Author Archives: RIC

About RIC

Webmaster for FirstAeroSquadronFoundation's (FASF) website. Also the CEO of the 501C(c)(3) aviation history-oriented FASF non-profit, which is dedicated to the Birth Place of American Airpower and Rebirth Place of American Civil Aviation in 1916 & 1917 in Columbus, NM.

Remember: Next Time You Pass or Stop at Chicago’s Airport

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Virg Hemphill

Chicago has two memorable stories, stories that seem to be very much unrelated, but . . . once again, Virg Hemphill reminds us on this MEMORIAL DAY, to stop and reflect about our nation’s amazing history.  Here are those two Chicago stories.  Both unique – – – and both the amazing truth.

 

 

STORY NUMBER ONE

Many Years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago.  Capone wasn’t famous for anything heroic.  He was notorious for enmeshing the windy city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder.

Capone had a lawyer nicknamed “Easy Eddie.”  He was Capone’s lawyer for a good reason.  Eddie was very good!  In fact, Eddie’s skill at legal maneuvering kept Big Al out of jail for a long time.

To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well.. Not only was the money big, but Eddie got special dividends, as well.  For instance, he and his family occupied a fenced-in mansion with live-in help and all of the conveniences of the day.  The estate was so large that it filled an entire Chicago City block.

Eddie lived the high life of the Chicago mob and gave little consideration to the atrocity that went on around him.

Eddie did have one soft spot, however.  He had a son that he loved dearly.  Eddie saw to it that his young son had clothes, cars, and a good education.  Nothing was withheld.  Price was no object.

And, despite his involvement with organized crime, Eddie even tried to teach him right from wrong.  Eddie wanted his son to be a better man than he was.

Yet, with all his wealth and influence, there were two things he couldn’t give his son; he couldn’t pass on a good name or a good example.

One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision.  Easy Eddie wanted to rectify wrongs he had done.

He decided he would go to the authorities and tell the truth about Al”Scarface” Capone, clean up his tarnished name, and offer his son some semblance of integrity.  To do this, he would have to testify against The Mob, and he knew that the cost would be great.  But he testified, anyway.

Within the year, Easy Eddie’s life ended in a blaze of gunfire on a lonely Chicago Street.  But in his eyes, he had given his son the greatest gift he had to offer, at the greatest price he could ever pay. Police removed from his pockets a rosary, a crucifix, a religious medallion, and a poem clipped from a magazine. The poem read:

“The clock of life is wound but once, and no man has the power to tell just when the hands will stop, at late or early hour. Now is the only time you own.  Live, love, toil with a will.  Place no faith in time.  For the clock may soon be still.”

STORY NUMBER TWO

World War II produced many heroes. One such man was Lieutenant Commander Butch O’Hare.

He was a fighter pilot assigned to the aircraft carrier Lexington in the South Pacific.

One day his entire squadron was sent on a mission.  After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel gauge and realized that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank. He would not have enough fuel to complete his mission and get back to his ship. His flight leader told him to return to the carrier.  Reluctantly, he dropped out of formation and headed back to the fleet.

As he was returning to the mother ship, he saw something that turned his blood cold; a squadron of Japanese aircraft was speeding its way toward the American-fleet.

The American fighters were gone on a sortie, and the fleet was all but defenseless.  He couldn’t reach his squadron and bring them back in time to save the fleet.  Nor could he warn the fleet of the approaching danger.  There was only one thing to do.  He must somehow divert them from the fleet.

Laying aside all thoughts of personal safety, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes.  Wing-mounted 50 caliber’s blazed as he charged in, attacking one surprised enemy plane and then another.  Butch wove in and out of the now broken formation and fired at as many planes as possible until all his ammunition was finally spent.

Undaunted, he continued the assault.  He dove at the planes, trying to clip a wing or tail in hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as possible, rendering them unfit to fly.

Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off in another direction.

Deeply relieved, Butch O’Hare and his tattered fighter limped back to the carrier.

Upon arrival, he reported in and related the event surrounding his return.  The film from the gun-camera mounted on his plane told the tale.  It showed the extent of Butch’s daring attempt to protect his fleet.  He had, in fact, destroyed five enemy aircraft.  This took place on February 20, 1942, and for that action Butch became the Navy’s first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval Aviator to win the Medal of Honor.

A Year later Butch was killed in aerial combat at the age of 29.  His hometown would not allow the memory of this WW II hero to fade, and today, O’Hare airport in Chicago is named in tribute to the courage of this great man.

So, the next time you find yourself at O’Hare International, give some thought to visiting Butch’s memorial displaying his statue and his Medal of Honor.  It’s located between Terminals 1 and 2.

SO WHAT DO THESE TWO STORIES HAVE TO DO WITH EACH OTHER?

Butch O’Hare was “Easy Eddie’s” son.

Official USN Photo of  young Lieutenant Butch O’Hare in cockpit of his Navy Fighter

Editor’s Note:  I was blessed to have been a guest among the official delegation at the actual Name Commissioning of O’Hare Airport back in 1949.  My father, a Navy vet himself,  had known young Eddie O’Hare during the early war years, and was the Navy official at the event, so he (thankfully) took his son along for the historic occasion. It was then that I first heard this amazing story, although related to me in a less dramatic form.  The official story, as told to the assembled crowd at the occasion, made no mention whatsoever about the hero’s father.  Of course, Chicago O’Hare field went on to become the world’s busiest airport and remains a major hub for much of the continental – and international – air traffic in the nation.

Can You Take a Little Over Five Minutes to Remember Them?

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 Virg Hemphill

Once again, Virg Hemphill (at left), an Air Force veteran Pilot himself, suggests we take a few moments this weekend to stop and remember those who helped us enjoy the freedoms we tend to take so much for granted.

While this national holiday weekend we affectionately call, MEMORIAL DAY, often involves wonderful family and friend time outdoors, and also possibly joining other loved ones to watch main street downtown parades, or great sporting events, such as the INDY 500,* Virg thinks – and we at the FASF agree – that we should still find or make just a few minutes (his selected video below is precisely 5:34 minutes) to reflect; to remember those young men and women who gave so much that we might enjoy our unparalleled and so widely envied American liberties.

* Remember:  Eddie Rickenbacher, great American Fighter Pilot and WWI Ace, started his career racing cars, including at Indianapolis (he later became the famous “500” racetrack’s owner).  And who was it that gave him his first airplane ride?  None other than Glenn Curtiss, himself once the holder the world’s speed record on a motorcycle that he himself built.  Here, below, is a short video (3:53) taken at the Curtiss Museum, of their replica of the Curtiss V-8 engined motorcycle that he rode to such world fame. 

Glenn was born in Hammondsport, NY, in 1878.  Curtiss was gifted with insatiable curiosity, mechanical ability and great ambition.  As his remarkable achievements began to accumulate, this soon became evident. By the time he reached his teens, bicycles and speed had become a near-obsession with the young speed demon.

He was a champion bicycle racer for years,  but soon began to progress into designing and building his own motorized machines. By 1902, Curtiss, with three employees, was manufacturing his own motorcycles under the trade name, “Hercules“.

In a measured-mile run at Ormond Beach, Florida, on Jan. 23, 1907, Curtiss’ V8 powered motorcycle was officially clocked at 136.3 mph. On that day, and for years afterward, Glenn Curtiss carried the title, “Fastest Man on Earth“. The engine used in his record-setting motorcycle served as a prototype for what would later be used in the Curtiss Jenny airplanes, the very aircraft that lifted the First Aero Squadron into the skies over Mexico in 1916.

 

Hilarious Talk by AF Maj. Brian Shul (Ret.): “LA Speed Check”

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Virg Hemphill

Thanks again to our Aviation News Scout, Virg Hemphill  (L), for this memorable video. This short 5:07 minute talk from the stage by former First Aero SR-71 Blackbird pilot, Brian Shul, entitled “LA Speed Check” is a real laugh generating piece of jet pilot “hangar talk” – – –  one that brings laughs from pilot audiences each and every time. While the talk is meant for a pilot audience, that fact doesn’t very much diminish the laughs generated each time the Major share’s his short story with non-pilots . . . Without further ado, let’s have his words bring some humorous guffaws back into being.

Maj. Brian Shul stands in front of his SR-71 Blackbird in his regular space suit.  Shul was an  injured  POW in Vietnam.

One of our Advisors was also a famous Blackbird pilot, as well as a Commander of the First Aero Squadron: General Patrick J. Halloran.

Our F-35 Stealth Fighter vs. the Russian S-400 SAM System

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This following (top) analytical video (6:32 in length) was produced by “Covert Cabal.” Although your editor has not yet been able to ascertain the actual personal identity of the producer of this military analyst’s documentary, it was decided to feature it, anyway.

Under normal protocols and precautionary procedures this fact would alone prevent us from publishing the video below, but the apparent objectivity and competency of the video itself inclines us to share it with our viewers, regardless of its anonymous nature. Once we are able to identify the owner of “Covert Cabal,” we will of course let you know.

Thanks to the Society of the Daedalians and the Air Force’s 461st  Test Squadron, your Editor just completed a rare “inside” tour of the F-35 Test Squadron at Edwards Air Force Base in California this past Wednesday and Thursday, but has, as yet, not received any of the tour video or stills of this newest and highly touted U.S air services multi-role asset.

Your editor was expectedly prohibited from taking any photos or videos of his own, by virtue of the extreme secrecy surrounding this versatile F-35 military weapon system and platform. Any pertinent graphics of the visit we are able to share here must first be cleared by the Edwards’ and/or the Pentagon’s security offices. New F-35 Test Operation images and videos from this recent visit should be posted at some time in the near future – – – so please stay tuned.

Regardless, we’d like to take this opportunity to laud the high caliber of all the personnel encountered on this visit to Edwards; all of whom, from the security guard airmen at the Base’s entry gates to the leaders and Airmen of the Test Squadron, who hosted the visit.  These Air Force and Civilian contractors proved beyond hospitable, gracious and informative to the extent permissible, considering the highly classified nature of their Flight Test Operation.

In particular, we’d like to complement the following individuals who did so much to make the visit meaningful: Steven Zapka, Public Affairs, who personally guided the visit; Stephen K. Robinson and Tony Moore of the AIR FORCE FLIGHT TEST MUSEUM at Edwards; and Lt. Colonel Tucker “Cinco” Hamilton, highly experienced Test Pilot, and Commander of the 461st Flight Test Squadron. The up front coordinator of the event was Lockheed-Martin F-35 Test Pilot, Scott “Shark” McLaren.

This newest Lockheed Martin multi-role 5th generation fighter, the “Lightning II,” is named after the company’s legendary twin-engine Lockheed “Lightning” fighter of WWII fame.

Below is a short (3:20) video of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter showing off its unique capabilities.

Another comprehensively explanatory clip of this newest Joint Task Fighter in action (7:28 long), courtesy of Military.Com and DISCOVERY HD, follows below:

 

USN Mark VI Patrol Boats Now Launch Platforms for UAV’s

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The ubiquitous Drone (military parlance is UAV for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) is now becoming a daily sight aboard the Navy’s new Mark VI Patrol boats.  Below, Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Neil Wierboski prepares an unmanned aerial vehicle for launch aboard a Mark VI patrol boat during training conducted by the Coastal Riverine Group 1 Training and Evaluation Unit in the Middle East, May 9, 2018. Wierboski is assigned to Coastal Riverine Squadron 3.

These new Navy patrol boats can operate over a distance of some 500 Nautical Miles (approximately 575 statute miles) on only one tank of gas. Watch the short video down below this photograph to see these new fast (over 45 mph) patrol boats and drones in action. The boats are propelled by a two jet engine propulsion system and controlled, much as the modern fighter aircraft today, by a Fly-By-Wire technology, which is to say they are controlled by electronics rather than by either the old physical cable system coupling a steering wheel to the rudder(s) or by hydraulic driven rudders.

Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Neil Wierboski prepares an UAV for launch-aboard a Mark VI patrol boat off the Coast.

The below video is 7:51 in length.

But, while the Mark VI is a manned patrol boat, we have also moved autonomous guidance into the boats as well as into the air surrounding them.  See the (below) 12:31 long video about autonomous boats deployment advantages.

 

The USAF Will Soon Switch to the U.S. Army’s OCP Uniform

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Yesterday was Armed Forces Day here in the United States and some of the breaking military news is that the new OCP (Operational Camouflage Pattern) Uniform for the USAF will be none other than that of the U.S. Army.  Does this look like going full circle: back to the roots of the Air Force – – – in the U. S. Army?The U.S. Air Force is adopting the Army‘s Operational Camouflage Pattern (OCP – above) as its new combat uniform and will begin incrementally phasing it in beginning this coming Oct. 1.

The service will soon be scrapping the Airman Battle Uniform, known as the ABU, for the Army’s OCP over the next three years.  It is anticipated that all airmen will be wearing the OCP by April 2021, according to Maj. Gen. Robert LaBrutta, the Air Force director of Military Force Management Policy, and Deputy Chief of Staff for Manpower, Personnel and Services.

“Enhancing our readiness, the OCP is a uniform for form, fit and function,” LaBrutta told reporters May 9. “It is the best-of-breed of utility uniform that we believe is in the inventory.”

Airmen will have the option to sew on their name tape, service tape or both. Officers will have their rank on their patrol caps. Both enlisted airmen as well as officers will have their last names on the back of their caps.

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein concurred: “The uniform works in all climates — from Minot to Manbij — and across the spectrum of missions we perform,” he said in a news release. “It’s suitable for our airmen working on a flight line in Northern Tier states and for those conducting patrols in the Middle East.”

“Everything on the configuration is the same as the Army wears the uniform; we’re just going to make some small color variations,” according to LaBrutta.

LaBrutta said the uniform also helps promote joint services integration. Since 2012, nearly 100,000 airmen have already worn the new uniform when deployed overseas in places like Afghanistan or while operating outside Air Base boundaries.

Just like their Army counterparts, airmen who go into combat zones in deployed locations will receive the fire retardant OCPs, which is standard now, LaBrutta advised.

Service members have asked about the new uniform at almost every town hall gathering, said Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson.  The focus has been, “How do we make it easier [and] what works for airmen,” she commented on May 4.

Watch the F-35 Show Off its Capabilities at the Paris Air Show

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The F-35A made its aerial demonstration debut on June 19, 2017 at the Paris Air Show in front of crowds of thousands. Watch this impressive display of 5th Generation innovation in military aviation. This video is courtesy of Lockheed-Martin, the aircraft’s manufacturer.  The ship is currently undergoing a rich plethora of tests at Edwards Air Force Base, the Air Force’s principal Flight Test Center.  The demonstration video is 6:39 long.  Remember your sound needs to be on, and you might want to open the video full size, since it is in HD.

And, another comprehensive video, only 2:00 minutes long, below, shows this versatile new fighter in various configurations for different mission purposes.  The F-35 program has accomplished the final developmental test flight of the System Design and Demonstration (SDD) phase of the program. The developmental flight test program has conducted more than 9,200 sorties, accumulated over 17,000 flight hours, and executed more than 65,000 test points to verify the design, durability, software, sensors, weapons capability and performance for all three F-35 variants.

One of these variants includes the capability to take off vertically, without the usual long runways required of such advanced fighter aircraft.  Be amazed as this fighter does things seemingly impossible.  You will see one of its variants taking off straight up, and doing so from an Aircraft Carrier, also.  The F-35 will be used by all three aviation branches of the U.S. Armed Forces: The USAF, USN, and the USMC. Learn even more about this fighting machine right here.

See new Air Force pilot take his 92 YO WWII grandpa flying

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92-year-old WWII fighter pilot, Bob Jorgenson, pinned some very special wings on his grandson, Nick Atkins, when he graduated at the top of his class in Academics from Laughlin Air Force Base in Del Rio, Texas. They were his own. Captain Jorgensen flew 35 missions into the European heartland during his active duty tour in Great Britain.

Watch this family pair go back up into the “wild blue yonder.”  This short video (3 minute) is courtesy of USA TODAY.

 

VIDEOS: Basic Training in the new T6A USAF Jet Prop Trainer

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Thanks to our friends at FIGHTER SWEEP for this short (1:15)  video (immediately under the static photo of the plane parked on the ramp) of the new USAF & Navy T-6A Texan II Jet-prop trainer at work plying the clouds. The Raytheon Aircraft-built Texan II is a single-turbo prop engined, two-seat primary trainer, used to teach basic flying skills to Air Force and Navy pilots. 

The aircraft is fully aerobatic and features a pressurized cockpit with an anti-G system, ejection seat and an advanced avionics package with sunlight-readable liquid crystal displays, or as they are more commonly known, a full “Glass Panel.” It is the military trainer version of Raytheon’s Beech/Pilatus PC-9 Mk II.This trainer was first featured on our site some four (4) years ago.  One of its early test pilots was none other than our own FASF Advisor, Patty Wagstaff of Florida, Air Show and International Aerobatic competition fame.

Texan II on Ramp at Vance AFB.

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And, immediately below, is another (4:15 long) video of the Texan II in action – Practicing formation and aerobatic work. The lead female pilot using the cockpit GoPro camcorder is Air Force pilot, Courtney McCallan.

And, below, another T6-Texan II training clip, 3:10 in length.

Below is another video, but this time of the original WWII – Korean Conflict Basic Air Force and Navy Trainer, the North American T6, which was designated the SNJ by the Navy.  The Canadians and British called it the “Harvard.” The Basic Trainer was conventionally powered.  This video is 5:26 in length.  This is the airplane in which your Editor did his basic training in the USAF.

Below is a 3:29 long video using another HD Go-Pro camcorder taking the cockpit view during airshow maneuvers in Germany.  Notice the control stick is the British type with a small ring at the top of the stick.  This is the kind of stick, called a “Spade Stick” found in both the Super-marine Spitfires and Hurricanes fighters that successfully fought the Germans during the Battle of Britain in WWII.

Below is the 3rd phase of flight training at Vance AFB – the class’ final video summary of their year training to be USAF Pilots.  The full video was class (student) produced. Show is 5:30 long.  Gives a good insight to what lies in store for USAF Pilot students in their first year of Pilot Training.  Includes typical student off hours recreation activities and finally the step up to flight training in the T-38 “Talon” aircraft.

T6 Texan in action.

Time to fly! Row of Texans at the ready.

Capt. Nancy Visits FASF Columbus – Dines at the Pink Store

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Local FASF members and supporters greeted Capt. Nancy Aldrich (Ret. UAL),  Author and Aviation Writer for the FASF, who came over to visit the FASF and its facilities, and to meet some of its active local volunteers, yesterday.  Ms. Aldrich made her first visit to the Pink Store in nearby Palomas, Mexico.  Here, below, are some photos taken of the festive event: Click on any photos below to see them full-size and in HD resolution.

L to R: Alma Villezcas, FASF Treasurer and Jeff Smith, FASF Local Business Supporter and Member.

L to R above: Dev Olliver, FASF Photographer; Jeane and Bud Canfield (FASF Advisor); Capt. Nancy; Wayne Le Blanc; Leslie Bronken; Alma Villezcas; Jeff Smith; and and Adelaide Bennett.

L to R: Bud Canfield and FASF Newsletter Editor, July McClure look on as Captain Nancy describes an experience she had while a Captain on a Boeing 767 Airliner . . . Wayne LeBlanc and Leslie Bronken.

L to R: Jeane and Bud Canfield, July McClure, Capt. Nancy, Wayne Le Blanc, Leslie Bronken and Alma Villezcas. Ms. Aldrich had the table in stitches with some of her funnier flying experiences.

L to R:  Nancy Aldrich and July Mcclure discuss what it was like to start flying lessons at 37 and then the experience of joining, and later working into the Pilot-in-Command (left) seat at United Airlines.  Center background are Leslie Bronken, Alma Villezcas and Jeff Smithk, Atty.

L to R: July McClure, Nancy Aldrich, Ric Lambart and Wayne Le Blanc.