"'Mach Loop' Aircraft Photos" Topic

A bug seems to have deleted my post from the 'CAD West' thread and won't let me re-post it, so here are those photos again:

These were all taken by Cadet Flight Sergeant Dan Ramsbottom of 1429 (Cardigan & Aberporth) Squadron, Royal Air Force Air Cadets. He is now still only 16 and took some of these when he was quite a bit younger! A very talented lad.

They were all taken at a spot known as 'The Fence', at the top of the Tal-y-Llyn valley, on the southern side of the Cadair Idris mountain range, in a military low-flying area known to aviation enthusiasts as the 'Mach Loop' ('Mach' in this instance is short for 'Machynlleth' – the town just to the south).

One of the F-15E pilots pictured here actually bought the print from Dan. :)

My favourites are the 'smoky' Typhoons, the Tucano, the King Air, the F-15E with Lakenheath tail markings, the Tornado with snowy mountain and Tornado with green farmland behind.

And can't you just hear everybody on the C-130 flight deck yelling "Yeeeeeeeehaw!" as they pull into the turn. ;-)

Fatman

I put it up originally, having spotted the link on something, but Dan's photos speak far more than my original link!

If anyone fancies a visit, details here: link

Note that there are no timetables for the Mach Loop. "The only timetables are for TACTICAL low flying areas (LFA7T etc) and these do not cover the loop, so please disregard. It all comes down to pot luck and patience."

And can't you just hear everybody on the C-130 flight deck yelling "Yeeeeeeeehaw!" as they pull into the turn

Cant you just picture a Lancaster or Mosquito in that position?

Indeed! I did do a low-level run on a Herk through that area once and it was 'entertaining'… 8(

While it does boil down to pot luck on the exact timings, Dan does have, er, 'contacts'…

Good man to know

(That was really as much a warning for the rest of us who might think of making our way over there)

Indeed ;)

Some stunning shots. :-)

(I must admit this remains my favourite "Tornado on exercise" photo though…. ;-) )

Dom, PMSL at that one

Indeed! Taken at the same spot and I know the Nav in question… ;)

Here's the zoomed-out version. Just shows that it always pays to take a closer look… :)

The Typhoon driver should have gotten a huge print of his bird pulling wing contrails for his "I love me" wall like the Strike Eagle driver did.

Jemima Fawr I once sat in the cockpit of a Herc while it refueled from a Victor that was more than enough "entertainment" for me.

Fatman

Lion,

I have no doubt that the Two-Winged Master Race would if they could identify themselves! :) The F-15E driver was able to recognise himself from the tail number and date.

Fatman,

Good Lord. A mate of mine from cadet days went onto Victors after flying Shackletons – he had some horror stories to tell about trying to fly slow enough to tank Herks.

Which reminds me of this photo, which another one of my cadets grabbed in 2011:

Tale of my late fathers. He flew Concorde, famously in formation with the Red Arrows. I'm told the briefing went like this:

"You ever flown formation?"

"In my national service days in meteors"

"It's like riding a bicycle, you never forget. The flight will form up on me, you just bring Concorde up and tuck it in the back"

He told me, "it's a bloody airliner, not a fighter!"

I have a photo somewhere from the cockpit. They look really close, but he said they looked a damn sight closer from where he was sat…