The Sidewinder. R-2508. The best it gets.

A lot to love in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpga1DeIbTo

The Hornet that looks like it is maybe 200 feet off the deck.

The Edwards flight test engineer trying to keep it together in the back seat.

The Moose (C-17) whose wingtip looks like it is about 100 feet from the desert. Just casually being enormous down low.

The Eagle flight lead actually down in the weeds.

And the Eagle wingman who is having none of it

The visibility panels the photographers put out across the desert.

And, obviously, all the Viper-shaped freedom birds with vapor on the strakes.

R-2508 has a pretty unique vibe: terrain, light, speed, weird airplanes doing different things in the same piece of sky. It is one of those places where you look around and remember that this job can be extremely cool.

Not that anyone needed reminding.