Sigh… the Brits just don’t get it

Remember a few years back when a Navy plane executed a contrail drawing of a gigantic penis and testicles in the sky?  It was visible for miles with the naked eye over Washington State and delighted/offended many in the state.  Well, the Brits think they one-upped it with a picture of the Queen.

Six civilian aircraft and 12 crewmembers from the Light Aircraft Association’s Wessex Strut used 365 unique headings to create the image over southwest England, according to a release from the group.

Unlike the Navy Sky Penis artist, none of the crewmembers knew what they were drawing as they headed out on different flight paths, generating a series of unusual shapes over the course of several months that eventually rendered England’s number one royal.

Aircraft involved in the effort included the Zenair Zodiac, Just AirCraft SuperSTOL, Cessna 150 and 150 Aerobat, Vans RV6 and even a Beagle Pup.

“None of them had any idea what the final image would look like – each team was given a small, unrecognisable chunk which, when flown, recorded on SkyDemon [aircraft GPS software] and sent back would be stitched together digitally to form the final image,” Amy Whitewick, a local pilot and team lead for “Art Force 1,” said the press release.

Military Times

So theirs was just as in-your-face-salty as ours… except it took six aircraft, most of whose pilots had no idea what they were doing, months to accomplish, and all the flight paths had to be digitally stiched together with a GPS software, so the average Brit looking up in the sky saw… a plane. Wow, now that is daring.  Uh, no.

I did some drinking and shooting with some of the British Army of the Rhine guys.  Although they probably wouldn’t know the actual John Nance Garner quote, I think they would have thought this “not worth a bucket of warm spit.” Or English beer. I’d draw the obvious comparison, but there are a few British brews worth drinking if you can’t get a real beer, Guinness.

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