nbai.co.uk by Nic Brown

14/12/2024

Pt.2
Motorcross at Wakes Colne 24th September, the final meet of the season at this track.

14/12/2024

Pt.1
Motorcross at Wakes Colne (my local), this time on the 24th September, the final meet of the season at this track.
A great day of photographic opportunities and a really enjoyable day of racing, roll on the 2025 season!

09/10/2024

Something a little different from me this time. They may not be aeroplanes but they sure do fly well!
After years of saying 'one day I'll go to the local track on race day', i finally did to watch the British sidecar cross meeting. A great day out with so many photographic opportunities. I'll definitely be returning next season.
Here's a handful of shots taken of the Sidecars and standard MotoX races.

05/07/2024

It's always nice to get presented with the 'special handshake'.
Smithy, it's been a blast working with you over the years. Good luck in Las Vegas.

17/06/2024

King's Birthday Fly Past 15th June 2024.
Wind, rain, sun and cloud cover all within 5 minutes made for some tricky photography.....all part of the fun though.

07/05/2024

On the 9th April 2024, myself and a small group of photographers got the opportunity to shoot the British Army's latest acquisition, the new Boeing AH-64E Apache at their home in the heart of Suffolk.
Unfortunately the evening didn't work out as was hoped due to challenging weather conditions earlier in the afternoon, plus several serviceability issues with the planned aircraft as the evening went on, meant only one Apache was able to fly its sortie.
With that said, it was still a great evening in which our hosts were extremely accommodating and helpful. As the sun went down It was a great chance to get up-close and photograph the latest version of the deadly Attack helicopter and see the full startup routine of the crew prior to take off.

29/07/2022

29/07/2022

In early December 2021 i was asked a question...... If i were to design a SkyBlazers themed paint job for an F-15, what would i do?
My (slightly cheeky) answer... I'd make it look the nuts!
From there, the brief was clear, an E model to be painted with a special livery to commemorate the triple anniversaries of the 48th Fighter Wing (70 years), the United States Air Forces in Europe (80 years) and the USAF (75 years).
After 8 months of hard work, to-and-fro emails with each design element being checked and approved before moving on to the next stage. The day finally came where all the effort had paid off and F-15E 92-0364 took to the air for the first time, fully adorned with her fresh paint job!
It was a huge privilege to be present for the first flight and to see her before the public. The Corrosion Control (paint shop) crew all did an amazing job at taking my design and transferring it to the jet. I was lucky enough to meet with the 48th EMS Corrosion Control team and thank them personally for their effort.

The working title for the project was Anniversary Jet, shortened to 'Anni' file names, as further progress was made Anni 01, Anni 02 and so on.... For me the name has stuck and i think 'Anni' is a suitable name for such a pretty lady!

Here are a small selection of photos taken during my visit to See 'Anni' for the first time.

Enjoy.

02/02/2022

On the 18th January 2022 I was invited to RAF Lakenheath by the 493rd AMU (Aircraft Maintenance Unit), to be present for the first flight of the newly painted F-15C which had my designs applied to the tail and air brake.
It was a massive honour to be asked and given the chance to submit a few initial designs, but to see them in reality on the aircraft was something else!
The special paint scheme has been applied to commemorate the last of the fighter variant F-15 Eagle (A,B,C,D) operations from European air bases. Soon the type will be retired and the last remaining Eagles operated by the 493d Fighter Squadron will be heading back to the States, only leaving the F-15E Strike Eagle and new F-35's flying from RAF Lakenheath.
2 special patches have also been made for the types retirement, which i also had the pleasure to design.

My hosts couldn't have been more obliging to my requests on the day, which made for an even better experience and resulted in me getting some photos that i have wanted to capture for many years.

Here's a small selection of the 'Special One' photos taken that day.

16/05/2021

On the 30th April 2021, I was invited on to RAF Lakenheath by the F-35 Program Integration Office (PIO). My hosts we extremely generous with the access i was given to take photos of the day-to-day aircraft movements.
On this occasion the base had a few rare visitors, 10 F-35B's of the USMC stopping over before departing for a tour of duty on board HMS Queen Elizabeth, along side the RAF's 617sqn.
Also on base were a pair of F-35A's that were over from Vermont, conducting acoustic infrastructure testing in preparation for when the first F-35 squadron stands up at the end of the year.

I was granted very rare access to the EOR (End of Runway) ramp to catch the arrival of the final 4 F-15E's returning from an exercise in Poland. I was treated to a couple of 'Low Approaches' for the camera before the jets finally touched down after the long flight home.

31/12/2020

Time to cast your vote!
For me Sabres is the stand out. All the others are cool names sure, but that's it.
Sabres actually has a connection to the squadron and the 48th FW.
Plus it fits in nicely with all the names as a group - Bolars, Reapers, Panthers and Sabres.
Rolls off the tongue for marketing, merchandise and PR.
......you know it makes sense!

https://www.facebook.com/153919461302721/posts/4121838951177399/

You spoke, we listened! Here are the finalists for the 495th Fighter Squadron name!

Archangels – opposite of the 493rd FS Reapers
Sabres – Derived from the sword on the unit patch (a cavalry sword with a curved blade, thick back, and guard used to strike, cut, or kill)
Sentinels – Sentry protectors, standing watch (from Latin, sentire to perceive)
Swordsmen – Derived from the sword on the unit patch (similar to the 90th FS “Dicemen”)
Valkyries - In Norse mythology, a Valkyrie is one of a host of female figures who choose those who may die in battle and those who may live.

**https://s.surveyplanet.com/LsahaGxMR**

Click the link and tell us your favorite! Voting ends next Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021!

(U.S. Air Force photo illustration)

05/10/2020

Latest Artwork
'Own the Skies'
The 'Boss Bird' of the 48th Fighter Wing - F15E Eagle flown by the Station Commander, flying in formation with the 'new kid on the block' F-35A Lightning of the 495th Fighter Squadron.
The pair are shown over their home base RAF Lakenheath, Suffolk.



nbai.co.uk by Nic Brown