Viewfinder-2013/02

Dave Gianakos ([email protected]) from Littleton, Colorado, submitted two photos of his 1/6-scale Aerotech P-47D Thunderbolt equipped with a Brison-Sachs 4.2 cu. in. gas engine and painted in the colors of an aircraft flown by the 56th Fighter Group’s commander, Col. David Schilling, during World War II. Dave wrote: “This plane was flown in several contests, including the 2004 Scale Masters contest in Kansas City, Missouri. I suppose the highlight for this plane was that in 2004 I took it to England and flew it at an air show from the same runway that Col. Schilling had flown from 60 years before at the Boxted, England, fighter base. These photos were taken from the remains of runway 04-22, the main-duty runway that they used during the war. After competitions ended, I donated the model to the Kalamazoo Air Zoo in Michigan, where it can be seen today.” Dave wrote that he has been flying RC off and on for roughly 10 years, and works as a senior 747-400 captain and standards instructor/check pilot with Delta Air Lines. He used a Nikon E885 for both images; the front-view photo was shot with a 10mm focal length, f-stop of f/8.4 at 1/225 second and an ISO of 100. The rear-view photo was shot with a 12mm focal length, f-stop of f/9.2 at 1/196 second, and an ISO of 100. Email your high-resolution “Viewfinder” photo and a short note telling the airplane or helicopter story to [email protected].