Aeroplanes

[willedoo]

Here's a line up of some of the aircraft at last year's pre-Covid MAKS airshow.

 

 

[Marty_d]

Now those are truly "greyhound" skirts.

 

[nomadpete]

Stop trying to be subtle.

We all know that old joke.

[onetrack]

Yes, that's a nice collection of interesting Russian aircraft. It's a shame the view of them was blocked by those stupid young women walking into the photographers field of view.

[nomadpete]

Young women?

What young women?

 

[Bruce Tuncks]

the ones with the nice legs nomad

[nomadpete]

I looked and looked, there are some notable aircraft present, but the view is obstructed by some other non airplane things in the foreground.

[Marty_d]

Methinks the queen protesteth too much.

 

Now Peter, I know the young ladies in Franklin are not as pulchritudinous as those in the picture, but surely you still recognise a well-formed filly when you see one?

[nomadpete]

I'm an airplane tragic.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Besides, my wife was reading over my shoulder when I commented

[willedoo]

It's amazing how a serious aviation thread can be waylaid. But I'd agree those girls have no place blocking the photographers view. Unlike this high altitude pilot who has every right to take her MiG-21 shock cone in hand.

 

 

 

 

[nomadpete]

Willie, is that a genuine Russian flying suit and helmet?

[pmccarthy]

Can someone explain how a G suit fits the G spot.?

[willedoo]

42 minutes ago, nomadpete said:

Willie, is that a genuine Russian flying suit and helmet?

Yes, Pete. The suit is a VKK-6M partial pressure suit, circa 1961 but still current issue (the old Russian philosophy - if it's not broken, don't fix it). It's a combined partial pressure suit/G suit. You can't see it in the photo as it's deflated, but they have an internal rubber air bladder across the waist, from one side to the other. When you pull G's, the waist bladder and the inflatable tubes (capstans) only from the waist down inflate, via bleed air from the engine compressor. Same function as speed jeans.

 

When functioning as a partial pressure suit, the leg, arm and back capstans inflate, but normally not the abdominal bladder unless you are pulling enough G for it to kick in The partial pressure system works with O2 from the onboard oxygen system, or from the emergency O2 reserve if bailing out. Once over 40,000', they are designed to provide a small pressure on the chest cavity to assist in pressure breathing. Also for the same purpose if bailing out. In the event of a cockpit de-pressurization at altitude, they act as a 'get me down quick' suit rather than sustained flight at altitude in ambient pressure.  They normally fly with another suit or combo over the top of it, but they like to take PR pics with just the spiderman suit alone.

 

The helmet is a two piece combination outer hard shell with the leather inner helmet which holds the comms. Hard to tell from the front view, but the hard shell is either a ZSh-3 or ZSh-3M which started in 1961, but is mainly only used by students at training bases these days. Duralumin shell with a plexiglass visor.  The leather inner helmet is a ShL type. I think I can see some fur lining in the photo, so it would be a winter ShZ-61 or a 78 or 82 model, all much the same.

[willedoo]

47 minutes ago, pmccarthy said:

Can someone explain how a G suit fits the G spot.?

The mind boggles. I wonder if they custom made them. This photo shows a real pilot, the famous Madame MiG, Marina Popovich, in the same suit. Marina was fairly short and had rather ample hips, so in spite of the suits having a lot of sizes, I doubt one off the shelf would have fit her.

 

 

Edited December 15, 2020 by willedoo

[willedoo]

Apologies for posting a serious photo, but here's another one of Marina suiting up in an older version suit, the VKK-3M, Series 3. This one is an interesting photo as it shows a trio of famous female aviators all together.

 

 

[willedoo]

This is the pressure helmet worn with those suits at higher altitudes; necessary to sustain life if 60,000 or higher. This one is a GSh-6A. The suit has small metal D rings and the helmet is fixed to them with wire cables to hold it down.

 

It might be just a gut feeling, but I'm not sure if this lady is a real pilot. She seems to have forgotten something.

 

 

[Marty_d]

Maybe the bra doesn't go with the G suit.

 

Is that the same lady who was... hmm, can't think of the verb... "giving a hand to" the MiG?

Edited December 15, 2020 by Marty_d

[onetrack]

The girl caressing the MIG shock cone is no high altitude pilot. That's Mila Vujanovic, in 1967. She was an actress, and was also voted "the most beautiful woman in Serbia". She was also an expert palm reader and astrologist.

 

Unfortunately, her common-law husband shot her in the back, in a fit of jealousy, in 2000. She went into a coma, but then regained consciousness - but she never walked again. She died in 2005. A terrible end for one so pretty.

 

https://sr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Миља_Вујановић

Edited December 15, 2020 by onetrack

[willedoo]

6 hours ago, onetrack said:

The girl caressing the MIG shock cone is no high altitude pilot. That's Mila Vujanovic, in 1967. She was an actress, and was also voted "the most beautiful woman in Serbia". She was also an expert palm reader and astrologist.

 

Unfortunately, her common-law husband shot her in the back, in a fit of jealousy, in 2000. She went into a coma, but then regained consciousness - but she never walked again. She died in 2005. A terrible end for one so pretty.

 

https://sr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Миља_Вујановић

Thanks for the info, onetrack. I knew she wasn't a pilot; that was a pathetic attempt at humour. Serbia explains a few things. The ground tech uniform in the background didn't look Russian as I could see a hint of epaulettes which the VVS techies don't have. Very common in former Yugoslav and Eastern Bloc countries though.

[octave]

A couple of pictures I managed to snap whilst walking on the beach today.

[Marty_d]

Classic Stearman!  What beach was this?

[octave]

Point Addis Beach  https://www.google.com/maps/place/Point+Addis+Beach/@-38.4218559,144.2620205,13.25z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x6ad47b518e763007:0x4ea4a432027a5226!8m2!3d-38.3949994!4d144.2532845

 

Perfect timing, I heard it approaching and it knew would be something something interesting!

[facthunter]

There's nothing better than the  noise of radials. Nev

[nomadpete]

Noise?

That's not noise. It's music.

[spacesailor]

I like the I C noise much better then ANY electric noise.

sneaks up on one. and before you see it out of the corner of your EYE.

ITS Got you.

Then the wail of your ambulance, breaks that serenity you were enjoying !.

spacesailor