The Super Genius' Descend on Edwards AFB for Flight Test Nation

I just couldn't think of a better way to begin my blogging adventure than to share the amazing experience I shared with my three best buds and the core members of the Super Genius Rocket Scientist Society (stick around & you'll learn more about this distinguished organization).

Though all of us are just plane nuts (thats AIRplane nuts), none of us had ever been to Edwards before and a last-minute suggestion was enthusiastically accepted by all. Now, this isn't just a drive around the block, for Lance, Jay & myself, it would be a 4 & 1/2 hour drive each way. Pat was looking at an hour more than that, but the timing was right and we all jumped at the chance. Pat (the smart one) drove down Friday night and got a room in Mojave. Me & the boyz left from my house @ 2:30 AM Saturday.

Where else can mere mortals see things like this? The F-35 Lightning II making its public debut! No, they didn't fly it, but it was amazing to see up close. The relatively thin crowd is a clue to what time we arrived. I snapped this shot at about 8:30 AM and was sooo thankful we got there relatively early.

We were in awe of the history all around us. From the time we entered the North Gate we felt like kids on Christmas morning. Parking on the dry lake we've all read about so many times and seen in photos and film, felt like walking on hallowed ground. We clearly weren't the only ones feeling distracted as even at 8:00 am, with very little traffic on the entry road, two cars found each other and wound up in a ditch. Probably ogling the SR-71 parked by a hangar about a 1/2 mile off the road (just like I was).

Another amazing prototype, this is the X-47B, a carrier-based (note the tailhook), Unmanned Combat Air System. This UAV is already flying and will be a very capable & adaptable platform.

This B1B Lancer was right next to the F-35. Are you starting to get an idea how huge this hangar is yet? I can't even tell you what the aircraft parked behind it are as we were so enthralled with the 35 that we never made it back there (at least I didn't). Heck I didn't even take a single pic of the F-22 that was parked right on the other side of the F-35. Also in this hangar was a Globalhawk UAV.

That's enough hangin' around the hangar, time to head outside!

White Knight 1, the mothership to Spaceship One, the first privatly built spacecraft, was on the ramp.

One of NASA's amazing testbed aircraft, a highly modified F-15 with canard wings.

There were old planes...

And new planes...

Slow Planes...

And FAST planes...

Small planes...

And really BIG planes...

Gorgeous old Warbirds...

And amazing new technology...

Old Heros Chuck Yeager & Joe Engels

And new recruits, eager to serve.

There was fantastic air show flying...

And great friends.

It was a long day, we left home @ 2:30 AM and got back @ 9:00 PM, but it was soooo worth it! This post really only scratches the surface of what we saw that day. According to an article I read by Maj. Gen. Eichhorn, 200,000 people turned out for this one-day event. Our thanks and congratulations go out to the scores of people it took to make this event possible and extremely successful. If you love aviation and you ever get the chance to attend an event at Edwards AFB, you MUST go. But do yourself a favor & get there early as the crowd picks up fast and you'll want to get lots of good pics of your own.

Oh, did I mention the sonic boom? Generals Yeager & Engel opened the show @ 10:00 with a double sonic boom in a pair of F-16s. You just don't see or hear that every day. To see the rest of my pics from this awesome event, click on "Flight Test Nation Album" on the right.

See you at the next event.