This first set of pictures and videos have come from various places on
the Internet.
The second set of pictures are shots I have taken all at airshows and USAF bases.
I have tried to include the stories that go with each shot.

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Evidently the Navy is teaching a new a new dog-fighting technique that
does away with guns and missiles. I understand it's called Aircraft Wrestling. These are
photos of a pair of F-18 Hornets at Top Gun which had a mid-air collision and then the
pilots "John Wayned" them back to base. Anyone has got to be NUTS to be a Naval
Aviator.
Hook down - hydraulics gone - incredible... This truly is a miracle; two heavily damaged
aircraft. The pilots would have been justified in "punching out" but instead,
they chose to bring the jets in. This endangered their lives but saved the taxpayers about
80 million dollars. The story behind them is: Two F/A-18 Hornets from Top Gun were
Dogfighting and made a head on pass, just a bit too close. |

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One got home with part of the left wing and left vertical fin and rudder
missing, while the other jet is missing everything forward of the cockpit pressure
bulkhead and is a flying convertible because the canopy is shattered too.. These guys are
lucky. It shows how rugged these aircraft are...Also shows how good our pilots are. |

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What is especially intriguing is in picture 03, notice the radome, radar
and all of the avionics equipment, everything, in front is gone. This created several
problems for the pilot: aerodynamics, eventual loss of hydraulics due to loss of fluid,
navigation, and probably the most amazing, as the pieces fell away, some debris had to be
ingested by the engines (F.O.D.) and he still was able to bring it home! |

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F-14 Tomcat ragtop. The pilot managed to land the aircraft after the
rear-seat passenger punched out by accident. |

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Su-27 crashing during a airshow in the Ukraine. This was actually
taken while the aircraft was cartwheeling from right to left through the frame. Here is the movie of the crash. |

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I have seen this photo with different captions, but received this unedited
version from someone with first hand knowledge; he was on the deck when the photo was
taken. Full details are at http://www.aerofiles.com/f14flyby.html
Thanks to Chris Hann for the photo. |

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While this plane may have been going faster than the speed of sound, it is
not a picture of the F-18 suddenly "breaking" the soundbarrier. Imagine a
cone with the nose of the aircraft at the tip of the cone, with the cone getting larger
going backwards. The boom heard when a plane is going faster than the speed of sound
is actually the overpressure created by the plane traveling through the air. That
"boom" sound hits you as the overpressure "cone" edge hits you.
The plane may have been going faster than Mach 1 for quite a while - that sound
"cone" hits you and you hear the "boom." There is a big
difference in the air pressure from just in front of this cone to what is behind the
cone. That sudden difference allows water in the air to condense out of its gas
state. |

movie
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Here is a video of an F-14 passing an aircraft carrier showing the same
thing. The next time you fly in an airliner, watch the wingtips. If you fly
through an area of high humidity, you will see the water condensing out of the air,
usually at the wingtips, where there are high pressure differences caused by the wingtip
vortices. High speed fighter jets create the required pressure differences easier
than airlines, which don't travel quite fast enough. |

movie
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B-1B bomber doing the same thing. |

movie
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F-14 passing between two ships low and fast. There
is a sonic boom as the plane passes by, but there is not enough moisture in the air to
condense out. |

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Two F-15's making a very low pass. |

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CH-47 Chinook making pickups off a roof in Afghanistan. |

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The newest stealth aircraft? |

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The pilot had this to contend with when he returned to his plane. |
I have taken all the pictures from here down. Click on the thumbnails to
see the full size shot.
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A-10 Warthog. Myrtle Beach AFB, South Carolina, 1986. |
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A-10 Warthog. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002. |
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A-10 Warthog. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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A-4 Skyhawk. Canon AFB, New Mexico, 1986. |
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AV-8B Harrier II. Canon AFB, New Mexico, 1986. |
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AV-8B Harrier II. Canon AFB, New Mexico, 1986. |
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Boeing 747 Space Shuttle Carrier. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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B-17 Flying Fortress. Gathering of the Eagles, Indian Springs AFB,
Nevada, 1986. |
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B-1B Lancer "Bone". Loring AFB, Maine, 1986. |
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B-1B Lancer "Bone". Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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B-1B Bone and C-121 Constellation. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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B-25 Mitchell. Gathering of the Eagles, Indian Springs AFB, Nevada, 1986. |
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C-121 Constellation. 50th Anniversary of the Air Force, Nellis AFB,
Nevada, 1997. |
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C-121 Constellation. 50th Anniversary of the Air Force, Nellis AFB,
Nevada, 1997. |
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C-121 Constellation. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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C-130 Hercules. Fire retardent drop. Fort Huachuca, Arizona, 2002.
Five seconds later I was covered in red goop. |
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C-130 Hercules. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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C-17 Globemaster III. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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C-17 Globemaster III . 50th Anniversary of the Air Force, Nellis
AFB, Nevada, 1997. |
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C-17 Globemaster III. 50th Anniversary of the Air Force, Nellis AFB,
Nevada, 1997. |
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C-17 Globemaster III. 50th Anniversary of the Air Force, Nellis AFB,
Nevada, 1997. |
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C-17 Globemaster III. 50th Anniversary of the Air Force, Nellis AFB,
Nevada, 1997. |
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C-17 Globemaster III. Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.
2009 |
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C-17 Globemaster III. Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.
2009 |
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C-17 Globemaster III. Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.
2009 |
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C-17 Globemaster III. Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.
2009 |
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C-46 Commando. 50th Anniversary of the Air Force, Nellis AFB,
Nevada, 1997. |
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C-46 Commando. 50th Anniversary of the Air Force, Nellis AFB,
Nevada, 1997. |
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C-5A Galaxy. Scott AFB, Illinois, 1990. |
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C-5A Galaxy, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. 2009. |
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CH-3 Jolly Green Giant. Myrtle Beach AFB, South Carolina,
1986. |
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CH-47 Chinook. Mountains above US Air Force Academy, Colorado, 1987.
This was my ride out of the mountains after teaching SERE (Survival - Evasion - Resistance
- Escape). |
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CH-47 Chinook. Mountains above US Air Force Academy, Colorado, 1987. |
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F-107. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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F-111 Aardvark. Canon AFB, New Mexico, 1986 |
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F-111 Aardvark. Canon AFB, New Mexico, 1986 |
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F-111 Aardvark. Canon AFB, New Mexico, 1986 |
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F-111 bomb-bay. Canon AFB, New Mexico, 1986 |
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F-117A stealth fighter. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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F-14 Tomcat. Dayton Air Show, Ohio, 1991. |
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F-15E Strike Eagle. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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F-4U Corsair. Gathering of the Eagles, Indian Springs AFB, Nevada, 1986. |
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F-6F Hellcat. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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F/A-18 Hornet. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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BK-117 Flight for Life helicopter, Desert north of Las Vegas, Nevada,
2001. |
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KC-10A Extender. 50th Anniversary of the Air Force, Nellis AFB, Nevada,
1997. |
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Beech King Air. Farmville Municipal Airport, Virginia, 2003. |
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MiG-21 Fishbed. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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MiG-29 Fulcrum. Dayton Air Show, Ohio, 1992. |
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OH-58 Kiowa. Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. 2009. |
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OV-1 Mohawk. Dayton Air Show, Ohio, 1991. |
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P-38 Lightning. Gathering of the Eagles, Indian Springs AFB, Nevada, 1986 |
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P-51D Mustang. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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P-51D Mustang. Gathering of the Eagles, Indian Springs AFB, Nevada, 1986 |
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Pitts S-2A Special. Farmville Municipal Airport, Virginia, 2003. |
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Predator UAV. Indian Springs AFB, Nevada, 2001. |
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Predator UAV. Indian Springs AFB, Nevada, 2001. |
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PZL-104 Wilga. Dayton Air Show, Ohio, 1991 |
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S-3 Viking. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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Shadow 200 TUAV. Fort Huachuca, Arizona, 2001. |
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Shadow 200 TUAV. Fort Huachuca, Arizona, 2001 |
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Shadow 200 TUAV on the launcher. Fort Huachuca, Arizona, 2002. |
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Shadow 200 TUAV in a low fly-by with the flaps down. Fort Huachuca,
Arizona, 2004. |
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Shadow 200 TUAV in a low fly-by with the flaps down. Fort
Huachuca, Arizona, 2009. |
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Shadow 200 TUAV in a low fly-by with the flaps down. Fort
Huachuca, Arizona, 2009. |
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T-2C Buckeye. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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T-38 Talon. Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, 2002 |
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T-38 Talon. Reese AFB, Texas, 1986. |
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UH-60 Blackhawk. Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. 2009. |
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F-16 Fighting Falcon Thunderbirds. US Air Force Academy, 1987. |
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F-16 Fighting Falcon Thunderbirds. US Air Force Academy, 1988. |
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F-16 Fighting Falcon Thunderbirds. US Air Force Academy, 1988. |
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F-16 Fighting Falcon Thunderbirds. Indian Springs AFB, Nevada, 2001. |
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F-16 Fighting Falcon Thunderbirds. Indian Springs AFB, Nevada, 2001. |
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F-16 Fighting Falcon Thunderbirds. Indian Springs AFB, Nevada, 2001. |
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X-47A UCAV. Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, Disney
World, Florida, 2002. |