To All
Good Sunday Morning July 2, 2023.
I hope that you are having a good weekend.
Regards,
Skip
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On This Day in Naval and Marine Corps History July 2
1926 The Distinguished Flying Cross is authorized by Congress. The first Naval Aviator to receive the Distinguished Flying Cross is Richard E. Byrd for his flight to the North Pole on May 9, 1926.
1937 Amelia Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan disappear over the Pacific. US Coast Guard cutter Itasca, USS Colorado (BB 45) and USS Lexington (CV 2) and PBY aircraft from Hawaii are dispatched, but the extensive search is unsuccessful.
1944 TBM aircraft from (VC 58) based on board USS Wake Island (CVE 65) sink German submarine U 543, southeast of the Azores.
1944 PB4Ys (FAW 1) sink Japanese sailing vessel Nishima Maru off Mokpo, Korea, and cargo ship No.12 Shima Maru.
1945 USS Barb (SS 220) bombards Japanese installations on Kaihyo Island, Japan in the first successful use of rockets against shore positions.( from skip. Thunder Below written by the Captain Eugene Flucky of the Barb is a great book about the Barb's exploits in WWII. He was one of the most decorated men in the war from the MOH on down with many of each. He also was the only one to put folks ashore on the Japanese home island when his crew blew up a train)
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Today in World History July 2
1298 An army under Albert of Austria defeats forces led by Adolf of Nassau.
1625 The Spanish army takes Breda, Spain, after nearly a year of siege.
1644 Oliver Cromwell crushes the Royalists at the Battle of Marston Moor.
1747 Marshall Saxe leads the French forces to victory over an Anglo-Dutch force under the Duke of Cumberland at the Battle of Lauffeld.
1776 The Continental Congress resolves with the Declaration of Independence that the American colonies "are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States."
1822 Denmark Vesey is executed in Charleston, South Carolina, for planning a massive slave revolt.
1858 Czar Alexander II frees the serfs working on imperial lands.
1863 The Union left flank holds at Little Round Top during the Battle of Gettysburg.
1881 Charles J. Guiteau fatally wounds President James A. Garfield in Washington, D.C.
1926 Congress establishes the Army Air Corps.
1937 American aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart disappears in the Central Pacific during an attempt to fly around the world.
1961 Novelist Ernest Hemingway commits suicide at his home in Ketchum, Idaho.
1964 President Lyndon Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act into law.
1967 The U.S. launches Operation Buffalo in Vietnam.
1976 North and South Vietnam are officially reunified.
1980 President Jimmy Carter reinstates draft registration for males 18 years of age.
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ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear … Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post
Skip… For The List for Sunday, 2 July 2023… Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post for 2 July 1968…
Saul Alinsky creates "The Rules for Radicals" in the 1968 "summer of discontent," and explains why "the end justifies the means"…
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.
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From the Archives
These two are fun reads. The List does not do pictures well so if you want to see the pictures open up the urls for each. skip
Aerial Gunfight: Shot Down by a .45
by Tom Laemlein - Friday, May 31, 2019
The M1911 and M1911A1 pistols are legends among firearms. Their remarkable exploits in the hands of American service personnel have been handed down among shooters since before World War I. I recently came across a whopper of an M1911 story that stopped me in my tracks like a hit from a .45 ACP. I figured that the big Colt pistol could do quite a bit, but when I heard that it brought down a German aircraft in 1945, I had to follow up on the tale.
It all happened on the way to Berlin. In this particular case, the story centers on the 5th Armored Division, part of the vanguard of the U.S. 9th Army. The American tanks, tank destroyers and halftracks had recently crossed the Rhine at the Ludendorff Railroad Bridge at Remagen. Once across the last great natural barrier in Germany, American forces were spreading like wildfire, blasting their way east towards the capital of the Third Reich. There was much excitement that the war would soon be over. There was also much concern. While many German units would surrender or simply fade away, other units, particularly the fanatical SS, were fighting to the last man. No one wanted to meet their end with victory so close. The M1911 pistol—the only pistol credited with a World War II air-to-air victory.
On April 12, 1945, travelling a few thousand feet above the advancing American tanks was a Stinson L-5 spotting aircraft, named "Miss Me." Lt. Duane Francies was the pilot. His observer was Lt. William S. Martin. Together, they had successfully located multiple German positions in the path of 5th Armored Division troops. During their mission on April 12, the men aboard "Miss Me" had seen the smokestacks of the Spandau Works rising in the distance. This meant that Berlin was not far away. Francies banked his aircraft to return to the 5th Armored and help map out the approach routes to the European war's final prize. The German Fieseler Fi 156 Storch
As "Miss Me" closed in on the lead elements of the 5th Armored, Francies noticed a German aircraft flying just a few hundred feet above the treetops. It was a Fieseler Fi 156 Storch (Stork), a German tactical recon aircraft, flying the same type of mission as "Miss Me." As Martin radioed that they had spotted a German aircraft and that "we are about to give combat." As Francies dove on the target, his original intent was to drive the Storch onto the anti-aircraft guns of the American armor below. Strangely, a throwback sort of aerial combat would ensue.
A view from inside a Stinson L-5.
With the L-5's side doors open, both of the American aviators readied their M1911A1 .45 ACP pistols. The German Storch began to circle as tightly as possible. Francies maintained his altitude advantage, and "Miss Me" stayed with the tightly turning German. Pistol magazines were fired until empty, reloaded, and another barrage of .45 slugs were fired again. The range closed to just 10 yds., the Americans blasting all the way. There was no return fire from the German aircraft.
Suddenly the Storch staggered, and then spiraled in to crash in a placid cow pasture. The German's wingtip touched first and as it snagged the Storch cartwheeled into the field. Francies quickly brought "Miss Me" down to land, with Martin shouting into the radio: "We got him! We got him!" The tankers and armored infantrymen had just watched the strangest air battle of World War II. Many were dumbstruck by what they had seen.
A wrecked Storch.
Francies and Martin exited "Miss Me" and crossing the field they watched the German pilot and observer tumble out of their wrecked plane. The German pilot tried to hide but Martin found him and kept him covered with his .45. Francies tended to the observer, who had been wounded in the foot. Ultimately, the surprised and shaken Germans were just glad to be alive. Francies would later describe his air combat experience as "pure joy." It is the only confirmed American air-to-air victory achieved with a pistol.
This remarkable incident was first recounted in Cornelius Ryan's fantastic book The Last Battle, published by Simon & Schuster in 1966. I checked the combat records of the 5th Armored Division and found this entry:
"Enemy losses for 12 April were as follows:
"-Personnel, PWs: two thousand (2000) Killed: unreported.
"-Material losses were not yet reported, but it was known that one (1) ME109 had been shot down, two (2) enemy liaison planes destroyed (one (1) in an encounter with a Division liaison plane whose pilot and observer shot the enemy plane out of the sky with fire from a sub-machine gun)."
Apparently, the recording secretary of the 5th Armored couldn't believe the German aircraft was shot down by pistol fire. Regardless, Colt pistols did the work, and there was no submachine aboard "Miss Me." So there you have it, another amazing story about the long-serving M1911 pistol—on land, at sea and even in the air.
The M1911 pistol was carried by many pilots and aircrew. This one is on the hip of a pilot with the 9th Air Force.
https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2011/3/29/the-m1911-gets-a-zero/
The M1911 Gets a Zero
by NRA Staff - Tuesday, March 29, 2011
In the hands of American soldiers and marines, the M1911A1 performed admirably throughout World War II. In fact, there are numerous accounts of the 1911 being used in courageous acts earning the bearer the Medal of Honor.
There are also legends about the power, accuracy and reliability of Browning's masterpiece, which may, or may not, be true, but speak to the magnificence of a pistol design that is more than 100 years old. One of these stories took place March 31, 1943, near Pyinmana, Myanma, and was first reported July 1996 in "Air Force Magazine."
On that fated day, the 7th BG's 9th Bomb Squadron was sent on a mission to destroy a railroad bridge, but was attacked before it could reach its target. The bombing group took heavy fire from Japanese fighter planes, wounding the squadron's commander, Col. Conrad F. Necrason, and disabling numerous B-24 Bombers, including one carrying Lt. Owen J. Baggett.
Though the crew continued to fight, it was obvious that the plane was going to crash, so Baggett's pilot, Lt. Lloyd Jensen, ordered the men to bail out. Along with the other members of his unit, Baggett jumped from the plane and pulled his parachute.
The Japanese pilots fired on the floating crew killing some and wounding Lt. Baggett in the arm. The story goes that when the pilot who fired upon Baggett came around for a look, the young lieutenant hung limply in his harness as if dead. The ruse worked because the fighter raised his canopy as he flew within feet of the parachute giving Baggett an opportunity. As the plane soared by, Baggett raised his M1911A1 .45 and fired four rounds at the plane, which banked before stalling and crashing into the ground.
After landing on the ground, Lt. Baggett, along with three other crew members, was captured and taken to a POW camp near Singapore. Baggett didn't really believe that he had taken down a fighter plane with only a handgun, but Col. Harry Melton, commander of the 311th Fighter Group, ended up at the same camp telling a story about a Japanese colonel that had said that the pilot Baggett had fired upon had been thrown clear of the plane and had been found dead of a single bullet to the head.
While there is no direct evidence that Lt. Owen Baggett did in fact take down a Japanese fighter plane with a handgun, many believe it to be true. Regardless, this is a great story of a courageous man involving a legendary pistol.
After the end of World War II, Owen Baggett remained in the military eventually rising to the rank of colonel in the U.S. Air Force, which was his rank when he retired to San Antonio, Texas. In 2006, at 85 years old, Owen Baggett died in Texas, but he will always be remembered as the man who used a .45 to get a Zero.
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Thanks to Craig ... and Dr. rich
Joe's. New NASA ??
https://youtube.com/shorts/VxkY5DYboSg?feature=share4
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Thanks to Johnny
My very first ride in an aircraft was in a Connie in 1949. We flew from New York La Guardia to Atlanta then to Biloxi Miss in a DC-3 (which was a bit rough and loud). My dad had been training down there and we went to meet him and I started my career as an Air Force Brat moving about every 18 months more or less to every corner of the country and a bunch in between….skip
Sent to me by another fellow named John from a friend of his…What a beautiful rebuild on this airplane…I actually got to fly in the cockpit in one of those in the 60s out in the far east…was a Navy plane as I recall, at least the pilot was a fellow academy guy…I think it may have been a hurricane hunter plane but not positive of that
Johnny
From Ex SWA Fuel Department/A&P mechanic friend who's very active in vintage aircraft rebuilding:
Hey John,
Big news in the warbird industry; after a multi-year restoration, Texas billionaire Rod Lewis' Lockheed Constellation, "Bataan" that took MacArthur to Wake Island to meet with Truman during Korean War, is back in the air again and will be based near San Antonio. Here is a short video documenting first flight, last week. The guy in the green T-shirt sitting in right seat is Steve Hinton. He does a lot of warbird test flights as he is the President of Fighter Rebuilders and Planes of Fame Air Museum and as such, is the highest time warbird pilot in the world. This guy has flown everything. Anyway, gorgeous restoration! Here is the link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFMGPsbdz6k
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Thanks to Dan
France explained in a fable written by a Seal
The Alienork Way
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Thanks to Dr. Rich
Thanks to Burt and Dick ...
Carbon Fiber works great for pressure vessels. But it stinks for compression vessels. The reason is too complex for my typing fingers….
Burt
And from Dick (not referring to Burt I'm sure!) …
Speculation by those who know little and guess at the rest. Carbon is great when you pull on it but Dog Shit if you push on it.
Dick
=================================
Thanks to Michael ...
Photos of the Titan sub's wreckage support the theory that the carbon-fiber hull failed first, expert says. Build on the cheap and see what happens, use steel or titanium, at least he paid for his mistakes, too bad about the others...
Thanks to Michael ... and Dr. Rich
Oops!
Photos of the Titan sub's wreckage support the theory that the carbon-fiber hull failed first, expert says. Build on the cheap and see what happens, use steel or titanium, at least he paid for his mistakes, too bad about the others...
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Thanks to Interesting Facts
Why We Knock on Wood, and the Origins of 7 Other Superstitions
Do black cats fill you with dread? Do you avoid making plans when Friday falls on the 13th? Are you careful around ladders, mirrors, and salt? If so, you're following some centuries-old ideas about objects and activities that supposedly bring bad luck. But have you ever stopped to wonder why?
In many cases, the origins of these superstitions have multiple layers, meaning they might go back to pagan, Christian, medieval, or Victorian beliefs all at once. In other cases, the story is far more modern than you might think. Read on for some of the strange and surprising stories behind our most common folk beliefs.
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Knocking on Wood
In the United States, we say "knock on wood" (in the U.K., it's "touch wood") in a variety of situations, like after mentioning something we hope will happen, or while discussing something good that we want to remain in a positive place. It's a means of averting misfortune, making sure we don't "tempt fate." Some explanations for the practice mention a Celtic or otherwise pagan association with tree spirits, the idea being that knocking on wood (particularly once-sacred trees like oak and ash) might awaken these deities and confer their protection. Others note a Christian association with the wood of the cross.
But the origins of this practice are probably much more modern, and banal. In A Dictionary of English Folklore, scholars Jacqueline Simpson and Steve Roud note that the earliest known reference to the practice only dates to 1805. It seems linked to 19th-century children's games like "Tiggy Touchwood" — types of tag in which children were safe from capture if they touched something wooden, like a door or tree.
In his book The Lore of the Playground, Roud writes: "Given that the game was concerned with 'protection,' and was well known to adults as well as children, it is almost certainly the origin of our modern superstitious practice of saying, 'Touch wood.' The claim that the latter goes back to when we believed in tree spirits is complete nonsense."
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Black Cats
In some parts of the world, black cats are considered lucky, but in the U.S. they've often been associated with evil. The link goes back to a medieval conception of cats, the devil, and witches as one big happy family. Some sources claimed that Satan's favorite form to take was a black cat, while witches supposedly either kept cats as familiars or changed into cats themselves. In an age when witches were blamed for just about everything that went wrong, cats — particularly shadowy black cats — were routinely killed.
Sadly, these awful associations were strengthened during the plague outbreaks of the 14th to 17th centuries. The bacteria that causes the plague wasn't identified until 1894, and without understanding why people were getting sick, villagers doubled down on the idea of cats (and again, especially black cats) as a source of misfortune.
Unfortunately for them, killing cats of any color just helped rats — which carried the type of fleas that spread the plague — proliferate. It would have been far better for their health if European peasants had taken a page from the ancient Egyptians and worshiped their cats instead.
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Spilling Salt
Salt is essential to human life and was once an extremely valuable commodity, so much so that the word "salary" derives from it. The crystalline mineral was used in ancient Jewish, Greek, and Roman sacrifices, and it was the primary means of preserving food before refrigeration came along. Over the years, salt became associated with purity, incorruptibility, and sanctity — good for both staving off rot and evil spirits. It stood to reason, then, that spilling salt was bad for both the budget and soul.
During the Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci strengthened the association between spilled salt and misfortune by depicting Judas with a saltcellar knocked over next to him in his painting "The Last Supper."
At some point, a belief arose that taking a pinch of salt with the right hand and throwing it over the left shoulder would counteract any bad luck caused by spilling the stuff. The idea comes from an imagined link between the left side and the devil — as well as the idea that Satan just can't stand salt.
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Breaking Mirrors
If you grew up toward the end of the 20th century, you're almost certainly familiar with the idea that breaking a mirror brings seven years of bad luck. Part of this notion is very old: A variety of ancient cultures believed that one's reflection could steal bits of one's soul, and so damaging a reflection could damage a person's spirit. But folklorists have only traced the idea of bad luck from breaking a mirror to 1777, perhaps because of an association between mirrors, magicians, and "diabolical" divination.
So why seven years of bad luck, specifically? That part only dates from the mid-19th century. It's not clear exactly where the link came from, but it may be a Roman idea that the body replenishes itself every seven years — meaning that was enough time to lift any curse.
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Friday the 13th
This superstition marries ideas about both Friday and the number 13 to create what is supposedly the unluckiest day of the calendar. The aura of doom around the number 13 may go back to early civilizations who based their numerical systems on the number 12. (That's how we got 12-month calendars and days divided into 12-hour segments, for one thing.) Because it came right after 12, 13 was seen as a problematic or strange leftover.
Odd as it may seem, the association is reinforced by two stories of ancient dinner parties. In Norse mythology, evil was introduced into the world when the trickster god Loki showed up as the 13th guest at a dinner in Valhalla. Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus, was also the 13th guest to arrive at the Last Supper. That led to a belief, starting around the 17th century, that it was unlucky to have 13 guests at a table. Incidentally (or not), it was also imagined that witches' covens usually numbered 13.
Friday, meanwhile, was the day Jesus was crucified. By tradition, it was also thought to be the day Eve gave Adam the apple and they were cast out of the Garden of Eden. In Britain, Friday was also Hangman's Day, when those condemned to die met their fate. Somehow, over the centuries, these ideas combined to give Friday a bad rep — at least until TGIF came along.
Yet it was only the Victorians who combined the ideas around Friday and the number 13 to create the idea of Friday the 13th as being uniquely unlucky. Of course, these days the American horror film franchise may have reinforced the idea.
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Walking Under Ladders
Like spilling salt, the superstition against walking under ladders may be partly practical. If you see a ladder, there's a good chance someone is standing on it, and it would be dangerous for both parties if the ladder were bumped or fell.
But most explanations add a religious dimension. These stem from the shape a ladder makes as it leans against a wall — a triangle, which suggests a trinity. In ancient Egypt, triangles were a sacred shape (think of the pyramids), and they believed that to walk through one was to "break" something sacred to the gods. In Christianity, of course, the trinity is also sacred, and the same idea supposedly applied. Furthermore, a ladder was also said to have rested against Jesus' crucifix, becoming a symbol of misfortune. There's also an association with the gallows, where a ladder was often placed so people could climb up to the rope.However, in A Dictionary of English Folklore, Simpson and Roud once again throw cold water on an ancient basis for this belief. They note that the earliest reference to ladders as unlucky is only about 200 years old, and that most of these older explanations are theories that lack any documented evidence.
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Crossing Your Fingers
Crossing the middle finger over the index finger "for luck" is one of the most widely understood gestures in the U.K. and the U.S., even if these days we usually say something like "fingers crossed" rather than perform the action.
It's said — unsurprisingly — that the gesture is a reference to the cross, and anything associated with the cross is supposed to be good luck (or a form of protection, such as saying a prayer while making the sign of the cross). But it may not be as old as it's often reported: Folklorists have only found reference to it starting in the early 20th century.
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666
This one really is old. In the "Book of Revelation," there's a prophecy about a "Great Beast" who will rule the planet and mark his followers with the "number of his name" — 666. Commentators have referred to that "beast" as Satan, or the Antichrist. (Coincidentally, these lines come from the 13th chapter of Revelation, for anyone wanting to stack superstitions.)
But the Book of Revelation was written in a code that often referred to the Roman Empire. Some scholars say the three sixes are a reference to the Roman Emperor Nero's name as spelled out in Hebrew letters, although it requires a bit of forcing. The supposedly Satanic associations have had surprising staying power, however: Even today, phone numbers with 666 are often rejected or considered a joke.
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This Day in U S Military History…….July 2
1809 – Alarmed by the growing encroachment of whites squatting on Native American lands, the Shawnee Chief Tecumseh calls on all Indians to unite and resist. Born around 1768 near Springfield, Ohio, Tecumseh early won notice as a brave warrior. He fought in battles between the Shawnee and the white Kentuckians, who were invading the Ohio River Valley territory. After the Americans won several important battles in the mid-1790s, Tecumseh reluctantly relocated westward but remained an implacable foe of the white men and their ways. By the early 19th century, many Shawnee and other Ohio Valley Indians were becoming increasingly dependent on trading with the Americans for guns, cloth, and metal goods. Tecumseh spoke out against such dependence and called for a return to traditional Indian ways. He was even more alarmed by the continuing encroachment of white settlers illegally settling on the already diminished government-recognized land holdings of the Shawnee and other tribes. The American government, however, was reluctant to take action against its own citizens to protect the rights of the Ohio Valley Indians. On this day in 1809, Tecumseh began a concerted campaign to persuade the Indians of the Old Northwest and Deep South to unite and resist. Together, Tecumseh argued, the various tribes had enough strength to stop the whites from taking further land. Heartened by this message of hope, Indians from as far away as Florida and Minnesota heeded Tecumseh's call. By 1810, he had organized the Ohio Valley Confederacy, which united Indians from the Shawnee, Potawatomi, Kickapoo, Winnebago, Menominee, Ottawa, and Wyandot nations. For several years, Tecumseh's Indian Confederacy successfully delayed further white settlement in the region. In 1811, however, the future president William Henry Harrison led an attack on the confederacy's base on the Tippecanoe River. At the time, Tecumseh was in the South attempting to convince more tribes to join his movement. Although the battle of Tippecanoe was close, Harrison finally won out and destroyed much of Tecumseh's army. When the War of 1812 began the following year, Tecumseh immediately marshaled what remained of his army to aid the British. Commissioned a brigadier general, he proved an effective ally and played a key role in the British capture of Detroit and other battles. When the tide of war turned in the American favor, Tecumseh's fortunes went down with those of the British. On October 5, 1813, he was killed during Battle of the Thames. His Ohio Valley Confederacy and vision of Indian unity died with him.
1926 – The Distinguished Flying Cross was established in the Air Corps Act (Act of Congress, Public Law No. 446, 69th Congress). This act provided for award "to any person, while serving in any capacity with the Air Corps of the Army of the United States, including the National Guard and the Organized Reserves, or with the United States Navy, since the 6th day of April 1917, has distinguished, or who, after the approval of this Act, distinguishes himself by heroism or extraordinary achievement while participating in an aerial flight."
1926 – An Act of Congress (Public Law 446-69th Congress (44 Stat. 780)) which established the Soldier's Medal for acts of heroism not involving actual conflict with an enemy. The Secretary of War directed that the Quartermaster General prepare and submit appropriate designs of the Soldier's Medal per letter signed by The Adjutant General dated 11 August 1926.
1937 – CGC Itasca, while conducting re-supply operations in the Central Pacific, made the last-known radio contact with Amelia Earhart and her co-pilot Fred Noonan. Itasca later joined the Navy-directed search for the aircraft. The search was finally called off on 17 July with no trace of the aircraft having been found.
1941 – The US authorities very soon know of a Japanese determination to attempt to seize bases in Indonesia even if it should precipitate war through their code-breaking service which has managed to work out the key to the major Japanese diplomatic code and some other minor operational codes. The information gained from the diplomatic code is circulated under the code name Magic.
1943 – The American buildup on Rendova Island continues but the Japanese garrison continues to resist. During the night a Japanese naval force bombards the American positions with little effect.
1943 – The U.S. Army Air Corps 99th Fighter Squadron, the first of the all-black Tuskegee Airmen to see combat, had been based in Africa for four months when they were assigned to escort 16 B-25 Mitchell bombers on a routine mission over Sicilian targets. Lieutenant Charles B. Hall of Brazil, Indiana became the first Tuskegee Airman to score a confirmed kill when he shot down a German fighter plane.
1944 – There are Allied landing on Numfoor Island. About 7100 troops, including elements of the US 168th Infantry Division and Australian forces, under the command of US General Patrick establish a beachhead on the north coast near Kamiri Airfield. There is no Japanese resistance. Admiral Fechteler commands the naval support with US Task Force 74 and TF75 providing escort and a preliminary bombardment. On Biak Island, remnants of the Japanese force continue to resist.
1944 – On Saipan, American forces conduct a general advance. Garapan village is overrun.
1945 – The submarine USS Barb fires rockets on Kaihyo Island, off the east coast of Karafuto (Sakhalin) Island. It is the first American underwater craft to fire rockets in shore bombardment. Meanwhile, Japanese sources report that only 200,000 people remain in Tokyo. All others have been evacuated to safer areas. The Japanese claim that some 5 million civilians have been killed or wounded by American fire-bombs.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
Today in History July 2 1863 there were 30 at Gettysburg, 1 in Cuba and 3 in the Philippines.
Here are a few of them
SLAGLE, OSCAR
Rank and organization: Private, Company D, 104th Illinois Infantry. Place and date: At Elk River, Tenn., 2 July 1863. Entered service at: Manlius, Ill. Birth: Fulton County, Ohio. Date of issue: 30 October 1897. Citation: Voluntarily joined a small party that, under a heavy fire, captured a stockade and saved the bridge.
SMALLEY, REUBEN S.
Rank and organization: Private, Company D, 104th Illinois Infantry. Place and date: At Elk River, Tenn., 2 July 1863. Entered service at: Brookfield, La Salle County, Ill. Birth: Washington County, Pa. Date of issue: 30 October 1897. Citation: Voluntarily joined a small party that, under a heavy fire, captured a stockade and saved the bridge.
SMITH, THADDEUS S.
Rank and organization. Corporal, Company E, 6th Pennsylvania Reserve Infantry. Place and date. At Gettysburg, Pa., 2 July 1863. Entered service at: ——. Birth: Franklin County, Pa. Date of issue: 5 May 1900. Citation: Was 1 of 6 volunteers who charged upon a log house near the Devil's Den, where a squad of the enemy's sharpshooters were sheltered, and compelled their surrender.
STACEY, CHARLES
Rank and organization: Private, Company D, 55th Ohio Infantry. Place and date: At Gettysburg, Pa., 2 July 1863. Entered service at: ——. Birth: England. Date of issue: 23 June 1896. Citation: Voluntarily took an advanced position on the skirmish line for the purpose of ascertaining the location of Confederate sharpshooters, and under heavy fire held the position thus taken until the company of which he was a member went back to the main line.
TOZIER, ANDREW J.
Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company I, 20th Maine Infantry. Place and date: At Gettysburg, Pa., 2 July 1863. Entered service at: Plymouth, Maine. Birth: Monmouth, Maine. Date of issue: 13 August 1898. Citation: At the crisis of the engagement this soldier, a color bearer, stood alone in an advanced position, the regiment having been borne back, and defended his colors with musket and ammunition picked up at his feet.
WELBORN, IRA C.
Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, 9th U.S. Infantry. Place and date: At Santiago, Cuba, 2 July 1898. Entered service at: Mico, Miss. Birth: Mico, Miss. Date of issue: 21 June 1899. Citation: Voluntarily left shelter and went, under fire, to the aid of a private of his company who was wounded.
GREER, ALLEN J.
Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army, 4th U.S. Infantry. Place and date: Near Majada, Laguna Province, Philippine Islands, 2 July 1901. Entered service at: Memphis, Tenn. Birth: Memphis, Tenn. Date of issue: 10 March 1902. Citation: Charged alone an insurgent outpost with his pistol, killing 1, wounding 2, and capturing 3 insurgents with their rifles and equipment.
HENDERSON, JOSEPH
Rank and organization: Sergeant, Troop B, 6th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Patian Island, Philippine Islands, 2 July 1909. Entered service at: Leavenworth, Kans. Birth: Leavenworth, Kans. Date of issue: Unknown. Citation: While in action against hostile Moros, voluntarily advanced alone, in the face of a heavy fire, to within about 15 yards of the hostile position and refastened to a tree a block and tackle used in checking the recoil of a mountain gun.
MILLER, ARCHIE
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, 6th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Patian Island, Philippine Islands, 2 July 1909. Entered service at: St. Louis, Mo. Birth: Fort Sheridan, Ill. Date of issue: Unknown. Citation: While in action against hostile Moros, when the machinegun detachment, having been driven from its position by a heavy fire, 1 member being killed, did, with the assistance of an enlisted man, place the machinegun in advance of its former position at a distance of about 20 yards from the enemy, in accomplishing which he was obliged to splice a piece of timber to one leg of the gun tripod, all the while being under a heavy fire, and the gun tripod being several times struck by bullets.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for July 2, 2021 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
2 July
1914: First of Martin's T Tractor airplanes (Signal Corps No. 31) accepted at San Diego.
1926: Congress created the DFC, retroactive to 6 April 1917, to honor heroic acts or extraordinary flight achievements by armed services' members. (4) First known aerial reforesting occurred in Hawaii. (24)
1943: Lt Charles Hall, 99th Fighter Squadron, became the first US black pilot to shoot down an Axis plane, a German Focke-Wulf 190 over Sicily. (21)
1944: Using Fifth Air Force air support, the 158th Regimental Combat Team (Task Force Cyclone) landed on Noemfoor Island, Schouten Islands, off the north coast of Dutch New Guinea. The RAAF's Number Two Works Wing started construction on Kamiri airstrip started at once. The next day, 54 TCW C-47s dropped the 1st Battalion, 503d Parachute Infantry Regiment over the airfield. Infantry from the 158th Royal Construction Team (RCT) secured Kornasoren Airfield on 4 July. The airdrome at Kamiri received its first fighter group on 16 July, the Kornasoren field on the 25th. (17)
1952: The USAF announced that the Lockheed F-94C Starfire was first fighter to be armed solely with rockets. (16)
1955: The biggest troop airlift in history to date began at Donaldson AFB, S. C., when 3,900 paratroopers moved from the US to Japan and 3,100 from Japan to the US. (16) (24)
1964: SAC received its first KC-135B airborne command post. The final Polaris A3 missile of the test program launched from Cape Kennedy. Its 2,500-mile flight was the 41st in a program that began in 1962.
1966: Mrs. Jerrie Mock set a closed-course distance record of 3,800 miles for women in an airplane weighing 3,850-5,300 pounds.
1982: Fairchild Republic Company selected to develop the T-46A, next generation trainer. (12) A Titan II (site 570-9), belonging to the 570 SMS at Davis-Monthan AFB, came off alert for testing. It became the first Titan II to inactivate under a phase out program. (6)
1984: The inactivation of a second Titan II unit, the 381 SMW at McConnell AFB, began earlier in the year. The wing's first site (533-8) came off alert on 2 July. 1987: Rockwell International received a $155.2 million contract to build AC-130U gunships. (12)
1991: The McDonnell Douglas MD52ON, the first production helicopter built without a tail rotor, made its first flight. The helicopter used a blown air system for anti-torque and directional control. (20)
1993: AMC integrated tanker and airlift forces under Fifteenth and Twenty-First Air Forces. (16)
1998: Operation PHOENIX FLAME. Through 7 July, AMC flew 10 C-5 and 2 C-141 missions to assist Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) firefighting efforts in Florida. The airlifters delivered more than 300 people and 740 tons of equipment to NAS Jacksonville and Patrick AFB. Active duty, reserve, and guard units supported efforts to fight wildfires in some 200,000 acres of Florida. (22)
2007: The 119th Wing (North Dakota Air National Guard) in Fargo, N. Dak., flew its first MQ-1 Predator unmanned aircraft system mission. The 119th Wing converted from its previous mission with F-16 Fighting Falcons to Predators and C-21s. (AFNEWS, "North Dakota ANG Unit Flies First Unmanned Mission, 3 Jul 2007.)
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Thanks to BRett
STRATFOR
GEOPOLITICAL DIGEST
THE WEEK AHEAD
Thailand's New Legislature Takes Office. Thailand's newly elected and certified 500-member House of Representatives and the military-appointed 250-member Senate will convene for their first bicameral legislative session on 3 July. On 4 July, the House will vote to elect a speaker, which will reveal fissures among the winning coalition, as the Move Forward Party (MFP) and the Pheu Thai Party (PTP) – which won the most and second-most votes in the country's 14 May election, respectively – vie for the post. The PTP has argued that its strong performance in last month's ballot earns it the right to the speakership under an MFP premiership. While each side has consistently vowed that they will not allow their dispute to break their alliance, there's still a chance the PTP and its 141 seats could leave the coalition if it deems it's being treated unfairly. If this happens, the MFP is almost certain to lack the number of seats needed to form a government when both chambers convene to elect a prime minister (which, per the constitution, must occur on or before 13 July). The two parties will continue negotiating a power-sharing arrangement, likely up until the 4 July deadline, which could see cabinet positions traded for the speakership.
Brazil Assumes the Mercosur Presidency. The rotating presidency of the South American trade bloc will be transferred from Argentina to Brazil during a 3-4 July meeting. Brazilian President Luiz Ignacio Lula da Silva will likely use his country's six-month leadership over Mercosur – which is comprised of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay – to push for the finalization of the bloc's embattled EU trade deal. After 20 years of negotiations, the European Union and Mercosur reached a draft free trade agreement in 2019. But talks to ratify the deal have since stalled over EU concerns regarding the deforestation policies of Lula's predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro. Certain EU member states also remain hesitant to open their agricultural sectors to competitive South American food exports. To restart momentum on the agreement, Lula will highlight his more aggressive pro-environmental policies to Brussels, as well as also reach out to individual EU countries that remain key holdouts, such as France and Italy, to discuss agricultural exports pertaining to the deal. Lula will likely also be forced to reconcile any further attempts by Uruguay to unilaterally negotiate a free trade agreement with China, as Mercosur countries are required to negotiate any trade agreements through the bloc.
EU Trade Commissioner Visits Washington. EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis will travel to Washington next week in a bid to accelerate EU-US talks on a new carbon-based sectoral arrangement on steel and aluminum production. Brussels and the administration of US President Joe Biden reached a preliminary agreement in 2021 to pause Trump-era tariffs on US imports of European steel and aluminum, with the goal of finding a binding agreement by October 2023. However, the European Union reportedly rejected a US proposal that would have created an international club to promote trade in metals produced with fewer carbon emissions, while imposing tariffs on steel and aluminum from third countries, due to concerns of violating World Trade Organization rules. The two sides are now pushing ahead to strike a compromise by the end of the truce period in October to prevent US tariffs and EU retaliatory measures from automatically re-entering force.
Please read on for our coverage of the week that was...
TABLE OF CONTENTS
• Key Developments - Analysis • Other Stories We're Tracking - Curated Content
KEY DEVELOPMENTS - ANALYSIS
Paris, Berlin, and Rome to Boost Cooperation on Critical Raw Materials
What Happened: France, Germany, and Italy pledged to increase cooperation on the extraction, refining and recycling of critical raw materials during a 27 June meeting in Berlin between the economy and industrial ministers of the three countries, Reuters reported. The European Union is pushing to reduce dependence on imports of critical raw materials from China, on which it relies for roughly 95% of its supply of rare earths key to the energy transition. In March, Brussels unveiled the Critical Raw Materials Act, which sets targets for increased domestic EU production, and limits imports from third countries, of critical minerals needed for the energy transition by 2030.
Why It Matters: The summit in Berlin was the first in a series of trilateral meetings for the three largest EU economies to coordinate action on pursuing strategic goals enshrined in the bloc's recently launched Critical Raw Materials Act. Particularly, the countries pledged to expand cooperation in minerals extraction, processing, recycling and common stockpiling, and on setting the environmental criteria related to all these processes. Italy and France have already earmarked 1 billion euros (about US$1.1 billion) and 500 million euros in ad hoc funds, respectively, to provide financing toward achieving these goals, while Germany is reportedly drawing plans to set up a fund worth between 500 million euros and 1 billion euros (though an agreement has yet to be reached by the German three-party coalition government amid intra-alliance tensions regarding the allocation of a shrinking federal budget).
China, New Zealand Strike Trade Deals
What Happened: New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and Chinese President Xi Jinping signed a series of trade deals to improve market access for Kiwi companies in China, The New Zealand Herald reported on 28 June. The agreements addressed e-commerce, the green economy, food security and agriculture, and new commercial air routes, as well as the establishment of a dialogue mechanism on new energy vehicles. Hipkins is in China for a five-day, multi-city tour aimed at fostering business relations between the two countries and boosting New Zealand's exports to China.
Why It Matters: New Zealand's economic headwinds are driving it to deepen economic ties with China despite growing domestic and international worries that New Zealand is overdependent on Beijing. China's friendly treatment of New Zealand stands in stark contrast to its relations with the other members of the Five Eyes alliance (the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia), and Wellington's overtures serve as an example of how Beijing would like Western countries to handle bilateral relations.
Guatemala's Presidential Election Goes to a Runoff Between Two Center-Left Candidates
What Happened: Guatemalan presidential candidates Sandra Torres of the center-left National Unity of Hope party and Bernardo Arevalo of the center-left Seed Movement party will compete in a runoff election on 20 August after no candidate achieved over 50% of the vote in the country's 25 June general election, Reuters reported on 26 June. Arevalo's second-place victory was unexpected, as polling prior to the election indicated low levels of support, with his name not included in some major polls.
Why It Matters: With two center-left candidates, Guatemala is set to have its first left-wing president since Torres' husband Alvaro Colom, also of the National Unity of Hope, left office in 2012. Torres has campaigned on improving social programs, including cutting medicine prices and lowering electricity rates, but is closely aligned with the current government, limiting the likelihood of an increase in anti-corruption efforts under her. Arevalo, the son of Guatemala's first democratically-elected president, campaigned on an anti-corruption platform, and his second-place victory demonstrates frustration among the Guatemalan population with the country's political elites, authoritarian slide and worsening corruption. An Arevalo victory in August could bring about a surge in investigations into current members of government, potentially creating legal challenges for businesses operating in the country and slowing policymaking.
OTHER STORIES WE'RE TRACKING - CURATED CONTENT
ASIA
China's New Law Extends Xi's Combative Foreign Policy Stance
China has passed a sweeping foreign policy law that bolts together a slew of existing tools to counter Western powers, and extends President Xi Jinping's combative stance on asserting Beijing on the world stage. The Law on Foreign Relations stops short of creating new mechanisms for responding to rising geopolitical challenges, such as US-led export controls on advanced technology.
Source: Bloomberg
Pakistan's Deepening Political Crisis Poses Threats to Press Freedom and Political Stability
Imran Khan's arrest on 9 May has spurred a domestic political crisis that has exposed the fragility of political processes and press freedom in Pakistan and further endangered Khan's political future. This political crisis has further complicated Pakistan's efforts to secure vital financial assistance as potential donors have expressed the importance of political stability in the country, diminishing Pakistan's options to avert economic catastrophe.
Source: The Soufan Center
Internal Discord the Greatest Threat to Southeast Asian Unity
As great power rivalry casts its long shadow over Southeast Asia, the imperative of regional unity grows more urgent. Yet diversity, divisions, and disputes remain consequential features of the region that pose a significant threat to unity.
Source: East Asia Forum
Mongolia in the Middle: China and Russia May Split Over the Allure of Renewables
Mongolia, sandwiched as it is between China and Russia, the world's two most powerful authoritarian states, is unlucky. Its rich solar and wind potential may prove to be a curse, not a blessing, as Beijing might be tempted to infringe on Mongolian sovereignty. Given its reluctance to upset political ties with Moscow or its economic relationships with Washington and Brussels, Beijing will likely move slowly in Mongolia, attempt to use non-coercive instruments whenever possible, and downplay any threats to Russia's energy exports.
Source: The Interpreter (The Lowy Institute)
EUROPE
What Does Lukashenka's Role as Mediator in Russian Crisis Imply?
The situation has clearly demonstrated that Minsk has indeed preserved a great degree of agency and can use it proactively to pursue its own interests, especially when those interests are clear. This time, Lukashenka had every reason to push for an end to the rebellion, as the prolonged destabilization of Russia would have meant excessive security and economic risks for Belarus.
Source: The Jamestown Foundation
Wagner Leader Prigozhin in Belarus Is Bad News for Pretty Much Everybody
The agreement, brokered by Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko, seems to have averted a leadership crisis in Russia but may be the start of a new mess if Prigozhin rebuilds in this Russian vassal state. Prigozhin's arrival in Belarus is a stark reminder that Russia's chaos is unlikely to stay in Russia and could seep westward, creating instability in Belarus, new challenges for Ukraine, and questions for the rest of Europe.
Source: The Washington Post
Greeks Endorse Mitsotakis the Reformer
For now, at least, the re-elected prime minister should be commended for the professionalism he has brought back to the Greek system of government. At a time when liberal democracy is facing a crisis of confidence in the West, Mitsotakis has shown that mainstream politics can deliver positive results.
Source: Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA)
MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA
Israel's Netanyahu Revives Judicial Overhaul Stripped of Most Controversial Piece
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would drop the most controversial part of his plan to remake the country's court system, which sparked large-scale unrest earlier this year. Netanyahu will push ahead with legislation but will strip it of a provision that would have given the national legislature the power to overturn rulings by the Supreme Court.
Source: The Wall Street Journal
Arming the West Bank: a Look at Iran's New Israel Strategy
The term "Arming the West Bank" was raised for the first time in the middle of the 2014 Gaza War. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated that he considered the only way to rescue Palestine was by "arming the West Bank like Gaza." In Iran's view, this approach stands out because of how vulnerable Israel is to it. Not only is the West Bank relatively close to Israel's three key cities and military-economic centers, but also the presence of Jewish settlers and more than two million Palestinians provides a rich environment for Iran to open a new front.
Source: The National Interest
AMERICAS
What Peronism's White-Knuckle Deal Means for Argentina's Presidential Race
The cierre de listas, or closing of lists, is the most stressful day in Argentine politics, other than election day. The dramatic, white-knuckle result saw the economy minister, Sergio Massa, emerge as the presumptive nominee. Massa and the governing bloc will face a steep uphill battle.
Source: Americas Quarterly
GLOBAL
Is Russia Losing Its Grip on Central Asia?
Since the start of the war, Moscow has taken care to occasionally remind its neighbors of their place in the regional pecking order. Moscow has plenty more levers of influence. It is a crucial source of basic goods for Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, its fellow members in the Eurasian Economic Union.
Source: Foreign Affairs
After Mutiny Against Putin, Russia's Friends Have Reason to Hedge Bets
As rattled as they may have been by an armed insurrection in a nuclear-weapons state, Russia's friends and business partners are unlikely to abandon Putin. The more likely scenario, they say, is for them to hege their bets against further Russian instability.
Source: The New York Times
The Global South Is Keeping Russia's Energy Economy Afloat
Russia has also significantly reshaped its energy connections since the conflict began, pointing toward wider geopolitical realignments. Russia has ramped up its energy exports to many countries in the non-Western world, including China, India, some Gulf states, and even NATO member Turkey. While none of these states directly supports Russia in its war against Ukraine (with the partial exception of Beijing), none has joined the West in sanctioning Russia over the conflict, instead choosing to expand energy ties with Moscow out of economic self-interest and a desire to foster a more multipolar world order.
Source: Foreign Policy
The Emerging Contours of Saudi-Emirati Competition in Southeast Asia
Early last month, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, the president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), met with Vietnam's Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan in Abu Dhabi. At the same time, officials from Saudi Arabia have held separate bilateral meetings with their Thai, Filipino, and Indonesian counterparts over the past month, aimed at enhancing relations and expanding opportunities for wider economic engagement. Taken together, these developments suggest that the growing Saudi-UAE strategic competition is beginning to spill over into Southeast Asia.
Source: The Diplomat
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