Have been reading Ian Toll’s Six Frigates: The Epic History of the Founding of the U.S. Navy during my recent travels. Very interesting read of not just the construction and operation of these ships, the most famous of course being Constitution, but also of the founding of the Navy as a cabinet-level service with a…
Tonight, at sundown, begins the celebration of Hanukkah by our Jewish brothers and sisters. Coming as it does on the heels of the “the Holocaust is a Fake” conference of alleged “scholars” (and trust me, that term is extremely loosely applied) in Tehran, it reminds us of the continuing struggle between the Light of Truth…
(This clock belonged to the chaplain on the USS Arizona and was stoppedby the force of the explosion which destroyed her)
(From Dec 69 issue of Naval Aviation News) The UH- 1 Iroquois helicopter slipped into and landed almost unnoticed at the outlying airfield. The only person aboard was the young pilot who climbed out and hurried away from the bird while it was still running. An instant later, the helicopter was observed approximately two feet…
(comes the time in most every Hawkeye flier’s experience when they have to deal face-to-face with the hydraulic failure demon. The Hawkeye has two hydraulic systems — one to drive the flight controls and another to drive the “auxiliary gear” which includes such minor items as landing gear, brakes, etc. In the event of a…
(SJS: From the Able Dog website — the story may have taken place in 1950, but I have a sneaking suspiscion that there are more than one of us who can readily identify with some parts herein…oh, and the hearing test we all *so* love to do with each annual physical, especially in our, um,…
Reveille came early at 0400 for the A-7B pilots of a light attack squadron deployed aboard an attack carrier. Briefing was scheduled at 0445 with the first launch at 0600. Two of the four scheduled Corsair II’s completed the launch and, after the mission was completed, returned for an IFR recovery. The two pilots separated…
While your faithful scribe does not hail from the VP community, he still nonetheless has spent time in Kef (and has the arrested field landings to prove it), most notably when E-2Cs replaced E-3’s during the late 1980-spring ’81 timeframe. ’twill be the subject of a future “Reflections.” Last U.S. Servicemembers to Leave Iceland Sept….
(Ed: This week’s offering comes from Grampaw Pettibone, of whom your humble scribe has been a fan for lo these many years. This article was first printed in Naval Aviation News in the 15 April 1943 issue)Duck SoupWhile simulating a strafing attack at a speed of approximately 250 knots, the pilot of an F4F-4 reported…
Close Shave An A-3D returning from a night training hop crossed the ramp of a big CVA with the meatball right on the money. The hook picked up the number two wire after the touchdown and the arrestment seemed normal. Suddenly, the wire BROKE, and the big plane lurched forward with full power on —…
