Photographic Logbook: Formation Photographs

Airplanes observed in their natural habitat: aloft.

September 17, 2003: That's Ron over there in his Piper Cherokee 140-B. I-94 can be seen winding its way toward Kalamazoo in the background. Ron was based at the South Haven airport with me and Dave.

September 17, 2003: We entertained ourselves by chasing Ron around the sky for a while in the Decathlon.

April 11, 2004: I entered a climbing spiral in Warrior 481, twisting upward through holes in a layer of scattered clouds. Upon leveling off at 5500 feet, I was treated to the sight of Decathlon 68W performing a loop several miles away. Once he was done showing-off, Dave fell into formation off my left wing for a few moments before peeling off to refuel (above). This was a memorable morning - my first time flying above the clouds.

April 7, 2004: With Dave flying Decathlon 68W in close pursuit, we followed the shoreline of Lake Michigan over Saugatuck and back toward South Haven. It was a smooth, calm evening and perfect for Kristy's first ride in Warrior 481. Photo taken by Arjo.

April 7, 2004: Kristy and I smile for the camera from our new airplane. Photo taken by Arjo.

April 14, 2004: As Arjo and I watched from Warrior 481, Dave rolled Decathlon 68W away to reveal a belly whiter than a Midwesterner in April (and I know what I'm talking about). Notice how the structural elements of the horizontal stabilizer show through the Decathlon's fabric skin. Dave must be putting some g-load on the airplane to compress the skin so visibly. Photo taken by Arjo.

May 16, 2004: On the return trip from the Torchport fly-in, we took the scenic route along the Lake Michigan shoreline. Behind Dave is Sleeping Bear Point. South Manitou Island is visible behind the spinner of the Decathlon's prop and North Manitou Island can be seen aft of the Decathlon's rudder.

In the legend of the Sleeping Bear, a mother bear and two cubs set off across Lake Michigan from Wisconsin in search of food. Exhausted, the two cubs drowned within sight of the Michigan shoreline. Ojibway legend held that the large, humped dune on the shoreline represented the mother bear waiting in vain for her fallen cubs, staring out across the water at the two islands marking their final resting places.

May 16, 2004: Not exactly crop circles in the traditional sense, the odd background behind Dave's Decathlon is created by circular sprinkling systems. The large blue area is a strikingly-large man-made lake. This photograph was taken a few miles east of Muskegon, Michigan.

August 22, 2004: On a lovely Sunday morning, even maneuvering flight couldn't shake Six Eight Whiskey.

October 09, 2004: Dave flies off my wing in the Stearman. The Stearman began life as a Naval trainer, teaching WWII-era cadets how to fly.

October 09, 2004: Sunlight glints from the wingtip strobe as the Stearman trails behind my Warrior. In order to fly in formation with the slower biplane, I had the throttle pulled way back and a single notch of flaps hanging in the breeze to slow me down.

October 09, 2004: Looking down at Jeff's Meyers OTW and Dave's "new" 1943 Stearman as they fly comparatively low over the waters of Lake Michigan.