F22 Raptor at the Miramar Airshow

Ever since the movie Top Gun came out I’ve been fascinated with fighter jets. As a kid, I went through a phase where I built model airplanes like crazy. It was a bit of an obsession. At times, I would build 2 or 3 models a week. More than 20 model planes and helicopters hung from the ceiling of my bedroom and I knew all the specs for each aircraft. (Girls were discovered later.)

More shots below.
Even today, I can quickly identify most military aircraft by name that may fly overhead. F-16’s Fighting Falcons, F-14 Tomcats, F-18 hornets, Harrier jumpjets, cobra helicopters, Apaches, you name it.

A highlight of my summers in Colorado was always the airshow. There I could see all of these amazing machines up close and feel the roar of their engines during the flight demonstrations. I had always wanted to go to the Miramar Airshow in Southern California as it was the biggest military airshow in America. It was also where much of Top Gun was filmed.

So finally, 20 years later, I happened to be in San Diego in 2008 just at the right time to catch the Miramar Airshow in all its glory. I felt like a little kid again. The F22 Raptor (pictured above) was a new one to me. It flies in ways that no other planes can and at $138 million a piece you would have to expect that.

Gear: Nikon D2X / Nikon 80-200mm F2.8 lens

Exposure: ISO 250 F8.5 1/1000th

The F22 Raptor, P51 Mustang and an F16 Falcon during a heritage flight.

The AV-8B Harrier demonstrating a vertical take off and hover.

As always, click any image for the large version. TR