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.
A 36th Fighter Squadron Fiend Block 40 Fighter Jet all loaded up with live GBU-24 for a Red Flag Alaska 2012
Mission
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.
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.
Esattamente come me la immaginavo la Cina...bellissima, affascinante e....segreta.
Exactly as I was imagined China. Wonderful, charming and...secret.
U.S. Air Force Col. Peter Fesler, 1st Fighter Wing commander, arrives to Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., Feb. 18, 2017, to participate in Red Flag 17-1. Red Flag is the U.S. Air Force's premier joint and allied force air-to-air combat training exercise. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Natasha Stannard)
Thunderbirds 5 & 6 taken from gate 2 and 2 F-35's taken from gate 4 and one of the best low passes past the race track.
An F-35A Lightning II from the 388th Fighter Wing, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, sits on the flightline at Nellis AFB, Nev., during Red Flag 17-1, Jan. 24, 2017. This is the first-time F-35A crews are participating in Red Flag, the U.S. Air Force’s premiere air-to-air combat training exercise. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Natasha Stannard)
A pilot from Shaw Air Force Base's 79th Fighter Squadron prepares to land his F-16 Fighting Falcon as an HH-60 Pave Hawk prepares for approach in the background. Exercise Red Flag 16-3 includes 115 aircraft from 25 different units across the world and department of defense. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. David Salanitri)