Last one for today, anyway. And you need the back-story. "Jelly Belly" flew over from left to right, shut down the engine, made a 180, landed (no power), and without using brakes, came to a stop putting the prop hub into the outstretched palm of a two-star.
Rodolfo Paiz wrote:
Understood essentially nothing of the medical description except for "fracture" and "irregularity" but glad to hear you're getting better. :-)
JWilsonphoto wrote:
My friend Matt Byrd flew the A-10 for a while before being called into the F=117 test program and he loved the plane. Wonder what the deal is, especially given the fact that the powers that be are now thinking about dropping back to PT6 driven singles for similar tasks? Sure would like to pick up a "slightly used" Texan II for the hangar A Texan I and a Texan II side by side, now that would be a cool thing to see as the door comes up!
This isn't too bad...............
So Jim, have you gotten a ride in that beauty yet?
The A-10 is one amazing bird. A friend flew them in the ANG, where he got his call sign Pinecone. It was worth the beer to hear how he earned the call sign change.
JDE1 wrote:
Last one for today, anyway. And you need the back-story. "Jelly Belly" flew over from left to right, shut down the engine, made a 180, landed (no power), and without using brakes, came to a stop putting the prop hub into the outstretched palm of a two-star.
Yes, Kent is very talented at doing that. It's funnier when it doesn't make it though...he gets out and pushes :P
he does 3 totally different routines with that airplane, depending on the show, and how much space they have to fill.
- the drunken pilot routine
- the landing on the truck routine
- the dead stick routine
My personal favorite is definitely the dead stick routine...just shows how the art of momentum management works.
Haven't been posting much of late. Relocated a couple hours south, settling in nicely. The Air Tattoo trip starts for me in 11 days...over two weeks of cathedrals, airshows, and the Mach Loop.
Can't wait to do some more contributing to this thread.
Want to feel old.....? The F117 was 37 on June 18th, yikes! I can remember scratching my head on a shoot at Nellis when I pulled up to the gate and there was a 117 on a pole.
JDE1 wrote:
(deleted) And too many in the Air Force would sell their souls to get rid of this fighting machine.
I wonder if the Air Forces opinion of the A-10 would change if the "powers that be" explained that if the Air Force didn't want the mission of supporting the ground troops, the A-10's would be transferred to the Army (& possibly the Marines).
I'm fairly sure that the last thing the Air Force wants to see is a resurrected Army Air Force, competing with them for aircraft program budget dollars.
kwbarnes wrote:
I wonder if the Air Forces opinion of the A-10 would change if the "powers that be" explained that if the Air Force didn't want the mission of supporting the ground troops, the A-10's would be transferred to the Army (& possibly the Marines).
I'm fairly sure that the last thing the Air Force wants to see is a resurrected Army Air Force, competing with them for aircraft program budget dollars.
Transferring the A10s (and the mission) has been suggested. But, the first obstacle would be the 1948 Key West Agreement that outlined the division of air assets between the Army, Navy, and the newly created Air Force. That agreement, officially "Function of the Armed Forces and the Joint Chiefs of Staff" could be changed. But, even if they don't really want "x" the first rule of a bureaucracy is protect what you've got, the second rule is get more. Past efforts at modifications have been hard fought. One article on transferring the A10 to the Army is at https://www.realcleardefense.com/articles/2014/01/22/save_the_a-10__give_it_to_the_army_107047.html and a reply/counter is at https://www.realcleardefense.com/articles/2014/01/27/10_good_reasons_to_save_the_a-10_107058.html. There are many more, but these two kinda give the flavor of how the battle might shape up.
Need a little help. I checked my monitor calibration today and the test wanted me to increase the brightness. Well, it was already at max, so there was nothing I could do. Do the colors, and especially the brightness, of the images I've posted in the last couple of weeks look right on your monitors?
Thanks.
JDE1 wrote:
Need a little help. I checked my monitor calibration today and the test wanted me to increase the brightness. Well, it was already at max, so there was nothing I could do. Do the colors, and especially the brightness, of the images I've posted in the last couple of weeks look right on your monitors?
Thanks.
The B-17 Aluminum Overcast made a stop in Knoxville over the weekend. Went over Saturday to take some photos, but got a lot more than I bargained for.
The plane had just flown a very special passenger - WWII Veteran Jules Bernard. Jules is 96 years old and worked on B-17's (among other aircraft) while stationed in England. He was very energetic and made a point to speak to everyone and shake their hand.
I was fortunate enough to have a conversation with him and he told me several stories. He ended our time by saying "I may look 96, but today I feel 20 years old again. The last time I flew on a B-17 was 1945".
It was an honor and privilege to meet, much less have a great conversation with one of the last members of that generation. Saturday was a great day.
A Texan I and a Texan II side by side, now that would be a cool thing to see as the door comes up! 
