Touch down of a VF-213 F-14D during the Tomcat sunset cruise. The squadron embarked the USS Theodore Roosevelt together with VF-31 Tomcatters for this memorable deployment.

Flying from Kandahar Air Field to Tarin Kowt (Uruzgan) over war-torn Afghanistan during a deployment in 2008. 298sq was then assigned to the 1(NLD)ATF ISAF that stands for (1st (Neterherlands) Air Task Force International Security Assistance Force that was operating from Kandahar.

Operated by NyxAir, still in basic American Eagle colours.

During Operation Atalanta, the European Union anti piracy mission in Somalia waters this rare SH-60B Seahawk of the Turkish Navy made a cross-deck landing at the Dutch amphibious landing dock ship HMLS Johan de Witt (L-801).

This F-14A of Fighter Squadron (VF) 191 Satan's Kittens was seen during an enthusiastic landing at NAS Miramar. VF-191 and sister squadron VF-194 Red Lightnings were the two shortest lived F-14 squadrons in history and thus are rarely photographed. VF-191 was established on 4 Dec'86. Its pilots were trained by VF-124 and being prepared for a deployment onboard the USS Independence as part of CVW-10. After the FRS training, the squadron received its first Tomcats (mid '87). The squadron was disbanded before the cruise could ever take place, on 30 April 1988.

Civil adversary/aggressor company Draken International operates some former A-4K's of the Royal New Zealand Air Force, like this N146EM that once was serialled NZ6217. These two are entering the Edwards AFB (CA) runway during Dutch F-16AM / F-35A integration tests. The Draken pilots made life of the Dutch pilots a tough as they could while performing red air missions during the F-16 and F-35 flights.

One of my favorite F-14 Tomcat pictures. AJ-105 of Fighting Squadron (VF) 31 grabs the cable on board the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) during the final cruise of the F-14. VF-213 Black Lions and VF-31 Tomcatters had the honours to bring the Tomcat to war (Operation Iraqi Freedom) and to home for the final time. Awesome!

A CH-53E Super Stallion made a spectacular tactical landing over Kandahar air field in the war torn Afghanistan. By coincidence I was at the right place to picture the top view of the mighty helicopter, only moment later it disappeared in a brown out condition. The CH-53E was deployed with Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron (HMM) 365/Reinforced 'Blue Knights' (a CH-46E Sea Kight squadron).

An unmarked Fleet Logistic Support Squadron (VR) 61 Islanders C-40A Clipper during its landing at NAS Fallon (NV). The last C-40As delivered to the US Navy are Boeing 737-700 airframes with winglets and the wings and landing gear from the larger and heavier 737-800.

The Naval Fighter Weapons School (NFWS) Top Gun operated also Skyhawks with Marines titels as their opponents were not only coming from the US Navy. The desert colored A-4F is seen in close formation with a green colored NFWS A-4E. The E and F are colsely related to eachother, the F can be distinguished by the lack of a pitot tube on the tail.

A three-tone brown/two tone green colorscheme, the painters did a great job on this adversary Skyhawk of Fighter Squadron (VF) 126 Bandits. The squadron was based at Naval Air Station Miramar (CA) and supported the Pacific Fleet in their adversary needs. Fighter ONE TWO SIX was disestablished on 1 April 1994. This particular Hot Rod, as the Skyhawk was nick-named, crashed in the Pacific off coast California due to an engine failure on 6 May 1992, only weeks before it was planned to retire for service.

The green A-4E of the Naval Fighter Weapons School (NFWS) Top Gun, seen here while landing at its homebase NAS Miramar (CA), can now be found in a standard naval grey/white color scheme as AH-303 in Pensacola museum.

A Fighting ONE TWO SIX Bandit during its landing at NAS Miramar (CA). This Skyhawk was retired in June 1992 and stored at the 309th AMARG at Davis Monthan (AZ) as AN3A0657.

US Navy student pilots that once graduated from the T-34C, learn to fly a multi-engine plane with the T-44A Pegasus. The T-34Cs are replaced by the T-6B Texan II, but the T-44s, currently modified to T-44C, still soldier on from NAS Corpus Christi (TX).

This T-34C Turbo Mentor served the US Navy for a very long time, but was withdrawn from use in February 1992. By 2018 this T-34 was stored at the 309th AMARG at Davis Monthan (AZ).

This 1961 DHC-4 served in South East Asia once, with the 1st AvnCo at Vung Tau (South Vietnam). The C-7A was damaged in 1964 while landing at Phan Thet but was repaired. Then it served the 61st AvnCo and Air America (as 430). The Caribou was damaged multiple times due to ground fires. In 1975 it returned to the USA and was assigned to the 150th TAS at McGuire (NJ) and the 135th TAS at Baltimore (MD). It returned to the US Army in 1980, serving the Missouri (MO) Aviation Classification Repair Activity Depot (AVCRAD) up to 1991. In Dec 1992 it was registred to the National Museum of Naval Aviation as N6154Z, but scrapped in 2001.

Two seat Skyhawk with USS Lexington (CV-16) marks on the fuselage, the once dedicated training carrier of the US Navy that qualified student aviators in seaborne operations. Since 1992, the Lexington has been docked in Corpus Christi (TX) and serves as a museum.

This modified P-3B (former Royal Australian Air Force A9-605 and US Navy BuNo 154605) received a so-called Dome modification. The Airborne Early Warning and Control radar on top of its fuselage is suited for the counter drug mission. The USCS is satisfied with the Dome that is also called the "Hi-tech Drug Hunter".