The LIMA Airshow: LIMA 2009 AIRSHOW REVIEW AND PHOTO GALLERIES

I am beginning to post some of the galleries for LIMA 2009, to place on record what happened then.

LIMA 2009 was held between 1st to 5th December 2009, and I visited Langkawi between 1st and 6th December.

PHOTOGRAPHER'S REVIEW OF LIMA 2009

There were 5 LIMA days, and two air displays were scheduled daily (ie 10 displays in all). One was cancelled (on the afternoon of 1st December), due to inclement weather.

Tuesday 1st December 2009

Cloud Cover: 8 Oktas

Landed in Langkawi at noon, to overcast gloom, and settled the car rental. The sole flying display of the day was already over, but judging from the horrible overcast, I had not missed much of note.

It started to rain quite heavily in the afternoon. Washout as far as the static display was concerned.


Squall line inbound

Pilatus PC-7 tied down to cement blocks to prevent inadvertent liftoff

The LIMA 2009 flight line as you don't want to see it

This is how it should look (as it did, 2 days later). No more cement blocks.

Walked around the MIEC having a look at the exhibits in the Hall, before heading over to the Awana site in the evening- the rain had stopped by then. Boarded a ferry for a look at the ships in the dusk light- first time I had been able to do that. Many were decked out like for Christmas.. There was the South Korean helicopter carrier, which had departed by the time I returned in broad daylight.

South Korean helicopter carrier (ROKS Dokdo)

It came with its destroyer escort, ROKS Chungmugong Yi Sunshin

Wednesday 2nd December 2009

Cloud Cover: 6 Oktas (am)
8 Oktas (pm)

Woke up, looked out the window. Nope. Sky still overcast- nothing even remotely resembling the best airshow weather Langkawi can offer. Made my way up to Site A, not expecting much. Much was not given either. The sun rarely peeked out from between the clouds. Gloomy, gloomy, gloomy. From the photo gallery, not too many photos one could classify as keepers. Well, at least it wasn't raining. Unless you got sprayed by the CL-415.

Canadair Bombardier CL-415 waterbombing the grass in front of Site B- prepare to get wet! The light levels resemble evening

Noontime was spent at the MIEC and the static display. This was VIP Day, so caught a glimpse of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib touring the stands, as well as the arrival of Tun Dr Mahathir and his wife, Tun Dr Siti Hassmah. Became a paparazzi for awhile. The Defence Minister and various heads of services were accompanying the VIPs.

PM Datuk Seri Najib at LIMA 2009

Tun Dr Mahathir at LIMA 2009

PM with Defence Minister Zahid Hamidi at LIMA 2009

The afternoon air display at Site D was also marred by heavy cloud. Not many keepers from there, either. Two days now gone, and no photos of note!

RSAF F-16C - wheels-up in the murk, LIMA 2009

Walked around Pantai Cenang for dinner, and went to a cultural show organised as a part of the LIMA festivities.

Thursday 3rd December 2009

Cloud Cover: 2 Oktas (am)
4 Oktas (pm)

Woke up. Blue sky. This is more like it. Mood lifted magically. Went up to Site A for the morning display, and had a really great time.

RMAF MiG-29N at LIMA 2009: Suddenly, blue skies were in evidence on 3rd December

Grabbed a quick lunch, then had a great time at the Static Display. Great light and sky. Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was visiting.

DPM Muhyiddin Yassin at LIMA 2009

Business end of Mej. Patricia Yapp's MiG-29N- she is the only lady MiG-29 driver in the world.

The afternoon display at Site D was also quite civilised, with enough Blue Spots in the sky to point one's lenses, and a really marked change from the dreary weather of the past two afternoons.

Had a walk around Kuah in the evening.

Friday 4th December 2009

Cloud Cover: 3 Oktas (am)
5 Oktas (pm)

Woke up. Blue sky. Made a beeline for Site B, and was not disappointed by the great air display that ensued. Like hitting the jackpot. This was more like it!

The afternoon display at Site D was a bit overcast, but after the great conditions in the morning, it did not matter much. Finished off with a walk round the static display in the evening light, and another LIMA cultural show in the evening.

Sarawakian dancers at LIMA 2009

Saturday 5th December 2009

Cloud cover: 2 Oktas (am)

Woke up and made my way to Site C for my last air display of LIMA 2009. The weather did not disappoint, with a bright sunny blue sky, the best so far. I came away more than happy, and so the photogalleries from the mornings of 3rd, 4th and 5th December will be the best ones for LIMA 2009.

RAAF F-111A at LIMA 2009- sheer power in flight

I decided to skip the last aerial display, and spent the afternoon enjoying the breeze while cruising along the ships moored by the Awana Porto Malai. The afternoon started off cloudy, and turned quite bright and pleasant later on. Just one vessel, the KD Perak, was open to the public, and I went aboard. Finished off with dinner after exploring Langkawi Fair.

KD Perak at LIMA 2009

PNS Khaibar at LIMA 2009

So, the final tally was: 7 aerial display slots attended. Three of them exhibited exceptional photographic conditions (all were in the morning), two were OK, and two were a bit disappointing. All in all, I think I got what I came for. Of course, the weather for LIMA 2011 was exceptionally great.

Sunday 6th December 2009

Cloud cover: 3-4 Oktas

My flight was at 4pm, so spent the day visiting some hotels in the vicinity, to see what places might be promising for the next edition of LIMA. The weather was quite good. LIMA could have done with a delay of 2 days, and things would have been perfect!

A PHOTO ALBUM OF OFFICIAL DISPLAY AIRCRAFT AT LIMA 2009

The airshow may have started off with marginal weather, but the skies soon lifted to showcase a spectacular air display. The soon-to-be-retired F-111A, in particular, executed a very memorable routine. I have a really soft spot for the F-111, as it featured in so many airshows I attended at RAF Alconbury, Mildenhall, Lakenheath and Fairford when the Cold War was raging. That it was never tasked with nuclear strike is one of the marvels of history. With it has gone another swing-wing aircraft- perhaps the Tornado is now the last left in the Western inventory.