Aircraft

[Texas Lawdog]

A bunch of the 101 and 82nd landed in trees on D-Day.

[Texas Lawdog]

I received my copy of Air and Space today. They have a two page, full color, picture of the Pungo Mosquito in flight.  A real cool picture of a real cool airplane.

[Arcey]

Still waitin' ta see her.

[Texas Lawdog]

I heard that the crate came through the Panama Canal on it's way to the east coast of Virginia.

[Arcey]

Turned into the museum's entrance. We saw a bunch of stuff sitting out. There was a bit of activity around this one.



He climbed down and moved the ladder, there's a pilot in it. The ground crew manned the fire extinguishers and hooked up the battery cart.



She coughed a couple three times then fired. Note the exhaust.



Taxiing towards the runway. Fat lady was wondering if he knew the wings were up.



Told her he must have heard her.



East bound, heading down wind.



Turned her west, nose into the wind.



Throttled up and moving.



The image is trimmed. But, the fact is, I'd put the station wagon's tailgate up and I was sitting on the bumper. The airplane wasn't much more than a hundred yards from me - if that. Note the tail wheel.



Airborne.



Off we go, into the wild blue yonder.



This is stretching it about as far as I can take it. She's still west bound, going away in this image. I heard one of the ground crew tell another he was going to do a fly-by. He did. I couldn't get it.



After that, we went across the road and bought some fruit and vegetables.

[Texas Lawdog]

That is a Corsair with the Jolly Roger squadron markings. The Jolly Rogers are tall around today.

[Texas Lawdog]

VF-84(Jolly Rogers) are inactive since 1995,  the last airplane they flew was the F-14 Tomcat.

[pony express]

You sure have some cool stuff near you, Arcey.

They had a big airshow at Columbia, Mo this weekend, but I had some schedual problems, couldn't go. They didn't have an F4U, but they have P-51, T-6(several) B-25, I think a couple of TBMs, a BT-13, plus the Dawn Patrol, they fly replica WW1 , several different Newports, Fokkers, some others. Maybe next year!

[Texas Lawdog]

PE, WE have a A-26, a B-25, and a C-47 in our hangar in Fort Worth.

[Arcey]

Thankee, PE. We were fortunate to get that one.

We'd see the Jolly Roger markings at Oceana occasionally. Guess the were visiting.

[pony express]

I'd like to see that (or any) Corsair, both up close and flying. My dad did Aviation Ordinance on them, and AD Skyraiders on an escort carrier in the early 50's. It was during Korea, but he only operated in the Atlantic and Medeterrainean.
TLawdog, maybe I can get down that way again sometime, I thing the GAF Grand Muster is supposed to be at Lockheart, TX again for 2014. Do they do tours? I know the CAF in St Louis does, but I haven't had the opportunity to be intown on the days they do it. The B-25 and TBM at the Columbia show are based there, as well as some others I can't remember at the moment.

[Texas Lawdog]

One of my wife's teacher friends grew up as a military brat. Her father retired as a bird colonel in the Corps, he was a Marine aviator. He was one of the "Black Sheep".  His name was Ed Shifflet and he broke "Pappy" Boyington' s leg. He passed away before I could meet him. I know he could have told some stories. Bill Jordan was another one of his USMC buddies. I have a autographed copy of  "No Second Place Winner".

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Skyraiders were referred to as Spads back in 'Nam. they actually downed a couple Migs early on.
As far as the original WW I craft, they're all fascinating to me. Took some real sand to mix it up in those............Buck

Howdy!

Buck, you are correct, 'tho I don't know WHY the Skyraider was called the SPAD, since there was a WWI biplane ALREADY called the SPAD.  Eddie Rickenbacker made most (or all) of his 26 kills flying a SPAD.  Doesn't matter - I wasn't there at the time to correct them, nor am I in charge of nicknaming airplanes.

However, I want to pass on this VERY cool thing I just heard about.  About a week & a half ago, our NCOWS CAS Club, the Scarlet Mask Vigilance Society had a Saturday Work Day.  One of our Original members, Robert "Chief Oldtimer" Browning and I were talking and the subject of airplanes came up.  He said that before WWII (he's around 90 years young!) he was a pilot.  I was surprised, 'cause while I wasn't sure what all he'd done in his long life, I was not aware that one of the things was as a pilot.  So, I said innocently  "What did'ya fly?"  He said ... "A SPAD!!!"  He continued on, saying "Our group down in Texas - where they had a lot of rice fields, had 3 old surplus SPADS that were converted to drop Sulfur Bug-Killer as cropdusters!"  I'm tellin' ya, folks - I was flabbergasted!  I didn't know that ANY SPADS had been converted to cropdusters, let alone one of the most famous aircraft of WWI!  He's going to did around his house for the pictures he remembers, and I'll post 'em here if he finds them!

Just to think - - my 2 favorite hobby things in life: shootin' CAS and Flying-&-Airplanes rolled up in one location!  We talked about planes and flight stories for about an hour after we were done with the Work Party!

[Texas Lawdog]

SHB, IT is neat to talk to those old timers. They always have a bunch of stories to tell.

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Yeppir!

On of his shorter stories was about one of the other guys who was "dusting" and (with the sulfur dust I mentioned - apparently even back then in 1940, DDT was already outlawed) raised his altitude up a little to get over a power line, but fingered the dust release lever a bit too soon - BEFORE he was all the way over the power line - and when the cloud of sulfur dust touched the live line - WHOOMP!   Up in a smoky explosion!!!  And what's MORE, that pilot managed to LAND what was left of the plane!!!  Robert said he got out of the wreckage, walked away and never flew in an airplane again!

Cool story ... since it had a happy ending, that is!!!

[Four-Eyed Buck]

They called'em Spads because the main craft were jets by Viet Nam. The jet jocks used the term kinda derisively

[Steel Horse Bailey]

They called'em Spads because the main craft were jets by Viet Nam. The jet jocks used the term kinda derisively

I understand.  As if they were "prehistoric" aircraft.  (as if there were there such a thing, aside from the Flintstone version)



I don't agree, but I do understand.  The slightly more modern jet jockeys didn't like the A10  Lightning II "Warthog" when it came along because in spite of the fact that it IS jet powered, it doesn't have swept wings, so it isn't really "jet sexy!"

Gotta love those throttle jockeys!

[Texas Lawdog]

I would not say anything bad about the A-10, especially around Maj. CHAD Jennings. He flew one in the first Gulf War. He was a DT do the Cowboys and a graduate of the Air Force Academy.

[pony express]

I like to see the A-10s go over here. They have a training range on Ft Leonard Wood, so they fly over my area frequently. I guess they are based at Whiteman AFB. Funny how quiet they are when flying directly toward you, I suppose you are probably well within his firing range by the time you hear him. Then you can really hear when he goes over and away. One time I was driving a tractor in the field, think I was disking, one went over.....lowwwww..... he came from directly behind me, I never heard him untill he was right on top of me. Then he "wagged" his wings as he went away. Good thing I wasn't an enemy tank....

[Texas Lawdog]

They also have squadrons at Davis-Monthan AFB in Tucson and Barksdale AFB in Louisana.