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2022 Page 2 - Latest News and Photography Trip Reports
All the latest news and trip reports from my photography adventures around the U.K and abroad.
Trip Report November 2022
On Tuesday 15th November, a day later than planned due to adverse weather, Swiss Air Force (Schweitzer Luftwaffe)
F/A‑18C and F/A‑18D Hornets arrived at RAF Leeming, Yorkshire, for the month‑long Exercise Yorknite 2022.
Now in its fourth year, the exercise gives the Swiss pilots a large percentage of night‑flying hours required for
their entire years training and a chance to hone their skills against their RAF and USAF counterparts.
Exercise Yorknite 2022 coincided with my last photographic trip of the year. On Monday 21st November, I visited the
Lake District LFA17 for four days, in the hope of catching the Swiss Hornets as they routed low‑level through the area.
On Sunday 20th November, I started my trip with a visit to the North East Land, Sea & Air Museum (NELSAM) near Sunderland.
I had visited the museum in October 2020, but decided on visiting again, as during my first visit the weather had been unfavourable and
I was not happy with some of the images obtained. Another incentive to visit, was that the museum had since acquired a
BAe Sea Harrier F/A.2 and Panavia Tornado F.3.
Photographs from my visit will be uploaded in the near future.
The North East Land, Sea & Air Museum's latest exhibit, BAe Sea Harrier F/A.2 (ZD582 ‘002’).
Monday 21st - Dunmail Raise (west side). A typical winters day in the Lake District, with low cloud and intermittent rain showers. I had just climbed up to my chosen vantage point for the day, when a USAF F‑15E Strike Eagle, BuNo. 01‑2001 (at 09:29) of the ‘Panthers’ 494th Fighter Squadron, Lakenheath, routed through. Being caught off‑guard, all the images I captured were unusable. I was lucky, as another Strike Eagle, BuNo. 00‑3004 from the same squadron routed through just after midday (at 12:27) and this time I was ready and waiting.
F‑15E Strike Eagle (BuNo. 00‑3004 ‘LN’) USAF 48th FW/494th FS ‘Panthers’, Lakenheath.
The Swiss Hornets daily planned take‑off time from RAF Leeming for their exercise was approximately 14:30. It takes them
approximately ten minutes flying time to transit to the Lake District. It was around the time they were due, that it started to rain
quite heavy. I assumed due to the weather conditions that they would not route through low‑level, so I started to pack my camera
gear away. I had just finished packing when two F/A‑18C Hornets routed overhead and dropped down to low‑level at the
north end of Thirlmere Reservoir. Typical !!!.
Tuesday 22nd - Smaithwaite Banks Crag, Thirlmere Reservoir. A much better day for the weather, with good visibility and no wind.
I was joined by a number of fellow photographers, like myself, hoping to catch the Swiss Hornets.
Throughout the day we were treated to passes by two Juno HT.1 training helicopters, ZM521 (at 11:58) and ZM514 (at 12:05),
both from RAF Shawbury, followed by a Hawk Mk. 167, ZB133 (at 12:53) of the Joint RAF & Qatar Emiri
Air Force Training Squadron based at RAF Leeming.
At 14:30 people began to get excited, as it was time for the Swiss to start departing RAF Leeming. At 14:54 two Swiss Hornets were spotted
approaching Dunmail Raise at a relatively high altitude. As they passed Dunmail Raise and approached the south end of Thirlmere, they suddenly banked
hard and dropped down to low‑level over the reservoir. The Hornets passed Rough Crag (another vantage point) on the west side of the reservoir,
then suddenly pulled‑up in front of our location and passed over Raven Crag, to the dismay of everyone. People began to speculate of a
photo set‑up with the Swiss pilots by possible photographers located on Rough Crag, as they did take quite an unusual route.
I did manage to get a couple of distant photos of the Swiss, but they were not the most ideal images I was hoping to capture.
Swiss Air Force F/A‑18C Hornets dropping low‑level over Thirlmere Reservoir in the Lake District.
Wednesday 23rd - Raven Crag, Thirlmere Reservoir. A dry overcast day. Raven Crag offers a spectacular view, as one looks down Thirlmere Reservoir
towards Dunmail Raise and Loughrigg Fell beyond. The only drawback to the location, is that one is quite distant from the aircraft as they route past.
To give my camera more reach, I attached a 1.4x extender to my Canon 500 f/4 lens, to give a focal length of 700mm.
Aircraft seen: RAF Hercules C.4, ZH870 (at 12:31) from RAF Brize Norton, which just filled my camera viewfinder nicely. This was
followed by two Hawk Mk. 167's, ZB133 (at 13:24) and ZB134 (at 13:34) both from the Joint RAF Qatar Emiri
Air Force Training Squadron, based at RAF Leeming. The Swiss Hornets appeared before 15:00, but they were high as they passed overhead my
location, so no suitable photographs were captured. Shortly after the Swiss had passed, my radio scanner picked‑up RAF Typhoon FGR.4's
approaching the southern area of the Lake District with the intention of going low‑level, only to abort, due to the deteriorating weather
conditions.
Thursday 24th - Smaithwaite Banks Crag, Thirlmere Reservoir. A dull, overcast day. Dunmail Raise, four miles to the south was just
visible through the haze. The weather conditions were not ideal for photography, but I was treated to the following passes by four RAF Typhoon
FGR.4's: ZK372 (at 10:23), ZK428 (at 10:28), followed by a two‑ship (at 11:07),
ZK306 and ZK371, all from RAF Coningsby. I assume the Typhoon's were the same flight which had to abort their low‑level sortie
yesterday evening.
At 11:45 I left the hill due to strong winds and torrential rain. I drove down to Grasmere village for lunch and a coffee, hoping the
weather would clear. To my surprise it did. At 14:15 I arrived back at the car park for Smaithwaite Banks Crag and quickly climbed back up
to the vantage point. I arrived just before 14:30 (out‑of‑breath) and got my camera ready, only to discover the Swiss
had cancelled their sortie for the day due to the weather conditions ‑ AAARGH !!!. It turned out to be one
of those days. The highs and lows of the hobby of military low flying photography.
To conclude. It was disappointing not to capture the Swiss Hornets, but I can't complain, as I had passes by aircraft every day of my
four‑day visit, so it was a good way to finish off my last outing of the year.
Trip Report October/November 2022
On Wednesday 26th October after more than a two‑year break from any safari trips, I boarded an overnight Virgin Airways flight from London Heathrow to New Delhi, India, for an organised photography safari to Bandhavgarh National Park, which is located in the Umaria District of Madhya Pradesh. My last visit to India was in March 2020 to Ranthambhore National Park, which is located near the town of Sawai Madhopur in Rajasthan. That visit now feels like a lifetime ago, considering everything the world has been through with the COVID‑19 pandemic.
‘Kajri’ tigress on patrol in the Tala Zone 1, Bandhavgarh National Park.
The trip, including all travel was over twelve days. Eight of those days was spent at Bandhavgarh National Park, primarily looking for the
Bengal tiger. Photographs from my trip can now be viewed at
2022 ‑ Bandhavgarh, India.
The remainder of the trip was spent doing some cultural sightseeing at Agra, visiting the Taj Mahal and the Red Fort.
Trip Report September 2022
In September I had my second visit of the year to the Kern River Valley, California, USA. The Kern River Valley is a valley and region of the Southern Sierra Nevada and the start of the Sidewinder low flying route (Waypoints A to B).
U.S. Navy EA‑18G Growler routing low‑level through the Kern River Valley
Saturday 24th - After a 11‑hour flight from the U.K. I landed at Los Angeles LAX late in the evening. After clearing
immigration and picking up a hire car I stayed overnight at a hotel near LAX.
Sunday 25th - With an early start to avoid the busy L.A. traffic I headed north on Highway 14 towards Palmdale
and Lancaster, stopping on the way for a hearty breakfast at my favourite diner: Denny's. In Palmdale, a visit
was made to a Walmart Supercenter to get provisions i.e. food, bottled water etc and a $11 camping chair, before again
heading north towards Ridgecrest and the Highway 178 turn‑off for Lake Isabella and Kernville. After having lunch
in Kernville, the rest of the day was spent driving north up the Kern River Valley via the Mountain Highway 99 and
Forest Route 22S82 towards The Needles, to view possible vantage points for photographing low flying military aircraft.
During this report I will not be disclosing my specific photography locations in the Kern River Valley, as I took a lot
of time and effort, before and during my trips to identify and visit potential locations. My main concern is that I would not
like to see the area turn into another fiasco like Rainbow Canyon, where it was inundated with people and because the aircrew
knew there was an audience had the potential to Showboat. On a positive note, the Kern River Valley locations are not as easily
accessible as those of Rainbow Canyon, so I doubt that hordes of casual observers would be an issue. Any dedicated photographers
of low flying military aircraft wishing to visit the area, I would be quite happy to help with locations if they contact me
via email.
Monday 26th - Location near The Needles (Waypoint B).
A location not ideal for the morning, as you are facing into the sun till the early afternoon. The first pass of the day at 09:16 was
a F‑16D of the USAF 416th FLTS, Edwards A.F.B. which did a spectacular approach following the river valley and passing below my location.
Though the light was not ideal, I captured (in my humble opinion) some nice photographs. A two‑ship of F‑35's appeared
later in the morning with the lead aircraft passing below my location, but the light reflecting off the aircrafts upper fuselage fooled my camera
autofocus and the images were all out‑of‑focus. For the remainder of the day, all the aircraft passed overhead or behind my location,
only to drop down to low‑level further north as they routed towards Waypoint C
on the Sidewinder. Though the hit rate of capturing aircraft passing this location at low‑level is not good, some spectacular images
can be captured if they do. On a plus, the spectacular scenery and sometimes observed wildlife of the area, more than makes up for the lack
of low‑level passes.
View looking north towards The Needles, Kern River Valley.
Tuesday 27th - A location visited on my last trip which is ideal for the mornings as you are facing east and the sun is not an issue till
the early afternoon. As luck would have it, most aircraft appeared before midday, with very little activity in the afternoon. I was treated to the following
low flying passes: Two EA‑18G Growlers of VX‑9 at 10:07. Single F/A‑18F Super Hornet of VFA‑94 at 10:08.
Two F/A‑18E Super Hornets of VFA‑25 at 11:06. At 13:48, two F‑15C Eagles from the Air National Guard, Fresno, made a low
approach towards my location, only to pull‑up and pass overhead.
Wednesday 27th - A location like yesterday. A quiet day with only three low flying passes:
Single F/A‑18E Super Hornet of VFA‑14 “Tophatters” at 10:42. Single F/A‑18E Super Hornet of VFA‑146
at 12:44 and finally a F‑16D of USAF 416th FLTS, Edwards A.F.B. at 14:27.
Thursday 28th - Same location as Monday. My luck was not in today. Had passes by several F/A‑18's, F‑16's,
F‑15's and a T‑38 Talon, which all decided to pass overhead or behind my location. Ah well, win some, lose some. I still had an
enjoyable day observing the different routes the aircraft take to navigate the relatively wide valley.
A lizard keeping me entertained during the lull between aircraft passes.
Friday 29th - Same location as Wednesday. The day started with being hill‑sided (aircraft routing through when not in position)
at 08:20 by a F/A‑18 Super Hornet. There were no other aircraft seen in the morning, but the arrival of two
like‑minded local photographers helped pass the time. The only aircraft I photographed was a F‑16D at 12:20. Though devoid
of squadron markings the F‑16D was assumed to be a USAF 416th FLTS aircraft from Edwards A.F.B. I was informed by my two colleagues that
the possible lack of traffic could be attributed to it being the last day of the 2022 fiscal year for military funding. I left the hill at 13:15,
only to be hillsided by a F‑16D at 13:30 and when back at my hire car by a EA‑18G Growler at 14:30.
This concluded my photography for the week and I started making my way back to Los Angeles for my flight back to the U.K.
on the Saturday evening.
To conclude. It was a most enjoyable week, though I was slightly disappointed with the number of low‑level photographs I captured in
comparison to my vist in May. This can partly be attributed to some of the locations visited, but you don't know until you give them a try.
For a future visit, hopefully in the Spring of 2023, some locations I will give a miss and possible new ones will be investigated.
Photographs from my trip can be viewed at: 2022 ‑ Sidewinder Trip 2.
Trip Report August 2022
A weekend visiting aircraft museums in Scotland and the north of England.
Saturday 20th - Dumfries & Galloway Aviation Museum, Scotland. The museum which is based around the control tower of the
former RAF Dumfries has a varied collection of aircraft, including a Battle of Britain Spitfire which was recovered from
Loch Doon, Ayrshire.
My visit was hampered by heavy rain showers. As the aircraft collection is primarily located outside, I was there for the whole day, taking
the opportunity to capture photographs when breaks in the weather allowed.
Photographs from my visit will be uploaded soon.
Dumfries & Galloway Aviation Museum, Gloster Meteor, WL375.
Sunday 21st - Solway Aviation Museum, Carlisle Lake District Airport, Cumbria. The weather was sunny and hot, a total contrast to the
weather experienced yesterday, which made my visit much more pleasurable. In February 2020 the museum acquired a Fairey Gannet ECM.6 and when
I visited shortly after it was looking the worse for wear and in a sorry state, covered under tarpaulins. Since my last visit, the museum has
acquired a SEPECAT Jaguar T.2B and a lot of the aircraft including the Gannet have been cleaned and repainted. My favourite, the Lightning,
has been repainted in the livery of a 1960's RAF No. 56 Squadron aircraft, serial XP748.
The Solway Aviation Museum page will be updated in the coming weeks.
Solway Aviation Museum, BAC Lightning F.53, ZF583 (marked as XP748).
After the weekend I had a four‑day visit to the Lake District LFA17 for some low flying aviation photography.
Monday 22nd - Great How, Thirlmere Reservoir. No aircraft were seen in the morning and I left the hill early in the afternoon when the
weather started to deteriorate.
Tuesday 23rd - Silver Point, Ullswater. The weather conditions at Ullswater looked favourable, but looking towards
Kirkstone Pass from where the aircraft approach, there was low cloud, which I consider would have prevented any aircraft from routing through.
At midday, with Kirkstone Pass still obscured by low cloud I relocated to Coppice Corner on Thirlmere Reservoir. The conditions at Thirlmere
looked more favourable, but no aircraft were seen.
Wednesday 23rd - Dunmail Raise (east side above the AA box). Today the weather improved but it was a slow day with the first movement
being in the early afternoon at 13:51, when a Texan T.1, ZM329 from RAF Valley routed through. A Typhoon FGR.4, ZK367 at 16:20 from
RAF Coningsby finished the day.
RAF Eurofighter Typhoon FGR.4, ZK367 routing through Dunmail Raise in the Lake District, LFA17.
Thursday 24th - Silver Point, Ullswater. Today was one of those days where I thought I had made the wrong choice of location,
as the Thirlmere route was getting passes by several Typhoon FGR.4's, while I was getting nothing. I thought I was in for a blank
(no aircraft seen) but patience is a virtue and I was rewarded in the afternoon at 15:08 when I observed an aircraft break the skyline
at Kirkstone Pass, which resulted in my first Typhoon pass at Silver Point, a Typhoon FGR.4, ZK428 from RAF Coningsby.
Photographs from my trip can be viewed at:
2022 ‑ UK Military Low Flying.
Trip Report July 2022
An eleven‑day vacation of aviation photography started with a weekend in the Norwich area visiting two air museums.
Saturday 9th - City of Norwich Aviation Museum, located on the northern edge of Norwich International Airport.
Sunday 10th - Norfolk & Suffolk Aviation Museum, located near the former RAF Bungay airfield, Flixton, Suffolk.
Photographs will be uploaded in the coming weeks.
The following week was spent in the Lake District Low Flying Area 17 (LFA17), during one of the hottest summers the country has
experienced for years.
Monday 11th - Place Fell, Patterdale. A quiet day with the only pass being a Grob G.115E Tutor T.1, G‑BYUD at 14:34, which
approached from Kirkstone Pass, but routed past on the far side of the valley making it quite distant. Heavy crops will
be required for presenting the photographs. The benefit of using the new Canon R5 mirrorless camera is that a heavy crop can be
used in the presentation, while still retaining detail due to the 45‑megapixel CMOS image sensor.
Tuesday 12th - Dunmail Raise (west side). Another relatively quiet day with a midday pass at 12:31 by an
AugustaWestland AW.159 Wildcat Army Air Corps helicopter, ZZ383, which like yesterdays pass kept to the far side of the valley. Due to the windy
conditions and the need for a slow shutter speed to get blur in the rotor blades, no keepable photos were captured. An afternoon
pass at 13:11 by a RAF Airbus A400 Atlas C.1, ZM407, made up for the loss.
Wednesday 13th - Low Birk Fell, Ullswater. The 13th turned out to be a lucky day, with a total of six passes.
A morning pass by an RAF Hercules C.4, ZH867 at 11:28, was followed in the afternoon by two
Grob Tutor G.115E T.1's, G‑BYXJ and B‑BYYB at 15:05, an Airbus A400 Atlas C.1, ZM403 at 15:07,
USAF Bell Boeing CV‑22B Osprey, BuNo. 08‑0047 at 15:39 and the icing on the cake, a RAF Hawk T.1A, XX202 of the
Red Arrows at 16:13. The first Red Arrow aircraft I've captured low flying since starting the hobby.
Thursday 14th - Dunmail Raise (east side). I tried the location above the AA box at the entrance to the pass. (I normally
locate further north towards Thirlmere Reservoir). Another productive day with four passes. The first pass was by a
Juno HT.1 training helicopter, ZM515 at 11:45, followed at 11:57 by a Typhoon FGR.4, ZK341, flown by an American
exchange pilot, which approached from Coniston Water (rather than the normal approach from Lake Windermere).
RAF Eurofighter Typhoon FGR.4, ZK341, piloted by an American, routing through the Lake District, LFA17.
In the afternoon at 15:51 I was treated to passes by a formation of three Royal Navy Merlin HC.4 helicopters routing
to the ranges at Spadeadam. Only one Merlin, ZJ137 was low enough to get landlocked. Final pass of the day at 16:03 was by a Joint
RAF & Qatar Emiri Air Force Training Squadron Hawk Mk. 167, ZB135 from RAF Leeming, which approached from Coniston Water.
Friday 15th and Saturday 16th - After finishing on Thursday, I made an overnight drive down to RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, to spend the
Friday and Saturday at the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT). Reputed to be the biggest military airshow in the world, RIAT had been
cancelled for the past two years due to the COVID‑19 pandemic. The theme for the 2022 airshow was “Training the Next Generation
Air Force”, with also a focus on the 75th Anniversary of the United States Air Force. In keeping with this theme a USAF 48th Fighter Wing
F‑15E Strike Eagle, BuNo. 92‑0364 on the static display had been painted to celebrate the Wings 70th year of flight operations.
RAF Red Arrows Synchro Pair, high‑speed crossover at RIAT 2022
This was my first attendance at RIAT and I was treated to some exciting and spectacular flying demonstrations by aircraft
from many continents. The Republic of Korea ‘Black Eagles’ flying their eight KAI T‑50B jets in their
trademark black, white and yellow paint scheme made a welcome return after ten years and were considered by many people
to be the highlight of the show. The weather was ideal for the flying displays, but I considered it a drawback for photography of aircraft
take off and landings, as the high temperatures created a heat haze off the runway.
The remaining two days of my trip in week two were spent in the Mach Loop, LFA7, Wales, and the Lake District, LFA17.
Monday 18th - Cad East, Mach Loop. A day in the Mach Loop in the hope of catching any departing aircraft from
RIAT which might decide to make a visit. The first aircraft seen at 13:36, were two Texan T.1's, ZM326 and ZM329 from RAF Valley.
There were rumours of Belgium F‑16's making an appearance, but nothing materialised. The day was made
worthwhile when at 14:48 the RIAT static display USAF F‑35A Lightning II, BuNo. 19‑5475, accompanied by the Heritage
F‑15E Strike Eagle, BuNo. 92‑0364 routed through on their way back to their home base at Lakenheath.
USAF Heritage F‑15E Strike Eagle, BuNo. 92‑0364, routing through the Mach Loop.
Tuesday 19th - Silver Point, Lake Ullswater, Lake District, LFA17. A very warm and quiet day at Ullswater, with the only
movement of the day being a Texan T.1 from RAF Valley. The aircraft approached my location from the east, which is not the normal
direction of approach and being hidden from my view caught me totally off‑guard, so no photographs were captured.
Photographs from my trip can be viewed at:
2022 ‑ UK Military Low Flying.
Trip Reports:
2023/2,
2023/1,
2022/2,
2022/1,
2021
