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Axalp 2018 – the last Tiger show |
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Text: |
Urs
Schnyder |
Pictures: |
Urs Schnyder |
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Whenever
I go to the Axalp, I try to be there as early as possible. At six in
the morning it is still dark and not too crowded yet. My aim is to be on
top before the sun rises above the horizon. It is not only more
comfortable to walk but you also have a bigger chance of finding a
suitable place on top where to place yourself for taking pictures. As
the flying starts at about nine, the earlier you are there, the more
chances you have of taking good pictures.
People arrive on top during
the span of about seven hours. However, as soon as the last display item
is finished in the afternoon people start rushing down again. Everybody
wants to be first at the chairlift and then the busses taking the people
down to the valley. If you are unlucky, you may have to wait several
hours for a bus to take you down as the road is single track with few
passing places where the busses can cross. |
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climbing to the
top (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
The valles still
covered by morning fog (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
The race to get
down again (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Queuing for the
cablecar (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Gunnery display |
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The
whole event started when people went to watch the shooting for the Air
Force gunnery competition. From this it grew until it is what one can
see today. There is still shooting for the competition during the
morning, as the public part only lasts about 1,5 hours in the afternoon.
This year the two F-18 J-5011 and J-5017 with their special tail
markings took part in the shooting. |
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F-18 firing ist
guns (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-18 two seater (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-18 special
Tail (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-18 special
Tail (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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F-5 firing guns (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Nortrop F-5E
Tiger II (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Nortrop F-5E
Tiger II (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Nortrop F-5E
Tiger II (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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F-18 special
Tail (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-18 special
Tail (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-18 special
Tail (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-18 special
tank markings (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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F-18 special
Tail (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-18 special
Tail (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Nortrop F-5E
Tiger II (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Pilatus PC-21 |
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The
PC-21 is the advanced trainer of the Air Force that prepares the student for
the F-18. Many Air Forces have meanwhile introduced this trainer into their
inventory. |
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Pilatus PC-21 (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Pilatus PC-21 (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Pilatus PC-21 (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Pilatus PC-21 (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Pilatus PC-21 (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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F-18 Solo Display |
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The
start of the display was very special when the F-18 departed vertically
from the formation with the two Pilatus trainers. It felt a bit longer
than the normal solo display. The one new feature was to shoot flares
while flying inverted. |
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F-18 The first
rays of the rising sun (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-18 Firing
flare while flying inverted (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Mc Donnell
Douglas F-18C (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Helicopters |
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This
year the Super Puma was the only Helicopter that gave a display. This
was basically it’s standard Axalp display. Later two Super Pumas showed
the dropping of water from their underslung buckets. The EC-635 was
only present in a support role for the event but didn’t display. |
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Eurocopter
Cougar (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Eurocopter
Cougar shooting flares (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Eurocopter
Cougar (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Eurocopter
Cougar (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Eurocopter
Cougar (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Eurocopter
Cougar (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Eurocopter
Cougar (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Eurocopter
Cougar with water bucket (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Eurocopter
Cougar dropping water (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Eurocopter
EC-635 (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Eurocopter
EC-635 (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Special displays |
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There
were three items in the program that were unique and have never been
shown before. A very dissimilar formation of a PC-7, a PC-21 and the
display F-18 flew in formation. After a pass in formation the F-18
started right into his solo display. Special were also the parachutists,
as their speed and lack of any noise contrasts so much with the jets.
Suddenly there was an
announcement, that an unidentified aircraft had violated the airspace
and needed to be investigated. Therefore, two F-18 had to be dispatched
to investigate. The intruder was of course a Cessna Citation from the
Air Force. So, the F-18 could show how they intercept and investigate
with one of the F-18 flying in a certain distance to cover his
colleague. Unfortunately, the distance between the planes as well as the
one between them and the audience was too great to take any pictures. It
was nevertheless interesting to see how it worked.
As this was the last time
the F-5 would be flying at the Axalp, there was a special 12 ship
formation that did a fly past. |
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F-18 intercept
mission (Picture courtesy
Michael E. Fader) |
Cessna 560XL
Citation Excel intercept mission (Picture courtesy
Michael E. Fader) |
Paras (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Paras (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Special
formation PC-7, PC-21, F-18 (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Paras (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
Special
formation PC-7, PC-21, F-18 (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Breaking
formation (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-5 Formation (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-5 Formation (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
F-5 Formation (Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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Patrouille Suisse |
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Like
always, this is the last item on the program. What can one say that hasn’t
been said already many times, except that blue skies and aerobatic teams are
a perfect match. |
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(Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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(Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
(Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
(Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
(Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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(Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
(Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
(Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
(Picture courtesy
Urs Schnyder) |
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