Editor's Picks From 2019 Aviation Week Photo Contest
December 06, 2019
COMMERCIAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren
Seattle
The world spins below as an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-900 departs George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston in January.

COMMERCIAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Jin Nakashima
Ardmore, Oklahoma
When this British Airways Boeing 747-400 was approaching London Heathrow Airport’s Runway 27L, the “Queen of the Sky” created what could have been the world’s largest heart. It could be seen as the warm heart of Joe Sutter, who designed and built what many consider one of the greatest aircraft, ever.

COMMERCIAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Santiago Borja
Quito, Ecuador
City lights from Venezuela merge with the glow of far-off Amazonian oil wells, and the clear Milky Way glows above them, as seen from 34,000 ft. onboard a Boeing 767 flying from Europe to Ecuador.

COMMERCIAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Vladimir Voronov
Moscow
For many flight attendants, flying is more than a job; it is a dream fulfilled. This crew member definitely has her eye on flying.

COMMERCIAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Jacob Rutledge
Louisville, Kentucky
A two-image stack depicts a Boeing 757-200PF departing Louisville, Kentucky, as UPS Flight 1450 on Dec. 19, 2018, destined for Cleveland during the peak holiday season.

SPACE Editor’s Picks
Jack Beyer
Los Angeles
Stratolaunch’s “Roc,” the largest aircraft in the world by wingspan, took flight for the first time on April 13. After a test flight lasting more than 2 hr., pilot Evan Thomas did this low approach before coming back around for a picture-perfect landing.

SPACE Editor’s Picks
Walter Scriptunas II
Charleston, West Virginia
The Mobile Assembly Shelter rolls back to its launch position at Space Launch Complex 6 at Vandenberg AFB, California, revealing the United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy.

SPACE Editor’s Picks
Ben Cooper
Orlando, Florida
Twenty-seven Merlin engines lift a Falcon Heavy off Pad 39A at the John F. Kennedy Space Center and into orbit with Arabsat 6A onboard.

DEFENSE Editor’s Picks
Avichai Socher
Givat Shmuel, Israel
The engine exhaust and the rotor’s prop wash from an Israeli Air Force Boeing AH-64A Apache “Peten” creates art in the sky as the aircraft drops flares during the blue hour in the desert.

DEFENSE Editor’s Picks
Avgar Idan
Rehovot, Israel
An F-15 turns above the Israeli desert.

GENERAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Ben Ullings
Alphen aan den Rijn, Netherlands
A farmer spraying very dry land added an extra rainbow dimension to the farewell of a Catalina PBY-5A departing the Netherlands on May 29 to join the Collings Foundation fleet. It was accompanied by four Fokker S-11 “Instructor” aircraft and a Dutch-based AT-6 Texan.

GENERAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Derrick Stamos
Santa Maria, California
High-pressure waterjets blasting from a firefighting vessel frame a demonstration of a Jetpack Aviation JB10 turbojet-powered jetpack over the Pacific Ocean near Huntington Beach, California.

GENERAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Julia Apfelbaum
Erie, Colorado
Mother Nature provided quite a backdrop during this stunning sunrise photo shoot. Several minutes into the flight, the rainbow appeared and added another dynamic dimension to the landscape as Allen Floyd piloted his Rutan Model 61 Long-EZ, which he has named “Excalibur,” along the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains.

GENERAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Mark Usciak
Lancaster, Pennsylvania
A dawn launch at the Lancaster Balloon Festival in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania.

GENERAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Phil Taylor
Pascoe Vale, Australia
Frank Parker flies a Bristol Scout at the Classic Fighters Airshow 2019 in Omaka, New Zealand.

GENERAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Rain Brooks
Sacramento, California
A transforming dinosaur robot named Robosaurus appears to be eating the U.S. Navy Blue Angels at the California International Air Show in Salinas.

GENERAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Jessica Ambats
Malibu, California
This Learjet was transformed into a rainbow to give rides to kids with serious illnesses in the Make-A-Wish program.

GENERAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Jessica Ambats
Malibu, California
TxJet’s fleet of Cessna Citations are used to transport life-saving organs to recipients in need.

GENERAL AVIATION Editor’s Picks
Nathan Gingles
Omaha, Nebraska
A Goodyear FG-1D Corsair folds its wings in this composite image.

Enter the 2020 Aviation Week Photo Contest
The fury of space launches, the love of flight in a woman’s eye, heart-shaped vapor trails and the world’s largest aircraft are among the most compelling photos.
Find out more about the 2020 contest and submit your photos here.
Enter in as many of the five categories as you wish:
- Commercial Aviation
- Defense
- Business and General Aviation
- Space
- The COVID-19 Challenge
Winners and finalists will appear in the December 9 print and digital issues of Aviation Week & Space Technology and on AviationWeek.com. Prizes of up to $500 await – not to mention worldwide recognition as one of the best aviation and aerospace photographers.
The entry deadline is Oct. 5.
View Photo Contest Terms and Rules
Send questions to photocontest@aviationweek.com