Some pics from the USS Intrepid

[Meyekul]

Came across these today, thought someone might be interested.

[ozzy72]

Great pics Meyekul, looks like you were freezing your fragile parts off to me, brrrr!

Ozzy

[jrpilot]

Was on that also....but they didn't have the Concorde at the time

[Hagar]

Good one Meyekul.

You did better than me. The day I visited USS Intrepid it was closed & I had to leave the next day.

[Woodlouse2002]

Am I the only one thinking here that some (all) of those planes should be stored under cover?

[Meyekul]

Yeah it was freezing on the deck, so we walked the length of it and snapped a few pics then went back inside where it was much warmer!  It was actually good that it was so cold, because there was hardly anyone else there.  We could really take our time and enjoy the visit

[Scottler]

Where'd you find a cheap disposable camera in Manhattan?  lol

[Meyekul]

[quote]Where'd you find a cheap disposable camera in Manhattan?

[Mr. Bones]

looks nice but personally i don't think a Blackbird belongs there. it should be stored inside a USAF museum or in the mojave desert under an old shelter. the same as for the Blackbird at Duxford, but hey, i have no right to speak  ;)

[Woodlouse2002]

[quote]looks nice but personally i don't think a Blackbird belongs there. it should be stored inside a USAF museum or in the mojave desert under an old shelter. the same as for the Blackbird at Duxford, but hey, i have no right to speak

[Mr. Bones]

not only that, besides the better protection the blackbird gets inside na museum or in the dry desert, i think it belongs there because it has spent most of the time there during test flights or in the early stages of development when nobody knew about it. when i think of the Southern Californian desert, i think of planes like that in the sixties, seventies...man what a time!  8)

[Meyekul]

I don't think the elements are exactly good for the planes, but since they're designed to operate at high altitudes where the weather is always pretty yucky by ground standards, I think they'll be ok.  

Here's a pic of another SR-71 that is displayed outside in Huntsville, Alabama:

[Woodlouse2002]

Thats not the problem. Its the constant exposure to sun, wind, rain, ice and snow that will in time destroy it. Sure their ment to operate at high altitudes, but their not ment to sit outside for year after year constantly being beaten by the weather. I mean, look at the state of that Tomcat in the second picture.

[Hagar]

Well, ideally of course, all static display aircraft would be stored under cover. This is not always possible for various reasons. I would think they're far better off in the care of a proper museum like USS Intrepid rather than stuck out in the desert miles from where most ordinary people can see them. My recent visit to the Midland Aircraft Museum at Coventry where the majority of aircraft are also stored outside convinced me of that. Thanks to the efforts of a staff of volunteers they are well cared for. If the museum had not rescued them these aircraft would have been scrapped long ago.

PS. Apart from being covered with snow I can't see much wrong with that Tomcat.

[Craig.]

nice pics.
Got a pic of that SR71 in hunstville from another angle, nice little aircraft.