Gallery: Airplane, Balloon And Glider Pilots Feel The Joy Of Flight

A low and fast TB-30 Epsilon from Apache Aviation flies above a runway at Dijon airport. I shot from a Beechcraft Bonanza and managed to have perfect lines under the Epsilon wings. Two passes were necessary to get this picture. The pilot of the Epsilon is Jacques Bothelin, the former leader of the Breitling Jet Team. The background story is the lucky part: the wing strobes of the TB-30 light up at the right moment.

This photo, taken just before New Year's Eve 2022 in the land of ice and snow while chasing the last rays of afternoon light outside of Reykjavik, Iceland, shows Sigurjon Valsson piloting his Stampe SV-4B over the unforgiving terrain in bitter cold temperatures.

A Van’s Aircraft RV-8 (foreground) and RV-14 fly in formation over the desert farmland near California’s Salton Sea, enjoying the smooth early morning air.

A night air show legacy flight passes behind the Oshkosh control tower at EAA AirVenture 2022.

When a hot air balloon festival returned after the COVID-19 pandemic eased, the joy of local and guest balloons taking to the air at sunrise is a feast for the eyes.

When a giant aerostat system is inflated, it is hinged in one point, so the wind determines how it moves. When taking a long exposure of this giant balloon, I picked a few highlights from its movement to correlate with the circling stars above.

A Schempp-Hirth Arcus M glider lands after completing another day of competition. A silo can be seen right below the glider. The picture was taken during the 64th Brazilian National Glider Competition that took place in September in Luis Eduardo Magalhaes, Brazil.

Above Eichstatt, Germany, a glider pilot enjoys his last flight of the season, soaring above a cloud layer illuminated by the setting Sun.

A DG-800 glider soars above Eichstatt, Germany, presenting its impressive 50-ft. wingspan against the setting Sun.