NATO Days Ostrava

[monographix]

http://www.natodays.cz/files/gallery/2014/zpravy/DN14_brana3a.jpg
http://www.natodays.cz/files/gallery/2014/zpravy/DN14_brana3b.jpg

Holly! were these taken today??
The "spotters" area is going to be like that ?

[Carlito]

http://www.natodays.cz/files/gallery/2014/zpravy/DN14_brana3a.jpg
http://www.natodays.cz/files/gallery/2014/zpravy/DN14_brana3b.jpg

Holly! were these taken today??
The "spotters" area is going to be like that ?

Probably today (maybe yesterday), and yes, our "spotter" area surely will looks like this

[monographix]

http://www.natodays.cz/files/gallery/2014/zpravy/DN14_brana3a.jpg
http://www.natodays.cz/files/gallery/2014/zpravy/DN14_brana3b.jpg

Holly! were these taken today??
The "spotters" area is going to be like that ?

Probably today (maybe yesterday), and yes, our "spotter" area surely will looks like this

What about the "main entrance gate / for cars and pedestrians" on the NW end of runway ? ... is it any good for some action photos ? ... i guess take-offs start on the other end of runway? (SouthEast?)

I guess no any chance maybe for access to this zone inside the fence? ->




What area are those photos taken from ? ->
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/60830106

[Carlito]

What about the "main entrance gate / for cars and pedestrians" on the NW end of runway ? ... is it any good for some action photos ? ... i guess take-offs start on the other end of runway? (SouthEast?)

This location is very good for landings. And yes, take-offs usually are on SE end.

I guess no any chance maybe for access to this zone inside the fence? ->

No chance at all. (unless you know someone working in airport )

What area are those photos taken from ? ->
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/60830106

Probably from area of cargo, there are some car parkings and other places where you can take such photo (of course using ladder).

[monographix]

best chances of such angle and proximity as this image from 2011 Ostrava is this general "spotters" gathering field outside the fence on the North side of the runway as indicated in your map ? Or this photographer has access to some closer to runway area and inside the fence? -> http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/3219/d ... ltered.jpg - D90 + (probably) sigma 500 zoom

I am mostly interested in close proximity afterburnier back side shots like this, especially of the Swedes and during taking-offs. Is still the known now forementioned field the best area for such pics?

[Eizo]

MiG-29 Display cancelled. Strangely, as it flew a superb display rehearsal today.
Also the Belgian Hercules arrived to late to pull it into the static.

[monographix]

The Polish mig29 display cancelled??

[monographix]

I got all my equipment stolen from car today while i parked for a while in Bratislava .... on my way to Ostrava
Any chance maybe someone have a second system i can use with them to at least bring some shots back home ? ....

[Eizo]

Has anyone information why the polish MiG29 did fly rehearsal, but no display, although they had a spare!?

[emkey83]

Maybe a problem with the display pilot?

[Carlito]

Maybe a problem with the display pilot?

Not pilot, but technical issue. Friday rehearsal was shortened because of this.
Details are unknown for me.

[Chrisse]

Pity, the tailslide with flares looks lovely

[Leadfoot]

Well, that Osprey demo was quite a letdown. OK, I did not expect any serious aerobatics, but at least a flyby in "plane mode" would have been nice. Anyway, we saw it in the air, and that'll do for now.

[Eizo]

Well, there were much more things a let down to my eyes, not all possible to avoid:

- Cancellation of Awacs (Because of Ukraine crisis, yeah, certainly - come on...)
- Nearly no static aircraft with some exceptions (CIAF was hard to beat, ok)
- Static itself a mess
- MiG-29 demo cancelled
- Weather (the area was muddy and dirty, no comparison to sunny 2012)
- Osprey "demo"

To be honest, without Draken and Viggen this show would have been a complete disaster. Not many displays, and the static a mess. Better luck 2015...

[Leadfoot]

Well, the number of participating aircraft (both static and dynamic displays) was low, that's true (compared o the peak years, particularly 2012). It probably would have been a good idea to set up the fence on the static area just a bit farther from the aircraft. Apart from that minor thing, I can't really point out any negative organisational issues.
+ I had no problem with the weather. There was not much mud near the radar tower, the terrain was perfectly OK. Some clouds on the Saturday and some wind on Sunday morning, but all-in-all I thought this weather was pretty fine for this time of year (an no rain despite forecasts predicting potential showers).

This was my 5th consecutive visit to the NATO Days, and the special spotter positions always made it worth regardless of the programme.

[SilentFlight]

In fairness, this is not just an airshow! Its a presentation of Aircraft, ground forces, civil defence etc. Considering it is all paid for by the government and sponsorship, they do extremely well and its all open for free! I wish we could do something like this in the UK. The Osprey demo was a bit limited, but it is still great to see one fly, it was purely a couple of circuits, before departing. The only USAF flying participation anywhere in Europe not at a trade show!

The low levels of statics still had a few gems in there, things are going not too far away that make it a success with what arrived! I know also that there were a few disappointing cancellations that never made it into the public domain, but that cant be helped!