Palmgren, Cooley and Harvest Reaper
$245.00
Palmgren, Cooley and Harvest Reaper – By Keith Ferris
Contact Keith Ferris Art
Canvas Print Size: 30″ X 12″
During the 1967 Thunderbird Reunion at Nellis AFB, the F-111 was being readied for deployment to Southeast Asia under the project name Harvest Reaper. My friend and 1963 Leader of the Thunderbirds, Ed Palmgren, was Operations Officer for the aircraft’s introduction to combat.
Through Ed I was introduced to the operations and the people of Harvest Reaper, dusk and night missions in the F-111, the extreme accuracy of the weapons system, long hours and hard work. I found a continuing warm spot inside for those who serve in the Air Force.
The painting depicts Ed in the left seat with Navy Cdr. Spade Cooley, an F-111B test pilot, in the right seat, as their Harvest Reaper F-111 lifts off in the dusk at Nellis from the same spot as “Thunderbird Take-Off.”
On 22 April 1968 Ed and Spade were lost when their F-111 disappeared on a mission in Southeast Asia. I still wear the MIA bracelet with Ed’s name on it.
30″ x 96″ Oil (1968)
U.S. Air Force Art Collection
