A little help for the non-aviation media

Many times, I have been seeing or hearing reports from non-aviation press that often state aircraft have "machine guns" when in fact, they are not armed at all.

Many times, the pitot tube, also known as the pitot probe, is mistaken for a machine gun.


A North American AT-6 Texan over the Pacific, near Ventura, California

A french industrial engineer named Henri Pitot was responsible for inventing the pitot tube to measure the velocity of air and gas. Mr. Pitot's invention goes back to the early 1700s. French scientist Henry Darcy made some changes to the original design in the mid 1800s to it, and the design is pretty much the same today.

The pitot tube uses the Bernoulli's law, which states basically that total pressure is static pressure plus kinetic pressure. To try and keep too much math or science out of this (I started to see eyes glassing over), the basic principle is that it compares the pressure of the incoming air (kinetic) with the pressure of the air that is not moving (static). Using mechnical or electrical inputs to the measurements provides your air-speed reading.

The needle-like pitot tube is often mistaken for a machine gun, and because of the shape of many pitot tubes, it is easy for that assumption to be made.


Pitot tubes as seen on the North American T-28 Trojan

Below are some photos of pitot tubes and machine guns for reference. Keep in mind that most trainer aircraft do not have machine guns installed on them. Any American aircraft whose designation starts with a T is a trainer, such at the T-28, or T-34. Additionally, earlier trainers also add an A or a P to that, such at the PT-17 or the AT-6. The PT means primary trainer, which is what new students would fly before moving on to advanced trainers (AT).


Pitot tube, cannon and machine gun placement in the Mitsubishi A6M3 Zero


Pitot tube and machine guns on the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk

While some machine guns have their barrels sticking out of the wing of the airplane, some are completely inside the wing, with holes cut in the wing for the bullet to pass through. They may also be in the cowl for the engine or elsewhere on the airplane.

What is important to remember is that any civilian owned former military aircraft will have non-functional weapon systems per FAA and ATF regulations. So while you may see machine guns on a museum aircraft, they are non-firing, and will not have live ammunition on board, for obvious reasons.

Off-season blues

Between mid January and the end of March is my "off-season". There are a couple of shows this weekend at El Centro and in Yuma, but those are a 4+ hour drive for me, probably more. So I have 2 more weeks until the next show in Riverside and I am looking forward to it, and the rest of the year. I am a bit disappointed that Point Mugu is not having a show this year,but understand that operational issues have to come first. Point Mugu, when the weather is good, produces some stunning opportunities. Where else will you see a Raptor throwing vapor like this:



And even the A-10 throws vapor at Pt. Mugu!



But the good news is that the Edwards show is on again in October after three years. The show at Edwards is always a cool one. The lighting is a challenge with the sun in your face for a lot of the day, but the fact that you are at Edwards, and the lineup is always exciting. Edwards in 2006 was my first glimpse of the F-22 Raptor. I was duly impressed! Opportunities like these are at Edwards:







I have some cool air-to-air stuff coming up for the next couple of months as well and am looking forward to it. It's been a while since I went flying and I can't wait to get "up there" again. May and June are going to be real busy.

As a heads up, I have a photo that will be on the cover of a museum directory, coming out in May. More details when it comes out. You can always hit my website for the latest photos, and shots from most of the events of the last 3 years. My website is at http://www.vg-photo.com.

My published books from 2008

In 2008, I published two books. I had set a goal to publish one book in 2008. My first book That Little Yellow Airplane came out in August of 2008. I had been wanting to put out a book about Rob Harrison featuring his aerobatic performances. Unfortunately, Rob crashed at the Modesto show in May of 2008 and was hurt badly. During his recovery, I contacted his wife Susan about doing the book to pay tribute to the airplane that was destroyed. I knew it was something that was an emotional subject at the time and I was careful to treat it with the utmost of respect. After a few e-mails back and forth with corrections, suggestions and proof-reading, the book was published with the help and support of Rob and Susan Harrison. They are two fantastic people!






Once I had the first book published, I immediately began planning my second book. I envisioned a photography journal of 2008, featuring my favorite and best shots of the year. The initial folder on my computer with images for the book was well over 1,000 images! I obviously needed to pare that down to a more reasonable number so my readers wouldn't need a forklift to be able to lift the book. Plus I needed to resize all of the photos for the book, and that was going to take time. I ended up with over 500 photos. After editing that many photos, the book layout and writing was the easy part! I almost published it in mid-December, and thankfully didn't because I ended up doing another shoot on December 21. Shots from that ended up in the final pages of the book. I spent a great deal of time selecting the cover shot and a title. But like a creative moment, as I looked through the photos again, the shot and the title came like a bolt from the blue. Chasing the Dream was published on December 29, 2008.





I have been working on a project for a while to put a book together on military trainer aircraft, featuring photos that were all taken air-to-air. It's going to take some time to finish that as I have a lot of airplanes to fly in before that project is completed. Stay tuned for updates on new projects.

For anyone wanting to preview and/or purchase one of these books, you can go to my blurb profile at http://www.blurb.com/user/vg-photo

Aviation, do you get it?

Aviation, you either get it or you don't. Flying isn't about adrenaline, well for some it is, but it's not adrenaline alone. The freedom of the skies, the ability to look down upon the world, it's amazing.

Part of what I do is to take photographs of people's airplanes, but another part that I like to do is to capture the experience. I want others who view my photos to get a feel for what it was like, the feeling, the view, the freedom.

For some, the photos will make them dizzy, give them vertigo. But then I see the folks who take a look at the photos like the ones below and the look in their eye says it all; they get it.

I was once asked what it was that made aviation a passion for me. It's hard to put into words. But part of it is that once those wheels leave the ground and you take to the sky, nothing else matters. All the cares and worries melt away and there is a peace that comes over me. It's almost like a brief glimpse of heaven, euphoric, thrilling and awe-inspiring.

During an interview with Michael Maloco, I heard him say that if he could find a way to refuel in the air, he would stay up there indefinitely. I have to agree. There is just something about being up in the sky, away from all the hustle and bustle below. Flying in formation, there is a trust and respect for your fellow aviators (although I am not an aviator, there is quite a bit of that for me to ride along!).

When I started doing aviation photography over 20 years ago, I often dreamed of being able to fly along to snap some shots and to enjoy flying. Today, I am doing what I dreamed of 20+ years ago, although not as often as I would like. It's almost like a drug, highly habit forming. Some people try drugs and get hooked on the first try while others try it and never do it again, saying "it's not for me". Flying is my drug, and boy am I addicted!

So, do you get it?