View allAll Photos Tagged Redflags
My wife and I had some free time so we decided to drive down to Las Vegas for the Red Flag exercise in mid-March 2025. The weather forecast was good and there seemed to be a decent line-up of participating aircraft. Unfortunately both items fell short. The sky conditions were excellent but the weather sucked. Very high winds affected some of the fighters. The first afternoon we were there all F-16s and F-35s were grounded due to crosswinds. Also unfortunate was that Flex departures were cancelled at the last minute so the planes had to do a straight out departure - this sucked for photographers. In the late afternoon the recovery shifted to landings over Cheyenne Avenue. This was our first visit there in about a year and we couldn't believe the change. It was a mix of a homeless camp, scrap yard, bombed out Gaza, and just a totally trashy area. Burned out cars and car parts were everywhere. We didn't feel safe there despite being among other plane spotters. Wow. I took these photos in mid-March 2025.
Re aircraft activity - it seemed a lot lower than at prior Red Flags. There were a lot of Nellis resident aircraft but not too many visitors. It was a decent trip but not a great one.
U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Anfernee Butler, a ground transportation vehicle operator with the 374th Logistics Readiness Squadron, Yokota Air Base, Japan, moves cargo unloaded from a Republic of Korea C-130 Hercules, operating a 10k all-terrain forklift, during Red Flag-Alaska 19-1 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Oct. 1, 2018. Red Flag-Alaska is a Pacific Air Forces-directed field training exercise for U.S. and international forces flown under simulated air combat conditions. The exercises are focused on improving the combat readiness of U.S. and international forces and providing training for units preparing for air expeditionary force taskings. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Jonathan Valdes Montijo)
i drove out to the beach on my lunch hour yesterday. it was very windy and no one was in the water. i went to sleep early without posting, but i did take this photo on day 25.
U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Brian Dowling, 27th Aircraft Maintenance Unit crew chief, takes a break while waiting for an F-22 Raptor pilot to arrive to his jet during Red Flag 17-1 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., Jan. 26, 2017. Crew chiefs conduct preflight checks before pilots arrive to ensure that all aircraft maintenance safety measures are in standards. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Natasha Stannard)
My wife and I had some free time so we decided to drive down to Las Vegas for the Red Flag exercise in mid-March 2025. The weather forecast was good and there seemed to be a decent line-up of participating aircraft. Unfortunately both items fell short. The sky conditions were excellent but the weather sucked. Very high winds affected some of the fighters. The first afternoon we were there all F-16s and F-35s were grounded due to crosswinds. Also unfortunate was that Flex departures were cancelled at the last minute so the planes had to do a straight out departure - this sucked for photographers. In the late afternoon the recovery shifted to landings over Cheyenne Avenue. This was our first visit there in about a year and we couldn't believe the change. It was a mix of a homeless camp, scrap yard, bombed out Gaza, and just a totally trashy area. Burned out cars and car parts were everywhere. We didn't feel safe there despite being among other plane spotters. Wow. I took these photos in mid-March 2025.
Re aircraft activity - it seemed a lot lower than at prior Red Flags. There were a lot of Nellis resident aircraft but not too many visitors. It was a decent trip but not a great one.
Joe Copalman at Red Flag. Joe's a cut-up, but entirely serious when the camera goes up. Awesome photographer and excellent co-pilot in an SR-22 simulator.
Red Flag 09-3 (Nellis AFB: Las Vegas, Nevada)
Photo by www.kensaviation.com
Nellis is one of the hardest, most frustrating places I've ever shot at. The light is very tricky, and the runway is far away.
But, one of the most beloved departures at Nellis is the "Flex West" departure.
Hongqi-2 (Chinese: 红旗, literally: Red Flag or Red Banner), the first generation Chinese guided surface-to-air missile, on display at the Artillery & Aircraft Park of the Minsk World, Shenzhen, China.
For further information about this type of missile, please see:
www.sinodefence.com/army/surfacetoairmissile/hongqi2.asp
and