On April 4, 2012 just after 2PM, Howard Pardue left us before his time had come. He was 77 years young. His XF8F-1 Bearcat NL14HP crashed shortly after takeoff from Breckenridge Texas. We send our sincerest condolences from the staff here at PhotoRecon to his family and friends and we shall remember him in our [...]
Archive for the ‘Reno Air Races’ Category
Announcement on Reno Races
Posted by joekates on January 5th, 2012
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE In a press conference to discuss the future of the National Championship Air Races, the Reno Air Racing Association (RARA) announced on Wednesday the formation of a Blue Ribbon ReviewPanel to study the event. The panel will examine any possible changes or modifications that could bemade to enhance the already high level [...]
Posted in Racers, Reno Air Races 
Tags: 2012, aeronautical engineer, Air Race, Air Races at the Reno‐Stead Airfield, airrace.org, American Warbirds, AT-6, Aviation Photography, B-17, B-17G, B-25, Blue angels at Reno, blue ribbon panel, Chino, Chuch Hall Aviation Six Shooter P-51, City of Reno, Classic Warbirds, Collings foundation, Commemorative Air Force, Corsair, custom aircraft phtography., Dave Budd, Dennis Buehn, F-22, FAA, FAA Reno NTSB, Federal Aviation Administration, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Houghton, Jim Hall, Joe Kates, John Sharp, Mike Houghton, Mustang, N514NH, National Championship Air Races, National Transportation Safety Board, North American, North American Mustang, P-51, P-51 Betty Jane, P-51 mustang Reno, Palm Springs Air Museum, Planes of Fame, POF, president and CEO of RARA, Raptor, RARA, Reno Tahoe, Reno Tahoe Airport Authority, Sept. 12 – 16, Steve Hinton, Strega, SU SU, T-6, thoughts and prayers, Thunderbirds at reno, Unlimited Air Race champion, usaf, Vought F4U-4 Corsair, Warbird Photos, Warbird Rides, Warbirds, www.airrace.org, Yanks Air Museum 
No Comments »Vought F4U-4 Corsair
Posted by joekates on April 4th, 2011
The aircraft craft is owned by Doug Matthews of Wellington, Fla., and is an ecellent example of a 1945 Chance Vought F4U-4 “Corsair.” This Photo was captured at the 2010 Reno Air Races. She was just sitting on the Ramp in early evening, after just competing in the Race a few hrs earlier. Photo copyright Joseph [...]
Posted in Fighters, Racers, Reno Air Races, Uncategorized Tags: 1945 Chance Vought F4U-4 "Corsair, artistic aircraft photos, classic aircraft, Classic Fighters of America, Classic Warbirds, custom aircraft phtography., Doug Matthews, Reno 2010, Reno Airraces aircraft, sepia, Vought F4U-4 Corsair No Comments »National Championship Air Races
Posted by joekates on October 23rd, 2010
The Reno Race that Almost Wasn’t…
By Mark Hrutkay
The National Championship Air Races at Reno in 2010 did something they never did in the past and that was to cancel the final races in several classes. There always seems to be some wind at Reno and on Sunday, there was a lot. The winds were hitting 30kts at Stead Field.
The problem showed up as the Silver Unlimited Heat racers were landing. They landed on a crosswind runway, instead of landing in front of the crowd. That was formerly a strip used for emergencies and had finally gotten the center repaved in the past year.
The jet race flew and was won by Curt Brown (yes, the Space Shuttle Pilot with six missions under his belt) in the L-29 Viper with a speed of 515.582 MPH. The next race was the T-6 Gold and it was cancelled because of the high winds. Dennis Buehn who was the winner on Saturday was declared the Champion with a speed of 241.247MPH.
The decision was made based on the limited number of runways available and if one was closed because of a crash, then there would be real problems. There was a perpendicular crosswind on 26 which was enough to close it since the crosswind was high enough to exceed the capability of most of the planes. That left two other runways and if one was closed due to an accident, they would rapidly run out of options. The racers carry a very limited amount of fuel and diverting to another airport could well have been hazardous.
