CargomasterRaster

Winter 2012, Book I

2012-01-25T13:19:00.008-06:00

I. FIGHTER PILOT: The Memoirs of Legendary Ace Robin Olds

By Christina Olds and Ed Rasimus, St. Martin’s Press, May 2010

There are few among us who live their childhood dreams to the fullest, from their beginning to their end, and with Duty, Honor, Country as their true North no matter the personal danger or professional consequences. Robin Olds was one such USAF warrior and he never wavered at the sight of the enemy whether at 50,000’, at tree top level, behind a Pentagon desk, or confronting a ragged group of Vietnam protestors. He was fearless in his resistance to gratuitous attacks upon the men he commanded or the country he defended.

Risk of life was a way of life for Olds as he flew fighters during WWII and Vietnam never shirking as he personally led his men into the thick of an air battle. In spite of constant volunteering he missed Korea because his movie star wife, Ella Raines, secretly persuaded Laurance Rockefeller to use his political influence to take her husband from the list. Even with such a personal setback, Olds became a legendary Fighter Ace during our generation and this is his story compiled by his daughter and dozens of colleagues as they completed his unfinished memoirs. This is not a biography; it is the chronicle of a life in the words of Olds himself; a great man who lived a remarkable life.

Olds’ earliest memories were listening to his father and his pursuit pilot buddies who were “… gods to me, men in planes of wood and cloth…I had to be a fighter pilot….” Born in 1922 by the age of five Olds could name planes by the sound of their engines, by eight his father took him on his first flight in an open-cockpit plane, then he began to meet his father’s “brotherhood of pilots” from the great war, Arnold, Spaatz, Eaker, La Guardia, George, Andrews, and Rickenbacker to name just a very few. Through these initial experiences, Olds began to integrate the dreams of these early pioneers into his growing consciousness.

This small band of WWI Army Air Corp veterans were determined to change the battle of future wars by making air power prevail, to carry the war to the enemy in order to end the horror of trenches, and to eliminate the endless stalemate and thousands of casualties without gain. The visions of these early flyboys were met with scorn and derision as they could not occupy territory nor rule the sea. Billy Mitchell was court-martialed for his determination and Olds’ father was one of the men at his side during the trial. Such bureaucratic “scandals” were commonplace in Olds’ early life and he carried a dislike for “desk jobs” throughout his career. He only wanted to fly and lead men defending our country’s freedoms without constant meddling from those not in the battle. He was an aerial warrior! He was a fighter pilot! He wanted to win!

Olds received an appointment in 1940 to the U.S, Military Academy entering into the class of 1944 and onto the freshman football team where he ultimately became an inductee into the National Football Hall of Fame for his All-American play. He was considered one of the toughest college players of his time playing the full sixty minutes of each game. Because of the outbreak of WWII, the class graduated in June 1943, a full year early, and to the dismay of the old-time infantry who had been running the Point for years over half of the graduates chose the AAC. Olds was off to fly and nothing else mattered. He was on his way!

With his pilot Wings pinned on by General Hap Arnold he was sent for training in the P-38 Lighting with seven other West Point classmates where they all became members of the 479^th Fighter Group and went to WWII together. One was killed, two became POW’s, one almost finished a tour but quietly disappeared, two finished and went home, and the remaining member, Olds, went on to fly two tours, become a twenty-two- year-old major, and commander of the 434^th Fighter Squadron. He participated in “a small event called D-day”; and, his description of the panoply of war from the coast of Britain to Normandy during the early days of the Invasion are as vivid as any I have encountered. Olds became the 479^th first Ace and the last P-38 Ace of the War. The Squadron converted to P-51 Mustangs, and he completed the War with 12 aerial victories.

During the interval between WWII and Vietnam Olds served in various fighter squadrons beginning with the original P-80 “Shooting Star” at March Field, as an RAF exchange pilot in the “Meteor IV”, back to March with F-86’s, to Landstuhl for air defense of Western Europe, to Wheelus which was perfect for aerial combat training, and then to the Pentagon where he began secretly planning an assignment to SEA. His method to obtain the assignment was to aggravate his CO to the point where an SEA tour would be his punishment. And finally he heard the magic words, “And you, Olds, you’re exactly the kind of officer who should be in Southeast Asia!” Music to his ears!

His ruse worked and at last Olds was on his way to Vietnam where he would round out his legend as “…probably the greatest aerial warrior America ever produced”. After much conniving on his part, Olds, 44 years old and 22 years out of WWII, finally arrived at Ubon Royal Thai AFB 30sep66 as CO of the 8thTFW with F-4’s awaiting him. Olds quickly realized he had stepped into a troublesome situation as the commanders flew little, knew little about the missions, never had full Wing pilots’ meeting; and, on the whole, consisted of a low-morale, dejected group of USAF officers. Olds began the process of righting the situation by quickly announcing at a full Wing meeting that they were going to train him to be Green Lead and that he would be on the same flight schedule as they. “My name is Olds, I fly fighters, and I am your new boss.” They immediately sensed that their new CO had come to win!

Being the new ‘boy’ on the block and seeing the air battle beginning to favor the North, he finally was able to convince the ‘brass’ that this threat needed to be confronted and he devised what became the most successful air plan of the War: Bolo. Olds took personal responsibility to lead the first flight into the air battle where they were to simulate a Thud feint all the way in. In an ensuring ten-minute ‘dog fight’ seven MiG’s were destroyed and the ability of the F-4 to effectively engage the enemy aircraft was proven. In Olds’ opinion, the F-4 lacked only guns and they were recommended for future models.

Olds quickly realized that flying into the target area of the North with the missiles and MiG’s to be confronted was so intense that, “Nothing I experienced in WWII matched it.” But, that was the Vietnam War, brutal and soul-searching, without commitment to winning it, and being fought by the U.S. with good manners rather than the will to finish the enemy. During his tour Olds had four air victories and was being threatened by the Pentagon that as an Ace or the completion of 100 missions he would be instructed to return stateside. He would be too valuable a target to fly missions and would have to leave his command. Olds then decided to fly as a wingman and not chalk up his missions until his normal tour was concluded. He finished with 152 missions and passed up several personal opportunities for ‘kills’ leaving them to others. It was during this time that the famed Red River Valley Fighter Pilots Association was formed at Korat, a base familiar to many C-133 crewmembers, and Olds instigated the first Officer Club River Rat MiG Sweep, which lasts to this day.

With Olds’ frequent requests to stay at Ubon for another combat tour rebuffed, he was assigned as Commandant, USAF Academy, at the personal request of the Superintendent of the Academy, General Moorman. On his way to the Academy he met with President Johnson suggesting that we should ‘win the war’ by mining Haiphong Harbor and totally destroy the seat of government in Hanoi. The Pentagon considered these public sentiments as insubordinate behavior that could have serious disciplinary consequences and that he should tone down his public utterances. Olds’ tour at the Academy was not without public appearances where he continued to vent his frustration about the War as he saw the people in Washington (especially Kennedy, Johnson, and McNamara) having never grasped the basic objective; and, that human lives were a high price to engage without reason. He accused these men as playing at war without an understanding of its conduct. He would end his public speeches, ”…the way to end the war is to win it.”

During his three-year tour at the Academy, Olds was promoted to BG but then offered to give up his star in return for reassignment to combat in SEA. This request was quickly met with a blunt rejection; and, his next and last USAF assignment was Director of Aerospace Safety at Norton AFB that he found challenging and interesting. During one of his inspection visits to Ubon, the 555^th commander was determined to give Olds another chance at getting number five. To the disappointment of Olds and to the great relief of the CO, the North did not send up any MiGs. Their careers were saved!

On June 1, 1973, Olds retired from the USAF exactly thirty years after graduating from West Point. During his career, he received the Distinguished Service Medal, four Distinguished Flying Crosses, two Silver Stars, 20 Air Medals, the Legion of Merit, and the Air Force Medal.

Olds retired to Steamboat Springs, CO, to a home he would never leave. But, clearly, he never retired from being a fighter pilot, and on Thursday evening, June 14th, 2007, Olds made his final flight. Retired Brigadier General Robin Olds, United States Air Force, passed away peacefully from congestive heart failure, one month short of his 85th birthday. Olds, with a life that can never be duplicated was now a legend, and a well deserved one at that. He now lives forever within the annals of USAF history.

My review is meant to provide only a skeletal examination of General Olds’ life as a combat fighter pilot. In fact, to not read his memoirs is a personal disservice if you like first-hand, colorful, and riveting descriptions of modern air battles with supersonic weapons at a time and in a place familiar to C-133 crewmembers. Olds considered himself “one lucky old seat-of-the-pants guy” and never understood how the “kids today can fly with computers.” If you start to read, you will have trouble putting it down.

Lastly, I would like to thank Terry Wall for recommending and assisting me through this review. Enjoy!

Richard Spencer

39^th ATS, Dover AFB, 1962-1965

PS: If you want more info before reading this bio of Robin Olds, just Bing or Google him and you will find 480,000 hits. He had one amazing USAF life that will probably peak your interest. Olds was during our time and you will recognize many of the bases that we flew into where he was stationed. Maybe, some of you knew him!

Cheers, Rick

Rick Spencer Back in Action....Again!!

2012-01-19T11:14:00.006-06:00

Hello C-133 crew-members! I must apologize for falling behind my personal commitment to post a book review once a month that somehow ties into our USAF service no matter how tenuous the tie may be. But, I, as you, was very busy with the summer as that is when the kids and grandkids visit, perfecting my golf swing is a high priority, and the daylight hours take away from my time for reading and writing. Also, during this summer we began to market our house in order to move to Reston, VA, to be close to our youngest son and his family. We continue that effort, to no avail, as the Delaware housing market has flat lined.

We are now spending our 5^th winter in Key West where I mostly golf, fish, and read while Sue continues with her painting. Key West is an easygoing town loaded with cultural activities that are easily accessible and also has a large military presence. The Navy’s East coast Top-Gun fighter training base, Boca Chica NAS is next door, and the F-16’s and F-18’s are in the air as I write. My first official USAF mission with the 39^th ATS was to Key West during the Cuban Missile Crisis where KW was turned into an invasion port. Oddly, it was Florida’s largest city at the end of the 19^th century and has loads of history. Visit, if you can.

Now that I am settled in here for the winter, I have begun to commit several of my year’s readings to short reviews that hopefully provide you with enough ‘meat’ so that you may enjoy them as well. So, I thought that I would try something different and share my winter list with you in the event you find them of interest for your winter hibernation as well.

As you can tell from my past reviews, I like to write about the wisdom of history as it traces our nation’s rich intellectual legacy largely garnered through the invaluable lessons of Western thought that, in turn, lead us to insights about the three hundred years of Capitalism that has shaped our country and provided us with a very rich personal and national life. I would say, a life beyond our wildest dreams; one desired by all others; one to be protected for our progeny from future financial or villainous calamity.

But, mostly, I like to read about the every day American who stepped forth upon the world stage to represent us in times of great national or international peril with their unsuspected innate abilities to seize the moment and rescue the day regardless of its great personal danger. That singular aspect, some call it the essence of American Exceptionalism, has been the history of America and fosters ordinary citizen desire to protect our freedom and our Republic. Those moments of national danger also teach us much about the risks and rewards of being a superpower. C-133 crew-members were an important part of such history during the latter part of the 20^th century and we celebrated many of the events that involved our uniformed service during our last reunion.

So, I follow now with my winter 2012 reading list that feasts upon America’s past as it has been molded into greatness through the profundity of its leaders imbued with western thought. Enjoy!

1. Fighter Pilot: The Memoirs of Legendary Ace, Robin Olds

2. Modern Times: The World from the Twenties to the Eighties

3. The Complete Original Illustrated Sherlock Holmes

4. Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes

5. The Art of War by Sun-Tzu, The New Translation

6. Gabriel Allon Series by Daniel Silva

1/72 Anigrand C-133

2012-01-12T15:55:00.002-06:00

For those considering purchasing this kit, Phil Brandt's (of 39th ATS fame) extensive review is at this link.

http://www.hyperscale.com/2011/reviews/kits/anigrandaa2104reviewpb_1.htm

Cal Taylor

Goose Crash Memorial

2011-12-07T11:15:00.001-06:00

Chris Charland was a Boy Scout on a hike when he saw the C-133 crash at Goose Bay. Now, he is a PAO at RCAF base North Bay, Ontario. For several years, he worked to get a simple bronze plaque set up at Goose with the names of the crew that was killed. He contacted the 1st Sq at Andrews, successor to the Dover 1st Sq, and other potential supporters. That never came to fruition so he tried to get a memorial in place at RCAF Trenton, the Canadian transport base. Again, no luck.

Now, he is working to get a memorial at North Bay. The father of the current mayor of North Bay was a CO at Gooose.

Just to let folks know that Chris remembers and is still working the project.

Checklist Origin

2011-11-27T11:19:00.003-06:00

Thanks to Rick Spencer for the following link:

Anyone who has flown (and probably most who have not) is aware of the pilot’s checklist. It is a step-by-step procedure executed by the pilot (and often involving the co-pilot and other members of the crew) by which each critical system and function that should be checked before takeoff is checked and verified to be correct.

Countless lives have been saved by this simple yet very effective approach.

So, who invented the checklist?

And why did they think that it was necessary?

For the answer, click on the link below:

Click here: Checklist Origin

C-133 DVD set

2011-11-21T23:48:00.002-06:00

Just about done with the two-DVD set. One has about 1,700 still photos and illustrations. The entire 84th MAS scrapbook (146 pages) is included, at 200% scans. Every picture and ilustration from my book is there. Then, lots and lots of C-133 pictures that have been collected since 1998.

The video DVD has a 90-minute video of the last flight of 61999, from Anchorage to Travis. Lots of good sound of takeoff (twice) and landing (once). It will help you recall just how damned noisy the C-133 was, for maintenance and aircrew alike. I'm pretty satisfied with my first bit of video editing.

There will also be a short video (25 minutes) of an Alaska mission, flown about ten years ago. It carried big stuff to the North Slope.

For more info, check out the C-133 web site.

Things will be ready to ship by mid-December.

Cal Taylor

2011-11-17T15:52:00.002-06:00

Most of our C-133 Crew Colleagues know Rick Spencer, 39th ATS Navigator in the early 60s, Book Reviewer on this blog, and emcee of our last reunion in Dover. He offers the following thought provoking letter:

Hello C-133 Crewmembers:

Several of you have received drafts of the attached analysis of our $200
Trillion unfunded debt and made some fine comments to help me along. It was
suggested that I pen such by a former colleague in order that we may all
better understand the present nature of our nation’s fiscal situation and
its future generational consequences.

The combined local, state, and federal governments are now our largest
businesses, maybe the world’s largest as they control over 50% of our GDP.
The recent down grading of U.S. bonds suggest the precariousness of our
financial situation when measured against the balance sheet of a commercial
corporation. We are/would be in junk bond territory, especially, if one
takes into account the ‘hidden debt’ of the unfunded liabilities.

It now seems clear; and, no one seems to care that we have put our progeny
at risk with the ’New Deal’ and ‘Great Society’ policies that have pursued
reckless and abstract ideas of ‘social justice’ through the false promise
of a “permanence of plenty”. Social justice of the type that has been
pursued is an “empty formula”: It is the risk of a lesser life for one with
goals seeking personal and economic freedom; for one to be all that he can
be; for one to pursue his own happiness; and, for one to be forced to live
with unconstrained federal power touching all parts of his personal life. It
truly is ‘The Road To Serfdom’.

It may seem odd to the unconstrained utopian thinkers that a constrained
view of government was the Founder’s original intent; a view that accepted
its citizen’s own private stock of reasoning as appropriate guidance for
life’s concerns. That was a major tenet of our revolution, for our
Constitution, and for our nation’s guidance until the Progressive era began
at the turn of the 20th century.

The irony, that seems absurd, if not laughable, is that Europe has long been
infected with ‘the disease of progressivism’ in the form of socialism, but
they are now running from it just as we seem to be embracing it. Large
scale central planning by those who govern has never been the American
approach to achieve an economic independence and it remains to be seen if
our citizenry accept it as a way of life.

I have attached my thoughts, “ Unfunded Liabilities: The Folly of the
Ancient Hope of Mankind, to Live Without Working”. Please note that the
analysis only indirectly speaks to the indiscriminate spending of our moral
capital largely caused by the reckless abandon that we have been spending
our financial capital. The work ends with a challenge to the reader; and, I
now await your response to my challenge. Thanks, RLS

P.S. For those unfamiliar with ‘net present value’, ‘bonds in perpetuity’,
or the ‘PIIGS’ of Europe they are explained in the below links that you can
review before beginning.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Net_present_value

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perpetuity

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8510603.stm

Il Silenzio (Taps Original Version)

2011-11-10T22:27:00.003-06:00

UNBELIEVABLY BRILLIANT

The conductor of the orchestra is Andre Rieu from Holland .

The young lady, her trumpet and her rendition of TAPS makes your hair stand on end.

Many of you may never have heard taps played in its entirety, for all of the men and women that have died for you to have the freedom you have in America and Canada . This is an opportunity you won't want to miss and I guarantee you'll never forget.

Amazingly beautiful ..

Melissa Venema, age 13, is the trumpet soloist. She is also from Holland. Here is Taps played in its entirety. The original version of Taps was called Last Post, and was written by Daniel Butterfield in 1801. It was rather lengthy and formal, as you will hear in this clip, so in
1862 it was shortened to 24 notes and re-named Taps.

Melissa Venema is playing it on a trumpet whereby the original was played on a bugle.

Watch at this site:

http://www.flixxy.com/trumpet-solo-melissa-venema.htm

New C-133 kit--BIG!

2011-11-09T21:24:00.003-06:00

For all who won't live long enough to finish a vacuform kit, Anigrand has the answer. (BTW< I don't get a cent for this!) It's a cast resin 1:72 C-133 with markings for 62008, at the NMUSAF. I've seen pics of the moldings. They look pretty good. And there is potential for lots of other markings.

Rare-Plane Detective in Las Vegas (favorite alternate for Travis C-133 drivers) is taking pre-orders. Check their web site:

http://www.nostalgicplastic.com/comesoon.cfm?DTTM=20111003193
430&RequestedTimeout=500&KI=4323

Cal Taylor

Anigrand C-133 Kit

2011-11-09T21:08:00.004-06:00

First of all, I don't get a cent from this. Just info for the crowd. Now a 1:72 resin cast C-133 model by Anigrand, for those who won't live long enough to finish a vacuform kit! That is a 30" wingspan. The markings are for 62008 at the NMUSAF, but a little work will give you lots of other choices. I've seen some shots of the moldings and they look pretty good. Rare-Plane Detective, in Las Vegas (favorite alternate for Travis C-133 drivers!) is getting the kit soon. Here is a link.

Just for other info, I sent Anigrand a package about the C-132. They seem to be looking at doing one in 1:144 scale, about 17" span.

http://www.nostalgicplastic.com/comesoon.cfm?DTTM=20111003193430&RequestedTimeout=500&KI=4323

Cal Taylor

Veterans' Day, 11-11-11

2011-11-08T10:45:00.003-06:00

We honor and respect all Veterans' and their families:

When "Challenger" Flies

2011-11-07T10:34:00.004-06:00

Thanks to Albert Rice for the following video. If this doesn't give you chills, you're older than I am! :)

Click on the text at the top of the video screen to go to the YouTube site, then on the lower-right icon for full-screen viewing.

More appropriate posts coming as we approach Veterans' Day on 11-11-11.

Supersonic Flights: Sonic Booms

2011-11-03T09:19:00.003-06:00

Thanks to Bill Neely for the following link to a great video:

Click on: Sonic Booms

Jumbo Landing in Crosswind

2011-10-17T16:33:00.001-05:00

Although quite interesting, a number of people within the aviation community feel that this sequence may be faked. Some of the reasons given are that there are no visible navigation nor landing lights, the crosswind component appears to change significantly between the two final segments shown in this video, and braking appears to be too sudden. You decide . . . .

Angel Flight: In Memory America's Fallen

2011-10-03T20:53:00.005-05:00

Outstanding video, thanks to Jack Slocombe.

Click on: Angel Flight

Huge C-133 Model

2011-09-18T11:22:00.003-05:00

Geaorge Maiorana is nearly there with his big model. He says that all electrics, motors and servos are installed. The landing gear works. Now, he is closing in on painting. I sent a disc with 50s color schems that had the DaGlo markings. This picture is a while back. He now has the props mounted and partial markings. Wingspan is about 13'.

Cal Taylor

Aviators

2011-09-13T15:39:00.004-05:00

Thanks to Sandy Sandstrom for this; I think we can all relate:

Aviators: Once the wings go on, they never come off whether they can be seen or not. It fuses to the soul through adversity, fear and adrenaline and no one who has ever worn them with pride, integrity and guts can ever sleep through the call of the wild` that wafts through bedroom windows in the deep of the night.

When a good pilot leaves the `job' and retires, many are jealous, some are pleased and yet others, who may have already retired, wonder.

We wonder if he knows what he is leaving behind, because we already know.

We know, for example, that after a lifetime of camaraderie that few experience, it will remain as a longing for those past times.

We know in the world of flying, there is a fellowship which lasts long after the flight suits are hung up in the back of the closet.
We know even if he throws them away, they will be on him with every step and breath that remains in his life.

We also know how the very bearing of the man speaks of what he was and in his heart still is.

Because we fly, we envy no man on earth.

-Author Unknown

C-133 production line

2011-09-05T21:26:00.003-05:00

In case you ever wondered what the C-133 looked like, earlier in its life. here's a shot of the production line. Look at those huge bits and pieces lying nearby. I still haven't figured out just how the ever-growing airplane was staged from one place to another. Just part of over 1,200 C-133 images I have collected. More to scan!

Cal Taylor

C-133 disk

2011-08-27T14:04:00.004-05:00

A heads up to folks. I'm assembling a C-133 disk that will have lots of photos and some video. There will be about 1,000 pictures, if I can get permission from people who have sent me pics, over the years. I have lots of video from the McChord stop of 61999, some flight test (stalls) video from Edwards and a 20-minute film of 61999 doing an Alaska mission. That is my summer project. I also have every picture or illustration from my book (about 300) and 140 double-size pages from the 84th ATS/MAS scrapbook. I have a binder of pictures to scan and add to the collection.

This shot shows 40135 on display for an AF inspection of the first airplane. I wish I had put it in the book.

Cal Taylor

Picture for Runaway Prop

2011-08-20T20:41:00.006-05:00

Here is the illustration by Fred Ludekens, used in the story, "Runaway Prop." It shows the C-133A in a severe pitch-up, dropping the Thor out the back end. The story has this event occurring at the bottom of a steep descent from 11,000', followed by a steep climb to make the jettison at 200'. I'll leave it to the experienced pilots to discuss the aerodynamic realities of such an event.

Cal Taylor

Runaway Prop

2011-08-19T19:40:00.008-05:00

That 's the name of a short story by Frank Harvey, published in the Saturday Evening Post in May 1959. It is one of only two fiction accounts I have read that featured the C-133. The other was a novel by Clive Cussler, in which a C-133 lands at an AF station in Greece and is destroyed on the ground.

Harvey's story is pretty gripping and brings to mind several actual events. If you want to read it, email me at firstfleet@aol.com. I'll figure out how to attach it to my web site, eventually.

Cal Taylor

Additional Note from Dick Hanson:

In less than two hours, 7 of you responded to my e-mail with Runaway Prop attached, and 3 of those indicated the Clive Cussler novel Cal referred to is "The Mediterranean Caper."

To scan the Wikipedia posting on this book, click on:

Wikipedia on Mediterranean Caper.

To actually purchase the book online for $1 + postage, click on:

The Mediterranean Caper.

Additional comment by Jim Maloney:

The Mediterranean Caper ( also published as Mayday) is an action-adventure novel by Clive Cussler published in the United States in 1973. This is the 1st published book featuring the author’s primary protagonist, Dirk Pitt. It was nominated for an Edgar award by the Mystery Writers of America for "Best Paperback Original Novel of 1973."

Island Enterprises C-131 and C-132

2011-08-13T16:08:00.002-05:00

Brian Stegner sent a shot of three C-133 models and one C-132, all with 20" fuselages. They aren't painted, yet. The shot was of a QC stage. But, they look really good. I'm having the C-132 painted the same as the early C-133s--white top and da-glo stripes. No word on pricing but it looks like folks will get their money's worth. BTW, I have no financial interest in IE.

Noise levels in the C-133

2011-08-06T22:13:00.002-05:00

I had a recent email from Jan Monroe, whose husband "can't hear for ****" (her words). He had 4,000 hours in the C-133 plus Tweet time. I found some pages in an Edwards flight test report that dealt with noise levels in the airplane, including a nice graph the length of the fuselage. Maj Monroe may try a claim with VA, which his docs recommended. I'd be happy to send the info to anyone else who is trying that route. Just email me at firstfleet@aol.com.

Cal Taylor

New C-132 Model

2011-08-06T17:42:00.002-05:00

Island Enterprises is building a brand new carved Filipino model of a C-132. I sent a bunch of technical date, including a huge 3-view drawing. Brian Stegner says it looks beautiful. As soon as it arrives, I'll post pictures.

Here's their web site: http://www.islandenterprises.net

Brian's dad is Bob Stegner, who was once NCOIC of propulsion at Tachi and Travis.

Cal Taylor

Dover Mini-Reunion Planning Update

2011-08-06T16:30:00.003-05:00

I've logged 23 affirmative replies, for a total of 39 people to attend on Saturday, 8 Oct 2011.

As initially announced the idea is to have a little beer & wine at the AMC Museum in the afternoon, then dinner at Dover Downs.

Sandy will be getting back to me with more details which I will forward to the e-mail list of affirmative replies.

If you haven't replied, and still have serious intent to attend, please let me know ASAP at the following e-mail address: rehanson342@me.com

Douglas C-132 Model

2011-08-02T21:05:00.007-05:00

I've been advised there is a C-132 (not C-133!) model for sale on e-Bay, asking $249. To check it out, sign in (or register) to ebay.com and enter "Douglas C-132" in the Search window.

To learn more about the airplane that was never produced, go to the following link to Cal Taylor's website.

Click on:
Comparative Chronologies of C-133 and C-132

Dover Mini-Reunion Planning for 8 Oct 2011

2011-07-23T20:27:00.003-05:00

The idea is to have a Saturday evening dinner with a cash bar at Dover Downs, and before we get specific, we'd like to know how many of you have serious interest in attending. The AMC Museum could be open in the afternoon, with wine and beer available as before.

We don't intend to make a mailing, so our e-mail list and word-of-mouth is our total "marketing plan." If you are seriously planning to attend, contact anyone you know who may also be interested, and within the next ten days (by 2 Aug) let me know at the following e-mail address your intentions and the number of people we could count on from your party. Then Sandy and his Dover team will come up with a specific plan (i.e. menu options, cost/person and a deadline), and I'll get back to those who reply by e-mail.

Contact: Dick Hanson at rehanson342@me.com

THANK YOU!!

Airwar, by Edward Jablonski

2011-07-12T19:42:00.004-05:00

These two large books have been waiting to be read for four years. They are classics and are excellent! Jablonski covers the entire WWII period and tells the stories of the Battle of Britian, Pearl Harbor, English night bombing and the Dambusters raid, among others. He has lots of names, some never heard of and others well known (Billy Mitchell, Yamamoto, Guy Gibson, "Sailor" Malan, Barnes Wallis, etc.). We have all heard or read these tales, but Jablonski's treatment is as exciting as Dale Brown's works. These books are a painless way to refresh yourself on air power and its applications from the 1930s until the A-bomb.

Discovery Flight Deck

2011-07-12T14:23:00.003-05:00

Thanks to Bill Neely for this link to a website for a 360 degree view (both side-to-side and up-and-down; don't miss the ceiling with the up and down arrows at the bottom) of the Space Shuttle Discovery crew cabin flight deck.

Click on:
Discovery Flight Deck

Discovery (OV-103), the third of NASA's fleet of reusable, winged spaceships, arrived at Kennedy Space Center in November 1983. It was launched on its first mission, flight 41-D, on August 30, 1984. It carried aloft three communications satellites for deployment by its astronaut crew.

Other Discovery milestones include the deployment of the Hubble Space Telescope on mission STS-31 in April 1990, the launching of the Ulysses spacecraft to explore the sun's polar regions on mission STS-41 in October of that year and the deployment of the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) in September 1991.

Discovery is named for two famous sailing ships; one sailed by Henry Hudson in 1610-11 to search for a northwest passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and the other by James Cook on a voyage during which he discovered the Hawaiian Islands.

Flying Status for Flying Safety

2011-07-09T09:35:00.006-05:00

Know any "old pilots" out there? Thanks to Jerry Coleman, here's an authentic military order, dated 22 May 1939, from Chief of the Air Corps, Maj. Gen. H. H. Arnold. I know you can't read the fine print without a magnifying glass, but it says that the Chief is "deeply concerned that senior and older pilots take no unnecessary flying risks and thus jeopardize their valuable experience to the Air Corps.," and basically any pilot over 47 years old, regardless of rank or experience, must ride "shotgun" for a younger pilot.

Dawn over Kitty Hawk

2011-07-04T18:48:00.004-05:00

Thanks to Cal Taylor for his following comment:

I just finished Walter Boyne's excellent book, Dawn over Kitty Hawk. It is a fictional account of the entire story of the Wright Brothers and their contemporaries, from before the first flight until long after. Boyne does an excellent job of detailing the rivalry, cooperation, accomplishments and failures of Langley, Bell, Chanute and many others. It's available in paperback, probably at your local used paperback store.

To find it online @ Barnes & Noble for $1.99 paperback (or $6.99 Nook book), click on:

Dawn over Kitty Hawk

Also to go to an interesting related website reported earlier on this blog, click on:

Wright B Flyer Website

Gear Problem

2011-06-27T23:16:00.003-05:00

Thanks to Dick Strouse for this one:

Phantom Ray's First Flight

2011-06-25T17:29:00.004-05:00

Thanks to Dick Strouse for this link to a new video of Phantom Ray's first flight; Boeing's unmanned fighter aircraft.

Click on:
Phantom Ray's First Flight

Vance AFB Video

2011-06-13T21:22:00.006-05:00

Thanks to Ted Feindt for this link to a great YouTube video, with Toby Keith's "Courtesy of the Red, White & Blue"

Click on:
Vance AFB JSUPT Video
(Joint Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training)

Wright B Flyer

2011-05-31T11:50:00.003-05:00

Thanks to Jim Dunn for the following:

For all Aviation and History buffs. One of the team members is a college classmate and fellow AF retiree. Jim Dunn

Thought you might enjoy seeing our new Wright B Flyer aircraft in flight over the runway at Dayton. It's named the Silver Bird. Don Stroud

All, Wright "B" Flyer has a new website:

Click on: Wright B Flyer Website

But the format and content have been updated. We still have a page or two to add, and many photos, but the new site is up and functioning. Please visit the new site and let us know what you think.

Tim Gaffney
Timothy R. Gaffney Wright "B" Flyer Inc., Trustee
tgaffney@timothyrgaffney.com
Phone (cell): 937.219.8277
Fax: 937.424.8112

USAF Aircraft Since 1947

2011-05-21T09:09:00.005-05:00

Thanks to Rick Spencer, here's a link to an incredible collection of photos of USAF Aircraft since 1947, including our beloved Cargomaster:

Click on: Bob Sherman's Web Page

Helicopter Operating Limit

2011-05-20T15:56:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Bob Jenkins for the link to the following video:

Defining the Limits. Helicopters operate to ships in the most demanding of environmental conditions. Accurately-defined operating limits, with suitable safety margins, are essential for giving operators the confidence to operate to the limits when it's needed most. Whether it is a small or large ship helicopter interface trial, consultancy, or full program management, Prism Defence has the skills to safely and accurately define the limits.

Click on: Helicopter Operating Limit

Model (Correction)

2011-05-18T11:13:00.002-05:00

George Maiorana said I over-estimated. The scale is 1:16.5 with an 11' wingspan. The covering will be FliteMetal, a sticky-back aluminum (sounds like speed tape), which George will emboss with about 500,000 rivets.

Really BIG model

2011-05-17T18:18:00.004-05:00

George Maiorana builds huge models. He has been working all winter on a C-133 with a wingspan of about 18' (1/10 scale). The fuselage and wings are joined and he is now applying a finishing fabric. This will eventually fly. It has working landing gear that looks like the original real stuff. The ailerons and flaps will work, too. He will install the receiver and the motor wiring soon.

Cal Taylor

MACH 3.18 IN-FLIGHT BREAKUP OF AN SR-71 BLACKBIRD

2011-05-17T11:30:00.005-05:00

Thanks to Sandy Sandstrom for contributing a story worth reading:

Star Dusters Newsletter

Retirees Affiliated With Lockheed Martin Leadership Association

MACH 3.18 IN-FLIGHT BREAKUP OF AN SR-71 BLACKBIRD

By Bill Weaver, Chief Test Pilot, Lockheed

Among professional aviators, there's a well-worn saying: Flying is simply hours of boredom punctuated by moments of stark terror. But I don't recall too many periods of boredom during my 30-year career with Lockheed, most of which was spent as a test pilot. By far, the most memorable flight occurred on Jan. 25, 1966.

Jim Zwayer, a Lockheed flight-test specialist, and I were evaluating systems on an SR-71 Blackbird test from Edwards. We also were investigating procedures designed to reduce trim drag and improve high-Mach cruise performance. The latter involved flying with the center-of-gravity (CG) located further aft than normal, reducing the Blackbird's longitudinal stability.

We took off from Edwards at 11:20 a.m. and completed the mission's first leg without incident. After refueling from a KC-135 tanker, we turned eastbound, accelerated to a Mach 3.2 cruise speed and climbed to 78,000 ft., our initial cruise-climb altitude.

Several minutes into cruise, the right engine inlet's automatic control system malfunctioned, requiring a switch to manual control. The SR-71's inlet configuration was automatically adjusted during supersonic flight to decelerate airflow in the duct, slowing it to subsonic speed before reaching the engine's face. This was accomplished by the inlet's center-body spike translating aft, and by modulating the inlet's forward bypass doors.

Normally, these actions were scheduled automatically as a function of Mach number, positioning the normal shock wave (where air flow becomes subsonic) inside the inlet to ensure optimum engine performance. Without proper scheduling, disturbances inside the inlet could result in the shock wave being expelled forward - a phenomenon known as an "inlet unstart."

That causes an instantaneous loss of engine thrust, explosive banging noises and violent yawing of the aircraft, like being in a train wreck. Unstarts were not uncommon at that time in the SR-71's development, but a properly functioning system would recapture the shock wave and restore normal operation.

On the planned test profile, we entered a programmed 35-deg. bank turn to the right. An immediate unstart occurred on the right engine, forcing the aircraft to roll further right and start to pitch up. I jammed the control stick as far left and forward as it would go. No response. I instantly knew we were in for a wild ride. I attempted to tell Jim what was happening and to stay with the airplane until we reached a lower speed and altitude. I didn't think the chances of surviving an ejection at Mach 3.18 and 78,800 ft. were very good. However, g-forces built up so rapidly that my words came out garbled and unintelligible, as confirmed later by the cockpit voice recorder.

The cumulative effects of system malfunctions, reduced longitudinal stability, increased angle-of-attack in the turn, supersonic speed, high altitude and other factors imposed forces on the airframe that exceeded flight control authority and the stability augmentation system's ability to restore control. Everything seemed to unfold in slow motion. I learned later the time from event onset to catastrophic departure from controlled flight was only 2-3 seconds. Still trying to communicate with Jim, I blacked out, succumbing to extremely high g-forces.

Then the SR-71 literally disintegrated around us. From that point, I was just along for the ride. And my next recollection was a hazy thought that I was having a bad dream. ― Maybe I'll wake up and get out of this mess -- I mused. Gradually regaining consciousness, I realized this was no dream; it had really happened. That also was disturbing, because I COULD NOT HAVE SURVIVED what had just happened.

I must be dead. Since I didn't feel bad,- just a detached sense of euphoria- I decided being dead wasn't so bad after all. As full awareness took hold, I realized I was not dead. But somehow I had separated from the airplane. I had no idea how this could have happened; I hadn't initiated an ejection. The sound of rushing air and what sounded like straps flapping in the wind confirmed I was falling, but I couldn't see anything. My pressure suit's face plate had frozen over and I was staring at a layer of ice.

The pressure suit was inflated, so I knew an emergency oxygen cylinder in the seat kit attached to my parachute harness was functioning. It not only supplied breathing oxygen, but also pressurized the suit, preventing my blood from boiling at extremely high altitudes. I didn't appreciate it at the time, but the suit's pressurization had also provided physical protection from intense buffeting and g-forces. That inflated suit had become my own escape capsule.

My next concern was about stability and tumbling. Air density at high altitude is insufficient to resist a body's tumbling motions, and centrifugal forces high enough to cause physical injury could develop quickly. For that reason, the SR-71's parachute system was designed to automatically deploy a small-diameter stabilizing chute shortly after ejection and seat separation. Since I had not intentionally activated the ejection system--and assuming all automatic functions depended on a proper ejection sequence — it occurred to me the stabilizing chute may not have deployed.

However, I quickly determined I was falling vertically and not tumbling. The little chute must have deployed and was doing its job. Next concern: the main parachute, which was designed to open automatically at 15,000 ft. Again I had no assurance the automatic-opening function would work.

I couldn't ascertain my altitude because I still couldn't see through the iced-up faceplate. There was no way to know how long I had been blacked-out or how far I had fallen. I felt for the manual-activation D-ring on my chute harness, but with the suit inflated and my hands numbed by cold, I couldn't locate it. I decided I'd better open the faceplate, try to estimate my height above the ground, and then locate that "D" ring. Just as I reached for the faceplate, I felt the reassuring sudden deceleration of main-chute deployment.

I raised the frozen faceplate and discovered its uplatch was broken. Using one hand to hold that plate up, I saw I was descending through a clear, winter sky with unlimited visibility. I was greatly relieved to see Jim's parachute coming down about a quarter of a mile away. I didn't think either of us could have survived the aircraft's breakup, so seeing Jim had also escaped lifted my spirits incredibly.

I could also see burning wreckage on the ground a few miles from where we would land. The terrain didn't look at all inviting — a desolate, high plateau dotted with patches of snow and no signs of habitation.

I tried to rotate the parachute and look in other directions. But with one hand devoted to keeping the face plate up and both hands numb from high-altitude, subfreezing temperatures, I couldn't manipulate the risers enough to turn. Before the breakup, we'd started a turn in the New Mexico-Colorado-Oklahoma-Texas border region. The SR-71 had a turning radius of about 100 miles at that speed and altitude, so I wasn't even sure what state we were going to land in. But, because it was about 3:00 p.m. , I was certain we would be spending the night out here.

At about 300 ft. above the ground, I yanked the seat kit's release handle and made sure it was still tied to me by a long lanyard. Releasing the heavy kit ensured I wouldn't land with it attached to my derriere, which could break a leg or cause other injuries. I then tried to recall what survival items were in that kit, as well as techniques I had been taught in survival training.

Looking down, I was startled to see a fairly large animal – perhaps an antelope- directly under me. Evidently, it was just as startled as I was because it literally took off in a cloud of dust.

My first-ever parachute landing was pretty smooth. I landed on fairly soft ground, managing to avoid rocks, cacti and antelopes. My chute was still billowing in the wind, though. I struggled to collapse it with one hand, holding the still-frozen faceplate up with the other. "Can I help you?" a voice said. Was I hearing things? I must be hallucinating. Then I looked up and saw a guy walking toward me, wearing a cowboy hat. A helicopter was idling a short distance behind him. If I had been at Edwards and told the search-and-rescue unit that I was going to bail out over the Rogers Dry Lake at a particular time of day, a crew couldn't have gotten to me as fast as that cowboy-pilot had.

The gentleman was Albert Mitchell, Jr., owner of a huge cattle ranch in northeastern New Mexico and I had landed about 1.5 mi. from his ranch house--and from a hangar for his two-place Hughes helicopter. Amazed to see him, I replied I was having a little trouble with my chute. He walked over and collapsed the canopy, anchoring it with several rocks. He had seen Jim and me floating down and had radioed the New Mexico Highway Patrol, the Air Force and the nearest hospital.

Extracting myself from the parachute harness, I discovered the source of those flapping-strap noises heard on the way down. My seat belt and shoulder harness were still draped around me, attached and latched.

The lap belt had been shredded on each side of my hips, where the straps had fed through knurled adjustment rollers. The shoulder harness had shredded in a similar manner across my back. The ejection seat had never left the airplane. I had been ripped out of it by the extreme forces, with the seat belt and shoulder harness still fastened.

I also noted that one of the two lines that supplied oxygen to my pressure suit had come loose, and the other was barely hanging on. If that second line had become detached at high altitude, the deflated pressure suit wouldn't have provided any protection. I knew an oxygen supply was critical for breathing and suit-pressurization, but didn't appreciate how much physical protection an inflated pressure suit could provide.

That the suit could withstand forces sufficient to disintegrate an airplane and shred heavy nylon seat belts, yet leave me with only a few bruises and minor whiplash was impressive. I truly appreciated having my own little escape capsule.

After helping me with the chute, Mitchell said he'd check on Jim. He climbed into his helicopter, flew a short distance away and returned about 10 minutes later with devastating news: Jim was dead. Apparently, he had suffered a broken neck during the aircraft's disintegration and was killed instantly. Mitchell said his ranch foreman would soon arrive to watch over Jim's body until the authorities arrived. I asked to see Jim and, after verifying there was nothing more that could be done, agreed to let Mitchell fly me to the Tucumcari hospital, about 60 mi. to the south.

I have vivid memories of that helicopter flight, as well. I didn't know much about rotorcraft, but I knew a lot about "red lines," and Mitchell kept the airspeed at or above red line all the way. The little helicopter vibrated and shook a lot more than I thought it should have. I tried to reassure the cowboy-pilot I was feeling OK; there was no need to rush. But since he'd notified the hospital staff that we were inbound, he insisted we get there as soon as possible. I couldn't help but think how ironic it would be to have survived one disaster only to be done in by the helicopter that had come to my rescue.

However, we made it to the hospital safely--and quickly. Soon, I was able to contact Lockheed's flight test office at Edwards. The test team there had been notified initially about the loss of radio and radar contact, then been told the aircraft had been lost. They also knew what our flight conditions had been at the time, and assumed no one could have survived. I explained what had happened, describing in fairly accurate detail the flight conditions prior to breakup.

The next day, our flight profile was duplicated on the SR-71 flight simulator at Beale AFB, Calif. The outcome was identical. Steps were immediately taken to prevent a recurrence of our accident. Testing at a CG aft of normal limits was discontinued, and trim-drag issues were subsequently resolved via aerodynamic means. The inlet control system was continuously improved and, with subsequent development of the Digital Automatic Flight and Inlet Control System, inlet unstarts became rare.

Investigation of our accident revealed that the nose section of the aircraft had broken off aft of the rear cockpit and crashed about 10 miles from the main wreckage. Parts were scattered over an area approximately 15 miles longand 10 miles wide. Extremely high air loads and g-forces, both positive and negative, had literally ripped Jim and me from the airplane. Unbelievably good luck is the only explanation for my escaping relatively unscathed from that disintegrating aircraft.

Two weeks after the accident, I was back in an SR-71, flying the first sortie on a brand-new bird at Lockheed's Palmdale, Calif. assembly and test facility. It was my first flight since the accident, so a flight test engineer in the back seat was probably a little apprehensive about my state of mind and confidence.

As we roared down the runway and lifted off, I heard an anxious voice over the intercom. "Bill! Bill! Are you there?" "Yeah, George. What's the matter?" "Thank God! I thought you might have left."

The rear cockpit of the SR-71 has no forward visibility--only a small window on each side--and George couldn't see me. A big red light on the master-warning panel in the rear cockpit had illuminated just as we rotated, stating: "Pilot Ejected." Fortunately, the cause was a misadjusted micro switch, not my departure.

In Honor of Our Veterans

2011-05-15T10:50:00.003-05:00

Watch this awesome video of the Vietnam Memorial Flight of a restored F-100F.

Click on the red link (not the photo):
Bud Day Returns To His F-100F

Dover Mini-Reunion

2011-05-10T23:04:00.002-05:00

SAVE THE DATE!

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2011

Dover C-133 Crew Mini-Reunion (Saturday evening dinner only)

Plans in the works! Stay tuned for details!

America's First Jet Flight

2011-05-07T10:05:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Bill Neely, check out this video of America's First Jet Flight of the XP-59A, October 1942.

Click on: America's First Jet Flight

Wake Island 1941

2011-05-06T12:39:00.008-05:00

Just for comparison, here is a USN photo of Wake Island on 3 Dec 1941. A tug from Portland, OR and its crew were there to dynamite coral heads in the lagoon, to make the landing area for the PanAm clippers safe.

Wake and Harriers

2011-05-04T22:05:00.005-05:00

Here is a great shot of a Harrier 4-ship over the Wake Island runway, from Brian Stegner. It must take a big piddle pack to move a Harrier across the water! The picture was 25" wide, as it came to me. I reduced it to 5". It anyone wants the BIG one, email me and I'll bounce it to you.

Cal Taylor

Royal Air Force Forum

2011-05-02T23:34:00.002-05:00

I recently discovered this site. It is fascinating. I posted some things that might bring answers from folks in the RAF. They included a bit about the two RAF officers who did exchanges to the 84th and the hope that someone might know how a big metal model of the C-133 ended up in RAF Transport Command colors and was found in an antique shop in Perth, Western Australia. Lots of other interesting stuff. There are many C-133 folks who could legitimately post on the site, I think.
http://rafforum.activeboard.com/forum.spark?aBID=46291&p=1

Cal Taylor

C-133 models

2011-04-29T14:00:00.002-05:00

Brian Stegner's father, Bob Stegner, was the propulsion NCOIC at Tachi and Travis. Brian been in the PI for some years. He is now working with Island Enterprises, in Angeles City, which is producing what Brian calls the Gold Standard in models and other products. Check their web site at http://www.islandenterprises.net/default.aspx. I have no involvement other than passing on the word about the company. Look forward to a C-124 and C-133 that will be better than anything else out there. I supplied official USAF marking specs.

Cal Taylor

Curt Budd gone west

2011-04-26T13:18:00.005-05:00

Curt Budd, Jr., advised me that his father, Curt Budd, Sr., died in March 2011. Curt Budd was one of the C-133 pioneers at Dover. He went from C-124s in the 1st to an early copilot class in the 39th, where veterans of the 1700th Test Sq were the instructors. He shows up on twelve pages of my book, an indication of his willingness to share his experiences.

Those included interesting interactions with the RAF, during an RON at Hemswell and a 20,000 pound Navy overload at Norfolk. At Christmas 1959, per sealed orders from the 39th commander, he picked up sixty cases of liquor at Chateauroux. That light load was for Christmas parties in the 39th and US Customs.

Curt also commented that the early, more experienced C-133 crews thought that takeoffs a few knots above Dash One numbers made for better performance. He thought that younger pilots might have had more problems with stalls in heavy-weight climbs, when they went strictly by the book.

Thanks, Curt.

Cal Taylor

Fifi Flies Again

2011-04-26T09:56:00.002-05:00

"FIFI" First Flight with New Engines from Hangar Workshop Productions on Vimeo.

Wright-Patt Museum

2011-04-20T10:33:00.012-05:00

Thanks to Fred Dietsch for the following link to an amazing "virtual tour" of the museum:

1. Click on the “MAP” in the upper right hand corner to bring down a visual menu of the different sites within the museum......

2. then click on a “dot” within that site to view the exhibits from that camera angle..........

3. and then click and follow the arrows around the exhibits, or spin the blue "fan" on the MAP, OR after selecting a camera position, close (X) the MAP and use the buttons at the bottom to zoom, un-zoom, rotate, or go full-screen.

4. You can see C-133, S/N 62008 in the Cold War section, from camera positions #070, 071 & 076.

It doesn't get much cooler than this!

Click on:

USAF Museum Virtual Tour

Col George Frum gone west

2011-04-14T10:30:00.004-05:00

Bobb Dep,Jr., informed me on 13 Apr that Col George Frum died on 24 Mar 2011. Col Frum was a C-133 pioneer. He participated in the turboprop testing by the 1700th Test Sq and then was part of the C-133 initial cadre at Dover. At Dover, Frum was known for using a tech order to boost him in the seat. One day, Ray Burleson relieved him in the seat, and found the TO. He pitched the book out the windown, just missing Frum. Later, Frum went to the 84th MAS, at Travis, before becoming commander of a maintenance squadron. One of his most interesting missions at Travis was as AC of one of the C-133s that moved a propeller shaft and propeller for USS Coral Sea from Travis to Atsugi, Japan. Col Frum was at the 2010 Travis reunion, where he toured 61999. He was, I believe, 93. Cal Taylor

End of Winter 2010/11, List & Book VIII

2011-04-07T09:31:00.012-05:00

I. James Madison by Jack N. Rakove

II. The Law by Frederic Bastiat

III. Present at the Creation by Dean Acheson

IV. Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt

V. The Math Book by Clifford A. Pickover

VI. Before the Dawn by Shimazaki Toson and translated by W.E. Naff.

VII. The Calvin Coolidge Autobiography

VIII. The Citizen's Constitution, An Anotated Guide by Seth Lipsky

For some time I have been wanting to bring this text to the attention of C-133 crewmembers, as the Constitution was meant to be read and discussed for its meaning, context, and intent by all. But, the time for its inclusion onto our reading list just hasn’t seemed right until recently. Now, with the populist advent of the Tea Party and with the insidious encroachment of government upon the lives of the people, the Constitution seems to have once again risen as the proper defender for individual rights. I write this the day after Judge Vinson declared Obamacare unconstitutional with his opening statement a citation from Federalist No.51 written by Madison in 1788, “If men were angels, no government would be necessary… and in the next place oblige it (the government) to control itself.”

In the early years after the Constitution was introduced to the people it was on their lips during their evening meals, their social gatherings, their political meetings, and their religious services. Critical examination was everywhere as noted by de Tocqueville in what possibly is the most powerful and influential work ever written about early America, his Democracy in America (click on title for March, 2010 Review).

Sophisticated discussion of the rights given by the Constitution to each individual was extended into the frontier of our country. The simplistic but powerful words created a message not for an enlightened elite, but for the people as a whole. Citizens were deeply involved with the philosophical arguments about how the Constitution enhanced their personal values of self-reliance and the pursuit of their happiness.

Without a centralized authority one could dream to be all that he could be. The intent of the words were clear to each individual, and for the first time in history a nation was conceived for the people and by the people to ensure their personal and economic freedom. It became a new day for all mankind and a brighter day for the world.

But, political commitment to the “original intent” of the Constitution began to change with the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt in the early 20^th century. In understanding where in the American political tradition the idea of unlimited, redistributive notions as fairness were created one needs to look no further than Roosevelt as the original big government liberal. In 1910, T.R. proffered a general right of the community to regulate the earning of income and use of private property to whatever degree the public welfare may require it. In other words, redistribution of an individual’s wealth by the government at its finest.

All who believe in this sort of redistributive governance know the Constitution is their enemy in implementation as it bypasses the preference aspect that established the protection of equal natural rights as the permanent task of the government. The national government, in T.R.’s view, was not one of enumerated powers but of general powers, and the purpose of the Constitution was merely to state the narrow exceptions to that rule. Progressives reject the assumption that the power of the people is the general rule and that the power of the government is the exception.

Historians point to the demise and rejection of this most basic, historic understanding of our Founding Fathers originally outlined by Hamilton in the Federalist Papers as the time that government quit talking about the Constitution as our country’s guiding general principle. Progressivism, then and today, is a sophistic argument that erodes respect for individual personal and economic freedoms that are our bedrock beliefs and subordinates them to the demands of the State.

Sadly, during the 20th Century, members of both political parties and much of the judiciary have embraced this departure from original intent; and, that has led us to an unparalleled place in our nation’s history, the specter of fiscal default regarding our national debt that now exceeds $200 trillion in unfunded liabilities. The political victories by Progressives of the past 100 years may cost us our country, as their Faustian model of debt, dependency, and default is failing here and throughout through out the world.

However, many Constitutional scholars are now hopeful that Judge Vinson’s decision overturning Obamacare may return the political branches to the government of limited and enumerated powers that the framers envisioned, and de Tocqueville spoke so glowingly about.

So, no matter your political affiliation, if you believe that the Constitution is our guiding light for real people to grapple with real issues, then The Citizen’s Constitution is the ultimate user’s manual. It takes you through the nation’s founding document, phrase by phrase such that one can understand how we got here; and, thusly one can decide independently if we are continuing on the founder’s path to creating a country following those ideals first presented in our Constitution.

Lastly, this is the final review for the Winter List and I will now turn my attention to a Summer List. It has been fun and I hope that it has helped you through this winter of historic cold and snowy weather that we first experienced as young adults during our missions to Dow AFB, or the sub-freezing temperatures of Sondestrom AB, to the unheard of wind chills experienced only in Thule, and finally the short days with little sun in Alaska; except, of course, for those of us spending the winter in Key West. Key West was the site of my first mission during the Cuban Missile Crisis those many long years ago. Enjoy!

P.S. I would like to thank Dick Hanson, our web master, who spends much time and effort keeping the site afloat. Without him, we would not have it. If you get a chance, you might want to thank him as well.

Richard Spencer

39^th ATS, DAFB 1962-1965

C-133 on Facebook

2011-03-31T20:13:00.002-06:00

A Facebook site for C-133 has been set up. http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/group.php?gid=217652143790 Only five people on it, right now, but it is another link. Cal Taylor

From Sea to Shining Sea

2011-03-26T22:08:00.005-06:00

Thanks to our 133 colleague, James Mitchell, for the following link....

Go to the following website and read the Story of "Thank You, Soldiers!" then click on the YouTube link below the name of the video at the bottom:

From Sea to Shining Sea website

Bob Depp, Sr.

2011-03-22T13:38:00.003-06:00

Yesterday, 22 Mar, Bob Depp, Jr. told me his father died on 6 Nov. He was assigned to the 39th and the 84th and flew with 1st crews, too. I had the honor of meeting him only via correspondence, when he gave me great stuff for the book. Bob, Jr. is at rdepp@frontiernet.net.

Cal Taylor

Winter 2010/11, List & Book VII

2011-03-19T08:38:00.009-06:00

30th President of the United States
In office
August 2, 1923 – March 4, 1929

This read was not on the original list that I suggested for the winter 2010/2011. But, after receiving it as a Christmas gift from my daughter-in-law who sent it along with the ‘buzz’ she heard as a terrific read, I could not resist the temptation to spend a weekend with it. “Silent Cal”, scrupulously honest and a man of few words, was the 30^th President of the United States taking office upon the sudden death of Harding.

Elected in his own right in 1924, he gained a reputation as a small-government conservative Republican and presided over the “Roaring Twenties”. Coolidge elected not to run for a second full term and departed office with considerable popularity. Subsequently falling out of favor during the depression and the Progressive movement toward bigger government, he was resurrected during the Reagan years as an icon of thriftiness.

Most of the recent autobiographies by public servants tend to be a “mile wide and an inch deep” where they write the script that defends their actions and excoriates their enemies. Few are worth reading. But, Coolidge’s along with Grant’s and Acheson’s are the opposite, they can be more rightly described as a “mile wide and a mile deep.”

For some time I have touted Grant’s and Acheson’s as the two best autobiographies by America’s public servants. Each detailed their lives and decisions within the context of the chaos they faced during their tenures without ad hominem attacks upon their political enemies. They were true memoirs about their lives and times spread over hundreds of pages of script by their own hand. Each was interesting and informative; and, we still live with many of the decisions they ushered into our thread of life. These were bonafide works of history that became a part of the critical documentation of the workings of our government.

But, Coolidge takes a slightly different tact with his. In a mere 247 pages he describes his life and the Presidency in minimalist terms loaded with amazing insights about the American people. As one historian noted, “He embodied the spirit and hopes of the middle class….” Following his terse speaking and writing style, not only was Coolidge silent about his enemies, he never mentions them. He felt that a large part of his success was linked to his refrain from abusing other people. Coolidge knew the words of a President have an enormous weight and were to be used judiciously.

Coolidge fits well the stereotypical view of early New England citizens with their responsible, honest, hard working ethos that settled the country, leaders during the Revolution; and, mostly, just wanted to be left alone to pursue their own path to happiness with their families that a free country with limited government provides. However, when called upon for public service, they were quick to respond with honesty and hard work. During those early years they never shirked their civic duty and they were fully trusted by their fellow man. That was Coolidge: quiet, unassuming, trustworthy, responsible, a family man, and above all actually had the best interest of his constituents in the forefront of his policies. He always felt that being entrusted with public service was of the highest calling. Many view Coolidge as the most underrated President ever to serve the country.

It is likely that the first two chapters, “Scenes of My Childhood” and “Seeking an Education”, will be of most interest to C-133 Crew members. As New England sages were quick to note, the education of a child should begin several generations before birth. Further, one’s power over the future depends upon what one does with himself in the present. It seems that within these two chapters is a description of the childhood and the quest for education that many of us had upon joining the USAF. At our last reunion, many of the attendees mentioned how grateful they were to have been part of an organization that helped them fulfill those dreams of their childhood.

The Autobiography of Coolidge is a pithy insight from a seemingly ordinary man who became President largely through the trust the people had in him; and, it was successful because of the trust he had in the people. The declaration of the belief by the people in his presidency was his greatest satisfaction.

Coolidge and the people believed that wealth comes from industry and from the hard work of human toil; and, for that reason Coolidge worked to create an economy that would not unduly burdened either group. It was to be an economy that enriched each in all forms of life, and it came to be called “The Roaring Twenties”. What better proof of his success? Enjoy!

Richard Spencer

39^th ATS, DAFB 1962-1965

Last Winter Book Review to Come: (watch for the Summer List)

VIII. The Citizens' Constitution by Seth Lipsky

DC-8 Landing at Marble Mountain Vietnam, 1969

2011-03-15T08:11:00.002-06:00

Thanks to Bill Neely for this amazing take-off video:

Those of us in country in 1969 will remember this incident well. This DC-8 charter was cleared to land at DaNang International at night. The crew mis-identified Marble Mountain Army airfield as DaNang which is way too short for large aircraft. Getting that loaded slug down and stopped at nite must have made that pilots seat cushion disppear forever!! All recommendations were to disassemble the aircraft and ship it home but as you see this behemoth got off the ground in 2800 feet with very little fuel aboard and landed at DaNang International a few scant miles away.

This from a guy that worked at Trans International Airlines. Names have been removed .....(Gloria)
My sister is the little blonde flight attendant in this Super 8MM footage shot by a GI in 1969.

This event is pretty well know history among the "Non Sked" flight crews flying the MAC charters in and out of Viet Nam but I had no idea it had been filmed. Marcia found it recently.

What's interesting is, once Seaboard World Flight Operations got the word on what happened, they contacted Douglas Aircraft Corp for advice...Douglas said "take it apart and ship it home".

FAA said the same thing..........you can see from this footage how the flight crew handled the matter.

Enjoy a little history in this Super8 mm movie converted to YouTube video.

Click on: DC-8 lands at Marble Mountain Vietnam

Winter 2010/11, List & Book VI

2011-03-12T17:28:00.010-06:00

I first began to read this immense novel about 19^th century Japan two years ago but faltered when summer arrived. It became lost somewhere in the house unable to be found until just recently when I discovered it on a ‘hidden bookshelf’ with my page marker exactly where I had placed it those many months ago. Now, if this had been in the garage, it would still be misplaced (call that lost) according to certain family members!

Before the Dawn was first published in 1932 with the English translation being completed in 1987 by William Naff as a result of his doctoral dissertation about Shimazaki Toson, the author. Toson departed for Paris in 1913 as the first Japanese writer to take up residence outside of Japan. His reasons to leave Japan were not exactly honorable and he never intended to return, but the outbreak of WWI took him home after only three years.

Naff suggests it was some years later before Tolson was able to publicly rehabilitate himself through his second novel, Before the Dawn, by telling the story of his father’s life in the middle of the nineteenth century. This proved to be his masterpiece as it was a fictional history about that time according to Tolson, “…when the old was being discarded even though the new things to replace them had not yet been created”. These were the years leading up to the Meiji Restoration of Imperial Rule.

Before the Dawn is Tolson’s version of the Meiji Restoration, which played a defining role in those events of the nineteenth century that entered the Japanese national consciousness, and had been “…too painful and too filled with ambiguity … to be confronted by the Japanese public”.

The startling chain of events leading to the restoration of imperial rule in 1886 saw Japan evolve from being a feudal society to one having a capitalist economy with a lingering Western influence. The samurai had passed into oblivion.

The history of Tolson’s own family had also been too painful and embarrassing for him to face, and Before the Dawn thus satisfied his personal desire for a more complete and public approach to his family’s actions. It is the story of rural Japan, beginning in 1558, with his fictionalized family of samurai origins, and the great emphasis upon stability, family, and order facing the changes brought about by “enlighten rule’.

Such rule, that was to combine western advancements with eastern values to the centuries old traditions ‘of order of life’, that protected, fed, and nurtured the citizens of rural villages is told in stark detail by Tolson. Of all the shocks that Tolson’s protagonist, Hanzo, had to endure was the program of Europeanization that was so quickly initiated and most difficult to bear. Hanzo loved his vision of the imperial institution. Naff points out that the implications of what took place in nineteenth-century Japan are still unfolding in our own day and no nation or individual remains untouched by them.

Naff further states that the writing of this immense novel as marking the apex of Tolson’s career and had long since earned its author a secure place among the leading figures in modern Japanese literature. Its appearance was the major literary event of its time. To give one an idea of the prodigious writings of Tolson, Naff points us to a 1983 “selected bibliography” that lists one hundred thirty-four books, forty-seven special journal issues, and some seven hundred articles and essays. Before the Dawn, even though a fictionalized version of those historic times, remains the standard against which all other novels about that period of immense change in Japan’s culture are measured.

As I begin once again to read, I am flooded with the mental images describing the life of 19^th century rural Japan by Tolson; its adventure, turmoil, and tragedy; and, the richness of its characters that come alive with his writing. I feel assured that you will enjoy this novel as much as any that you have ever read. It is loaded with all that good writing can produce. Enjoy!

Richard Spencer

39^th ATS, DAFB, 1962-1965

Book Reviews to Come:

VII. Leviathan by Hobbes

VIII. The Berlin Airlift

IX. Sacred Fire

Left base to 06 at MDY

2011-02-15T21:22:00.002-06:00

Tom Kaye served in maintenance at Midway for two years. He worked many a C-133. Here's a shot he found while cleaning out some stuff.

Really big turboprop

2011-02-10T11:20:00.004-06:00

You thought the C-133 was big! How about the KC-132, with a TOGW of 469,395 pounds. You take off from George AFB for Hickam, along with a gaggle of F-100s deploying to Vietnam. With 110,000 lbs of transferable fuel, you can drag the fighters all the way to Wake Island. Refueling is done at 450 knots at 30,000'. This is what four 15,000 shp turboprop engines will do for you.

I have a new report that tells what this airplane might have been like, along with a gorgeous 36 x 72 1:72 scale drawing. 150 pages are a Douglas report prepared for an AF visit to the Tulsa mock-up. Another section is the C-132 chapter from Remembering an Unsung Giant. A second chapter is a history of air refueling into the Fifties. It concludes with some alternative history that assumes USAF bought 150 C/KC-132s, along with the C-133s. I specify the production schedule of 3 airplanes per month, bases of assignment, training establishment and units. It is probably the most C-132 information that has ever been available outside the halls of Douglas Aircraft Co.

Contact me if you are interested at firstfleet@aol.com.

Cal Taylor

PS: Cal's website (click on the following black title link & scroll down to Upcoming Publications) says the price for his, C/KC-132 Report, is $60 + $4 S&H.

X-47B Unmanned Stealth Bomber

2011-02-08T11:55:00.007-06:00

Thanks to Bill Neely for another great YouTube link.....

The evil geniuses at Northrop Grumman successfully completed the first flight of its X-47B unmanned stealth bomber a few days ago at Edwards Air Force Base in Edwards, California. In the air for a full twenty-nine minutes, the tailless, fighter-sized UAV flew to 5,000 feet and completed several racetrack-type patterns, before landing safely at 2:38 pm PST. The aircraft will continue to undergo tests at Edwards AFB before heading to Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, later this year. The ultimate goal is to get this bad boy taking off and landing on US Navy carriers. Carrier trials are currently slated for sometime in 2013.

Here's the link to the video:
X-47B Unmanned Stealth Bomber

Winter 2010/11, List & Book V

2011-02-02T14:20:00.010-06:00

This text was given to me as a Christmas gift from my daughter-in-law who has a Master’s degree in Applied Mathematics from John Hopkins University. She knew I would like it as I graduated with a B.S. in Math in 1959 and soon entered the USAF. Those were the times before Sputnik had its full effect upon the Mathematics curriculum, even though it was beginning to be felt.

I did not realize the full effect of the changes until I left the USAF, some six years later, for graduate school. There, I quickly realized that the concepts that were advanced math while I was an undergraduate had been taken into the classrooms of elementary and high schools; set theory being a good example. A graduate degree in Math was simply out of the question and I quickly changed to Statistics, and Information Systems Analysis, which is now Computer Science. But, I have maintained an interest in math, especially the history of Math.

As one reviewer has written about The Math Book, the author, “…reveals the magic and mystery behind some of the most significant mathematical milestones … beginning in 150 million B.C. and ending with the latest….”. What I really like is that the text is chronologically organized and presented along with a striking full-color image for each milestone. Even though it may seem at first to be a long catalogue of isolated concepts with little connection, it turns out they are fully linked as the great Mathematicians add to the knowledge of mankind, and build upon the work of their predecessors.

The first milestone is dated as 150 million B.C. and is the “Ant Odometer”, explaining how ants are able to travel great distances and return exactly to their nest. The last entry or milestone is dated 2007 and is the “Mathematical Universe Hypothesis” that states, “…our physical reality is a mathematical structure and that our universe…is mathematics”. All in all, there are 250 of the most intriguing milestones one can imagine generally presented in two pages each.

One of my favorites is the “Hairy Ball Theorem”; and its implication holds an answer to my life’s search stating, “… some where on the Earth’s surface... the horizontal wind speed must be zero, no matter how windy it is at other locations”. I want to find that beach in order to escape the winters of Delaware as all C-133 crew members remember how chilling the wind could be on the flight line as it rolled off the Ocean. I am experiencing those cold winds as I write this (20’ F and 12’ WC), so I am even more determined to find that sweet spot of serenity, calmness, and luxurious winter warmth that exists somewhere on this earth!

Reading about the magic of mathematics is reading about a subject that pervades our lives, in fact may be our lives, which we do not understand, but may be the way we communicate with intelligent alien races; and, that are curiosities of great value to the average reader. And, that curiosity, I would suggest, lives in all of us, and The Math Book may help satisfy our “… perpetual state of wonder about the nature of the mind, the limits of thought, and our place in this vast cosmos”.

Since there are 250 milestones in this history of mathematics and my intention is to read just a few per week, I will budget about a year to complete this particular reading. Enjoy!

Richard Spencer

39th ATS, DAFB, 1962-1965

Book Reviews to Come:

VI. Before the Dawn by Shimazaki Toson and translated by W.E. Naff

VII. Leviathan by Hobbes

VIII. The Berlin Airlift

IX. Sacred Fire

Hybrid Air Vehicle

2011-01-28T18:38:00.006-06:00

Thanks to Bill Neely, here's a peek at a radical concept for air cargo.

The P-791 is an experimental aerostatic/aerodynamic hybrid airship developed by Lockheed-Martin corporation. The first flight of the P-791 was on 31 January 2006 at the company's flight test facility on the Palmdale Air Force Plant 42. It has a unique tri-hull shape, with disk-shaped cushions on the bottom for landing. A very similar design can be seen in the Long-Endurance Multi-intelligence Vehicle (LEMV).

Click here to see the video:
LOCKHEED MARTIN'S HYBRID AIR VEHICLE P-791

Winter 2010, List & Book IV

2011-01-20T09:09:00.016-06:00

I. James Madison by Jack N. Rakove

II. The Law by Frederic Bastiat

III. Present at the Creation by Dean Acheson

IV. Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt

Check out this YouTube video:

The Primary Lesson in This Book

This is a text that I have always wanted to own, but hesitated because of the many others I have concerning free market economics. Finally, I decided it is time; and, as touted through the years, it has been my mistake. Free market economics can be taught in one lesson, if taught by Hazlitt; and, everyone to their everlasting benefit can understand it. If ever a book was written that foresaw how national policies predicated upon economic fallacies could financially destroy a country this is it, and we are now living it.

First published in 1946, at a time of rampant statism in the U.S., Hazlitt outlined precisely the bad consequences of putting the government in charge of our economic life. All that he forewarned against has come true with our one hundred year embracement of Progressive economic sophisms culminating in our Faustian bargain of debt, dependency, and default. The IMF is now estimating our unfunded liabilities as two hundred trillion dollars ($200 T) and as an unsustainable financial burden. Professor Kotlikoff in the article further notes, “... that we should get real…as the U.S. is bankrupt!”

Hazlitt is considered one of the most brilliant public intellectuals of the twentieth century. His bibliography totaled more than 10,000 entries with a major interest in economics but he was not particularly political. Hazlitt was also the most important public intellectual within the Austrian tradition of economics. The Austrian economists were continuously warning against the false promises of ‘free ice cream’ that leads a nation down the road to serfdom. Early on, Hazlitt objected to the regimentation of the regime of the ‘The New Deal’; and that inspired him to promote free markets as the path to individual personal and economic freedom as they are inseparable. Personal liberty was his goal, and exposing and destroying the economic fallacies impeding it was his life.

There are three broad parts of the book: The Lesson, The Lesson Applied, and the Lesson Restated. He begins by stating the whole of economics can be reduced to a single lesson, and that lesson reduced to a single sentence. “The art of economics consists in looking not merely at the immediate but at the longer effects of any act of policy; it consists in tracing the consequences of that policy not merely for one group but for all groups.”

He concludes that about 90% of the economic fallacies that are working such dreadful harm in the world are the result of ignoring that one single lesson. And, given our political history of interest groups manipulating government to benefit themselves at the expense of others, who can repudiate his statement? Hazlitt, in one hundred and eighty three pages, destroys every economic fallacy that not a major government in the world is devoid of, if not having an economy almost wholly determined by these very fallacies.

After reading Economics in One Lesson one will better understand the vision of the Founding Fathers in their determination to create a constrained and limited government to better promote economic liberty. This was to be a nation with a government, not a government with a nation: that freedom works! This book will be popular for as long as democracy survives, as it is a lesson for the American ages.

Do not let your children and grandchildren age before learning the lessons of free market economics, as it is in their best interest to soon do so. Free markets are simply the best of all economic alternatives to enhance the general welfare of its citizens, to promote democracy, to ensure liberty; and, especially, to promote cooperative worldwide peace. Our historic success can be largely attributed to an emphasis for respect of other people’s views along with Western thought and its collaboration with free market economics.

Copies are now on the way to my children with my hearty admonition to make certain their children read it early in life, and often throughout their life. Enjoy!

Richard Spencer

39th ATS, DAFB, 1962-1965

Book Reviews to Come:

V. The Math Book by Clifford A. Pickover

VI. Before the Dawn by Shimazaki Toson and translated by W.E. Naff

VII. Leviathan by Hobbes

VIII. The Berlin Airlift

IX. Sacred Fire

Acrobatic B-29

2011-01-14T13:50:00.002-06:00

Check out this link to an amazing video:

Even if you're not a model airplane enthusiast, you MUST SEE this! Just unbelievable.. not only in design, but in flying skills also.

Even retractable landing gear. WOW! And carries a smaller plane which it launches while in mid-air!!

Beautiful to watch.

Homemade B-29 Bomber

This aircraft runs on four chainsaw engines.

You can just imagine how much time, effort, skill and money these guys have put into this thing.

Click on the site below:

http://users.skynet.be/fa926657/files/B29.wmv

Winter 2010, List & Book III

2011-01-05T10:39:00.010-06:00

I. James Madison by Jack N. Rakove

II. The Law by Frederic Bastiat

III. Present at the Creation by Dean Acheson

I was attracted to this particular text for my winter reading list after noting in a newspaper article that Present at the Creation is the best written autobiography by a high ranking U.S. Government servant since the publication of President Grant’s.

Every C-133 crewmember remembers the name Dean Acheson from his years in the State Department during the Truman administration, which was the time of young adulthood for most of us. Acheson was involved for the better part of twelve years with the U.S. Government at the highest levels beginning before WWII and was present at “ ….the creation of the U.S. as a superpower and leader of the free world”.

Acheson had foresworn ever writing his memoirs but changed his mind as he wanted to “… tell a tale of large conceptions, great achievements, and some failures….’ He quickly gives credit to the heroism of the American people as they confronted the post global remains of the conflagration of WWII, led by two men of rare quality, President Truman and General Marshall.

His theme throughout is how the U.S. created a world out of chaos; but as he wrote he was also quick to note they only knew the beginning, not the end. We now know much of the end and that is what makes this a fascinating read. Those larger than life individual American citizens stepped forth upon the international stage and made preparations for an unknown world that we have now lived, served, and raised our families. It, once again, is the story of our citizens and our country; it is American Exceptionalism.

Present at the Creation is a look into the machinations of government that has had a major and controlling influence upon the characteristics of our existence to this very day. The personal lives of C-133 crewmembers were constantly affected by those early decisions and they will be familiar with almost all of the events and places; and, many will have participated from the beginning.

Acheson writes with great clarity, wit, and self-deprecation. I have almost finished my reading and have found it to be, as suggested, an autobiography of honesty, without character assassination or nastiness of tone. Acheson is forthright with his telling of this important and historic story about the national policies that the United States had taken, while facing the defeated as the victors, during the global and chaotic post-WWII conditions that prevailed among the differing and far-flung world societies. All, and especially the U.S., were largely unprepared to enter into a problematic set of circumstances heretofore unknown.

Suddenly, we were saddled, willing but not ungrateful, to have become the world’s superpower without attempting to be so; and, that was unknown territory for a country that had had generally chosen a policy of isolation throughout its entire history. I would also surmise that the world now knows it was fortunate to have us assume this great burden of ‘world leadership’ without nationalistic visions of dominance.

It is a story without past events or prior knowledge to draw upon; and, we will continue to be burdened for generations with the decisions, wise or unwise, made in those early days of the aftermath of the world’s most destructive phase ever.

While reading you will find that Maynard Keynes, British statesman and founder of Keynesian economics, had a prominent role in many world-wide decisions that ultimately turned almost all of free Europe toward democratic Socialism. Much of the chaos surrounding the financial and social ills of today that both Europe and America suffer is a result of the unintended consequences of his economic theories. They were largely predicated upon ‘the myth of permanent plenty’ and embraced by the Roosevelt and Truman administrations; but are now being repudiated by a significant number of the electorate.

At this point in our lives, C-133 crewmembers and their families have sometimes suffered, gladly served, and actually lived most of it. Enjoy!

Richard Spencer

39th ATS, DAFB, 1962-1965

Book Reviews to Come:

IV. Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt

V. The Math Book by Clifford A. Pickover

VI. Before the Dawn by Shimazaki Toson and translated by W.E. Naff

VII. Leviathan by Hobbes

VIII. The Berlin Airlift

IX. Sacred Fire

WW II Aircraft Carrier Action

2010-12-30T10:44:00.004-06:00

Thanks to Bill Neely for this incredible YouTube video link:

This is 16mm color (not "colorized") footage, that you may not have seen, of carrier action in the Pacific. There wasn't much color shot in the '40s - extremely expensive then, with a complicated and exacting development process. Enjoy...

Click on:
WW II : RARE COLOR FILM : AIRCRAFT CARRIER IN THE PACIFIC

DC-3 over Tonga

2010-12-24T11:34:00.002-06:00

This is absolutely the most excellent aviation picture of the year. It includes romance, adventure, beauty and all of those intangibles that go with aviation. I remember similar scenery, from a C-133 at 2,500' doing VFR over the Fiji islands and from a C-130, enroute to Belau (Palau). This was a carefully staged photo, for which the link is http://www.avweb.com/newspics/potw/large/potw01_1648.jpg

Coming Home

2010-12-22T14:50:00.009-06:00

Thanks to Andrew Fleming, Sandy Sandstrom & Rick Spencer for the following link to a YouTube video of an Angel Flight arrival @ Dover AFB:

Click on: The Angel Flight

Winter 2010, List & Book II

2010-12-18T11:20:00.014-06:00

I. James Madison by Jack N. Rakove

II. The Law by Frederic Bastiat

If we were to take the greatest economists from all ages and judge them on the basis of their theoretical rigor, their influence on economic education, and their impact in support of the free-market economy, then Frederic Bastiat (1801-1850) would be at the top of the list.

Through the years, I have read this seventy-six-page gem several times and never tire of it. I am suggesting it because much of the same situation exists in America today as in France in 1848, when they were faced with the seductive fallacies that rapidly turned them into a Socialist country. Presently, our American politicians constantly bombard their constituents with the same sophistic promises of Socialism, as were the French, screaming that by following their reckless reasoning they can provide a land of utopia.

Sadly, America’s unfunded liabilities of $200T are a result of these Socialist/Progressive fallacies of a ‘free lunch’ whereby the political elite who have made the laws have now legally turned to the forceful taking of its citizen’s privately earned property to finance their own personal devices. Bastiat calls this ‘lawful plunder’, but today we call it ‘wealth redistribution’ or ‘national fairness’. The Law examines how our body of basic law is thus diverted from its true purpose of preventing injustice to that of legally aiding and abetting the national plunder of an individual’s wealth and liberty.

The Law further suggests that by diverting these basic rules from their original purpose, such that they may now violate property rather than protecting it, everyone will ultimately want to participate either to prevent him or herself from being plundered or engage in it. The individual citizen is now faced with law and morality at odds, and what is legal is legitimate. This perversion of the law becomes the weapon for every kind of greed; and, the law itself becomes guilty of the evils it is supposed to punish. Sound familiar?

The Law was Bastiat’s last book, written while in ill health, and has become a classic moral defense of liberty and limited government; it is a message of immutable principal that is both timely and brilliant. To read The Law in light of today’s constant mantra, “…that more government is better government”, strikes a frightening chord of reality about today’s political rhetoric. It could happen here!

Richard Spencer

39^th ATS, DAFB, 1962-1962

Book Reviews to Come:

III. Present at the Creation by Dean Acheson

IV. Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt

V. The Math Book by Clifford A. Pickover

VI. Before the Dawn by Shimazaki Toson and translated by W.E. Naff

VII. Leviathan by Hobbes

VIII. The Berlin Airlift

IX. Sacred Fire

A Different Christmas Poem

2010-12-08T16:41:00.002-06:00

Thanks to Ted Feindt for this link to a great YouTube video (turn up the sound):

A Different Christmas Poem

Rick Spencer Back in Action!

2010-12-03T21:25:00.008-06:00

Hello C-133 crewmembers. I must apologize for falling behind my personal commitment to post a book review once a month that somehow ties into our USAF service no matter how tenuous the tie may be. . But, I, as you, have been very busy with the summer as that is when the kids and grandkids visit, perfecting my golf swing is a high priority, and the daylight hours take away from my time for reading and writing. Our beautiful Delaware Fall has entered it last days as it is now dark at about 5 PM, too cold for golf, the kids are gone, and I begin with my winter reading as a bear takes to his den. So, I thought that I would try something different and share my winter reading list with you in the event you find them of interest for your winter hibernation as well.

But, mostly, I like to read about the every day American who stepped forth upon the world stage to represent us in times of great national or international peril with their unsuspected innate abilities to seize the moment and rescue the day regardless of its great personal danger. That singular aspect, some call it the essence of American Exceptionalism, has been the history of America and fosters ordinary citizen desire to protect our freedom and our Republic. Those moments of national danger also teach us much about the risks and rewards of being a superpower. C-133 crewmembers were an important part of such history during the latter part of the 20^th century and we celebrated many of the events that involved us during our recent reunion.

So, I follow now with my winter 2010-2011 reading list that I shall take into my den, shut out the cold and darkness, and feast upon America’s past as it has been molded into greatness through the profundity of its leaders imbued with western thought. Enjoy!

I. James Madison by Jack N. Rakove:

Some months ago I read that James Madison, our fourth President, was the most profound of our Founders and that piqued my interest, as Hamilton has always been my favorite. So, I immediately called upon one of my college professor friends, who is a historian of merit, and asked him who has published the most readable biography of Madison that would suit C-133 crew members. He immediately suggested Rakove's as meeting my request.

Rakove notes that even though Madison’s contemporaries of the time excelled him in many ways, Madison’s reputation was as “…the most original, creative, and penetrating political thinker of his generation in creating the extended national republic of the United States”. He had many partners but few equals and played a key role in every significant development of our Nation during his career that spanned four decades. The author cites him as the author of the Constitution, and of the Bill of Rights, and Author of The Federalist.

To his last days, Madison was fascinated with the rights of majorities to rule and the dangers in allowing them to do so. That led him to constantly study the proper balance between the Union and its member states. Madison thusly anticipated the expanded protection of individual and minority rights by the federal Government that took place during the 20^th century; and, Rakove considers that a potent legacy for a statesman born 260 years ago. The tyranny of the majority is a question we still debate and was significant in our just completed national elections.

I finished this very enjoyable biography a few weeks ago and do agree that Madison was a most profound thinker during the creation of the American Republic, and maybe the most profound. I believe you will as well.

Click on the following link to order the book online for $1.00 + Shipping:

James Madison and the Creation of The American Republic by Jack Rakove

Art of the American Soldier

2010-11-12T12:48:00.004-06:00

Thanks to Rick Spencer for the following website. Click on the red, underlined hot link to go to the Intro video, then click on Online Gallery to scan through the art in chronological order.

"Presenting paintings and drawings created by American soldiers--many of them capturing scenes of combat witnessed firsthand--this groundbreaking exhibition depicts the human dimension of war in ways no photograph or newsreel ever could. Art of the American Soldier is the first major exhibition curated exclusively from the Army's unparalleled collection, offering visitors rare and intimate views of the soldier experience through a powerful, never-before-seen collection of artwork dating from World War I to the present day."

Click on: Art of the American Soldier

Veterans' Day Salute

2010-11-11T10:37:00.003-06:00

Click on:

I FOUGHT FOR YOU!

Grey Eagles & P-51s

2010-11-06T07:43:00.007-06:00

Thanks to Marty Lavin for bringing us back to this very special video. If you haven't seen it, you should. If you have, it's worth a re-run. Click on the link, then on the little box with the arrow in the lower right corner to enlarge it to full-screen, then on the "x" to eliminate the video control bar, sit back and "go with it." When it's finished, press your Escape key to get out of it.

Here's the intro:

Filmmaker and P-51 Mustang Pilot Chris Woods has put together a wonderful film that captures the emotional reunion between a humble WWII Mustang ace (Jim Brooks) and the historic plane he thought he'd never see again.

Inspired by the flood of memories triggered by this unimaginable encounter with a long lost friend, the 88-year old pilot finally breaks his silence, sharing his stories and experiences of war with the grandchildren who never thought they'd hear them.

Wood's interviews with Brooks, his grandchildren, and other airmen who were touched by the Mustang's role in history are cut together to create a compelling narrative that is framed in stunning high-definition photography.

Click on: http://www.asb.tv/videos/view.php?v=1bf99434&br=500

Honoring Fallen Vets

2010-10-29T09:18:00.002-05:00

If you haven't seen this CBS video, you should!

Click on: http://www.comcast.net/video/honoring-fallen-vets/1536192981/

Incredible dedication! 38 years!!!!!!!!

JetBlue Landing

2010-10-09T23:06:00.002-05:00

Amazing landing with a "transverse" nose wheel!! Thanks to Bill Neely for the following video:

Curse of the Cargomaster Feedback

2010-09-28T11:55:00.009-05:00

Thank you for the following Comments:

The article was quite interesting and informative and one part in particular caught my attention; the testing at Edwards. It prompted this question.

Is there anybody out there who was at Wright-Patterson during the investigation of the C-133 when all 42 aicraft were grounded? There was an extensive inspection, and testing going on at the same time with two A models, 56-2000 & 56-2008 at Wright-Pat. Just curious?

Robert Houston

Thanks for the articles. I made one flight as a reservist several years after I separated from active duty. A major problem with the props had been fixed and the old birds were making some trips to Vietnam without maintenance delays. A lot of the tension that existed when we were in the 1st Squadron had disappeared. This was before the crash due to the structural failure.

Marion Johnson

I was asked by Gen Wallace to fly an airplane to Warner Robbins to have the plane dismantled and inspected by some of the best aeronautical minds in the U.S. This was done and then Gen. Wallace asked that I go as the FE, retrieve the aircraft, micro preflight the airplane and bring it home when ready. I spent two days inspecting the aircraft and then we flew it home. The first flight at home was with Gen Wallace on board. It is only fair that we give credit to Gen. Wallace as he is the one who insisted we fly our own aircraft to and from on all missions, no more staging C-133’s. He was, in every sense, the aircrewman’s general.

Sandy Sandstrom

My name is Art Szmuriga. I was a C-133 Pilot in the 1st MAS at Dover from July '68 through Jan '70. I went through the 2nd pilot, 1st pilot and AC upgrades before being sent to Cam Ranh Bay (Click on Air Base for history) to fly C-7A Caribous.

I read your letter to Mr. Sotham with great interest. I remember that when I graduated from Moody in June '68, I was extremely happy to get to Dover and accepted the C-133 mission with joy since we would go world wide, no staging, etc. I didn't know about many of the crashes, etc, and we didn't talk about them much at Dover. By the time I started flying the C-133, most of the problems were corrected. I have pleasant memories of flying the C-133 even though I had a few in-flight emergencies that turned out okay.

I would like you to check and confirm the date of the B model that disintegrated over Nebraska. Your letter gave a date of Feb 6, 1967. Please check this for correctness. I was at Dover when this happened and I seem to recall that it may have happened in 1969, but I'm not sure. Since I was at Dover from June '68 through Jan '70, it was in that time frame, rather than 1967. I also recall that they grounded the fleet and put the "belly bands" on after that crash.

If I am incorrect, please accept my apologies for not remembering correctly. If I am correct, you can go from there.

Thank You,

Art Szmuriga
Matthews, NC

NOTE: Art gets the "prize" for catching an inadvertant typo. It was 1969, and our blog post has been corrected.

I really found this interesting, I was on the way back to Dover when the one went in off Kadena, and we heard about it right after we got back.

I was deadheading back to Dover and was originally scheduled to catch the one that blew up over Nebraska, it was due to quick stop Travis about midnight, but I found out just a little earlier that there was one coming through at 0300 and elected to spend another couple hours in bed with my future wife and catch it. As we were through flying that one, we were hauled into Ops and almost locked up in a secure room. We could have no contact with the outside. After what seemed like hours, we were told what happened , taken right back to the plane and launched for Dover. I always had a theory, knowing that some loads I had helped haul out of Nam and found out later had been booby trapped, figured that this one had been, and it worked.

The reason I was deadheading, I'd been through the training on the RC-121 for Korat, and my shipment date was delayed several months, and had taken a short leave, gone back to McClellan to refresh before going to the Batcats.

James Mitchell

Curse of the Cargomaster Update 2

2010-09-27T07:27:00.005-05:00

Lou Martin also wrote a fascinating, multi-page letter about his 133 experiences to the author of the article, Curse of the Cargomaster. It's too long to show in its entirety on a blog post, but below are a few beginning and ending paragraphs. I will also forward the entire letter to our current e-mail list, so those interested can access the whole thing. Any questions or comments should be sent directly to Lou at his e-mail address: pilotlou@aol.com

September 2, 2010

Mr. John Sotham
Air & Space Smithsonian
MRC 573 P.O. Box 37012
Washington, D.C. 20013

Dear Mr. Sotham,

Having logged 4,700 hours of pilot time in the C-133 I found your article, The Curse of the Cargomaster, in the September 2010 issue of the Air & Space Magazine very interesting and well done. However, I would like to add a few personal anecdotes regarding my experiences when flying the legendary C-133.
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I reported into the 39 MAS in July 1964 and after completing ground school I made my first flight in a C-133 on August 17, 1964 and by mid September was flying missions, mostly to Europe, as a second pilot (the lowest ranking for new copilots). My first impression of the Cargomaster was that it was noisy, vibrated constantly, had a nearly uninhabitable cold uncomfortable cargo compartment and that the aircraft commanders I flew with appeared irritable and somewhat apprehensive regarding the reliability of the aircraft. They seemed ready to abort whenever they experienced a strange sound or a momentary disruption of RPM (burble) in one of the propellers. However, I had flown problematic aircraft in the past so I just carried on, enjoyed the return trips to Europe and the Christmas shopping in the well-stocked military BXs.

On November 7, 1964, when in crew-rest in the Azores Islands we heard of the fatal crash of a C-133 shortly after taking off from Goose Bay, Labrador. My aircraft commander told me that this was the sixth fatal crash of a C-133 with the cause of each listed as “Undetermined.” The flight back to Dover was void of the usual cockpit chatter.

On January 10, 1965, we learned of another C-133 crashing into the Pacific Ocean soon after a night takeoff from Wake Island. This was the seventh unexplained fatal crash of a Cargomaster that had claimed the lives of 50 crewmembers. Compounding the mysterious crashes was that in each accident there were no radio reports from the pilots indicating an impending emergency. Disregarding the fact that the C-133 was becoming more important in supporting airlift requirements for the expanding war in Vietnam, the Air Force grounded the remaining 42 aircraft. This grounding order was accompanied with the following statement, “C-133 Cargomasters will not be allowed to resume flying until a cause factor for past accidents is found and corrective actions are taken to prevent similar loss of aircraft and crew.”
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The aircraft was extremely noisy, the tips of the 18 foot diameter propellers spinning at supersonic speed caused a vibration so severe that it could cause bodily discomfort and frequent maintenance problems, the cargo compartment was so cold and noisy that it was not suitable for carrying passengers and rendered the two bunks in the forward cargo compartment unusable and its “Jack-in-the-box” reputation for in-flight malfunctions kept the crew members ever alert for another Douglas Cargomaster surprise.

Unfortunately, the Air force and other aviation related organizations have not recognized the tremendous job the Cargomaster and it crews performed. A few years ago, the official Air Force Magazine published an account of the aircraft flown during the War in Vietnam. I was disappointed and surprised that the C-133 was not included. (I wrote a complaint letter to the editor but received no response.) In addition, I was recently reviewing books in a Barnes & Noble bookstore and came across a large book titled: The Air War in Vietnam. The book was loaded with large color pictures of every aircraft utilized, except the C-133. It was not even listed in the extensive index section. I am pleased that you bestowed long overdue recognition to the C-133 in your article.

Following the ditching accident on April 30, 1967 the C-133s enjoyed nearly three years without an accident and flight crews from both Dover, AFB and Travis AFB were becoming adjusted to the frequent Douglas in-flight surprises and providing critical worldwide airlift support in a creditable manner. However, on February 6, 1969 this record was tragically shattered. A C-133 crashed in Nebraska killing all five crewmembers following a nighttime in-flight breakup from 25,000 feet. The fuselage just forward of the wing constant section had separated from the rest of the aircraft due to a antique crack in the metal skin and suddenly, like a crack in an eggshell. Propagated around the entire fuselage. Seemingly, the metal skin had weakened through thousands of hours of vibration from the sonic boom pulsations from propeller tips rotating at super sonic speeds. (This was the ninth fatal accident of a C-133).

The accident must have been an unbelievable catastrophic experience for the crew as one second they were sitting in a well-lighted warm cockpit and a second later, they were in complete darkness, with no engine sounds and a sensation of falling to earth five miles below. It is estimated that the severed cockpit section took two to three minutes before crashing. All five crewmembers were found still strapped in their seats.

This accident was especially painful for me as the aircraft commander was Major Bill Tabor. We had been assigned to the same C-119 squadron in Germany during the 1950s and a few weeks before the accident he was on an overnight at Dover AFB. We shared several beers in the Officers’ Club while discussing what we were going to do after retirement. Following this accident, all C-133s were inspected for fatigue cracks and to prevent a similar accident 16 steel straps were wound around the forward section of the fuselage. From a distance, these straps took on the appearance of duct tape and the common mantra among crewmembers was; “Now the generals want us to fly aircraft held together with duct tape.”
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Your article for further reading recommends Cal Taylor’s outstanding book Remembering An Unsung Giant. I would also, in an unassuming manner recommend my book Close Encounters with the Pilot’s Grim Reaper. I devote an extensive chapter on flying the C-133 from a flight crew’s viewpoint along with many exciting encounters in this memorable aircraft.

Sincerely,

Lt.Col. Lou Martin (ret.) USAF
E-mail: pilotlou@aol.com

AND the following further update: A reply from John Sotham to Lou Martin....

Lt Col Martin,

Thanks very much for the letter--the magazine staff forwarded it to me
and I really enjoyed reading it. I sure wish I had known about you when
I was writing the story!

Thanks again for your interest in Air & Space, and mostly for your
service to our country.

Regards,
John Sotham

Curse of the Cargomaster Update

2010-09-26T20:50:00.007-05:00

Our Crew Colleague, Lou Martin, offers the following commentary regarding the ditching of C-133B, S/N 59-0534 off Okinawa in April, 1967:

I was the pilot investigator for the ditching accident on April 30, 1967. The ten members of the accident board quickly determined that the reason the propellers were stuck in fixed pitch was due to a rupture of the electrical power in the main junction box, due to the inherent vibrations of the aircraft.

When voting on the primary cause, I was shocked as nine members had stated “Pilot Error” with just myself voting “Material Failure.” The contention taken by the board was that if the pilot had not descended to 2,500 feet the engines would not have flamed out. I pointed out that unless Kadena could have raised the airport to 6,000 feet he was going to have to descend in attempting to land.

After more votes we were unanimous in listing the primary cause as “Material Failure.” We now had to come up with a recommendation to prevent similar accidents. I recommended the feasibility of establishing an “Estimated Engine Flameout Procedure” (EEFA), which was met with sarcasm as the board members thought it would be ridiculous to suggest such a maneuver. However, it was coordinated with Headquarters 22nd Air Force and sent to Edwards Air Force Base. The procedure developed by test pilots is outlined on pages 71, 72 and 319 in Cal Taylor’s book Remembering an Unsung Giant and on page 389 in my book, Close Encounters with a Pilot’s Grim Reaper, ACs were required to perform three EEFA approaches until all aircraft were modified. The recommendation, initially scoffed at, was recognized as a significant proposal by the board president and General Graham, commander 21st Air Force wrote, “Please convey my appreciation to Colonel Martin for his outstanding performance during the ditching investigation. His idea of establishing an EEFA was accepted and developed through flight testing and may be significant in averting another accident of this type.”

Contact: pilotlou@aol.com

Ref: Click on the following link (in red) to go to the Aviation Safety Network "Accident Description" for the Flight Safety Foundation.

The "good old days" in the B-36

2010-09-18T08:28:00.003-05:00

Thanks to Chet Baffa for the following, with his comment: "...this-makes the C133 seem like a piece of cake!!"

Aircraft Commander 1st Lt. Oliver Hildebrandt, Pilot 1st Lt. Walter Ross, and Co-pilot Captain Wilbur Evans, and a crew of thirteen took off from Carswell AFB in B-36B, 44-92035 of the 26th Bomb Squadron of the 7th Bomb Wing at 5:05 A.M. on November 22,1950. The planned 30-hour training mission consisted of air-to-air gunnery, bombing, simulated radar bombing, and navigational training.

Immediately after take-off, the #4 alternator would not stay in parallel with the other three alternators, so it was taken off-line and de-excited three minutes into the flight. About one minute after the #4 alternator was shut down, flames 8 to 12 feet long erupted from around the air plug of the number-one engine. The left scanner reported the flames to the pilot. Six minutes after take-off, the flight engineer shut down the number-one engine, feathered its propeller, and expended one of its Methyl bromide fire extinguishing bottles.

The mission continued on the power of the remaining five engines. 44-92035 cruised to the gunnery range on Matagorda Island at an altitude of 5,000 feet. It arrived at 7:00 A.M. and the gunners began practicing. Radar Observer S/Sgt. Ray Earl manned the tail turret. The charger for the right gun burned out, so he expended just half of his ammunition. Then the APG-3 radar for the tail turret started acting up, so S/Sgt. Earl secured the set.

Aircraft Commander 1st Lt. Oliver Hildebrandt noted that the vibration from firing the 20mm cannons increased significantly during the fourth gunnery pass. Immediately afterward, radar operator Captain James Yeingst notified Hildebrandt that the APQ-24 radar set blew up and was smoking. Vibration from the firing of the guns was causing shorting between the internal components of the radar. Then the liaison transmitter failed as well.

The cannons in the left forward upper turret and the left rear upper turret stopped firing. The gunners attempted to retract the gun turrets, but the failed turrets would not retract. Gunner S/Sgt. Fred Boyd entered the turret bay, but other problems began to take precedence over the stuck turrets. Boyd was called out of the bay before he could manually crank the turret down.

At 7:31 A.M. the number-three engine suffered an internal failure. The torque pressure fell to zero. The manifold pressure dropped to atmospheric pressure. The fuel flow dropped off, and the flight engineer could not stabilize the engine speed. The pilot shut down the number-three engine and feathered its propeller. The B-36B had only one operating engine on the left wing, so the pilot aborted the remainder of the training mission and set course for Kelly Air Force Base.

Flight engineer Captain Samuel Baker retarded the spark, set the mixture controls to "normal", and set the engine RPMs to 2,500 to increase the power from the remaining engines. Unknown to Captain Baker, the vibration from the guns had disabled the electrical systems controlling the spark settings and fuel mixture. He immediately discovered that the turbo control knobs no longer affected the manifold pressure.

The B-36B could not maintain its airspeed on the power of the four remaining engines. It descended about 1,000 feet and its airspeed bled off to 135 miles per hour. The pilot called for more power. The flight engineer attempted to increase engine speed to 2,650 RPM and enrich the fuel mixture, but got no response from the engines except for severe backfiring. The fuel mixture indicators for all of the engines indicated lean.
The second flight engineer, M/Sgt. Edward Farcas, checked the electrical fuse panel. Although the fuses appeared to be intact, he replaced the master turbo fuse and all of the individual turbo fuses. He noticed that the turbo-amplifiers and mixture amplifiers were all cooler than normal. He climbed into the bomb bay to check the aircraft power panels and fuses, but could not find any problem there.

Kelly Air Force Base had a cloud overcast at just 300 feet and the visibility was restricted to two miles. The weather at Bergstrom Air Force Base not as bad, with scattered clouds at 1,000 feet, broken clouds at 2,000 feet and 10 miles visibility. Carswell Air Force Base was clear with 10 miles visibility, but it was 155 miles farther away than Bergstrom. Air traffic control cleared all airspace below 4,000 feet ahead of the crippled B-36B. Aircraft Commander Hildebrandt was flying on instruments in thick clouds.

The poor weather at Kelly Air Force Base convinced Hildebrandt to change course from Kelly to Carswell Air Force Base, passing by Bergstrom Air Force Base on the way in case the airplane could not make it to Carswell. Bombardier Captain Robert Nelson made two attempts to salvo the 1,500 pounds of practice bombs in the rear bomb bay, but the bomb bay doors would not open by automatic or manual control, or emergency procedure.

There was no way to dump fuel to reduce the weight of the B-36B. The flight engineers resorted to holding down the switches used to prime the fuel system in an attempt to increase fuel flow to the engines. M/Sgt. Edward Farcas held down the prime switches for the number-two and number-four engines while Captain Baker held down the prime switch for the number-five engine and operated the flight engineer's panel. The configuration of the switches did not allow them to prime the number-five engine and the number-six engine at the same time.

The high power demand coupled with the lean fuel mixture made the cylinder head temperatures of the engines climb to 295 degrees C. Flight engineer Baker jockeyed the throttles, decreasing the throttle setting of the engine with the highest cylinder head temperature until another engine grew even hotter. The high temperature caused the gasoline/air mixture in the cylinders to detonate before the pistons reached top dead center, diminishing power and damaging the engines.

Despite the critical situation with the engines, Aircraft Commander Hildebrandt decided to continue past Bergstrom Air Force Base to Carswell. Bergstrom was overcast and its runway was only 6,000 feet long. Carswell offered a much longer runway. By the time the B-36B reached Cleburne , the backfiring on all engines increased in violence. The number-2, number-5, and number-6 engines were running at 70% power and the number-4 engine was producing only 20% power. The airspeed had dropped off to 130 miles per hour.

Aircraft Commander Hildebrandt attempted to restart the number-one engine, the one that had spouted flames on take-off, but fuel was not getting to its induction system. He tried to restart the number-three engine, but could not unfeather the propeller on that engine. As the bomber passed to the west of Cleburne , the right scanner reported dense white smoke, oil, and metal particles coming from the number-five engine.

After a short while the number-five engine lost power, and Aircraft Commander Hildebrandt feathered the propeller on that engine while still twenty-one miles from Carswell Air Force Base. The B-36B could not stay airborne on the power of the three remaining failing engines. It was flying at just 125 miles per hour, seven miles per hour above the stall speed, losing both altitude and airspeed. Howard McCullough and W. Boeten were flying Civil Aeronautics Authority DC-3 N342 near Cleburne . They were notified by Meacham Tower to be on the lookout for 44-92035. They spotted it about five miles south of Cleburne . They observed that the number-one and number-three propellers were feathered and the number-five engine was on fire. They turned to follow the descending bomber. Aircraft Commander Hildebrandt ordered the crew to bail out of the stricken bomber.

Bombardier Captain Robert Nelson had bailed out of airplanes on two previous occasions. He had crash landed twice and ditched once. He was the first man to bail out from the forward crew compartment. He suffered contusions of his lower spine when he landed.

Radar Operator Captain James Yeingst responded to stress with laughter and jokes. He was a bit giddy before the bailout. He was the second man to exit from the forward crew compartment. His parachute streamed after he pulled the rip cord. He passed Captain Nelson going down. Captain Yeingst's parachute mushroomed open just before he hit the ground, but he suffered fatal injuries.

Co-pilot Captain Wilbur Evans was the third man to exit from the forward crew compartment. He had bailed out of airplanes twice before and crash landed several times during WW-II. This time he broke both bones in his lower right leg when he landed.

Navigator Captain Horace Stewart had previously tried to get off flying status because he felt that the B-36 was too dangerous. It is reported that during the hour before bailout, he was tense, nervous, and chain-smoking. He was the fourth man to bail out from the forward crew compartment. He pulled his rip cord right as he exited the forward escape hatch on the left side of the fuselage. His parachute opened and pulled him toward the number three propeller. His head hit the downward pointing blade of the propeller, killing him instantly.

Radio Operator Cpl. Paul Myers followed Captain Stewart out the escape hatch. Myers landed with minor injuries. Flight Engineer M/Sgt. Edward Farcas jumped head first through the exit hatch of the forward crew compartment right after Cpl. Myers. His parachute did not open when he pulled the rip cord. He pulled the parachute out of its pack with his hands and landed with only minor injuries.

Radar Mechanic Robert Gianerakis and Flight Engineer Captain Samuel Baker were the next to escape from the forward compartment. Both landed with only minor injuries. Radio Operator Sgt. Armando Villareal bailed out after Captain Baker. Villareal did not trust his parachute to open, so he pulled the rip cord while he was still in the forward crew compartment. He held his parachute in his arms as he jumped feet first through the escape hatch. Despite his unorthodox method of escape, he landed with only minor injuries.

Pilot 1st Lt. Walter Ross was the next to last to leave the forward compartment. He landed with only minor injuries. Gunner S/Sgt. Andrew Byrne and Radar Observer S/Sgt. Ray Earl were the first two crew members to bail out of the rear crew compartment. Both landed with only minor injuries. Gunner Cpl. Calvin Martin was the third man to exit the rear crew compartment. He was swinging under his parachute as he hit the ground. He broke his right ankle as he landed. He fell backward onto a rock, fracturing his third lumbar vertebra and compressing his tailbone.
Gunner S/Sgt. Ronald Williams followed Cpl. Martin out the rear escape hatch. He landed with only minor injuries. Gunner S/Sgt. Fred Boyd was the last man to exit the rear crew compartment. He called to Aircraft Commander Hildebrandt over the intercom to let him know that everyone had escaped from the aft compartment. When he turned back to the exit hatch, it had fallen shut. He had to open the hatch again to make his escape. He broke the fibula of his left leg when he landed farther to the north than the other crew members.

After S/Sgt. Boyd reported that all other crew members had bailed out of the rear compartment, Aircraft Commander Hildebrandt set the autopilot and jumped clear when the bomber was less than 1,000 feet above the ground. He and nine other crew members escaped from the B-36B with only minor injuries. When McCullough and Boeten in DC-3, N342 saw the parachutes of the escaping crew members, they announced the bail-out on the emergency frequency of 121.25 megacycles.

Each report of Emergency Parachute Jump indicates that the incident occurred 20 miles south southeast of Carswell Air Force Base. The descent of the B-36B was witnessed by Mr. Buck Bell and his wife, who lived about 5 to 7 miles southwest of Crowley , Texas . Mr. Bell saw the crew members parachuting from the bomber, but did not see it hit the ground about one mile north of his house. Mr. James Bandy and his wife were on the road to Cleburne about 4 miles from their house on Route 1 near Joshua when they spotted the B-36B trailing smoke, flying in a nose-high attitude. They saw it hit the ground in a level attitude, raising a cloud of dust.

The B-36B descended straight ahead in a nose-high attitude for a mile after Aircraft Commander Hildebrandt bailed out. It stalled, pitched nose down, and impacted in a terraced field on Less Armstrong's Dairy, 14 miles south of Carswell Air Force Base, 2 miles west of the South leg FTW range, and six miles west of Crowley at 9:50 in the morning. The forward crew compartment separated and folded underneath the rest of the fuselage. The tail section broke off, and the rear crew compartment came away from the mid-fuselage as the wreckage slid 850 feet along the ground and twisted to the right.

The rear sections of the airplane remained largely intact. The elevation at the crash site was approximately 700 feet. Mr. W. Doggett witnessed the bail-out and crash from his home on Route 1 near Joshua. The B-36B impacted about 2-1/2 miles north of his house. He drove to the crash site in his pickup truck and helped the surviving crew members to regroup.

Four minutes after the crash, McCullough and Boeten in DC-3, N342 reported that two Navy aircraft were circling the wreckage. The wreckage smoldered for about eight minutes before a fire broke out in the number-six engine. The 15,000 gallons of remaining fuel consumed the forward fuselage and wings. The civilians and crew members were driven away from the crash site by exploding ammunition and the knowledge of the presence of 1,500 pounds of bombs aboard the airplane.

Read this the next time you think you're having a bad day

Remarkable New Russian Fighter

2010-09-15T08:59:00.005-05:00

I don't know the source of the following text, so can't vouch for it. But the video is "remarkable!"

The red smoke coming from the wingtips is only there to demonstrate to spectators on the ground the direction the plane is actually moving through the air. Normally the smoke wouldn't be there. When the smoke is streaming behind, the airplane is moving fast forward etc. When the airplane is engulfed in smoke, it means the airplane is almost stopped in mid-air.

The maneuverability of this plane is incredible. This plane would be nearly impossible to defeat in a dogfight. Russia may now have the #1 fighter plane in the world...

It is the SU-30MK with Vectored Thrust and Canards.

As you watch this airplane, look at the canards moving along side of, and just below the canopy rail. The "canards" are the small wings forward of the main wings.

The smoke and contrails provide a sense of the actual flight path, sometimes in reverse direction. This video is of an in-flight demonstration flown by the Russian's 30MK fighter aircraft. The fighter can stall from high speed, stopping forward motion in seconds. (full stall). Then it demonstrates an ability to descend tail first without causing a compressor stall. It can also recover from a flat spin in less than a minute.

These maneuvering capabilities don't exist in any other aircraft in the world today. This aircraft is of concern to U.S and NATO planners. We don't know which nations will soon be flying the SU-30MK, hopefully China isn't one of them.. Friends worked with advanced aircraft flight control systems and concepts for many years as an extension of stability control and means of control.

Canards and vectored thrust were among many concepts examined to extend our fighter aircraft performance. Neither our current or next generation aircraft now poised for funding & production can in any way match the performance of this Russian aircraft.

The Curse of the Cargomaster

2010-08-24T19:19:00.012-05:00

Here is the link to John Sotham's article in Smithsonian Air & Space Magazine. http://www.airspacemag.com/military-aviation/The-Curse-of-the-Cargomaster.html Pretty good, I thought. My only quibble was with a photo caption that said the high wing/low cargo deck layout came from the C-130. More a case of parallel development. The C-82, C-119 and C-123 already had that.

Thank you, Cal......!!

Be sure to click on the Photo Gallery in the article!!

NOTE: AFTER YOU CLICK ON THE ARTICLE AND READ THROUGH IT, THERE IS A PLACE AT THE BOTTOM TO LEAVE A COMMENT. LET'S LEAVE A RECORD OF PARTICIPATION!

UPDATE 08/28/10: HOORAY for the Commentaters!! THANK YOU, Carl, Brad, Ron, Cal, Rick, Duane, Bill A, Larry, Ralph, Jack S, Tom T, John U, and Terry W, for leaving your comments on the above story in the Smithsonian Air & Space Magazine! Great stories! HOW ABOUT SOME MORE???

Those of you who did read the article, it's worth it to go back and read the Comments added. It really personalizes the original story! Then leave your own Comment!

UPDATE 09/01/10: YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!! 12 more comments have been added to the article (now totals 26)!! THANK YOU, Mark M, Ray H, Ken D, Dave N, Bob C, Robert H, James A, Don T, Dick Q, Don S, Phil K, and John L!!

You're all enhancing the original story with your personal perspectives! Let's keep it rolling!

By the way, our Chief Idea-man, Rick Spencer, suggested I order a couple hard copies of this issue of the magazine, for Travis and Dover Museum Archives (so I have), AND publish the procedure, so you could order one for yourself if you wish. Here it is:

Back issues are $7.00 each, postpaid. To order, please make your check or money order (in U.S. dollars) payable to the Smithsonian Institution and send your request to:

Air & Space Magazine, 420 Lexington Ave., Suite 2335, New York, NY, 10170, ATTN: Back Issues or call 212-916-1300. For specific questions, please contact James Babcock at babcockj@si.edu

"The Curse of the Cargomaster" article is in the September, 2010, issue.

IMPORTANT NOTE ADDED BY RICK SPENCER:

Crew Members,

I just called and ordered copies of the Smithsonian Magazine; and, if you order now, then you only pay $4.99 with free shipping as that is the price of a current issue.

Cheers, Rick

August Book of the Month

2010-08-22T22:08:00.005-05:00

A Conflict of Visions

by Thomas Sowell

Basic Books, 2007

New York, NY 10016

Introduction

Many of our citizens lament the present lack of serious discussion in the political world that seems only to revolve about partisan venom, character assassinations, and juvenile discourse. They are prone to think such activities are something new to the country; and, that our problems could be solved if only this chattering mob resorted to civil language it would lead to compromise. However, in thinking so, they sorely misread our political history.

Early Political Discussion

Our country’s early political discourse among the populace, the politicians, and the overly partisan newspapers used such highly charged and venomous language that it led to beatings, duels, and the most outrageous of personal attacks. Much to the chagrin of Washington it began during his first term with Jefferson and Madison squaring off against Hamilton leading to the first political parties: Republicans and Federalists divided by their stands on States rights vs. Federal rights. Even so, and different from today, their arguments were motivated by early attempts to construct a framework of governance for a fledgling democratic country that lacked precedent, not necessarily adding to the political power of a party.

Upon assuming the actual governing of our Republic, the Founding Fathers thus left behind them the impeccable manners they had used in dispensing wisdom among themselves to now expressing their beliefs with an unusually savage verbal vehemence. While coming face to face with the realities of their nascent political world, their divisive use of abusive language greatly surpassed that of today’s as it was enhanced by the gloriously richness of the 18^th century style of written communication. After all, they were revolutionaries with high energy and with even higher personal philosophical goals that often clashed when practical policy implementation was confronted. It has been thus ever since, and it will be thus as long as we are a democracy. How can it be otherwise? . Compromise is the acceptance of less by each side and is usually twice as costly to those who pay the bill. It also exposes the two sides to political danger or disgrace, so gridlock becomes less painful and less costly. In turn, that may be more productive.

The Two Visions

In order for one to better understand this never ending struggle of political ideas one need only to read A Conflict of Visions, by Thomas Sowell. Here the story of the two controversial and opposing visions of governing that revolves around generations of ethical and ideological political disputes is told. Dr. Sowell has written a classic with remarkable insight by framing the discussion as a ‘constrained’ or an ‘unconstrained’ vision of the people who are to be governed by those who govern. His arguments are persuasively outlined, clearly detailed, and fundamentally appropriate in today’s political environment. These visions have troublesome communications, as there are few commonalities, so participants tend to talk past one another. There is little or no room for compromise.

Dr. Sowell uses the human nature of man, such as man’s ultimate potential and ultimate limitations, as the framework for his analysis. The dynamism of a capitalistic democracy that is ever changing, that embraces free speech, and that is governed as a republic suggests a forced end to the controversy by one side or the other to be the end of our personal liberties. Despotism would rise as the victor.

This basic conflict about governance has been the fuel for the best of mankind and the worst; and, it is at the forefront of our democratic world that struggles to govern mainly through political parties. However, the folly of the argument for our country lies in the fact that the Constitution is largely one of a constrained view of the people to be governed. There should be no argument as our Founders’ goal was to construct a governance system that allowed man his individual freedom to be all that he can be. As you will see, that is far different than the unconstrained view of Progressives.

The Unconstrained Vision

The tradition inherent to the unconstrained view is the conviction that immoral or foolish choices explain the evils of the world and that wiser social policies are the solution to create a more humane society. In other words, the social engineering that seems to come naturally to academics, journalists, and Progressive politicians as they deem themselves wiser then the individual to make decisions about how one should live. They believe that a larger, centrally controlled apparatus is better for the individual than the individual is for himself. It is always found in fascism, communism, and socialism. In fact, it is the central theme for each of these and the end result has always been a disaster for those subjected to it, and seldom bloodless. It is the false promise of a utopia failed.

The present administration has ushered into our society some of the most radical social changes the country has ever experienced while acting within their unconstrained view of those they govern. Progressives have been largely guided by concepts that revolve around intentions and using words such as sincerity, commitment, and dedication all leading to the social justice they desire, usually the controlled conduct of our personal and economic lives. They create social contrivances through their artificial logic without regard to the unpleasant side effects that deceptive reasoning always produces. Their unconstrained view of governing largely rejects the doctrine of American exceptionalism and its values of self-reliance. It thusly rejects one’s own private stock of reasoning for guidance to his life’s concerns. They are viewed as the Liberals/Progressives among us.

The Constrained Vision

Turning to this vision, and as Sowell points out, those favoring the constrained vision put little faith in those deliberately designed social processes touted by the unconstrained vision since there is so little faith that any set of decision-makers could cope with the enormous complexities of designing an appropriate system of morality or politics for governance. In fact, the constrained vision does not envision any man-made social contrivance that would encompass the values and be more worthy than those that have historically evolved with their systemic order and without a deliberate design.

The constrained vision sees freedom as finite and that government power is accumulated at the expense of private freedom. Hayek, Smith, Hamilton, Burke, and our Founders were proponents of the constrained vision of governance for those to be governed and thus it became the basis for our Constitution. Those who value free trade, limited government, rational decision-making, are Constitutionalists, and believe that the bigger the government, the less free the society, make-up the present day body of citizens favoring a constrained view of governance. They are viewed as the Conservatives among us.

The Disease of Progressivism

As opposed to the unconstrained view, the constrained view accepts its citizen’s own private stock of reasoning as appropriate guidance for life’s concerns. That was the basis for our revolution, for our Constitution, and for our nation’s guidance until the Progressive era began at the turn of the 20^th century. However, Europe has long been infected with ‘the disease of progressivism’ in the form of socialism but is now running from it, just as we seem to be embracing it. Central planning has never been the American way and it remains to be seen if out citizenry accepts it as a way of life.

The Conflict of Visions

The embittered politics engendered by these visions has reigned unabated and presently pervades all branches of our government. As Sowell states, “These are not merely differences of visions, but conflicts of vision.” That is why there is little compromise and may never be. Sowell opines that the moral impulse driving each vision cannot be jettisoned for the sake of winning, without making the victory meaningless. The acceptance of the best paradigm for the governing to govern has always been a fight to the finish, and a mean fight it is. But, in the long run of history, that may be in the best interest of the governed if they are engaged as well.

For those readers wanting a better understanding of the political conflict raging among us and between our two party system, I know of no better writing than A Conflict of Visions: Ideological Origins of Political Struggle, by Thomas Sowell. Your effort will be well rewarded and your mind may be set more at ease, or it may not! Enjoy.

Richard Spencer

39^th ATS, Dover AFB,

1962-1965

Reunion Survey Results

2010-08-07T15:27:00.007-05:00

45% FINAL RESPONSE

THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR FEEDBACK!!

Our survey request went out to 160 active e-mail addresses on our list, and 72 of you completed the questionnaire!

Here are the final results in answer to question #1: If you attended the Reunion in Dover on 7-8 May 2010, rate your satisfaction with the Reunion in general. 7 of the 72 who responded did not attend. 90.5% of those who did, said they were "Very Satisfied." 8% said they were "Satisfied."

We had one unidentifiable respondent who checked "Very Dissatisfied" (entered on 6/28 @ 9:28 am). While I'm reporting it as checked, I am suspicious that the boxes checked were not intended. Every item rating was checked "Very Dissatisfied," but all of the comments entered on that form were positive - none negative?! For example, under the question about the Souvenir Cap, the rating was checked "Very Dissatisfied," but the comment entered was "Nice touch."

On the questionnaire, you will remember we listed 24 different features of the Reunion of the three main segments, Friday Event, Saturday Event, and Reunion Follow-up. I will publish details of your responses, including Additional Comments volunteered in the near future.....stay tuned!

Results on other questions follow:

6. At this point, what is your interest level in coming to another reunion?

75% Strong Interest

23% Mild Interest

2% No Interest

7. On the Next Reunion issue, it's been proposed that considering our advancing seniority, we plan in terms of alternating years with "mini" and "maxi" reunions, as long as someone will organize them, e.g. in 2011, have a low key, one night dinner, mostly for local people near Dover, then in 2012, another full-blown weekend like 2010. What do you think?

63% Great Idea!

17% Don't care....

1% Bad idea.

19% For better idea, see below...(all comments you submitted for this item)

1 Make sure to announce low key dates for those of us who might make the effort to attend from outside the KDOV area.
2 There were a lot of people there that I did not know.
3 Not necessarily better, but perhaps a little less often, despite our aging population.
4 How about scheduling the Reunion annually with the stipulation that if "X" number of paid reservations are not received by "Y" date a "low key" version will be held with a cut off of "Z" number of registrants.
5 Doesn't matter to me. If I'm able I plan to attend them all regardless.
6 Great idea, however will try to attend the mini.
7 I'll probably attend whatever happens.
8 Continue having low key dinners but with a similar format.

9 I would enjoy just the Friday night "crew meetings" every year or two. They are easier to plan and more laid back.
10 Mini reunions for areas of the country, i.e Dover, Florida. etc.

11 Having them too often will lose impact
12 Sure, Lets go for it.

8. Some have requested that reunion attendees in photos on our publicly accessible blog be identified...

1% I would object to my name appearing with my photo on the blog.

0% I object to my photo appearing on the blog, even without my name.

99% I have no problem with any of that, enjoy the photos, and favor photos with names (SEE PREVIOUS PHOTO ALBUMS PUBLISHED NOW SHOWING NAMES IDENTIFIED)

If you have any questions or comments on these results, please enter Comments below on the blog, or e-mail them to me at rehanson342@me. com

Smithsonian Article

2010-07-24T21:36:00.002-05:00

Look for John Sotham's article about the C-133 in the September issue of Smithsonian Air & Space Magazine. On the news stand in late Aug. He focuses on the crash record, but I tried to give him good information about other activities. He also bought my book.

Cal Taylor

Military Tribute

2010-07-19T11:05:00.004-05:00

Thanks to Rick Spencer for the following link to a Gene Simmons Military Tribute on YouTube! (click on red label)