Vidsel Air Base

Vidsel Air Base is a Swedish Air Force airfield located 15 km west-northwest of the town of Vidsel, in Sweden. It is a critical part of Vidsel Test Range that provides an aerospace test and evaluation asset for Sweden through the Test & Evaluation (T&E) department of Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV).
The Swedish Armed Forces, 21st Air Force Wing is the proprietor of the Air Base. By contract between SAF and FMV, FMV T&E use the base as part of the Vidsel Test Range. SAF is responsible for keeping Vidsel Air Base in operational status and that the airport related activities are carried out in accordance with Swedish military regulations.
The airfield is located in the south-east corner of Vidsel Test Range, which is a missile test range consisting of 7,200 km² restricted airspace and 3,300 km² restricted ground space.
There is operational support staff at Vidsel Air Base supporting airfield ops at all times.
Facilities.
Runways.
There are four runways belonging to the base, of which three are operational.
Aprons.
There are 17 apron areas at the base.
The largest are:
There are also 13 smaller aprons, all approx. 400 m², suitable for single military fast jets.
Hangars.
There are two hangars at the air base, both mainly used for the operations at Vidsel Test Range.
The larger one is 1800 m², and can house several military style fast jets.
The smaller one is 850 m², divided in two parts, and can house two military style fast jets.
Shelters.
There are four shelters for military style fast jets at the air base.
Arresting gear.
The airfield is fitted with an NATO standard arrestor cable system, as well as Swedish standard arresting net.
Civil use.
For normal air force operational reasons, civilian aircraft are generally not given permission to use the airfield unless such use is related to defence activities.
History.
Vidsel Air Base was established as a secret wartime air base by the Swedish Air Force in 1957. It was called "Krigsflygfält nr. 42" (Wartime airbase no. 42) and not put on maps or written about. The majority of work at the base was done by personnel from the Test & Evaluation department of Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV).
The use of the base was both as a dispersed airbase in case of war, and for the newly established Vidsel Test Range.
The secrecy of the base was lifted in 1965, with foreign aircraft using the base from 1966, though very sparsely.
During the 70's the use of the base for training of Swedish Air Force crews increased steadily, and more and more of the operations was taken over by personnel from the 21st wing. In 1980 all training for the Swedish Air Force in north Sweden was moved to Vidsel Air Base.
Vidsel Air Base was completed as a Bas 90 airbase in 1989, meaning that apart from a main runway three shorter runways had been added together with other facilities.
Aircraft operated.
Vidsel Air Base is able to operate all current types of aircraft used by the Swedish AF, as well as a number of other aircraft from other users, including many NATO, as the airfield is equipped with an arresting wire.
The following aircraft have operated from Vidsel Air Base:
"(Note, list not complete.)"


Tours Aerodrome

Tours Aerodrome was a complex of military airfields in the French department of Indre-et-Loire, 6 km (3.2 NM) north-northeast of the city of Tours. They were used during World War I as part of the Second Air Instructional Center (2d AIC), American Expeditionary Forces for training United States airmen prior to being sent into combat.
Today Tours Airdrome #1 airfield is Tours Val de Loire Airport (Base Aérienne 604).
Background.
The airfield complex is located about three miles northwest of the city of Tours, Department of Indre-et-Loire, on the main road to Vendome.
Tours initially was established by the French Aeronautique Militaire as a training school for pilots prior to the United States entry into World War I. On 23 July 1917, a group of 47 enlisted Air Service men arrived in France on the SS Orduna. Ten members were ordered to Paris to receive ground commissions while the balance were sent to Tours for flying training. The training was provided by an agreement made with the French to train a limited number of Americans, then the entire school would be turned over to the Headquarters Air Service, American Expeditionary Force on 1 September. However, owing to a limited number of personnel available, the French retained overall control of the school until the end of the war in November 1918.
A number of secondary training airfields, along with the main complex were established:
There were two other training grounds: Larçay, for aerial gunnery as at Field #4 à Rochecorbon, and at "Le Ruchard", east of Chinon, for artillery cooperation; those two grounds could have been the missing Fields #5 and #7...
Also four emergency fields were located near Saint-Avertin, south of the Cher River about four miles south of the main airfield (#1).
In addition to the pilot training, the 2d AIC eventually developed specialist schools in Aerial Observation, Radio, Photography and Aerial Gunnery. The training complexes at Issoudun Aerodrome (3d AIC) and Tours were the two largest training schools in France for Air Service pilots.
Operations.
The first Air Service training class arrived at Tours on 15 August, and followed a detachment of United States Naval cadets that had completed their training at Tours a few days before. Like the Naval aviators, the Army fliers were allotted in groups to classes under French instructors. The rivalry between cadets was intense, for the honor at stake was that of being the first pilot of the Air Service to be breveted in France. It was finally shared between two, Oscar G. Gude and J. W. Watts, later 1st Lieutenants, who completed their training on 11 September 1917. The first class was succeeded by the second, third and fourth classes, largely recruited from Americans who had volunteered prior to the United States entry in the war and were serving with the French forces. They were, in turn, followed by classes of cadets which arrived from the United States.
On 1 November 1918, a transfer ceremony was held which turned over control of the school to the AEF, however, it was necessary to retain French instruction personnel. It was planned for the school to produce 100 trained pilots per month, however during its first four months of operation, the number was less than 40, with the exception of October 1917, when 55 pilots graduated. At the time, only the main field was in use, and the entire school was equipped with about 50 or 60 Caudron G.3E2 trainers, all of which were well-used and in constant need of repair, having been rebuilt from wrecked trainers. On 1 February 1918, additional flight instructors arrived from the United States, and during the winter two additional airfields were constructed. With the additional number of personnel, 30 additional training aircraft and facilities, the scope of training was greatly increased.
From Tours, the graduates were sent to the 3d AIC at Issoudun Aerodrome for advanced training. The receipt of dual control (D2) trainers reduced the number of accidents and improved the number of solo flying when that stage of training was reached. During February 1918, 45 pilots graduated; in March 104. An average of about 80 pilots graduated each month afterwards.
The Observers School was opened in January 1918. In addition to the Caudrons, British Sopwith Pups, along with Breguet 14s were utilized. The course given to observers was intended to cover all areas necessary to qualify the observer for front-line duty. Both new personnel were trained, as well as observers trained in the United States, which received training in specialized areas which updated their training already received to meet new conditions and included new methods developed on the front.
During the spring of 1918, the main #1 field was used mostly for training aerial photographers; the Farman Field (#4) was used for soloing, and some De Haviland DH-4s were received which were used there along with the Breguets. Additional buildings were constructed during the summer of 1918 included 23 barracks, 3 maintenance shops, 10 warehouses and 3 hangars. These additional resources made possible the establishment of Radio and other smaller schools, along with the aerial gunnery school, with a gunnery range being established.
By September 1918, the operations of the Tours School were in full swing. The work over the previous year in establishing facilities, curriculum and establishing instructor corps in various disciplines had paid off. The maximum number of flying personnel was reached in November, when there were 139 staff pilots on duty at the station. By then, two shifts were provided, with the long daylight hours of summer providing up to 14 or 15 hours each day for training.
The coming of the armistice on 11 November 1918 ended the formal training program at the school. By then facilities included 10 Cathedral hangars, 17 steel hangars, 4 Bressenau hangars and 18 single-plane canvas hangars. Aircraft included 9 Caudrons, 10 Niewports, 12 Salmsons, 43 Breguets, 47 De Haviland 4s, 25 Sopwiths, and 4 Spad XIIIs. A support station of 50 buildings, schools, barracks, and other buildings had been erected. Students in training were given opportunity to complete their training, but no new students were accepted. All student training was completed by 31 December.


EZAir

EZ Air is a small regional service airline and Air Ambulance provider BES, founded in May 2000. Is based in Bonaire, with ticket offices in Bonaire and Curaçao.
Services.
EZ Air operated five daily flights between Bonaire and Curaçao, with additional charter flights to sister island Aruba. The Bonaire-Curaçao flight is about a 20- to 23-minute flight.
Since 2012 it has operated Learjet Dedicated Air Ambulance primary transfers to Medellin and Bogota Colombia medical Crew outsourced to Fundacion Mariadall. It is in the process of acquiring an additional Learjet 55.
It is awaiting return FAA category 1 status to service main land USA for Air Ambulance flights.
EZ Air currently operates flights between Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao as medical flights transporting passengers between the islands utilizing the BN2. They also operate Learjet flights between the islands as well as to the United States and Colombia.
On June 14, 2018 the board of the Pension Fund for Caribbean Netherlands (PCN) announced, that after a preparatory period of almost 18 months, to invest in the purchase of aircraft for the airline EZ Air. With the loan provided to Bonaire-based Medicair N.V., by means of the Participation Company Caribbean Netherlands (PMCN), established by PCN, two Beechcraft 1900D aircraft will shortly be purchased that will take care of regional flights. In addition, the required working capital is also provided for the start-up of the EZ-Air operation.
The aircraft in question were, until recently, used for flight operations on behalf of Air Canada Express. The aircraft, with 19 seats each, will be used under the brand name EZ-Air for flights between the ABC islands, flights between Bonaire and St. Eustatius and flights to Colombia. The aircraft have been specially selected for their ability to fly directly to various destinations, within an acceptable time and with sufficient comfort. The relatively long distances, for example on the route between Bonaire and St. Eustatius, brought about several requirements for the aircraft, which among other things have a toilet, and reasonable baggage capacity.
The director of Medicair and EZ Air, Rene Winkel, has an enormous experience in local aviation. He previously flew as captain for both the Winair and ALM Antillean Airlines. In addition, with his company Medicair he has been carrying out ambulance flights between Bonaire and Colombia since the year 2000. The name EZ-Air is not new on the islands. In the past, Winkel has been executing flights between Bonaire and Curaçao for several years with two Britten-Norman aircraft.
For PCN there were various considerations to invest in EZ Air. “First, it must be said that this is a solid business case,” said PCN chairman Harald Linkels. “Over the past few months, we have worked intensively with the EZ Air team and together we have looked at the type of aircraft, the routes that can be served and the commercial plan. From the very start we noticed in a positive sense the solidity and the level of detail in the business plan,“ says Linkels.
In addition, Linkels says that the fund mainly wants to invest locally in matters that benefit the islands and the residents. “Although it is regularly stated that aviation is a risky industry, it is also a fact that we as islands can’t do without aviation,” says Linkels. The PCN chairman says it is extremely sour that every time the island picks the bitter fruits of the malaise in aviation on neighboring island of Curaçao. “Let’s be honest. Bonaire is not the priority of most airlines based in Curaçao. As soon as something goes wrong there, as in the case of ALM, DCA, DAE and now Insel, this has dramatic consequences for Bonaire. People can’t leave the island, doctor visits have to be cancelled and doing business out of Bonaire in Curaçao or Aruba has become nearly impossible“ says Linkels. It is also important for St. Eustatius to have a direct and reliable connection with Bonaire.
EZ was granted their Air Operator Certificate (AOC) in mid-December 2019 and started its regular flights as of December 23, 2019. The airline now executes various daily flights between Curaçao, Bonaire and Aruba.
On August 9, 2019 the EZ Air executed a charter flight between Bonaire and Barranquilla and Colombia. The airline has in the meantime received approval to executed to scheduled flights between Curaçao and Barranquilla and expects this route in the last quarter of 2019.
Fleet.
Current fleet.
As of June 2018, the EZ-Air fleet consists of the following aircraft
Former fleet.
Over the years, EZ-Air has operated the following aircraft types:


Lethbridge Commercial Airways


Flight-data acquisition unit

In aviation, a flight-data acquisition unit (FDAU) is a unit that receives various discrete, analog and digital parameters from a number of sensors and avionic systems and then routes them to a flight data recorder (FDR) and, if installed, to a Quick Access Recorder (QAR). Information from the FDAU to the FDR is sent via specific data frames, which depend on the aircraft manufacturer.
There is some trend towards integration of FDAU functions into software contained aboard other aircraft system components, as in the case of an enhanced airborne flight recorder (EAFR)


Stewart Reburn

Stewart Dudley Dagge Reburn (August 10, 1912 – June 6, 1976) was a Canadian figure skater who competed in singles and pair skating.
He was the junior Canadian champion in singles in 1928, the same year he came third in the senior pairs championship with Veronica Clarke, and as a singles skater, won the silver medal at the Canadian Figure Skating Championships in 1929 and 1931. The following year he was runner-up in the senior singles to Bud Wilson, who won the first of his all-time record-setting nine Canadian titles in the event.
He was second to Wilson again in 1931, which led to his selection for the 1932 Winter Olympics, although he withdrew prior to competition, while Wilson took home the bronze medal.
Reburn, who had also taken the bronze medal in the pairs event with Cecil Smith at the 1931 national championships, was absent from the national scene for two years, then returned in 1934 with a new partner, Louise Bertram. They pair won the gold medal at the 1935 Canadian Championships, placed fourth in the world figure-skating championships and competed in the 1936 Winter Olympics, finishing sixth. They were the first pair team to ever really skate to the music instead of using it as mere background sound. Their new and charming style captured audiences in both the figure skating and entertainment worlds. In 2015, Reburn and Bertram were inducted into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame.
Following his competitive career, Reburn skated professionally as Sonja Henie's partner in her international touring ice show. He appeared with Henie in the 1939 film "Second Fiddle".
Reburn enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force at the outbreak of World War II, becoming a fighter pilot with final rank attained of Flight Lieutenant. He was wounded by shrapnel in December 1943, which ended both his skating and promising acting career, although after the war he worked behind the scenes in the film industry for several years, prior to taking up real estate management. He died in 1976 at the age of 63 of cancer, and was buried in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Toronto.


William E. Adams

William Edward Adams (June 16, 1939 – May 25, 1971) was a major in the United States Army who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Vietnam War.
On May 25, 1971, Adams volunteered to fly a helicopter to rescue three wounded Americans encircled in a fort in Kontum Province. He did this knowing full well that the clear weather allowed North Vietnamese anti-aircraft gunners to easily see their targets. His aircraft was bombarded by anti-aircraft fire, but Adams still persevered and rescued the three men. As he was leaving, his aircraft was shot down, and Adams was killed. He was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously in 1972.
Early life.
Adams was born in Casper, Wyoming. He attended Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington, Missouri, where he graduated in the junior college Class of 1959. Three years later, Adams graduated from Colorado State University as a member of the Class of 1962.
Military career.
Adams joined the United States Army in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1962. He began his tour in Vietnam on July 6, 1970. On May 25, 1971, Adams, a major, volunteered to fly a lightly armed helicopter mission to rescue three dead US advisors and a wounded crew chief from a previously shot down helicopter crew chief from a besieged firebase in Kontum Province, despite the clear weather which would provide the numerous enemy anti-aircraft around the location with clear visibility. Despite fire from machine gun emplacements and rockets, Adams succeeded in landing at the firebase while supporting helicopter gunships attacked the enemy positions. After take off, however, the helicopter was hit by fire. Adams momentarily regained control and attempted to land, however the helicopter exploded in mid air and crashed. Adams, who was 31 at the time, was killed.
Adams is buried at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver, Colorado. His grave can be found in plot P O, Grave 3831.
Memorials.
The Vietnam War Memorial formerly on the campus of Wentworth Military Academy, is the same make and model helicopter that Adams was flying when he was killed. He is listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on panel 03W, row 054.


Conchas Lake Seaplane Base

Conchas Lake Seaplane Base is a public use seaplane base located two nautical miles (4 km) southwest of the central business district of Conchas Dam, in San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States. It is owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. It has one seaplane landing area measuring 21,120 by 1,320 feet (6,437 by 402 m).


List of airlines of Georgia (country)

This is a list of airlines currently operating in Georgia.


Lloyd Merriman

Lloyd Archer Merriman (August 2, 1924 – January 20, 2004) was an American professional baseball player who played outfielder in the Major Leagues from to for the Cincinnati Reds, Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs. Born in Clovis, California, Merriman played college baseball and football at Stanford University. He served as a United States naval aviator during World War II and was recalled to active duty while in the United States Marine Corps reserves during the Korean War. He served in Korea from January to August 1953 at K-3 in Pohang with the 1st Marine Air Wing and flew 87 combat missions in a Grumman F9F Panther jet fighter.
As a baseball player, Merriman threw and batted left-handed, stood tall and weighed . Because of his wartime service, he was nearly 24 when he was signed by Cincinnati in 1948. He had one year of minor league experience, with the 1948 Columbia Reds of the Class A Sally League, and batted .298 before becoming a member of the Major League Reds in 1949. He was the Reds' regular center fielder that season, but he batted only .230 with limited home run power, and was a reserve outfielder for the 1950–1951 Reds before being called back into military service as a Marine pilot.
He returned to the Majors in 1954 and batted a career-high .268 in limited service before closing out his MLB career in 1955 playing for both Chicago clubs. In retirement, he operated an insurance business and raised and trained horses in his native California. He died at 79 in Fresno, California. Merriman is enshrined in the Stanford Athletic Hall of Fame. He was also inducted in the Clovis Unified School District Hall of Fame on November 4, 2017.


Edmund Sparmann

Edmund Ernst Karl Sparmann (born 16 June 1888 in Vienna, Austria and died June 24, 1951 in Stockholm) was an aircraft designer and aeronautical inventor.
He created an aircraft factory in Stockholm, was an aircraft designer, created and patented several aeronautical inventions, served in the Austrian Army flying corps in the first world war and designed and built the P1 Sparmann airplane.
P 1 Sparmann.
The P 1, also known as the "P 1 Sparmann" or "S 1-A ”Sparmannjagaren”" was a trainer fighter created by Sparmann


Sioux City Army Air Base


Project SQUID

Project SQUID was a United States defense effort post-World War II effort to develop and improve pulsejet and rocket engines, run by the Office of Naval Research.
It was started by discovery of the German Argus As 014 pulsejet used on the V1 buzzbomb, which was reverse-engineered as the Republic Ford JB-2, the first American cruise missile. It produced extensive research in the areas of computational flow dynamics , and was used to improve the design of the experimental Fairchild XH-26 Jeep Jet, which used pulsejets on the rotor tips instead of a central engine. The research led to development of pulse detonation engines, which have been suggested as the engines powering the postulated Aurora spyplane.


Athens International Airport S.A.

Athens International Airport S.A. or AIA is the airport authority that owns and manages Athens International Airport.
History.
AIA was created in 1996 with the Greek government as a majority stakeholder (55%) and Hochtief holding 45% of the capital. AIA received a 250 million-fund from the EU to build the new Athens airport Operations of the Athens International Airport started March 29, 2001. In 2004, it was declared European airport of the year. The airport was built in preparation for the 2004 Summer Olympics. AIA holds a 30-year concession on the Athens airport, concession that will expire in 2026.
In October 2012, AIA launched the largest unified photovoltaic installation at any airport worldwide, an 8 MWp and 160,000 square meter project that cost 20 million euros and is expected to provide 20% (11 million kWh) of the airport's annual energy consumption.
In March 2013, AIA reduced its airport fees (the highest in Europe then) in a move to increase traffic. Ryanair publicly attacked the airport operator and its high fees, arguing that those were to be blamed for the drop of air traffic in recent years.
In May 2013, Hochtief sold its 40% stakes of AIA to Canada's Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) for 1.1 billion euros.
In February 2014, a Chinese consortium consisting of FPAM and the Shenzhen Airport company expressed its intention to buy the 55% shares held by the Greek government.
In September 2014, a Greek court found that Hochtief did not pay VAT in Greece for more than 20 years, holding the German company accountable for reimbursing 500 million euros to the Greek government, even though a British court ruled in favor of Hochtief in March 2013.
In the midst of the Greek government-debt crisis, Europe has constantly advised the Greek government to privatize AIA SA, yet political resistance has led this recommendation unachieved.
In June 2019, Greece's HRADF invited schemes to submit an Expression of Interest (Phase A) for the acquisition of a 30% stake in Athens International Airport SA. The deadline (initially until September 2019) expired on October 29, 2019 and ten investment schemes expressed their interest, including Groupe ADP, APG Asset Management, AviAlliance GmbH, Vinci Airports, Ferrovial international SE, First State Investments, Global Infrastructure Partners and a consortium of Ardian Infrastructure Fund S.C.A., Sicar and Ardian Infrastructure Fund V B S.C.S. SICAV – RAIF, another consortium of KKR-EGIS and a consortium of MEIF 6 Attic Investment, RAFFLES INFRA HOLDING and Chengdong Investment Corporation.


List of airlines of Paraguay

This is a list of active airlines (2019) which have an Air Operator Certificate issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of Paraguay.


Mould Bay Airport

Mould Bay Airport was located on the Prince Patrick Island, Northwest Territories, Canada. It was built in 1948 as a joint effort between Canada and the United States to service the former Environment Canada weather station. The station was automated in 1997 which eliminated the need for an airport; however, the island is still occasionally visited by members of the Canadian Forces.


HMS Legion (G74)

HMS "Legion" was an L-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She entered service during the Second World War, and had a short but eventful career, serving in Home waters and the Mediterranean. She was sunk in an air attack on Malta in 1942. The ship had been adopted by the British civil community of the Municipal Borough of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire in November 1941.
Construction and commissioning.
"Legion" was ordered on 31 March 1938 from the yards of Hawthorn Leslie and Company, Newcastle upon Tyne under the 1937 Naval Estimates. She was laid down on 1 November 1938 and launched just over a year later on 26 November 1939. During 1940 her main armament along with three others of the L class was changed. Twin 4 inch HA mountings were fitted and these four ships were re-classified as anti-aircraft destroyers. She was commissioned on 19 December 1940 at a total cost of £445,684, which excluded items such as weapons and communications equipment supplied by the Admiralty. During trials, a number of defects were revealed, resulting in the ship being under repair at Greenock in Scotland until January 1941.
Her commanding officer was, from commissioning until she was sunk in 1942, Captain Richard (Dick) Jessel.
Career.
Home waters.
On completion of repairs, "Legion" was assigned to the Western Approaches Command at Greenock as part of the 11th Escort Group. She was deployed on convoy defence duties, and also successfully trialled a modified Radar Type 286M using a rotating instead of fixed aerial array. In February she escorted military convoys through the North Western Approaches. She set sail in support of Operation Claymore, a commando raid on the Lofoten Islands, on 1 March. Following the successful completion of these duties, she joined the 14th Escort Group. On 13 April she rescued survivors from the armed merchant cruiser which had been torpedoed in the North Western Approaches by the German submarine . "Legion" rescued 177 men, although another 40 went down with "Rajputana". The rest of April was spent escorting convoys.
In May she screened capital ships of the Home Fleet, searching for the German battleship ; but she had to refuel at Iceland, and so was not present at the sinking of the German battleship. "Legion" then returned to convoy escort duties.
On 22 June "Legion" and her sister , escorted the aircraft carrier to Gibraltar, on an operation to deliver aircraft to Malta. A few days later, (on 26 June), she and other destroyers screened the aircraft carrier , the battlecruiser and the cruiser as they delivered aircraft from Gibraltar to Malta. This operation was repeated later in the month with "Furious". In July "Legion" returned to Greenock to resume escort duties through the Western Approaches. On 20 August she was deployed to reinforce the escort of Convoy OG-71 which was on passage to the UK and had come under attack from the U-boats , and . The escorts were eventually successful in driving off the attackers; the convoy arrived at Liverpool on 25 August.
Malta convoys.
In September she and her flotilla returned to Gibraltar and resumed escorting capital ships supplying aircraft to Malta. She provided cover on 24 September for the convoys of Operation Halberd. During the operation, the ships came under heavy air attack but continued onward. On her return to Gibraltar after "Halberd", "Legion" and attacked and sank the Italian submarine with depth charges. October was spent escorting convoys to Malta. She made an unsuccessful attack on on 23 October and then rescued survivors from which had been torpedoed by west of Cape Spartel.
The sinking of HMS "Ark Royal".
In November "Legion" was assigned to the 4th Destroyer Flotilla and escorted more convoys to Malta. On 13 November she was attacked by "U-205" and carried out an unsuccessful counterattack. Meanwhile, "Ark Royal" was torpedoed by and disabled. "Legion" and her sister, stood by the stricken ship, embarking 1,560 survivors. "Legion" later returned to "Ark Royal" to transfer key personnel for damage control efforts.
Action in the Mediterranean.
After "Ark Royal" sank under tow, "Legion" returned to Gibraltar, arriving on 24 November. In December she was transferred to Alexandria to serve as part of the Mediterranean Fleet. On 13 December she was part of the fleet when it intercepted the Italian cruisers and . Both were sunk in the ensuing engagement, known as the Battle of Cape Bon. The torpedo boat was able to escape.
After this success the ship was deployed with Force K, to carry out attacks on Axis convoys on passage in the central Mediterranean in support of military operations. During her service with the Force she came under air attack in an engagement on 17 December that developed into the First Battle of Sirte. She then returned to Alexandria on 19 December with Force C. When the anti-submarine boom was raised to allow the ships to enter the harbour, the Italian submarine and three human torpedoes were able to penetrate into the secure anchorage. They laid explosive charges, severely damaging the battleships and , and the tanker "Savona". On 28 December "Legion" and sank off Mersa Matruh after a two and half hour hunt following the sinking of the merchant vessel .
"Legion" continued to escort convoys throughout January 1942. She was attacked on 17 January by north of Bardia. Although she escaped damage, "Gurkha" was sunk. On 27 January she had her ASDIC (sonar) equipment repaired at Malta. This work lasted until mid-February, when she was transferred to the 22nd Destroyer Flotilla.
Further escorts of convoys followed. When one of her convoys was attacked by ships of the Italian Fleet, the Second Battle of Sirte developed, in which "Legion" carried out a torpedo attack. The Italians subsequently disengaged rather than risk further torpedo attacks.
Sinking and scrapping.
On 23 March "Legion" was detached to join in escorting the merchantman . During this operation, the vessels came under air attack and "Legion" was damaged by a near miss. The ship proceeded on one engine after successful damage control prevented her from sinking and she was beached at Malta. She was then towed to the docks on 25 March and tied up alongside the Boiler Wharf the next day. Whilst awaiting repair, the docks were the target of an air raid. "Legion" was hit by two bombs and sustained further serious damage when her forward magazine exploded. She rolled over and sank in the harbour, with her bridge and funnel lying on the jetty.
She was cut in two during 1943 and attempts were made to refloat her. They were unsuccessful. After the end of the war, she was broken up in situ. This was not completed until 1946.


Omineca Air Services


Atlantic Airlines (United Kingdom)


Prospect Creek Airport

Prospect Creek Airport is a state-owned public-use airport located three nautical miles (5.5 km) northeast of Prospect Creek, in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area of the U.S. state of Alaska.
Facilities and aircraft.
Prospect Creek Airport has one runway designated 1/19 with a gravel surface measuring 4,968 by 150 feet (1,514 x 46 m). For the 12-month period ending July 9, 2008, the airport had 498 aircraft operations, an average of 41 per month: 51% air taxi, 44% general aviation and 5% scheduled commercial.


Competition Aircraft

Competition Aircraft Inc, founded in 1980 by Jack Venaleck, is an American manufacturer of composite propellers for ultralight aircraft. The company headquarters is located in Grass Valley, California.
Competition Aircraft started as a subsidiary of Associated Enterprises of Painesville, Ohio. The company started producing aircraft propellers in 1983 under the "Ultra-Prop" brand. The company produces propellers with up to six blades.


List of airlines of Nigeria

This is a list of airlines that have an air operator's certificate issued by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority.


NWT Air


Convair Submersible Seaplane

The Convair Submersible Seaplane (or "Subplane") was United States Navy project to produce a seaplane which could travel underwater as well as fly.
In 1962 or 1964, the Navy granted a contract to Convair, a military aircraft arm of General Dynamics, to design and develop the vehicle, intended for anti-submarine warfare. The craft's operational deployment would be to scout for enemy submarines from the air and, when detected, land on the water, submerge, and engage them underwater. One envisioned deployment was to attack shipping in the Soviet Union's marginal seas – the Baltic, Black, and Caspian seas.
The specifications were for a craft capable of operating in sea state 2 (waves of maximum height of ), a cruising speed in flight of upt to , and an underwater performance of up to , a depth of down to , and an endurance of 10 hours.
Convair's design was for a narrow-hulled flying boat (rather than a seaplane). The craft was to be powered by three turbojets, carry a crew of two, and carry a payload of . The craft was to have used ballast tanks to dive and surface, much as a conventional submarine does, located in the wings and fuselage. The weaponry was to be torpedoes or mines. For undersea operations, the turbojets would be sealed water-tight, and underwater propulsion would be provided by a battery-powered electric motor driving a propeller.
Convair made detailed designs and built scale modes which were tested, and averred that the craft would work, but the project did not get beyond that stage and was cancelled by Congress in 1965 or 1966.


Frontier Flight


Merton W. Baker

Merton W. Baker (July 19, 1924 – October 17, 2000) was a major general in the United States Air Force.
Biography.
Baker was born in Tomahawk, Wisconsin in 1924. He would graduate from high school in Evansville, Wisconsin and attend the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and Creighton University. Baker died on October 17, 2000.
Career.
Baker originally joined the United States Army Air Corps in 1943. During World War II he served in Italy. From 1953 to 1957, he was stationed at McConnell Air Force Base. Baker would acquire more than 7,000 flying hours in his career, piloting planes that include the Boeing B-47 Stratojet, Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star, Cessna T-37 Tweet, T-39 Sabreliner, and the Douglas B-66 Destroyer. His retirement was effective as of April 1, 1981.
Awards he received include the Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Medal with two silver oak leaf clusters and bronze oak leaf cluster, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, and the Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster.


SS Slamat

SS "Slamat" (or "DSS "Slamat"", with DSS standing for "dubbelschroefstoomschip", "twin-screw steamship") was a Dutch ocean liner of the Rotterdam-based Koninklijke Rotterdamsche Lloyd line. Although she was a turbine steamship, she tended not to be referred to as "TSS". She was built in Vlissingen in the Netherlands in 1924 for liner service between Rotterdam and the Dutch East Indies. In 1940 she was converted into a troop ship. In 1941 she was sunk with great loss of life in the Battle of Greece.
Building and peacetime service.
Koninklijke Maatschappij De Schelde built "Slamat" in Vlissingen on the River Scheldt, completing her in 1924. Her boilers had oil-burning furnaces, and her engines were steam turbines that drove her twin screws "via" double reduction gearing. She was equipped with submarine signalling apparatus, which in the 1920s was seen as an alternative to radio. She also had wireless direction finding equipment.
"Slamat" was built for Koninklijke Rotterdamsche Lloyd (KRL or "Royal Dutch Lloyd") and managed by Willem Ruys en Zonen. Willem Ruys ran KRL and the two companies were part of the same group. KRL ships operated passenger and cargo services between Rotterdam and the Dutch East Indies "via" Southampton, Marseille and the Suez Canal. "Slamat" was KRL's last major steam turbine passenger liner before it started introducing motor ships: "Indrapoera" in 1925, "Sibajak" in 1927 and the larger and swifter "Baloeran" and "Dempo" in 1929.
In 1931 "Slamat" was refitted and lengthened by , which slightly increased each of her tonnages. Her speed was increased to .
In peacetime "Slamat" carried KRL's livery of dove-grey hull, white superstructure and black funnels.
War service.
When the Second World War began the Netherlands was neutral. In mid-October 1939 "Slamat" left Rotterdam for the East Indies, calling at Lisbon, Cape Verde, Cape Town, Mauritius, Sabang and Singapore before reaching Batavia, capital of the Dutch East Indies, on 30 November. On 1 December she left Batavia for Italy, which was also still neutral. She called at Sabang, Aden and Port Said before arriving on 21 December in Genoa, where she spent Christmas 1939 and New Year 1940. She left Genoa on 10 January for the East Indies, calling at Suez, Aden and Sabang before reaching Batavia on 1 February.
In May 1940 Germany conquered the Netherlands in one week and the Dutch monarchy and government evacuated to London. Germany captured KRL's managing director Willem Ruys, and the company transferred the registration of its ships including "Slamat" from Rotterdam to Batavia.
On 6 July KRL's "Indrapoera" left Batavia for Surabaya in eastern Java, and on the 19th "Slamat" followed her. Then the two liners sailed to the Philippines, which were then neutral. "Indrapoera" sailed ahead, leaving Surabaya on 26 July and reaching Manila on the 31st. "Slamat" followed three days behind her, reaching Manila on 3 August. By then "Indrapoera" had already left for Australia, and the next day "Slamat" followed. Each liner called at Thursday Island, Queensland before reaching Sydney Harbour, "Indrapoera" on 13 August and "Slamat" on the 17th. There they joined two other Dutch ocean liners; Stoomvaart-Maatschappij Nederland's "Christiaan Huygens" and Koninklijke Paketvaart-Maatschappij's "Nieuw Holland", which between them embarked 4,315 Australian troops. On 12 September the Dutch ships left Sydney for Fremantle in Western Australia, where they formed Convoy US 5, which left Fremantle on 22 September and reached Suez on 12 October. "Indrapoera" and "Slamat" continued through the Suez Canal, called at Port Said and on 17 October reached Haifa in Palestine.
In September 1940 Italy invaded Egypt, where British and Empire forces now needed reinforcement from the Dominions and Empire. From now on a number of Dutch troop ships concentrated on bringing British Empire troops across the Indian Ocean to the Near East. "Indrapoera" and "Slamat" left Haifa on 21 October, reached Port Said the next day, and then passed through the Suez Canal. For the next six months the two KRL ships operated in the Indian Ocean, bringing British Empire troops from India and Ceylon to Egypt.
"Indrapoera" and "Slamat" spent Christmas 1940 and New Year 1941 in Bombay. On 14 January 1941 they reached Colombo to take part in Convoy US 8 to Suez. This was a huge troop movement: seven British and five Dutch troop ships, accompanied by two British cargo ships. The other Dutch ships were "Christiaan Huygens", SMN's "Johan de Witt" and KPM's "Nieuw Zeeland". Among the British ships was Shaw, Savill & Albion Line's flagship , which at was the largest liner in the Indian Ocean. US 8 left Colombo on 16 January and reached Suez on the 28th.
After US 8, "Indrapoera" and "Slamat" continued to operate in the Indian Ocean until April 1941. Then "Indrapoera" headed "via" Durban to the Caribbean and United States, but "Slamat" returned to the Mediterranean.
Convoy to and from Nauplia.
In April 1941 Germany and Italy invaded Yugoslavia and Greece. After 10 days of fierce fighting the British Empire started to plan the evacuation of 60,000 troops from Greece.
"Slamat" had been spending the month making shuttle trips between Suez and Port Sudan, but by 23 April she was in the Mediterranean Sea and on the 24th she was in Convoy AG 14 from Alexandria to Greece. When the convoy reached Greek waters, it split to reach different embarkation points. "Slamat" and another troop ship, the British-India Line-managed , were ordered with the cruiser and a number of destroyers to Nauplia and Tolon on the Argolic Gulf in the eastern Peloponnese.
Before their arrival another troopship had grounded in Nauplia Bay, blocking ship access to the port. An air attack had turned her into a total loss. Ships would now have to anchor in the bay, where boats would bring troops out to them from the shore. "En route" to Nauplia "Slamat"s group of ships was bombed and her superstructure was heavily damaged.
On the evening of 26 April three cruisers, four destroyers and "Khedive Ismail" and "Slamat" were in the Bay of Nauplia. The only available tenders were one landing craft, local caïques and the ships' own boats. Two cruisers and two destroyers embarked nearly 2,500 troops, but the slow rate of embarkation meant that "Khedive Ismail" did not get its turn and did not embark any.
At 0300 hrs "Calcutta" ordered all ships to sail, but "Slamat" disobeyed and continued embarking troops. "Calcutta" and "Khedive Ismail" sailed at 0400 hrs; "Slamat" followed at 0415 hrs, by which time she had embarked about 500 troops: about half her capacity.
Loss of "Slamat", "Diamond" and "Wryneck".
The convoy steamed south down the Argolic Gulf, until at 0645 or 0715 hrs "Luftwaffe" aircraft attacked it: first Bf 109 fighters, then Ju 87 dive bombers and Ju 88 and Do 17 bombers. A bomb exploded between "Slamat"s bridge and forward funnel, setting her afire. Her water system became disabled, hampering her crew's ability to fight the fire. Another bomb also hit her and she listed to starboard.
"Slamat"s Master, Tjalling Luidinga, gave the order to abandon ship. The bombing and fire had destroyed some of her lifeboats and life rafts, and her remaining boats and rafts were launched under a second "Stuka" attack. The destroyer reported seeing four bombs hit "Slamat". Two lifeboats capsized; one from overloading and another when, in the midst of transferring survivors, "Diamond" had to speed away from her to evade an air attack. Some aircraft machine-gunned survivors in the water.
The rest of the convoy kept moving, while "Calcutta" rescued some survivors and ordered the destroyer "Diamond" to rescue more. At 0815 hrs "Diamond" was still rescuing survivors and still under attack. At 0916 hrs three destroyers from Crete reinforced the convoy, so "Calcutta" sent one of them, , to assist "Diamond". At 0925 hrs "Diamond" reported that she had rescued most of the survivors and was heading for Souda Bay. "Wryneck" reached "Diamond" about 1000 hrs and requested aircraft cover at 1025 hrs.
"Diamond" accompanied by "Wryneck" returned to "Slamat", arriving about 1100 hrs. They found two lifeboats from "Slamat" and rescued their occupants. "Slamat" was afire from stem to stern, and "Diamond" fired a torpedo at her port side that sank her in a "coup de grâce". By now "Diamond" carried about 600 of "Slamat"s survivors, including Captain Luidinga.
About 1315 hrs a "Staffel" of Ju 87 bombers came out of the sun in a surprise attack on the two destroyers. Two bombs damaged "Diamond", destroyed both of her lifeboats and sank her in eight minutes. Three bombs hit "Wryneck"; she capsized to port and sank in 10–15 minutes. "Wryneck" launched her whaler and each destroyer launched her three Carley floats. Several men in the Carley floats died either from wounds or from drowning in the swell.
Rescues and casualties.
"Wryneck"s Commissioned Engineer, Maurice Waldron, took command of her whaler and she set off east past Cape Maleas, towing two Carley floats and their occupants. In the evening the wind increased, causing the floats to strike the boat, so Waldron reluctantly cast them adrift.
After 1900 hrs on 27 April the Vice Admiral, Light Forces, Henry Pridham-Wippell, became concerned that "Diamond" had not returned to Souda Bay and was not answering radio signals. "Wryneck" had been ordered to keep radio silence so no attempt was made to radio her. Pridham-Wippell sent the destroyer to the position where "Slamat" had been lost. She found 14 survivors in two Carley floats that night, more floats and another four survivors in the morning, and took the survivors to Crete.
The last living survivor from "Slamat", Royal Army Service Corps veteran George Dexter, states that after "Wryneck" was sunk he and three other men were rescued by the cruiser .
Survivors in "Wryneck"s whaler reached Crete in three stages. On 28 April they aimed for the island of Milos in the Aegean Sea, but were too exhausted so they landed at Ananes Rock, about southeast of Milos. There they met a caïque full of Greek refugees and British soldiers evacuated from Piraeus, who were sheltering by day and sailing only by night to avoid detection. In the evening everyone left Ananes and headed south for Crete, with most people in the caïque and five being towed in the whaler. On 29 April the caïque sighted a small landing craft that had left Porto Rafti near Athens. She took aboard everyone from the caïque and whaler, and the next day they reached Souda Bay.
Nearly 1,000 people were killed in the loss of "Slamat", "Diamond" and "Wryneck". Of the 500 or so soldiers that "Slamat" embarked, eight survived. Of her complement of 193 crew and 21 Australian and New Zealand DEMS gunners and NZEF Medical Corps, 11 survived. Of "Diamond"s 166 complement, 20 survived. Of "Wryneck"s 106 crew, 27 survived.
Monuments.
In August 1946 Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands wrote to Captain Luidinga's widow, expressing her sympathy for her husband's death, gratitude for his war service and commending him as "een groot zoon van ons zeevarend volk" ("a great son of our seafaring people").
British and Commonwealth troops and naval personnel who were lost in the sinking of "Slamat", "Diamond" and "Wryneck" are named on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission's Athens Memorial in Phaleron War Cemetery at Palaio Faliro southeast of Athens. Royal Navy personnel are also commemorated in Britain on the Royal Navy monuments at Chatham, Plymouth and Portsmouth. George Dexter commissioned a monument to all the service personnel lost when the three ships were sunk. It is in The Royal British Legion Club, Shard End, Birmingham.
In 2011 a monument commemorating victims from all three ships was made by the Dutch sculptor Nicolas van Ronkenstein. It was installed in the "Sint-Laurenskerk" ("St Lawrence Church"), Rotterdam and formally unveiled on the 70th anniversary of the disaster, 27 April.
On 27 June 2012 the current hosted a wreath-laying ceremony at the position where "Slamat" was sunk. Participants included "Diamond"s commander, descendants of some of the dead from the Netherlands and New Zealand, and the Commander in Chief of the Hellenic Navy.


Polaris Charter Company


Orlando Llenza

Major General Orlando Llenza (July 1, 1930 – March 11, 2021) was the second Puerto Rican to reach the rank of Major General (two-star General) in the United States Air Force. Llenza served as commander of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard (PRANG).
Early years.
Llenza was born to Maria Isabel Lopez and Harry B. Llenza in Santurce barrio in the municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico the capital of Puerto Rico, where he received his primary and secondary education. In 1947, he graduated from Central High School and applied for admission at Georgia Institute of Technology. In 1951 he earned his bachelor's degree in Architecture and a commission as 2nd lieutenant through the Air Force ROTC program.
Military career.
Llenza began his military career as an enlisted airman in the United States Air Force Reserve in 1946 and in 1951 joined the regular United States Air Force as a 2nd lieutenant assigned to Reese Air Force Base in Lubbock County, Texas. He attended USAF Undergraduate Pilot Training, the Air War College, and Air Command and Staff College in Maxwell Air Force Base, among others.
Korean War.
During the Korean War, Llenza flew as a pilot in the 9th Air Refueling Squadron. During his career he flew the T-6 Texan, B-25 Mitchell, Boeing KB-29M tanker, KC-97 Stratofreighter tanker, T-33 Shooting Star Shooting Star, F-86 Sabre D, E, F and H models, F-104 Starfighter, and the C-47 Skytrain, C-54 Skymaster, C-131 Samaritan transports.
Adjutant General of P.R. National Guard.
After Llenza retired from active duty he was named Adjutant General of the Puerto Rico National Guard by Governor Carlos Romero Barceló, a position which he held from 1977 to 1983. Llenza became the mission director in Ecuador for US AID from 1983 to 1986. As a civilian he was a successful architect with Llenza & Llenza (the other Llenza was Hector his brother).
Llenza was also the recipient of many awards, including the U.S. Distinguished Service Medal and the National Order of Merit-Ecuador. General Llenza was the Chairman of the American Veterans' Committee for Puerto Rico Self-Determination. Llenza was a member of the Board of Directors of the United States Council for Puerto Rico Statehood.
Awards and decorations.
Among Llenza's decorations and medals were the following:
Badges:
Foreign award
National Order of Merit-Ecuador


Federation of Indian Airlines

The Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) is an airline industry body in India. Its members are IndiGo, SpiceJet and GoAir. The functions of the FIA are carried out by an Executive Council composed of the heads of each of the member airlines.
The FIA was founded in 2006. Air India was a founding member of the body, but withdrew in 2014. Jet Airways was a member of the FIA until it ceased operations due to bankruptcy in April 2019. As of March 2017, the four members of the FIA had a combined 80% share of the domestic aviation market.
In October 2016, the FIA filed an appeal in the Supreme Court challenging the aviation permits granted to AirAsia India. In February 2017, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) rejected the FIA's plea to cancel the permit granted to AirAsia India. In March 2017, the FIA opposed Qatar Airways plan to launch an airline in India.


Helsinki Airport station

Helsinki Airport station (, ) is a Helsinki commuter rail station located at Helsinki Airport in Vantaa, Finland.
Helsinki Airport station is on the Ring Rail Line, located between the stations of Aviapolis and Leinelä. It is the world's northernmost underground railway station.
History.
Although the Ring Rail Line opened on 1 July 2015, the airport railway station opened only on 10 July 2015, and only the Tietotie exit was accessible at this time. Because the exit was the one farther away from the terminal, a temporary shuttle bus was operated until the elevators for the passenger terminal-side exit were completed in December 2015. The escalators for the terminal-side exit were finally brought into use on 17 March 2016.
Future proposals.
As part of ongoing plans for high-speed rail in Finland, Helsinki Airport station would be linked to Helsinki Central via a direct tunnel (a project known as Lentorata), surfacing at Kerava and continuing to Tampere Central, at an estimated cost of €5.5 billion.


Naval Air Station Wildwood

Naval Air Station Wildwood was a United States Navy airport located in Lower Township, Cape May County, New Jersey, United States, about northwest of the central business district of Wildwood, a city in the same county. Former Hangar #1 now contains the Naval Air Station Wildwood Aviation Museum, whose collection focuses on World War II.
History.
The airport started in 1941 as NAS Rio Grande, named for its location near Rio Grande, New Jersey. Due to confusion with Rio Grande, Texas, the name was changed to NAS Wildwood in 1943. Following the end of World War II, Naval Air Station Wildwood was deemed excess to U.S. Navy requirements. It was subsequently deeded to the local government for transition to a civilian airport which is still in operation today as Cape May Airport. The surviving portions of the historic airfield, including its runways and taxiways, were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.


Naval Air Station Barbers Point

Naval Air Station Barbers Point , on O'ahu, also called John Rodgers Field (the original name of Honolulu International Airport), is a former United States Navy airfield closed in 1999, and renamed Kalaeloa Airport. Parts of the former air station serve as a film and television studio for the Hawaii State Film Office.
History.
Attack on Pearl Harbor.
On December 7, 1941, Barbers Point was one of the many targets attacked by the Japanese during the attack on Pearl Harbor. During the second wave, American pilots George Welch and Kenneth Taylor engaged Japanese aircraft, shooting down two aircraft.
The Navy acquired the airfield in early 1943. At that time it consisted of two short runways and four hangars that were just two feet above hightide. A PNAB civilian contractor started work by bringing a dredge onto Keehi lagoon in February 1943. In April the military took over. The Army took over the dredging operation while Seabees of the 5th Naval Construction Battalion took over the airfield. When they were done there would be three runways. The Navy would turn the airfield into a major facility by sending Seabees from the 13th, 64th and 133rd Construction Battalions to do it.
Closing.
NAS Barbers Point was closed by Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) action in the 1999, with the Navy aircraft, primarily P-3C "Orion" maritime patrol aircraft assigned to squadrons of Patrol Wing Two, relocating to Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, now Marine Corps Base Hawaii, on the other side of the island. However, Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, with its complement of HH-65 "Dolphin" helicopters and HC-130H "Hercules" aircraft, remained after the Navy's departure. Also, in 1972 the United States Army posted a CH-47 "Chinook" company, the 147th ASHC "Hillclimbers", supporting the Army's 25th Inf Div and USARPAC, and it was moved to the historic Wheeler Army Airfield, Schofield Barracks, for Hawaii Army National Guard use. Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point is the only Coast Guard Air Station within the 14th United States Coast Guard District.
With the closure of NAS Barbers Point, the present day Kalaeloa Airport / John Rodgers Field is also home to Naval Air Museum Barbers Point, which preserves the history of the base and also has a collection of aircraft that reflect the US Navy's, US Marine Corps', US Coast Guard's and US Army's aviation presence on Barbers Point and in the state of Hawaii.
Production studio.
By early 2017, the massive building which once served as the air station's aircraft intermediate maintenance facility had been leased by Navy Region Hawaii to the Hawaiian Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism and the Hawaii State Film Office for use as a film and television studio. The Hawaii State Film Office had been interested in developing space on the former airfield into a filming studio to complement the department's first studio, the Hawaii Film Studio at Diamond Head in East Oahu. Donne Dawson, commissioner of the Hawaii State Film Office, stated that the new facility would "have all the components of a film office, such as office space for all departments, space for their props and wardrobes and a mill for set construction," and noted that, had Navy Region Hawaii not agreed to the lease, "there were not a lot of options" available to interested production companies beyond retrofitting warehouse space. ABC Studios and Marvel Television's "Inhumans" was the first production to use the newly created production facility.


Siegfried Barth

Siegfried Barth (23 January 1916 – 19 December 1997) was a German bomber pilot in the Luftwaffe during World War II and commander of the fighter-bomber wing Jagdbombergeschwader 32 (JaBoG 32) of the German Air Force. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, awarded by Nazi Germany to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. As a Bundeswehr officer, he served at the NATO Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) from 1969 to 1972.
World War II.
Barth was born 23 January 1916 in Augsburg, Bavaria and joined the military service in 1936. He was trained as a pilot before World War II and been a member of Kampfgeschwader 255 "Edelweiß" (KG 255—255th Bomber Wing), which was renamed Kampfgeschwader 51 (KG 51—51st Bomber Wing) on 1 May 1939. When II. "Gruppe" (2nd group) was formed on 1 April 1940, Barth joined the 4. "Staffel" (4th squadron) holding the rank of "Leutnant" (2nd lieutenant). He flew his first combat missions in the Battle of France, bombing airfields and shipping off Dunkirk for which he was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class on 17 July 1940.
KG 51 was then relocated to airfields at Étampes-Mondésir and later to Paris-Orly in France. In the Battle of Britain he bombed British ports and London, Coventry and Portsmouth. Barth was promoted to "Oberleutnant" and following Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, flew in the southern sector of the Eastern Front. He bombed airfields, railway stations as well as tank and troop concentrations in the Proskurov, Lvov, Rostov and Taganrog areas. He was wounded in action on 25 June 1941 when his Junkers Ju 88 A-5 was hit by anti-aircraft fire in the vicinity of Darachow.
Barth was appointed "Gruppenkommandeur" (Group Commander) on 1 February 1944 of the IV./KG 51, which was based at Hildesheim at the time. Here he was responsible for the tactical training of replacement crews. Initially they flew the Messerschmitt Me 410, then the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 and lastly the Messerschmitt Me 262, the first operational jet fighter-bomber. He was promoted to "Major" (major) on 1 May 1944. The "Gruppe" was renamed to IV./Ergänzungskampfgeschwader 1 (EKG 1—1st Supplemantary Bomber Wing). Barth stayed in this position until 31 March 1945 before being appointed "Geschwaderkommodore" (Wing Commander) of KG 51 on 19 April 1945. He led the Geschwader in Upper Bavaria until it was disbanded at the end of the war.
F-84 Thunderstreak incident.
Barth, commander of Jagdbombergeschwader 32, was initially removed of his command by the Minister of Defence, Franz-Josef Strauß for the 1961 F-84 Thunderstreak incident. He was later, after a number of investigations and complaints, reinstated. On 14 September 1961, two F-84F Thunderstreak of 32 Fighter Bomber Wing crossed into East German airspace due to a navigational error, eventually landing at Berlin Tegel Airport, evading a large number of Soviet fighter planes. The event came at a historically difficult time during the Cold War, one month after the construction of the Berlin Wall.
Barth took his case to the "Wehrdienstsenat des Bundesdisziplinarhofs", the highest court of German troops, to have him cleared of the charges brought against him. The court in Munich processed Barth's complaint on 20 December. The court invited as witnesses the generals Josef Kammhuber, Martin Harlinghausen, Werner Panitzki and Werner Streib as well as the lieutenant colonels Walter Krupinski and Walter Grasemann. However, the Federal Minister of Defence made it known through his Secretary of State, Volkmar Hopf, before the court, that the Minister sees himself unable to give the witness the testimony rights. Nevertheless, Strauß' conduct in dismissing Barth was found to be at fault, and the latter was reinstated in his position. Strauß however ignored this decision until Hellmuth Heye, Ombudsman for the Military, forced him to accept it.


George Beurling

George Frederick "Buzz" Beurling, (6 December 1921 – 20 May 1948) was the most successful Canadian fighter pilot and flying ace of the Second World War.
Beurling was recognised as "Canada's most famous hero of Second World War", as "The Falcon of Malta" and the "Knight of Malta", having been credited with shooting down 27 Axis aircraft in just 14 days over the besieged Mediterranean island. Before the war ended his official total climbed to either 31 or 31. Beurling's wartime service was terminated prior to war's end, for repeated stunting and his lack of teamwork. Having found a way to potentially continue combat flying in the postwar era, Beurling was killed in a crash while attempting to deliver an aircraft to Israel.
Early life.
George Beurling was born in 1921 in Verdun (now part of Montreal), Quebec into a religious family and was the third of five children in the family. His father, Frederick Gustav Beurling, was Swedish and a commercial artist working for the Claude Neon Company. His mother, Hetty Florence Gibbs, is of English descent and was born in the Montreal suburb of Pointe-Saint-Charles. George Beurling began to develop an interest in flying at the age of 6 when his father built him a model aircraft. His parents wanted him to study in McGill University and become a successful commercial artist just like his father. At the age of 15, he quit school and took up a job to increase his income. One year later, he had 150 flying hours and managed to pass all examinations for a commercial pilot licence. Wanting to increase his flying experience, he went to China, hoping to join the Chinese Nationalist Air Force by crossing the US border. He was intending to head to San Francisco and work for some while in China and later sign up for the job. Eventually, he was arrested as an immigrant at the border and was repatriated back home. He first took the controls of an aircraft in 1933, and was flying solo by 1938. He left school to work for an air freight company in Gravenhurst, Ontario, and soon gained a commercial licence. Beurling joined the Royal Air Force in September 1940.
Second World War.
With the outbreak of war, Beurling tried to join the Royal Canadian Air Force, but his lack of academic qualifications led to his rejection. He then tried to join the Finnish Air Force (which was fighting the Soviets in the Winter War), but could not get his parents' permission. Instead, Beurling sailed across the Atlantic on a convoy, landing in Glasgow, intending to enlist in the Royal Air Force. Unfortunately, he had forgotten his birth certificate and had to return to Canada. In September 1940, after he had survived the return trip, the RAF accepted him as a pilot.
RAF service.
Having survived one or two aerial misdemeanours, Beurling reached No. 7 Operational Training Unit, at RAF Hawarden, in September 1941. Beurling demonstrated considerable skill in training. In Hawarden, he came under the influence of the great Ginger Lacey, whose score at the time stood at 27. Lacey later commented about Beurling: "There are not two ways about it, he was a wonderful pilot and an even better shot."
These two factors, coupled with exceptional eyesight, were the keys to Beurling's later success. But they did not come without effort. At Hawarden, he immersed himself in gunnery, estimation of range, deflection, bullet trail and bullet drop, imprinting them into his subconscious until they were automatic. For him, flying and shooting became one single action.
In the middle of December, he was posted as a Sergeant Pilot to 403 Squadron, a RCAF "Article XV squadron", which had just moved to North Weald, Essex. He flew his first (uneventful) combat mission, in a Supermarine Spitfire, on Christmas Day 1941. Beurling remained with 403 for nearly four months, escorting bombers and flying fighter sweeps across the English Channel. While he was in formations "jumped" by German fighters, Beurling did not get off an effective shot during his time with 403.
In early 1942, a change of policy by the RCAF required its squadrons to be staffed by RCAF personnel. Because Beurling had remained technically a member of the RAF, he was posted to 41 Squadron RAF in Sussex.
Two days later, as usual for a newcomer, he was assigned again to the number four position. He spotted a lone Fw 190, and broke from the flight to pursue it. He claimed the German fighter as probably destroyed 2 to 3 miles off Cap Gris Nez at approximately 12.00 hours. On this occasion, Beurling was reprimanded for attacking a target without permission, and became unpopular with his superiors and fellow pilots. As Red 4, finding himself alone in the sky, he made his way back across the Channel, joining up with Sgt Appleton mid-way. Counting all claims together, after Group revision, 3-1-2 Fw 190 were credited to the RAF FC pilots.
When another pilot was posted overseas, Beurling offered to take his place. Ordered to board a ship, he did not know his destination until the vessel reached Gibraltar. He was destined for No. 249 Squadron RAF, at Malta.
Malta (1942).
Fighter pilots played a critical role in the defence of Malta during its siege. Beurling landed on the island on 9 June, after having flown off the deck of aboard his Spitfire, during Operation Salient. His nickname on Malta was "Screwball", an expletive he had a habit of using.
Beurling had his baptism of fire in the mid-morning of 12 June when, flying a Spitfire, with three other pilots from 249, the formation intercepted eight Bf 109s. Beurling claimed to have blown the tail off a Bf 109, but nobody saw it hit the ground, so he was credited with a "damaged". After that, Beurling claimed a series of kills that had no equal on the Mediterranean island. On 6 July 1942, with other pilots from 249, he attacked a formation of three Cant Z1007bis, 14 Reggiane Re.2001s and more than two dozen Macchi C.202s. He almost certainly shot down "Sergente" Francesco Pecchiari from 352a "Squadriglia". Then he claimed another Macchi that crashed near Zejtun, likely the Reggiane of "Sottotenente" Romano Pagliani, 152a "Squadriglia". During this fight, the Italians claimed two Spifires, one by Furio Niclot Doglio (that Beurling would kill three weeks later). RAF suffered no losses, but Beurling's aircraft was badly shot up. However he made a third claim that day, a Messerschmitt, hit from a distance of 800 yards.
On 10 July, Beurling's Malta tally rose to five in just four days, making him an ace. That day, it seems likely that he shot down the C.202 of "Sergente Maggiore" Francesco Visentini, from 378a "Squadriglia".
On July 12, Beurling, piloting a Spitfire and searching for Pilot Officer Berkeley-Hill, who was missing, spotted, at a lower altitude, "Tenente Colonnello" Aldo Quarantotti and "Tenente" Carlo Seganti, flying over Reggiane Re.2001, who in turn were looking for Lieutenant Francesco Vichi, who had disappeared while a Spitfire was chasing him.
Beurling, with Flying Officer Erik Hetherington, dived on the tail of the second of the two Reggianes and downed Seganti. Then Beurling attacked the other Reggiane. He closed up to 100 ft and just when Quarantotti spotted him, Beurling delivered a short burst that decapitated the Italian commander. This aircraft also fell into the sea. Two days later it was the Reggianes who attacked him and badly shot up his Spitfire. Beurling's aircraft was "riddled by better than 20 bullets through the fuselage and wings". "An explosive bullet nicked my right heel", he recalled.
On 22 July, Beurling lost his best friend in Malta, French-Canadian Pilot Jean Paradis. The following day, eight 249 Spitfires were scrambled. Beurling claimed to have badly damaged a bomber and, after a long dogfight with a Reggiane, to have blown "his left wing off". The 151a "Squadriglia", in fact, lost "Sergente Maggiore" Bruno Di Pauli. The Macchi 202 pilot reported to have parachuted down after an AA shell had damaged his aircraft and realizing that he was followed by six Spitfires that, at the moment, had still not fired.
27 July was Beurling's "biggest day on Malta". That day, he shot down "Sergente" Faliero Gelli, and immediately afterwards, Captain Furio Niclot Doglio, "Regia Aeronautica"s best fighter, both flying Macchi MC. 202s. Doglio, who was diving to counter attack the head-on Spitfires of 126 Squadron and had misunderstood the warning waggling of wings of his wingman, "Maresciallo" Ennio Tarantola (who had seen the oncoming 249 Squadron fighters from left, high above), was Beurling's 14th "kill".
On the same day, Beurling also claimed two Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters, one of which was piloted by the ace "Leutnant" Karl-Heinz Preu of JG 53 although other sources attribute this to flak. On 24 July 1942, Beurling was awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal, the citation read:
On 30 July, he was commissioned as a pilot officer, and on 4 September won a bar to his DFM, largely for his exploits on 27 July. The citation read:
The enervation of daily combat combined with the effects of the poor rations and dysentery were telling. Beurling was bedridden for much of August and September, gaining only 1½ victories in August. On 8 August, while he was shooting at a Bf 109, he was jumped by two more. He claimed that he hit one and that it went straight into the sea. This was apparently confirmed by his section leader. But his aircraft was then hit in the engine and he belly-landed in a stone-walled field. "I climbed out, he recalled, unhurt except for a superficial cut in one arm." Beurling was shot down either by Herbert Rollwage or Siegfried Freytag and "Fw" Pohl of I./"Jagdgeschwader" 77 (JG 77—77th Fighter Wing), who all claimed a Spitfire shot down.
Beurling hitched back to Ta' Qali Field. On 25 September, he had another successful day, claiming to have downed three German fighters, but on this occasion his victories seem to be "overclaimed". That day, flying with 11 other Spitfires, he met a dozen Bf 109s 30 miles northeast of Zonqor Point. He claimed to have "disintegrated" a first Messerschmitt, to have damaged a second and put in flames a third, that "enveloped in flames, dived vertically striking the sea", the pilot bailing out. Two of these victims were two German fighters that came back to base, even if badly damaged and the third could be the one piloted by Kurt Gorbing, who made a forced-landing and died shortly afterwards.
On 10 October, Beurling was testing his newly serviced Spitfire when he was vectored to intercept two Bf 109s, flying line abreast at 1,000 ft over Filfla. He reported to have hit the "starboard fellow" in the engine: "He pancaked right smack down on his belly and flipped over onto his back." The second BF 109 tried to fly away but he hit the gas tank: "The ship blow up, complete with pilot." Those kills brought Beurling's Malta tally to 21, plus another shared with two others. But there is no record of a Messerschmitt crashing on the island on 10 October 1942, nor any German losses. On the morning of 13 October, three miles north of St Paul’s Bay, Beurling, attacked a formation of Ju 88s, escorted by 30 Bf 109s. He claimed to have at first hit a bomber, then an oncoming Bf 109 that burst into flames. Seconds later, he shot at a second Messerschmitt, without observing strikes, "but pilot bailed out". On 16 October he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, the citation read:
Beurling was a committed Christian, teetotaler, and non-smoker; while his counterparts patronized the local bars every night, he dedicated himself totally to the art of aerial combat. Tending to be a loner on the ground and in the air, Beurling angered his commanders with his disdain for teamwork. His relentless concentration on aerial fighting led Beurling to develop a marked skill at deflection shooting and together with his "situational awareness", he was soon recognised as a deadly fighter pilot. Like many successful Spitfire pilots, Beurling developed the habit of only engaging enemy aircraft at 250 yards or less — a range at which many other pilots would be breaking away. Beurling owed his spectacular success to remarkably good eyesight and the ability to "toss his Spitfire" into violent combat manoeuvres. If jumped from behind, he would pull back on the stick of his Mk VC Spitfire so hard that the aircraft would enter a violent stall, flick over and spin. This was a hard, sudden and very dangerous act for the enemy fighter on his tail to follow. Beurling would also ram both ailerons and rudder into a sudden and violent turn, causing his Spitfire to flip over and drop like a stone. Only a very experienced (or crazy) pilot would pull such stunts more than once or twice. Beurling made them a matter of habit. He knew that the Spitfire could be nursed out of such self-induced trouble and get him home safely.
But Beurling was not invincible; he was shot down four times over Malta. On 14 October 1942 (his last flight over Malta), Beurling scrambled with six other pilots from his squadron to intercept a raid of Ju 88s escorted by 60 Bf 109s, Macchi 202s and Reggiane 2001s just south of Zonqor Point. He strafed a bomber that he claimed to have shot down, but was, in turn, hit by return fire from the Ju 88: "I picked up about 30 bullet holes." Then he claimed to have damaged a Messerschmitt and to have blown the left wing of another Bf 109 off at the root. Seconds later, another German fighter hit him from below. He was wounded in the heel, elbow and ribs, and his Spitfire was set on fire. He managed to bail out into the sea. During this action, no Messerschmitt was in fact destroyed. Only 2. "Staffel" (Black 1/7619) of I/JG53, flown by "Obfw" Josef Edere who was wounded, was damaged in the action, and Edere crash-landed at San Pietro, Sicily. Beurling was probably shot down by "Obfw" Riker of 4/JG53 or Ltn Karl von Lieres of 2/JG27 (who was credited with his 26th). Of the seven Ju 88s claimed to have been shot down by the RAF, only one did not return. After his rescue, Beurling was hospitalised.
Beurling was then sent back to Britain on 31 October 1942. On the way, the B-24 transport aircraft he was aboard crashed into the sea off Gibraltar. Beurling was one of only three survivors.
On 4 November he received the Distinguished Service Order, the citation read:
Over Malta, he had claimed over 27 kills, by far the highest total by an RAF pilot during the campaign.
War bond drive.
After landing back in Britain, Beurling was then sent to Canada to join a Victory Loan Drive, selling war bonds, being the guest of honour at a parade in Verdun and meeting Prime Minister Mackenzie King. He was promoted to war substantive Flying Officer (on probation) on 30 January 1943. He did not enjoy the war bond campaign. Also, he often said things that embarrassed the RCAF, such as that he enjoyed killing people. The leg wound Beurling had received over Malta, combined with his poor general health, returned him to hospital for several weeks. He completed his promotional work in mid-1943 and also met his future wife, Diana Whittall in Vancouver.
Instructor.
Returning to Britain, Beurling was posted as a gunnery instructor to 61 OTU. On 27 May 1943, he was posted to the Central Gunnery School at RAF Sutton Bridge. On 8 June, during a mock dogfight, Beurling was forced to bail out of Spitfire II P7913 when the engine caught fire after being accidentally hit. It is alleged that whilst stationed at RAF Sutton Bridge he actually flew under the Crosskeys Bridge that crosses the Nene, which still stands today having been built 1897.
Royal Canadian Air Force.
On 1 September 1943, Beurling transferred to the Royal Canadian Air Force, and was posted to an operational squadron, 403 (a return to his first squadron) at Kenley, flying the new Spitfire IX. Shooting down an Fw 190 of JG 2 in September, but unhappy with flying sweeps, Beurling requested command of a flight of North American P-51 Mustangs in order to carry out deep penetration, free-roaming raids into Germany. His request was turned down.
Disciplinary problems annoyed his commander, but Beurling was promoted to flight lieutenant. However, his stunting of a de Havilland Tiger Moth at zero feet over his airfield eventually led to his Wing Commander, Hugh Godefroy, threatening him with a court martial. Subsequently, Beurling was transferred to 126 Wing HQ and then to 412 Squadron.
At 412 Squadron, Beurling again came into conflict with his commander for stunting and his lack of teamwork, leading to his eventual grounding. He claimed his last kill on 30 December, shooting down and wounding Uzz. Heinz Wyrich of "5 Staffel", JG 26 flying a Fw 190A-45 W.Nr. 1175, Weisse 16 2 km S. of Romaine, when the squadron was covering returning American bombers near Compiègne, France.
Discharge.
Beurling returned to Canada in April 1944. He was given an honourable discharge in October and, despite an attempt to join the United States Army Air Forces, his wartime flying was over. He ended his career as a squadron leader with 31 and one shared official kills, nine claimed damaged, along with a DSO, DFC and a DFM and Bar.
Death.
In 1948, Beurling was recruited to fly P-51 Mustangs for the Israeli Air Force. After a test flight, Beurling fatally crashed his Noorduyn Norseman transport aircraft while landing at Aeroporto dell'Urbe in Rome on 20 May 1948, just six days after the Israeli Declaration of Independence.
It was his tenth crash. Suspicion at the time of the accident centred on possible sabotage, which was never proven. "The initial report, while it identified the crew as Beurling and Leonard Cohen (another Malta RAF pilot), acknowledged that the bodies were burned beyond recognition." Beurling's widow, family and personal friends were not in attendance at the funeral in Rome. On a small brass plate over the lid of the coffin were the words "Colonel Georgio Beurling".
Beurling's coffin was kept for three months in a warehouse in the Verano Monumental Cemetery, as nobody had claimed the body. Then his widow, Diana Whittall Gardner, had him buried in the Protestant Cemetery behind the Cestia Pyramid, between the graves of Percy Bysshe Shelley and John Keats. In November 1950, two and half years after his death, Beurling's casket arrived at Haifa Airport. His coffin, draped with the blue and white Israeli flag, was laid in a nearby air force base, where an honour guard of young airmen mounted a silent watch. During the long funeral in the streets of Haifa, Israeli Air Force aircraft paid homage to Beurling. At last, he was re-interred in the military cemetery at the foot of Mount Carmel. The grave is marked, as are the others in Israel Defense Forces cemeteries, with only name, serial number and rank: for Beurling that of "segen" (lieutenant).
Legacy.
"Malta Spitfire", an account of his time in Malta, co-written by Leslie Roberts and Beurling, was first published in 1943.
"In Verdun the only reminder of the famous son is the boulevard which carries Beurling's name." Beurling Academy, a high school in the Lester B. Pearson School Board in Verdun, is also named after him.
Summary of victory claims.
Beurling was provisionally credited with 31 air victories destroyed (and one third shared destroyed), and 9 damaged.


Cosmos Samba

The Cosmos Samba, named after the dance of the same name, is a French flying wing ultralight trike that is produced by Cosmos ULM of Fontaine-lès-Dijon, France. The aircraft is supplied as a complete aircraft and is not available as a kit.
Design and development.
The Samba is a minimalist aircraft, sometimes referred to as a "nanolight-trike". It was designed 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 . 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 bolted-together aluminum tubing. The Tedlar-covered single surface wing is a French La Mouette Topless M design that uses an internal Kevlar cross-bar reinforcement in place of a kingpost and ground wires. The lower flying wires are retained, however, giving the aircraft a load rating of +6/-3g. Control is weight-shift via an "A" frame control bar.
The lack of the kingpost and associated cables allows the Samba a top speed of on only of power provided by a Zenoah G-25 single cylinder, two stroke powerplant. Because of its low drag the aircraft is suitable for power-off soaring flight and the engine can be restarted in flight.
The Samba can be disassembled for storage or car-top transport in 20 minutes.


DEA Aviation Limited

DEA Aviation Limited (DEA) is an aviation company based at Retford Gamston Airport in the United Kingdom.
It is a privately owned company operating worldwide undertaking ISR, Flight Inspection and Flight path validation missions. In addition, the company carries out specialist charter work and the transport of small size Dangerous Goods.
DEA Aviation Limited operates its own Aircraft Maintenance facility and holds a Part M Subpart G with ARC privileges as well as a Part 145 Approval.
History.
Founded in 2006 by Peter Bondar and Chris Dawes, the company was granted its AOC in 2009 and operations started with one Diamond DA42 aircraft. from 2009 onwards, more aircraft were acquired to fulfil contracts in Europe and Africa to service a growing customer base.
DEA attracted new investors in 2014. Peter Bondar retired and a new team was recruited and in addition to its work with its flight inspection customers, the company rapidly achieved increasing success in the ISR arena operating on the borders of the European Union. In 2017 the company changed its name to "DEA Aviation Limited".
Fleet.
DEA operates seven Diamond DA42 and one Diamond DA62 in various configurations.


Grigory Mylnikov

Grigory Mikhailovich Mylnikov (; 25 May 1919 – 26 September 1979) was a ground-attack pilot in the Soviet Air Forces during the Second World War who was twice awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.
Early life.
Mylnikov was born on 25 May 1919 in the village of Yegorievka to a Russian family. After completing his seventh year of school in 1936 he went on to attend a trade school in Voronezh. There, he graduated from trade school in 1938 and went on to work at a factory until graduating from the local aeroclub in 1939, after which he entered the army in December. Upon graduation from the Borisoglebsk Military Aviation School of Pilots in November 1940 he was assigned to the 163rd Reserve Aviation Regiment; from February to May 1941 he was part of the 171st Fighter Aviation Regiment, and then he was briefly posted to the 169th Reserve Aviation Regiment until July 1941.
World War II.
In July 1941 Mylnikov was reassigned as a pilot to the 174th Assault Aviation Regiment, which was awarded the guards designation and renamed in March 1942 as the 15th Guards Assault Aviation Regiment. He quickly was promoted from pilot to flight commander and continued to rise through the ranks, achieving the position of squadron commander before he was nominated for his first gold star. For much of the war he was tasked with taking out targets attacking besieged Leningrad, and in early 1943 he participated in the breakthrough of the blockade; over the course of 13 sorties he took out ten vehicles, an ammunition depot, four railway cars, four bunkers, and killed over 100 enemy combatants. While leading a group of four Il-2 aircraft on an attack over a stretch of railroad on 19 March 1943 they took out 15 railway cars and caused a significant delay of traffic on the line. On 23 September 1944 Mylnikov was nominated for the title Hero of the Soviet Union for having totaled 192 sorties, which was awarded on 23 February 1945; shorty before that on 14 February 1945 he was nominated for a second gold star for having totaled 223 sorties. During a mission on 21 February 1945 he was badly injured after his Il-2 was hit by an anti-aircraft shell; although he was able to make an emergency landing in Kreuzburg, the severity of his injuries resulted in him being confined to the hospital for the remainder of the war, where he underwent a craniotomy.
Throughout the war he fought in the battles for Leningrad, Novgorod, Vyborg, Tallin, East Prussia, and other strategically important areas on the Western, Bryansk, Leningrad, and 3rd Belorussian fronts. By the end of the conflict he totaled 226 sorties on the Il-2, taking out nine tanks, seven aircraft on the ground, four ammunition depots, 58 railway cars, 73 anti-aircraft artillery positions, 115 cars, 26 machine-gun nests, and over 1000 enemy combatants.
Postwar.
Eventually Mylnikov was released from the hospital in August 1945, but since he was unable to return to flying for health reasons he had to leave active duty for the reserve in November. From 1948 to 1949 he worked as a senior engineer at the import department of the Ministry of Fishing. After graduating from the Institute of National Economics named after G.V. Plekhanov in 1954 he went on to hold various management positions; initially he was deputy manager and later head of portions of several state construction trusts, but in 1958 he became director of a grocery store in the Zhdanovsky district of Moscow. The next year he became head of the Ostankino hotel, and from 1961 to 1962 he headed a general store. From then until 1969 he was deputy director of several restaurants in the Leningradsky district of Moscow. He lived for the remainder of his life in Moscow, were he died on 26 September 1979 and was buried in the Vagankovo cemetery.


Lowfield Heath

Lowfield Heath is a former village within the boundaries of the Borough of Crawley, West Sussex, England. Situated on the main London to Brighton road approximately south of London and north of Crawley, it was gradually rendered uninhabitable by the expansion of London Gatwick Airport immediately to the north.
Houses and village amenities were steadily demolished between the 1950s and the 1970s, and only one original building – St Michael and All Angels Church, built in 1867 – remains, although there are various buildings on the site which serve the airport. The village took its name from an area of heathland of the same name, parts of which still survive, and a few houses and farms away from the old village centre survive and are still described as being in Lowfield Heath. A windmill stood in the area until it was moved to nearby Charlwood in 1987, and is also still referred to as the Lowfield Heath windmill.
Origins.
A large area of common land, consisting of heathland on top of Weald Clay, straddled the border between the counties of Surrey and Sussex north of Crawley. An ancient oak tree, the "County Oak", stood on the heath for centuries and marked the traditional boundary. This tree was eventually cut down in the 1840s, but its name survives in a retail park and industrial area near the present Manor Royal estate in the north of Crawley. The timber was used to make an oaken screen for the nearby St Margaret's Church in Ifield. Most of the heath, including the section in which the village developed, was north of the county boundary, on the Surrey side, and this area was in the Parish of Charlwood. The small section which lay within Sussex—consisting of the part southwest of the County Oak—was in the Parish of Ifield. The land is low-lying, flat and often damp, as the River Mole rises nearby and is fed by many tributaries.
Although it was known about in the Domesday era, Lowfield Heath does not appear to have been named until the 14th century, when a man called Lowe lived locally. "Lowe Heath" became corrupted into "Lowfeild Heath" , "Lovel Heath" and "Lovell Heath" by the 18th century. In the early 18th century, an Act of Parliament granted by King William III authorised the construction of of roadway from Reigate to Crawley. This crossed the heath, thereby encouraging development. The road was widened and made into a toll road in 1755, and became part of the main London to Brighton route in 1770 when an Act of Parliament was passed to widen and improve the road all the way from "the County Oak on Lovell Heath" to Brighton. For the first time, the London to Brighton route was fully turnpiked.
Development of the village.
Intermittent and haphazard development around the heath, consisting of farms and individual houses, had begun by 1700, when Oak Cottage and County Oak Cottage were built. These were at the extreme southwest corner of the heath, west of the London Road, and still survive as listed buildings; they have been converted into offices in the Amberley Court development within the County Oak industrial area. However, the core of the village was much further north, around the crossroads between the London to Brighton road (running from north to south) and the Charlwood road and its eastward continuation as the village street, Church Road. This only started to develop as a proper settlement after the common land began to be enclosed in 1827. The first section of land to be enclosed was around the windmill; the expectation of increased development of the land led to the miller applying for an injunction stopping the enclosure, which was unsuccessful. More land was enclosed in 1846, and by 1855 the routes of the roads across the heath became fixed.
Gradually, a small village developed around the crossroads. Many of its buildings were timber-framed, but its "architectural highlight", St Michael and All Angels Church, was built of yellow sandstone in 1867 by the architect William Burges. By 1900, the hamlet had reached its greatest size: it consisted of several houses, a public house (the White Lion), a tearoom, a school, a shop and post office, the church, some small manufacturing businesses and the windmill, which had stopped working around twenty years earlier. Also at this time, when Crawley was experiencing a period of Victorian-era growth, demand for bricks led to temporary brickyards being set up in and around the village.
Little changed until the 1950s; the creation in the mid-1930s of Gatwick Aerodrome, as it was then, had no significant effect on the village. The facility was small, and the focus of activity was around the "Beehive" terminal building which was some distance to the northeast. However, the decision to expand it into an international airport, resulting from its designation as London's second airport behind Heathrow, quickly resulted in Lowfield Heath's decline and demise. The aerodrome, as it still was, had been effectively at risk of closure until 1948, despite the local council's promise to develop it, and Stansted was expected to be chosen by the Government as the site for London's second airport. The new chairman of British European Airways, Peter Masefield, preferred Gatwick, however, and by 1950 the council had been told to prepare for Gatwick's redevelopment and expansion. The Government announced this in 1952, but by that time locals knew what was going to happen.
The expansion required the building of a full-size runway on an approximately east–west alignment, immediately north of the Charlwood Road and Church Road. Throughout the 1950s, houses and other buildings were compulsorily purchased and demolished; houses unaffected by this (mainly those on the south and east sides of the village) were gradually depopulated as well as the village became an increasingly unattractive place to live. Property developers saw potential for the land to be used for warehousing and light industrial development; proximity to the airport and the main road were advantageous. The road was diverted and upgraded in 1956, the same year as construction work started on the airport: the section running northwards from Crawley became a dual carriageway, and approximately south of the village crossroads, the road was diverted sharply to the east at a new roundabout, continuing straight across an undeveloped section of the heath and around the newly defined perimeter of the airport until it met the London–Brighton railway line, at which point it turned north again. Other access roads were severed at the same time, and the old course of the London Road was blocked by a gate next to the runway. The only access to Lowfield Heath village was then along the downgraded "Old Brighton Road" from the new roundabout, or from the rural road from Charlwood. This further increased its isolation, and the remaining buildings were hemmed in between the diverted road and the airport perimeter fence. Apart from the church, the last vestiges of the old village disappeared in the early 1970s, when the White Lion public house and a few remaining houses were demolished.
The boundary between Surrey and West Sussex was amended in 1974 as a result of the Local Government Act 1972 and its follow-up Act, the Charlwood and Horley Act 1974. Charlwood village remained in Surrey, but a large part of its former parish was transferred to West Sussex, including all of the land covered by Gatwick Airport. The whole of Lowfield Heath was included in this transfer. From 1 April 1974, therefore, Lowfield Heath became part of the Borough of Crawley and the county of West Sussex.
The area today.
Lowfield Heath still appears on maps. The name defines both the development around the old church, where the nucleus of the former village was, and the area of mostly undeveloped heathland whose approximate boundaries are the County Oak industrial area, Poles Lane, the airport's southern perimeter road and the main London Road (the A23).
St Michael and All Angels Church is the only building surviving from before the expansion of Gatwick Airport. It is surrounded by a mixture of warehouses, car showrooms, light industrial units, small offices and storage units. The largest building is a Travelodge hotel, marketed as "Travelodge Gatwick Airport", on the northeast corner of the crossroads. Along the Charlwood Road there are large car parks for airport passengers.
The church is nominally within the Anglican parish of Crawley, under the parish church of St John the Baptist's, but it is no longer used as an Anglican place of worship. After the last service in 2004, the Diocese of Chichester retained the building until March 2008, when it allowed a Seventh-day Adventist congregation to move in. It is now the venue for the Horley Seventh-Day Adventist Church, which was formally established in January 2008. The building had been listed at Grade II* in 1948, giving it some protection against demolition or significant alteration.
A Royal British Legion social club survived at Lowfield Heath until 2008. Built in 1948 on the Charlwood Road, the club attracted members from the village and surrounding areas, but slowly declined as the population fell. For many years, even after the village became depopulated, airport workers could walk straight off the runway and on to the road by the clubhouse, but increased airport security led to the permanent blocking of that route. The club closed in July 2007 and was sold a year later.