Category Archives: Technology

Technology

Wrecked F-111E finds new home in South Carolina

Video

Photo by Master Sergeant Cohen Young.

In February 2012, a U.S. Air Force F-111E Aardvark found its way home to its old unit, the 20th Fighter Wing.

The 20th FW was born in South Carolina a couple of years after World War Two.

After many changes, the 20th FW was sent to the Commonwealth of Nations‘ (formerly British Empire)-United Kingdom member of England, from 1970 to January 1994, on the Royal Air Force’s Upper Heyford base.

In 1991, the 20th FW’s F-111s  went to Turkey to take part in Operation Desert Storm, with this specific Aardvark logging 21 combat missions.  When RAF Upper Heyford was shutdown the 20th FW finally returned to its birthplace of South Carolina.

Note the swing wing hinge.

Note the vortex generators inside the air intake.  (Read NASA report Flight-Determined Characteristics of an Air Intake System on an F-111A Airplane. The F-111 suffered from Mach speed induced engine stall due to the interaction between the sonic shock wave and the air intake, thus many things were adapted to reduce this phenomena, including vortex generators shown in Figure 5 of the report.)

Video report by Airman First Class Blake Hubbard, 03FEB2012:

The 20th FW historians say this particular F-111E spent its entire service life with the 20th FW in England from 1970 until the end of 1993.   This specific F-111E was imprisoned at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base (AFB) from 1994 to January 2012.  In 2009, discussions began with the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force to negotiate the release of the Aardvark from Davis-Monthan.

Photo by Airman First Class Hunter Brady.

After four or five months (depending on which official report you read) of restoration work, the F-111E was ready to take on its new job as Shaw AFB gate guard.

Video report by Airman First Class Blake Hubbard, 12SEP2012:

Shaw AFB: A FLYING M48A1 TANK?

Technology

Green Mountain Boys find a new home for an old F-4D Phantom-2

Video

Photos by Technical Sergeant Sarah Mattison.

At the end of May 2015, the Vermont Air National Guard moved a former 158th FW F-4D (65-712) Phantom-2 to a new, and supposedly phinal home; guarding the entrance to Camp Johnson.

Video by Staff Sergeant Jason Brace:

The F-4D was located on the grounds of the Camp Johnson Vermont National Guard Museum and Library (aka Vermont Military Museum).  That former location now being held by an F-16.

 

PHINAL UN-MANNED PHANTOM PHLIGHT

1/1 SCALE F-4 PHANTOM-2 MODEL

Utah: PHINAL PHANTOM PHLIGHT, NO MORE USAF F-4 PHANTOMS!

Technology

Undignified Death of LVTP-5

Video

In April 2019,  the administrators of U.S. Marine Corps Base Hawaii decided that it was time to renovate the base, which was code for getting rid of the old Landing Vehicle Tracked Personnel-5 ‘Gate Guard’.  Various renovation projects on MCBHawaii have been ongoing for more than a decade.

Video and photos by Corporal Brendan Custer.

Time lapse video of the taxpayer funded LVTP-5 chop-up:

There has yet to be a public explanation why the LVTP-5 wasn’t renovated itself, instead of being turned into scrap metal.

Vehicle I-D: USMC SNO-CATS FLEE SLINK FIRE

LAST RIDE FOR USMC 1ST, 2ND & 4TH TANK

Vehicle I-D: AAV7 VIDEO-FEST

 

U.S. MARINES USE ‘FAKE NEWS’ MIG-23

Hurricane Dorian: HOW TO EVACUATE THOUSANDS OF U.S. MARINES

O.G. Hutchins and fellow Marines somewhere in the Pacific

Endemic Violence: GHOSTS OF MY FATHER & GRANDFATHER! “…because that’s how a Marine is made. Or is it?  Is it possible that the United States Marine Corps attracts people who are already violent?”

Technology

Vehicle I-D: KC-130 Super C-O-D

Video

U.S. Navy photo.

“There were people out taking measurements on a Hercules, and they said they were going to land a C-130 on an aircraft carrier. I didn’t believe them. Later my CO came around and said the same thing. I still didn’t believe it, but I raised my hand to volunteer anyway. I had no idea what I was getting in to.”-Aviation Machinist Mate First Class Brennan,  Transport Squadron One at the Naval Air Test Center, Naval Air Station Patuxent River

Image from U.S. Navy film.

In November 1963, a U.S. Navy KC-130F conducted its first, and last, Carrier Onboard Delivery (COD) trials, making it the largest aircraft to ever operate on an aircraft carrier; the USS Forrestal CVA-59.

Image from U.S. Navy film.

The Super COD KC-130F, named “Look Ma, No Hook”‘, “…made 29 touch-and-go landings, 21 unarrested full-stop landings, and 21 unassisted takeoffs at gross weights of 85,000 pounds up to 121,000 pounds.”

Short video issued by Robins Air Force Base, I edited out the hokey music they put over the silent film:

USN photo.

The so-called Super COD testing concluded on 23NOV1963, one day after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated.

USN photo.

As a result of the successful testing, the U.S. Navy decided it was still too risky to use a Super COD aircraft.

USN photo.

Original ‘official’ news article about the KC-130F COD: November 1964 Naval Aviation News

According to Kenneth V. Killmeyer, “KC-130F Bureau Number 149798 was retired from service in March, 2005 and since May of 2005 is at the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida.”

C-130J: ONCE A RED COAT, NOW A BLUE ANGEL

RETRO DAYGLO, AND HOW NEON PAINT HELPS KEEP AIRPLANES FROM FALLING OUTTA THE SKY!

Technology

How to mummify your KC-10, or, Last flight of 86-0036

Video

Photo by Staff Sergeant Sean Evans.

The day before Halloween, the first of three retired KC-10 Extenders began its mummification by AMARG (Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group) at Davis-Monthan Air
Force Base, Arizona.

Photo by Master Sergeant Joseph Vigil.

On 13JUL2020, a KC-10 (tail #86-0036) based at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, became the first KC-10 in the U.S. Air Force inventory to be officially retired.  Congress approved the retirement of three KC-10s in anticipation of eventual replacement of 59 KC-10s by the new KC-46A Pegasus.

Photo by Staff Sergeant Sean Evans.

Tail #86-0036 takes off on its last flight, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst from to the graveyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, 13JUL2020.

Photo by Airman First Class Sean Hetz.

Final flight video by Master Sergeant Joseph Vigil (edited by me):

Time lapse video by Staff Sergeant Giovanni Sims, KC-10 mummification on 30OCT2020:

 

From 2017:  908th EARS KC-10 refueling Bengal F/A-18D Hornet and 355th FW A-10C Thunderbolt-2

International, Technology

Government Shenanigans: UH-60 for Afghanistan, killed-off by the Mil 17, U.S. taxpayers raped twice?

Video

31 October 2020 / 03:21 (UTC-07 Tango 06)/ 10
Aban 1399/14 Rabi ‘al-Awwal 1442/15 Bing-Xu(9th month) 4718

U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sergeant Sean Martin, 05NOV2017.

Begun under the Barack Obama administration, the UH-60A program for Afghanistan is now drastically scaled back under the Donald Trump administration, due to lack of the Black Hawk’s performance in Afghanistan, a shift in priorities within the U.S. Department of Defense, and the high cost to U.S. taxpayers.

A former U.S. Army Black Hawk is loaded onto a C-17 transport, bound for Afghanistan. U.S. Army photo by Adriane Elliot, 15SEP2017.

September 2017, the first batch of UH-60As for Afghanistan are unloaded from a C-17 Globemaster-3, at Kandahar Air Field.

 

Photo by Staff Sergeant Trevor McBride.

Video by Senior Airmen Ryan Green, UH-60A flight training, November 2017:

By December 2017, a small group of six Afghan Mil 17 pilots became qualified to fly the UH-60A+.

Photo by Staff Sergeant Jared Duhon.

By February 2018, the Afghan Air Force had eight UH-60 Blackhawks.

By March 2018, U.S. military officials were boasting the UH-60 program was “mission ready”.  Video of more flight training by John Roberts:

USA photo by Major Richard Barker, 06MAY2018.

By May 2018, the first large class of Afghan UH-60A crews had completed the Mission Qualification Course (MQC).   Video by Jackie Faye showing Afghan UH-60s taking off on their first official mission one day after the MQC graduation:

In June 2018,  The U.S. Special Inspector General For Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) criticized the UH-60 program for Afghanistan saying “They are unable to accommodate some of the larger cargo items the Mi-17s can carry, and in general, it takes almost two Black Hawks to carry the load of a single Mi-17. Furthermore, unlike Mi-17s, Black Hawks cannot fly at high elevations and, as such, cannot operate in remote regions of Afghanistan where Mi-17s operate.”

A Train, Advise and Assist Command-Air (TAAC-Air) explainer video by Staff  Sergeant Rion Ehrman, with overly dramatic music, July 2018:

Photo by Sergeant Luke Hoogendam.

July 2018 MedEvac (medical evacuation) training, now known as CasEvac (casualty evacuation).

Photo by Staff Sergeant Clayton Cupit.

By December 2018, U.S. TAAC-Air contractors continued to train Afghan personnel on the UH-60A.

In February 2019, SIGAR warned that the $7-billion U.S. taxpayer funded program to replace Afghanistan’s Russian built helicopters with U.S. made helicopters (first proposed in 2014, mainly using the UH-60A+) was flawed because “DOD does not currently have a maintenance training course in place to train Afghan personnel to maintain UH-60s. Having insufficient Afghan maintenance personnel limits the locations at which UH-60s can operate because DOD policy bars U.S. contractors from working where there is no U.S. or Coalition control due to security concerns.”

Another former USA UH-60 Black Hawk bound for Afghanistan, this time on 25APR2019, transported by Ukrainian An-124 transport. USA photo by Richard Bumgardner.

In January 2020, the Military Times reported “The U.S. military is reducing the number of UH-60 Black Hawks it plans to provide Afghan forces from 159 to just 53…..”, ostensibly because the U.S. Department of Defense no longer considers Afghanistan a priority.

September 2020, the Financial Express explains the reasons why ‘Afghan Military to stick to Russian-made Helocraft’, saying the Obama era program to rely mainly on UH-60s to replace proven Russian technology was “primarily driven by political concern”.

Don’t worry all you happy U.S. taxpayers, you paid for those Russian made ‘Hip’ helicopters as well, to the tune of $15-million each!

Zombie ‘Copter:   HOW THE HIND RETURNED TO AFGHANISTAN (with the help of U.S./NATO), AND WHY IT WON’T DIE

Afghanistan:   MIL 17 CRASH & BURN

 MAINTAINING SATAN’S CHARIOT

  MD-530 Cayuse Warrior

Kit Bashing, Technology

C-130J: Retro Dayglo, and how neon paint helps keep airplanes from falling outta the sky!

Video

Photo by Airman First Class Jayden Ford, 22SEP2020.

In September 2020, C-130s were painted in ‘heritage’ colors to represent some of the first aircraft flown by the U.S. Air Force’s 41st and 61st Airlift Squadrons.  The paint schemes included a camo tail, a pre-World War Two yellow tail, and a Cold War dayglo orange/red tail.

Photo by Airman First Class Jayden Ford, 22SEP2020.

The paint-job was handled by the 19th Maintenance Squadron on Little Rock Air Force Base in Arkansas.

Photo by Staff Sergeant Jeremy McGuffin, 08OCT2020.

On 08OCT2020, USAF and Arkansas National Guard C-130s showed off their new paint jobs, en masse.

Video report by Airman First Class Jayden Ford, explaining the history of the 41st and 61st Airlift Squadrons:

65th anniversary video by Master Sergeant Jason Armstrong:

Photo by Airman First Class Isaiah Miller, 08OCT2020.

USAF photo by Photo by Airman Joshua Maund, 04SEP2015.

Dayglo paint/oil is not only used to make things like vehicles stand-out, it’s also used to make defects in structural components stand-out.  It’s a type of non-destructive inspection (NDI).

U.S. Army photo by Ervey Martinez, 18SEP2020.

The ‘penetrant’ paint/oil soaks into any cracks revealing the defects.

Magnetic particle inspection using a black-light.

USAF photo by Master Sergeant Cecilio Ricardo.

This Airman is using a blacklight to inspect a bolt.

The term dayglo originates from the name of a paint company whose primary customers were retail advertisers, but that changed with a big boost from the U.S. Department of War (established 1789-1947) during World War Two, a military supply contract which lasted through the undeclared Cold War (and beyond).  Ironically during the Cold War decades, the company was not only getting business from the U.S. National Military Establishment (1947-1949) and U.S. Department of Defense (1949-present), but from the hippie-dippie peace movement by selling its neon paints to producers of peace posters and music industry advertising.  In 1969 the company first known as Fluor-S-Art, then as Switzer Brothers (in honor of the founders), changed its name to Day-Glo Paint Corporation.   In 1985, Day-Glo was sold to Nalco Chemical Company, and today it boasts of being the world’s largest producer of florescent colors.

C-130J: ONCE A RED COAT, NOW A BLUE ANGEL

ATLANTIC HURRICANE SEASON BEGINS EARLY, AGAIN,1ST WC-130J HURRICANE HUNTER LAUNCHED!

Pandemic Overflight: HERKS FOR HEROES

Bare Metal: C-130 PAINT PREP, OR THE EMPEROR GETS SOME NEW CLOTHES

Vehicle I-D: NORMANDY PAINTED C-130 HERCULES

Neon in Plastic:

BLACKLIGHT REVELL DEAL’S WHEELS

AMT WILLYS VAN RETRO ISSUE

MULTI-MAVERICK 

Technology

B-25: Old Glory goes down for the 2nd time

Video

California farm field, 19SEP2020. Photo by San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office.

After spending most of the year flying at various locations across the United States, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War Two (click this link to see pics and video interview with current owner), a B-25 Mitchell named Old Glory (44-28938) cashed, for the second time in its post-war career.

Photo via San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office.

According to California’s San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office, on 19SEP2020 the crew of Old Glory reported a mechanical problem and made an emergency landing in a Stockton farm field.  The emergency landing turned into a crash landing after the old bomber got tripped-up by an irrigation ditch.  The three crewmen suffered non-life threatening injuries.

Photo via San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office.

News reports stated that this was the second time the restored combat veteran had crashed.  The first time was near Reno, Nevada, in 1987.  The dedicated owners spent 18-thousand hours repairing and restoring the damaged B-25, completing the job in 1995.  It was then that B-25N 44-28938 got the name Old Glory.

Old Glory on Honolulu, Hawaii, 25AUG2020. U.S. Army photo by Sergeant Gabriel Davis.

Towards the end of 2019, Old Glory was purchased by The Prescott Foundation-Hanger743 of New York.  During WW2 it operated over the Mediterranean with the 12th Army Air Force (specific squadron still unknown).  Following the war it was converted to TB-25N radio navigation trainer, then to a waterbomber.  In 1978, B-25N 44-28938 began its current career as a flying museum exhibit, under the pseudonyms Dream Lover and Spirit of Tulsa.

Old Glory take-off in Hawaii, end of August 2020, video by Austin Rooney.  Unfortunately there is no audio:

The Prescott Foundation states they are cooperating with the NTSB’s (National Transportation Safety Board) investigation into the crash of Old Glory.

U.S. Air Force photo by Airman First Class Ryan J. Sonnier, 16SEP2019.

What it is like flying on Old Glory, end of August 2020, video by Private Carlie Lopez (edited by me):

U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Jaimar Carson Bondurant.

This link has pics and vid of Old Glory being off loaded from a big U.S. Navy boat, for a big taxpayer funded air show.

COLD WAR S-A-C FLEW WORLD WAR TWO B-25 MITCHELLS

B-25 FLAMIN’ MAIMIE WAS AS COLD AS ICE!

B-25 ¡PANCHITO!

Technology

Cold War S-A-C flew World War Two B-25 Mitchells

Video

SAC=Strategic Air Command

These photos were taken in the late 1950s by the father-in-law to Russel Sharp.

Russel Sharp (the guy in the uniform) was a crew chief (aka maintainer) and flight engineer on B-25s flown by SAC, out of Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas.

Between 1954 and 1959, U.S. Air Force SAC used the World War Two U.S. Army Air Force B-25 Mitchells as trainers for incoming nuclear bomber crews.  Doctor John Garrett, 17th Training Wing historian, explains that “This specific aircraft was built in 1944 and was converted in 1945 from a bomber to a trainer model. It flew as a trainer until 1959 and its last years were in Dyess. This plane was kept downtown in San Angelo, and in 1983 Charlie Powell, former wing commander, rescued it from San Angelo.”

U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Scott Jackson, 02AUG2017.

On 02AUG2017, Russel Sharp returned to Goodfellow AFB to check-out the B-25 gate guard installed near Jacobson Gate.  Going by the tail number it is the same B-25 that Sharp spent more than 9-hundred hours flying on.   Sharp said the connection was made when an old Air Force buddie saw the gate guard and was sure the tail number was the same.

Video interview by Airman First Class Jessica Ray:

B-25 FLAMIN’ MAIMIE WAS AS COLD AS ICE!

Technology

B-25 Flamin’ Maimie was as cold as ice!

Image

Before there was NASA, there was NACA (National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics).  Photos from the NASA archives.

Looks to be Flamin’ Maimie before NACA’s many modifications. NACA photo, 1947.

NACA had a XB-25E called Flamin’ Maimie.  If you look up Flamin’ Maimie you’ll get a couple of dominant results; a jazz song from the 1920s by the band The Coon-Sanders Nighthawks, and a big-hair female track team from Abilene, Texas, who became the first female sports team to make the cover of Sports Illustrated, in 1964.

NASA photo, 1947.

While the jazz-dance song and the track team were about ‘hot’ women, NACA’s Flamin’ Maimie was about being as cold as ice.

NASA photo, 1947.

Originally the XB-25E was used by the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) from 1942-44.  It was a modified B-25C.  The hot exhaust gasses were routed through the flying surfaces of the bomber.  It was successful, but apparently the USAAF decided the added weight of the hot air de-icing system wasn’t justified.  In July 1944, NACA became the new owner of Flamin’ Maimie.

NASA photo, 1949.

NACA added these protruding therm-o-meters.

NASA photo, 1950.

NACA used Flamin’ Maimie to study new de-icing technologies, and the processes which caused aircraft to collect ice.  The program operated out of Ohio, from the Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory (now known as NASA Glenn Research Center), until 1953.

NASA photo, 1950.

The NACA pressure icing rate meter data recorder used in the XB-25E.

NACA’s diagram of de-icers on B-25, dated 1946.

I was not able to find any information as to what happened to XB-25E Flamin’ Maimie, other than NACA “transferred” it in February 1953.

B-25 ¡PANCHITO!