Saturday, 17 July 2010

Raptors in Suffolk

I had heard that the 2 Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptors due in the UK for RIAT and Farnborough would visit RAF Lakenheath a day or two before the big airshows, then on Monday I was informed 4 were due in at 7:30 that evening, I dropped everything and headed to the Suffolk base.
Of course I wasn't the only one to get advanced info, the aircraft had been heard by lots of avid scanner listening 'spotters' and excited messages had gone out on various online forums, the area around Lakenheath was packed with aviation enthusiasts.
Some F15Cs launched to go and meet the visitors, cameras were checked and rechecked as the hum of excitement got louder, the F15Cs returned, perfect for some test shots, checking the histogram and tweaking the settings, then in came the Raptors to touchdown at 7:30pm!
Will they go low-level; I doubt it, as it's not necessary for the high level intercept role this stealthy futurist jet was designed for, but who knows, I would love to see these pouring vapour and screaming through Cad or around Corris, but I think it'll only be if I photoshop it!!!



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