NAF El Centro and Imperial County 20 March 2024

[Rene Klok]

The day after Luke AFB we drove from Phoenix to El Centro for a short visit and then a little bit back towards MCAS Yuma and our next hotel.
VFA-122 with their Super Hornets from NAS Fallon was deployed to El Centro and that gave us all the more reason to try our luck here.
A US Navy MCV-22B Osprey performing a couple of approaches was the icing on the cake.

F/A-18_166466_USNavy_03 by René Klok, on Flickr

F/A-18_166799_166982_USNavy_02 by René Klok, on Flickr

F/A-18_166799_USNavy_03 by René Klok, on Flickr

F/A-18_166810_USNavy_03 by René Klok, on Flickr

F/A-18_166848_USNavy_02 by René Klok, on Flickr

F/A-18_166982_USNavy_02 by René Klok, on Flickr

V-22_169455_USNavy_01 by René Klok, on Flickr

V-22_169455_USNavy_02 by René Klok, on Flickr

T-34_160472_USMarines by René Klok, on Flickr


After about two hours we packed our stuff and drove to nearby Imperial County Airport as we had seen an Osprey landing there. It turned out to be a Marines MV-22B. Just when we arrived at the fence to take some pics of it, two more Marines Ospreys showed up for what turned out to be a very quick visit. If I remember correctly they flew out again 15 minutes later. A very lucky timing on our side.

V-22_168661_USMarines by René Klok, on Flickr

Very subtle text at the underside of the vertical stabilizer: Make piece or die"
V-22_168662_USMarines_01 by René Klok, on Flickr

V-22_168702_USMarines_01 by René Klok, on Flickr

V-22_168662_USMarines_02 by René Klok, on Flickr

Hope you like this selection.

[adrianof4c]

Very nice