RJ 12 Taking off Sep 04

Here the latest RJ off the line:  Note the retractable HF longwire and the BigASS engines!

Shots of the takeoff and landing of Rivet Joint-8, SN:  63-9792, RC-135V, the first soon-to-be High-bypass re-engined operational RC, taken on 09 March 2001 during the Functional Check Flight (FCF) with Major Alex Dodd at the controls at the Det2/Raytheon Depot at Majors Field, Greenville,
Texas.   Quiet, hardly hear the engines, the air-conditioning is fabulous, and for as heavy as it is, the calculated takeoff roll on the FCF was 4700 feet, and Major Dodd lifted off at the 4000 foot marker using most of the overrun to start.   

First Flight pics