Halloween Fun in Central Florida (PDF)

 

As Halloween fast approaches, PlanePixelBooks presents a look at two Central Florida examples of a growing trend among aviation facilities and organizations across the United States. Countering growing nefarious activities connected to Halloween celebrations in the last few decades of the 20th century, community events, providing safe venues for trick-or-treating by the youngest generation, have become increasingly popular.

A variety of aviation-related events have been supported, sponsored, or undertaken by communities, private sector businesses, and private groups in recent years. One such event was the 2023 Trunk-or-Treat held at city-owned Bartow Executive Airport on, appropriately, Friday the 13th of October. An interesting collection of aircraft types, old and new, was available for inspection and, in keeping with seasonal tradition, treats were handed out by pilots and aircrew members.

The second event, covered in Part Two, took place at Lakeland Linder International Airport on 28 October 2023 and illustrates a different approach to a family-friendly Halloween outing. A dawn 5K (3.1 mi) fun run that included several aircraft started the day off. Later, trick-or-treating, a scary hangar, a spooky walking trail, and other events were available for visitors.

This 10-page e-publication is free to view at the PlanePixelBooks Publications blog linked below.

PlanePixelBooks Publications

Ghost Squadron Preparations: Finishing Touches For the 2024 Air Show Season (PDF)

 

A unique air display team arrived at Lakeland, Florida from Bozeman, Montana in early March for a final series of practice sessions ahead of its 2024 air show season. Known as the Polaris Ghost Squadron, the team flies four single-engine Aero Vodochody L-39 Albatros trainers, three twin-engine Dassault/Dornier Alpha Jet A trainers, and a two-seat Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29UB 'Fulcrum' fighter.

However, air show work is the Ghost Squadron's secondary mission. The first order of business is to provide critical flight support for Polaris Program astronaut training. Led by entrepreneur/pilot/astronaut Jared "Rook" Isaacman, the program's goal is to send three missions to space with commercial astronaut crews. The first mission, Polaris Dawn planned for the last half of 2024, will use a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to take the crew of four up for five days of technical and biological research experiments and activities. Along the way, the team plans to put the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, or capsule, in the highest Earth orbit yet attained and step outside for the first spacewalk, or extravehicular activity, by a commercial astronaut.

Such activities in the demanding environment of space call for sharpness of mind and body and, above all, teamwork and that's where the Ghost Squadron comes in. Developing and maintaining skills at the highest levels is best done in the cockpits of jets at high speeds, unusual attitudes, and more than the Earth's gravity that we all experience every day. The folks at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration recognized this and have had a robust program, using supersonic Northrop T-38 Talon trainers, since the first crewed space missions in the early 1960s. All of the aircraft flown by the Ghost Squadron are used for such astronaut training. Unlike a ride in a simulator, the pressure to be sharp is very real with the possibility of no second chances.

The images in this eight-page e-booklet were taken on 30 March during a practice flight by the team's four L-39s and the MiG-29.

This PDF e-publication is, as always, free to view at the PlanePixelBooks Publications blog linked below.

While there, take a look at "Check Six: An Eye to The Past - A NASA Classic", posted on 9 October 2023, for images and information about a preserved NASA T-38 and the type's use in astronaut training.

PlanePixelBooks Publications