Is it real??

well, I guess there's no reason why not. Three possibilities spring to mind:

1 - it's a genuine large scale reverse thrust variable pitch unit.
2 - it's a fake picture
3 - it's a very nice plane 1 millisecond before a very terminal crash!

All three could be true!! If it is the first option then that makes it one very cool plane!

James

Check out the dust wash from the prop in the picture..... It's the first ever heli I could get excited about!!!

It doesn't look genuine to me, although very well done.

Regards,
-Fabrizio

Easy fake.
Look where the guy is pointing the camera. Plus the sun on his back and no sun on the left side of the plane. The shadow on the ground from the plane, the tail is obviously at the bottom when the pic was took. The sun is on the left of the plane. Therefore if the pic was true, the tail shadow would cast further away from the nose shadow. But it's opposite.
Nice pic though.

it's a fake. the original posting was done on april 1st. Even then, excellent photoshop work.


ciao

Fake

The first guys shadow is at 10 o 'clock, the guy with the camera is a 1300, the plane is a 1200

However

This isnt the first picture i've seen like this and in theory a reverse prop makes it possible but not aerodynamically. A plane is controlled by the wind over its surfaces so in the picture above the surfaces would flap with no effect.

Why the hell would you want to do that with a pattern anyway, surely the point of pattern is a sidestep from over the top manuevers like that

Regards
UK