Category: Military Flying

WWII plane found frozen in time deep in the Sahara – Telegraph.

I can’t imagine how cool it would be to find something like this while tooling around the desert.  They found a B-24 in the same area years ago and tracked down where most of the pilots died trying to walk out.  I wonder if they will ever find this guy.

Why the Joint Strike Fighter is a calamity in progress.

I saw this coming from the moment I heard about the new multi-role fighter.  A few years ago a parachute company came out with a new canopy that was supposed to be great at canopy relative work, accuracy and high performance landings.  Of course it was a failure, doing none of them well.  You can’t make something that’s good at everything, you can’t make a sports car that’s also a good off road truck.  With what we spent and will have to continue to spend on the F-35 we could have bought hundreds and hundreds of proven airframes like the F-15, F-16, F18 and A-10.  Even if the F-35 finally lives up to it’s hype if we can only afford to buy 6 of them and they are too valuable to risk in combat what good are they?  Remember, quantity has a quality all it’s own.

 

One of the best military videos ever, really get’s my heart pumping.

 

 

Cody Green, Honorary Marine.

Just had to pass this one along.

H/T Instapinch

Indian airforce loses half its planes – Telegraph.

India’s Russian MiG fighter jets have been branded ‘flying coffins’ after the government revealed more than half of its 872-strong fleet had crashed since the mid-1960s.

I guess when you have a few million extra people taking up space in your country whats a few less pilots more or less.  After reading the article I think the high accident rate might not be solved by buying better aircraft.

H/T Jeff

Tribute to vietnam helicopter pilots and crew – YouTube.

People in glass houses and all that prevent me from being too hard on the Apache pilots who just destroyed an expensive aircraft and two careers.  I mean I love a good buzz job just as much as the next guy, ok maybe a lot more than the next guy, but you’ve got to use your head.  Screwing around in the thin mountain air is just asking for trouble and these pilots certainly should have known that.  Oh well live and learn, and it’s going to be an expensive lesson because I hear the Army is going to take the cost of the Apache out of their pay.