NASA question

One of the good things about living in houston and being near JSC/ Ellington field is you can usually see some interesting planes if you keep an eye out

Today I saw sn unusual formation involving a NASA t38 and what I think may have been 2 NASA citations but they were just out of sight so couldn't tell. T38 profile was easy to spot though. Very tight formation. They left Ellington and went towards the city and then back to Ellington.

Anyway to look up their flight plan? Or since they are in military airspace is that not possible?

What do you think they were doing?

Really wish I could have got a pic. I see the t38s all the time in tight formation but never a formation like this with the citations going near the city.

 

Haven't they started a new astronaut class?

 

Ya. I see the t38s all the time. What was interesting was the tight formation with the business jets

 

Ever see their newer F-15 D models? NASA picked up three of them a few years ago.




Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

I haven't seen them yet but I'm sure they have stopped by. Ellington is big hub for all sorts of military traffic


This will be a cool project too happening off the coast of there.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.expressnews.com/business/local/amp/With-Galveston-s-help-jetliners-may-go-supersonic-12847832.php

 

Yes, very cool.

Like you said, lots of interesting activity at Ellington.

I was there a few years ago trying to generate opportunities for them, post-Shuttle.

Nice setup too.


Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

These guys are flying around right now:

Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login

Not a flight plan but you could track them from take-off to landing, for as long as they want to be seen.

 

By the way, there is a new "Operations Manual" from Haynes on NASA, which I have on order and am waiting for. David Baker, who worked for NASA (and was one of the saviors of Apollo 13) is probably Haynes' best manuals author.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1785211153/

 

NASA flights are easy to track on flight aware or flight radar 24. The flight plans are filed off the tail number. IE NASA941 is the super guppy and NASA806 is there U2

https://flightaware.com/live/flight/NASA806/history/20180828/1630Z/KPMD/KPMD

 

Dude. I just spent $200 on various "manuals". . I haven't read a fiction book since Junior high, but love manuals and such. I've never seen these. Thanks for that, I think.

 

https://www.khou.com/video/news/local/raw-video/video-nasa-jets-fly-near-downtown-houston-for-training/285-8233834

Gulfstreams!

 

If you buy any of Haynes' other NASA-related manuals - all of them are pretty good - the one I recommend most highly is Apollo 13. Author David Baker was working for NASA at the time and was one of the people responsible for getting the astronauts home safely.

http://www.amazon.com/Apollo-Including-Saturn-CM-109-SM-109/dp/0857333879/

 

NASA just had their first astronaut SIE. Pretty sad. Have not read the reason yet.

 

For us civilians...

One of these????

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sie

 

Self Initiated Elimination

 

You just have to love all these ERMA's (Easily Recognizable Military Abbreviations)

 

A little bit O/T: One of my favorite acronyms was SCEPTR = SuitCase Emergency Procedures TRainer, which was developed years ago by Grumman for use in the field on the E-2 Hawkeye, so called because it fit in a suitcase, more likely an attache case.

 

We have an acronym for just about everything. Speeds up passing info, especially on aircraft systems.

 

Thank you, I did read that he took himself out of 'contention'.

 

And I think it all started with SNAFU and FUBAR.

 

In the UK military there is usually a TLA for most things too!

 

I had looked at the same list on wikipedia.

Useless!

 

In today's Air Force, you can still fly a BUFF but you can't fly a SLUF anymore!

 

SLUF A-7 Corsair II

Had to look it up...

 

Short Little Ugly "Fellow" for mixed company.

I will see your TLA and raise you a TLAR from manual dive bombing. That Looks About Right.