To All
Good Saturday Morning January 2
I wish you all a Most Happy and prosperous New Year. Some things old and some things new for today
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Regards,
Skip
This Day In Naval History – January 2, 2018
Jan. 2
1943—USS Argonaut (SM1) sinks the Japanese guard boat Ebon Maru in the Bismarck Sea.
1944—Aerial mine laying operations continue in the Marshall Islands. Five PV-1s (VB 137) and one PBY-5 (VP 72) mine Jabor Anchorage, Jaluit.
1944—USS Finback (SS 230) sinks a Japanese merchant tanker in the East China Sea.
1969 - Operation Barrier Reef began in Mekong Delta, Vietnam
2000—Retired Adm. Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr., the 19th Chief of Naval Operations, dies at Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC.
Today in History January 2
1492 | Catholic forces under King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella take the town of Granada, the last Muslim kingdom in Spain. | |
1758 | The French begin bombardment of Madras, India. | |
1839 | Photography pioneer Louis Daguerre takes the first photograph of the moon. | |
1861 | The USS Brooklyn is readied at Norfolk to aid Fort Sumter. | |
1863 | In the second day of hard fighting at Stone's River, near Murfreesboro, Tenn., Union troops defeat the Confederates. | |
1903 | President Theodore Roosevelt closes a post office in Indianola, Mississippi, for refusing to hire a Black postmistress. | |
1904 | U.S. Marines are sent to Santo Domingo to aid the government against rebel forces. | |
1905 | After a six-month siege, Russians surrender Port Arthur to the Japanese. | |
1918 | Russian Bolsheviks threaten to re-enter the war unless Germany returns occupied territory. | |
1932 | Japanese forces in Manchuria set up a puppet government known as Manchukuo. | |
1936 | In Berlin, Nazi officials claim that their treatment of Jews is not the business of the League of Nations. | |
1942 | In the Philippines, the city of Manila and the U.S. Naval base at Cavite fall to Japanese forces. | |
1943 | The Allies capture Buna in New Guinea. | |
1963 | In Vietnam, the Viet Cong down five U.S. helicopters in the Mekong Delta. 30 Americans are reported dead. | |
1966 | American G.I.s move into the Mekong Delta for the first time. | |
1973 | The United States admits the accidental bombing of a Hanoi hospital. | |
1980 | President Jimmy Carter asks the U.S. Senate to delay the arms treaty ratification in response to Soviet action in Afghanistan. | |
1981 | British police arrest the "Yorkshire Ripper" serial killer, Peter Sutcliffe. | |
1999 | A severe winter storm hits the Midwestern US; in Chicago temperatures plunge to -13 ºF and19 inches of snow fell; 68 deaths are blamed on the storm. | |
2006 | A coal mine explosion in Sago, West Virginia, kills 12 miners and critically injures another. This accident and another within weeks lead to the first changes in federal mining laws in decades. |
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Thanks to Paul
A hugely successful operation 53 years ago today
And maybe a shout out for his biography for those who have not read it yet
Fighter Pilot: The Memoirs of Legendary Ace Robin Olds
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Thanks to Mud
This is another of those fun quizzes sent to the select few in my generation. I missed six. I just couldn't remember them no matter how hard I tried to recall.
S/F,
- Mud
THIS MAY BE HARDER THAN YOU MAY THINK.
THE ANSWERS WILL BE ON THE TIP OF YOUR TONGUE, BUT YOU JUST CAN'T QUITE REMEMBER THE CORRECT ANSWER
DON'T LOOK BELOW FOR THE ANSWERS UNTIL YOU HAVE TRIED TO FIGURE IT OUT.
A TEST FOR 'OLDER' KIDS. I was picky who I sent this to. It had to be those who might actually remember. So have some fun my sharp-witted friends. This is a test for us 'older kids'! The answers are printed below, (after the questions) but don't cheat! answer them first.....
*****************
01. After the Lone Ranger saved the day and rode off into the sunset, the grateful citizens would ask, Who was that masked man? Invariably, someone would answer, I don't know, but he left this behind. What did he leave behind?________________.
02. When the Beatles first came to the U.S. In early 1964, we all watched them on The ____ ___________ Show.
03. 'Get your kicks, __ _________ _______.'
04. 'The story you are about to see is true. The names have been changed to _____ _ _____.
05. 'In the jungle, the mighty jungle, ____ ____ ____ ____.'
06. After the Twist, The Mashed Potato, and the Watusi, we 'danced' under a stick that was lowered as low as we could go in a dance called the '_____.'
07. Nestlé's makes the very best.... _________.'
08. Satchmo was America 's 'Ambassador of Goodwill.' Our parents shared this great jazz trumpet player with us. His name was
______ ___________.
09. What takes a licking and keeps on ticking? _______.
10. Red Skeleton's hobo character was named ______ ___ ________ and Red always ended his television show by saying, 'Good Night, and '________ ________ . '
11. Some Americans who protested the Vietnam War did so by burning their ______ _______.
12. The cute little car with the engine in the back and the trunk in the front was called the VW. What other names did it go by? ___ & _______.
13. In 1971, singer Don MacLean sang a song about, 'the day the music died.' This was a tribute to _______ ____________.
14. We can remember the first satellite placed into orbit. The Russians did it. It was called __________.
15. One of the big fads of the late 50's and 60's was a large plastic ring that we twirled around our waist. It was called the ______ _____ .
16. Remember LS/MFT _____ _____/_____ _____ _____?
17. Hey Kids! What time is it? It's _____ ______ _____!
18. Who knows what secrets lie in the hearts of men? Only The _____ Knows!
19. There was a song that came out in the 60's that was "a grave yard smash". It's name was the ______ ______!
20. Alka Seltzer used a "boy with a tablet on his head" as it's Logo/Representative What was the boy's name? ________
ANSWERS:
01. The Lone Ranger left behind a silver bullet.
02. The Ed Sullivan Show
03. On Route 66
04. To protect the innocent.
05. The Lion Sleeps Tonight
06. The limbo
07. Chocolate
08. Louis Armstrong
09. The Timex watch
10. Freddy, The Freeloader and 'Good Night and God Bless.'
11. Draft cards (Bras were also burned. Not flags, as some have guessed)
12. Beetle or Bug
13. Buddy Holly
14. Sputnik
15. Hoola-hoop
16. Lucky Strike/Means Fine Tobacco
17. Howdy Doody Time
18. Shadow
19. Monster Mash
20. Speedy
Send this to your 'older' friends, (Better known as Seniors.) It will drive them crazy! And keep them busy and let them forget their aches and pains for a few minutes.
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Thanks to Dutch….I had this in the list many years ago and it still fogged up my glasses
: CHP video is so touching ...
This was made at Truckee, CA; where the elevation is higher than Denver. It is a bit North of Lake Tahoe close to Reno.
My Christmas Eve - CHP holiday video
The CHP recently released this holiday video and sent all retirees a copy.
The video was made at the Truckee CHP office.
We think you will enjoy seeing it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yt83CS1DxGI&feature=youtu.be
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January 2
This Day in U S Military History
1942 – The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) convicts 33 members of a German spy ring headed by Fritz Joubert Duquesne in the largest espionage case in United States history—the Duquesne Spy Ring. Of those arrested on the charge of espionage, 19 pleaded guilty. The remaining 14 men who entered pleas of not guilty were brought to jury trial in Federal District Court, Brooklyn, New York, on September 3, 1941; and all found guilty on December 13, 1941. On January 2, 1942, the group was sentenced to serve a total of over 300 years in prison. The German spies who formed the Duquesne spy ring were placed in key jobs in the United States to get information that could be used in the event of war and to carry out acts of sabotage: one person opened a restaurant and used his position to get information from his customers; another person worked on an airline so that he could report Allied ships that were crossing the Atlantic Ocean; others in the ring worked as delivery people so that they could deliver secret messages alongside normal messages. William G. Sebold, who had been recruited as a spy for Germany, was a major factor in the FBI's successful resolution of this case through his work as a double agent for the United States government. For nearly two years the FBI ran a radio station in New York for the ring, learning what Germany was sending to its spies in the United States while controlling the information that was being transmitted to Germany. Sebold's success as a counterespionage agent was demonstrated by the successful prosecution of the German agents. One German spymaster later commented that the ring's roundup delivered "the death blow" to their espionage efforts in the United States. FBI director J. Edgar Hoover called his concerted FBI swoop on Duquesne's ring the greatest spy roundup in U.S. history.
1943 – Japanese positions at Buna, New Guinea are stormed by troops from Eichelberger's US 1st Corps. Fighting continues around Sanananda.
1943 – US troops on Guadalcanal launch another assault up Mount Austen. Some progress is made but the Gifu strongpoint remains in Japanese control.
1944 – On New Britain, the American 7th Marine Regiment launches attacks to expand its beachhead near Cape Gloucester but fails to meet its objectives.
1944 – US Task Force 38 (Admiral Barbey) lands 2400 troops of the 126th Regiment (General Martin) of the 32nd Division at Saidor. Both the airfield and the harbor are secured. An Allied cruiser and destroyer force, led by Admiral Crutchley, provides cover for the landing. To the east, Australian forces advance to Sialum.
1945 – In the Ardennes, Third Army troops take Bonnerue, Hubertmont and Remagne. In Alsace Seventh Army withdraws under German pressure.
1945 – About 1000 USAAF bombers nominally attack troop concentrations and communications in western Germany while about 1000 RAF bombers strike Nuremburg and Ludwigshafen.
1945 – An American Sikorsky helicopter is used in convoy escort duties for the first time.
1945 – In the Carolines, Fais Island is occupied by an American amphibious force.
1951 – For the first time, a C-47 dropped flares to illuminate B-26 and F-82 night attacks on enemy forces. The flares also deterred enemy night attacks on U.S. troops. Fifth Air Force withdrew forward-based F-86s assigned to the 4th FIW from enemy-threatened Kimpo Airfield near Seoul to the wing's home station at Johnson AB, Japan.
1967 – Operation Bolo: 30 US Air Force F-4 Phantom jets, operating from Ubon in Thailand, shoot down a third of North Vietnam's MiG-21s, loosing only one Phantom. Over the previous two years of Air Force and Navy air strikes, only 10 planes had been lost to enemy MiGs. American pilots were forbidden from attacking Hanoi's airfields fearing that killing Soviet or Chinese advisers that could be there would draw those nations more directly into the war. Knowing this, the Vietnamese People's Air Force would simply fly their MiGs through the American bombing formations and loiter just long enough to get the crews to drop their bombs and extra fuel early, preventing the strategic strikes without firing a shot. US 7th Air Force selected Colonel Robin Olds to lead an ambush to stop the harassment. To lure out the North Vietnamese, American F-4s would fly the same routes into the country as the heavyset F-105 bombers—and at the same altitudes and speeds while using the same radio call signs. Meanwhile, signal-snooping aircraft would keep track of the MiGs. Special C-130B-IIs would listen in on enemy radio chatter and feed information straight to American pilots throughout the mission. These specialized aircraft and personnel not only made sure the Vietnamese were responding as expected, but also kept watch in case Chinese jets decided to join the battle. Olds wanted to know if Russian or North Korean advisers were actually in the cockpits when the fighting started. Hanoi's pilots were caught completely off guard. When Olds' strike team started its attack, the C-130s picked up enemy pilots shocked to find that "the sky is full of F-4s," according to the declassified report. "Where are the F-105s? You briefed us to expect F-105s!" Seven MiGs were shot down. After a series of additional aerial ambushes, the Vietnamese People's Air Force grounded its MiGs and completely revised its procedures. At the end of the year, Washington approved strikes on Hanoi's air bases. During this operation, Col. Robin Olds shot down one of the MiGs, becoming the first and only U.S. Air Force ace with victories in both World War II and Vietnam.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
LENIHAN, JAMES
Rank and organization: Private, Company K, 5th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Clear Creek, Ariz., 2 January 1873. Entered service at: – – – . Birth: Ireland. Date of issue: 12 April 1875. Citation: Gallantry in action.
*EDWARDS, JUNIOR D.
Rank and organization: Sergeant First Class, U.S. Army, Company E, 23d Infantry Regiment, 2d Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Changbong-ni, Korea, 2 January 1951. Entered service at: Indianola, Iowa. Born: 7 October 1926, Indianola, lowa. G.O. No.: 13, 1 February 1952. Citation: Sfc. Edwards, Company E, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy. When his platoon, while assisting in the defense of a strategic hill, was forced out of its position and came under vicious raking fire from an enemy machine gun set up on adjacent high ground, Sfc. Edwards individually charged the hostile emplacement, throwing grenades as he advanced. The enemy withdrew but returned to deliver devastating fire when he had expended his ammunition. Securing a fresh supply of grenades, he again charged the emplacement, neutralized the weapon and killed the crew, but was forced back by hostile small-arms fire. When the enemy emplaced another machine gun and resumed fire, Sfc. Edwards again renewed his supply of grenades, rushed a third time through a vicious hail of fire, silenced this second gun and annihilated its crew. In this third daring assault he was mortally wounded but his indomitable courage and successful action enabled his platoon to regain and hold the vital strongpoint. Sfc. Edwards' consummate valor and gallant self-sacrifice reflect the utmost glory upon himself and are in keeping with the esteemed traditions of the infantry and military service.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for January 2, 2021 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
2 January
1933: Orville Wright received the Institute of Aeronautical Sciences' first honorary fellowship. (24)
1942: Gen Henry H. Arnold established a new Air Force, which later became Eighth Air Force. (4)
1948: In Japan, two USAF P-80 Shooting Stars attained 778 miles per hour with aid of tail winds. (24)
1951: KOREAN WAR. A C-47 dropped flares for the first time to illuminate B-26 and F-82 night attacks on enemy forces and deter enemy night attacks on U.S. troops. Fifth Air Force withdrew the 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing and its F-86s from Kimpo Airfield near Seoul, S. Korea, to Johnson AB, Japan. (28)
1952: A Sikorsky H-19 helicopter flew 1,800 miles from Great Falls, Mont., to Ladd AFB, Alaska, in five days. This was probably the longest flight made by a rotary wing aircraft to date. (5)
1953: Cessna Aircraft's T-37 design won the competition for the Air Force's primary jet trainer over 14 other entries. (5)
1954: Colonel Willard W. Millikan, Air National Guard, set a Federation Aeronautique Internationale record for a cross-country flight in an F-86F Sabre jet. He averaged 612 miles per hour, while flying from Los Angeles, Calif., to New York, N.Y., in 4 hours 8 minutes. (9) (24)
1957: Cessna's model 310 won the competition to provide a light, twin-engine administrative liaison and cargo plane to the Air Force. (5)
1962: PROJECT MULE TRAIN. The first 4 of 16 C-123 assault transports of the 346th Troop Carrier Squadron arrived at Tan Son Nhut AB, S. Vietnam. (17)
1967: OPERATION BOLO. F-4 Phantom pilots from the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing shot down seven North Vietnamese MiG-21s in a sweep mission over the Red River valley to set a one-day aerial victory record. This MiG suppression operation, dubbed the largest air battle of the war, and the most dramatic use of tactical deception, resulted in the downing of the MiGs. In the successful ruse, F-4C pilots simulated Rolling Thunder F-105 strike aircraft to draw the MiGs out. Colonel Robin Olds, the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing Commander, shot down a MiG and became the only USAF ace with aerial victories in World War II and the Vietnam War. (16) (17) (21)
1968: Col Henry Brown and Lt Col Joe B. Jordan became the first USAF pilots to use an F-111A's emergency escape module when their plane crashed near Edwards AFB, Calif. (3)
1980: Through 4 January, two C-141s from the 437th Military Airlift Wing at Charleston AFB, S.C., delivered 700 tents and 1,000 blankets to the homeless on Terceira Island in the Azores following an earthquake. (16)
1994: The F-4G Wild Weasel flew its last combat mission over Southern Iraq.
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Thanks to Tom
Happy New Year!! Veto Override of HR 6395, 2021 NDAA
To All,
Happy New Year! And it did start out great as on 1 Jan 2021 the Senate voted to override President Trump's veto of HR 6395, otherwise known as the 2021 NDAA. The House voted on Mon 28 Dec 2020 to also override his veto. It is now considered as enacted into law. If you are interested in reading all 1480 pages I've attached the final version. There are 6 key provisions within the bill that pertain to toxic exposures – the most important one we're interested in being Sec. 750: Study on the Incidence of cancer diagnosis and mortality among military aviators and aviation support personnel.
I've listed all of the others below as well as the original source of the amendment (either from the House or Senate). Sen Diane Feinstein, D-CA, was the sponsor of "our bill", Sec 750, and we owe a lot of thanks to her and her staff for pushing this through. Finally we are going to have a serious assessment into the incidence of cancer in those of us associated with military aviation.
Many people assisted with this effort by contacting their members of Congress to highlight their need to support this amendment and I would to thank each and every one of you. But there are several individuals and organizations who deserve special recognition – Betty Seaman, a long-time friend whose husband, Jim, passed away from lung cancer nearly 3 years ago; Col(ret) Vince Alcazar and Dr. Phil Steeves from the Red River Valley Fighter Pilots Association (RRVA); and the entire leadership of the RRVA; and the members of Toxic Exposures in the American Military (TEAM), a coalition of 30+ VSO's how have been pushing toxic exposures from Burn Pits and from other bases such as K2 in Uzbekistan. And of course, Tara Copp from McClatchy News, whose series "Stricken" was seen by one of Feinstein's staffers who then reached out to Betty and myself for more details, which eventually led to a request to us, along with Vince and Phil, for a draft bill. After just 4 months it ended up being in included in the Senate version of the 2021 NDAA and eventually into the enacted 2021 NDAA. You'll notice this will be run by the DoD and not the VA – it is felt the results of the initial study could force acquisition, operational, and maintenance procedures to ensure safety, as well as increased exposure awareness on a daily basis for all aviation personnel.
But we are still just rounding the first curve – there is much to do. I participated in a Conference Call with the Biden-Harris Transition Team and I am trying to get myself and/or several others like me included in an Advisory Board to ensure they understand the historical perspectives from an aviators view – and that we understand what they are doing and why. So far the reception has been positive – the only dog I have in this fight for me is myself. I don't manage any VSO and I don't ask for donations. I've just been battling cancer starting with esophageal cancer followed by its spin-offs to other parts of my body for 9 years now – not counting the brain tumor in 2003. As things become more focused and organized over the next couple of months I will do my best to inform you of the progress and advise you if your assistance would be appreciated, which probably will mean contacting your members of Congress.
I know many have voiced issues with the 2021 NDAA – I specifically do not like the uncertainty of the force restructuring issues and feel the associated costs are unrealistic and ill-defined; and the expanded role Congress wants to have in the ability of the President and DoD to move troops and ships around the world to meet current threats is too cumbersome and reeks of potential security problems. Too many Army Chair Admirals and Generals who have never served but have large military-industrial complexes in their states (what I call now the Congressional-Military-Industrial Complex to build off Eisenhower's words). But we always have to take some good with the bad – and the good I see in addition to the toxic exposure studies and activities, are significant enhancements in Cyber Security, pay raises for the troops, and some expanded for support to the military spouses. Sometime you have to take the good with the bad and pray that smarter people will prevail later when they see the problems in actual day-to-day operation.
Thanks again for your support and interest and If you have any specific questions please feel free to contact me directly and I will do my best to answer them.
Sec. 9105: Access of Veterans to Individual Longitudinal Exposure Record
(Senate NDAA Sec. 753)
Sec. 750: Study on the Incidence of cancer diagnosis and mortality among military aviators and aviation support personnel
(Senate NDAA Sec. 754)
Sec. 9109: Additional diseases associated with exposure to certain herbicide agents for which there is a presumption of service connection for veterans who served in the Republic of Vietnam
(Senate NDAA Sec. 1090B)
Sec. 735: Health assessments of veterans diagnosed with pandemic diseases to determine exposure to open burn pits and toxic airborne chemicals
(House NDAA Sec. 724)
Sec. 751: Study on exposure to toxic substances at Karshi-Khanabad Air Base, Uzbekistan
(House NDAA Sec. 742)
Sec. 721: Inclusion of information on exposure to open burn pits in postdeployment health reassessments
(House NDAA Sec. 759)
Tom "Boot" Hill
"Stupid should hurt". Charlie Brown
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