For any aircraft buffs out there (I know there are a couple).  This Antonov stopped over at Cairns yesterday for a couple of days for repairs.  It has suffered minor bird strike but enough to put it on the ground for a while.  Whilst not the largest aircraft in the sky it still amazes me how such a thing can get off the ground.   Company is out of Kiev, Russia.

Ian

I lived in Richmond NSW ...air base town in the 80's and 90's. An Antonov came to an airshow  and one day the pilot and crew took it into their heads to have a bit of a fly around. I was at Hawkesbury Ag. at the time , out in the paddock. This thing flew over us fully banking on its side so the wing tip literally almost touched the tops  of the pine plantation!
   We thought it would drop out of the sky it was so low and were frozen in shock . It was quite beautiful....like a huge fat bodied white moth slowly cruising over  us. Apparently the crew had done outrageously naughty airspace things and several were sent back to Mother Russia straight away!
   I will never forget that image ...I'm glad they did it really,...  :)

back in 84/85 I was sationed in darwin, there was a big air defence excerise on (Pitch Black) with the yanks. A day or two before it started the Mirages were grounded but the yanks carried on, i can remember working underneath a mirage when I heard a loud  rumble, rolled out from underneath and there was a B52 lowish level with the bomb bay doors wide open. Now that was a sight.

around that time a U2 Tornado chaser came in for a couple of weeks to study cyclones, from memory there was none that season.Pretty amazing watching that thing take off.

clazandaza wrote:

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For any aircraft buffs out there (I know there are a couple).  This Antonov stopped over at Cairns yesterday for a couple of days for repairs.  It has suffered minor bird strike but enough to put it on the ground for a while.  Whilst not the largest aircraft in the sky it still amazes me how such a thing can get off the ground.   Company is out of Kiev, Russia.

Ian

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Got a heap of aviation sent to me, and this was one of them.
No idea where it was taken

 

That's cheating Ian, you had inside info. It would have been quite spectacular. Good pics. How long was it here?

BIG SUCKER

I thought "hello someone  here must know me!"

Cruising Granny wrote:

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That's cheating Ian, you had inside info.
It would have been quite spectacular. Good pics.
How long was it here?

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Likely here to at least Monday Chris.  They have to replace an engine.  Takes a bit of time when you stop for Vodka every couple of hours.

 

That's an interesting work practice, or do they use vodka to clean parts?