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New
Latest
Low Level
Latest shots from the Mach Loop. Shots include F15E Strike
Eagles, F16 Fighting Falcons and A10C Thunderbolt's.
New
RIAT 2011
Arrivals and departures from the 2011 Royal International Air
Tattoo in Fairford. Photos shot from Rhymes farm and the east
end Park & View.
New
F15E's @ LN
I spent the day inside RAF Lakenheath on the 6th of May to
photograph the United States Air Force F15E Strike Eagles of the
48th Fighter Wing.
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Living in the heart of Wales we get a lot of low flying
military aircraft on a daily basis. These fly as low as
250ft at over 450 knots but in certain area's can go as
low as 100ft. One such place is the Mach Loop situated
in LFA7. This area is regularly used for low level
training and has a few locations which is ideal for low
level photography.
If you want a pure adrenalin rush and the chance to get
some fantastic photographs then the Mach loop is it. Its
amazing to watch the aircraft as they fly through the
twists and turns of the Welsh valleys, there's no better
sight than to watch a Tornado GR4 rise up from the
valley floor at 450 knots leaving behind ribbons of
vapour.
Below you can find information on some of the
photography locations as well as aircraft that use the
Mach loop on a regular basis. For more information
regarding locations please check out the Fox2 website. |
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As a lot of these locations are situated high up in the
hills so its a good idea to have a good set of walking
boots and clothing especially in the winter months. I
made my first visit on the 20th December 2007, there was
a 25mph wind and the temperature was around -10. I wore
a few layers of clothing and a rain proof jacket and
trousers, suitable gloves and a nice warm hat that
covered my ears, I also had on three pairs of warm
socks. A few sandwiches and hot flask is also worth
while and a walking pole is also recommended.
As there isn't really a time table for these aircraft,
its an idea to get there early, we usually arrive there
for around 7:30am in the summer months and around 8:30am
in the winter. Sometimes you'll get lucky and traffic
will start to come through early but some days you won't
see anything until late afternoon, some days you'll see
nothing. |
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The Bwlch
is situated five miles east of Dolgellau on the A470
road to Dinas Mawddwy. The Bwlch was the first place I
used for shooting low level video. When looking down the
valley from the main viewing location you get a
fantastic view of the aircraft as they snake there way
through the twist and turns of this very narrow valley.
The aircraft usually come in from the east and can
either turn left towards the Cad pass, straight on for
Dolgellau or turn right and head up towards Bala.
Cad West/East
are both situated along the A487 3 miles north of Tal Y
Llun and 5 miles south of Dolgellau. The West side is
superb for top side shots whereas the East side is
better suited for underside shots. You have a fantastic
view of the approaching aircraft as they come in from
the north, either exiting the Bwlch or heading straight
in from Bala or Dolgellau giving you enough time before
they enter the pass and swoop down for Corris Corner. |
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Corris Corner
is located at the south western end of the Tall-Y-llyn
pass, almost above the lake. From here the aircraft have
2 options, they can either go straight on over the lake
or turn sharp left and follow the valley to Corris
offering excellent topside views with the sun behind
you. Take note, this location could be tricky in the
afternoons due to the sun being in front of you
especially during the winter hours.
There's a few more locations in Wales, including
Heartbreak Hill which is located between the Bala and
Dolgellau valley, the A5 Pass which fly's over Lake
Ogwen, and the Dyfi Valley which is a new location north
east of Dinas village. Another location is BlueBell hill
which is located just east of the Bwlch.
Here's some of the aircraft that use the Mach Loop on a
regular basis. Update - The Harrier is no longer flying.
Panavia Tornado
is a family of twin-engine combat aircraft, which was
jointly developed by the United Kingdom, West Germany
and Italy. There are three primary versions of the
Tornado; the Tornado IDS (Interdictor/Strike)
fighter-bomber, the suppression of enemy air defences
Tornado ECR (Electronic Combat/ Reconnaissance) and the
Tornado ADV (Air Defence Variant) interceptor. It is one
of the world's most sophisticated and capable
interdiction and attack aircraft, with a large payload,
long range and high survivability. |
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The Tornado was designed as a low-level supersonic
ground attack bomber, capable of taking off and landing
in short distances. This requires good high-speed and
low-speed flying characteristics. In general, an
aircraft which is designed to fly at high speeds usually
has poor low-speed characteristics. In order to achieve
the desired high-speed performance, an aircraft has a
highly swept or ‘delta’ wing platform. However, these
wing designs are very inefficient at low speeds where
unswept wing are required. In order for an aircraft to
be operated efficiently at both high and low speeds,
variable wing sweep is a desirable feature, this was
incorporated into the design. |
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BAE Systems Hawk
is a British single engine, advanced jet trainer
aircraft. It first flew in 1974 as the Hawker Siddeley
Hawk. The Hawk is used by the Royal Air Force, and other
air forces, as either a trainer or a low-cost combat
aircraft. The Hawk is still in production with over 900
Hawks sold to 18 customers around the world.
The Hawk T1 entered RAF service in April 1976, replacing
the Gnat and Hawker Hunter in the advanced training and
weapons training roles respectively. The T1 will soon be
replaced by the all new T2. |
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The Hawk is an all-metal, low-wing, tandem seat aircraft
of conventional design. The wing has a moderate sweep
with 2º dihedral and trailing edge slotted flaps. A
one-piece all-moving tailplane is also swept back with
10º dihedral. The fuselage comprises three main parts.
The front fuselage accommodates two equipment bays and a
pressurised cabin containing two tandem cockpits. The
centre fuselage contains the engine, a fuselage fuel
tank, a gas turbine starting system and a ram air
turbine. The rear fuselage houses the jet pipe bay and
an airbrake hinged to its under surface. The Hawk is
powered by a Rolls- Royce Turbomeca Adour 151 turbofan
engine, which is an un-reheated version of the engine
that powered the Jaguar GR3 aircraft. |
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Lockheed C-130 Hercules
is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft
built by Lockheed. It is the main tactical airlifter for
many military forces worldwide. Over 40 models and
variants of the Hercules serve with more than 50
nations. In December 2006 the C-130 became the fifth
aircraft—after the English Electric Canberra, B-52
Stratofortress, Tupolev Tu-95, and KC-135 Stratotanker—to
mark 50 years of continuous use with its original
primary customer, in this case, the United States Air
Force. The C-130 is the only military aircraft to remain
in production for 50 years with its original customer. |
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Capable of takeoffs and landings from unprepared
runways, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop,
medical evacuation, and cargo transport aircraft. The
versatile airframe has found uses in a variety of other
roles, including as a gunship, for airborne assault,
search and rescue, scientific research support, weather
reconnaissance, aerial refuelling, maritime patrol and
aerial fire fighting. The Hercules family has the
longest continuous production run of any military
aircraft in history. During more than 50 years of
service the family has participated in countless
military, civilian and humanitarian aid operations. |
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Tucano T1
is a two seat turboprop basic trainer used by the Royal
Air Force. Its a modified version of the Brazilian
Embraer EMB-312 Tucano aircraft, and is built under
licence by Shorts of Belfast. The Tucano is operated
primarily from No 1 Flying Training School, at RAF
Linton-on-Ouse, to provide basic fastjet flying training
to RAF and RN student pilots, and basic WSO training to
all potential RAF WSOs. Student pilots fly around 130
hours during their training course on the Tucano before
progressing to the Hawk T1 (soon to be the new T2)
aircraft at RAF Valley in Anglesey, North Wales. |
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Eurofighter Typhoon
is a twin-engine canard-delta wing multirole aircraft.
It is being designed and built by a consortium of three
separate partner companies: Alenia Aeronautica, BAE
Systems, and EADS working through a holding company
Eurofighter GmbH which was formed in 1986. The project
is managed by NETMA (NATO Eurofighter and Tornado
Management Agency) which acts as the prime customer |
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The Eurofighter Typhoon benefits from a number of
advances in technology and engineering. The aircraft
makes extensive use of composites in the airframe with
only 15% of the surface comprising metal. The newly
developed EJ200 powerplants combined with the aircraft's
aerodynamics allow it to cruise supersonically without
the use of reheat for extended periods of time even with
a normal weapons load. The advanced flight control
system and pitch unstable design impart great
manoeuvrability at high and low speeds. These, combined
with; cutting edge automated defences, advanced active
and passive sensors, leading cockpit ergonomics and a
reduced RCS instil Eurofighter with more than an even
chance of success against most competing aircraft. |
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Harrier
is used by the RAF in the close air support role and is
the latest in a long line of ‘jump-jets’ dating back to
the introduction of the first Harriers in the 1960s.
Now, as part of the Joint Force Harrier, these extremely
versatile aircraft are ready to deploy anywhere in the
world, either on board Royal Navy aircraft carriers or
to shore bases. The first Harriers entered RAF service
in 1969, making the RAF the first in the world to use
its revolutionary vertical take-off and landing
abilities, which allow the aircraft to fly in and out of
areas close to the battlefield that would normally be
off-limits to other aircraft. |
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The aircraft are usually employed in direct support of
ground troops tackling such targets as enemy troop
positions, tanks and artillery. The Harrier uses a
variety of weapons such as Paveway Laser and Global
Positioning System-guided bombs against buildings,
Maverick infrared missiles against tanks, cluster
munitions and general purpose free-fall bombs. When
required, the Harrier can also be equipped with a pod
fitted with cameras to provide reconnaissance of the
target and battle areas. For self-defence the aircraft
can be fitted with the AIM-9L Sidewinder infrared guided
missile. |
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Beech King Air B200
the newest training aircraft in the RAF inventory, is a
twin-engine turboprop monoplane, which first entered RAF
service in 2004. It is used as an advanced, multi-engine
pilot trainer by No 45(R) Squadron, which is part of No
3 Flying Training School based at RAF Cranwell, in
Lincolnshire. Prior to flying the King Air, students who
have been streamed to fly multi-engine aircraft at the
end of elementary flying training undertake survival
training and personal development training to prepare
them for the rigours of operational service. |
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F-15E Strike Eagle
is a 1980s American all-weather strike fighter. Its a
two-seat all-weather long-range strike and ground-attack
aircraft for the U.S. Air Force designed for long-range
interdiction of enemy ground targets deep behind enemy
lines. A derivative of the F-15 Eagle air superiority
fighter, the Strike Eagle proved its worth in Desert
Storm and Operation Allied Force, carrying out deep
strikes against high-value targets, combat air patrols
and providing close air support for coalition troops.
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The F-15E is powered by two Pratt
& Whitney F100-PW-220 or 229 engines that incorporate
advanced digital technology for improved performance.
For example, with a digital electronic engine control
system, F-15E pilots can accelerate from idle power to
maximum afterburner in less than four seconds, a 40
percent improvement over the previous engine control
system. Faster engine acceleration means quicker
takeoffs and crisper response while manoeuvring. The
F100-PW-220 engines can produce 50,000 pounds of thrust
(25,000 each) and the F100-PW-229 engines 58,000 pounds
of thrust (29,000 each).
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High Definition Videos
Click
the link for a list of HD videos from the loop and other locations.
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