Subject:Embraer Phenom 100E
Where: Florida coast
Photographer: Chris Rose
Air-to-air photography of piston airplanes is one thing. But when you set out to shoot turbine aircraft, the game changes. Operating costs can run thousands of dollars per hour of flight time, so you don’t just kick the tires and carve holes in the sky. Turbines work for a living, so their availability is limited. Then there are the issues surrounding the photo flight itself.
Planning for this photo of an Embraer Phenom 100E began three months ahead of time. Embraer was willing, but the few airplanes available were on demonstration flights. Even so, we set some dates. I would fly AOPA Editor in Chief Tom Haines’ Bonanza A36 to Embraer’s Melbourne, Florida, factory, and we’d do the shoot from there. But one date fell through. Then another.
Eduardo Camelier, Embraer’s chief test pilot, would fly the 100E. But he is based in Brazil and had schedule conflicts.
Finally, Camelier was flown in and a 100E arrived. I flew the A36 to Melbourne and met up with staff photographer Chris Rose. And the weather cooperated!
We decided to shoot over the coast south of Melbourne.
After a briefing, the A36’s aft doors were removed and we took off. Camelier tucked it in close as we flew over a barrier island.
I could hear the Phenom’s engines through the A36’s cabin. Outside, the Phenom hovered oh-so-close, matching our every move. Look at the picture to the right, and you are there with me. —Thomas A. Horne
Thomas A. Horne
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