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22 different types of aircraft operational in the USAF in 1956 fly in a single formation

by Till Daisd September 24, 2024

This photo was taken at the height of the Cold War, the confrontation that dominated the second half of the 20th century.

The amazing image in this post, taken by LIFE photographer J. R. Eyerman over the coast of Florida and overlooking the Gulf of Mexico, displays the many kinds of aircraft that were part of the U.S. Air Force (USAF) in 1956 flying in a single formation.

This is a list of every aircraft shown in this amazing photo:

1. Lockheed F-94C Starfire

2. Northrop F-89H Scorpion

3. North American QF-80A

4. North American T-33

5. Republic F-84F Thunderstreak

6. North American F-86H Sabre

7. North American F-100A Super Sabre

8. Convair F-102A Delta Dagger

9. Republic RF-84F Thunderflash

10. Republic F-84G Thunderjet

11. North American F-86D Sabre Dog

12. Boeing B-52 Stratofortress

13. Convair C-131 Samaritan

14. Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar

15. Douglas C-124 Globemaster II

16. Martin B-57 Canberra

17. Douglas B-66 Destroyer

18. North American B-45 Tornado

19. Lockheed RC-121C

20. Boeing KC-97 Stratotanker

21. Boeing B-47 Stratojet

22. Convair B-36 Peacemaker

What’s astonishing is that the B-52 is still in operation today and not set for retirement anytime soon.

Can you name them all? The 22 different types of aircraft operational in the USAF in 1956 fly in a single formation.

This photo was taken at the height of the Cold War, the confrontation that dominated the second half of the 20th century and grew out of the clash between the ideologies of the Western democracies led by the United States — and the communist nations led by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). The ever-present threat of nuclear weapons made this period the most dangerous one in world history.

The U.S. Armed Forces measure their level of readiness during military situations by Defense Readiness Condition (DEFCON). Based upon the severity of a crisis, this readiness ranges from DEFCON 5, the normal peacetime level, to DEFCON 1, when an imminent enemy attack is expected. The seriousness of the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962 was demonstrated when the U.S. Armed Forces went to DEFCON 2 — the second-highest level. Throughout the Cold War, people and governments feared going to DEFCON 1 because it meant nuclear war, but that level was never reached — in large part because of the deterrence to aggression provided by the USAF.

Photo by J. R. Eyerman/LIFE

September 24, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

Swedish Air Force J-35 Draken performing the “Cobra” maneuver

by Till Daisd September 23, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The J-35 had an inherent instability that could lead to superstall, a phenomenon attributed to Draken’s special wing planform.

This post features an amazing video of Swedish Air Force J-35 (SK 35C) Draken trainers executing the Cobra Maneuver. The Swedish Air Force engaged the Russians in combat in the early stages of the Cold War by employing this tactic.

Notably, Draken’s unique wing planform was thought to be the cause of the J-35’s inherent instability, which might result in a superstall.

Depending on how it was entered, there were two main ways to superstall, as Jan Jorgensen describes in his book Saab 35 Draken. In the first mode, the aircraft pitched between a nose-up and a nose-down attitude. The occasional yaw and sideslip went along with it, but there was no noticeable rolling motion. In the second mode, the aircraft was stabilized at a 50–60-degree angle of attack. In all cases, the aircraft fell at a speed of about 80 meters per second, nearly straight down. Additionally, the Draken could enter an outside, or inverted, superstall. Even in cases where recovery was successful, there was a huge loss of altitude in any superstall.

The superstall was recovered by holding the stick initially fully back and then pushing it full forward when the aircraft nosed down. In the stabilized superstall the stick was just pushed fast fully forward. The stick was centered when the nose was straight down. It had to be done in due time to prevent the aircraft from entering an outside superstall.

Between 1959 and 1987, a total of 179 Draken superstalls were reported in the Swedish Air Force. 35 of these resulted in a crash and destruction of the aircraft. Four pilots were killed in these accidents, two failed to eject and two ejected unsuccessfully. Because of the high risks involved in the superstall, Draken pilots of all nations received special recovery training in Sweden using both simulators and SK 35C trainers equipped with an anti-spin parachute.

But as the video below demonstrates, if managed properly, the Draken was capable of performing the maneuver that was subsequently dubbed the “Pugachev’s Cobra.”

September 23, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

Swiss Air Force F-5 pilot hit by lightning in cockpit, thigh injured

by Till Daisd September 21, 2024

written by Till Daisd

“Just as the first words from the radar operator came in “ten miles long final, gear down”, I felt a heavy blow, as though a hammer hit my left thigh,” said Urs Ramel, Swiss Air Force F-5 Pilot.

Northrop developed the F-5 in February 1965, intending to export it through the Military Assistance Program (MAP). This aircraft was first proposed as a lightweight fighter option for the United States, but it quickly gained enormous popularity as an export and found a place in the foreign market. In December 1970, Northrop began development and production on the F-5A-21, an aircraft design that emphasized maneuverability rather than high speed and was officially reclassified as the F-5E.

The Swiss Air Force, which currently employs 22 F-5E and four F-5F aircraft—down from a peak of 98 and 12 in 1981—was and is still extensively using the aircraft. Switzerland purchased the aircraft because of its excellent performance, suitability for the unique Swiss Air Force, mission, and relatively low maintenance cost per flight hour.

The Tiger is an exceptionally sturdy aircraft too, as Urs Ramel, an F-5 pilot with the Swiss Air Force, explains in Peter Lewis’s book Swiss Tiger Parallel Flight:

“Having flown two-morning missions during training sessions from Dübendorf, I knew that storm-like precipitation and strong turbulence was embedded in an 8’000 meter cloud formation.

“During a lunchtime coffee break, a discussion began on how a lightning strike had penetrated a Tiger’s cockpit and hit the pilot in his thigh just before midday. I had been warned… After an interception mission “on top” at 30’000 feet, we followed a GCA approach in formation through varying cloud densities. While reducing speed before the talk down, we hit strong turbulence and very heavy rain.

“I could hardly make out the outline of my wingman in my mirrors. Just as the first words from the radar operator came in “ten miles long final, gear down,” I felt a heavy blow, as though a hammer hit my left thigh. For a microsecond, I saw a pencil-like vertical streak of lightning in front of me in the cockpit. “Fly the airplane,” I told myself, scared, and in the following half a minute, it took all my concentration to focus on the instruments to keep within limits. A quick glance around the cockpit confirmed that everything was seemingly OK, and when I looked over to my wingman, I was relieved to see that he was still glued to my wingtip as he should be and was nodding his head.

“I reported my status to the operator and we continued the approach without any further issues for a successful landing. My wingman registered his own lightning strike as a hard.. muffled hit, with an impact just above his left eye. Both airplanes had multiple lightning entry and exit points, with rivets that looked like they’d been soldered.

“Right after the flight, we were taken to the Air Force Medical Center (FAI) for examination. We both had painful five Franc coin-sized bruises: my wingman’s on his forehead, mine on my thigh. Our bruises may have disappeared within an hour, but that day—March 21, 1986—has left a mark in both of our memories forever.”

That time a Swiss Air Force F-5 Pilot was hit in his thigh by a lightning that penetrated his Tiger cockpit

Photo by Peng Chen and Myself (Adrian Pingstone) via Wikipedia

September 21, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

RAF Canberra almost crashed in a mock dogfight with PAF F-104s

by Till Daisd September 19, 2024

written by Till Daisd

“I decided to play a game and hard turned into the F-104s. Too late I remembered that the 100 series Avons fitted to the Canberra didn’t like that sort of treatment,” `Boz’ Robinson, former RAF Canberra pilot.

The RAF’s first jet bomber was the English Electric Canberra. It proved to be Britain’s most durable and long-serving frontline aircraft; 57 years after the prototype’s first flight, a few reconnaissance PR 9s are still in service. Throughout its lifetime, the type equipped over 40 squadrons, and 546 examples were produced. Except for its bomb load, the Canberra was built for speed and carried no additional weaponry. Its low-aspect wing allowed for exceptional fuel economy at a maximum cruise altitude well above that of modern NATO fighters. This meant Canberra was safe from manned interception for several years before the development of air-to-air missiles.

RAF Akrotiri Canberras (there were five Canberra squadrons deployed to Akrotiri: No. 6 Squadron, No. 32 Squadron, No. 73 Squadron, No. 249 Squadron, and No. 13 Squadron with its PR 9s) also provided fighter affiliation targets for Central Treaty Organisation (CENTO) air forces to pit their wits against. Lightning F 3s from No 56 Sqn, Turkish F-100 Super Sabres, and Iranian F-4s were all routinely exercised with, and `Boz’ Robinson also deployed to Pakistan in May 1963 to provide practice intercept training for the Pakistani Air Force (PAF), as he recalls in Andrew Brookes’ book RAF Canberra Units of the Cold War;

`The PAF requested that we remain below 40,000 ft, but when Canberra had used up half of its fuel, it could have cruise-climbed much higher. As a fighter pilot, I thought it would be a good idea to even the score a little and, despite the briefing, climbed with my No. 2, Dave Willis, toward 48.000 ft. My navigators were working hard, one keeping us on track, the other helping me with the lookout to spot the incoming fighters. Suddenly, I saw two F-104s way below the left wing, and without any hope of carrying out an intercept on us. In those days there was no air-to-air missile threat from those F-104s, so their only chance of a kill would have been from a gun attack.

`I decided to play a game and hard turned into the F-104s. Too late, I remembered that the 100-series Avons fitted to the Canberra didn’t like that sort of treatment. There were two loud pops and then silence! I had flamed out both engines and would now have to descend to below 20,000 ft to relight them. News of our escapade in northern Pakistan, coupled with the loss of a No. 6 Sqn B 16 and its crew of three caught in a cumulo-nimbus in the vicinity of Khartoum, convinced my colleagues that the 100 series Avon required careful handling above 40,000 ft.

`We spent much of our time as a crew doing nuclear target study. Our target was a large city on the west coast of the Caspian Sea inside the Soviet Union — a place I visited in my later role as British air attache in Moscow. After so many years, it is hard to remember exactly one’s feelings about being a nuclear bomber. I don’t think we lost much sleep over the fact.’

The story of the RAF Canberra bomber that nearly crashed during a mock dogfight with PAF F-104s

RAF Canberra Units of the Cold War is published by Osprey Publishing and is available to order here.

Photo by Crown Copyright and Pakistan Air Force

September 19, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

A-3 Skywarrior crash landing aboard USS Coral Sea

by Till Daisd September 18, 2024

written by Till Daisd

“Actually, living through the landing wasn’t as bad as seeing it on film later that day,” Frank Peele former A-3 Skywarrior crewman/navigator.

This post contains an amazing video of a Douglas A-3 Skywarrior crash landing on the USS Coral Sea aircraft carrier in 1963. An A-3 lands at 0:30. The nose wheel collapses as it comes into contact with the deck, rolls along the deck, and falls into the sea. Once more taking off, the aircraft waits for orders as the barricade is raised. The Sky Warrior touches down at 0:58, skimming the deck with its nose as it hits the barricade. It comes to rest and rescue teams running out.

Frank Peele was the crewman/navigator in that mishap, as he remembers:

“I was the crewman/navigator in that incident. We did blow the lower hatch. On landing, it crumpled like so much tinfoil. Surprised us, too. Actually, living through the landing wasn’t as bad as seeing it on film later that day. We caught 2 wires on the barricade landing, so proved nothing about the barricade’s ability to stop that much weight. Barricades had been tested with other A-3s but not with our gross weight, so there was some uncertainty right up to the impact.

“Even though the fuselage was slightly buckled aft of the cockpit, the bird was barged to the Naval Air Rework Facility in Alameda, CA, and later returned to service. In 1966, it went down east of the Philippines due to fuel transfer problems; one of the crew was recovered, but the other two were never found.”

The moniker “Whale” originated from the fact that the A3D (redesignated A-3) Skywarrior, with its gross weight of 82,000 pounds, was the largest aircraft to ever operate from an aircraft carrier of the US Navy. When the A3D was first delivered to the fleet in 1956, it represented the atomic punch of carrier aviation, equipping heavy attack squadrons (VAH) with nuclear weaponry.

Interesting Fact: The crew of the A3D bailed out by sliding down a chute that led out the bottom of the aircraft because it lacked ejection seats. Crews came up with the morbid moniker “All Three Dead” by using the Skywarrior’s A3D abbreviation in response to this fact.

September 18, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

The F-16N was the best U.S. Navy adversary fighter ever

by Till Daisd September 17, 2024

written by Till Daisd

From the U.S. Navy perspective, short of actually having a Fulcrum or Flanker, the F-16N was as close to a real dissimilar fighter as they could get.

The F-16 has the distinction of being the only 4th generation adversary that has served with the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Air Force (USAF). The USAF flew the conventional F-16C model extensively, which served as the basis for the F-16N. Equipped with an ACMI pod on the starboard wingtip, the F-16N was designed for air combat maneuvering. About the A-4 Skyhawk and F-5 Tiger in particular, the Navy has been searching for a successor for its aging fleet of aircraft.

In their book Adversary: America’s Aggressor Fighter Squadrons, Chuck Lloyd and Rick Llinares explain this. The F-16N, a basic F-16C (Block 30 with the General Electric F110-GE-100 engine) that kept the F-16A/B models and the APG-66 radar, was chosen by the Navy after an examination of the available aircraft. The ALR-69 Radar Warning Receiver (RWR), the ALE-40 chaff/flare dispenser, and the ACMI pod were all integrated into the F-16N to fully simulate adversaries.

Here’s why the F-16N had been the finest adversary fighter ever flown by the U.S. Navy

Twenty-two single-seat F-16Ns and four two-seat TF-16Ns were ordered by the Navy and deployed in the late 1980s. The Bandits of VF-126, who had their base at “Fightertown USA,” also known as NAS Miramar, were the first operators to fly the aircraft. Following them were the Blackbirds of VF-45 at NAS Key West, who were equipped with F-16 opponent fighters. The final Navy aggressor units to acquire the jet were the Fighter Weapons School and the Challengers of VF-43.

From the Navy perspective, short of actually having a Fulcrum or Flanker, the F-16N was as close to a really dissimilar fighter as they could get. Therein lies perhaps its greatest advantage. Navy Tomcat and Hornet crews were now fighting a truly different aircraft, flown by superb aerial tacticians. Against the F-14, the smaller, more maneuverable F-16N was a very challenging foe, as the following video shows.

Unfortunately, the F-16Ns began to experience the wear and tear that comes with excessive g’s throughout many aerial engagements. The Navy made the decision to retire the Falcon after deciding that maintaining it would require expensive repairs. Unexpectedly, the F-5Es that the F-16N was meant to replace ended up outlasting their intended successor. Regardless, the F-16N will stand as the best enemy tactics fighter the US Navy has ever flown.

In 2002, the Navy began to receive 14 F-16A and B models from the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) that were originally intended for Pakistan before being embargoed. Like their F-16N predecessors, these aircraft are painted in exotic schemes and are used for adversary training by the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center (NSAWC) / TOPGUN.

Photo by LTC David Baranek and Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Joseph R. Vincent / U.S. Navy

September 17, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

B-47 strategic bombers doing Immelmann Turns and Barrel Rolls

by Till Daisd September 16, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The two, cool videos in this post clearly show why B-47 crews loved this aircraft’s maneuverability and sweet handling for good reason.’

The two videos in this post make it quite evident why B-47 crews found this aircraft’s agility and awesome handling to be so appealing.

The exceptional agility of the B-47 was demonstrated in a series of maneuver tests carried out by the U.S. Air Force (USAF) in 1954. The purpose of these tests was to investigate the B-47s’ ability to “toss bombs.” The plane would fly low and fast toward the target, pull up sharply, open the bomb bay doors, employ momentum to launch the bomb toward the target, and then complete the remaining half of an Immelmann turn to fly back the other way at the top of the loop.

By using this maneuver, the bomber was able to drop high explosives and nuclear weapons at low altitudes without running the risk of hitting heavily protected targets or suffering blast damage. It is memorable to see the large, sleek B-47 perform this maneuver (and barrel rolls too!).

During test flights, the aircraft’s several cameras provide distinct perspectives.

The Boeing B-47 Stratojet represented a milestone in aviation history and a revolution in aircraft design. It had sweeping wings, jet engines in underwing pods, main landing gear located on the fuselage, and automated systems that lowered the crew number to three, among many other cutting-edge technologies for the time.

More than 2,000 Stratojets were produced by Boeing, Douglas, and Lockheed between 1947 and 1957. The USAF flew 1,357 B-47s and 175 RB-47s during its most active period of operation in 1958, when it operated 28 B-47 bomb wings and four RB-47 reconnaissance wings.

However, this is not the first time that we saw such a large aircraft performing aerobatic maneuvers: on Jul. 17, 2018, at Farnborough Airshow Test, pilot Wayne Roberts, flying the Lockheed LM-100J Super Hercules, showed the aircraft’s amazing flying qualities (the aircraft also did a loop!). Click here to watch the video!

September 16, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

RF-4C cockpit recording captures when its wingman is shot down by North Vietnamese SA-2

by Till Daisd September 13, 2024

written by Till Daisd

RF-4C Phantom tail #69-0355 went down during “Vietnam Ceasefire” ops while serving with the 14th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron of the 432nd TFW based at Udorn RTFAFB, Thailand.

The following video is a recording from the cockpit of an RF-4C Phantom (callsign Dodge 1, not Fox, as the subtitles say) during the Vietnam War recon flight. An SA-2 Guideline missile shoots down Wingman (Dodge 2). Capt. Roger Ernest Behnfeldt was Dodge 2A (Pilot) and Captain Tamotsu Shingaki was Dodge 2B (WSO). RF-4C Phantom tail #69-0355 went down approximately 8 mi.

NE of Bac Giang NVN during “Vietnam Ceasefire” ops while serving with the 14th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron of the 432nd TFW based at Udorn RTFAFB, Thailand. Captain Shingaki was captured by the NVA but was released on Mar. 29, 1973. Capt. Behnfeldt was declared MIA for 15 years until his remains were recovered in 1987.

The USAF realized early in the 1960s that it needed additional tactical reconnaissance aircraft to support the RF-101s that were currently in service. The USAF chose a modification of the F-4C fighter. The first production aircraft took to the skies on May 18, 1964, marking the beginning of the RF-4C development program in 1962. Officially, 499 RF-4Cs were approved by the Air Force.

The RF-4C can carry a variety of cameras in three different stations in its nose section. It could capture pictures day or night, at both high and low altitudes. The RF-4C did not carry any offensive armament, although, some were equipped with four AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles for defense during the last few years of their service

The 16th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron became the first operational unit to fly the RF-4C. In October 1965, that unit deployed to Southeast Asia to provide photographic reconnaissance of the growing conflict in South Vietnam. In the following years, RF-4Cs flew reconnaissance missions around the world, including Desert Shield/Desert Storm in Iraq in 1990-1991. The Air Force retired all of its RF-4Cs by 1995.

Photo by U.S. Air Force

September 13, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

The 1969 Loring Air Force Base B-52 crash

by Till Daisd September 11, 2024

written by Till Daisd

“The B-52 had crashed shortly after takeoff, killing everyone on board and, because it was fully loaded with hundreds of thousands of pounds of fuel, creating a massive conflagration off the end of the runway,” Jay Lacklen former B-52 pilot

Jay Lacklen is a former B-52 pilot with 12,500 flying hours and the author of two books, Flying the Line: An Air Force Pilot’s Journey and Flying the Line: An Air Force Pilot’s Journey Volume Two: Military Airlift Command. He’s working on the last book of the trilogy.

1969 B-52 crash

“Three years before my arrival, on an Operational Readiness Inspection (ORI) to test the base operational mission capability, Loring had suffered a horrendous disaster. A B-52 had crashed shortly after takeoff, killing everyone on board and, because it was fully loaded with hundreds of thousands of pounds of fuel, creating a massive conflagration off the end of the runway. The fireball reportedly lit up the cockpit of an airborne Loring tanker twenty miles away. In the insular, close-knit base community, this presented a devastating loss. Over the five years, I flew out of Loring, I would see the remnants of the crash site and be reminded of how quickly I could die in this business.”

Clyde Sikorsky, then Sergeant in the Fire Dept. at Loring Air Force Base, recalled:

“On 4 September 1969, during an ORI, Inwitnessed the crash of B-52G 58-0215 at Loring AFB as a Sergeant in the FirenDept working at the Crash Station.

The sad story of the 1969 Loring Air Force Base B-52 Crash

“As MITOs progressed, my partner and I stood by in our P-6 pick up about 50 yards in front of the alert bombers. 58-0215 was having difficulties with one or more inboard engines on the port wing, so we were radioed to continue to stand by on that aircraft until it taxied to the south end of the runway. We were then to hustle down to the north end and standby there as they took off. After several failed attempts to start and run up the engine, they finally got it going, or so it appeared. During this time I could see the Aircraft Commander and, I assume, the Wing Commander talking and gesturing to each other. Finally, I saw the Wing Commander wave them on…to proceed to the south end of the runway and go.

“At the north end, we observed the aircraft approach on its take-off run. As the plane neared us, it lifted off much farther down the runway than normal. As it passed us, the plane struggled to gain altitude. I believe it never gained more than a few hundred feet of altitude. I did not hear any unusual engine noises, just the usual roar. Finally, we observed it slowly disappear beyond the tree line, and after a few silent seconds, we heard the inevitable. It was the beginning of a long night.

“I was never privy to any official information concerning the accident, but it appeared several ejections were attempted. I do not know the source of the engine(s) problem, or why they were ordered to go, except that it was an ORI.
One personal thought: I was deeply moved by the loss of those men, and that I was unable to help. That was my job.

Clyde Sikorski
USAF 1966-1974”

Here’s the list of Crew Members involved in the crash:
Pilot/Commander: Maj Nils O A Oxehufwud USAF killed.
Co-pilot: Capt William N Payne USAF killed.
Nav: Capt Theodore A Burbank USAF killed.
EWO: Maj Robert M Murray USAF killed.
Rad/Nav: Lt Col Robert C Smith USAF killed.

AG: M/Sgt Earl J Barnes USAF killed.
Obs: Col Homer C Bell Jr USAF killed.

Although they both ejected, the Nav and R/N’s chutes did not fully open. Approximately two or three miles north of the runway was the crash site. In 1980, the treetops had been completely sheared off, and there was a large clearing with a lot of debris; nonetheless, there were a few mounds where the bulldozers had plowed some large pieces.

The Aviation Safety Network states that a complete loss of electrical power or a malfunctioning water injection system could have been the cause of the accident, leaving the aircraft without sufficient thrust to make it airborne.

Photo by U.S. Air Force

September 11, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

C-5 pilot stuck in a holding pattern over Frankfurt

by Till Daisd August 20, 2024

written by Till Daisd

“Fascinated, I watched this process that produced an airborne spiral staircase of circling and descending planes below me. Soon, however, disputes arose. Most of the aircraft had flown from all parts of the world to land in Germany and some did not have much fuel left…” Jay Lacklen, former C-5 pilot

Jay Lacklen is an ex-C-5 pilot with 12,500 flying hours and the author of two books, Flying the Line: An Air Force Pilot’s Journey and Flying the Line: An Air Force Pilot’s Journey Volume Two: Military Airlift Command. The following story comes from the last book of the trilogy: “Flying the Line, an Air Force Pilot’s Journey,” book three, “Air Mobility Command, 1993-2004,” in progress.”

Rudesheim Spiral Staircase

The one and only time I flew the short repositioning hop from Ramstein, Germany, to Frankfurt, I got a rude surprise. I thought it might be a simple tower-to-tower transaction and take about twenty minutes. Instead, I suffered one of the most intense air traffic control encounters of my career.

Two features complicated matters; it was 10 AM in Germany and, therefore, prime time for Frankfurt arrivals and departures. Also, the weather was bad with bands of rain clouds rolling over the field. As Ramstein’s departure handed me over to “Fritz” (my nickname for all Frankfurt controllers), the pace became frantic. Fritz tersely issued his directions to the flood of planes arriving while his tower counterparts tried to launch dozens of planes at this prime departure time.

“Reach, proceed to Rudesheim, and hold at Flight Level 8.0,” he ordered me. He was curt and direct as he ordered dozens of aircraft into the elaborate alignment designed to handle an airborne rush hour. I found myself on the top of a stack of large aircraft in the Rudesheim holding pattern. These elongated oval patterns aligned atop each other provided one-minute legs outbound and inbound to the RUD navigation beacon.

The rain shower cells became less numerous, and, as I circled the pattern, I began to see the aircraft alignment Fritz had choreographed. Looking down from my perch atop the stack, I saw many large planes, most B-747s, circling below me in different positions in their holding patterns at thousand-foot increments. This alignment allowed the lowest aircraft, at 3,000, to gain clearance for an approach to the field. As that plane left its orbit, Fritz would clear the plane at 4,000 to descend to 3,000. He would work us all down 1,000 feet once the previous plane had called level at its new altitude.

Fascinated, I watched this process, that produced an airborne spiral staircase of circling and descending planes below me. Soon, however, disputes arose. Most of the aircraft had flown from all parts of the world to land in Germany and some did not have much fuel left. These pilots began demanding priority. Fritz started polling each of the cockpits for how much fuel they had. Once, in another situation, Fritz asked a MAC airplane for his situation by saying, “Say your fuel, MAC, and do not lie!” (Screw you, Fritz!)

I was “fat” on fuel, as we say, because I had just taken off from Ramstein and could have orbited for an hour or so. Fritz broke two or three planes out of the holding pattern for vectors to final ahead of the rest of us for their low fuel status.

Eventually, Fritz brought us into the field from the “staircase,” all was well, and a frothy German beer awaited. For once I was fresh and rested and could head for the Basler Eck restaurant in Frankfurt or spend an evening in the university section downtown to have a scrumptious Indian curry.

Photo by U.S. Air Force

August 20, 2024 0 comment

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