To All,
Good Saturday morning February 4, 2023.
I hope that you all have a great weekend.
Regards,
Skip
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
This day in Naval and Marine Corps History February 4
1779 Capt. John Paul Jones takes command of Bonhomme Richard (formerly Duc de Duras), which was given to the United States by King Louis XVI of France. The name honors Benjamin Franklin, the American commissioner at Paris whose famous almanacs had been published in France under the title Les Maximes du Bonhomme Richard.
1813 During the War of 1812, the sloop ship Hornet, commanded by James Lawrence, captures and burns the British merchant ship Resolute off Pernambuco, Brazil.
1942 While the battle for Bataan rages throughout the night, USS Trout (SS-202) loads 20 tons of gold bars and 18 tons of silver coins as ballast to replace the weight of ammunition they had just delivered to US and Philippine forces in Manila.
1944 Destroyers Charrette (DD 581) and Fair (DE 35) sink Japanese submarine I 175, 100 miles north of Jaluit, Marshall Islands.
1944 PV-1 Ventura aircraft sink Japanese water tanker Goryu Maru off Emidj Island, Jaluit.
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNwORLDT
his Day in World History
February 4
786 Harun al-Rashid succeeds his older brother the Abbasid Caliph al-Hadi as Caliph of Baghdad.
1194 Richard I, King of England, is freed from captivity in Germany.
1508 The Proclamation of Trent is made.
1787 Shay's Rebellion, an uprising of debt-ridden Massachusetts farmers against the new U.S. government, fails.
1795 France abolishes slavery in her territories and confers slaves to citizens.
1889 Harry Longabaugh is released from Sundance Prison in Wyoming, thereby acquiring the famous nickname, "the Sundance Kid."
1899 After an exchange of gunfire, fighting breaks out between American troops and Filipinos near Manila, sparking the Philippine-American War
1906 The New York Police Department begins finger print identification.
1909 California law segregates Caucasian and Japanese schoolchildren.
1915 Germany decrees British waters as part of the war zone; all ships to be sunk without warning.
1923 French troops take the territories of Offenburg, Appenweier and Buhl in the Ruhr as a part of the agreement ending World War I.
1932 Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt inaugurates the Winter Olympics at Lake Placid, N.Y.
1941 The United Service Organization (U.S.O.) is formed to cater to armed forces and defense industries.
1944 The Japanese attack the Indian Seventh Army in Burma.
1945 The Big Three, American, British and Soviet leaders, meet in Yalta to discuss the war aims.
1966 Senate Foreign Relations Committee begins televised hearings on the Vietnam War.
1974 Newspaper heiress Patty Hearst is kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army, beginning one of the most bizarre cases in FBI history.
1980 Syria withdraws its peacekeeping force in Beirut.
1986 The U.S. Post Office issues a commemorative stamp featuring Sojourner Truth.
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
… For The List for Saturday, 4 February 2023… Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post for 4 February 1968 We are great as rabbits, lousy as turtles… gradualism is not our game… not then and not now…
This following work accounts for every fixed wing loss of the Vietnam War and you can use it to read more about the losses in The Bear's Daily account. Even better it allows you to add your updated information to the work to update for history…skip
Vietnam Air Losses
Access Chris Hobson and Dave Lovelady's work at: https://www.VietnamAirLosses.com.
This is a list of all Helicopter Pilots Who Died in the Vietnam War . Listed by last name and has other info https://www.vhpa.org/KIA/KIAINDEX.HTM
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Thanks to Carl
So, We Can't Even Handle a Chinese Spy Balloon?
(More below!)
So, We Can't Even Handle a Chinese Spy Balloon?
Katie Pavlich Feb 03, 2023
After the deaths of millions of people across the globe, combined with life-altering and economic disruptions in every country, the Chinese Communist Party has been let off the hook for the COVID-19 pandemic — which started when the pathogen, engineered by scientists, escaped from the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
For months, Chinese jets have been buzzing Taiwan. In recent weeks, China conducted its largest-ever military drill surrounding the island country.
And now, a massive Chinese spy balloon is hovering over the center of the country in violation of U.S. airspace and international law. The Pentagon says it could be there "for a few days."
After being discovered, it took China hours to admit the balloon was, in fact, theirs while insisting it's just a "civilian airship" that veered off course. Pay no mind to where the balloon was conducting surveillance: over Malmstrom Air Force Base, where a number of ICBMs are housed.
Instead of finding a way to immediately take the balloon out of the sky upon discovery, which alarmingly didn't happen until it was well into the continental U.S., U.S. officials have summoned Chinese ambassadors for a harsh talking to. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was set to travel to Beijing next week, has postponed his trip.
During a briefing at the Pentagon Friday, the American people were given few answers about how this could happen, what the government is doing to end the situation and how it can be prevented in the future. Basic questions about how the balloon is being controlled went unanswered. We do know it keeps moving east, toward America's biggest population centers.
"I'm not going to have much new information to provide…the balloon continues to move eastward and is currently over the center of the continental United States," Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said, adding an assessment the balloon doesn't pose a military or physical threat to people on the ground. Ryder couldn't say whether the balloon was being controlled by the Chinese or simply being carried by the wind.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden, whose top job is to protect Americans from foreign threats, has nothing to say. At the White House, he refused to take questions on the matter before jetting off to a Democratic National Committee fundraiser in Philadelphia.
"I'm not gonna answer any questions about anything else," Biden said after touting the economy Friday, turning his back and walking away as reporters shouted questions about the national security incident.
Once again, Biden's weakness against the Chinese Communist Party is on full display.
"President Biden should stop coddling and appeasing the Chinese communists. Bring the balloon down now and exploit its tech package, which could be an intelligence bonanza," Republican Senator Tom Cotton suggested. "And President Biden and Secretary Austin need to answer if this ballon was detected over Alaskan airspace. If so, why didn't we bring it down there? If not, why not? As usual, the Chinese Communists' provocations have been met with weakness and hand-wringing."
China is undeterred because it hasn't been held accountable for practically anything in a substantial way. Why wouldn't it be emboldened? Especially when it gets caught and gets to keep engaging in the same behavior. Not to mention President Biden's shady millions from China, which were obtained through the dealings of his son Hunter.
"We'll continue to monitor it [the spy balloon]. Right now, we assess it will be over the U.S. for a few days," Ryder continued.
China's latest incursion into the U.S. was a test, and the Biden administration has failed — in spectacular fashion. Not only by failing to prevent the surveillance tool from entering U.S. airspace in the first place, but if the U.S. can't issue some kind of deterrence in response to a spy balloon — conveniently operating above U.S. nuclear silos — we really are screwed.
February 4, 2023
Regarding the Chinese spy balloon hovering in U.S. airspace
By Rajan Laad
___________________
February 4, 2023
Balloon with a view
By Silvio Canto, Jr.
The great H.L. Mencken once said "Balloonists have an unsurpassed view of the scenery." They sure do, especially when it's a Peking balloon flying over Montana.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2023/02/balloon_with_a_view.html
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Interesting Fact
Tug-of-war used to be an Olympic sport.
Tug-of-war pulled through for five editions of the Olympic Games, from the Paris 1900 festivities until Antwerp 1920 (the 1916 ceremony was canceled due to World War I). Only men were permitted to partake, and individual countries were allowed to enter multiple teams. Contests lasted five minutes apiece, with teams attempting to drag their opponents six feet from their starting point. If neither team reached the threshold, whichever one came closer emerged victorious.
The first tug-of-war gold medal went to a coalition of athletes from Sweden and Denmark. But Great Britain enjoyed the best tally overall, winning five medals in tug-of-war, including two golds — edging out the United States and its three pieces of hardware. Ultimately, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) eliminated tug-of-war after the 1920 Olympics when they decided to be more selective with their sports. Today, while campaigning for matches to be reclassified as Olympic-worthy, the Tug of War International Federation admits men, women, and juniors at various weight classes from more than 70 nations. Tug-of-war is also part of the World Games, a quadrennial showcase for sports that are not featured in the Olympics, such as bowling, kickboxing, and trampoline gymnastics.
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
A bit of humor from the archives
Thanks to Cowboy who found the URL for Denny's post.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPYrPdgjtUY
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Thanks to Barrett and the Bear
Re: Who Lost Vietnam? Mark Moyar's New Book Spreads the Blame - The American Spectator | USA News and Politics
Really making the rounds today. Here's my exchanges.
BT
Forwarded by an army Vietnamese linguist. I didn't know about Moyar. Here's some background:
Harvard & Cambridge military history. Rara avis fershure.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Moyar
Sent: Monday, January 30, 2023 1:52 PM
Subject: Triumph Regained
I read Mark Moyar's first book and found it one of the most essential treatments of the initial part of the war.
Who Lost Vietnam? Mark Moyar's New Book Spreads the Blame - The American Spectator | USA News and Politics
Somebody tell Walter Cronkite...ohwait...nevermind.
Part of the blame goes to the anti-war movement in the United States — not so much the young anti-war students at elite and other universities (though they certainly don't deserve to be celebrated and did not live up to the courage and fortitude of their working-class counterparts who served honorably in Vietnam), but their adult leftist professors, the radical organizers who, as David Horowitz noted, expressed their alienation from America by supporting our enemies in Southeast Asia as well as the Hollywood celebrities who used their fame to accuse "Amerika" of war crimes. But their actions would have amounted to little if the elite media had not magnified their voices tenfold, making it appear that a majority of the American people opposed U.S. efforts to defend the independence of South Vietnam. Moyar quotes polling data, however, that shows the majority of Americans continued to support the war even in the face of media distortions and misinformation.
From: Jerry taylor <beartaylor@comcast.net>
Sent: Monday, January 30, 2023 2:39 PM
To: Fred Bergold <fredcintout@comcast.net>; Frederick Menning <fmenning@yahoo.com>; Richard Schaffert <brownbearlead@gmail.com>; roy stafford <rwstafford1@comcast.net>; Barrett Tillman <btillman63@hotmail.com>; Skip Leonard <sleonard001@san.rr.com>
Subject: Who Lost Vietnam? Mark Moyar's New Book Spreads the Blame - The American Spectator | USA News and Politics
Guys… good review of a book any of us could have written… Bear
https://spectator.org/who-lost-vietnam-mark-moyars-new-book-spreads-the-blame/
http://www.rollingthunderremembered.com/
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Thanks to Brett
Geopolitical Futures:
Keeping the future in focus
Daily Memo: China's 'Surveillance Balloon,' Israel and Sudan's Peace Deal
Beijing says it's a civilian airship.
By: GPF Staff
Chinese surveillance? The U.S. is tracking a suspected Chinese spy balloon flying over the United States, Pentagon officials said on Thursday. The balloon, which is flying above the altitude used by commercial air traffic, does not present a military threat or physical risk to people on the ground, according to a Pentagon spokesperson. Beijing's Foreign Ministry said that the balloon was actually a "civilian airship" used mainly for meteorological purposes and that it regretted its "unintended entry" into U.S. airspace. This comes just days before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to travel to Beijing.
Normalization moves forward. Israel and Sudan finalized the text of a peace deal between the two countries during Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen's visit to Khartoum. Sudan was part of the Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between Israel and four Arab states, but a military coup in 2021 prevented Sudan from formalizing the deal. The move could provide the momentum needed to spur other Muslim countries to also normalize relations with Israel.
Expanding trade. Trade within the Eurasian Economic Union, a five-member grouping of post-Soviet states, grew by more than 13 percent between January and November 2022 compared to the same period a year ago, according to the Kremlin. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said his country's trade turnover with members of the group increased by more than 90 percent, to $4.6 billion, in the first 11 months of last year. The EAEU is an increasingly important tool for Moscow to grow its economic partnerships while under Western sanctions.
Egyptian accession. Egypt's parliament ratified an agreement that will see Cairo joining the New Development Bank, which was established by the BRICS countries. It hopes the move will reduce demand for the U.S. dollar, since NDB members can use their national currencies in bilateral trade, and increase economic cooperation with other members.
Energy diplomacy. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met with U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Diplomacy Laura Lohman in Baku. Lohman said the United States intends to strengthen cooperation with Azerbaijan and supports the Southern Gas Corridor, a project that will bring more gas from the region to Europe. Aliyev said on Monday that his country was ready to increase gas supplies to Europe.
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Thanks to Carl
"Wearing masks in the community probably makes little or no difference to the outcome of influenza‐like illness/COVID‐19-like illness compared to not wearing masks." In other words, masks didn't do much — if anything.
A major new study shows that masks don't stop the spread of COVID. Will the mandaters apologize?
by Timothy P. Carney, Senior Columnist |
February 02, 2023 12:54 PM
The COVID pandemic is in the rearview mirror. We have plenty of data about it, including studies telling us how well our countermeasures worked.
A dozen scientists from around the world conducted a massive metastudy of our efforts to fight COVID, as well as similar efforts to fight the flu, and they published the results in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
The authors examined 78 different studies on the efficacy of different mitigation efforts such as masking, distancing, screening, quarantining, and hand-washing. How did these interventions affect the spread of the flu, COVID, or similar viruses?
The studies included were diverse. They covered epidemics as well as periods of low transmission. They covered rich countries and poor countries, suburban schools and inner-city neighborhoods, hospitals and villages.
Most important was what they had in common: They were all randomized controlled trials or at least cluster-RCTs. These are the gold standard for studies because they have the greatest chance of avoiding confounding factors. Non-randomized, non-controlled trials — for example, observational studies — can be compromised if, say, people become more likely to wear masks at times or places that already have higher rates of spread, or if people who wore masks were also more fastidious hand-washers.
So, what did the studies find?
For starters, hand-washing was effective in stopping the spread of these illnesses. That's not surprising.
But here's the most eye-opening finding: "Wearing masks in the community probably makes little or no difference to the outcome of influenza‐like illness/COVID‐19-like illness compared to not wearing masks." In other words, masks didn't do much — if anything.
It's possible that a community could drive down spread if everyone wore well-fitted high-quality masks such as N-95s or respirators, but there is no conclusive evidence that it does.
With that in mind, think back to late 2020 to mid-2022, when mayors, governors, school districts, and even the U.S. Department of Transportation and Joe Biden were forcing masks on unwilling people — especially children — even when viral transmission was very low.
Early on, when public-health officials told us to wear masks, they were simply playing it safe. But as time went on, even as the efficacy of masks became more doubtful, the officials switched from asking to mandating.
They went beyond mandating, of course, and attacked everyone who resisted their mandates as selfish grandma-killers. The mayors and county executives who required masks knew they didn't work, obviously, because these same mayors and county executives personally refused to wear these masks in exactly the situations where they were mandating the masks.
What happened in the past happened in the past. The mask mandaters in 2020 had an excuse. The mandaters in 2023 don't. Today, they should all personally and publicly fess up and explain why they made the mistakes they did.
If the mask mandaters don't explain the source of their error, they are immolating whatever authority and credibility they have left.
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Thanks to Carl
'Definitive Evidence' That Vitamin D Supplements Protect Against COVID-19-Related Intensive Care Hospitalization
Published by Paul Anthony Taylor at February 3, 2023
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Thanks to Tom…..The same thing happened to me
View the Latest Edition of "This Week @NASA" (published Jan. 20, 2023)
Folks
Found this buried in "parked" email…..oh my…losing a my grip on reality here!
Late but not forgotten!!
Enjoy!!
Tom
published Jan. 20, 2023)
View the latest "This Week @NASA," produced by NASA Television, for features on agency news and activities. Stories in this program include:
• Preparing the Space Station for a More Powerful Future
• NASA, Boeing to Build a Greener, More Fuel-Efficient Airliner
• Flashes on the Sun Could Help Predict Solar Flares
• Welding of Artemis III Core Stage Tank Dome Completed
Watch the Video
To access this edition of "This Week @NASA," you may also visit:
This notice is being sent agencywide to all employees by NASA INC in the Office of Communications at NASA Headquarters.
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
This Day in U S Military History
February 4
1777 – George Washington appoints Nathaniel Sackett as spymaster over what will become the Culper Ring of spies. During the American War of Independence the Culper ring was assigned to obtain intelligence on the plans of the British enemy forces in New York. His work involved the recruitment of agents and informers, behind the enemy lines, if necessary paid from a purse of $500 sanctioned by Washington. Nathaniel was recommended to General Washington by William Duer, a Continental Congressman, with whom Nathaniel served on the New York committee for detecting and defeating conspiracies. Taking his instructions personally from Washington, Nathaniel set up an intelligence-gathering network in the New York area. He was soon reporting information gathered in the field to Duer and through him to Washington. The Culpers were extremely successful, the more so for having to develop tradecraft as they went, with an intricate arrangement of dead drops and codes.
1779 – John Paul Jones takes command of Bonhomme Richard. Bonhomme Richard, formerly Duc de Duras, was a warship in the Continental Navy. She was originally an East Indiaman, a merchant ship built in France for the French East India Company in 1765, for service between France and the Orient. She was placed at the disposal of John Paul Jones, who renamed the vessel in honor of Benjamin Franklin, by King Louis XVI of France as a result of a loan to the United States by French shipping magnate, Jacques-Donatien Le Ray.
1861 – The Apache Wars begin. A group of unidentified Indians stole cattle and kidnapped the stepson of the rancher John Ward near Sonoita, Arizona, Arizona. Ward sought redress from the nearby American army. Lieutenant George N. Bascom was dispatched and Ward accompanied the detail. Bascom set out to meet with Cochise near Apache Pass and the Butterfield Overland Stagecoach station to secure the cattle and Ward's son. Cochise was unaware of the incident, but he offered to seek those responsible. Dissatisfied, Bascom accused Cochise of having been involved. He took Cochise and his group of family members under arrest in the negotiating tent. Angered, Cochise slashed his way from the tent and escaped. After further failed negotiations, Cochise took a member of the stage coach station hostage after an exchange of gunfire. With Bascom unwilling to exchange prisoners, Cochise and his party killed the members of a passing Mexican wagon train. The Apache killed and ritually mutilated nine Mexicans, and took three whites captive, but killed them later. They were unsuccessful in attempting an ambush of a Butterfield Overland stagecoach. With negotiations between Cochise and Bascom at an impasse, Bascom sent for reinforcements. Cochise killed the remaining four captives from the Butterfield Station and abandoned negotiations. Upon the advice of military surgeon, Dr. Bernard Irwin, Bascom hanged the Apache hostages in his custody. The retaliatory executions became known as the Bascom Affair; they initiated another eleven years of open warfare between the varying groups of Apache and the United States settlers, the U.S. Army and the Confederate Army.
1899 – After an exchange of gunfire, fighting broke out between American troops and Filipinos near Manila, sparking the Philippine-American War (also referred to as the Philippine Insurrection of 1899). American soldiers patrolling in Santa Mesa opened fire on Filipino soldiers near a bridge over the San Juan River.
1941 – The United Service Organization, a civilian agency, is founded. The organization was formed to offer support for U.S. service members and their families, and sent many actors, musicians, and other performers to entertain the troops. In 1948, the original USO was disbanded, but formed again the following year, and still exists today, providing recreation, entertainment, children's programs and other services to U.S. military families. Bob Hope made annual trips to entertain overseas troops from World War II through Desert Storm in 1991.
1962 – The first U.S. helicopter is shot down in Vietnam. It was one of 15 helicopters ferrying South Vietnamese Army troops into battle near the village of Hong My in the Mekong Delta. The first U.S. helicopter unit had arrived in South Vietnam aboard the ferry carrier USNS Core on December 11, 1961. This contingent included 33 Vertol H-21C Shawnee helicopters and 400 air and ground crewmen to operate and maintain them. Their assignment was to airlift South Vietnamese Army troops into combat
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
GEDEON, LOUIS
Rank and organization: Private, Company G, 19th U.S. Infantry. Place and date: At Mount Amia, Cebu, Philippine Islands, 4 February 1900. Entered service at: Pittsburgh, Pa. Birth: Pittsburgh, Pa. Date of issue: 10 March 1902. Citation: Singlehanded, defended his mortally wounded captain from an overwhelming force of the enemy.
ADAMS, STANLEY T.
Rank and organization: Master Sergeant (then Sfc.), U.S. Army, Company A, 19th Infantry Regiment. Place and date: Near Sesim-ni, Korea, 4 February 1951. Entered service at: Olathe, Kans. Born: 9 May 1922, DeSoto, Kans. G.O. No.: 66, 2 August 1951. Citation: M/Sgt. Adams, Company A, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action against an enemy. At approximately 0100 hours, M/Sgt. Adams' platoon, holding an outpost some 200 yards ahead of his company, came under a determined attack by an estimated 250 enemy troops. Intense small-arms, machine gun, and mortar fire from 3 sides pressed the platoon back against the main line of resistance. Observing approximately 150 hostile troops silhouetted against the skyline advancing against his platoon, M/Sgt. Adams leaped to his feet, urged his men to fix bayonets, and he, with 13 members of his platoon, charged this hostile force with indomitable courage. Within 50 yards of the enemy M/Sgt. Adams was knocked to the ground when pierced in the leg by an enemy bullet. He jumped to his feet and, ignoring his wound, continued on to close with the enemy when he was knocked down 4 times from the concussion of grenades which had bounced off his body. Shouting orders he charged the enemy positions and engaged them in hand-to-hand combat where man after man fell before his terrific onslaught with bayonet and rifle butt. After nearly an hour of vicious action M/Sgt. Adams and his comrades routed the fanatical foe, killing over 50 and forcing the remainder to withdraw. Upon receiving orders that his battalion was moving back he provided cover fire while his men withdrew. M/Sgt. Adams' superb leadership, incredible courage, and consummate devotion to duty so inspired his comrades that the enemy attack was completely thwarted, saving his battalion from possible disaster. His sustained personal bravery and indomitable fighting spirit against overwhelming odds reflect the utmost glory upon himself and uphold the finest traditions of the infantry and the military service.
*GONZALEZ, ALFREDO
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Marine Corps, Company A, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division (Rein), FMF. Place and date: Near Thua Thien, Republic of Vietnam, 4 February 1968. Entered service at: San Antonio, Tex. Born: 23 May 1946, Edinburg Tex. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as platoon commander, 3d Platoon, Company A. On 31 January 1968, during the initial phase of Operation Hue City, Sgt. Gonzalez' unit was formed as a reaction force and deployed to Hue to relieve the pressure on the beleaguered city. While moving by truck convoy along Route No. 1, near the village of Lang Van Lrong, the marines received a heavy volume of enemy fire. Sgt. Gonzalez aggressively maneuvered the marines in his platoon, and directed their fire until the area was cleared of snipers. Immediately after crossing a river south of Hue, the column was again hit by intense enemy fire. One of the marines on top of a tank was wounded and fell to the ground in an exposed position. With complete disregard for his safety, Sgt. Gonzalez ran through the fire-swept area to the assistance of his injured comrade. He lifted him up and though receiving fragmentation wounds during the rescue, he carried the wounded marine to a covered position for treatment. Due to the increased volume and accuracy of enemy fire from a fortified machine gun bunker on the side of the road, the company was temporarily halted. Realizing the gravity of the situation, Sgt. Gonzalez exposed himself to the enemy fire and moved his platoon along the east side of a bordering rice paddy to a dike directly across from the bunker. Though fully aware of the danger involved, he moved to the fire-swept road and destroyed the hostile position with hand grenades. Although seriously wounded again on 3 February, he steadfastly refused medical treatment and continued to supervise his men and lead the attack. On 4 February, the enemy had again pinned the company down, inflicting heavy casualties with automatic weapons and rocket fire. Sgt. Gonzalez, utilizing a number of light antitank assault weapons, fearlessly moved from position to position firing numerous rounds at the heavily fortified enemy emplacements. He successfully knocked out a rocket position and suppressed much of the enemy fire before falling mortally wounded. The heroism, courage, and dynamic leadership displayed by Sgt. Gonzalez reflected great credit upon himself and the Marine Corps, and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for February 4, 2021 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
4 February
1948: Otto Praeger, the founder of US airmail service, died. (24)
1949: The Civil Aeronautics Authority authorized planes to use ground-controlled approach radar as a "primary aid" for landings in bad weather. (24)
1951: KOREAN WAR. Fifth Air Force modified a few B-26s to drop flares, because the flaredropping C-47s that flew with B-26 night raiders were too slow. (28)
1958: Keel of the USS Enterprise, the first nuclear-powered carrier, laid at Newport News, Va. (16)
1960: At Cape Canaveral, Fla., the Jupiter Intermediate-Range Ballistic Missile's last research and development launch was a success. (6)
1962: The Kennedy administration ordered Greek-letter names used for military satellites to keep their purpose and performance secret in reports to the United Nation. (24)
1965: In its first flight, the XC-142A Vertical and/or Short Takeoff and Landing aircraft showed its ability to move forward at 25 MPH without stalling. (5) Air Defense Command fighter pilots intercepted a BOMARC drone target for the first time. It was flying more than 1,500 MPH at more than 50,000 feet in altitude. (16) (26)
1966: An F-111A made a high-speed, low-level test flight of 1,844 miles from Edwards AFB, Calif., to Eglin AFB, Fla. (3) The Department of Defense and National Air and Space Administration signed an agreement to coordinate their manned space flight programs. The agreement established a joint Manned Space Flight Policy Committee to determine policy on manned space flight programs. (16)
1967: The 15th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron at Kadena AB, Japan received its first two RF-4C Phantoms. This delivery marked the first overseas deployment of the RF-4C outside of Vietnam. The squadron's last RF-101C Voodoo left Okinawa in December 1966. (17)
1969: The XB-70 Valkyrie flew its last flight from Edwards AFB, Calif., to the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. (3) (26)
1970: Cessna delivered the final T-37B to Craig AFB, Ala. (5)
1971: A Navy P-3C Orion achieved a world's record for altitude in horizontal flight of 13,686 meters (44,900 feet). (5)
1974: FLAME EXPERIMENT. A Pedro Recruit sounding rocket, with a carbon-phenolic nosetip, made a first live flight at Wallops Island, Va., after an air launch by an F-4. The launch was conducted as part of the Fighter Launched Advanced Materials Experiment (FLAME). (5)
1976: Operation EARTHQUAKE. A 7.5 earthquake hit southern Guatemala, killing 23,000 people and leaving 1.5 million people homeless. Through 30 June, the Military Airlift Command supported earthquake relief efforts by sending two C-5, 29 C-141, and 33 C-130 missions to airlift 696 workers and 926 tons of emergency equipment and supplies to that country. (2)
1984: At the Sikorsky facility in West Palm Beach, Fla., the HH-60D completed its first flight. (3)
1985: After studying the use of women in missile crews, the Strategic Air Command decided to use gender-specific (all-female) crews in Minuteman units. The first class of six female Titan II launch control officers started Minuteman qualification training at Vandenberg AFB, Calif., in October. They were scheduled for duty with the 351st Strategic Missile Wing at Whiteman AFB, Mo., in January 1986. (1)
2002: Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. An unmanned aerial vehicle destroyed an enemy target for the first time in this operation when a MQ-1B Predator fired a Hellfire missile to kill a group of senior al Qaeda members in southeastern Afghanistan. (21)
2005: Operation DEEP FREEZE. A 452nd Air Mobility Wing C-141C (No. 66-0152) from March Air Reserve Base, Calif., flew the last scheduled C-141 Starlifter mission to McMurdo Research Station, Antarctica. That flight ended 39 years of C-141 to support to Operation DEEP FREEZE. In October 2005, support for McMurdo Research Station transferred to C-17s from McChord AFB, Wash. (22) Two Boeing X-45A Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles flew a simulated combat mission for their fiftieth flight at Dryden Flight Research Center on Edwards AFB, Calif. The Peacekeeper test had two X-45s fly to an exercise area, where they autonomously identified two separate pop-up threats, planned their attacks, and jointly "destroyed" them. Afterwards, they returned to Edwards and landed. (3)
2007: For days prior to Super Bowl 41, the 125th Fighter Wing (Florida Air National Guard) from Homestead Air Reserve Base at Jacksonville, Fla., flew F-15s on low-level patrols over local airports and the Miami Dolphin Stadium. (AFNEWS, "F-15s Kept Eyes in the Sky for Super Bowl," 7 Feb 2007.)
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "SkipsList" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to skipslist+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/skipslist/CACTjsm3Au30SGLkL5L3jvNnrZ5hpbjC8d_RsbKzW8hzpzY2Cag%40mail.gmail.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.