Italian submarine Aradam

Italian submarine "Aradam" was an built in the 1930s, serving in the Regia Marina during World War II. She was named after the Amba Aradam mountain in Ethiopia.
Design and description.
The "Adua"-class submarines were essentially repeats of the preceding . They displaced surfaced and submerged. The submarines were long, had a beam of and a draft of .
For surface running, the boats were powered by two diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. When submerged each propeller was driven by a electric motor. They could reach on the surface and underwater. On the surface, the "Adua" class had a range of at , submerged, they had a range of at .
The boats were armed with six internal torpedo tubes, four in the bow and two in the stern. They were also armed with one deck gun for combat on the surface. The light anti-aircraft armament consisted of one or two pairs of machine guns.
Construction and Career.
"Aradam" was built at the CRDA shipyard, in Monfalcone. She was laid down on 14 February 1936, launched on 18 October of the same year, and commissioned on 16 January 1937. On March 6, 1937, she was assigned to 23rd Submarine Squadron in Naples. During the next three years "Aradam" conducted several training missions between Tobruk, Benghazi and the Dodecanese.
At the time of Italy's entrance into World War II, she was assigned to the 71st Squadron (VII Submarine Group) based in Cagliari. Her commander at the time was captain Giuseppe Bianchini. On June 10, 1940, she was sent to patrol an area between Sardinia and the island of La Galite. She returned to the base on June 14 without encountering any enemies.
Her second war mission was to attack a French convoy for North Africa in the Gulf of Lion. On June 21 she observed an increased aircraft activity in the area, which indicated an approaching convoy. On June 23 at 3:12 "Aradam" sighted a fast moving ship in the position , and unsuccessfully attacked her.
In July and August 1940, "Aradam" carried out two missions off Gibraltar.
In October 1940, she was sent to patrol off La Galite first and then transferred to the area about 60 miles north of Cap de Fer. Then when patrolling 45 miles west of La Galite, On October 27, 1940, she sighted a destroyer and had to dive and move away.
In the afternoon of November 9, 1940 "Aradam" left Cagliari and to patrol off La Galite along with four other submarines (including and ) as a screen to British Operation "Coat". She returned from this mission without any sightings.
On November 14, 1940, she returned to the sea (together with and ) to screen British Operation "White" (transfer of 14 aircraft to Malta from Force-H aircraft carrier).
In January 1941, patrolled 40 miles east of the island of La Galite. In the afternoon of January 9 she detected a ship conducting anti-submarine activity in the area, and moved away.
In April 1941 she patrolled off Cyrenaica and Egypt.
Between the end of July and the beginning of August, "Aradam" was sent with three other submarines to an area southwest of Sardinia to screen British Operation "Style", but she failed to see any enemy ships.
In September 1941, during British Operation "Halberd" she was deployed together with three other submarines in a defensive ambush to the east of Balearic Islands but British ships did not pass in this area. "Aradam" then moved further south and in fact on 29 September 1941, sighted a formation of British ships, but she failed to get involved.
In October 1941, she again was on mission sixty miles east of the island of La Galite.
In November 1941, she operated 45 miles northeast of Tunis.
In December 1941, she was deployed off La Galite again.
In January 1942 she was patrolling south of Malta
In February 1942, she patrolled off Algeria, detecting the noises of enemy ships (on February 10), but was unable to locate the convoy.
In March 1942, she patrolled off Cape Bougaroun.
On April 6, 1942, at 03:12 "Aradam" (under command of captain Oscar Gran), sailing east of Kélibia, sighted a large ship, later identified as , navigating westward in the direction of Cape Bon, and launched a torpedo at 03:17 from about 500 meters in the position .
The seriously damaged destroyer, tried to go towards the coast, but a detonation of her ammunition depot broke her in two, while "Aradam" observed the events.
According to other sources, stopped at 4:15 in the position , perhaps to avoid the torpedo and was not hit, but was demolished by her crew once they realized the destroyer had run aground and could not be dislodged. According to a third version, "Aradam" torpedoed and destroyed s wreck.
In May 1942 she operated north of Cape Blanc.
In mid-June 1942 "Aradam" was sent together with four other submarines, including "Ascianghi" and "Dessiè" to patrol off Cape Blanc and later between Malta, Pantelleria and Lampedusa in an attempt to intercept British convoy as part of the Operation "Harpoon". However, the submarine did not sight any enemy ships.
On November 8, 1942 Operation Torch was launched: more than 500 British and American vessels escorted by 350 warships began landing 107,000 troops on the coasts of Algeria and Morocco, thus opening the second front in North Africa. Together with many other Italian and German submarines "Aradam" was immediately dispatched to the southern Mediterranean. On November 16, 1942 "Aradam" (under command of Carlo Forni) at night entered the Bay of Bona and found a convoy of three transport with three escorts. She fired two torpedoes, but missed. Then at 5:06 she launched two more torpedoes but missed again. "Aradam" then shelled the ships with her deck gun hitting and slightly damaging one of the transports before diving to evade the escorts.
From December 1942 through February 1943 she went on several missions patrolling off Cyrenaica.
In March 1943 "Aradam" patrolled in the Gulf of Sirte.
In May 1943, she patrolled west of Sardinia.
On April 10, 1943, she was at La Maddalena when the base was bombed by 84 US B 24 Liberator aircraft who sunk smaller boats and heavy cruiser Trieste, but "Aradam" was not hit but had two crew members wounded.
After Italy signed Armistice of Cassibile surrendering to Allies the submarine was undergoing maintenance in Genoa. "Aradam" was also being converted to a SLC boat. Since she could not leave, her crew scuttled her to avoid capture.
"Aradam" was refloated by the Germans but repairs were never finished. On September 4, 1944, she was hit by bombs and sank in the port of Genoa during an Allied air attack.


Boeing XP3B

The Boeing XP3B-1 (company designation Model 466) was a proposed patrol aircraft, developed by Boeing for use by the United States Navy in the late 1940s. It was planned to be powered by two Allison T40 turboprops driving contra-rotating propellers, and utilized tandem landing gear. The project was cancelled before any aircraft were built.


Etihad Airways fleet

Etihad Airways operates a fleet of both narrow body and widebody aircraft from three aircraft families Airbus A320 family, Airbus A380, Boeing 777 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner totaling 103 aircraft as of 31 March 2021.
Current fleet.
, the Etihad fleet consists of the following aircraft.
Etihad Airways announced the retirement of the Boeing 777-300ER by the end of 2021.
Historical fleet.
Etihad Airways operated the following aircraft in the past:


Airship Airways


United States Army Aviation Center of Excellence

The U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence, previously the Army Aviation Center and School, is the United States Army Aviation Branch's training and development center, located at Fort Rucker, Alabama. It "trains military, civilian, and international personnel in leadership skills [and] integrates aviation warfighting doctrine and requirements determination across the DOTMLPF" Its Commanding General is Major General David J. Francis.
The Center of Excellence includes three aviation brigades, the 1st Aviation Brigade, 110th Aviation Brigade, and 128th Aviation Brigade, and a Noncommissioned Officers' Academy.
History.
Most training of pilots and mechanics for World War II Army Aviators was conducted by the Department of Air Training within the Field Artillery School at Henry Post Army Airfield, Okla., although the Army Air Forces conducted some primary training of Army Aviation personnel. During the Korean War, the Department of Air Training at Post Field expanded, and in early 1953, it became the Army Aviation School. As a result of the expansion of both aviation and artillery training, Post Field became overcrowded, and the Army decided to move the Army Aviation School to a different post. When no satisfactory permanent Army post was found, a temporary post, Camp Rucker, Ala., was chosen. The Army Aviation School began moving to Alabama in August 1954 and the first class began at Rucker in October.
On 1 February 1955, the Army Aviation Center was officially established at Rucker. In October of that year, the post was given permanent status with the name change from Camp Rucker to Fort Rucker. Before the mid-1950s, the Air Force had provided primary training for Army Aviation pilots and mechanics. In 1956, the U.S. Department of Defense gave the Army control over all of its own training. Gary and Wolters Air Force Bases in Texas, where the Air Force had been conducting this training, were also transferred to the Army. Lacking adequate facilities at Fort Rucker, Army Aviation continued primary fixed-wing training at Camp Gary until 1959 and primary rotary-wing training at Fort Wolters until 1973.
The pioneer African American flying instructor Milton Crenchaw taught at then-Camp Rucker from 1954 to 1966.
In 1956, the Army Aviation Center began assembling and testing weapons on helicopters. These tests, conducted while the Air Force still theoretically had exclusive responsibility for aerial fire support, led to the development of armament systems for Army helicopters.
The 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission recommended that Aviation logistics establishments at Fort Eustis be consolidated with the Aviation Center and School at Fort Rucker, although this did not take place. What had become the U.S. Army Aviation Warfighting Center was subsequently renamed the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence on 26 June 2006.
Command and Directorates.
The 1st Aviation Brigade is based here.
The Unmanned Aerial Systems Center of Excellence (UAS CoE), as the U.S. Army UAS Proponent's principle management agency, provides intensive, centralized total capacity management and Unmanned Aerial System integration. The CoE coordinates with all Army institutional and operational organizations, Joint and other DoD agencies as required, to achieve a coherent and sustainable UAS strategy fostering the development of relevant and responsive concepts for current, emerging and future UAS interoperability with all manned and unmanned platforms.
The UAS CoE mission statement is to provide: "integration and coordination with all Army organizations, the joint services, and other Defense Department agencies to achieve the U.S. Army UAS strategy that includes concepts for current, emerging and future UAS interoperability with all manned and unmanned systems".
The 110th Aviation Brigade consists of four battalions using three different sites. 1st Battalion, 11th Aviation Regiment, operates and manages air traffic control services for USAACe/Fort Rucker and the National Airspace System. 1st Battalion, 14th Aviation Regiment operates from Hanchey Army Heliport and conducts graduate level training using the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter. 1st Battalion, 212th Aviation Regiment operates from Lowe Army Heliport and Shell Army Heliport and conducts combat and night operational training, using OH-58 Kiowa, UH-1 Iroquois, and UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters. 1st Battalion, 223d Aviation Regiment operates from Cairns Army Airfield and Knox Army Heliport and conducts flight training using the CH-47 Chinook helicopter and C-12 Huron aircraft.
Training.
At the Center students both learn to fly and also to employ aviation assets to assist United States forces with the 110th Aviation Brigade. Students usually spend 15–18 months in aviation school, learning a wide range of subjects, and finally graduating with their "wings" or Aviator's Badge. When second lieutenants arrive at Fort Rucker after graduating from their commissioning source (USMA, ROTC or OCS) they secure housing, they attend the two-month Basic Officer Leadership Course (BOLC) at Fort Rucker. Upon completion, they join the rest of their classmates, usually junior Warrant Officers, many of whom have previous enlisted experience.
Before starting academics, students must complete Dunker training and Army SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape) school. After SERE, students transition to Initial Entry Rotary Wing Aeromedical Training, or "aeromed" at the U.S. Army School of Aviation Medicine, where they learn subjects pertaining to flight and the human body. The information taught in these classes is tested frequently by instructor pilots (IPs) throughout flight school. Flight training varies by student and aircraft type, but in general students will complete Basic flight training, Instrument flight training and basic combat skills training. Students are taught the basics of flight as well as instrument flight in a TH-67 Bell Jetranger aircraft. Basic Combat skills training is taught in an OH-58.


Sabre 340

The Sabre 340 is an American ultralight trike that was designed and produced by Sabre Aircraft of Buckeye, Arizona. The aircraft was supplied fully assembled.
The 340 was introduced in 1991. Sabre Aircraft ceased operations in 2008.
Design and development.
The aircraft was designed with a focus on low cost, to comply with the US FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicles rules, including the category's maximum empty weight of . The aircraft has a standard empty weight of with the Sabre 14 wing. It features a cable-braced hang glider-style high wing, weight-shift controls, a single-seat open cockpit, tricycle landing gear and a single engine in pusher configuration.
The aircraft is made from tubing, with its single-surface Sabre 14 wing covered in Dacron sailcloth. Its span wing is supported by a single tube-type kingpost and uses an "A" frame control bar. As a budget design the basic aircraft has no cockpit fairing or windshield, but does feature nosewheel suspension and heavy-duty main landing gear struts as standard equipment. The standard engine supplied was the twin cylinder, two-stroke, air-cooled Kawasaki 340 snowmobile engine, which produces . Available factory options included a fiberglass cockpit fairing, nosewheel brakes, wheel pants, ballistic parachute and an aero-tow kit. Optional engines included the Rotax 447 and the Rotax 503. The standard wing supplied was Sabre Aircraft's own Sabre 14 single-surface wing, with the double-surface Ukrainian-built Aeros Stranger 15 wing optional.
The design achieved a very low price point and in its basic configuration sold for US$6,000, complete and ready to fly, in the late 1990s. It was the least expensive complete aircraft available at that time.


List of Etihad Airways destinations

Etihad Airways was established as the national airline of the United Arab Emirates in July 2003 by Royal (Amiri) Decree issued by Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Services were launched with a ceremonial flight to Al Ain on 5 November 2003. On 12 November 2003, Etihad commenced commercial operations with the launch of services to Beirut, and has gone on to serve 74 passenger and 5 dedicated cargo destinations across five of six inhabited continents as of October 2018.


List of defunct airlines of the Marshall Islands

This is a list of now defunct airlines from the Marshall Islands.


AirClub

The AirClub is a 2012 founded airline alliance of seven airlines. It is considered to be the first and only airline alliance of business airlines, in the world. The alliance has a fleet of over 100 aircraft and is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
Members.
As of February 2015, the AirClub has the following members:


Air Scandic

Air Scandic was an airline from Jersey, Channel Islands, operating charter flights for various UK tour operators, most of which operated out of Manchester Airport.
Fleet.
Over the years, Air Scandic operated the following aircraft types:


Eduard Dietl

Eduard Wohlrat Christian Dietl (21 July 1890 – 23 June 1944) was a German general during World War II who commanded the 20th Mountain Army. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords of Nazi Germany.
Military career.
Born in 1890, Dietl joined the army on 1 October 1909 as a Fahnenjunker in the 5th Infantry Regiment "Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig of Hesse" of the Bavarian Army in Bamberg. In the World War I, he was deployed on the Western Front in which he was wounded twice in October 1914 and October 1918. During the Weimar Republic, he joined the Deutsche Arbeiter-Partei, the precursor to the National Socialist German Workers Party, and the paramilitary group Freikorps of Franz Ritter von Epp in 1919. Dietl continued to serve in the German Army and, as a Generalmajor, he helped organise the 1936 Winter Olympics held at Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
Dietl commanded the German 3rd Mountain Division that participated in the German invasion of Norway on 9 and 10 April 1940. Most of this division was landed at Narvik by a German naval force of ten destroyers, commanded by Commodore Friedrich Bonte, subsequently all ten destroyers that had ferried Dietl's troops to Narvik were sunk in the First and Second Battles of Narvik. Dietl's mountaineers withdrew into the hills and later retook the town when Britain abandoned her efforts to evict the Germans from Norway due to German success on the Western Front (the Franco-German border, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands). Outnumbered by British, French and Polish forces, his skillful defense utilized ammunitions, food and sailors (re-drafted as infantrymen) from the sunken ships. This gained him the nickname "The hero of Narvik".
Dietl subsequently commanded German forces in Norway and northern Finland and in Eastern Europe and rose to the rank of "Generaloberst", commanding the 20th Mountain Army on the northern Eastern Front, where the results of the German Arctic campaign were disappointing. Dietl initially turned down his promotion, but was convinced to accept the appointment by Generaloberst Alfred Jodl.
Death.
On 23 June 1944, the Ju 52 aircraft carrying Dietl, General der Infanterie Thomas-Emil von Wickede, General der Gebirgstruppe Karl Eglseer, Generalleutnant der Gebirgstruppe Franz Rossi and three other passengers crashed in the vicinity of the small village of Rettenegg, Styria. There were no survivors.
Until 1997, the municipality of Ringelai in the Bavarian Forest honored Dietl with a memorial plaque. Until 1977, this site had honored Albert Leo Schlageter instead. Freyung honored Dietl with a "General-Dietl-Straße".
Assessment.
Dietl was sent to Finland designated to be the "Hero in the snow" (to be a counterpart to Rommel who would be the "Hero in the sun", also given a secondary theatre leaving the main stage to Hitler). A convinced National Socialist and one of Hitler's favourite generals, he was the first German soldier to receive, on 19 June 1940, the oak leaves cluster to the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Dietl was also popular among his men and his Finnish allies.
Klaus Schmider remarks that Dietl had too much political baggage to compensate for his admirable record as a mountain troops leader. As a young officer, he refused to assist the civil government in crushing the 1923 coup attempt. He was also a founding member of the NSDAP. What has led the Bundeswehr and the German federal government to reverse honours towards Dietl, though, is his recently discovered view on marriages between Scandinavian women and his soldiers, which was "extreme even by the standards of the Third Reich": after Dietl circulated an order that called Norwegian and Finnish women "racial flotsam", Himmler himself had to intervene to rescind it.
References.
Citations
Bibliography


Halley Skiway


Thousand-bomber raids

The term "thousand-bomber raid" was used to describe three night bombing raids by the Royal Air Force against German cities in summer 1942 during World War II. The term was a propaganda device, whereby Arthur Harris reached the number of bombers by including not only bombers that were currently operational as part of RAF Bomber Command, but also aircrews from Operational Training Units to accumulate a force of 1,000 bombers as a demonstration of the RAF's power. The bulk of the bomber force was twin-engined medium bombers such as the Vickers Wellington.
As the number of heavy bombers in the RAF increased, greater tonnage could be dropped on a target with fewer aircraft. Later mass RAF raids used between 400 and 700 four-engined bombers, and on some nights, Bomber Command could send two 400-bomber forces to separate targets. Operation Gomorrah in 1943 and the attack on Dresden in 1945 each used nearly 800 aircraft. Nearly 900 were sent to Berlin in February 1944; with aircraft on other missions that night more than 1,000 bombers were active, but 1,000 bombers were never sent against a single target after June 1942.


Thomas Mottershead

Thomas Mottershead VC, DCM (17 January 1892 – 12 January 1917) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
Background.
Thomas Mottershead was born in Widnes, Lancashire on 17 January 1892. He was the son of Thomas and Lucy Mottershead. He studied engineering at Widnes Technical School and was apprenticed as a fitter and turner after leaving school. In February 1914, he married Lilian Medlicott Bree and the couple had a son, Sydney, the following year. Mottershead was living at 31 Lilac Avenue in Widnes and working as a garage mechanic when World War I began. He enlisted in the Royal Flying Corps on 10 August 1914 as a mechanic, He was posted to the Central Flying school at Upavon and was promoted to Sergeant on 1 April 1916.
In May 1916 he began pilot training and 9 June of that year he obtained his Flying Certificate. He was posted to No.25 Squadron at St Omer, flying the FE 2, on 6 July 1916 and saw action in the Battle of the Somme.
Distinguished Conduct Medal.
One of his first operations was low-level bombing raid on a German anti-aircraft battery which he successfully destroyed. On 22 September, with 2/Lt C. Street as observer he bombed the railway station at Samain, destroying one ammunition train and strafing another. While climbing away from the target, their aircraft was attacked by a Fokker scout. Accounts of the engagement indicate that it was Mottershead's skillful manoeuvring which enabled Street to shoot the enemy aircraft down. For this action and other displays of gallantry, Sgt Mottershead was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal and promoted to the rank of Flight Sgt.
Undocumented accounts state that Mottershead and another No. 25 Squadron pilot landed on a German airfield, allowing their gunners to shoot up the hangars before taking off and escaping. The reputed date and location seem to remain unknown, but he was then transferred to No.20 Squadron at Clairmarais aerodrome.
Victoria Cross.
On 7 January 1917 near Ploegsteert Wood, Belgium, Sergeant Mottershead was on patrol in FE-2d (serial number A39) with observer Lt. W E Gower when he was engaged in combat by two Albatros D.III of Jasta 8. Lt Gower managed to hit one and put it out of the action, the second Albatros however, flown by German 'ace' "Leutnant" Walter Göttsch (20 victories), hit Mottershead's aircraft, with the petrol tank pierced and the machine was set on fire. Enveloped in flames which his observer was unable to subdue with a handheld fire extinguisher, the Sergeant was badly burned but nevertheless managed to take his aircraft back to the Allied lines and made a successful forced landing. The undercarriage collapsed on touching the ground however, throwing the observer clear but pinning Mottershead in his cockpit. He was subsequently rescued but died of his burns five days later.
Mottershead received the only V.C. ever awarded to a non-commissioned RFC officer during the First World War. The medal was presented to Mottershead's widow Lilian by King George V in a ceremony in Hyde Park, London on 2 June 1917.
Memorial Fund Concert.
On Wednesday, 11 April 1917 the Mayor of Widnes held a concert in the Premier Picture House for the "Memorial Fund to the late Sergeant T. Mottershead V.C, D.C.M"
The flyer for that concert included a 'TRIBUTE TO "A VERY GALLANT SOLDIER"', by Amanda Bebbington, also published in the "Weekly News" on 16 February 1917.
<poem>
TRIBUTE TO "A VERY GALLANT SOLDIER"
If I strove to tell this story as such story should be told,
I should write in jewel letters on a leaf of shining gold;
With a diamond pen to shrine each word as crystal as a tear,
And a blood-red fire of rubies to flash the record clear.
Oh! I cannot tell this story, for the flame is in my heart,
And my soul's afire with a vision of the mighty hero-part;
And I spill the diamonds, in tears, that blind my mortal eyes
As I dream the horror of that flight through the unpitying skies.
Oh! A nation's heart beats quicker with a proud exultant glow;
For such deeds as these can thrill her through her agony of woe.
And the England that doth render him her amplest meed of fame
Counts richest jewel in her crown her brave son's honoured name.
I leave the story all untold - too feeble are my words.
The ocean's diapason and the storm wind's thundering chords,
The very stars that strew the heavens, the suns that ceaseless roll
Shall sing and blaze the brighter since they keep that hero-soul.
</poem>
Statue.
On 1 April 2018 a statue commemorating Mottershead was unveiled in Victoria Park, Widnes.


XSM-73 Goose

The Fairchild SM-73 (originally Bull Goose) was a sub-sonic, jet-powered, ground-launched decoy cruise missile.
Development.
Starting in December 1952, Fairchild began concept studies for a ground-launched long range decoy missile that could simulate strategic bombers on radar.
In March 1953, the United States Air Force released General Operational Requirement (GOR) 16 which called for a long range decoy missile to increase the effectiveness of Strategic Air Command bombers by confusing and saturating an air defense system.
Multiple SM-73 missiles would be ground-launched from Strategic Air Command bases located in the continental United States. Fifty percent of the deployed SM-73 missiles would be launched within the first hour after an alert and the remaining missiles would be launched one hour later. The requirement called for 85 percent of the decoy missiles to arrive at the target area within 115 nm (185 km). The SM-73 was to fly 4,000 nm (7,408 km) at speed of at least 0.85 Mach at an operating altitude of 50,000 ft (15,240 m) with a payload of 500 lb (227 kg). After flying 2,500 nm (4,650 km), the SM-73' would simulate the performance of the B-47 Stratojet or B-52 Stratofortress over the final 1,500 nm (2,780 km) of flight.
Study contracts were awarded to Convair and Fairchild in July 1954 by the United States Air Force under the project designation MX-2223.
The Fairchild MX-2223 design called for a non-metallic fuselage with swept wings and a v-tail. Radar reflectors were located in the fuselage and on pods positioned on the wing tips to simulate the radar return of a bomber.
Design.
In December 1955, Fairchild was awarded a contract to develop Weapon System 123A which included the SM-73 missile. American Machine and Foundry Company was responsible for the ground equipment, Ramo-Woodridge Corporation was responsible for electronic equipment, and Paul Omohundro Co who was responsible for airframe elements.
Two engine contracts were awarded by the USAF in November 1954 to minimize development risk.
Each engine was in the 2,450 lbf (10.9 kN) thrust class with a thrust to weight ratio goal of 10:1. General Electric was awarded a contract for the development of the General Electric J85 and Fairchild was awarded a contract for the a competing engine the Fairchild J83. Fairchild proposed a lightweight engine of conventional design.
The proposed General Electric engine had a more advanced design, involving more risk, but having a higher thrust to weight ratio. The XSM-73 was powered by the Fairchild J83 on all test flights but was also capable of using the General Electric J85. The Fairchild J83 was operating by early 1957.
Like the MX-2223 design, the SM-73 utilized a non-metallic fiberglass fuselage. The swept wing of the MX-2223 design evolved to a fiberglass 52°delta wing. A Thiokol solid-propellant rocket booster was used to launch the SM-73 to a speed of 300 knots (345 mph).
Cruise speed for the SM-73 was 488 knots (562 mph). The SM-73 had a fuel capacity of 803 gal (3,040 L) of JP-4. This fuel was stored in 10 fuselage and six wing tanks.
An autopilot used a Rate integrating gyroscope for directional control. The rate integrating gyroscope could be pre-programmed to turn the SM-73. Pitch and roll control were provided by elevons either operating in phase or asymmetrically. Yaw control was provided by a rudder. The control system positioned flight controls by sending electrical signals to hydraulic actuators located at each flight control.
The SM-73 was designed to carry radar reflectors and active electronic countermeasures operating in S-band, L-band, and lower frequencies. The SM-73 was not armed.
Funding issues and problems with the fiberglass wing, the booster rocket, and the Fairchild J83 engine delayed testing.
Test and evaluation began in February 1957 with rocket sled tests at Holloman Air Force Base. A B-57 Canberra was modified and used as a flying engine testbed for the Fairchild J83. Testing of the SM-73 then transitioned to Patrick Air Force Base in June 1957. At Patrick Air Force Base, launch complexes 21 and 22 were constructed near the Cape Canaveral Light to support SM-73 testing. Five dummy booster launches and fifteen test flights were flown between March 1957 and December 1958.
The United States Air Force planned to purchase 2,328 operational missiles and 53 missiles for test and evaluation. This would have provided enough missiles for 10 squadrons. Deployment was planned to start in 1961 and be completed by October 1963. Bull Goose bases were initially planned at Duluth Municipal Airport, Minnesota and Ethan Allen Air Force Base, Vermont. Construction of Bull Goose missile sites began in August 1958.
In December 1958 the program was canceled because the missile was not able to simulate a B-52 on radar. The Fairchild J83 engine program was also canceled in November 1958. Total program cost at cancellation was $136.5 million USD.
The SD-5 Osprey reconnaissance drone was developed with the Goose as a basis.


HMS Egret (L75)

HMS "Egret" was a sloop of the British Royal Navy, the lead ship of her class. She was built by J. Samuel White at Cowes, Isle of Wight, was launched on 31 May 1938, and entered service on 11 November that year. "Egret" served as a convoy escort with the Western Approaches Command from 1940 until her loss in August 1943: She was on anti-submarine patrol in the Bay of Biscay when she was sunk by a guided missile in combat, the first ship to be lost in this manner.
Construction.
On 5 March 1937, the British Admiralty ordered two sloops-of-war of a new class, "Egret" and as part of the 1936 construction programme. "Egret" was laid down at J. Samuel White's Cowes, Isle of Wight shipyard on 21 September 1937. The ship was launched on 31 May 1938 and completed on 10 November 1938.
Service history.
At the outbreak of the Second World War "Egret" was at Laurenco Marques in East Africa. She was briefly employed in hunting for raiders in the Indian Ocean before returning to the UK via Suez and Gibraltar.
In 1940 "Egret" was based at Rosyth employed as escort to east coast convoys in the North Sea, and remained at this duty during the Norway campaign. In December transferred to Western Approaches Command, and was based at Londonderry for escort duty for SL/OS convoys to and from Freetown, in West Africa.
In June 1941 "Egret" was in dock for a refit before returning to escort duty
In January 1942, she was escorting SL 97 when it came under attack by German aircraft and a group of U-boats. The convoy was reinforced by the Gibraltar Strike Force, an ASW support group, and "U-93" was destroyed with no loss to the convoy.
In October "Egret" took part in Operation Torch, the Allied landings in French North Africa.
In December she was escorting convoy MKF 4 from Gibraltar when they intercepted the blockade runner "Germania", which was scuttled by her crew to avoid capture.
In 1943 "Egret" remained on escort duty protecting convoys to and from North Africa; in August 1943, while escorting MKF 20 from Gibraltar, "Egret" and her escort group were detailed to relieve 40 EG which was operating against U-boats traversing the Bay of Biscay.
Fate.
The British Bay offensive in the summer of 1943 saw aircraft from RAF Coastal Command patrolling the Bay of Biscay and attacking U-boats as they travelled to and from their bases in occupied France. A mistaken appreciation on the part of U boat commander, Adm. Karl Dönitz, had led to U-boats resisting air attack by remaining on the surface and fighting back with anti-aircraft weapons, rather than diving to safety underwater, a policy which led to the loss of a number of boats.
An escalation of the campaign had seen German and British long-range fighters, and then RN escort groups joining the fray. In mid-August 1943 40 EG was on station and came under air attack; on 25 August 1943 the Germans had used their Henschel Hs 293 glide bomb for the first time, against the ships of 40 EG in the Bay of Biscay. was slightly damaged by a near miss. was hit and damaged, with one sailor killed, though more serious damage was avoided because the bomb's explosive charge did not fully detonate.
On 27 August 1943 the 40th Support Group was relieved by the 1st Support Group, consisting of "Egret" together with the sloop and the frigates , , and . The group was attacked by a squadron of 18 Dornier Do 217 carrying Henschel glide bombs. One of the two covering destroyers, , was heavily damaged and "Egret" was sunk with the loss of 194 of her crew. At the time there were four RAF Y-Service electronics specialists on board, all of whom also died in the attack, thus bringing the total killed to 198. (These four RAF personnel are typically excluded from published casualty figures.) "Egret" had been fitted with electronic surveillance equipment designed to monitor Luftwaffe bomber communications and these Y-Service technicians were aboard to operate this equipment. The other destroyer, , commanded by Roger Hill, was attacked by the Dorniers firing one missile at a time, but survived by being able out-turn the glide bombs.
"Egret"s sinking led to the anti-U-boat patrols in the Bay of Biscay being suspended.
HMS "Egret" was the first ship ever to be sunk by a guided missile.


Naval Air Station Agana

Naval Air Station Agana is a former United States Naval air station located on the island of Guam. It was opened by the Japanese Navy in 1943 and closed by the United States government in 1995. During and after its closure, it was operated alongside Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport.
History.
The airport was built by the Japanese Navy about 1943, calling the military airfield Guamu Dai Ni (Guam No. 2) as part of their defense of the Marianas. After the island was recaptured by American forces in 1944, it was renamed Agana Airfield, due to the proximity of the town.
After being repaired in October 1944, the United States Army Air Forces Seventh Air Force used the airfield as a base for the 11th Bombardment Group, which flew B-24 Liberator bombers from the station until being moved to Okinawa in July 1945. With the reassignment of the heavy bombers, the 41st Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron flew long range reconnaissance aircraft (F-4 versions of the P-38 Lightning) from the field until January 1946.
After the war, the USAAF used the airfield for fighter defense of the Marianas (21st Fighter Group), (549th Night Fighter Squadron) until early 1947 and as a transport hub (9th Troop Carrier Squadron). In 1947, the USAAF turned over the airfield to the United States Navy, which consolidated its facilities with those at the closing Harmon Air Force Base in 1949, and operated Naval Air Station Agana until it was closed by the 1993 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission.
In 1992, Angel Santos and other Chamorro Nation members staged a protest outside the base. The protest was staged in response to the frequent low-altitude US military training flights that disturbed CHamorus living near the Air Station. At the protest, Santos read a statement criticizing the US military and their operations. The protest escalated when Santos and others jumped the fence surrounding the Naval Air Station, in front of gathered local media and members of the US military. Santos spat in the face of the US military policeman who arrested him.


Bunker buster

A bunker buster is a type of munition that is designed to penetrate hardened targets or targets buried deep underground, such as military bunkers.
Armor piercing shells.
Germany.
Röchling shells were bunker-busting artillery shells, developed by the German engineer August Cönders, based on the theory of increasing sectional density to improve penetration. They were tested in 1942 and 1943 against the Belgian Fort d'Aubin-Neufchâteau.
Aircraft delivered bombs.
World War II.
Germany.
In World War II the Luftwaffe developed a series of unguided rocket-propelled armor-piercing bombs for use against shipping and fortifications.
United Kingdom.
In World War II, the British designer Barnes Wallis, already famous for inventing the bouncing bomb, designed two bombs that would become the conceptual predecessors of modern bunker busters: the five tonne Tallboy and the ten tonne Grand Slam. These were "Earthquake" bombs—a concept he had first proposed in 1939. The designs were very aerodynamic, allowing them to exceed the speed of sound as they fell from 22,000 ft (6,700 m). The tails were designed with offset fins causing the bombs to spin as they fell. Using the same principle as a spinning top, this enabled them to resist being deflected, thereby improving accuracy. They had casings of high grade steel, much stronger than the typical World War II bomb so that they would survive hitting a hardened surface, or penetrate deep into the ground.
Though these bombs might be thought of as 'bunker busters' today, in fact the original 'earthquake' theory was more complex and subtle than simply penetrating a hardened surface. The Earthquake bombs were designed not to strike a target directly, but to impact beside it, penetrate under it, and create a 'camouflet' or large buried cavern at the same time as delivering a shock wave through the target's foundations. The target then collapses into the hole, no matter how hardened it may be. The bombs had strong casings because they needed to travel through rock rather than reinforced concrete, though they could perform equally well against hardened surfaces. In an attack on the Valentin U-Boat pens at Farge, two Grand Slams went through the 15 ft (4.5 m) reinforced concrete hardening—equalling or exceeding the best current penetration specifications.
The British "Disney" bomb (officially "4500 lb Concrete Piercing/Rocket Assisted bomb") was a World War II device designed to be used against U-boat pens and other super-hardened targets. Devised by Captain Edward Terrell RNVR of the Admiralty's Directorate of Miscellaneous Weapons Development, it had a streamlined hardened case and weighed some including the rocket assembly. The actual explosive content was about .
For accuracy, the bombs had to be dropped precisely from a pre-determined height (usually ). They would free-fall for around 30 seconds until, at , the rockets were ignited, causing the tail section to be expelled. The rocket burn lasted for three seconds and added to the bomb's speed, giving a final impact speed of , approximately Mach 1.29. Post-war tests demonstrated that the bombs were able to penetrate a thick concrete roof, with the predicted (but untested) ability to penetrate of concrete.
United States.
Post war, the US added a form of remote guidance to the Tallboy to create the "Tarzon", a 12,000-pound bomb (5,443 kg) deployed in the Korean War against an underground command center near Kanggye.
Modern.
During Operation Desert Storm (1991), there was a need for a deep penetration bomb similar to the British weapons of World War II, but none of the NATO air forces had such a weapon. As a stop-gap, some were developed over a period of 28 days, using old 8 inch (203 mm) artillery barrels as casings. These bombs weighed over two tons but carried only of high explosive. They were laser-guided and were designated "Guided Bomb Unit-28 (GBU-28)". It was proven effective for the intended role.
An example of a Russian bunker buster is the KAB-1500L-Pr. It is delivered with the Su-24M and the Su-27IB aircraft. It is stated to be able to penetrate 10–20 m of earth or 2 m of reinforced concrete. The bomb weighs , with being the high explosive penetrating warhead. It is laser guided and has a reported strike accuracy of CEP.
The US has a series of custom made bombs to penetrate hardened or deeply buried structures:
More recently, the US has developed the 30,000-pound GBU-57.
Fuzing.
The traditional fuze is the same as a classic armor-piercing bomb: a combination of timer and a sturdy dynamic propeller on the rear of the bomb. The fuze is armed when the bomb is released, and detonates when the propeller stops turning and the timer has expired.
Modern bunker busters may use the traditional fuze, but some also include a microphone and microcontroller. The microphone listens, and the micro controller counts floors until the bomb breaks through the desired numbers of floors.
ATK is working on a Hard Target Void Sensing Fuze (HTVSF) for 2000 and 5000 pound weapons to explode when they reach an open space in a deeply buried bunker.
Missiles.
The extra speed provided by a rocket motor enables greater penetration of a missile-mounted bunker buster warhead. To reach maximum penetration (impact depth), the warhead may consist of a high-density projectile only. Such a warhead carries more energy than a warhead with chemical explosives (kinetic energy of a projectile at hypervelocity).
Nuclear.
The nuclear bunker buster is the nuclear weapon version of the bunker buster. The non-nuclear component of the weapon is designed to greatly enhance the penetration into soil, rock, or concrete to deliver a nuclear warhead to a target. These weapons would be used to destroy hardened, underground military bunkers deeply buried. In theory, the amount of radioactive nuclear fallout would be reduced from that of a standard, air-burst nuclear detonation because they would have relatively low explosive yield. However, because such weapons necessarily come into contact with large amounts of earth-based debris, they may, under certain circumstances, still generate significant fallout. Warhead yield and weapon design have changed periodically throughout the history of the design of such weapons. An underground explosion releases a larger fraction of its energy into the ground, compared to an explosion at or above the surface which releases most of its energy into the atmosphere.
Russian spy interest.
In 2010, it was revealed that members of the Illegals Program, a group of Russian sleeper agents in the US were gathering online information about bunker busters and made contacts with a former intelligence official and with a scientist involved in developing the weapons.


Hawker Pacific Aerospace

Hawker Pacific Aerospace (HPA) is an aircraft maintenance company which offers landing gear and hydraulic maintenance, repair and overhaul services for all major aircraft types, including all current Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier and Embraer models, as well as helicopters.
Lufthansa Technik (LHT), a subsidiary of Lufthansa German Airlines, acquired Hawker Pacific in 2002. Within the LHT network, Hawker is able to provide an around the world landing gear service.
HPA's corporate headquarters are located in Sun Valley, Los Angeles, California, near to Bob Hope Burbank International Airport.
History.
Hawker Pacific Aerospace was formed in 1980. In 1991, Hawker Siddeley was absorbed by BTR Aerospace Group. In 1994, Hawker Pacific merged with Dunlop Aviation Inc and in 1996, Hawker Pacific Aerospace was sold by BTR and became a stand-alone company.
In 1998, Hawker Pacific completed its initial public offering of common stock and used the proceeds to acquire the landing gear, flap track and flap carriage operation from British Airways.
In 2002, Lufthansa Technik acquired 100% ownership of Hawker Pacific Aerospace including its UK location. Hawker was added to Lufthansa Technik's Landing Gear Division to form a global network for landing gear maintenance, repair and operations services.
In January 2011, Hawker Pacific Aerospace UK was sold to Lufthansa Technik and renamed into Lufthansa Technik Landing Gear Services UK.
Business divisions.
Hawker Pacific Aerospace has three business divisions:


Air Sask


Benbrook Field

Benbrook Field (Camp Taliaferro Field #3) is a former World War I military airfield, located North of Benbrook, Texas. It operated as a training field for the Air Service, United States Army between 1917 until 1919. It was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the United States entry into World War I in April 1917.
After the United States' entry into World War I in April 1917, General John J. "Blackjack" Pershing invited the British Royal Flying Corps to establish training fields in Texas for the training of American and Canadians volunteers because of its mild weather. After looking at sites in Dallas, Fort Worth, Waco, Austin, Wichita Falls and Midland, three sites were established in 1917 in the Fort Worth vicinity (known as the "Flying Triangle."), those being Hicks Field (#1), Barron Field (#2), and Benbrook Field (#3).
Canadians named the training complex Camp Taliaferro after Walter Taliaferro, a US aviator who had been killed in an accident. Camp Taliaferro was headquartered under the direction of the Air Service, United States Army, which had an administration center near what is now the Will Rodgers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, Texas.
History.
Taliafero Field No. 3 was used by the Royal Flying Corps from October 1917 to April 1918 as a training field for American and Canadian pilots. It was then turned over to the Air Service, United States Army. The Americans renamed the field Carruthers Field after Cadet W. K. Carruthers, who was killed at Hazelhurst Field, New York, when he was struck by a revolving propeller on 18 June 1917. At some point after July 1918 it was renamed Benbrook Field by the United States Army.
World War I.
The Benbrook Field station area was located south of Mercedes Street in Benbrook. It occupied the area west of Winscott Road, being bordered on the west by Walnut Creek. A railroad spur connected with the Texas & Pacific line across Walnut Creek. Most of the 34 buildings and hangars were located in an area generally bounded by Mercedes Street on the north, Winscott Road on the east, Cozby North Street on the south, and Walnut Creek on the west.
Benbrook was used as an aerial gunnery school for American & Canadian students. One particular Canadian aviator, Captain Vernon Castle, was already world-renowned as the famed dance team of Vernon & Irene Castle. Regrettably, he was killed in a plane crash at Benbrook Field during training exercises. Some witnesses believed that he deliberately crashed in order to avoid hitting another plane, and saved their lives. His burial was witnessed by thousands of mourners, who sadly watched the flagged draped casket pass in downtown Fort Worth. Even today, there is a street in Benbrook named in his honor.
Training units assigned to Benbrook Field:
Benbrook Field was closed at the end of April, 1919 and the buildings dismantled. Following the closure, the land was purchased by William Monnig and was used as a dairy. Today, the entire area has been redeveloped into what is now the Benbrook Lakeside subdivision. Intermixed within the houses are small, broken, isolated concrete slabs, the remainders of wartime buildings and hangars. The last remaining building was an ammunition warehouse west of U.S. 377 that was demolished in 2004 to facilitate future commercial development. Today a Texas historical marker for the airfield is located north of Mercedes Street, across the street from the Church at Benbrook as a memorial to the fliers of Benbrook Field.


Ferme de Moras Aerodrome

Ferme de Moras Aerodrome, was a temporary World War I airfield in France. It was East of the commune of La Ferté-sous-Jouarre, in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.
Overview.
The airfield was a temporary facility created by the French Aeronautique Militaire in late 1917, operational until December 1918, which means that it probably consisted of several wood-and-fabric "Bessonneau" hangars, plus wooden huts.
It was used for a short spell during summer 1918 by the I Corps Observation Group, during the Aisne-Marne Offensive Campaign. The two group's squadrons, 1st and 12th Aero Squadron operated from the field until moving out at the beginning of August to May-en-Multien Aerodrome, as did the group's HQ.
The last French "escadrille" left on 1 December 1918, and the airfield was soon cleared of all its building and returned to agricultural use. Today it is a series of cultivated fields located on the plateau 2 miles east of La Ferté sous Jouarre, north of D 407.


Louis Bennett Field

Louis Bennett Field is a private-use airport located north of the central business district of Weston, in Lewis County, West Virginia, United States. It is privately owned by West Virginia University.
The airport is named in honor of Weston native Louis Bennett Jr., a pilot with the Royal Flying Corps during World War I.
Facilities.
Louis Bennett Field covers an area of at an elevation of 1,014 feet (309 m) above mean sea level. It has one asphalt paved runway designated 1/19 which measures 3,195 x 50 feet (974 x 15 m).


C. W. Hill

Cedric Waters Hill (3 April 1891 – 5 March 1975) was an Australian officer in the Royal Flying Corps and later the Royal Air Force who, together with E. H. Jones, escaped from the Yozgad prisoner of war camp in Turkey during the First World War. Their epic story was told in Jones' book "The Road to En-dor" and in his own book "The Spook and the Commandant".
Between February 1917 and October 1918, Jones and Hill convinced their Turkish captors that they were mediums adept at the Ouija board. Taking advantage of the greed of the Turkish camp Commandant, with promises of buried treasure via the Ouija board, the two men managed to engineer the circumstances of their imprisonment to favour their escape. Eventually they convinced their gaolers to repatriate them by feigning insanity, arriving home only a few months before the Armistice.
Hill continued his career in the RAF after the war. Granted a short service commission as a flying officer on 6 December 1920, he was promoted flight lieutenant in January 1923 and appointed to a permanent commission six months later. He was advanced to squadron leader in 1931. Hill commanded No. 1 Squadron from October 1934 to January 1936 and again from December that year until April 1937. That same month, he was promoted to wing commander and appointed to command RAF Tangmere. He was made an acting group captain from 1 June 1940, during the Second World War, and retired from the RAF in 1944. Hill then worked as a ferry pilot for the Air Transport Auxiliary.
On 5 March 1975, Hill died at his home in Windsor, Berkshire. He was survived by his wife and daughter.


Bore Sight Range and Compass Swinging Platform at Charters Towers Airfield

The Bore Sight Range and Compass Swinging Platform are a heritage-listed pair of aircraft testing facilities at Charters Towers Airport, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. They were built from 1942 to 1943. They are also known as Charters Towers WWII Airfield Gun Firing Range and Compass Swinging Station. They were added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 14 May 2010.
History.
Charters Towers Airfield was constructed for the United States Army in early 1942 to provide dispersal facilities for the main Townsville air base at Garbutt, in the event of Japanese air raids during World War II. During 1942 the US 3rd Bombardment Group was based at Charters Towers while undertaking strikes against Japanese bases in the south-west Pacific. From 1943 the airfield served as a US aircraft replacement and training centre. Facilities constructed during this period which remain include a bore sight range (a gun firing range used to check the alignment of the fixed guns of an aircraft) and a compass swinging station (used to check for magnetic deviation in an aircraft compass).
The site of Charters Towers Airfield is said to have been selected about December 1941 by Mr Pettus who was attached to the US Army with the honorary rank of Colonel. As a civilian with the US firm of Sverdrup and Parcel, engineering consultants to the US forces, Pettus was involved in a contour survey of the town for the placement of three runways each in length and wide, which it was optimistically thought would blend in with the Charters Towers street grid and be invisible from the air.
As early as July 1941 the Royal Australian Air Force had ordered a survey of the Charters Towers vicinity to identify sites for airfields to accommodate heavy bombers and combat aircraft and an initial survey was undertaken during September. This survey resulted in the selection of suitable airfield sites at Corinda (now Columbia), Sandy Creek (now Breddan) and several locations near Sellheim.
On 7 December 1941 Japanese aircraft made a surprise attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbour in the Hawaiian Islands. At the same time Japanese forces launched assaults on Thailand, the Philippines and the British colony of Malaya. Three days after Pearl Harbor, two capital ships of the Royal Navy were sunk off the coast of Malaya. This gave the Japanese almost total control of the seas to Australia's north. The sudden fall of Singapore on 15 February 1942 and the rapid, unchecked Japanese advance through the islands of the Netherlands East Indies raised fears of the invasion of Australia and aerial attacks on Queensland bases.
Charters Towers was the closest inland centre that could provide strategic support and aircraft dispersal facilities for the main North Eastern Area air base at Garbutt, Townsville, which was considered vulnerable to Japanese attack.
The RAAF ordered commencement of preliminary work on the Charters Towers town aerodrome during January 1942, with the grading of three temporary landing strips for use while the main aerodrome was under construction (two landing grounds were cleared on football fields and one near the cemetery).
By early February 1942 the airfield project had been accorded priority by the RAAF with a request that the NE-SW runway be graded first followed by the north-south runway. To get the project underway while awaiting the original plans, the airfield site was resurveyed by Main Roads Commission (MRC) engineers at Charters Towers and the layout was amended slightly.
Construction of Charters Towers airfield began in earnest on Monday 16 February 1942. Deadline for completion of the first strip was 14 days. Hundreds of men and all available earth-moving plant were brought in from Townsville and the first gravel strip was completed in 17 days. Grading of the second runway was completed soon after.
To speed base construction and foil Japanese aerial reconnaissance, all houses in the vicinity of the airfield were taken over so that personnel could be housed as inconspicuously as possible.
The airfield became operational during March with arrival of the first of four bombardment squadrons of the US Army Air Force 3rd Bombardment Group (Light), equipped with A-24 Dauntless dive bombers which had been intended for the Philippines. The group was later equipped with A-20 Boston medium bombers. These aircraft were followed by the arrival of B-25 Mitchell bombers that had been intended for use by the Dutch in the Netherlands East Indies, but were taken over by the Americans.
At Charters Towers, the cost for construction of runways, taxiways, hardstands, dispersal areas and all buildings and facilities was the responsibility of the US Army Services of Supply, Base Section Two. Works were ordered by the US Army through the federal Co-ordinator-General, Department of Public Works and contracted through the Department of Interior and Allied Works Council to the MRC for supervision.
In July 1942 the NE-SW runway (known as Runway 45, later Runway 56) was sealed and the north-south runway (known as Runway 7, later Runway 9) was metalled. The MRC used local mine tailings for the runways prompting a US press report that they were "paved with gold".
During 1942 Charters Towers airfield became instrumental in the development of the B-25 "Strafer". Experimentation began with the replacement of four fixed 30 calibre machine guns in the nose section of the A-20 Boston, with heavier 50 calibre machine guns which were found to be more effective for low level ground and shipping attack. This led to conversion of the B-25 Mitchell "bombardier nose" to a "gunnery nose". The B-25 conversion involved the fitting of eight fixed forward firing 50 calibre machine guns. The early B-25 "Strafer" conversions were carried out at Eagle Farm, Brisbane, on aircraft of 3 BG(M) operating from Charters Towers in low level strikes against Japanese shipping in Rabaul Harbour and airfields and bases in New Guinea. The B-25 "Strafer" conversion, initiated in North Queensland, was quickly adopted in all US theatres of World War II.
Following the transfer of 3 BG(M) to New Guinea in November 1942, Charters Towers airfield served through most of 1943 as a US Fighter and Bomber Command Replacement Training Centre.
During mid-February 1943 the Department of Public Works received a requisition from the US Army for construction of a gun firing range, or bore sight range, platform at Charters Towers airfield to test the accuracy of aircraft fixed armament. The work order was lodged with the superintending engineer, Department of Interior, Townsville. The concrete gun firing platform was designed with an adjustable metal plate set in front of the concrete block to take the nose wheel of aircraft with tricycle undercarriages, such as the B-25. A steel gantry frame with a sling was positioned on the platform to lift the tail of fighter aircraft with tail wheels such as the P-40. The bore sight range extended about to an earth mound, or butt, in front of which a target was set.
It was probably during this early period of 1943 that a compass swinging station, or platform, was constructed on the northern side of the NE-SW runway near its central point. No record of the date of construction has been located. The platform was a circular concrete slab, in diameter with a compass rose inscribed on its surface. Aircraft were pushed onto the platform and aligned with each of the 16 main cardinal points of the compass, starting with north. Variations in aircraft compass bearings were noted and compass magnets were adjusted.
The RAAF resumed responsibility for the maintenance of the airfield in May 1944. The US withdrawal was signalled in June 1944 when the Charters Towers Airfield was classified as a "reserve airdrome". Most of the US facilities at the airfield were turned over to the RAAF in December 1944. The Department of Civil Aviation was advised by the Department of Air in January 1946 that the RAAF planned to retain responsibility for Charters Towers airfield in the post-war period. RAAF responsibility has long since lapsed and today the airfield is operated by the Charters Towers Regional Council.
Description.
The Charters Towers Airfield (now Charters Towers Airport) is located on the northern outskirts of Charters Towers in the suburb of Columbia.
Bore Sight Range.
Aligned approximately east-west off the northern end of the wartime north-south runway (in the adjacent suburb of Toll), the Bore Sight Range includes an aircraft hardstand in the form of a raised concrete platform approximately square. A steel tie down shackle is set into the concrete surface. An adjustable metal plate, which can be raised or lowered, is set at the front of the raised hardstand to carry the nose wheel of aircraft fitted with tricycle undercarriages. A cleared range extends east about from the hardstand to the original earth butt, in front of which a recent display target is set.
Compass Swinging Platform.
The Compass Swinging Platform is located about south-east of the Bore Sight Range's hardstand (in the suburb of Columbia), on the northern side of the wartime NE- SW runway, near its central point. It comprises a circular concrete slab in diameter with a compass rose inscribed on the surface.
Heritage listing.
The Bore Sight Range and Compass Swinging Platform at Charters Towers Airfield were listed on the Queensland Heritage Register on 14 May 2010 having satisfied the following criteria.
The place is important in demonstrating the evolution or pattern of Queensland's history.
They are significant as surviving evidence of a major United States Fifth Air Force Aircraft Replacement and Training Centre developed for the Townsville region during World War II.
They are significant for their role in the operation of the US Replacement and Training Centre and in the conduct of the air war in the South West Pacific Area in association with the nearby RAAF aircraft repair and salvage installation at Breddan Airfield.
The place demonstrates rare, uncommon or endangered aspects of Queensland's cultural heritage.
The Bore Site Range is the only known example of its type in Queensland with an adjustable nose wheel platform to accommodate aircraft such as the P-39 Airacobra, A-20 Boston, B-25 Mitchell "Strafer", and B-26 Marauder.
The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a particular class of cultural places.
The Bore Sight Range and Compass Swinging Platform remain substantially intact and are important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of their types. The bore sight range retains its concrete hardstand, cleared range and earth butt. The circular concrete slab of the compass swinging platform remains adjacent to the wartime runway, and retains its compass rose inscription.


Donald Cochrane (economist)

Donald Cochrane (27 May 1917 – 31 March 1983) was an Australian econometrician. He was a long-time faculty member at the University of Melbourne, and is known for developing the Cochrane–Orcutt estimation procedure.
A native of Melbourne, Cochrane graduated from the University of Melbourne in 1945, after serving in the Royal Australian Air Force during World War II. He continued his studies at Clare College, Cambridge, earning a doctorate under supervision of Richard Stone.


Dhamra Airport

Dhamra Airport is a proposed to be built by the Dhamra Port Company Limited, 20 km from Dhamra Port in the Bhadrak district of Odisha, India.
In 2018, the Dhamara Port Company Limited (DPCL), run by the Adani Group, forwarded a proposal to the Odisha government to set up an airport to boost commercial activities near the Dhamra port. The Odisha government accorded in-principle approval in September 2018 and sought a detail project report.
In November 2018, the State Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding with DPCL for the development of a commercial airport over 500 acres at the cost of Rs. 500 crore.
In January 2020, the Government approved of DPCL's proposal to acquire 274 acres of land for the airstrip. The State Government would take a call on acquiring the remaining land for the project at a later date.


Touquin Aerodrome

Touquin Aerodrome, was a temporary World War I airfield in France. It was located West of Touquin, in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.
Overview.
As with Saints, Touquin airfield was hastily built during the Allied struggle to stop the (eventually last) German drive towards Paris across the river Marne. The first French unit arrived on 20 June 1918, followed by two other "escadrilles", then by the American 1st Pursuit Group, Air Service, United States Army on 28 June, with HQ and four squadrons. As it was summer, the field saw probably no more than a few tents, without any hangar to shelter the aircraft. All French units were gone by the 7 July, and the 1st Pursuit Group left for Saints on next 9 July.
On 25 February 1919, two French escadrilles arrived at the airfield, the last one leaving on 17 May, before the fields returned definitely to agricultural use. Today it is a series of cultivated fields located south of Pezarches. The airfield was located to the south of the Départmental 231 (D231), with no indications of its wartime use.


Charles Lewis (priest)

Charles Gerwyn Rice Lewis was a Welsh Anglican priest, most notably the third Archdeacon of Newport.<
Lewis served with the Royal Flying Corps during World War I. was educated at St David's College, Lampeter and ordained deacon in 1923 and priest in 1924. After curacies in Canton, Pwllgwaun and St Woolos, Newport he held incumbencies at Treherbert and All saints' Newport. Lewis was a Chaplain to the Forces during World War II. He was Archdeacon of Newport from 1953 archdeacon from 1949 until his death on 17 July 1964, during which time he was also Vicar of St Mellons.


Runway edge lights

Runway edge lighting are used to outline the edges of runways during periods of darkness or restricted visibility conditions. These light systems are classified according to the intensity they are capable of producing: no
Many HIRL and MIRL systems have variable intensity controls, whereas the LIRLs normally have one intensity setting. At airports where there is a control tower, the tower will manage the lights to account for visibility and pilot preference, but some airports do not have control towers. These airports will have Pilot Controlled Lighting, or PCL, where pilots can adjust the lighting themselves by keying a microphone button a certain number of times.
The majority of runway edge lights are clear or white, but there are some exceptions to provide additional information to pilots in certain circumstances.
When an instrument runway lighting is designed, the last , or one-half of the runway length available (whichever is less), are bi-directional. They look white to the pilot approaching from the short end of the runway, but to a pilot approaching from the other end, who would be landing or taking off in that direction, they are yellow to indicate that the runway is nearing the end.


308th Air Refueling Squadron

The 308th Air Refueling Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 2d Bombardment Wing at Hunter AFB, Georgia. It was inactivated on 1 March 1960.
The squadron was first active as the 318th Bombardment Squadron, an operational training unit and replacement training unit under Second Air Force during World War II.
In 1945, the 8th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron was activated as a demonstration unit for air ground support exercises.
In 1985 the three squadrons were consolidated into a single unit.
History.
The 318th Bombardment Squadron was established in early 1942 as a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombardment squadron. It was part of Second Air Force as a heavy bomber Operational Training Unit (OTU). The OTU program involved the use of an oversized parent unit to provide cadres to "satellite groups".
The squadron was assigned primarily to airfields in the Pacific Northwest training new units, then becoming a Replacement Training Unit (RTU). RTUs were oversized units that trained individual pilots or aircrews. It was transferred along with its parent group to Third Air Force in November 1943. However, standard military units, based on relatively inflexible tables of organization were proving less well adapted to the training mission. Accordingly, a more functional system was adopted in which each base was organized into a separate numbered unit. In this reorganization it was replaced along with other units at Avon Park AAF by the 325th AAF Base Unit (Replacement Training, Bombardment, Heavy) and was inactivated.
In 1945, the 8th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron was activated as a demonstration unit for air ground support exercises and served in this capacity in the early postwar era. It was disbanded in 1948.
The 308th Air Refueling Squadron, Medium was activated in 1953 at Hunter AFB, Georgia to provide air refueling of United States Air Force (Primarily Boeing B-47 Stratojet) aircraft using KC-97 Stratotankers on a worldwide basis. The squadron deployed to Sidi Slimane AB, Morocco in 1956. It maintained one third of its aircraft on alert in a test of Strategic Air Command's alert plan later that year. The squadron earned an Air Force Outstanding Unit Award for its performance in this test. In 1959 it was reassigned to the 2d Bombardment Wing at Hunter when the 308th Bombardment Wing became non-operational. It was discontinued in 1960 as Boeing B-52 Stratofortresses supported by Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers assumed the greater portion of the strategic bombardment mission.
The three units were consolidated in 1985 as the 308th Air Refueling Squadron but have not been active since.
Lineage.
318th Bombardment Squadron
8th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron
308th Air Refueling Squadron


Roche Harbor Seaplane Base

Roche Harbor Seaplane Base is a public-use seaplane base located adjacent to Roche Harbor, on San Juan Island in San Juan County, Washington, United States. It is owned by the Roche Harbor Resort.
Facilities and aircraft.
Roche Harbor Seaplane Base has two seaplane landing areas: NE/SW is 5,000 by 1,000 feet (1,524 x 305 m) and NW/SE is 2,500 by 500 feet (762 x 152 m). For the 12-month period ending May 31, 2009, the airport had 2,800 aircraft operations, an average of 233 per month: 57% air taxi and 43% general aviation.


350th Air Refueling Squadron

The 350th Air Refueling Squadron is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the 22nd Air Refueling Wing at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas. It operates Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft conducting aerial refueling missions.
Mission.
To organize, train and equip to provide global mobility, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.
History.
World War II.
Organization and Training for Combat.
The squadron was originally established as one of the original Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombardment squadrons of the 100th Bombardment Group in mid-1942 under Third Air Force, but was immediately transferred to Second Air Force for training. It remained a paper unit until the initial cadre of the ground echelon (4 officers and 27 enlisted men) were assigned at Gowen Field, Idaho. Two days later, the squadron departed for Walla Walla Army Air Base, Washington for Phase I training. There the first aircrew arrived on 1 December 1942.
In February 1943, the ground echelon went to Kearney AAF, Nebraska, while the air echelon went to Ainsworth, Casper and Scottsbluff Army Air Fields, where they acted as instructors training other units for the next three months. On 28 April, Colonel Alkire, the first group commander was relieved of duty. Two days later, the air echelon returned to Wendover Field, and would not be reunited with the ground echelon until arriving in England in June.
The ground echelon proceeded by rail to Camp Kilmer, then embarked on the RMS Queen Elizabeth, sailing on 27 May and arriving at Greenock on the Firth of Clyde, where they disembarked on 3 June. The flight echelon ferried their aircraft through Maine, Newfoundland, Labrador and Iceland to the United Kingdom.
Combat in the European Theater.
The 350th engaged in strategic bombardment operations over Occupied Europe and Germany, sustaining very heavy losses of personnel and aircraft while conducting many unescorted missions over enemy territory attacking airfields, industries, naval facilities and transportation hubs. The squadron flew its first mission against Bremen, Germany on 25 June 1943. During the summer of 1944, aircrews bombed enemy positions at Saint-Lô, followed by similar campaigns at Brest in August and September. In October 1944, the squadron attacked enemy and ground defenses in the allied drive on the Siegfried Line, then bombed marshaling yards, German occupied villages, and communication targets in the Ardennes during the Battle of the Bulge from December 1944 to January 1945. Attacked enemy targets in Germany during the spring of 1945, ending combat operations a strike on Berlin on 20 April 1945.
The squadron remained in Europe as part of the United States Air Forces in Europe occupation forces, dropping food to the people in the west of the Netherlands, and in June transported French Allied former prisoners of war from Austria to France. Demobilizing in England, in December 1945 the squadron inactivated as a paper unit.
Cold War.
Reserve organization.
The 350th activated in the Air Force Reserve in 1947 at Columbia AAB, South Carolina. It is unclear whether or not the unit was manned or equipped. It was inactivated in 1949 when Continental Air Command reorganized its reserve organization according to the Wing Base Organization.
Strategic Air Command.
The squadron reactivated under Strategic Air Command in 1956, and received new, swept wing Boeing B-47 Stratojet, which was designed to carry nuclear weapons and to penetrate Soviet air defenses with its high operational ceiling and near supersonic speed. The squadron flew the B-47 for about a decade when by the mid-1960s it had become obsolete and vulnerable to new Soviet air defenses. The squadron began to send its Stratojets to The Military Aircraft Storage and Disposition Center at Davis-Monthan AFB for retirement in 1965, the last being retired in 1966; it was one of the last B-47 squadrons.
It was redesignated as a strategic reconnaissance squadron, operating Ryan AQM-34 Firebee strategic reconnaissance drones launched from DC-130 Hercules aircraft and recovered by Sikorsky CH-3 helicopters from 1966–1976.
Transitioning to the KC-135Q Stratotanker in 1982, the squadron provided refueling support for SR-71 aircraft from, 1983–1990. The 350th also provided cargo support and intratheater refueling during combat in Southwest Asia from August 1990 – March 1991 during the Gulf War.
Modern Era.
At the end of the Cold War, the Air Force underwent extensive changes as a result of several rounds of Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC). On 1 January 1994, the 22nd Air Refueling Wing was assigned to McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas, as part of the Air Force's plan to return McConnell AFB to an air refueling hub. The 384th Air Refueling Squadron, a geographically separated unit of the 19th Air Refueling Wing (at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia) and a McConnell tenant unit, joined the 22 ARW as the first of four Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker squadrons to comprise the wing’s new tanker force. Within eight months, the 350th, 344th, and 349th Air Refueling Squadrons joined the 384th in the 22nd Operations Group to fly the wing's 48 KC-135s. In 1997, the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) selected McConnell as its training base for its KC-135 crews and maintenance personnel. The RSAF stationed two of their Stratotankers with the 22 ARW, naming the organization the Peace Guardian Detachment. From 1998 to 2003, the RSAF maintained a 300-person detachment at McConnell and trained with the 350th on air refueling techniques, tactics, and general airmanship.
Global War on Terrorism.
After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks against the United States, the Pentagon launched the Global War On Terrorism (GWOT). The 22nd Air Refueling Wing at McConnell AFB initially deployed tanker crews in support of Operation Noble Eagle (ONE). Before the end of the year, McConnell tankers were sent to the Middle East, Central Asia, Horn of Africa, and other locations to provide aerial refueling support during Operation Enduring Freedom. Beginning in 2003, the 22nd ARW took an active role in Operation Iraqi Freedom as tanker crews deployed to the Arabian Peninsula.


Theodor Quandt

Major Theodor Quandt (22 June 18976 June 1940) was a World War I German flying ace credited with 15 aerial victories. He would return to his nation's service for World War II, being killed on 6 June 1940 during the Fall of France.
Birth and early military service.
Theodor Quandt was born in Mollaud, Prussia on 22 June 1897.
He enlisted in the infantry on 4 August 1914, while he was still 17 years old. He later served as an artilleryman. He was a combatant in the Battle of Tannenberg on the Eastern Front. He was switched to the Western Front in early 1916. On 1 July, he began aerial service, training as a pilot. Once qualified, he was posted to "Flieger-Abteilung (Artillerie)" (Flier Detachment (Artillery) 270), an artillery direction unit, on 1 January 1917. He served with them until transferred to "Jagdstaffel 36" (Fighter Squadron 36) on 1 April. Rather unusually, he did not undergo fighter training before making the switch.
World War I flying service.
Quant began his victory roll with "Jagdstaffel 36" as a balloon buster, setting a pair of observation balloons on fire on 21 May 1917. This string of wins ran until the eighth one, on 8 November 1917, the seventh having been over British aces Arthur Taylor and William Benger.
On 24 December 1917, Quandt was transferred to "Jagdstaffel 53" as its commanding officer. After almost a ten month lapse, Quant resumed scoring on 27 August 1918 with a double victory. His eleventh triumph, on 1 September 1918, was over American ace John Donaldson. He then scored four more times in the next three days, and finished the war as a lieutenant.
World War II flying service.
Quandt was killed in action while flying a Messerschmitt Bf 109 during the Fall of France in the beginning of World War II.


CXJ (airline)


Piper PA-46TP Meridian


List of airlines of Monaco

This is a list of airlines currently operating in Monaco.


INS Hansa

INS Hansa, is an Indian naval air station located near Dabolim in Goa, India. It is India's biggest naval airbase. The military air base has a civil enclave, that operates as Dabolim Airport.
History.
"INS Hansa" was commissioned on 5 September 1961 at Sulur near Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. It was initially co-located with the Sulur Air Force Station of the Indian Air Force. It was then home to INAS 551 squadron, operating de Havilland Vampire aircraft, as well as training establishments for Hawker Sea Hawk and Breguet Alizé aircraft.
After the annexation of Goa in December 1961, INS Hansa was transferred to Dabolim.
In 1983, the Indian Navy began inducting the BAE Sea Harrier into service, basing training activities at Dabolim until the Harriers were retired in 2016.
Now the base houses MiG-29KUBs, the tandem two-seat operational trainer variant of the carrier based MIG-29Ks. The aircraft has been inducted into the Navy with a complement of 12 MiG 29Ks that have been purchased with the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya (re-fitted and refurbished Admiral Gorshkov of the Russian Navy).
Besides the operation of the MiGs, the Navy also operates Kamov Ka-28 anti submarine helicopters, along with Ilyushin Il-38 May and TU-142M Bear aircraft. Dabolim airbase also hosts exercises by the Indian Air Force's fighter bombers and it has facilities for the Indian Coast Guard which operates a fleet of small aircraft such as Dornier 228s. The Indian Navy also carries out long range maritime patrols as far as the Horn of Africa from Dabolim.
The Navy has an aerobatic team, based at Dabolim, called the Sagar Pawan. The team comprises three Kiran aircraft which carry out aerobatic displays at various locations in the country. The team is used in one or two annual public events in Goa for flypasts of 15 to 20 minutes duration. The Navy also operates a naval aviation museum near Dabolim Airport.
The Indian Navy's Shore Based Test Facility (SBTF), which is a mock-up of the INS Vikramaditya deck built on the airfield at Hansa is used to train and certify navy pilots of the Mikoyan MiG-29K for operating from the aircraft carrier, and for the developmental trials of the naval HAL Tejas. This SBTF was designed by Nevskoye Design Bureau (NDB) of Russia for Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA).
Units.
Over 2000 naval personnel and 1000 civilians are employed at INS Hansa. It is home to 8 Indian Naval Air Squadrons (INAS).
Among the units based here are:


263rd Army Air Force Base Unit


HMAS Koolonga

HMAS "Koolonga" was a 4,260 gross register tons cargo ship built by Sunderland Shipbuilding Company, South Dock Sunderland, England, in 1914 and bought by McIlwraith, McEacharn Line Pty Ltd, Melbourne and named SS "Koolonga". She was requisitioned by the Royal Australian Navy on 6 August 1914, as a collier and supply ship. She was returned to her owners in late 1915. She was sold in 1937 to Madrigal & Company, Philippines and renamed "Paz". She was scuttled during the Second World War at Sourabaya Harbour (now Surabaya) in 1942 and was later salvaged by the Imperial Japanese and renamed "Hatsu Maru". While at anchor in Manila Bay, Philippines on 13 November 1944, she was attacked by United States Navy carrier aircraft and was sunk.
RAN Service.
"Koolonga" was requisitioned by the Royal Australian Navy on 6 August 1914, as a collier and supply ship, and commissioned as HMAS "Koolonga". She participated during the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force occupation of German New Guinea until May 1915 when she was later returned to her owners. She was awarded the battle honour Rabaul 1914.
Australian coastal service.
After being returned, she was employed on cargo trades from Whyalla, South Australia, to Newcastle, New South Wales.
She was sold in October 1917 through Scott Fell & Company, Newcastle to BHP Shipping and renamed "Iron Monarch", before being sold again in 1920 to Interstate Steamships Ltd. Her tasks included transporting iron ore to the steel works at Port Kembla and coal to South Australia for the use of the Commonwealth Railway. On 18 April 1921, she ran aground at Port Pirie, South Australia; she was refloated on 21 April. She ran aground on Curlew Island near the head of Spencer's Gulf on 18 February 1930, once at Port Kembla, New South Wales, and at Cape Three Point, Broken Bay on 23 October 1937. "Iron Monarch" was seriously damaged on the Stockton breakwater at Newcastle on 26 November 1934 requiring repairs at Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Sydney, which cost £8,985.
In 1937, Iron Monarch sank a 28ft cutter in Port Lincoln harbour when it was drawn into her propeller. The cutter "Sylvia" had been returning from a picnic on nearby Grantham Island and approached the vessel while it was moving astern. She was sold later that year to Madrigal & Company, Philippines and renamed "Paz".
Fate.
Scuttled in March 1942 at Sourabaya Harbour during the Second World War. The wreck was salvaged and raised by the Imperial Japanese and renamed "Hatsu Maru". She was sunk after being bombed by United States Navy carrier based aircraft in Manila Bay, Philippines, on 13 November 1944 at 14°35'N, 120°55'E.


Arrow Airways


Braking action

Braking action in aviation is a description of how easily an aircraft can stop after landing on a runway. Either pilots or airport management can report the braking action according to the Federal Aviation Administration of the United States.
When reporting braking action, any of the following terms may be used: Good; Medium; Poor; Nil - bad or no braking action. If an air traffic controller receives a braking action report worse than good, an advisory must be included in the Automatic Terminal Information Service ("Braking Action Advisories are in effect").
Europe.
In Europe this differs from the above reference. Braking action reports in Europe are an indication/declaration of reduced friction on a runway due to runway contamination (see Landing performance, under the Runway Surface section) which may impact an aircraft's crosswind limits.
European reports have nothing to do with stopping distances on a runway, though they should alert pilots that stopping distances will also be affected.
Landing distances are empirically dealt with by landing performance data on dry/wet/contaminated runways for each aircraft type.
Crosswind limits.
Whenever braking actions are issued they are informing pilots that the aircraft maximum crosswind limits may have to be reduced on that runway because of reduced surface friction (grip).
This should alert pilots that they may experience lateral/directional control issues during the landing roll-out. In a crosswind the pilot tacks into wind to make allowances for the sideways force that is being applied to the aircraft. This sideways force occurs as the wind strikes the aircraft's vertical fin causing the aircraft to weathercock or weathervane. This manifests itself as an angular displacement of the fuselage relative to the runway centreline. This angular displacement is known as drift angle. Just before or upon initial ground contact the pilot must re-align the fuselage to zero the drift angle (i.e. correct it to parallel with the runway's centreline). This re-alignment is accomplished using the rudder flight control surface. As the wheels make contact with the runway surface there are a lot of side forces and torsion placed on the tyres due to them countering the weathervane effect which continues to try to act upon the aircraft. A combination of the tyres inherent strength and the action of the runway surface friction with the tyres ensure that the pilot can continue to keep the aircraft aligned with the runway as the aircraft decelerates during the landing roll. If however the surface friction is diminished because of contamination then this may upset the balance of forces resulting in insufficient directional control to keep the aircraft on the runway. To ensure this does not occur there is a pro-rata reduction in the aircraft's crosswinds limits, which in turn limits the sideways forces acting on the aircraft, thus ensuring sufficient directional control. This is the explanation for approach and landing; for takeoff the converse is true. The rudder applies a force to counter the crosswind forces as the aircraft accelerates down the runway. At the same time the tyres are accommodating these forces through sidewall torsion, and giving grip with the runway surface. As the aircraft transitions from a ground vehicle to a flying vehicle rudder input is stopped by the pilot and the aircraft will weathervane. The subsequent drift angle will allow the aircraft to fly on a straight course.
Pilots may receive this data through a "Snowtam runway state decoder" which forms an appendix to the internationally recognised METAR (METeorological Actual Report).
In some countries in Europe, pilots will not receive local updated/modified braking action reports directly from an Air traffic control (ATC) source unless a recent braking action test has been carried out and is being officially issued. ATC may advise other pilots that they have received a pilot report of a braking action but since these reports can be variable and subjective, without any empirical value, it should be treated as an advisory.
Braking action tests.
Braking action tests are subject to many variables such as:
This reported data is used by the airport operators and authorities to determine whether the runway should be closed for de-icing or contamination removal or remain operational until the next scheduled or requested test or report.
Pilots/ATC may request that an official braking action test be carried out prior to a landing.
Format of braking action declarations.
In Europe the format of braking action declarations are given using the Greek term mu which is the co-efficient of friction
Good = a mu value of 0.4 and above; measured snowtam decode is 95
Med/Good = a mu value of 0.36 to 0.39; measured snowtam decode is 94
Med = a mu value of 0.30 to 0.35; measured snowtam decode is 93
Med/Poor = a mu value of 0.26 to 0.29; measured snowtam decode is 92
Poor = a mu value of 0.25 and below; measured snowtam decode is 91
UNRELIABLE = reading unreliable; measured snowtam decode is 99 READING not measurable or not operationally significant; snowtam decode is
Snowtam Format reference is International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) document Annex 15 Appendix 2.


Merchant Ship Fighter Unit

The Merchant Ship Fighter Unit (MSFU) was a Royal Air Force operational aircraft unit based at RAF Speke, in south Liverpool, now Liverpool John Lennon Airport during World War II. The role of the MSFU was to provide pilots, crews, support personnel and aircraft to operate from 35 merchant ships outfitted with a catapult on the bow, referred to as Catapult Aircraft Merchant ships (CAM ships), a stop-gap initiative to provide air support to convoys out of reach of land in the early part of the war when aircraft carriers were scarce. The aircraft operated by the MSFU were converted Mk1 Hawker Hurricanes that were near the end of their useful lives and were often Battle of Britain veterans. The alterations included catapult fixing points and the addition of a naval radio. The MSFU was formed at Speke on 5 May 1941 and provided detachments to the CAM ships, each vessel being equipped with one Sea Hurricane plus an RAF pilot and support crew.
The single catapult consisted of an eighty-five-foot rail, along which a trolley carrying a Hurricane (later Hurricats were used for this) would be propelled by a battery of three-inch rockets over a distance of sixty feet. Using thirty-degree wing flaps, a pilot could make a successful takeoff while losing minimal height.
Most notable was the inability of the CAM ship to recover the aircraft, and as a result launches out of reach of land were one way flights that required the pilot to bail out or ditch in the sea when the aircraft's fuel was exhausted. While every effort was made to pick up the pilot, operational factors such as the convoy being under U-boat attack could mean that a ship may not be detached to pick up the pilot. On the convoys to Russia the low sea temperatures meant that the pilot had a low potential survival rate unless picked up very soon after landing in the sea.
Eventually CAM ships were replaced beginning in 1943 with the introduction into service of escort carriers.
CAM fighters were credited with seven kills and their presence was rumoured to discourage the Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor aircraft from pressing home attacks on convoys.


Bensen Mid-Jet

The Bensen Mid-Jet (a pun on "Midget jet") was a small helicopter developed by Igor Bensen in the United States in the early 1950s in the hope of attracting the interest of the United States Navy. It was a single-seat, open framework machine based on the B-5 rotor kite with small, gasoline- or fuel oil-burning ramjets mounted as tipjets on the rotor blades. Tests carried out in 1954 showed it to be able to lift four times its own weight and cruise at 75 mph (120 km/h).


SS Dekabrist

SS "Dekabrist" was a Russian steamship, built in 1903 and immediately converted to an armed merchant cruiser. She served in the Russo-Japanese War, World War I, the Russian Civil War, and World War II. She was sunk in 1942.
History.
"Dekabrist" was launched as "Franche Comte" at the Vickers Maxim shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness, Great Britain for M. le Boule of Le Havre on 2 October 1902, but remained at Barrow after her completion in April 1903. She was sold in secret to the Imperial Russian Navy and sailed from Barrow in April 1904, ostensibly bound for France, but was next reported at Libau under the name "Anadyr", where she was outfitted as an auxiliary cruiser for the Russo-Japanese War. She was armed with 8x57mm cannon and had a crew of 16 officers and 245 men. From Libau, she sailed with the Second Pacific Squadron for the Far East. "Anadyr" was present at the Battle of Tsushima, where she rescued survivors from the auxiliary cruiser "Ural", and escaped to Russia via Madagascar.
During World War I, "Anadyr" again served in the Imperial Russian Navy. In March 1918, pro-Soviet crewmen took over the ship on behalf of the Bolshevik government. In 1920, she served as a merchant ship with Transbalt. In 1921, she was again employed as a warship against the Whites.
1n 1922 she returned to merchant service as "Dekabrist", operating from Vladivostok.
In 1940 "Dekabrist" was used briefly as transport for Polish POWs from Vladivostok to Magadan en route to forced labour at the Kolyma gold mines in Siberia.
In December 1941, "Dekabrist" was employed on the Kola Run, the Allied supply route through the Norwegian Sea to the USSR's Arctic ports.
"Dekabrist" sailed in one east-bound convoy, PQ 6, in December 1941, returning with other empty Allied merchant ships in west-bound convoy QP 5 in January 1942.
Fate.
In November 1942, "Dekabrist" took part in Operation FB, an attempt to run several independent-sailing merchant ships under cover of the Arctic night.
"Dekabrist" sailed on 3 November, but was spotted and attacked by German aircraft. She was hit by a bomb which tore a hole in her bow. Despite efforts to save her, "Dekabrist" was abandoned at midnight on 5 November, and sank the following day.
"Dekabrist"s crew of 80 were able to abandon ship in four lifeboats; of these only one reached land, the inhospitable Hope Island, and of that boat's 20 crew-members, only three survived. These were picked up by a German vessel in October 1943, 11 months after the sinking.


Delta Prize for Global Understanding

The Delta Prize for Global Understanding, presented annually by Delta Air Lines and the University of Georgia, recognizes individuals or groups whose initiatives have helped promote world peace as well as globally significant efforts that provide opportunities for greater understanding among nations and cultures. Such efforts can include grassroots projects that diminish hostilities in a particular part of the world, international programs that promote communication or trade among different peoples, and/or leadership that inspires global cooperation and peace.
The prize includes a $10,000 cash grant and an original work of art designed by Barbara Mann and Gary Lee Noffke of the University of Georgia's Lamar Dodd School of Art .


Admirals Club