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This is a Big aircraft.

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I was inside this monster. Ukrainian women in babushkas were selling t-shirts to raise money for medicine for the Chernobyl victims. They were cursing the Russian pilots. I bought a couple for my kids. Two FBO's on the field cooperated to sell the fuel this think needed - 50/50 each. As some of you know, the medical supplies were stolen when the plane made a stop in Russia to refuel. One interesting thing. Instead of a sophisticated device to check the balance, the An-225 had a simple $2 spirit level mounted on the inside of the fuselage. crude but effective. The plane proved to be unsellable and I believe this one is the only one ever made.
 
Holy cow - four nose wheels! And am I counting right - 28 main wheels? (7 sets of duels on each side)?
 
The main trucks were higher than your head. You could put a 747 on each wing. I flew up to Bradley with a friend. On the return trip, I landed with a 21 knot crosswind. A Cessna landed just ahead of me piloted by a young woman. I figured if she could get it down, so could I. I was al-most running out of rudder.
 
Then there's the original B-36 gear:

hc22dgpzlycvnwls8mpf.jpg


And I'm pretty sure it never had official cargo stolen. Beer maybe, but nothing on the manifest.
 
coldplugs said:
It seems like tire scrub (while turning) would be an issue. I'm sure that their engineers accounted for it but wonder how.
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Image the cost of changing tires! Also, imagine the fuel consumption!
 
There's a air museum we went to a few years ago, I think in Ohio and they acquired a Air Force Super Connie which was down in Texas, it took them a couple years to save up enough money to put fuel in it to fly it home, around $10,000 worth I believe! Naturally the cost today would be a bit more. :rolleyes2: PJ
 
pdplot said:
I was inside this monster. Ukrainian women in babushkas were selling t-shirts to raise money for medicine for the Chernobyl victims. They were cursing the Russian pilots. I bought a couple for my kids. Two FBO's on the field cooperated to sell the fuel this think needed - 50/50 each. As some of you know, the medical supplies were stolen when the plane made a stop in Russia to refuel. One interesting thing. Instead of a sophisticated device to check the balance, the An-225 had a simple $2 spirit level mounted on the inside of the fuselage. crude but effective. The plane proved to be unsellable and I believe this one is the only one ever made.
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Ukrainian women cursing Russians... no shock there. :smirk:

It's my opinion that the Russians couldn't stand the idea that the U.S. had the C-5 Galaxy and they just HAD to top it. feh.

Some time in the early '70's a pal and I went T.D.Y. to Patrick AFB and shot pix of the first stage of an Atlas rocket being stuffed into a C-5A for transport to Wright-Pat to be put on exhibit. It fit, JUST. About six inches of clearance around the rocket.

I've logged more than a few hours in C-5's on various missions during my time as a photojournalist for the Air Force, even got a hop into Karachi, Pakistan, in '73, along with a few Army UH-1 choppers and crew, to fly humanitarian relief to flood victims. The Russians were there as well, with their rip-off of the C-130 transport. They shared vodka with us on the apron under their wing but wouldn't allow us to set foot inside their aircraft.
 
C-5s are pretty big as well. During the Gulf War, some flew over my house on their way to Iraq, presumably with troops. A couple of times I flew from Bridgeport over to Stewart to view the C-5's parked there.Very impressive to see all those big guys. Unfortunately today, all my flying is confined to X-Plane 11.
 
I've logged more than a few hours in C-5's on various missions during my time as a photojournalist for the Air Force, even got a hop into Karachi, Pakistan, in '73, along with a few Army UH-1 choppers and crew, to fly humanitarian relief to flood victims.
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hey Doc,

sounds like you have experienced some remarkable stuff during your career.

can you share some of your photojournalist work with us?
 
If I'm not mistaken, the 225 was built to fly the Russian space shuttle like the 747 with the twin tail booms did with NASA's space shuttle. I believe that's why there was only one built.
 
mailbox said:
If I'm not mistaken, the 225 was built to fly the Russian space shuttle like the 747 with the twin tail booms did with NASA's space shuttle. I believe that's why there was only one built.
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Hadn't heard that but sounds plausible.
 
As it took off and banked, I wondered if it would then come back around for more fuel. :highly_amused:
 
That's awesome. Great to look at but I'll be a looker not a passenger. I am curious as to what airports can accomodate it.
 
Bradley's longest runway - 6/24 - is 9500 feet long. Almost 2 miles. The other two runways are shorter. I wasn't there when it landed or took off but I assume it used 6/24. Remember this aviation truism. Many aircraft have landed at airports with short runways that were too short for them to take off.
 
Speaking of short runways -

In June of '46, "Clipper America", N88858, a Lockheed 049 Constellation, lost an engine (literally) after leaving NYC for London. Aboard were Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh.

Emergency landing made at Windham CT airport, which still operates, and is 15 minutes from me. As the passengers *rapidly* left the aircraft, which had lost hydraulics and landed wheels up, local residents set up a picnic lunch for them, as they awaited onward transport.

Pan Am sent engineers to Windham, who patched up the aircraft, and took off (empty) on three engines, and headed to California for repair.

https://www.threadcity.com/articles/TomBeardsley/stars/index4.shtml

Note the absence of engine #4.

Clipper-America.jpg

Runway was 2000 feet.

(Always thought the early Connie was the most beautiful aircraft ever designed.)
 
GTP1960 said:
hey Doc,

sounds like you have experienced some remarkable stuff during your career.

can you share some of your photojournalist work with us?
Click to expand...

DoD has/had most of the images from my USAF days, I've been told by former colleagues that a decision was made to "purge" all those Viet Nam era images. The Still Photo Depository in Arlington was where most of those images and footage were kept. Seems a shame but that's the case.

I've some of the published stuff; "Airman Magazine" photo essays, tear sheets from various newspapers... not much to get excited over, really.
 
First C5 I ever saw was in Saigon, nose was up and they were loading hundreds of ceramic elephants in the nose. Figured some general was buying Christmas presents. Wish I had got a picture of that.
Marv
 
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