Dragon 51/52 Night Shots @ Fairford

[dinger]

After driving down to Fairford in the hope of getting Fridays two arrivals departing for sunnier climbs, I was delighted to see both of the U-2's parked outside with one well under preparation for departure. It was -4 degrees during my time there with a clear sky and full moon. Due to the distance and my limited night shooting experiance, they are not as sharp as I would like, however, it was worth the long drive to bag them.

68-10331 ready for taxi



68-10331 holding short



68-10331 lined up and ready to go



80-1087 getting prepped to depart



Advice, critiscism and comments welcomed.

Dinger.

[Viper810]

Great shots

Do you also have 21 & 31?

[dinger]

Sadly I could not stay for the inbounds today. They have been reported on Reach Hunters Blog as 80-1071 and 80-1089.

Dinger.

[keystation]

Thanks for sharing!. Nice to see those pictures

[andel]

They look amazing whit those BIG fueltanks.
Well done !.

[Shannon spotter]

Nice catches!

On the last picture the U2 seems to be missing a bit of fuselage underneath the cockpit, whats suppose to be there?

regards,
Dirk.

[dinger]

Nice catches!

On the last picture the U2 seems to be missing a bit of fuselage underneath the cockpit, whats suppose to be there?

regards,
Dirk.

Both aircraft had this fairing removed initially. Once the pilot was crewed in, the last thing to be done before they were ready for engine start was the fitting of the fairing. I suppose that on operational flights, certain mission payload can be carried within this fairing and perhaps on ferry flights the pilots additional kit goes in here. Only a thought.

Dinger.

[gustav]

Awesome pics.

Nice catches!

On the last picture the U2 seems to be missing a bit of fuselage underneath the cockpit, whats suppose to be there?

regards,
Dirk.

Seems it has to do with spy equipment.