Category Archives: CAF

June 20, 2025 · 23:53

Proof Of Life – June 20th

Routine has its advantages. Knowing what day of the week it is. Knowing what day of the month it is. Knowing what time of day it is.

Take away some weekends, throw in a holiday on a Thursday, have a dental surgeon poking holes in you and tearing things out and drilling things in on a Friday afternoon…

And I’m clueless. I just want to reboot, reset, sleep for about 72 hours and figure out where I’m starting over when I wake up.

Still here. Still one foot in front of another. Enjoy your weekend! Hot rumor is that it’s summer!

I still really need to get Photoshop installed on the new computer so that I can clean up the dust spots…

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Filed under Airshows, CAF, Flying

March 24, 2025 · 23:04

No Context For You – March 24th

When you’ve got as many pictures as I’ve taken for as many years as I’ve been taking them, that’s quite the little rabbit hole to dive down into.

Might be best to tie a rope around my waist so I can be hauled back out if I get lost.

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Filed under CAF, Photography

February 6, 2025 · 22:58

Massive Props

And there’s two more on the other side!

I haven’t had any good plane pictures for a while (probably in part because I haven’t been out to the CAF hangar in quite a while) so I dug into the way-back machine to Fifi’s visit to CAF SoCal ten years ago. One of only two airworthy B-29’s left from WW2 (at the time it was the only one), she’s an astonishing aircraft to see up close, to walk through, and to fly. If you get the chance (she’ll be touring again this summer), go see her! Maybe even take a ride!

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Filed under CAF, Critters, Photography

January 12, 2025 · 23:35

PBJ

It’s been a while since I’ve shared pictures of a plane. It’s now been almost three years since I gave up the volunteer position of Finance Officer at the CAF SoCal Wing (after eight years in the job) and since then my involvement and activity has been quite limited. Not being at the hangar two or three days a week will really cut down on the airplane pictures.

Here’s our PBJ bomber, from the 2018 Wings Over Camarillo airshow.

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Filed under CAF, Critters, Photography

November 16, 2024 · 23:19

Random Old Photos – November 16th

I am chock o’ block full of flu and COVID vaccines – come at me, virii! (Viruses? Virususses?) I’m loaded for bear!

All of which has absolutely nothing to do with this nice old picture from 2013 of one of the only two flying B-25 bombers. It’s the CAF’s “Fifi”, coming into Camarillo to spend a couple of days with the CAF SoCal Wing. (At the time it was the only flying B-25, but since then “Doc” has started flying as well.)

That’s a LOT of flaps!

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Filed under CAF, Flying, Health, Photography

May 15, 2023 · 23:47

Random Old Photos – May 15th

From a 2000 airshow at Point Mugu.

The resolution on my early digital point-and-shoot camera was small. So were my kids.

This was a few years before I joined the CAF myself, but a lot of the warbirds look familiar.

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Filed under CAF, Flying, Photography

February 9, 2022 · 22:57

An Era Ends

For the last eight years I’ve been the Finance Officer for the Commemorative Air Force Southern California Wing, a volunteer position. As of January 1st, I’ve officially been out of that position, having not run for another two-year term. But I’ve still been very busy, finalizing the 2021 accounting books, finishing up paperwork, training my replacement, and so on. For the past three long and intense days I’ve been going through our internal audit with the finance folks from the national CAF HQ in Dallas.

Now, with that audit done, my time on Staff is done. While I’m sure there will be loose ends that pop up now and then, I’m not free to find other activities for my weekends and all of the hours that had been dedicated to that position.

I’ll still be a member of the CAF in general and the SoCal Wing in particular, but I’ll be a member and occasional volunteer, not holding down what was essentially a second job.

I can think of a few things that might fill those hours in the upcoming weeks and months. For starters, there’s a TBR pile of books that’s taller than I am, and just a few things on some of the streaming services where I’m a few years behind. And who knows what could happen if this COVID thing ever allows us to start travelling again. Friends to harass, people to visit, sights to see, cons to get to, ball games to cheer at.

Onward and upward!

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Filed under CAF, Photography

February 8, 2022 · 23:43

F6F Hellcat

Back at the hangar for another long day.

I was looking for a quiet spot for a Zoom call at my real job. The museum’s closed for COVID still and was fairly quiet. At least, by airport standards.

Of course, just as I was getting ready to present in the meeting, the Ventura County Fire Department helicopter next door fired up and took off. Nothing like a jet turbine 100 yards away to make the “Mute” button your best friend!

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Filed under CAF, Flying, Photography

February 7, 2022 · 23:53

An “Empty” Hangar

Well, “empty” in the sense that I was the only one in there as I was locking up at the end of the day.

Not empty in the sense that I was surrounded by incredible aircraft!

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Filed under CAF, Panorama, Photography

January 15, 2022 · 23:28

A Flock Of Condors

Out at the CAF SoCal hangar today. It was rainy and gray, but the cloud base lifted a little bit around noon, and we got visitors.

The Condor Squadron flys out of Van Nuys Airport and is a common site in SoCal airshows, event flyovers, and other aviation events.

They perform formation flying in their AT-6 “Texans” on their missions. The “Advanced Trainer” was used in the US, but the same design in England during WWII was known as the “Harvard.”

With those old round engines, the “Texan” has a very distinctive “blaaaaaaaaaaat” sound as the prop tips break the sound barrier.

That sound carries well and the Condors’ practice routines often carry them over our house, so you’ll often see me running around the house yelling, “TEXANS!” and grabbing a camera to run out and catch them flying by.

With the rain and fog it had been quiet, but the arrival of the four Condor aircraft at full throttle over the runway took care of that. It was great to see them!

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Filed under CAF, Flying, Photography