Almost all aviation photographers have one dream, crave one chance, an event that can make or break a career, and that is to be able to shoot Air 2 Air! Shooting an aircraft while up in another aircraft. This is where the magic really happens. Most photographers never get the chance at this, but on April 27th, 2012, I did. Now, while I have flown in C-130’s, CH-53’s and CH-46’s, ... Read More

Dayton Ohio's National Museum of the U.S Air Force was home to the official ceremony that marked the 70th anniversary of the Doolittle Raiders' World War II bombing mission against Tokyo.  On April 18, 1942, sixteen North American B-25 Mitchell bombers led by Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle and crewed by seventy nine other airmen, launched from the deck of the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Hornet; their  destination was Japan.  From ... Read More

The web has been flooded with pictures and stories of the Space Shuttle Discovery’s move from Florida to its permanent home at the Udvar Hazy Center at the Smithsonian in Virginia.  I was there for the arrival in Virginia, I was also there for the Discovery’s last launch into space as well as its last landing at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Discovery was the third operational shuttle after ... Read More

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the raid which was the first strike against the Japanese homeland.  The National Museum of the United States Air Force has a B-25 that was restored by North American Aviation and presented to the Museum in 1958.  The aircraft was restored and painted to represent B-25B, Serial Number 40-2344 which was flown by Doolittle.   It's displayed as though it's on the deck ... Read More

Riverside Airport is packed into the middle of suburban Riverside, surrounded by houses on all sides.  While the main runway is just large enough to accommodate a C-17, the traffic pattern still seems more like driving directions than flying.  There is something nice about the smaller, local, airshows; there is a certain down to Earth quality about them which just is not a part of the large military airshows. The ... Read More

The  B-25 known as Executive Sweet began it's journey from Camarillo, CA to Dayton, OH. The aircraft will be one of Twenty-five B-25 Mitchell bombers that plan to pay tribute to the Doolittle Raiders as they commemorate the 70th anniversary of their raid on Japan. The reunion will take place  April 17-20 at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton,OH. On the way to Dayton, OH the B-25 will make several stops,providing an ... Read More

On April 4, 2012 just after 2PM, Howard Pardue left us before his time had come.  He was 77 years young.  His XF8F-1 Bearcat NL14HP crashed shortly after takeoff from Breckenridge Texas.  We send our sincerest condolences from the staff here at PhotoRecon to his family and friends and we shall remember him in our prayers. Howard was known and loved by the warbird community.   He raced at Reno for ... Read More

The Valiant Air Command's show commonly known as "TICO" (which comes from the Titusville Coca Airport) this year worked around a “Doolittle Raider” theme, since this year is the 70th anniversary of the famous carrier launched raid.  As we know on April 18, 1942, the raid was launched off the carrier USS Hornet.   LTC. Jimmy Doolittle was the pilot of the first B-25 launched and his copilot was LT.  ... Read More

The MCAS Yuma played out a little different from the original way I was planning on doing the show. The weather people in San Diego had been predicting a large winter storm to hit Southern California with lots of rain, snow, and major winds, on the weekend for the schedule Yuma 2012 Airshow. I started to think that the show may be affected by the approaching storm. I had planned ... Read More

It all started on May 22, 1912, when Lt. Alfred A. Cunningham reported for flight training at the Naval Academy at Annaplois, it wasn’t until August 20, at Marblehead, Massachusetts, that Cunningham soloed in a Curtiss B-1 Seaplane and became Naval Aviator number 5. Since then, Marine pilots have done their job to defend America and each other, with names like Col. Gregory “Pappy” Boyington (Medal of Honor awardee) ... Read More

The smell of jet fuel still lingers in the air at NAS El Centro following the conclusion of the first major air show of 2012. The first show brought delight to many after what had been a difficult off season that focused more on teams cutting back rather than building up budgets. The air show austerity forced the shutdown of most of the Air Force singe ship demo teams ... Read More

TICO is the annual fundraising airshow for the Valiant Air Command down in Titusville, Florida.   The airport is literally in the shadows of the Kennedy Space Center on the east coast of Florida.  Since what seems like the beginning of warbird time TICO was the best show of its type in the country.  In the years that have passed, there has been much competition for the best show, but ... Read More

NAF El Centro is just about in the middle of nowhere, it is always hot, and there are no permanently stationed squadrons.  Having said all that, the El Centro drew a huge crowd and had top notch performances; not to mention the El Centro plays host to the Blue Angels’ season opener. The aircraft on static display were interesting and varied; this is one of the few places I can ... Read More

Article and Photos by Matt Shinavar 10 Tanker operates a pair of DC-10s which have been modified to enable water or retardant to be dropped on forest fires.  When fires get out of hand, nobody calls Ghostbusters; rather, the phone at 10 Tanker rings.  From the time the phone rings 11,600 gallons of water, foam, gel, or retardant can start barreling down the runway 24 minutes later, and they’ve done ... Read More