Another of my aerial combat themes depicting the exploits of my fictional squadron VFA-186.
This is a remake of an earlier work I finally got around to fixing. There were so many things
wrong with it, I couldn't leave it alone.
In this scene, the pilot of the F/A-18D has barely evaded an on-coming missile. His sharp turn
into the missile's path loads the airframe. The loading becomes apparent as moisture condenses
along the low pressure areas (the chines and the wing tips). In ACM (Air Combat Maneuver),
heavy loading is undesirable but, as portrayed here, necessary. With some chagrin, I've given
the pilot a bit of luck; the proximity fuse of the missile has malfunctioned. (Hey, it's my
pic!).
As a side note: I paint my planes with a gloss epoxy like we used when I was in the Navy. I'm
no fan of the current paint scheme, finding it dull and a poor image to present. I avoid the
'dirty' look, as well for the same reasons. I prefer to create the image of pride and discipline
that I was familiar with. |
