I had the fortune of attending and shooting a local airshow at the Athens Municipal Airport put on by the Cedar Creek Veteran’s Foundation…it’s one of my favorite things to do around here each year, and this one didn’t disappoint! Below is a “trip report” of sorts, with some interesting info about the various planes and groups that attend.

First was an acrobatic performance by the NextGen team piloting a pair of Christen Eagles. Watching them climb, stall, and fall backwards through their own smoke trail was a very cool maneuver.

Falcon Flight, a Texas-based formation flying team geared towards training the next generation of formation-capable aviators, demonstrated many different tight formations in their light aircraft, some of which are handbuilt by the pilots.

Next up was Devil Dog, a B-25 Liberator (or PBJ as the Marines call them). I’ve had the chance to get up close to this old girl a few times…I’m a bit enamored by the unique livery the CAF has given her, and of course the overwhelming smell of oil she wears as perfume.

We had a duo of a C-45 Expeditor and SNJ-5 do some slow passes. The C-45 was a modified Beechcraft that served light cargo duty in WWII, and the SNJ-5 (otherwise known as the T-6 Texan, one of the most venerable aircraft produced for the military in the US. It was used to train nearly every WWII aviator across all service branches.

We had a trio comprised of a pair of L-39s alongside a T-33, all decked out in beautiful liveries. The T-33 in particular (Canadian livery) looks decades ahead of its service entry date of 1949.

The tower announced that a Marine training in Ft. Worth wanted to buzz the show, and before we knew it, an F-18 Hornet was screaming by until he pulled straight up into the sky and disappeared. Afterburner-induced-chest-rattles are the best!

Our local UT Health Careflight team made a pass…we appreciate all they do to serve our community when minutes matter!

One of my favorite acts are the trio of MiG-17 piloted by Randy Ball, Bill Culberson, and Michael Terfehr. Their liveries can appear flat in some light, and then almost completely metallic in other light…the afterburner trails are almost delicate in a way…and the stark red star and stripes against grey is iconic. All of their highspeed passes right show right to left, but lent itself to some nice shots with the clouds and setting sun.

The show culminated in a spectacle where old met new…where the fighter that won WWII for the US flew alongside our newest technology, yet to be battle tested (we don’t count the Chinese weather balloon as a confirmed kill in this house). First we got a solo show from The P-51D “Quick Silver”, piloted by Scott “Scooter” Yoak. After, another P-51, “Fragile But Agile” joined up with an F-35 Lightning II piloted by Captain Melanie “MACH” Kluesner. What was once viewed as a roar, the Mustang’s V12 Merlin engine was nearly smothered out by the ground-shaking power of the Lightning’s thrust vectoring marvel from Pratt and Whitney. Watching the F-35 trying to match the pace of the P-51 was a bit of comedy as the stealth fighter had to pitch up well beyond the Mustang just to go slow enough to fly in formation. Once the Mustang parted ways, the show was on and MACH took control of the show. It was one of the best aerial demos I’ve seen and am so lucky I got to witness and record it.

After the Mustang parted ways, we got a solo demonstration from Captain "Mach” and the show really kicked up a notch.

The below shot is a total bucket list image for me. The F-35 is flirting with the speed of sound, going around .95 Mach 1, creating a vapor cone that is rapidly condensing humid air at the front of the aircraft. This lasts for only a split second before the pilot eases off the throttle, preventing a sonic boom.