To All,
Good Tuesday Morning October 29, 2024. I hope that your week I off to a good start. Still on the old computer after Cowboy got it working again yesterday. Need an appointment at Geek Squad to get the new one on line. Off to LA as soon as I send todays.
Regards,
skip
Make it a good Day
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This day in Naval and Marine Corps History (thanks to NHHC)
Here is a link to the NHHC website: https://www.history.navy.mil/. Go here to see the director's corner for all 84 H-Grams .
Today in Naval and Marine Corps History .
October 29
1814—The first steam-powered U.S. Navy warship, Fulton, launches at New York City. Commissioned in June 1816, she carries President James Monroe on a day cruise in New York Harbor a year later.
1942—PBY-5 Catalinas from Patrol Squadron (VP) 11 sink Japanese submarine I 172.
1956—The 6th Fleet is ordered to evacuate U.S. nationals during the Suez Canal Crisis. Some of the ships involved are USS Coral Sea (CVA 43), USS Randolph (CVA 15), USS Antietam (CVA 36), and a series of support vessels. By Nov. 3, approximately 2,000 people are evacuated.
1980—USS Parsons (DDG 33) rescues 110 Vietnamese refugees 330 miles south of Saigon.
1989—A developmental prototype of the advanced capability version of the EA 6B Prowler makes its first flight.
2002—Commander Central Command Gen. Tommy R. Franks, USA, announces the impending deployment of 700 to 800 Marines to Djibouti as part of Combined Joint Task Force–Horn of Africa.
2011—Virginia-class submarine USS California (SSN 781) is commissioned at Norfolk, VA.
Thanks to Mike for this bit of history
Don't Tread on Me" Flag Story
https://ultimateflags.com/blog/dont-tread-on-me/
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This Day in World History
October 29
1618 Sir Walter Raleigh is executed. After the death of Queen Elizabeth, Raleigh's enemies spread rumors that he was opposed to the accession of King James.
1787 Mozart's opera Don Giovanni opens in Prague.
1814 The Demologos, the first steam-powered warship, launched in New York City.
1901 Leon Czolgosz is electrocuted for the assassination of US President William McKinley. Czolgosz, an anarchist, shot McKinley on September 6 during a public reception at the Temple of Music in Buffalo, N.Y. Despite early hopes of recovery, McKinley died September 14, in Buffalo, NY.
1927 Russian archaeologist Peter Kozloff apparently uncovers the tomb of Genghis Khan in the Gobi Desert, a claim still in dispute.
1929 Black Tuesday--the most catastrophic day in stock market history, the herald of the Great Depression. 16 million shares were sold at declining prices. By mid-November $30 billion of the $80 billion worth of stocks listed in September will have been wiped out.
1945 The first ball-point pen goes is sold by Gimbell's department store in New York for a price of $12.
1949 Alonzo G. Moron of the Virgin Islands becomes the first African-American president of Hampton Institute, Hampton, Virginia.
1952 French forces launch Operation Lorraine against Viet Minh supply bases in Indochina.
1964 Thieves steal a jewel collection--including the world's largest sapphire, the 565-carat "Star of India," and the 100-carat DeLong ruby--from the Museum of Natural History in New York. The thieves were caught and most of the jewels recovered.
1969 The U.S. Supreme Court orders immediate desegregation, superseding the previous "with all deliberate speed" ruling.
1969 First computer-to-computer link; the link is accomplished through ARPANET, forerunner of the Internet.
1972 Palestinian guerrillas kill an airport employee and hijack a plane, carrying 27 passengers, to Cuba. They force West Germany to release 3 terrorists who were involved in the Munich Massacre.
1983 More than 500,000 people protest in The Hague, The Netherlands, against cruise missiles.
1986 The last stretch of Britain's M25 motorway opens.
1998 South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission reports condemns both sides on the Apartheid issue for committing atrocities.
1998 John Glenn, at age 77, becomes the oldest person to go into outer space. He is part of the crew of Space Shuttle Discovery, STS-95.
1998 The deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record up to that time, Hurricane Mitch, makes landfall in Honduras (in 2005 Hurricane Wilma surpassed it); nearly 11,000 people died and approximately the same number were missing.
2004 For the first time, Osama bin Laden admits direct responsibility for the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the US; his comments are part of a video broadcast by the Al Jazeera network.
2008 Delta and Northwest airlines merge, forming the world's largest airline.
2012 Hurricane Sandy devastates much of the East Coast of the US; nearly 300 die directly or indirectly from the storm.
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Thanks to the Bear. We will always have the url for you to search items in Rolling Thunder
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER …
. rollingthunderremembered.com .
ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear … Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
Thanks to the Bear
I have provided access to archive entries covering Commando Hunt operations for the period November 1968 through mid-September 1969. These posts are permanently available at the following link.
https://www.rollingthunderremembered.com/commando-hunt-post-list/
Thanks to Micro
To remind folks that these are from the Vietnam Air Losses site that Micro put together. You click on the url below and get what happened each day to the crew of the aircraft.
From Vietnam Air Losses site for October 26-29
26-Oct: https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=1425
27-Oct: https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=1428
28-Oct: https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=2009
29-Oct: https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=3039
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
MOAA - Wall of Faces Now Includes Photos of All Servicemembers Killed in the Vietnam War
The site works, find anyone you knew in "search" feature.
https://www.vvmf.org/Wall-of-Faces/ )
Wall of Faces Now Includes Photos of All Service members Killed in the Vietnam War
By: Kipp Hanley
AUGUST 15, 2022
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. Thanks to YP and Dr. Rich
Landing a B29
The scairiest airline landing I've ever ridden thru was on Grit's short term affair with the B-747. I had left my burnt up (electrically!) POS Crusader at NAS Atlanta, sacked up my flight gear in my torso harnass, and in minimal layover clothes, caught a ride back to Dallas Love Field. I yam sitting on the jump seat in the cockpit, and we are landing on 13L, the short runway (7752'). The approach crosses a little lake just off the end of the runway, source of the notorious Lake Bachman sink! We are cocked up as hell, and all I can really see is the fence at the other end. Holee Chit! The trucks crunch down, max reverse and braking, and I am TALKING TO THE BIG GUY. Somehow, we got stopped and actually stayed on the taxiway turnoff and back to the gate. Grong hadda love them.
A week or so later, word came that NAS Atlanta had duck taped my Crusader minimally together and would someone PLEASE COME GET IT? YHS DUMBASS, here, caught a ride on a Reserve P-2V to NAS Atlanta; it was in almost as bad shape as my Crusader, and the worried comm from the crew had me talking to the Big Guy again. Somehow, we made it, but I swore'd and be damnit ifn I'd ever ride on one of those things again.
Turns out that my nominally fixed Crusader was available without the wing fuel, so I hadda stop at NAS Meridian for petrol. Stopping the F-8A anywhere on a cross country was risky from a maintenance standpoint, but I got my gas and made it home to NAS Dallas.
I did this sort of thing routinely. Why? 'Cause it's wot I did.
YP
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On Oct 27, 2023, at 9:59 PM, Andy Tillman wrote:
https://www.reddit.com/r/WWIIplanes/s/8Q5P9SYFtT
Lots of aileron on that yoke!
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Thanks to Micro
Some feel good news for a change:
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Thanks to Interesting Facts
What's the world's biggest airport? What about the busiest? Why is there an "X" in PDX? Is there a way to get a nap between flights? And what happens to all the change you leave in airport security bins?
Airports are big, crowded, and full of questions. The following 15 facts might change the way you catch your next flight — or at least end some mysteries.
The World's Largest Airport Is the Size of New York City
King Fahd International Airport near Dammam, Saudi Arabia, has a larger area than any other airport. It's 780 square kilometers, or about 300 square miles. That's almost exactly the same size as New York City — yes, all five boroughs. As Guinness World Records points out, it's larger than the entire neighboring country of Bahrain, which has three airports of its own.
ATL Is the World's Busiest Airport
Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia, is the busiest airport in the world for passengers, serving 93,699,630 people in 2022 — and aside from a brief blip in 2020, it has held the No. 1 spot since 1998. It's not even close: The next-busiest airport for passengers, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, was more than 20 million people behind in 2022.
So why is it so popular? First, there aren't a lot of other international airports in the immediate area, so it's the closest international airport for much of the South. It's also Delta Air Lines' biggest hub. It makes a lot of sense for transfers, too. According to the airport, it's within a two-hour flight of around 80% of the population of the United States — and unlike the major metropolitan areas that you'd maybe expect to be the busiest, it doesn't have to deal with traffic from other nearby airports.
Celebs Pay Extra for Private Boarding
Celebrities do fly commercial, even if they're flying first class, so why do you never see them sweating in the boarding line with everyone else? Many airports have private or exclusive terminals for the rich and/or famous. LAX (Los Angeles) and ATL (Atlanta) have The Private Suite, which provides comfy accommodations, valet parking, and, as the name suggests, private suites to hang out in while waiting for departure. It even has dedicated customs and security on-site. It'll cost you, though: Memberships start at $1,250 a year, and that doesn't even come with a discount for the $4,850 price tag on a preflight suite. It will get you free massages and manicures while you wait, though.
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Airlines Pad Flight Times to Make Planes Look More Punctual
On paper, flights take a lot longer than they used to, even though the airports are located in the same place and the planes haven't gotten slower. It's because airlines have started building in some extra wiggle room, so that a plane has a better chance of landing at its destination on time, even if it has a delayed departure. Despite this, around 30% of planes still arrive more than 15 minutes after their scheduled arrival time.
The World's Tallest Air Traffic Control Tower Is in Saudi Arabia
Perhaps fittingly for the nation with the world's largest airport (see above), the world's tallest air traffic control tower is also located in Saudi Arabia. The tower at Jeddah King Abdulaziz International Airport in Saudi Arabia stands at 136 meters (446 feet), and surpassed the next-tallest tower, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia, in 2017. The tower in Saudi Arabia is about as tall as the Great Pyramid of Giza.
The Shortest Commercial Runway Is in the Caribbean
The Caribbean island of Saba, located in the Lesser Antilles, is only around 5 square miles, so there's not a lot of room for an airport. (The island is also filled with rocky cliffs — it's the tip of an underwater volcano.) They make do with only 900 feet of usable runway. For context, the typical commercial runway is between 8,000 and 13,000 feet long.
An Amsterdam Airport Has a Giant Park Inside
Amsterdam Airport Schiphol has all sorts of quirky, cozy amenities, including a library, an art gallery, and three-dimensional cow tiles, but Airport Park blows them all away. The green oasis opened in 2011, and while the vast majority of the plants are fake, it's built around the very real trunk of a 130-year-old copper beech tree. To give the illusion of the outdoors, the airport pipes in parklike sounds such as birdsong. Visitors can even hop on a bike that also charges their phone. For a real breath of fresh air, there's a small outdoor terrace.
In Airport Codes, "X" Is Just Filler
The "X" and the end of "PHX" makes sense for Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport — but what about "LAX" for Los Angeles and "PDX" for Portland?
Turns out, the "X" is left over from the days when airports used two-letter codes from the National Weather Service. With the rapid growth of air travel, it soon became apparent that two letters wouldn't be enough. When International Air Transport Association (IATA) three-letter codes became the norm in the 1930s, some airports gained an "X" at the end.
Then there's Sioux City Gateway Airport, which is blessed with the IATA code "SUX." In 1988 and 2002, officials petitioned to change the code, and were offered five options by the FAA: GWU, GYO, GYT, SGV, and GAY. They opted to embrace what they already had instead, and introduced a line of merchandise — beanies, mugs, and more — emblazoned with the "SUX" logo.
The Wright Brothers' Airport Is the World's Oldest Continuously Operating Airport
Flight pioneer Wilbur Wright established College Park Airport in College Park, Maryland, in 1909 as a training ground for two military officers as they got ready to fly the government's first airplane. More than a century later, it's still a public airport, making it the oldest continuously operating airport in the world.
There's a little bit of an asterisk on that record, though, in that you can't really catch a flight there — unless you have or know somebody with an aircraft and a pilot's license. Which brings us to…
Hamburg Airport Is the Oldest Continuously Operating Commercial Airport
If you're looking for the oldest airport with terminals and plane tickets, look no further than Hamburg Airport, established in 1911. But while America was building its aviation history on airplanes, Germany built the facility around the country's own technology: Zeppelins.
Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, the inventor of the Zeppelin airship in the 1890s, gave an enthusiastic speech about the future of air travel in Hamburg in 1910. Residents believed in his vision, and the first building at the Hamburg Airport was an airship hangar, built in 1912. However, it took less than a decade for airplanes to start taking over. The airport broke the one-million passenger mark in 1961.
Airlines Pay Up to Eight Figures for Slots on the Airport's Schedule
To keep air traffic running smoothly and safely in more than 200 of the world's busiest airports, airport operators grant airlines slots that give them authorization to take off or land at certain times — and in many places, demand is far outpacing supply.
The most expensive slots are at Heathrow International Airport in London, England. In 2016, Kenya Airways sold its only slot to Oman Air for a whopping $75 million. That's on the high side, but eight figures is relatively common. One year later, two slots fetched the same price when Scandinavian Airlines decided to sell.
Because an airline can lose that valuable asset if it doesn't use it at least 80% of the time in a six-month period, you might see some unusual scheduling. At one point, British Mediterranean Airways was operating round-trip flights between Heathrow and Cardiff Airport in Rhoose, Wales — a journey of just a few hours by car or train — with zero passengers, angering environmental activists (among others). And with demand for air travel having decreased during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, some airlines aren't canceling their underbooked flights, leading to more empty planes journeying through the skies.
Ever wonder where your favorite nail clippers and corkscrews went after airport security confiscated them? In some states, they end up in government auctions — and they sell in bulk.
Collections of forbidden goods, from 12 pounds of flashlights to 7 pounds of cigar cutters to an assortment of foldable shovels, end up on government-asset marketplace GovDeals.com. There are so many pocket knives that they get sorted into different categories before going on the market, ending up in lots of 100 generic-brand knives; 14 pounds of knives with names, dates, or locations on them; or 14 pounds of small-size Swiss Army Knives.
Lost luggage is also sold if it's not picked up within three months, but the process is a little more streamlined. A reseller called Unclaimed Baggage sorts through and resells, repurposes, or recycles the bags and their contents. Speaking of airport security …
TSA Collects Your Loose Change
With hundreds of thousands of travelers throwing wallets into bins every day, some loose change is bound to fall out and get left behind. Over time, that really adds up; in 2020 alone, the Transit Security Administration (TSA) gathered more than $500,000 in loose change, and that's during a pandemic — in 2019, they picked up more than $900,000. The biggest source of lost change was Harry Reid (formerly McCarran) International Airport near Las Vegas, where passengers left behind $37,611.61.
The TSA has to submit reports to Congress every year on how much they've gathered and what they spent it on. They ended 2020 with $1.5 million, including money leftover from previous years, and spent much of it on pandemic mitigation measures like masks, gloves, and face shields.
Airport Nap Hotels Exist
During a longer layover or delay, travelers sometimes stay at nearby hotels, then head back through security to catch their next flight. But if you just need a quick nap or a moment of quiet — or you're worried about oversleeping — transit hotels are located literally inside the airport.
Aerotel has locations throughout Asia (and a few outside) for some sleep and a shower between, before, or after flights, whether you need an hour-long nap or an overnight stay. Yotel, with airport locations in Amsterdam, London, Istanbul, Paris, and Singapore, fills a similar niche: You can book as little as four hours in a relatively barebones room, with a bed or two, shower, and Wi-Fi.
More traditional hotels built for regular sleeping also exist inside airports, but often offer shorter-term options designed for decompressing during a layover — you just might pay a little extra for the bells and whistles. The Hilton Munich Airport offers a two-hour spa card, and Grand Hyatt DFW and JFK's midcentury-themed TWA Hotel both offer fixed day-use rates that include access to the pool (starting at $109 in Dallas and around $149 at TWA).
Therapy Dogs Are An Increasingly Common Amenity
Anxious before your flight? Need a little dog cuddle? As of August 2021, dozens of airports in North America had some kind of therapy dog program, whether it was daily dog visitors or a once-a-month treat. One of the biggest operations is the Pets Unstressing Passengers (PUP) program in Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), which had around 121 dogs participating before the pandemic — most of them rescue dogs, and all of them with appropriate certifications and on-the-job experience. Each dog has a handsome red vest and weekly shift of 1-2 hours, and handlers double as customer service reps that can help you find your way to the correct gate.
Each therapy dog program is as special as its four-legged volunteers. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) in Broward County, Florida, has eight "FLL AmbassaDogs" that include a Yorkshire Terrier named Tiffany who rides around in a stroller. At the Edmonton International Airport in Alberta, Canada, pups and handlers wear matching outfits and distribute trading cards. In 2016, the San Francisco International Airport (SFO) added a Juliana pig named LiLou to its "Wag Brigade."
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From the Archives
Thanks to Grant
The F-4 flew with a couple of big engines so why not Snoopy
FW: Watch "RC Snoopy's Flying Doghouse (The Peanuts) -- Big Jolt 2015" on YouTube This is so cool. Some people's brains are still working.
https://youtu.be/MTnnXhcmSgY. I knew it was real
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From the Archives
(Go to the link below and read this horrifying story on page 70. Beyond belief!)
AN INSTRUCTIVE BLAST FROM THE PAST
By Massad Ayoob
For decades now, I've done a series for American Handgunner magazine called "The Ayoob Files" in which we dissect and analyze actual gunfights. Some are historical, but most are contemporary and include interviews with the survivors.
I recently reviewed this one. That September/October 1991 issue covered a classic and tragic incident in Baton Rouge. A young policewoman was murdered, and a particularly determined cop-killer finished off at last by the sole survivor.
Lessons: Some bad guys take a lot of lead before they stop committing mayhem and murder. Body armor can be a life-saver…if you're wearing it. Armed people need to full grasp both gun disarming and the flip side of such struggles, weapon retention.
Lots of other useful material in that issue, too.
The chilling true story of a real-life Terminator. Page 70
https://americanhandgunner.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/HSO91.pdf
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Thanks to Carl
Banister of Life
As You Slide Down The Banister Of Life, Remember:
1. Jim Bakker and Jimmy Swaggert have written an impressive new book. It's called .."Ministers Do More Than Lay People".
2. Transvestite: A guy who likes to eat, drink and be Mary.
3. The difference between the Pope and your boss is, the Pope only expects you to kiss his ring.
4. My mind works like lightning, one brilliant flash , and it is gone.
5. The only time the world beats a path to your door is if you're in the bathroom.
6. I hate sex in the movies Tried it once. The seat folded up, the drink spilled and that ice, well, it really chilled the Mood.
7. It used to be only death and taxes Now, of course, there's shipping and handling, too.
8. A husband is someone who , after taking the trash out, gives the impression that he just cleaned the whole house.
9. My next house will have no kitchen - just vending machines and a large trash can.
10 Definition of a teenager?
God's punishment...for enjoying sex.
And as you slide down that Banister of Life..pray that all the splinters are all pointed the other way..
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This Day in U S Military History
October 29
1956 – Israeli armed forces push into Egypt toward the Suez Canal, initiating the Suez Crisis. They would soon be joined by French and British forces, creating a serious Cold War problem in the Middle East. The catalyst for the joint Israeli-British-French attack on Egypt was the nationalization of the Suez Canal by Egyptian leader General Gamal Abdel Nasser in July 1956. The situation had been brewing for some time. Two years earlier, the Egyptian military had begun pressuring the British to end its military presence (which had been granted in the 1936 Anglo-Egyptian Treaty) in the canal zone. Nasser's armed forces also engaged in sporadic battles with Israeli soldiers along the border between the two nations, and the Egyptian leader did nothing to conceal his antipathy toward the Zionist nation. Supported by Soviet arms and money, and furious with the United States for reneging on a promise to provide funds for construction of the Aswan Dam on the Nile River, Nasser ordered the Suez Canal seized and nationalized. The British were angry with the move and sought the support of France (which believed that Nasser was supporting rebels in the French colony of Algeria), and Israel (which needed little provocation to strike at the enemy on its border), in an armed assault to retake the canal. The Israelis struck first, but were shocked to find that British and French forces did not immediately follow behind them. Instead of a lightening strike by overwhelming force, the attack bogged down. The United Nations quickly passed a resolution calling for a cease-fire. The Soviet Union began to issue ominous threats about coming to Egypt's aid. A dangerous situation developed quickly, one that the Eisenhower administration hoped to defuse before it turned into a Soviet-U.S. confrontation. Though the United States sternly warned the Soviet Union to stay out of the situation, Eisenhower also pressured the British, French, and Israeli governments to withdraw their troops. They eventually did so in late 1956 and early 1957.
1969 – The first-ever computer-to-computer link is established on ARPANET, the precursor to the Internet. The first message on the ARPANET was sent by UCLA student programmer Charley Kline, at 10:30 pm, from Boelter Hall 3420. Kline transmitted from the university's SDS Sigma 7 Host computer to the Stanford Research Institute's SDS 940 Host computer. The message text was the word login; the l and the o letters were transmitted, but the system then crashed. Hence, the literal first message over the ARPANET was lo. About an hour later, having recovered from the crash, the SDS Sigma 7 computer effected a full login. The first permanent ARPANET link was established on 21 November 1969, between the IMP at UCLA and the IMP at the Stanford Research Institute. By 5 December 1969, the entire four-node network, adding University of California, Santa Barbara and The University of Utah, was established.
1998 – The shuttle Discovery blasted off with 6 crew mates including John Glenn (77), the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962. Nearly four decades after he became the first American to orbit the Earth, Senator John Hershel Glenn, Jr., is launched into space again as a payload specialist aboard the space shuttle Discovery. At 77 years of age, Glenn was the oldest human ever to travel in space. During the nine-day mission, he served as part of a NASA study on health problems associated with aging. Glenn, a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps, was among the seven men chosen by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1959 to become America's first astronauts. A decorated pilot, he had flown nearly 150 combat missions during World War II and the Korean War. In 1957, he made the first nonstop supersonic flight across the United States, flying from Los Angeles to New York in three hours and 23 minutes. In April 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was the first man in space, and his spacecraft, Vostok 1, made a full orbit before returning to Earth. Less than one month later, American Alan B. Shepard, Jr., became the first American in space when his Freedom 7 spacecraft was launched on a suborbital flight. American "Gus" Grissom made another suborbital flight in July, and in August Soviet cosmonaut Gherman Titov spent more than 25 hours in space aboard Vostok 2, making 17 orbits. As a technological power, the United States was looking very much second-rate compared with its Cold War adversary. If the Americans wanted to dispel this notion, they needed a multi-orbital flight before another Soviet space advance arrived. On February 20, 1962, NASA and Colonel John Glenn accomplished this feat with the flight of Friendship 7, a spacecraft that made three orbits of the Earth in five hours. Glenn was hailed as a national hero, and on February 23 President John F. Kennedy visited him at Cape Canaveral. Glenn later addressed Congress and was given a ticker-tape parade in New York City. Out of a reluctance to risk the life of an astronaut as popular as Glenn, NASA essentially grounded the "Clean Marine" in the years after his historic flight. Frustrated with this uncharacteristic lack of activity, Glenn turned to politics and in 1964 announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate from his home state of Ohio and formally left NASA. Later that year, however, he withdrew his Senate bid after seriously injuring his inner ear in a fall from a horse. In 1970, following a stint as a Royal Crown Cola executive, he ran for the Senate again but lost the Democratic nomination to Howard Metzenbaum. Four years later, he defeated Metzenbaum, won the general election, and went on to win reelection three times. In 1984, he unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for president. In 1998, Glenn attracted considerable media attention when he returned to space aboard the space shuttle Discovery. In 1999, he retired from his U.S. Senate seat after four consecutive terms in office, a record for the state of Ohio.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
CARR, JOHN
Rank and organization: Private, Company G, 8th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Chiricahua Mountains, Ariz., 29 October 1869. Entered service at:——. Birth: Columbus, Ohio. Date of issue: 14 February 1870. Citation: Gallantry in action.
MATHEWS, GEORGE W.
Rank and organization: Assistant Surgeon, 36th Infantry, U.S. Volunteers. Place and date: Near Labo, Luzon, Philippine Islands, 29 October 1899. Entered service at: Worcester, Mass. Birth: Worcester, Mass. Date of issue: 14 March 1902. Citation: While in attendance upon the wounded and under a severe fire from the enemy, seized a carbine and beat off an attack upon wounded officers and men under his charge.
HAJIRO, BARNEY F.
Private Barney F. Hajiro distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action on 19, 22, and 29 October 1944, in the vicinity of Bruyeres and Biffontaine, eastern France. Private Hajiro, while acting as a sentry on top of an embankment on 19 October 1944, in the vicinity of Bruyeres, France, rendered assistance to allied troops attacking a house 200 yards away by exposing himself to enemy fire and directing fire at an enemy strong point. He assisted the unit on his right by firing his automatic rifle and killing or wounding two enemy snipers. On 22 October 1944, he and one comrade took up an outpost security position about 50 yards to the right front of their platoon, concealed themselves, and ambushed an 18-man, heavily armed, enemy patrol, killing two, wounding one, and taking the remainder as prisoners. On 29 October 1944, in a wooded area in the vicinity of Biffontaine, France, Private Hajiro initiated an attack up the slope of a hill referred to as "Suicide Hill" by running forward approximately 100 yards under fire. He then advanced ahead of his comrades about 10 yards, drawing fire and spotting camouflaged machine gun nests. He fearlessly met fire with fire and single-handedly destroyed two machine gun nests and killed two enemy snipers. As a result of Private Hajiro's heroic actions, the attack was successful. Private Hajiro's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon him, his unit, and the United States Army.
*OKUBO, JAMES K.
Technician Fifth Grade James K. Okubo distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action on 28 and 29 October and 4 November 1944, in the Foret Domaniale de Champ, near Biffontaine, eastern France. On 28 October, under strong enemy fire coming from behind mine fields and roadblocks, Technician Fifth Grade Okubo, a medic, crawled 150 yards to within 40 yards of the enemy lines. Two grenades were thrown at him while he left his last covered position to carry back wounded comrades. Under constant barrages of enemy small arms and machine gun fire, he treated 17 men on 28 October and 8 more men on 29 October. On 4 November, Technician Fifth Grade Okubo ran 75 yards under grazing machine gun fire and, while exposed to hostile fire directed at him, evacuated and treated a seriously wounded crewman from a burning tank, who otherwise would have died. Technician Fifth Grade James K. Okubo's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the United States Army.
SAKATO, GEORGE T.
Private George T. Sakato distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action on 29 October 1944, on hill 617 in the vicinity of Biffontaine, France. After his platoon had virtually destroyed two enemy defense lines, during which he personally killed five enemy soldiers and captured four, his unit was pinned down by heavy enemy fire. Disregarding the enemy fire, Private Sakato made a one-man rush that encouraged his platoon to charge and destroy the enemy strongpoint. While his platoon was reorganizing, he proved to be the inspiration of his squad in halting a counter-attack on the left flank during which his squad leader was killed. Taking charge of the squad, he continued his relentless tactics, using an enemy rifle and P-38 pistol to stop an organized enemy attack. During this entire action, he killed 12 and wounded two, personally captured four and assisted his platoon in taking 34 prisoners. By continuously ignoring enemy fire, and by his gallant courage and fighting spirit, he turned impending defeat into victory and helped his platoon complete its mission. Private Sakato's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the United States Army.
CAPTAIN HUMBERT R. VERSACE
UNITED STATES ARMY for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty: Captain Humbert R. Versace distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism during the period of 29 October 1963 to 26 September 1965, while serving as S-2 Advisor, Military Assistance Advisory Group, Detachment 52, Ca Mau, Republic of Vietnam. While accompanying a Civilian Irregular Defense Group patrol engaged in combat operations in Thoi Binh District, An Xuyen Province, Captain Versace and the patrol came under sudden and intense mortar, automatic weapons, and small arms fire from elements of a heavily armed enemy battalion. As the battle raged, Captain Versace, although severely wounded in the knee and back by hostile fire, fought valiantly and continued to engage enemy targets. Weakened by his wounds and fatigued by the fierce firefight, Captain Versace stubbornly resisted capture by the over-powering Viet Cong force with the last full measure of his strength and ammunition. Taken prisoner by the Viet Cong, he exemplified the tenets of the Code of Conduct from the time he entered into Prisoner of War status. Captain Versace assumed command of his fellow American soldiers, scorned the enemy's exhaustive interrogation and indoctrination efforts, and made three unsuccessful attempts to escape, despite his weakened condition which was brought about by his wounds and the extreme privation and hardships he was forced to endure. During his captivity, Captain Versace was segregated in an isolated prisoner of war cage, manacled in irons for prolonged periods of time, and placed on extremely reduced ration. The enemy was unable to break his indomitable will, his faith in God, and his trust in the United States of America. Captain Versace, an American fighting man who epitomized the principles of his country and the Code of Conduct, was executed by the Viet Cong on 26 September 1965. Captain Versace's gallant actions in close contact with an enemy force and unyielding courage and bravery while a prisoner of war are in the highest traditions of the military service and reflect the utmost credit upon himself and the United States Army.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for October 29 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
29 October
1917: Civilian test pilot, Howard Rinehart, flew the first American DH-4 completed at Dayton. (21)
1928: Mrs. Clara Adams of Tannersville, Pa., became the first paying woman passenger on a Zeppelin. She left Lakehurst in the Graf Zeppelin on the eastward return flight to Germany. (24)
1950: KOREAN WAR. C-47s made aeromedical flights from Sinanju Airfield, N. Korea, the northernmost Korean airfield ever used by FEAF aircraft, some 40 miles north of Pyongyang. (28)
1953: In the first flight of the YF-100A Super Sabre at Edwards AFB, Lt Col Frank K. Everest set a speed record of 755.149 MPH over a 15-kilometer (9.3 miles) course. (9) (12)
1955: The first official flight of the Douglas RB-66B occurred. (31)
1956: Lockheed Missile Systems Division received a contract to start the Agena program. (12)
1963: General Curtis E. LeMay, CSAF, congratulated the 18 TFW at Kadena AB for its record conversion from F-100 to F-105 aircraft under combat status conditions and for passing the subsequent operational readiness inspection. The 18 TFW was the first USAF F-105 unit to accomplish this feat. (17)
1965: Test pilots Col Robert L. Stephens and Lt Col Daniel Andre received the Thompson Trophy for their 1 May 1965 flight of the YF-12, which set nine world performance records. C-130s began carrying fuel, ammunition, and supplies to Pleiku for the defense of Plei Me camp from North Vietnamese attacks. For the next 29 days, the C-130s moved 186 tons a day to support the 1st Cavalry Division. (18)
1969: SAC announced the phaseout of all B-58 Hustler strategic bombers from its inventory. (16) (26)
1975: Nellis AFB received the first F-5E Tiger II in the USAF aircraft inventory. (16) (26)
1986: TAC won the first Reconnaissance Air Meet at Bergstrom AFB. (16) SAC selected rail garrison as the preferred basing mode for the second deployment of Peacekeeper missiles. This basing mode would have placed another 50 missiles on continuous alert in railroad cars garrisoned on SAC bases for dispersal over the commercial rail network on short notice. (16)
1994: The Air Force's fourth B-2 (#8-0332), the Spirit of Washington, joined the 509th Bomb Wing at Whiteman. (15)
1998: John H. Glenn, Jr., a former US Senator and the first astronaut to orbit earth, returned to space on the Space Shuttle Discovery. At 76, Glenn became the oldest person to enter space. He participated in a test to determine the effects of microgravity on the elderly. (21)
2004: NASA's KC-135A aerospace vehicle trainer, the "Vomit Comet," flew its final sortie. NASA used the "Comet" at Edwards AFB to provide zero gravity training to students at the Aerospace Vehicle Test Course. The KC-135A performed its famed roller-coaster maneuver some 35,000 times. (3)
2007: WILDFIRE SUPPORT. Air Forces Northern tasked various specialized aircraft to provide firefighting commanders and civil authorities with photos and video of wildfires in Southern California. The aircraft included the RQ-4 Global Hawk and U-2 Dragon Lady from Beale AFB, Calif., and a Navy P-3 Orion from Naval Air Station North Island, Calif. This event was the first time a Global Hawk provided domestic support civil authorities. (AFNEWS, "Global Hawk, U-2 Capture Essential Wildfires Images," 29 Oct 2007.) Operation IRAQI FREEDOM/DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS. An A-10 pilot from the 510th Fighter Squadron received this award for supporting friendly forces near An Najaf, Iraq. After a local training mission over the Dolomite Mountains, Capt George Collings received his award at Aviano AB, Italy, from his father Maj Gen Michael Collings, the senior U.S. defense representative to Egypt. The junior Collings distinguished himself during a close-airsupport mission for friendly forces trying to reach a downed AH-64 Apache helicopter. When small-arms fire from anti-Iraqi forces pinned the rescue forces down, Collings delivered a 500- pound laser-guided bomb inside a canal to kill six anti-Iraqi forces and incapacitate 30 others. His attack allowed the rescue party to recover the bodies of the American fallen warriors. (AFNEWS, "Father Pins Distinguished Flying Cross on Son," 30 Oct 2007.)
2007: OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM/MACKAY TROPHY. Captain Scott Markle received the trophy for his actions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Captain Markle, an A-10 Thunderbolt II pilot from the 81st Fighter Squadron at Spangdahlem AB, Germany, engaged Taliban fighters on 16 June 2006, who were fighting an American special forces team on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. When he arrived just before dawn, visibility made it difficult to find the team's location. Unable to employ weapons due to the enemy's close proximity to the team, he flew a dangerously low pass over the area and released self-protection flares. A ground controller then asked Markle to make a few more close passes to give the U. S. team the time to create more distance from the Taliban forces. Afterwards, he strafed the enemy with more than 1,000 30-millimeter rounds, allowing the special forces team to escape with no casualties. In his effort, Markle destroyed three machine gun nests and killed 40 enemy combatants. (AFNEWS, "A-10 Pilot Awarded Mackay Trophy," 30 Oct 2007.)
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