Interesting Times at Mojave 3-15-17

a reply to: Winterpain

It's the one that could be another F-18, or could be something else.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Very true, the 900 has slow autofocus and a kinda high low end f-stop, but mega zoom. I usually only use mine when I need super zoom from a distance and not panning fast.

If there is an oddity in the left hand F-18. For me i see it looks more straight and less angled. Then it makes me wonder what secrets are in the hangers if this 'new' aircraft is left on the ramp or not flying out of 51 lol

a reply to: nepatitan

I only have autofocus on like one of my lenses. It confuses the hell out of me when I use that one. Manual focus has the advantage of being able to get a pretty good lens for $200 or less.

a reply to: blackbird9393

I don't think it was just left out, if it is something. The right hand aircraft has power on in the pictures and I'm pretty sure it was one of the two aircraft I saw overhead less than 30 minutes later. If it is something other than a Hornet, I think it was more right place, right time, and they were about to go flying.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Interesting times indeed. Makes me think. Why if it's secret then could they not prep and fly it out at night time or some where deep in the US lol.

foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com...

a reply to: blackbird9393

China Lake is their usual stomping grounds. They're having an airshow this weekend, so lots of stuff coming in. That kind of puts a crimp on their ability to fly around.

As for why not later, it depends on what they're testing. They may have needed dark, but not pitch black conditions.

a reply to: Zaphod58

This is great mate honestly. We will know for sure if it's a new/secret plane when the feds knock on your door wanting to take you for a ride lol.

a reply to: blackbird9393

Not much they can do. I'm not part of an NDA, and if you catch something in the open it's pretty much fair game.

We have military using our local airport. Nothing top secret but exciting none the less a royal omani airforce c130 is a regular visitor and we have a A400M doing aborted landings or something like that

Now you have me watching this all day lol

a reply to: nepatitan

You catch a U-2 out of Palmdale in that area sometimes.

I figured I would throw in my efforts. This is a composite of the left aircraft from the two images provided to enhance the form and details of it a little. Ignore the ghosting elsewhere, the point of focus was only matched to the aircraft.

Are the images max res or reduced for/by photobucket?

a reply to: Zaphod58

there is a tu-2s flying around Sacramento now

a reply to: Zaphod58

Hey, I don't suppose a newer version of the YF-23 is coming out is it ? Just wishing, as that would be one of my favourites

Alright, now that I'm finally home, here's my effort:







Strangely enough the bottom one looks like the butt end of a J-20. Lol.

The top one is of two hornets no doubt. The one on the left just has the horizontal stabs. drooping. The other one might be a weird optical illusion of multiple aircraft parked next to each other but the spacing and shape of the tail planes is all wrong for a hornet at any angle and the reflection off the canopy looks almost Avenger-ish.

SO Im out and about and can't google it myself but is there a significant difference between cant and distance the tails of the F-18E vs say an A,B,C model.

The small one almost looks like the prototype YF-17.

One is at the Western Museum of Flight in Torrance. It would not be the first time they pulled an air frame out of there (remember when the YF-23 vanished then reappeared at the Northrop plant) and are refurbishing it for the museum?

a reply to: FredT

No there wouldn't be any noticeable difference in the cant or distance between the tails on any of the F-18 till it gets to the Super Bugs. Even then you probably would be able to tell at a distance.

Maybe Northrop dusted off an old prototype to test some things with? Possibly their NATF entrant from the fly-off that didn't happen.