The 2002 Empire State Aeroscience Museum (ESAM) Flight For Freedom was one of the best shows held in Schenectady, N.Y.  For the first time since 1996 the US Navy Blue Angels made an appearance.  Other performers include Mohawk Valley Skydiving, A-10, F-16 East Coast Demo Team, B-2 (with an unprecedented four passes), Schenectady's hometown hero's the 109th Air National Guard with their LC-130 JATO / C-130 cargo drop, Mike Goulian, Nikolay Timofeev, F-117, The Mad Bomber, Iron Eagles, Flying Farmer, Hawaiian Eagle Jet Fire Truck, and last but not least The United States Navy Blue Angels.

The F-117 Stealth Fighter for years was a deep dark secret.  Today their are 55 active aircraft.  All of which are based at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico.

In addition to the visit of the Stealth Fighter we had the pleasure of four fly-bys of the B-2 Stealth Bomber.  All 21 B-2's are based at Whiteman AFB in Missouri with the 509th BW.  Unfortunately the weather took a turn for the worst on Sunday and the chance for good photographs was gone.

The hometown hero's (the 109th) came out in force yet again this year.  The LC-130 did a great JATO, and not to be outdone it sister C-130 did a cargo drop.

Some of my greatest shots have been taken after the show and during media day.  This F-16 from the Tucson Arizona AATC really let it all hang out Sunday when the show was over.  The sun had just come out behind us.  Absolutely PERFECT.

The boys from Shaw AFB in South Carolina put their F-16 through it's paces as well.  The East Coast Viper Demo Team is a regular here in Schenectady, and we really enjoy their performance.

Nikolay Timofeev made his first appearance this year at Flight 2002.  I have never had the pleasure of photographing Nikolay but hands down is one of the top aerobatic performers in the world.  He flies the SU-26 M.

Not to be outdone. Mike Mancuso also put his CAP 32 all over the skies in Schenectady.

When ESAM has a show you can bet the Iron Eagles with their Christian Eagles will be on hand.  The beautiful paint scheme make it a great aircraft to photograph. 

The Hawaiian Eagle Jet Fire Truck and The Mad Bomber kept us warm when we got a little chilly.

Misc. photographs from Flight 2002.

I often get asked about Portable Arrestor Gear.  It is used, in the even of hydraulic or brake failure, to retrieve aircraft with a tail hook.   This arrestor gear was brought to Schenectady by our friends from the north (Canada).  Without it the Blues would not have returned to Schenectady this year.  In the photo on the left you will see Blue Angel #8 Major Chandler Seagraves giving the thumbs up after the show on Sunday.

The last time the Blues came to Schenectady was in 1996.  Anyone who knows me well also knows I live for the Blues.  Having them back in Schenectady, my backyard, meant I was going to miss a lot of work and take a ton of photographs.  The weather for Media Day and Sunday was not the best.  Saturday on the other hand was perfect.

A common complaint of photographer's is the placement of the sound cart. Inevitably it gets in the way when taking pictures.  In addition to sound the cart is also used for communication, air traffic control, location of show center, and weather forecasting.

In July of 2002 this photographed was used by the Blue Angels Alumni Association for their monthly photo contest.