Wing over Houston - October 2021

My 4th trip to Houston for the Wings over Houston Air Show was once again a great success of great photo opportunities. The headline act was our U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds. However, as always there were many great acts I was able to capture. For the first time I had my new mighty Nikon D850 camera. Enjoy this 200 plus photo plus photo collage and montage!
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  • ...And so the adventure begins at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport. Yes flying and the whole airport experience is always part of the trip. Thank you Southwest Airlines for the great flight experience as always!
  • ...And the excitement only builds up from here as I settled in for the flight.
  • On this particular flight. The plane was loaded down with Alabama fans going to College Station via Houston to see Alabama play Texas A&M. College Station is about a 2 hour's drive from Houston and is home to the Texas A&M campus. <br /> <br /> So I decided to wear my Auburn mask to not only be compliant with airline protocols and silly Covid-19 crap rules but for protection against that other variant called "Roll Tide".
  • As we took off in the eastern direction. We had to make a hard right turn as you tell by the angle of the wing tip in order to fly west to Houston. That maneuver enable me to get this really great picture of Eastlake Park.
  • As we continued that turn. I was able to get this great picture of the interchange where Interstates 20 and 459 intercept each other.
  • At the air show touring the grounds. I am standing by the Hawker Hurricane fighter aircraft. The Hawker Hurricane was a legendary fighter that served in the Royal Air Force during World War II. You'll see pictures of this great aircraft in flight later on. <br /> <br /> I love and respect this aircraft because there is an ancestral connection I have. During the war. The British recruited Polish pilots who had escaped Poland as the country was overran and occupied by the Nazis during that time. Poland really suffered several atrocities at the hands of the Nazis. <br /> <br /> The Polish pilots who were recruited by the R.A.F. were able to fight alongside with the British and get the ultimate revenge against the Luftwaffe which made many attempts to take overtake England. <br /> <br /> When I had Netflix. There was a really great movie called "Mission of Honor" which depicted the story of the Polish air squadron and their missions defending England.
  • Heading to see the B-17 Flying Fortress. You'll see pictures of this plane in flight later on. Had to come by here and pay homage to Grandpa Goike who served as a gunner (ball turret position). He told me a few stories of his missions when he was alive. I actually got to fly on a B-17 at another air show I went to in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
  • ...And here is the ball turret gunner position where my grandfather had to fly in this up to 8 hours per mission. His job was to defend the plane against Japanese fighter planes. He served in the Pacific theater of the war.
  • "And the Land of the Free"<br /> "And the Home of the Brave"
  • Don't mess with Texas
  • ...And the great Wings Over Houston 2021 kicks off with the Navy and Marine's F-18 Hornet in these next few photos.
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  • Kiss my afterburner!
  • Kiss my afterburner - Take 2!<br /> I love the vapor too!
  • Vapors - When you see that on a jet. That means they're going very fast. Almost supersonic fast.
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  • Fast and Low - To much of my surprise. That guy's hat didn't fall off.
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