied around to the Bellman hangar to make space for it. Why it wasn't parked there in the first place I don't know.

 

spitfire1.jpg

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