Skyhook Connoisseur
@seaharrier.bsky.social
60 followers 87 following 56 posts
I post about V/STOL aircraft and paint virtual planes.
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Per the bio, Harriers and niche alt history aviation is to be found here:
Reposted by Skyhook Connoisseur
Salem Towne, a pilot from Poulsbo in Washington State, finally released photos he took of the Mt. St. Helens eruption in 1980. He heard of the explosion while flying in Olympia, and went to check it out. He flew his Cessna 150 into an opening between volcanic ash bands to snap the photos.
Reposted by Skyhook Connoisseur
A few KH-9 spy satellite images of the World Trade Center from over the years.

February 5, 1974
July 13, 1978
June 27, 1979
July 6, 1982
A black and white declassified KH-9 HEXAGON spy satellite picture of Lower Manhattan's Financial District, including the World Trade Center on February 5, 1974. A black and white declassified KH-9 HEXAGON spy satellite picture of Lower Manhattan's Financial District, including the World Trade Center on July 13, 1978. A black and white declassified KH-9 HEXAGON spy satellite picture of the World Trade Center on June 27, 1979 A black and white declassified KH-9 HEXAGON spy satellite picture of Lower Manhattan's Financial District, including the World Trade Center on July 6, 1982
May need an entire section of ground crew dedicated just to cleaning the cockpit after every flight...
Kennedy actually uses that quote at the end of the we choose speech! so...

In an alternate universe where Kennedy actually did that joke:
Reposted by Skyhook Connoisseur
80 years ago this morning—at 5:29 AM (Mountain War Time)—about 35 miles southeast of Socorro, New Mexico, the nuclear age began with a big bang. Contrary to widespread assumptions, the area surrounding the remote Trinity test site was not uninhabited, and the fallout did not drift away harmlessly.
A black and white, high-speed photograph of the Trinity explosion at 0.025 seconds, showing what looks like a very large, slightly irregular bubble with a curtain of dust all around its bottom edge against a pitch dark sky. A scale indicating “100 meters” shows that the fireball was already approximately three times that size. Another black and white photograph of the Trinity explosion a few milliseconds later, showing an almost ghostly mushroom cloud with glowing tendrils rising from the ground above the very bright fireball. Another black and white photograph of the Trinity explosion with the same 100-meter scale, this time at 60 seconds post-detonation, showing a very large and billowy mushroom cloud rising into the sky. Another black and white photograph of the Trinity explosion taken some minutes after the previous photograph and showing the ominous looking mushroom cloud at a distance, its top spreading out and merging with regular clouds.
Still one of the greatest statements from any spaceflight press conference.

It's merely, A N O B S E R V A T I O N .
History is like poetry, it rhymes:
Despite it (apparently) potentially being a "joint expeditionary" fleet whatever that means, I'm very tempted to do a USAF E-2 livery...

Just for fun...

/Really/ tempted to copy the E-3s radome paint scheme 1:1 too.
Like all defence reviews, the new SDRs space domain is once again completely devoid of anything meaningful.

Completely unsurprising but oh well.
Of course the current US admin couldn't make one singular good decision for once, that would be too easy.

Can't even be outlandishly hopeful about a Bridenstine return, as I seriously doubt he'd be allowed to come back given his views during his term in Trump1.
Politico: x.com/burgessev/st...
WH confirms Isaacman's out, says replacement coming soon
@ShelbyTalcott
"It’s essential that the next leader of NASA is in complete alignment with President Trump’s America First agenda and a replacement will be announced directly by President Trump soon," Spox says
I do wonder if the RAF have fixed the backwards fin flash on our E-7 yet.
Unbelievable how badly Luxembourg were robbed tonight.

La Poupée Monte Le Son & Laura are the victors in my minds reality at least! 🇱🇺 🇱🇺 🇱🇺 🇱🇺 🇱🇺
Reposted by Skyhook Connoisseur
This scene isn't out of a sci-fi movie, it's the preparation of the "Coléoptère" for a test flight.
This strange machine was a circular-wing VTOL prototype produced in France in the late '50s.
It made a few flights, but was destroyed during a transition test between vertical and horizontal flight.
Always love seeing a Turbotip design. They really are the best.
Happy Friday, Bluesky avgeeks 🛫 The aviation Skyline is full of amazing photos today, thanks everyone for sharing your fantastic work!

Ryan XV-5 on display at the Army Aviation Museum in Fort Novosel, AL (then Fort Rucker), April 2019 #xv5 #army #airplanes #aviation #avgeek
XV-5, a white jet with a red nose cone, t tail, and air intake above and behind the cockpit
To be very silly, if they then used it (for some reason) as an airborne platform to control some form of rocket range... ROC ROC Roc.
Vulcan Village? Is it full of strategic nuclear bombers or logical point eared people?
Reposted by Skyhook Connoisseur
wow developing film involves so many toxic developers it's like video games
1. And probably of operating an older aircraft design, though if I remember right the SHar /was/ still better than the GR.1/GR.3 when it came to SAS etc.

Either way, amusing that they included the Typhoon.

Bonus image, T.4N/T.8 not having the best of times:
Comparing the SHar to the GR.7/GR.9, this gives a pretty decent illustration of the increased danger that comes from naval operations[1], I /assume/ the 80-84 4.41 is from the Falklands War though.

Alternatively, the take away from this is that the RAF should not have been trusted with the Jaguar.
Chart of the damage rates per ten thousand flying hours of the various fixed wing fighter aircraft in service in the UK during 2005.

Source: https://web.archive.org/web/20061009072302/http://www.dasa.mod.uk/natstats/accidents/accdam/acctab2.html
"Sitting behi--beside" is my highlight.

...

@hushkit.bsky.social are you sure you didn't travel back in time and create this?
Here's a short Panavia Tornado edit:

Been a good year since I've made one of these, pretty happy with it all things considered.

(In far higher quality here: youtu.be/u74xUe0A3g0 )
#avgeek #raf #panavia
The "Thank god I'm British" sticker forward of the blow in doors really completes NASA 719.
NASA and R&D liveries…
A question that I can still answer with "Hawker Harrier"

Strong enough wind and you could probably still take off vertically in it I suppose.