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Col. Randy Lau, brigade commander of the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Califonia National Guard, fires a 120mm mortar during a live-fire exercise while visiting Soldiers assigned to the 1-65 IN/1-18 CAV/1-160 IN/1-184 IN, all assigned to the 79th IBCT, June 15, 2021, at Camp Roberts, Califonia. The live-fire was part of an Exportable Combat Training Capability exercise (XCTC21-01). The XCTC program is an instrumented Brigade field training exercise designed to certify platoon proficiency in coordination with First Army. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Walter H. Lowell)
With Kudzu vines and leaves dangling from a power line that it's quickly overtaking, southbound CSX empty coal train C623 slowly reverses its last cut of empty hoppers under the Creech, KY, load-out with the sun quickly yielding to the evening on October 4, 2020.
02 Boeing C-17A Globemaster III
C17 477FF2
NATO Strategic Airlift Capability
08-0002 c/nF-210
BRK Hungarian Air Force
LHPA Papa AB
The US Air Force B-2 stealth bomber, which last touched down at RAF Fairford for the airshow in 1999, made a 10,000-mile round trip from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri join in the fly by.
The B-2 'Spirit' has the ability to deliver massive firepower in a short time anywhere in the world and through previously impenetrable defences. It has both a conventional weapons and nuclear capability. First flown in 1989, the stealth bomber has since taken part in a number of military operations including Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Odyssey Dawn in Libya.
Broadway Tower is a folly on Broadway Hill, near the village of Broadway, in the English county of Worcestershire, at the second-highest point of the Cotswolds (after Cleeve Hill). Broadway Tower's base is 1,024 feet (312 metres) above sea level. The tower itself stands 65 feet (20 metres) high.
The "Saxon" tower was the brainchild of Capability Brown and designed by James Wyatt in 1794 in the form of a castle, and built for Lady Coventry in 1798–99. The tower was built on a "beacon" hill, where beacons were lit on special occasions. Lady Coventry wondered whether a beacon on this hill could be seen from her house in Worcester — about 22 miles (35 km) away — and sponsored the construction of the folly to find out. Indeed, the beacon could be seen clearly.
Over the years, the tower was home to the printing press of Sir Thomas Phillipps, and served as a country retreat for artists including William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones who rented it together in the 1880s. William Morris was so inspired by Broadway Tower and other ancient buildings that he founded the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings in 1877.
Today, the tower is a tourist attraction and the centre of a country park with various exhibitions open to the public at a fee, as well as a gift shop and restaurant. The place is on the Cotswold Way and can be reached by following the Cotswold Way from the A44 road at Fish Hill, or by a steep climb out of Broadway village.
Near the tower is a memorial to the crew of an A.W.38 Whitley bomber that crashed there during a training mission in June 1943.
Monument on the north wall of the chancel to Lancelot
"Capability" Brown (1716-1783) the famous landscape gardener, who lies with his family outside the north side of the chancel .
"Ye Sons of Elegance, who truly taste
The Simple charms that genuine Art supplies,
Come from the sylvan Scenes His Genius grac’d,
And offer here your tributary Sigh’s.
But know that more than Genius slumbers here;
Virtues were his which Arts best powers transcend.
Come, ye Superior train, who these revere
And weep the Christian, Husband, Father, Friend".
(Verse by poet Rev William Mason commissioned by eldest son Lance and Brown's friend and patron Lord Coventry)
Born in Kirkharle, Kirkwhelpington, Northumberland, Lancelot was the 5th child of William Browne 1729 a land agent by Ursula Hall
Lancelot bought the manor of Fenstanton & Hilton from the Earl of Northampton in 1767 for £1300 after having laid out his grounds at Castle Ashby . (though it is thought he only lived here for no more than a week! ) This came with 2 manor houses, 2 villages and 2,668 acres of land. . Ownership of the property allowed him to stand for and serve as High Sheriff of Huntingdonshire from 1770 to 1771 although his son Lance carried out most of the duties
By the 1760s, he was earning on average £6,000 (equivalent to £753,000 in 2016) a year, usually £500 (equivalent to £62,700 in 2016) for one commission. As an accomplished rider he was able to work fast, taking only an hour or so on horseback to survey an estate and rough out an entire design. In 1764, Brown was also appointed King George III's Master Gardener at Hampton Court where he had his main house which went with the job.
He continued to work and travel until his sudden collapse and death on 6 February 1783, on the doorstep of his daughter Bridget Holland's house in Hertford Street, London while returning after a night out at Lord Coventry's
He left an estate of approximately ₤40,000, which included property in Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire and Lincolnshire
The manors remained in the Brown family for 4 generations being sold in lots in 1870s and 1880s
Lancelot Brown m Bridget (Biddy) daughter of William Wayet, alderman & landowner of Boston Lincs, and Margaret daughter of John Kelsall and Sarah Parker
Children
1. Lancelot MP for Huntingdon m Frances 1792 www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/7Q1gZ0 daughter of Rev Henry Fuller 1761 : Sister of "Mad Jack" Fuller flic.kr/p/27t5YS
2. William Brown bc1748 (died young)
3 Admiral John Brown b1751
4 George b'd 1754
5. Thomas Brown b1761
1. Bridget b1746 m architect Henry Holland 1806 buried at All Saints Church, Fulham,
2. Anne b'd 1756
2. Margaret Rust (Peggy) b1758
. - Church of St Peter & St Paul, Fenstanton, Huntingdonshire / Cambridgeshire
Clumber Park is a country park, in part designed by Capability Brown, in the Dukeries near Worksop in Nottinghamshire, England. It was formerly the park of a country house called "Clumber House", which was the principal seat of the Pelham-Clinton Dukes of Newcastle from the early 18th century onwards. It is owned by the National Trust and open to the public.
When, in March 1879 a serious fire destroyed much of Clumber House, the 7th Duke of Newcastle had it magnificently rebuilt to designs by the younger Charles Barry.
This house was demolished in 1938. Charles Boot of Henry Boot Construction, was contracted to do the demolition and he removed a vast array of statues, facades and fountains to his Derbyshire home, Thornbridge Hall, although the bulk were lost to private buyers through auction. However, many features remain, including an outstanding Gothic Revival Chapel built by the 7th Duke of Newcastle, and walled kitchen garden with glass houses.
Clumber Park is over 3,800 acres (15 km²) in extent, including woods, open heath and rolling farmland. It contains a superb, 87 acre (352,000 m²), serpentine lake, and the longest double avenue of lime trees in Europe (pictured). The avenue extends over three miles (5 km), and was created by the 5th Duke of Newcastle in the 19th Century.
The park is an excellent place for long walks and also has cycle hire available next to the car park adjacent to the chapel. A variety of bicycles are available for hire including tandems and adult tricycles.
Route 6 of the National Cycle Network passes through the park linking it to Sherwood Forest and Sherwood Pines with only a few road crossings necessary.
DO NOT use my pictures without my written permission, these images are under copyright. Contact me if you want to buy these shots, prints and wallpapers are both available. Wayne Austin © All rights reserved
June 28, 2011: Croome Park, Worcestershire, England
Croome is an 18th century landscape park, garden and mansion house in south Worcestershire. Under the guidance of George William, the 6th Earl of Coventry, Croome was designed by Lancelot 'Capability' Brown with some features by Robert Adam. Croome Park has a man made lake and river, statues, temples and other "eye-catcher" buildings and facades with the Court as the central focus.
***500 Views Aug 5th 2012***
Blenheim Palace across the Queen Pool of the lake seen in evening light after a day of heavy showers with some short sunny periods.
Blenheim Palace and its park were given by Queen Anne to John Churchill in recognition of his victory at Blenheim (Blindheim) in 1704. The Palace was designed by John Vanbrugh and the grounds were created in their present form by 'Capability' Brown some 70 years after the construction of the Palace. The island lies on the alignment of the causeway that formerly ran across the area of the lake towards the former Woodstock Manor (demolished when the Palace was constructed).
The Palace and grounds are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and are recognised as one of the finest examples of English Landscape Gardening.
The Palace was the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill
I took this photo during the festivities associated with the annual Old Woodstock 'Mock Mayor' ceremony, this involves a short procession through the park.
CORAL SEA (July 21, 2021) An F-35B Lightning fighter aircraft from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit lands on the flight deck of the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) during Exercise Talisman Sabre 21. Talisman Sabre 21, the ninth iteration and conducted since 2005, occurs biennially across Northern Australia. Australian, U.S. and other multinational partner forces use Talisman Sabre to enhance interoperability by training in complex, multi-domain operations scenarios that address the full range of Indo-Pacific security concerts. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jonathan D. Berlier)
Claremont, also known historically as 'Clermont', is an 18th-century Palladian mansion less than a mile south of the centre of Esher in Surrey, England. The buildings are now occupied by Claremont Fan Court School, and its landscaped gardens are owned and managed by the National Trust. Claremont House is a Grade I listed building.[1]
Claremont estate
The first house on the Claremont estate was built in 1708 by Sir John Vanbrugh, the Restoration playwright and architect of Blenheim Palace and Castle Howard, for his own use. This "very small box", as he described it, stood on the level ground in front of the present mansion. At the same time, he built the stables and the walled gardens, also probably White Cottage, which is now the Sixth Form Centre of Claremont Fan Court School.
In 1714, he sold the house to the wealthy Whig politician Thomas Pelham-Holles, Earl of Clare, who later became Duke of Newcastle and served twice as Prime Minister. The earl commissioned Vanbrugh to add two great wings to the house and to build a fortress-like turret on an adjoining knoll. From this so-called "prospect-house", or belvedere, he and his guests could admire the views of the Surrey countryside as they took refreshments and played hazard, a popular dice game.
In the clear eighteenth-century air it was apparently possible to see Windsor Castle and St Paul's Cathedral. The Earl of Clare named his country seat Clare-mount, later contracted to Claremont. The two lodges at the Copsem Lane entrance were added at this time.
Landscape garden
Main article: Claremont Landscape Garden
Claremont landscape garden is one of the earliest surviving gardens of its kind of landscape design, the English Landscape Garden — still featuring its original 18th century layout. The extensive landscaped grounds of Claremont represents the work of some of the best known landscape gardeners, Charles Bridgeman, Capability Brown, William Kent (with Thomas Greening) and Sir John Vanbrugh.[2]
Work on the gardens began around 1715 and, by 1727, they were described as "the noblest of any in Europe". Within the grounds, overlooking the lake, is an unusual turfed amphitheatre.
A feature in the grounds is the Belvedere Tower, designed by Vanbrugh for the Duke of Newcastle. The tower is unusual in that, what appear to be windows, are actually bricks painted black and white. It is now owned by Claremont Fan Court School, which is situated alongside the gardens.
In 1949, the landscape garden was donated to the National Trust for stewardship and protection. A restoration programme was launched in 1975 following a significant donation by the Slater Foundation. The garden is Grade I listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.[3]
Capability Brown's mansion, built for Lord Clive of India
The Duke of Newcastle died in 1768 and, in 1769, his widow sold the estate to Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive, founder of Britain's Indian Empire. Although the great house was then little more than fifty years old, it was aesthetically and politically out of fashion. Lord Clive decided to demolish the house and commissioned Capability Brown to build the present Palladian mansion on higher and dryer ground. Brown, more accomplished as a landscape designer than an architect, took on his future son-in-law Henry Holland as a junior partner owing to the scale of the project. John Soane (later Sir John Soane) was employed in Holland's office at this time and worked on the project as a draftsman and junior designer.[4] Holland's interiors for Claremont owe much to the contemporary work of Robert Adam.
Lord Clive, by now fabulously rich Nabob, is reputed to have spent over £100,000 on rebuilding the house and the complete remodelling of the celebrated pleasure ground. However, Lord Clive ended up never living at the property, as he died in 1774—the year that the house was completed. The estate then passed through a rapid succession of owners; first being sold "for not more than one third of what the house and alterations had cost"[5] to Robert Monckton-Arundell, 4th Viscount Galway, and then to George Carpenter, 2nd Earl of Tyrconnell, and finally to Charles Ellis, 1st Baron Seaford.[citation needed]
A large map entitled "Claremont Palace", situated in what is called "Clive's room" inside the mansion, shows the mansion and its surrounding grounds; giving a detailed overview of the campus. The map likely dates back to the 1860s, when the mansion was frequently occupied by Queen Victoria (thus it having been christened "palace"). However, the exact date is still unknown. The relief in Claremont's front pediment is of Clive's coat of arms impaled with that of Maskelyne, his wife's family.
Royal residence
In 1816, Claremont was bought by the British Nation through an Act of Parliament as a wedding present for George IV's daughter Princess Charlotte and her husband Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg. At that time, the estate was valued to Parliament at £60,000: "Mr Huskisson stated that it had been agreed to purchase the house and demesnes of Clermont... The valuation of the farms, farm-houses, and park, including 350 acres of land, was 36,000/; the mansion, 19,000/; and the furniture, 6,000/; making together 60,000/. The mansion, which is in good repair, could not be built now for less than 91,000/."[6] To the nation's great sorrow, however, Princess Charlotte, who was second in line to the throne, was, after two miscarriages, to die there after giving birth to a stillborn son in November the following year. This sorrow is expressed in Letitia Elizabeth Landon's poem Wikisource-logo.svg Lines on the Mausoleum of the Princess Charlotte, at Claremont., published in Forget Me Not, 1824. Although Leopold retained ownership of Claremont until his death in 1865, he left the house in 1831 when he became the first King of the Belgians.
Mausoleum of Princess Charlotte
Claremont House, ca. 1860
Queen Victoria was a frequent visitor to Claremont—both as a child and later as an adult—when Leopold, her doting uncle, lent her the house. She, in turn, lent the house to the exiled French King and Queen, Louis-Philippe and Marie-Amelie (the parents-in-law of Leopold I of Belgium), after the Revolutions of 1848. The exiled King died at Claremont in 1850.
In 1857, Offenbach and his Bouffes company performed three of his opéras bouffes there for Marie Amelie and her sons during an eight-week tour of England.[7]
In 1870, Queen Victoria commissioned Francis John Williamson to sculpt a marble memorial to Charlotte and Leopold which was erected inside the house.[8][9] (The memorial was subsequently moved to St George's Church, Esher.)[9]
Victoria bought Claremont for her fourth, and youngest, son Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany, when he married Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont in 1882. The Duke and Duchess of Albany had two children—Alice and Charles. Charles, who had been born at Claremont in 1884, inherited the title and position of Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha upon the death of his uncle, Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1900. He moved to the duchy in Germany to fulfill the position, becoming a German citizen, and renouncing his claim in the British succession.
Claremont should have passed to Charles upon his mother's death in 1922, but because he served as a German general in the First World War, the British government disallowed the inheritance. Claremont was accordingly confiscated and sold by the Public Trustee to shipping magnate Sir William Corry, director of the Cunard Line. Two years after Sir William's death, in 1926, it was bought by Eugen Spier, a wealthy German financier.
In 1930, Claremont stood empty and was marked for demolition when it was bought, together with the Belvedere, the stables, and 30 acres (120,000 m2) of parkland, by the Governors of a south London school, later renamed Claremont School and, since 1978, has been known as Claremont Fan Court School.
The National Trust
The National Trust acquired 50 acres (0.20 km2) of the Claremont estate in 1949. In 1975, with a grant from the Slater Foundation, it set about restoring the eighteenth-century landscape garden. Now, the Claremont Landscape Garden displays the successive contributions of the great landscape gardeners who worked on it: Sir John Vanbrugh, Charles Bridgeman, William Kent, and Capability Brown.
In 1996, the school celebrated the National Trust's centenary by opening a feature of the grounds which had not previously been accessible to the garden's visitors: the 281-year-old Belvedere Tower. Wikipedia
Two Lockheed Martin F-35B "Lightning II" fighter jets have successfully landed on board HMS Queen Elizabeth for the first time, laying the foundations for the next 50 years of fixed wing aviation in support of the UK’s Carrier Strike Capability.
Royal Navy Commander, Nathan Gray, 41, made history by being the first to land on board HMS Queen Elizabeth, carefully maneuvering his stealth jet onto the thermal coated deck. He was followed by Squadron Leader Andy Edgell, RAF, both of whom are test pilots, operating with the Integrated Test Force (ITF) based at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.
Shortly afterwards, once a deck inspection has been conducted and the all-clear given, Cmdr Gray became the first pilot to take off using the ship’s ski-ramp.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is a family of single-seat, single-engine, all-weather, stealth, fifth-generation, multirole combat aircraft, designed for ground-attack and air-superiority missions. It is built by Lockheed Martin and many subcontractors, including Northrop Grumman, Pratt & Whitney, and BAE Systems.
The F-35 has three main models: the conventional takeoff and landing F-35A (CTOL), the short take-off and vertical-landing F-35B (STOVL), and the catapult-assisted take-off but arrested recovery, carrier-based F-35C (CATOBAR). The F-35 descends from the Lockheed Martin X-35, the design that was awarded the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program over the competing Boeing X-32. The official Lightning II name has proven deeply unpopular and USAF pilots have nicknamed it Panther, instead.
The United States principally funds F-35 development, with additional funding from other NATO members and close U.S. allies, including the United Kingdom, Italy, Australia, Canada, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, and formerly Turkey. These funders generally receive subcontracts to manufacture components for the aircraft; for example, Turkey was the sole supplier of several F-35 parts until its removal from the program in July 2019. Several other countries have ordered, or are considering ordering, the aircraft.
As the largest and most expensive military program ever, the F-35 became the subject of much scrutiny and criticism in the U.S. and in other countries. In 2013 and 2014, critics argued that the plane was "plagued with design flaws", with many blaming the procurement process in which Lockheed was allowed "to design, test, and produce the F-35 all at the same time," instead of identifying and fixing "defects before firing up its production line". By 2014, the program was "$163 billion over budget [and] seven years behind schedule". Critics also contend that the program's high sunk costs and political momentum make it "too big to kill".
The F-35 first flew on 15 December 2006. In July 2015, the United States Marines declared its first squadron of F-35B fighters ready for deployment. However, the DOD-based durability testing indicated the service life of early-production F-35B aircraft is well under the expected 8,000 flight hours, and may be as low as 2,100 flight hours. Lot 9 and later aircraft include design changes but service life testing has yet to occur. The U.S. Air Force declared its first squadron of F-35As ready for deployment in August 2016. The U.S. Navy declared its first F-35Cs ready in February 2019. In 2018, the F-35 made its combat debut with the Israeli Air Force.
The U.S. stated plan is to buy 2,663 F-35s, which will provide the bulk of the crewed tactical airpower of the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps in coming decades. Deliveries of the F-35 for the U.S. military are scheduled until 2037 with a projected service life up to 2070.
Development
F-35 development started in 1992 with the origins of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program and was to culminate in full production by 2018. The X-35 first flew on 24 October 2000 and the F-35A on 15 December 2006.
The F-35 was developed to replace most US fighter jets with the variants of a single design that would be common to all branches of the military. It was developed in co-operation with a number of foreign partners, and, unlike the F-22 Raptor, intended to be available for export. Three variants were designed: the F-35A (CTOL), the F-35B (STOVL), and the F-35C (CATOBAR). Despite being intended to share most of their parts to reduce costs and improve maintenance logistics, by 2017, the effective commonality was only 20%. The program received considerable criticism for cost overruns during development and for the total projected cost of the program over the lifetime of the jets.
By 2017, the program was expected to cost $406.5 billion over its lifetime (i.e. until 2070) for acquisition of the jets, and an additional $1.1 trillion for operations and maintenance. A number of design deficiencies were alleged, such as: carrying a small internal payload; performance inferior to the aircraft being replaced, particularly the F-16; lack of safety in relying on a single engine; and flaws such as the vulnerability of the fuel tank to fire and the propensity for transonic roll-off (wing drop). The possible obsolescence of stealth technology was also criticized.
Design
Overview
Although several experimental designs have been developed since the 1960s, such as the unsuccessful Rockwell XFV-12, the F-35B is to be the first operational supersonic STOVL stealth fighter. The single-engine F-35 resembles the larger twin-engined Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor, drawing design elements from it. The exhaust duct design was inspired by the General Dynamics Model 200, proposed for a 1972 supersonic VTOL fighter requirement for the Sea Control Ship.
Lockheed Martin has suggested that the F-35 could replace the USAF's F-15C/D fighters in the air-superiority role and the F-15E Strike Eagle in the ground-attack role. It has also stated the F-35 is intended to have close- and long-range air-to-air capability second only to that of the F-22 Raptor, and that the F-35 has an advantage over the F-22 in basing flexibility and possesses "advanced sensors and information fusion".
Testifying before the House Appropriations Committee on 25 March 2009, acquisition deputy to the assistant secretary of the Air Force, Lt. Gen. Mark D. "Shack" Shackelford, stated that the F-35 is designed to be America's "premier surface-to-air missile killer, and is uniquely equipped for this mission with cutting-edge processing power, synthetic aperture radar integration techniques, and advanced target recognition".
Improvements
Ostensible improvements over past-generation fighter aircraft include:
Durable, low-maintenance stealth technology, using structural fiber mat instead of the high-maintenance coatings of legacy stealth platforms
Integrated avionics and sensor fusion that combine information from off- and on-board sensors to increase the pilot's situational awareness and improve target identification and weapon delivery, and to relay information quickly to other command and control (C2) nodes
High-speed data networking including IEEE 1394b and Fibre Channel (Fibre Channel is also used on Boeing's Super Hornet.
The Autonomic Logistics Global Sustainment, Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS), and Computerized maintenance management system to help ensure the aircraft can remain operational with minimal maintenance manpower The Pentagon has moved to open up the competitive bidding by other companies. This was after Lockheed Martin stated that instead of costing 20% less than the F-16 per flight hour, the F-35 would actually cost 12% more. Though the ALGS is intended to reduce maintenance costs, the company disagrees with including the cost of this system in the aircraft ownership calculations. The USMC has implemented a workaround for a cyber vulnerability in the system. The ALIS system currently requires a shipping-container load of servers to run, but Lockheed is working on a more portable version to support the Marines' expeditionary operations.
Electro-hydrostatic actuators run by a power-by-wire flight-control system
A modern and updated flight simulator, which may be used for a greater fraction of pilot training to reduce the costly flight hours of the actual aircraft
Lightweight, powerful lithium-ion batteries to provide power to run the control surfaces in an emergency
Structural composites in the F-35 are 35% of the airframe weight (up from 25% in the F-22). The majority of these are bismaleimide and composite epoxy materials. The F-35 will be the first mass-produced aircraft to include structural nanocomposites, namely carbon nanotube-reinforced epoxy. Experience of the F-22's problems with corrosion led to the F-35 using a gap filler that causes less galvanic corrosion to the airframe's skin, designed with fewer gaps requiring filler and implementing better drainage. The relatively short 35-foot wingspan of the A and B variants is set by the F-35B's requirement to fit inside the Navy's current amphibious assault ship parking area and elevators; the F-35C's longer wing is considered to be more fuel efficient.
Costs
A U.S. Navy study found that the F-35 will cost 30 to 40% more to maintain than current jet fighters, not accounting for inflation over the F-35's operational lifetime. A Pentagon study concluded a $1 trillion maintenance cost for the entire fleet over its lifespan, not accounting for inflation. The F-35 program office found that as of January 2014, costs for the F-35 fleet over a 53-year lifecycle was $857 billion. Costs for the fighter have been dropping and accounted for the 22 percent life cycle drop since 2010. Lockheed stated that by 2019, pricing for the fifth-generation aircraft will be less than fourth-generation fighters. An F-35A in 2019 is expected to cost $85 million per unit complete with engines and full mission systems, inflation adjusted from $75 million in December 2013.
BR modernised its capability to deal with CWR (Continuously Welded Rail) with the advent in 1983-84 of four dedicated LWRT (Long Welded Rail Train) sets. These were soon supplemented by an order for another 12 sets delivered by two suppliers in 1985 thus making 16 in all. The complete train sets comprised 11 vehicles and unlike previous efforts to deal with CWR these new sets could be self propelled once on site as one vehicle was a power wagon so no need to rely on a diesel locomotive for propulsion. This could be coupled off to stand clear while rails were either dropped or recovered.
At one end was the staff vehicle where the operator controlled the power wagon from and this was also the chute wagon while the other end had the mobile Gantry Crane (as above). The Gantry Crane was deemed to be on OTP (On Track Plant) so they got track machine numbers despite the fact the track it ran on was on the outer edge of the wagon decks with bridging sections between vehicles. They were numbered DR 89100 to DR 89115 and were mounted on wagons DB 979600 to DB 979615 respectfully. Here DR 89111 is seen in Tonbridge West Yard mounted on DB 979611 YEA. With the exception of the Power Wagon the vehicles within the set were designated 'Perch' by the BR Civil Engineers Department while the chute and control wagon were 'Porpoise'. DR 89111 was built by Plasser & Theurer Ltd as wks no. 0636 of 1985. The wagon was built by BREL Doncaster Works to lot no. 4052 also in 1985 (covering wagons DB 979610 to DB 979615). The other 10 LWRT sets were built by Cowans Boyd Ltd using wagons manufactured at BREL Shildon Works.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The SEPECAT "Jaguar" is a British-French jet attack aircraft originally used by the British Royal Air Force and the French Air Force in the close air support and nuclear strike role. It is still in service in significantly upgraded form with the Indian Air Force.
Originally conceived in the 1960s as a jet trainer with a light ground attack capability, the requirement for the aircraft soon changed to include supersonic performance, reconnaissance and tactical nuclear strike roles. A carrier-based variant was also planned for French service, but this was cancelled in favour of the cheaper Dassault "Super Étendard". The airframes were manufactured by SEPECAT (Société Européenne de Production de l'avion Ecole de Combat et d'Appui Tactique), a joint venture between Breguet and the British Aircraft Corporation, one of the first major joint-Anglo-French military aircraft programmes.
The Jaguar was exported to India, Oman, Ecuador and Nigeria. With various air forces, the "Jaguar" was used in numerous conflicts and military operations in Mauritania, Chad, Iraq, Bosnia, and Pakistan, as well as providing a ready nuclear delivery platform for Britain, France, and India throughout the latter half of the Cold War and beyond. In the Gulf War, the "Jaguar" was praised for its reliability and was a valuable coalition resource. The aircraft served with the French Air Force as the main strike/attack aircraft until 1 July 2005, and with the Royal Air Force until the end of April 2007. It was replaced by the Panavia "Tornado" and the Eurofighter "Typhoon" in the RAF and the Dassault "Rafale" in the French Air Force.
Development
Background
The Jaguar programme began in the early 1960s, in response to a British requirement (Air Staff Target 362) for an advanced supersonic jet trainer to replace the Folland "Gnat" T1 and Hawker "Hunter" T7, and a French requirement (ECAT or École de Combat et d'Appui Tactique, "Tactical Combat Support Trainer") for a cheap, subsonic dual role trainer and light attack aircraft to replace the Fouga "Magister", Lockheed T-33 "Shooting Star" (or T-Bird) and Dassault "Mystère IV". In both countries several companies tendered designs: BAC, Hunting, Hawker Siddeley and Folland in Britain; Breguet, Potez, Sud-Aviation, Nord, and Dassault from France. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed in May 1965 for the two countries to develop two aircraft, a trainer based on the ECAT, and the larger AFVG (Anglo-French Variable Geometry).
Cross-channel negotiations led to the formation of SEPECAT (Société Européenne de Production de l'Avion d'École de Combat et d'Appui Tactique – the "European company for the production of a combat trainer and tactical support aircraft") in 1966 as a joint venture between Breguet and the British Aircraft Corporation to produce the airframe. Though based in part on the Breguet Br.121, using the same basic configuration and an innovative French-designed landing gear, the "Jaguar" was built incorporating major elements of design from BAC – notably the wing and high lift devices.
Production of components would be split between Breguet and BAC, and the aircraft themselves would be assembled on two production lines; one in the UK and one in France, To avoid any duplication of work, each aircraft component had only one source. The British light strike/tactical support versions were the most demanding design, requiring supersonic performance, superior avionics, a cutting edge nav/attack system of more accuracy and complexity than the French version, moving map display, laser range-finder and marked-target seeker (LRMTS). As a result, the initial Br.121 design needed a thinner wing, redesigned fuselage, a higher rear cockpit, and after-burning engines. While putting on smiling faces for the public, maintaining the illusion of a shared design, the British design departed from the French sub-sonic Breguet 121 to such a degree that it was effectively a new design.
A separate partnership was formed between Rolls-Royce and Turbomeca to develop the Adour afterburning turbofan engine. The Br.121 was proposed with Turbomeca's Tourmalet engine for ECAT but Breguet preferred the RR RB.172 and their joint venture would use elements of both. The new engine, which would be used for the AFVG as well, would be built in Derby and Tarnos.
Previous collaborative efforts between Britain and France had been complicated – the AFVG programme ended in cancellation, and controversy surrounded the development of the supersonic airliner Concorde. Whilst the technical collaboration between BAC and Breguet went well, when Dassault took over Breguet in 1971 it encouraged acceptance of its own designs, such as the "Super Étendard" naval attack aircraft and the "Mirage F1", for which it would receive more profit, over the Anglo-French "Jaguar".
The initial plan was for Britain to buy 150 "Jaguar" B trainers, with its strike requirements being met by the advanced BAC-Dassault AFVG aircraft, with France to buy 75 "E" trainers (école) and 75 "A" single-seat strike attack aircraft (appui). Dassault favoured its own "Mirage" G aircraft above the collaborative AFVG, and in June 1967, France cancelled the AFVG on cost grounds. This left a gap in the RAF's planned strike capabilities for the 1970s; at the same time as France's cancellation of the AFVG, Germany was expressing a serious interest in the "Jaguar", and thus the design became more oriented towards the low-level strike role.
The RAF had initially planned on a buy of 150 trainers; however, with both the BAC TSR-2 tactical strike aircraft and Hawker Siddeley P.1154 supersonic V/STOL fighter cancelled, the RAF were looking increasingly hard at their future light strike needs and realizing that they now needed more than just advanced trainers with some secondary counter insurgency capability. The RAF's strike line-up was at this point intended to consist of American General Dynamics F-111s plus the AFVG for lighter strike purposes. There was concern that both F-111 and AFVG were high risk projects and with the French already planning on a strike role for the "Jaguar", there was an opportunity to introduce a serious backup plan for the RAF's future strike needs – the "Jaguar". As a result, by October 1970, the RAF's requirements had changed to 165 single-seat strike aircraft and 35 trainers.
The "Jaguar" was to replace the McDonnell Douglas "Phantom" FGR2 in the close air support, tactical reconnaissance and tactical strike roles, freeing the "Phantom" to be used for air defence. Both the French and British trainer requirements had developed significantly, and were eventually fulfilled instead by the "Alpha Jet" and Hawker Siddeley "Hawk" respectively. The French, meanwhile, had chosen the "Jaguar" to replace the Aeronavale's Dassault "Étendard IV", and increased their order to include an initial 40 of a carrier-capable maritime version of the Jaguar, the "Jaguar M", for the Aeronavale. From these apparently disparate aims would come a single and entirely different aircraft: relatively high-tech, supersonic, and optimised for ground-attack in a high-threat environment.
Prototypes
The first of eight prototypes flew on 8 September 1968, a two-seat design fitted with the first production model Adour engine. This aircraft later went supersonic on its third flight but was lost on landing on 26 March 1970 following an engine fire. The second prototype flew in February 1969; a total of three prototypes appeared in flight at the Paris Air Show that year. The first French "A" prototype flew in March 1969. In October a British "S" conducted its first flight.
An "M" prototype flew in November 1969. The "M" had a strengthened airframe, an arrestor hook and different undercarriage: twin nosewheel and single mainwheels. After testing in France it went to RAE at Thurleigh for carrier landing trials from their land based catapult. In July 1970 it made real take offs and landings from the French carrier Clemenceau. From these trials there were doubts about the throttle response in case of an aborted landing; the shipboard testing also revealed problems with the aircraft's handling when flying on one engine, although planned engine improvements were to have rectified these problems. The "M" was considered a suitable replacement for the "Etendard IV" but the Aeronavale would only be able to purchase 60 instead of 100 aircraft.
Furthermore, the "Jaguar M" was expensive, limiting the size of the force the French Navy could afford. In 1971, Dassault proposed the "Super Étendard", claiming that it was a simpler and cheap development of the existing "Étendard IV", and in 1973, the French Navy agreed to order it instead of the "Jaguar", although rising costs of the "Super Étendard" meant that only 71 of the planned 100 aircraft were purchased. The M was cancelled by the French government in 1973.
Design
Overview
The "Jaguar" is an orthodox single-seat, swept-wing, twin-engine monoplane design, with tall tricycle-type retractable landing gear. In its original configuration, it had a maximum take-off weight in the 15 tonne class; and could manage a combat radius on internal fuel alone of 850 km (530 mi), giving the Jaguar a greater operational range than competitor aircraft such as the Mikoyan MiG-27. The aircraft had hardpoints fitted for an external weapons load of up to 10,000 lb (4,500 kg), typical weapons fitted included the MATRA LR.F2 rocket pod, BAP 100-mm bombs, MATRA AS37 anti-radar missiles, AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles, and Rockeye cluster bombs. The RAF's "Jaguar's" gained several new weapons during the Gulf War, including CRV7 high-velocity rockets and American CBU-87 cluster bombs. Finally, the Jaguar was equipped with either a pair of French DEFA cannons, or alternatively British ADEN cannons.
The Jaguar International had the unusual optional provision for overwing pylons, used for short-range air-to-air missiles, such as the Matra R550 "Magic" or the AIM-9 "Sidewinder". This option frees up the under-wing pylons for other weapons and stores. RAF Jaguars gained overwing pylons in the buildup to Operation Granby in 1990, but French Jaguars were not modified. The RAF's "Jaguar" 97's were intended to be wired for the carriage of ASRAAMs on the overwing launchers, but clearance of this weapon was never completed because of funding cuts.
Sheffield Park Garden is an informal landscape garden five miles east of Haywards Heath, in East Sussex, England. It was originally laid out in the 18th century by Capability Brown, and further developed in the early years of the 20th century's by its then owner, Arthur Gilstrap Soames. It is now owned by the National Trust.
History[edit]
The gardens originally formed part of the estate of the adjacent Sheffield Park House, a gothic country house, which is still in private ownership. It was also firstly owned by the West Family and later by the Soames family until in 1925 the estate was sold by Arthur Granville Soames, who had inherited it from his childless uncle, Arthur Gilstrap Soames.
Sheffield Park as an estate is mentioned in the Domesday Book. In August 1538, Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, entertained Henry VIII here. By 1700, the Deer Park had been partially formalised by Lord De La Warr who planted avenues of trees radiating from the house and cleared areas to establish lawns. In the late 1700s, James Wyatt remodelled the house in the fashionable Gothic style and Capability Brown was commissioned to landscape the garden. The original four lakes form the centrepiece. Humphry Repton followed Brown in 1789–1790. In 1796, the estate was sold to John Holroyd, created Baron Sheffield in 1781. It is particularly noted for its plantings of trees selected for autumn colour, including many Black Tupelos.
Rhododendron in Sheffield Park Garden
By 1885, an arboretum was being established, consisting of both exotic and native trees. After Arthur Gilstrap Soames purchased the estate in 1910, he continued large-scale planting. During World War II the house and garden became the headquarters for a Canadian armoured division, and Nissen huts were sited in the garden and woods. The estate was split up and sold in lots in 1953. The National Trust purchased approximately 40 ha in 1954, now up to 80 ha with subsequent additions. It is home to the National Collection of Ghent azaleas.
In 1876 the third Earl of Sheffield laid out a cricket pitch. It was used on 12 May 1884 for the first cricket match between England and Australia.[1] The Australian team won by an innings and 6 runs
wikipedia
Harcourt Arboretum
The University of Oxford Arboretum
Acquired by the University in 1947 from the Harcourt family. It is now an integral part of the tree and plant collection of the University of Oxford Botanic Garden.
The original Pinetum, which forms the core of the arboretum, was laid out by William Sawrey Gilpin in the 1830s. Gilpin was a leading promoter of the picturesque style of planting and advised the Harcourt family on the establishment and layout of the arboretum. The trees are now mature, with Giant Redwoods and Monkey-Puzzle trees in the collection.
The arboretum also contains some of the finest conifer collections in the UK all set within 130 acres of historic Capability Brown landscape. The grounds include a 10-acre typical English woodland and a 37-acre summer flowering meadow.
This is Morag Myerscough's installation at Compton Verney, The Village. Situated in the meadow beside the parkland, it was the site of a medieval village that was cleared by 'Capability' Brown in the 1760s when the main house was built nearby. Generally used now as a green backdrop for art installations that are robust enough for children to climb over, this colourful interpretation of the village that has been lost was particularly popular (and will be there until April). The area is also being replanted with trees, following Brown's original plan.
C-17 Parked RAF Lakenheath
NATO Stategic Airlift Capability
These aircraft are based in Papa Air Base in Hungry.
The Heavy Airlift Wing.
Broadway Tower is a folly on Broadway Hill, near the village of Broadway, in the English county of Worcestershire, at the second-highest point of the Cotswolds (after Cleeve Hill). Broadway Tower's base is 1,024 feet (312 metres) above sea level. The tower itself stands 65 feet (20 metres) high.
The "Saxon" tower was the brainchild of Capability Brown and designed by James Wyatt in 1794 in the form of a castle, and built for Lady Coventry in 1798–99. The tower was built on a "beacon" hill, where beacons were lit on special occasions. Lady Coventry wondered whether a beacon on this hill could be seen from her house in Worcester — about 22 miles (35 km) away — and sponsored the construction of the folly to find out. Indeed, the beacon could be seen clearly.
Over the years, the tower was home to the printing press of Sir Thomas Phillipps, and served as a country retreat for artists including William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones who rented it together in the 1880s. William Morris was so inspired by Broadway Tower and other ancient buildings that he founded the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings in 1877.
Today, the tower is a tourist attraction and the centre of a country park with various exhibitions open to the public at a fee, as well as a gift shop and restaurant. The place is on the Cotswold Way and can be reached by following the Cotswold Way from the A44 road at Fish Hill, or by a steep climb out of Broadway village.
Near the tower is a memorial to the crew of an A.W.38 Whitley bomber that crashed there during a training mission in June 1943.
47757 "Capability Brown" waits for the "off" at Oxford Road, with 1D45 17:19 Manchester Piccadilly to Holyhead. 6th January 2004.
This is XH124, seen on display at the RAF Museum London in Hendon in 1984. Lack of maintenance in the face of British weather led to the deterioration of the airframe and it was scrapped in 1989.
The Blackburn B-101 Beverley was a 1950s British heavy transport aircraft built by Blackburn and General Aircraft and flown by squadrons of RAF Transport Command from 1957 until 1967.
Designed and built by General Aircraft as the GAL.60 Universal Freighter, the first aircraft had its maiden flight on 20 June 1950 at Brough in Yorkshire. The modified GAL.65 saw clamshell doors replaced a combination of a door and ramp, and the tailplane boom received seating for 36 passengers. The Bristol Hercules engines became Bristol Centaurus with reverse-pitch propellers, a feature that gave it an impressive STOL capability and the ability to reverse under its own power. The take-off run at full load was given as 750m, the landing run at full load, 300m.
In 1952 the RAF ordered the Beverley C.1 (Beverley, Cargo Mark 1). The aircraft was a high-wing cantilever monoplane with a fixed undercarriage. The large fuselage had a tailboom fitted with a tailplane with twin fins. The tailboom allowed access to the rear of the fuselage through removable clamshell doors. An 11m main fuselage space was supplemented by passenger accommodation in the tailboom. The main cargo hold could accommodate 94 troops, with another 36 in the tail-boom.
The aircraft was designed for carrying large bulk loads and landing them on rough or imperfect runways, or mere dirt strips. It could trace its design back to the GAL49 Hamilcar glider of WWII. At the time of its entry into service, it was the largest aircraft in the RAF. Paratroopers in the upper passenger area jumped through a hatch in the base of the boom just in front of the leading edge of the tailplane. The Beverley was equipped with toilets, which were situated in the tail beyond the paratroop doors located on the floor of the tail boom.
In total, 49 of the aircraft were produced, with the last manufactured in 1958, and final retirement from RAF service was in 1967. The longest serving Beverleys were in the Far East. 34 Squadron received its aircraft at RAF Seletar in October 1960 and continued flying them until the end of 1967. Initially, the aircraft were silver overall, but later, those operated by the squadrons based in the Middle East were given an overall sand camouflage finish as seen above. Only one Beverley has survived: XB259 is on display at Fort Paull, just east of Hull.
Scanned from a negative.
Harcourt Arboretum
The University of Oxford Arboretum
Acquired by the University in 1947 from the Harcourt family. It is now an integral part of the tree and plant collection of the University of Oxford Botanic Garden.
The original Pinetum, which forms the core of the arboretum, was laid out by William Sawrey Gilpin in the 1830s. Gilpin was a leading promoter of the picturesque style of planting and advised the Harcourt family on the establishment and layout of the arboretum. The trees are now mature, with Giant Redwoods and Monkey-Puzzle trees in the collection.
The arboretum also contains some of the finest conifer collections in the UK all set within 130 acres of historic Capability Brown landscape. The grounds include a 10-acre typical English woodland and a 37-acre summer flowering meadow.
Classic Jeep advertisement celebrating the CJ-5 Laredo. It's no wonder the Jeep brand has stayed on track for over seven decades - the capability theme has never changed. Read the copy from 1980 with it's strong style and resale value story and it could be substituted for a JK of today.
Copy:
The legendary Jeep vehicles have been protecting forests, transporting troops, delivering mail, plowing snow, winning races and weathering storms for more than a quarter of a century. Longer than a lot of vehicles have even existed.
They've given American drivers more outward mobility, rugged performance and pure fun than any single car in history. And they've held onto their value like they've held onto their legendary design, transcending passing styles season after season, year after year.
But today's Jeep CJ is more than its famous four wheels driving into the sunset. It's the option of contoured buckets, room for four, carpeting, air conditioning, stereo ... hardtop. soft top, no top at all. And something you'll appreciate every time you drive: more miles per gallon than any 4-wheeler made in America. No other vehicle can meet your demands and desires in quite the same way.
Jeep CJ wasn't born a legend. It had to earn the respect of the world's toughest drivers, and keeps on earning it every day. On wilderness trails and unplowed streets. On the job and out on the town. That's why the legend lives on.
View of the lake that is the centerpiece in Capability Brown's landscape garden at Blenheim Palace in Woodstock, Oxfordshire
A huge country house with 187 rooms, located in the market town of Woodstock, Oxfordshire. Construction was completed in 1722, and designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. The palace is famous for being the birthplace and ancestral home of Winston Churchill.
In 1764, Capability Brown was commissioned to landscape the 150 acre park, woodlands, and gardens. This also included damming the River Glyme to create a large lake.
NATO - Strategic Airlift Capability Boeing C-17A Globemaster III 03 on Static Display during the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) at RAF Fairford in 2018.
Charlecote Park, Charlecote, Stratford on Avon
English Heritage Grade 1 listed
NATIONAL TRUST + ENGLISH HERITAGE ALBUM
www.flickr.com/photos/45676495@N05/albums/72157701116949872
The Gatehouse (NT) Grade 1, Charlecote Park, Charlecote, Warwks.
English Heritage Listed Grade 1 1381800
NATIONAL TRUST + ENGLISH HERITAGE ALBUM
www.flickr.com/photos/45676495@N05/albums/72157701116949872
The Charlecote Park Gatehouse is a Grad 1 listed building dated back to c1560, it has 2 storeys; symmetrical 3-window range plus 3-storey octagonal angle turret to each angle. The round-headed moulded archway paired wrought-iron gates. Each turret has2-light windows, top entablature and ogival cupola with ball finial and weather-vane; that to left with 1824 clock faces. All windows with leaded glazing, most with crown glass.
Charlecote Park is a Grade 1 listed, grand 16th-century country house, surrounded by its own deer park, on the banks of the River Avon in Charlecote, near Stratford on Avon and Warwick. The Lucy family owned the land from 1247. Charlecote Park was originally built in 1558 by Sir Thomas Lucy, and Queen Elizabeth I stayed in the room that is now the drawing room. Although the general outline of the original Elizabethan house remains, the present house is of mostly Victorian construction. Successive generations of the Lucy family modified Charlecote Park over the centuries until George Hammond Lucy (High Sheriff of Warwickshire in 1831) inherited the house in 1823 and set about recreating the house in its original Tudor style.
Charlecote Park covers 185 acres (75 ha), backing on to the River Avon. William Shakespeare was said to have poached rabbits and deer in the park as a young man, and to have been brought before the magistrates. The lands immediately adjoining the house were further landscaped by Capability Brown in about 1760.
Charlecote was inherited in 1823 by George Hammond Lucy (d. 1845), who in December 1822 had married Mary Elizabeth Williams of Bodelwyddan Castle, Wales. Seven years of major renovation and rebuilding followed, including an extension on the river side, were commenced in 1829. G.H.Lucy's second son, Henry, inherited the estate in 1847 from his elder brother. In 1848, Mary Elizabeth Lucy had what she described as that wretched Norman Church demolished, replacing it with the current St. Leonards Church in 1853.
Charlecote Park has extensive grounds. A parterre has been recreated from the original 1700s plans. The livestock at Charlecote includes fallow deer and Jacob sheep, which were brought to England from Portugal in 1755 by George Lucy
In 1946, Sir Montgomerie Fairfax-Lucy, who had inherited the residual estate from his mother Ada, presented Charlecote to the National Trust in lieu of death duties
Diolch am 93,650,893 o olygfeydd anhygoel, mae pob un yn cael ei werthfawrogi'n fawr.
Thanks for 93,650,335 amazing views, every one is greatly appreciated.
Shot 08.05.2022 at Charlecote Park, Caharlecote, Stratford on Avon REF 159d-08
An experimental air-launched rocket-powered aircraft that demonstrated sub-orbital spaceflight capability at speeds of up to 900 m/s, using a hybrid rocket motor. The design features a unique "feathering" atmospheric re-entry system where the rear half of the wing and the twin tail booms folds upward along a hinge running the length of the wing, increasing drag while remaining stable.
SpaceShipOne completed the first manned private spaceflight in 2004. That same year, it won the $10 million Ansari X Prize and was immediately retired from active service. Its mother ship was named "White Knight".
Both craft were developed and flown by Mojave Aerospace Ventures, which was a joint venture between Paul Allen and Scaled Composites, Burt Rutan's aviation company. Allen provided the funding of approximately $25 million.
Rutan has indicated that ideas about the project began as early as 1994 and the full-time development cycle time to the 2004 accomplishments was about three years. The vehicle first achieved supersonic flight on 17 December 2003, which was also the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers' historic first powered flight.
SpaceShipOne's first official spaceflight, known as flight 15P, was piloted by Mike Melvill. A few days before that flight, the Mojave Air and Space Port was the first commercial spaceport licensed in the United States. A few hours after that flight, Melvill became the first licensed US commercial astronaut. The overall project name was "Tier One" which has evolved into Tier 1b with a goal of taking a successor ship's first passengers into space within the next few days.
The achievements of SpaceShipOne are more comparable to the X-15 than orbiting spacecraft like the Space Shuttle. Accelerating a spacecraft to orbital speed requires more than 60 times as much energy as accelerating it to Mach 3. It would also require an elaborate heat shield to safely dissipate that energy during re-entry.
SpaceShipOne's official model designation is Scaled Composites Model 316.
Its three record-setting flights were:
* 100 kilometres altitude*; Mike Melvill, pilot; 21 June 2004
* 102 kilometres altitude; Mike Melvill, pilot: 29 September 2004
* 112 kilometres altitude; Brian Binnie, pilot; 4 October 2004
With SpaceShipOne, private enterprise crossed the threshold into human spaceflight, previously the domain of only government programmes.
The success of SpaceShipOne inspired the creation of Virgin Galactic, a company founded to add private sub-orbital tourist flights to the existing world of commercial spaceflight business. It also helped clear the way for NASA’s public-private partnerships to develop new spacecraft to carry crews and cargo.
An interesting juxtaposition here is that SpaceShipOne is displayed between Charles Lindbergh's Spirit of St Louis (top left), and Chuck Yeager's Glamorous Glennis Bell X-1 (top right). Seen in the Milestones of Flight Hall at the National Air & Space Museum on the Mall in Washington DC.
Harcourt Arboretum
The University of Oxford Arboretum
Acquired by the University in 1947 from the Harcourt family. It is now an integral part of the tree and plant collection of the University of Oxford Botanic Garden.
The original Pinetum, which forms the core of the arboretum, was laid out by William Sawrey Gilpin in the 1830s. Gilpin was a leading promoter of the picturesque style of planting and advised the Harcourt family on the establishment and layout of the arboretum. The trees are now mature, with Giant Redwoods and Monkey-Puzzle trees in the collection.
The arboretum also contains some of the finest conifer collections in the UK all set within 130 acres of historic Capability Brown landscape. The grounds include a 10-acre typical English woodland and a 37-acre summer flowering meadow.
Messing with Betsy's internal HDR capability: Two options, strong or standard (this is an example of the latter); the timer cannot be used; the shot will only save as a JPEG...
Testing the capability of the Air 3S in windy conditions. 26 knot average gusting to 38 knots (30mph, gusting 44mph).
Impressive stability for capturing manual panoramas, but, understandably, a 26 knot average wind is too much for automated panoramas. The stability on the 70mm camera was equally impressive in the wind.
4k60 video footage silky smooth.
The obvious downside is that the battery depletes super quickly in these conditions. I'd guesstimate that the flight time was half of that on a 'normal' day.
The F-16A Block 15 received an Operational Capability Upgrade (OCU) in late 1987. Designated Block 15 OCU, these aircraft are powered by the more reliable F100-PW-220 turbofan engine. They also received structural strengthening and are provided with the enlarged heads-up-display (HUD) that was first introduced on the F-16C/D variants. The increased operational capability allowed the F-16 to carry and deploy the Norwegian Penguin Mk.3 anti-shipping missile (AGM-119) and the AGM-65 Maverick. Provisions were also put in place for the AIM-120 AMRAAM, radar altimeter, an expanded computer capacity, data transfer unit, wide-angle HUD, AN/APX-101 IFF, Tracor AN/ALE-40 chaff/flare dispenser and provisions for the AN/ALQ-131 ECM pod. These modifications increased the maximum take-off weight to 37,500 lbs (17,010 kg). The first Block 15 OCU was delivered in January 1988, and from then onwards, all Block 15 aircraft were built to OCU specifications.
This image shows an F-16A Block 15AG OCU (serial number: 87-0716, TNIAU TS-1608). In August 1986, Indonesia agreed to purchase 12 F-16A/B Block 15 OCU aircraft to replace some of the aging MiG-21 fighters and other Soviet types still in service with the Tentara Nasional Indonesia-Angatan Udara (Indonesian National Army-Air Force, or the TNIAU). The first deliveries began in 1989 and were completed the following year and equipped Skwadron Udara 3, based at Ishwahyudi Air Base on the island of Java.
Harcourt Arboretum
The University of Oxford Arboretum
Acquired by the University in 1947 from the Harcourt family. It is now an integral part of the tree and plant collection of the University of Oxford Botanic Garden.
The original Pinetum, which forms the core of the arboretum, was laid out by William Sawrey Gilpin in the 1830s. Gilpin was a leading promoter of the picturesque style of planting and advised the Harcourt family on the establishment and layout of the arboretum. The trees are now mature, with Giant Redwoods and Monkey-Puzzle trees in the collection.
The arboretum also contains some of the finest conifer collections in the UK all set within 130 acres of historic Capability Brown landscape. The grounds include a 10-acre typical English woodland and a 37-acre summer flowering meadow.
...made me cut my hand on a plant.
The first four photos of this upload (and three further down) are all of that Gainsborough-based Trident they call 18418. Since regaining Bustimes tracking capability, 18418 has almost replaced 17719 as the typically used bus on Lincoln runs, making almost daily visits on any of the 105/106/107/354 (though not the 100, yet).
Speaking of 17719, this is essentially a copy of a photo I took of it (same 15:05 107 board too - half term and all that), just featuring 18418 this time. It's a lower down angle looking up towards the bus with the Central car park looming over in the background. The only problem is you have to kneel down in the wood chipping, and on this occasion I was unlucky enough to put my hand down on a spikey plant... it hurt! The things I put up with just trying to get more good photos of this bus... it's a good job I like it.
The pain was worth it though, as fairly unusually for 18418, the photo came out with the LED destination showing rather than it coming up as blank like it normally does. So it's a win in my books. Norman Street, Lincoln, 11.2.23
Harcourt Arboretum
The University of Oxford Arboretum
Acquired by the University in 1947 from the Harcourt family. It is now an integral part of the tree and plant collection of the University of Oxford Botanic Garden.
The original Pinetum, which forms the core of the arboretum, was laid out by William Sawrey Gilpin in the 1830s. Gilpin was a leading promoter of the picturesque style of planting and advised the Harcourt family on the establishment and layout of the arboretum. The trees are now mature, with Giant Redwoods and Monkey-Puzzle trees in the collection.
The arboretum also contains some of the finest conifer collections in the UK all set within 130 acres of historic Capability Brown landscape. The grounds include a 10-acre typical English woodland and a 37-acre summer flowering meadow.
Croome Court is a mid 18th century Neo-Palladian mansion surrounded by an extensive landscaped parkland at Croome D'Abitot, near Pershore in south Worcestershire. The mansion and park were designed by Lancelot "Capability" Brown for George Coventry, 6th Earl of Coventry, and was Brown's first landscape design and first major architectural project. Some of the internal rooms of the mansion were designed by Robert Adam.
The mansion house is owned by Croome Heritage Trust, and is leased to the National Trust who operate it, along with the surrounding parkland, as a tourist attraction. The National Trust own the surrounding parkland, which is also open to the public.
Location[edit]
Croome Court is located near to Croome D'Abitot, in Worcestershire,[1] near Pirton, Worcestershire.[2] The wider estate was established on lands that were once part of the royal forest of Horewell.[3] Traces of these older landscapes, such as unimproved commons and ancient woodlands, can be found across the former Croome Estate.[4]
House[edit]
Croome Court South Portico
History[edit]
The foundations and core of Croome Court, including the central chimney stack structure, date back to the early 1640s.[5] Substantial changes to this early house were made by Gilbert Coventry, 4th Earl of Coventry.[6]
In 1751, George Coventry, the 6th Earl, inherited the estate, along with the existing Jacobean house. He commissioned Lancelot "Capability" Brown, with the assistance of Sanderson Miller, to redesign the house and estate.[7][1] It was Brown's "first flight into the realms of architecture" and a "rare example of his architectural work",[8] and it is an important and seminal work.[9] It was built between 1751 and 1752, and it and Hagley Hall are considered to be the finest examples of Neo-Palladian architecture in Worcestershire. Notable Neo-Palladian features incorporated into Croome Court include the plain exterior and the corner towers with pyramidal roofs (a feature first used by Inigo Jones in the design of Wilton House in Wiltshire).[1] Robert Adam worked on the interior of the building from 1760 onwards.[10]
The house has been visited by George III,[2][11] as well as Queen Victoria[7] during summers when she was a child, and George V (then Duke of York).[11]
A jam factory was built by the 9th Earl of Coventry, near to Pershore railway station, in about 1880, to provide a market for Vale of Evesham fruit growers in times of surplus. Although the Croome connection with jam making had ceased, during the First World War, the building was leased by the Croome Estate Trust to the Huddersfield Fruit Preserving Company as a pulping station.[12]
The First World War deeply affected Croome, with many local casualties, although the house was not requisitioned for the war effort. This is possibly because it was the home of the Lord Lieutenant of the County, who needed a residence for his many official engagements.[13]
During the Second World War Croome Court was requisitioned by the Ministry of Works and leased for a year to the Dutch Government as a possible refuge for Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands; to escape the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. However, evidence shows that they stayed two weeks at the most, perhaps because of the noise and fear created by the proximity of Defford Aerodrome. They later emigrated to Canada.[14]
In 1948 the Croome Estate Trust sold the Court, along with 38 acres (15 ha) of land, to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham, and the mansion became St Joseph's Special School, which was run by nuns[15] from 1950[11] until 1979.[15]
The house was listed on 11 August 1952; it is currently Grade I listed.[10]
In 1979 the hall was taken over by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Hare Krishna movement), who used it as their UK headquarters and a training college[16] called Chaitanya College,[15] run by 25 members of the movement.[16] During their tenure they repainted the Dining Room.[17] In 1984 they had to leave the estate for financial reasons. They held a festival at the hall in 2011.[16]
From 1984 onwards various owners tried to use the property as a training centre; apartments; a restaurant and conference centre; and a hotel and golf course,[15] before once more becoming a private family home,[2][15] with outbuildings converted to private houses.[15]
The house was purchased by the Croome Heritage Trust, a registered charity,[18] in October 2007,[19] and it is now managed by the National Trust as a tourist attraction. It opened to the public in September 2009, at which point six of the rooms had restored, costing £400,000, including the Saloon. It was estimated that another £4 million[2][20] to £4.8 million would be needed to restore the entire building. Fundraising activities for the restoration included a 2011 raffle for a Morgan sports car organised by Lord and Lady Flight. After the restoration is complete, a 999-year lease on the building will be granted to the National Trust.[21] An oral history project to record recollections about Croome was funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.[15] As of 2009, the service wing was empty and in need of substantial repair.[22]
Exterior[edit]
The mansion is faced with Bath stone,[7] limestone ashlar, and has both north and south facing fronts. It has a basement and two stories, with three stories in the end pavilions. A slate roof, with pyramid roofs over the corner towers, tops the building, along with three pair-linked chimneys along the axis of the house.[10]
Both fronts have 11 bays, split into three central sets of three each, and one additional bay each side. The north face has a pedimented centre, with two balustraded staircases leading to a Roman Doric doorcase. The south face has a projecting Ionic tetrastyle portico and Venetian windows. It has a broad staircase, with cast stone sphinxes on each side, leading to a south door topped with a cornice on consoles. The wings have modillion cornice and balustrade.[10]
A two-story L-shaped service wing is attached to the east side of the mansion. It is made of red brick and stone, with slate roofs.[10] It was designed by Capability Brown in 1751-2.[22] On the far side of the service wing, a wall connects it to a stable court.[10]
Interior[edit]
The interior of the house was designed partially by Capability Brown, with plasterwork by G. Vassalli, and partially by Robert Adam, with plasterwork by J. Rose Jr. It has a central spine corridor. A stone staircase, with iron balusters, is at the east end.[10]
The entrance hall is on the north side of the building, and has four fluted Doric columns, along with moulded doorcases. To the east of the entrance hall is the dining room, which has a plaster ceiling and cornice, while to the west is a billiard room, featuring fielded panelling, a plaster cornice, and a rococo fireplace. The three rooms were probably decorated around 1758-59 by Capability Brown.[10] The dining room was vibrantly repainted by the Hare Krishnas in the 1970s-80s.[17]
The central room on the south side is a saloon, probably by Brown and Vassalli. It has an elaborate ceiling, with three panels, deep coving, and a cornice, along with two Ionic fireplaces, and Palladian doorcases.[10] George III was entertained by George Coventry, the 6th Earl, in the house's Saloon.[2] A drawing room is to the west of the saloon, and features rococo plasterwork and a marble fireplace.[10]
To the east of the saloon is the Tapestry Room.[10] This was designed in 1763-71, based on a design by Robert Adam, and contained tapestries and furniture covers possibly designed by Jacques Germain Soufflot, and made by Manufacture Nationale des Gobelins.[23] Around 1902 the ninth Earl sold the tapestries and seating to a Parisian dealer. In 1949 the Samuel H. Kress Foundation purchased the ceiling, floor, mantlepiece, chair rails, doors and the door surrounds, which were donated to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, in 1958. In 1959 the Kress Foundation also helped the Metropolitan Museum acquire the chair and sofa frames, which they recovered using the original tapestry seats.[7][23] A copy of the ceiling was installed in place of the original.[10] As of 2016, the room is displayed as it would have looked after the tapestries had been sold, with a jug and ewer on display as the only original decoration of the room that remains in it. The adjacent library room is used to explain what happened to the tapestry room;[17] the former library was designed by Adam, and was dismantled except for the marble fireplace.[10]
At the west side of the building is a long gallery,[10] which was designed by Robert Adam and installed between 1761 and 1766. It is the best preserved of the original interior (little of the rest has survived in situ).[1] It has an octagonal panelled ceiling, and plaster reliefs of griffins. A half-hexagonal bay faces the garden. The room also contains a marble caryatid fireplace designed by J Wilton.[10] As of 2016, modern sculptures are displayed in empty niches along the Long Gallery
wikipedia
“Artist Drawing by North American Aviation, Inc., --- When the LEM reaches the 10 mile altitude of its approach orbit it will be traveling 4,000 MPH. The landing engine will be ignited again (8,800 pounds of thrust) allowing its descent. The engine will have the capability of being throttled down to as low as 1,100 pounds of thrust until the LEM reaches a hovering position, 300 feet above the lunar surface. After selection of landing points the LEM will descend slowly to the lunar surface at speeds less than 7 mph.”
The artwork of the phenomenal Gary Meyer, as most likely the entire “63-Apollo-XXX” family of photos is. Commencing at the 5:59 elapsed time mark, clever closeups of each of the sequential LEM images are featured:
Credit: Jeff Quitney/Vimeo
Mr. Meyer's credentials, achievements and honors are very impressive:
garymeyerillustration.net/BIOGRAPHY.html
garymeyerillustration.net/ILLUSTRATIONS/Pages/early_work....
Who knew?
And rarely seen latter variant...by Renato Moncini:
hips.hearstapps.com/hmg-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/images/arti...
Credit: Popular Mechanics online website
Sadly:
"The late Gary Meyer was involved with painting, illustration, graphic arts, and sculpture since the 1960s. His past clients included all the major motion picture studios and major aircraft companies. Meyer has worked on movies such as Star Wars, Jaws, Star Trek- The Movie, and The Thing. He maintained a 30-year relationship with Universal Studios as a design consultant on many projects such as the Jurassic Park Ride, Seafari, and the Back to the Future Ride.
He also created album cover paintings for Chicago, the Jacksons, the Beach Boys, the Persuasions, and others.
After leaving the entertainment business behind, Meyer spent decades teaching. He was an instructor at Art Center College of Design for 23 years, serving as a Professor and Master of the College.
Gary was the recipient of the first Faculty Award, as well as seventeen Great Teacher Awards. Gary’s legacy will live through his contributions to the art world and the knowledge he bestowed onto his students."
Above at:
www.nma.art/instructors/gary-meyer/#gallery-2
Credit: NEW MASTERS ACADEMY website
Also:
"Gary Meyer, an artist who has worked on so many projects, from Star Wars to theme park rides to video games to album covers, has died at the age of 86.
Meyer, who began working as an artist in the 1960s for the US Air Force, is one of the most recognisable and beloved concept artists to have worked in the 20th century. Some of his most notable contributions include helping shape both the opening scenes and trench run finale of the original Star Wars, helping design the creature from The Thing, and illustrating a bunch of Hollywood movie posters (Das Boot, Jaws 3, Superman).
He also worked on album covers for groups like The Jacksons, did a bunch of iconic aviation art (for things like books and aerospace companies), helped out on theme park design on rides such as Jurassic Park and Back to the Future and also provided art for video games like Operation Thunderbolt, Superhornet and Air Strike Patrol.
After leaving the entertainment business behind, Meyer later went on to spend decades teaching, something he was still actively doing only a few weeks ago.
Our thoughts go out to Meyer’s family and friends."
Above posted February 28, 2021, at:
kotaku.com/rip-legendary-artist-gary-meyer-1846376817
Credit: Luke Plunkett/KOTAKU website
A glimpse into the man:
mobile.twitter.com/dsantat/status/1361846954393620481
Credit: Dan “DANley Tucci” Santat/Twitter
Claremont, also known historically as 'Clermont', is an 18th-century Palladian mansion less than a mile south of the centre of Esher in Surrey, England. The buildings are now occupied by Claremont Fan Court School, and its landscaped gardens are owned and managed by the National Trust. Claremont House is a Grade I listed building.[1]
Claremont estate
The first house on the Claremont estate was built in 1708 by Sir John Vanbrugh, the Restoration playwright and architect of Blenheim Palace and Castle Howard, for his own use. This "very small box", as he described it, stood on the level ground in front of the present mansion. At the same time, he built the stables and the walled gardens, also probably White Cottage, which is now the Sixth Form Centre of Claremont Fan Court School.
In 1714, he sold the house to the wealthy Whig politician Thomas Pelham-Holles, Earl of Clare, who later became Duke of Newcastle and served twice as Prime Minister. The earl commissioned Vanbrugh to add two great wings to the house and to build a fortress-like turret on an adjoining knoll. From this so-called "prospect-house", or belvedere, he and his guests could admire the views of the Surrey countryside as they took refreshments and played hazard, a popular dice game.
In the clear eighteenth-century air it was apparently possible to see Windsor Castle and St Paul's Cathedral. The Earl of Clare named his country seat Clare-mount, later contracted to Claremont. The two lodges at the Copsem Lane entrance were added at this time.
Landscape garden
Main article: Claremont Landscape Garden
Claremont landscape garden is one of the earliest surviving gardens of its kind of landscape design, the English Landscape Garden — still featuring its original 18th century layout. The extensive landscaped grounds of Claremont represents the work of some of the best known landscape gardeners, Charles Bridgeman, Capability Brown, William Kent (with Thomas Greening) and Sir John Vanbrugh.[2]
Work on the gardens began around 1715 and, by 1727, they were described as "the noblest of any in Europe". Within the grounds, overlooking the lake, is an unusual turfed amphitheatre.
A feature in the grounds is the Belvedere Tower, designed by Vanbrugh for the Duke of Newcastle. The tower is unusual in that, what appear to be windows, are actually bricks painted black and white. It is now owned by Claremont Fan Court School, which is situated alongside the gardens.
In 1949, the landscape garden was donated to the National Trust for stewardship and protection. A restoration programme was launched in 1975 following a significant donation by the Slater Foundation. The garden is Grade I listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.[3]
Capability Brown's mansion, built for Lord Clive of India
The Duke of Newcastle died in 1768 and, in 1769, his widow sold the estate to Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive, founder of Britain's Indian Empire. Although the great house was then little more than fifty years old, it was aesthetically and politically out of fashion. Lord Clive decided to demolish the house and commissioned Capability Brown to build the present Palladian mansion on higher and dryer ground. Brown, more accomplished as a landscape designer than an architect, took on his future son-in-law Henry Holland as a junior partner owing to the scale of the project. John Soane (later Sir John Soane) was employed in Holland's office at this time and worked on the project as a draftsman and junior designer.[4] Holland's interiors for Claremont owe much to the contemporary work of Robert Adam.
Lord Clive, by now fabulously rich Nabob, is reputed to have spent over £100,000 on rebuilding the house and the complete remodelling of the celebrated pleasure ground. However, Lord Clive ended up never living at the property, as he died in 1774—the year that the house was completed. The estate then passed through a rapid succession of owners; first being sold "for not more than one third of what the house and alterations had cost"[5] to Robert Monckton-Arundell, 4th Viscount Galway, and then to George Carpenter, 2nd Earl of Tyrconnell, and finally to Charles Ellis, 1st Baron Seaford.[citation needed]
A large map entitled "Claremont Palace", situated in what is called "Clive's room" inside the mansion, shows the mansion and its surrounding grounds; giving a detailed overview of the campus. The map likely dates back to the 1860s, when the mansion was frequently occupied by Queen Victoria (thus it having been christened "palace"). However, the exact date is still unknown. The relief in Claremont's front pediment is of Clive's coat of arms impaled with that of Maskelyne, his wife's family.
Royal residence
In 1816, Claremont was bought by the British Nation through an Act of Parliament as a wedding present for George IV's daughter Princess Charlotte and her husband Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg. At that time, the estate was valued to Parliament at £60,000: "Mr Huskisson stated that it had been agreed to purchase the house and demesnes of Clermont... The valuation of the farms, farm-houses, and park, including 350 acres of land, was 36,000/; the mansion, 19,000/; and the furniture, 6,000/; making together 60,000/. The mansion, which is in good repair, could not be built now for less than 91,000/."[6] To the nation's great sorrow, however, Princess Charlotte, who was second in line to the throne, was, after two miscarriages, to die there after giving birth to a stillborn son in November the following year. This sorrow is expressed in Letitia Elizabeth Landon's poem Wikisource-logo.svg Lines on the Mausoleum of the Princess Charlotte, at Claremont., published in Forget Me Not, 1824. Although Leopold retained ownership of Claremont until his death in 1865, he left the house in 1831 when he became the first King of the Belgians.
Mausoleum of Princess Charlotte
Claremont House, ca. 1860
Queen Victoria was a frequent visitor to Claremont—both as a child and later as an adult—when Leopold, her doting uncle, lent her the house. She, in turn, lent the house to the exiled French King and Queen, Louis-Philippe and Marie-Amelie (the parents-in-law of Leopold I of Belgium), after the Revolutions of 1848. The exiled King died at Claremont in 1850.
In 1857, Offenbach and his Bouffes company performed three of his opéras bouffes there for Marie Amelie and her sons during an eight-week tour of England.[7]
In 1870, Queen Victoria commissioned Francis John Williamson to sculpt a marble memorial to Charlotte and Leopold which was erected inside the house.[8][9] (The memorial was subsequently moved to St George's Church, Esher.)[9]
Victoria bought Claremont for her fourth, and youngest, son Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany, when he married Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont in 1882. The Duke and Duchess of Albany had two children—Alice and Charles. Charles, who had been born at Claremont in 1884, inherited the title and position of Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha upon the death of his uncle, Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1900. He moved to the duchy in Germany to fulfill the position, becoming a German citizen, and renouncing his claim in the British succession.
Claremont should have passed to Charles upon his mother's death in 1922, but because he served as a German general in the First World War, the British government disallowed the inheritance. Claremont was accordingly confiscated and sold by the Public Trustee to shipping magnate Sir William Corry, director of the Cunard Line. Two years after Sir William's death, in 1926, it was bought by Eugen Spier, a wealthy German financier.
In 1930, Claremont stood empty and was marked for demolition when it was bought, together with the Belvedere, the stables, and 30 acres (120,000 m2) of parkland, by the Governors of a south London school, later renamed Claremont School and, since 1978, has been known as Claremont Fan Court School.
The National Trust
The National Trust acquired 50 acres (0.20 km2) of the Claremont estate in 1949. In 1975, with a grant from the Slater Foundation, it set about restoring the eighteenth-century landscape garden. Now, the Claremont Landscape Garden displays the successive contributions of the great landscape gardeners who worked on it: Sir John Vanbrugh, Charles Bridgeman, William Kent, and Capability Brown.
In 1996, the school celebrated the National Trust's centenary by opening a feature of the grounds which had not previously been accessible to the garden's visitors: the 281-year-old Belvedere Tower. Wikipedia
Burghley House aerial image - built in the 16th century in Lincolnshire by William Cecil, Lord High Treasurer to Elizabeth I. Parkland landscaped by Capability Brown.
Aerial view of Burghley House and Park
Photographed in full-frame detail using a Nikon D850, this is a high-resolution aerial image
Croome Court is a mid 18th century Neo-Palladian mansion surrounded by an extensive landscaped parkland near Pershore in south Worcestershire. The mansion, and park, were designed by Lancelot "Capability" Brown with some of the internal rooms designed by Robert Adam.
Maltby, Rotherham, South Yorkshire
Beautifully set in a valley landscaped by ‘Capability’ Brown in the 18th Century. Roche Abbey has one of the most complete ground plans of any English Cistercian monastery, laid out as excavated foundations.
The soaring early Gothic transepts of this Cistercian monastery still survive to their original height and are ranked in importance with the finest early Gothic architecture in Britain.
A KC-46A Pegasus takes off from McConnell Air Force Base, Kan., Feb. 26, 2019. McConnell AFB has completed $267 million in facility improvements, began the familiarization period and has been taking continuous stops toward achieving full operational capability. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Alexi Myrick)