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August 24, 2021, was the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Paralympics. If you didn’t know, I’m not a big supporter of the Olympics. But, as you probably do know, I like airplanes. So, when my wife told me the Blue Impulse acrobatics team would soon fly over the city, I scrambled to put my Fujifilm XF 100-400mm on my X-T3. I was completely unprepared, but I photographed them. Military jets are always a thrill to see.
Who are Blue Impulse?
Blue Impulse is the Japan Air Self-Defense Force’s aerobatic team. They are from 11 Squadron of the 4th Air Wing and fly the Kawasaki T-4 intermediate jet trainer. They’re based at Miyagi Prefecture’s Matsushima Air Base, but they sometimes come to the Kanto area for special events such as the Iruma Air Show in Saitama Prefecture. See their official website here.
The Paralympic flyover mission
The team flew over Tokyo trailing plumes of red, blue, and green from the Paralympics. Over the city’s center, they laid the colors in the three “agitos.” Agito means “I move” in Latin. It symbolizes movement in the shape of an asymmetrical crescent. And the three colors? Most countries use them in their national flags. That’s an easy answer!
Challenges for aviation photographers
- First, my apartment is quite far from the center of the city. I wouldn’t be able to photograph the airplanes as they did their acrobatics over the city. My plan, if you can call it that, was just to take any pictures of the planes I could get.
- The weather? Mushy grey clouds hid the sky. It was far from the ideal situation for aircraft photography.
- Kawasaki T-4s are small, making it hard to focus on them in bad conditions. They are only two-seat trainers, which were tiny in my viewfinder.
- The planes were noisy. You could hear them long before you saw them. At least I could point my camera in the correct direction.
- I had no idea how long the planes would be overhead.
Final thoughts on the Blue Impulse shoot
The aircraft only made two passes near my apartment. My pictures were the best I could do under the circumstances. What did I learn from this? It is better to get some photos than end up with none. The Paralympics are a big event, and memories of those are important.
What’s the most difficult aviation shot you’ve ever tried to get?
Do you know what my favorite book about Tokyo is?
