Video: Chasing a U-2 spyplane doing a touch and go in a Chevrolet Camaro SS

October 13, 2012 Military Aviation
David Cenciotti

Chase cars are a safety measure used to give pilots assistance during take off and landing of aircraft whose size is such that the pilot’s view is obstructed by the airframe, or part of it, and there’s a significant risk of hitting any ground obstacle with a wingtip.

Driven by highly trained pilot, those cars act as ground-based wingmen for the remote (or actual) pilots talking them through runway operations.

Both manned and unmanned planes rely on chase cars.

Chase automobiles, as the Chevrolet Camaro SS pony car seen in the following video, are used to supervise touch and gos performed for training purposes by U-2 Dragon Lady pilots at Beale Air Force Base, California, home of the 9th Reconnaissance Wing.

Related Articles
About David Cenciotti
WebsiteFacebookTwitterLinkedIn instagram
David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.

Related Articles