Unedited helmet cam footage from a recent air show. Lot's of cool segments. Formation and 300 mph show line flyby's with a P-51 Mustang and P-47, Hun Hunter XIV. Smoke at air show center and a cool ground explosion at 20:00. Enjoy.
Thank you for posting. I am having a memorial service at my local airport KCTJ on May 21 2022 for Captain Harold D. Coonley. He flew 100 missions in the P-47 over Europe and recently passed at 98. Thanks for keeping em flying.
What about the bf109 doesn’t it deserve the same 150 octanes the p47 used to make power? The bf109 used cheap 87 but historians don’t want the truth for you!
I remember years ago, you telling me the P-51 was a dime a dozen and there were only seven or eight P-47's in operation. Well, by God, it was a pleasure to sit inside your machine in Z-Hills 20 years ago. Good to see you're still kicking.
Thanks. For the record, I was not casting dispersions on the P-51. It's a great aircraft with a huge history. My comment was simply about availability today. Thanks for checking in.
This is just incredible... I've always wanted to see what it looks like flying in a formation of old planes... Really something amazingly beautiful about it.
absolutely awesome ! many thanks for sharing such an amazing insight into a world most of us can only imagine, what an adrenaline rush you guys must get every time you fly these beasts, regards from the uk,
I keep coming back to this video. I love it! As a military historian that focuses primarily on WW2, videos like these are gems! It demonstrates what formation flying is like, the sounds of the plane, and when visible, how the pilot operates and manages the systems. Absolutely phenomenal. Got to ride in a 1929 American Standard (bi-plane) up at Rhinebeck Aerodrome. That was an experience. Ear shattering, open cockpit, wind whipping. Oil flinging out. The smell and feel of what it was like to fly in WW1. It was astounding.
My grandpa flew P47's with the 353rd Fighter Group out of Raydon January-August 1944, and I got to thank you for posting this footage. It's one thing to see the black and white as well as the rudimentary color footage shot in the 1940's, but yours with the actual audio of the engine is absolutely phenomenal.
Hey Jug fans, if you haven't already download a copy of "Thunderbolt!" by Robert S. Johnson to your Kindle or whatever your tablet is. It will make you feel like you're in the cockpit with him on his missions. He dedicates an entire chapter to the mission where he was jumped by 190s, went down in flames, pulled out, and was attacked two more times by a German ace. His aircraft was a flying wreck, but it got him home. A must read if you're a P-47 fan. Thanks for the great vid, John!
Thanks for the awesome video John. We have Nellie B over here in the UK and saw her do a display a few years ago. For a aeroplane nicknamed the flying jug she sure could move. Beautiful aircraft. All the best and stay safe 👍🏻👍🏻
My grandmother built these in Evansville, Indiana back during the war. Good to see these old birds still out and about. Let me know if you're ever in the area. I'd love to see it!
This has to be the best war bird video I’ve ever seen here. Can’t believe I haven’t watched it before. Will have to make up for that by starting every day with it.
It's amazing how quickly and how much altitude you gain only a moment after being down on the deck. You and your fellow pilots sure gave the crowd their monies worth!
John Thanks for posting this amazing video. The feeling is like being there in real time including all of the moments required to initiate flight, from the pilot perspective. Simply incredible. The helmet cam gives us such an amazing point of view. Thanks again! A P-47 lover since a child. Billy in Tucson
Atta boy! The Jug's job was to raise holy heck with the enemy, and at this she was unsurpassed! Rosie the Riveter, thanks, your workmanship brought many a thankful man home!
Wow! Such a massive fighter looks so compact from the pilot's pov. Makes me appreciate the great job WW11 Fighters by Jane's simulations did all those years ago.
My dad lives in Sugar Grove, IL and there's a little airport out there called the Aurora Municipal Airport and they used to have awesome shows like this when i was a kid, i WISH they would do that again. I'd LOVE the opportunity to see some of the beautiful birds up close. Especially the P51d. They had a program called "Young Eagles" where pilots would donate their time, the airfield providing the fuel, and give kids under 18 FREE rides in the planes, and I had the chance to fly in and actually fly an old RAF transport plane.
Fantastic, loved every minute of that!! I recently did a taxy trip in the Lancaster bomber 'Just Jane' as my uncle flew as a pilot with 100 Sqd during the war. Great experience. The plan next is to book a Spitfire flight in the Boultbee 2 seater!! I did 2 AEF flights and aerobatics years ago in a De-Havilland Chipmunk, so the Spitfire flight would be amazing!!
I watch too many videos..When the three aircraft lined up abreast, I expected to hear three honks before the drag race started.. Great video, Mr Shoffner!
Beautiful. A bit of deja vu for me. My uncle Harrison flew a Jug in WWII, my dad, his brother, flew a P51 out of England (Two different theaters). My dad named his plane after my mom, Quenice Thomasina, who was born on March 14 (Pi, 3.14) Dad always called mom Cutie Pie. His plane was named QT (symbol for Pi) for her. Here was my uncles plane showing a Mustang with FT (symbol for Pi), I was floored, and teared up. Thanks for posting this, I am jealous and grateful. And thank you for the brave men that flew these beautiful aircraft and the men and women that still do today.
I love the cockpit view, my grandfather flew t-bolts during the war he was transitioning to the n model at the end of the war for the invasion of japan. I always wondered what it would have been like. He thought it was the best fighter of ww2 but I am sure he was bias. One year there was 4 t-bolts at willow run air show so I took my mom and when they taxied by there was a tear in her eye. Thanks for keeping it flying hope to see it at thunder over Michigan.
+John Ofiara I have a small pic of gramps in front of a biplane he flew before the war. My uncle has some pics in his ww2 days, I know one of his graduating t-bolt class. when he passed away in 04 we did donate some of his things to the yankee air museum after it burned down. they were asking for donations. I do have a pic of him in the usaf museum t-bolt from one of his reunions they had there. No P-47 at thunder over Michigan this year.
Hey man, you wanna go cruise the strip in our riced out Honda Civics? "No." You wanna go ride motorcycles downtown? "No." You wanna take out the Lamborghinis to dinner and get them valeted in the front of the restaurant? "No." Well, what do you want to do? "Let's go take the warbirds and fly in formation!" What a life! I
I got a crooked neck from watching that crooked camera but anyway thanks for the wonderful upload. Love those old birds and I am envious you get to enjoy flying one.
Thank you so much! This was EPIC. My favourite plane of all time! Please do more. It's really cool to be able to see inside the cockpit. Priceless artifact.
Thanks so much for sharing this (and i don't know how i didn't find it earlier...). My father was a Tuskegee Airmen who spent a lot of hours flying the P-47D. I rewatched the start until takeoff several times, just trying to imagine what was going through his 18 yr old mind. I wonder how his first few moments felt sitting in her, preparing the first flight after finishing Primary in a PT-17 then Basic in an AT-6. I always loved going to airshows with him, listening to him talk to the pilots and sharing his experiences. I will definitely watch these many times over...
Nice. My dad got about 8 hours in P-47 and it became his favorite airplane for the next 60 year until he died. He didn't fit the "fighter pilot" role and instead became a co-pilot at 25 in a B-24 flying out of Italy in the last days of WWII. Later he flew the RF-51F which is what the USAF renamed the airplane after the USAAF was no more. He flew in the Air National Guard out of BNA at Nashville. If you remove "RF" from what he flew and replace it with a "P" you will have the P-51F. The 118th was a tactical recon unit and the the RF-51F was loaded with cameras. Later my dad became an Air Traffic Controller for the FAA and later retired. He was too smart to picket in the early 80s and get fired like all the other controllers did. It would be nice to know where this air show was going on. The airport definitely appeared to be a WWII training facility, based on the triangular pattern of runways.
John Hettish Correct, this airshow was at Dyersburg, TN near Nashville. Congrats to your Dads history, sounds like he had some gear adventures and served us all well.
Amazing footage. Thanks for sharing. An old friend (Tony Buechler) in Waukesha Wisconsin has a beautiful P-51 that I was hoping to glimpse in your video. Glad to see such well maintained warbirds in formation. Could listen to that for hours. Still remember reading Martin Caidin's "Thurnderbolt" over and over, in high school. An amazing craft, with an equally amazing legacy. Please keep the videos coming.
Wow! I just rode in the pilot's seat of a P-47 Thunderbolt for 43 minutes!! only problem is I was leaning about 30 degrees to the right the whole time... :P Seriously though, nice upload!!
Thanks for this footage. I'm sending a link to my wife's grandfather (92) who we just visited in Florida. He flew P-47s out of Jesi and Fano, Italy in WWII in support of the British 8th. I made a copy of his mission list (64) and #27 reads: "Mar. 18, 1945. Deck level strafing Campofromido (Udine). 50 cal." What that brief entry doesn't say is that he flew between two buildings and his gun camera footage -- viewed that evening by he and his fellow pilots -- spawned his nickname: Cautious.
Very cool. He was a cool dude indeed then. Then you must have seen the documentary Thunderbolt which shows a lot of the squadron life on Corsica. I bet you will find him there. Thanks for checking in. -JS
Sometimes the hysteresis in the altimeter shows different elevations from take-off to landing. No worries, it's all under control. Thanks for watching.
Wow what an awesome aircraft With an awesome pilot, Nice job John!!!!!!!! It sounded like the engine RPM stayed pretty much the same the whole time, or was that just because of the sound of air. The sound is so different when you are watching from the ground. Thanks again John for the opportunity to go for a ride very very cool.
Good morning, my name is Friend Deming and I'm a PVT Pilot out of Flabob Airport. Was wondering what are the qualifications needed and Ratings or type certificate needed to do something as awesome as this. Currently am working on my IFR rating as of now with 152.6 hours logged. Any suggestions or career-oriented guidelines for this unique opportunity? Thanks for posting this.
Well, you are pretty close to Chino, so to the Planes of Fame Museum there and introduce yourself. They fly a lot of this type of stuff and can surely give you guidance. But basically, you'll need 500 hrs before you could fly >600hp and start the process of moving up the ranks of large warbirds. Be patient and fly everything you can. Good luck.
Absolutely awesome! I used to travel to a lot of airshows here in the UK and often wondered how things looked and sounded from a pilots perspective, those low passes were just superb, I love WW2 war-birds and the P47 & P51 are something else, the sound of the P47 makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up! thank you for sharing this
Hmm... canopy is closed, and the noise... increases??? That's strange. Did you have the same feeling when you were flying? I expected the noise to diminish, after closing canopy.
I used to love going to air shows. we got to explore the cockpits of planes and helicopters. sadly they haven't done any air shows since the early 1990s.
John Shoffner Do you have an email address I can send them to ? There are about 3 full photo albums at my brothers place but it is interstate. I only have a few on me personally.
Love this video! I'm guessing it's a P-47D you're flying jodging from the visibility out of the canopy? Some nice formation flying, very smooth as if on rails.Bet she's a real crowd pleaser with some of those passes you made! What octane fuel are you running and is it hard to find? Love the sound of a Big Ole Radial !!! On the list of things to "To Do" before I die. Great Sound and video quality! Very much enjoyed it!
