Skywatch Friday: US Navy P-3C Orion

For this Skywatch photo, we leave our usual South Fidalgo camera location.  While visiting the West Beach area in Deception Pass State Park, I grabbed this quick shot.  There wasn't even time to check the camera settings.  This is a US Navy P-3C Orion coming in for a landing at N.A.S. Whidbey Island.  Long range patrol is the aircraft's mission.  I also learned the stunning paint job is a heritage design from the 1960's.  This is part of the Navy's celebration of a century of naval aviation.

Naval aircraft are part of the wildlife around here, a feature many of us enjoy.  You can Google the tail number for more details about this particular plane.