FighterControl

Morning all,

Hopefully everyone isn't bored to tears with RIAT images just yet, as I thought I'd start my own thread from a thoroughly enjoyable seven days in Gloucestershire. Editing has been slow going and I've only made a decent pass through the arrrivals days so far; I'll add the showdays and departures in due course.

Tuesday was a slow and steady day, although not the complete disaster I was anticipating up the West end with 09 in use. The larger enclosure seemed to roughly half the distance to the runway threshold from my usual position, reducing the effect of heat haze on the approaching aircraft. Such a shame it ended up being our only opportunity to shoot the Atlantique, a very photogenic display judging by the reharsal. Lovely to ctach the 12F special Rafale for the first time too.

Kawasaki C-2 68-1203 Japanese Air Self Defence Force RAF Fairford 10/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Breguet Atlantique 2 15 Aeronavale RAF Fairford 10/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Rafale M 5 Aeronavale RAF Fairford 10/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Rockwell B-1B Lancer 85-0069/EL US Air Force RAF Fairford 10/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Lockheed Martin F-16CJ Fighting Falcon 520 Hellenic Air Force RAF Fairford 10/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Kawasaki C-2 68-1203 Japanese Air Self Defence Force RAF Fairford 10/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

McDonnell Douglas CF-188A Hornet 188783 Royal Canadian Air Force RAF Fairford 10/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Breguet Atlantique 2 15 Aeronavale RAF Fairford 10/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Wendesay was much more like it with 27 back in use. Once again, Couteau stole the show, despite their overenthusiastic use of throttle on arrival!

Dassault Rafale C 130/4-GI Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 11/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Mirage 2000D 649/3-XY Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 11/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Mirage 2000D 624/3-IT Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 11/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Lockheed Martin F-16CJ Fighting Falcon 4056 PolishAir Force RAF Fairford 11/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Bombardier Sentinel R1 ZJ692 Royal Air Force RAF Fairford 11/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Antonov An-2T Colt 41 Estonian Air Force RAF Fairford 11/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Boeing E-6B Mercury 163918 US Navy RAF Fairford 11/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Boeing P-8A Poseidon 169335 US Navy RAF Fairford 1107/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Thursday was more of the same, just a shame the sun was being shy when the Italian helicopters arrived. Wonderful machines. Clear and obvious highlight was the Ukrainians arrival however, which basically couldn't have been much better!

Sukhoi Su-27UBM1 Flanker 71 BLUE Ukrainian Air Force RAF Fairford 12/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Sukhoi Su-27UBM1 Flanker 71 BLUE Ukrainian Air Force RAF Fairford 12/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

AgustaWestland HH-101A Caesar MM81868/15-05 Italian Air Force RAF Fairford 12/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

General Dynamics F-16AM Fighting Falcon J-879 Royal Netherlands Air Force RAF Fairford 12/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Boeing F-15E Strike Eagle 91-0316/LN US Air Force RAF Fairford 12/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Panavia Tornado GR4 ZA543 Royal Air Force RAF Fairford 12/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Ilyushin Il-76MD Candid 78820 Ukrainian Air Force RAF Fairford 12/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Boeing C-17A Globemaster III 03 NATO SAC RAF Fairford 12/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

McDonnell Douglas F-15C Eagle 86-0172/LN US Air Force RAF Fairford 12/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

There are more on Flickr for those interested, with more to come in time. I'll hopefully get the showdays added before everyone is completely fed up of RIAT threads!

Thanks for looking, comments welcomed

Shaun

Hello Shaun,

Some absolute stunners mate, love them! Some of the best arrival shots I have seen F-15 at the end is a stunner.

What setup do you use?

I have just edited Thursday's arrivals (taken from Townsend Campsite!) and then it's on to the other days...It's a long process but sometimes an enjoyable one!

All the best,

James

Great shots from a superb few days at P&V West.

Thanks very much chaps.

James Cutting wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 24, 2018 11:09 am

What setup do you use?

Hi James, all taken with my trusty 7D Mk II and 100-400L Mk II combo

Moving onto the showdays, Friday was spent ambling around, enjoying more of the static and stalls, which is something I rarely do these days and made the show as a whole a lot more enjoyable. I did still pick and choose the star items to photograph however, trying out differing locations away from my usual crowd centre vantage point and taking the opportunity to work out where best to be for the Rafale Marine demo in particular... Swiss Hornet, the unexpectedly superb F-35A mini solo and that Flanker display were the stars of the day for me.

Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II 15-5125/LF US Air Force RAF Fairford 13/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Boeing F/A-18C Hornet J-5010 Swiss Air Force RAF Fairford 13/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Sukhoi Su-27P1M Flanker 58 BLUE Ukrainian Air Force RAF Fairford 13/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Rafale M 23 Aeronavale RAF Fairford 13/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Lockheed Martin F-16CJ Fighting Falcon 4056 PolishAir Force RAF Fairford 13/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Mirage 2000D 624/3-IT Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 13/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II 15-5125/LF US Air Force RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Rafale C 130/4-GI Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 13/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Onto Saturday, and with much better weather, I spent more time taking photos, though still enjoyed wandering around the showground. Friday's Rafale research paid off, and I nailed the shot I wanted as soon as I saw their rehearsal on the Wednesday

Dassault Rafale M 5 Aeronavale RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Sukhoi Su-27P1M Flanker 58 BLUE Ukrainian Air Force RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II 15-5125/LF US Air Force RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Panavia Tornado GR4 ZG775/EB-Z Royal Air Force RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Boeing F/A-18C Hornet J-5010 Swiss Air Force RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Rafale M 6 Aeronavale RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

McDonnell Douglas CF-188A Hornet 188776 Royal Canadian Air Force RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Mirage 2000D 649/3-XY Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Lockheed Martin F-16CJ Fighting Falcon 4056 PolishAir Force RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Rafale M 6 Aeronavale RAF Fairford 14/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Sunday was spent mostly at crowd centre to fully enjoy the show from a photography point of view first and foremost, just a tremendous day of flying in ridiculous weather!

Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II 15-5164/LF US Air Force RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Mirage 2000D 649/3-XY Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Boeing F-18C Hornet HN-435 Finnish Air Force RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

NHI NH90 TTH NH-219 Finnish Army RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Avro Lancaster BI PA474 Royal Air Force RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Rafale C 130/4-GI Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Lockheed Martin F-16CG Fighting Falcon 88-0028 Turkish Air Force RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

McDonnell Douglas CF-188A Hornet 188783 Royal Canadian Air Force RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Mirage 2000D 624/3-IT Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Sukhoi Su-27P1M Flanker 58 BLUE Ukrainian Air Force RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Aermacchi MB 339PAN 'IL Frecce Tricolori' Italian Air Force RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

General Dynamics F-16AM Fighting Falcon FA-101 Belgian Air Component RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Eurofighter Typhoon S MM7343/36-52 Italian Air Force RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II 15-5164/LF US Air Force RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Lockheed Martin F-16CJ Fighting Falcon 520 Hellenic Air Force RAF Fairford 15/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Rounding off the week, a few from a fairly low key departures day. Hard to complain about the grey weather given the sunshine we had but it did take the edge of it compared to previous years, especially with only a handful of topsides for the grandstand. Still, a fine way to see off an absolutely brilliant week.

Dassault Rafale C 130/4-GI Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 16/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Mirage 2000D 649/3-XY Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 16/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Sukhoi Su-27P1M Flanker 58 BLUE Ukrainian Air Force RAF Fairford 16/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

General Dynamics F-16AM Fighting Falcon FA-101 Belgian Air Component RAF Fairford 16/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Panavia Tornado GR4 ZA543 Royal Air Force RAF Fairford 16/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

NHI NH90 TTH NH-219 Finnish Army RAF Fairford 16/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Lockheed HC-130N Hercules 92-2104 US Air Force RAF Fairford 16/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Dassault Rafale B 305/4-EC Armee de L'Air RAF Fairford 16/07/18 by Shaun Schofield, on Flickr

Thanks for looking, quite a photo heavy post I realise, but it's hard to condense so much flying into only a handful of images. There are more on Flickr however for those interested.

Comments welcomed as ever,

Shaun

Great photos!