MKopack
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Posts posted by MKopack
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Just finished reading "Naked in Da Nang: A Forward Air Controller in Vietnam" by Mike Jackson.
Good, but not great. The first third of the book takes the author from home in Ohio, into the Air Force, through flight training and into Cessna O-2's before you take the trip with him to Vietnam. Not the best if you're looking for a book that will put you right into the FAC seat on missions as there are surprisingly few flying passages, but he does a good job of describing the day to day life and experiences of living as a five-man USAF detachment on a remote Army post, along with the changes he witnessed during his year-long tour, both around and within him.
The book seems to take it on as a mission to debunk the media's "Vietnam Veteran stereotype" (which, being a generation younger, I never really saw - I've always looked up to those guys) because it's mentioned numerous times. Overall a pretty good read, although one that may have benefited from an editor that could have guided the story along.
On the other hand, can't even imagine flying O-1's or O-2's under the conditions and against the threats that the author and all of the FAC's faced.
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Ninety-years ago today Billy Mitchell dropped a bomb that at least indirectly started the Air Force.
“It is a very serious question whether airpower is auxiliary to the Army and the Navy,
or whether armies and navies are not actually auxiliary to airpower.”
General William 'Billy' Mitchell
Surface area view of the captured German battleship Ostfriesland after it was attacked
by Martin MB-2 bombers of the U.S. Army Air Service’s First Provisional Air Brigade,
led by Brig. Gen. William “Billy” Mitchell, on July 21, 1921.
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There ARE warriors in the Air Force beyond fighter pilots, but when you take that fighter pilot out of the Air Force, we lose a great deal of what made the USAF the dominating force it has always been.
Know your role, where you fit in the mission, and accomplish that role with pride, no matter what it is. I believe that everyone has a mission to play, and many, but not all, of them are important. I never was a fighter pilot, but I knew my role, and I never strapped a "Cyber Warrior", a "Finance Warrior", or a "Chow Hall Warrior" into a bombed up jet and set them off on a combat mission hoping - but never positive - that they were coming back at the end of the day.
This former "Speedhandle Warrior" is offended by this, and what would Frank Luke, Hub Zemke, Gabby Gabreski, or Robin Olds think today...?
Perhaps I should have posted the note about Robin Olds birthday, 14 July, here instead (he would have been 89). Shows just how much we need him today.
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Modeling the latest in post-DADT flight gear, these Austrian Typhoon pilots are seen wearing some disturbingly stretchy pants. Austria spent a mint on their fifteen aircraft delivered in 2007, for which they currently have fourteen pilots that average about six flying hours a month - with five aircraft expected to be operational at any one time. Sort of like your local flying club.
On the other hand, this should give the new Austrian fighter fleet an expected airframe life of about 200 years.
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$62 worth of tax free Twinkies was probably the tip-off...
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Yet another testament of her ability to bring her crew home!
I hate to see this as "Liberty Belle" really was a beautiful bird that represented so much Air Force heritage and one of only a handful of the "Flying Forts" to still fly. Looks like a total loss. You're right though, the old warrior brought the crew down safely, just like so many times back during WWII.
I can remember this bird back during the mid-70's, before she was heavily damaged by a tornado while a static display at a museum in Connecticut.
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If WWII had been fought today...
Sixty-seven years ago today Allied forces landed in Normandy and suffered terrible casualties through the fierce fighting against the Nazi defenders. Over the next several weeks the beaches that had been once stained with American blood, were occupied by an entirely different type of invasion - the invasion of the shoes.
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George Kopack - US Army medic landed on the beach 67 years ago today - on the way to Germany and VE Day. He was thirty years old that day and if the Army called him back now, I'll bet he'd be packed by dinnertime. Thank you to Uncle George and to all those Americans and Allies to took the fight onto the continent all those years ago.
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Don't know if this is the correct place for this, but I couldn't think of a better one. I guess I shouldn't be surprised...
"He who shall not be named" Elected Chairman of ABMCWASHINGTON, June 5, 2011 -- Former Air Force Chief of Staff General "He who shall not be named" was elected Friday the 10th chairman of the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC).
@#$&%, one of nine members of the ABMC board of commissioners, was appointed to the commission in July 2010 by President Barack Obama. He is the latest in a line of four-star general officers to serve as chairman, beginning with General of the Armies John J. Pershing.
ABMC is a federal agency established by Congress in 1923 to commemorate the service, achievements, and sacrifice of the United States armed forces. The ABMC commemorative mission is reflected in 24 overseas military cemeteries that serve as resting places for almost 125,000 American war dead; on Tablets of the Missing that memorialize more than 94,000 U.S. servicemen and women; and through 25 memorials, monuments and markers.
*&%#$ was chief of staff of the Air Force from 1990 to 1994. A career fighter pilot, he flew 269 combat missions in Vietnam, some of them while in command of the Misty squadron of high speed forward air controllers. In 1967-68, he performed as a demonstration pilot in 199 official air shows as a member of the Air Force's elite aerobatic team, the Thunderbirds. Before becoming Air Force chief, he commanded the 20th Fighter Wing, Twelfth Air Force, and the Pacific Air Forces.
Since retirement from active military service, "He who shall not be named" has made a second career as an investor and director of public and private companies. He is chairman of Ethicspoint, a leading provider of risk-management and compliance software-as-a-service, including secure, anonymous reporting of ethical violations in the workplace.
Previous ABMC chairmen include Pershing, George C. Marshall, Jacob L. Devers, Mark W. Clark, Andrew J. Goodpaster, P. X. Kelley, who served twice, Frederick F. Woerner, and Frederick M. Franks, Jr.
SOURCE American Battle Monuments Commission
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Never point a toy gun at the forehead of a guy that has biceps larger than most people's thighs. SSgt. Peoples and his kids did an excellent interview on Good Morning America this morning where the interviewer asked him to demonstrate how he disarmed and held the attacker, and he replied with a smile, "I really don't want to hurt you." Said that the County Sheriffs Office has offered him a job if he decides to get out, but that he's just put his package in for the Army's Warrant Officer program.
"Every time I get deployed, I always tell my children I'm going to fight the bad men. When I walked back in the bank, my oldest boy said 'Did you get the bad men?' and I said 'Yep, I got the bad men' and everyone applauded," Peoples told FOX. -
If that's the case, just with my track record of deceased relatives leaving me $$, I think we'd be fully justified in a declaration of war against Nigeria...
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New York Power Company Charges Town Honoring War Hero Flag Fee
By Todd Starnes
Published May 24, 2011 FoxNews:
A New York community that displayed American flags on utility poles to honor a fallen hero is outraged after the Long Island Power Authority sent them a bill – for using their poles.
“I was pretty shocked,” said Peter Reich, a councilman in the Long Island community of Shelter Island. “It’s the most ludicrous thing.”
The flags were hung last year for the funeral of Army 1st Lt. Joseph Theinert. The Shelter Island native was killed while on active duty in Afghanistan. He sacrificed his life to save his platoon and was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart for his actions.
Last week, Theinert’s platoon gathered in Shelter Island for a reunion. To welcome the troops, the American Legion, along with the owner of the local hardware store, decided to once again line the parade route with American flags.
Local residents donated the $8,000 needed to purchase the flags, and the town’s superintendent of highways posted them on the utility poles. But someone from the power company reportedly saw a story about the flags in a local newspaper and informed town officials of the $5-per-flag fee.
“This is done by the Legionnaires who have served the country for the right for us to display Old Glory and here the state wants to make a profit on it,” Reich told Fox News Radio. “At some point common sense has to prevail with these people.”
Mike Loriz, the commander of American Legion Post 281, said he, too, was disturbed by the fee. “It seems like it’s kind of crazy that state law requires that we pay $5 to stick an American flag on a public utility phone pole for patriotic purposes,” Loriz said.
A spokesperson for the Long Island Power Authority did not respond to repeated requests for a comment and instead demanded to know, “Why is this a story?”
Michael Hervey, LIPA’s chief operating officer, told Newsday that his company was just following state law. “I don’t think anyone expected this to apply to flags on poles, but if you read the language there’s no way around it,” he told the newspaper. “We welcome any amendment to state legislation that would allow for American flag attachments to our poles without fees.”
Hervey even volunteered to personally pay the fees, but Reich said that’s not the point.
“It’s not the fee,” he said. “It’s the principle of the thing. Getting that money out of us is going to be like getting blood out of a stone.”
Flags were also posted on poles owned by Verizon. However, a spokesman for the company said it typically waives fees for commemorative ceremonies and “we intend on waiving it in this case.”
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/05/24/new-york-power-company-charges-town-honoring-war-hero
That's some good public relations right there...
Kind of nice that the LIPA provides a couple of toll free phone numbers just for people to call and let them know what they think at: 800-490-0025 or 800-966-4818.
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Have a good friend with the 58th at EG that I'm sure is happy to hear this. Not there yet, but a step closer.
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Have to admit, I didn't know much about the Norwegian mission in Afghanistan, so this evening I did some reading - and I almost wish I hadn't when I saw this awful news from 01 April 2011. As many people as I know in the military, friends and acquaintances, I'd been lucky that the losses for nearly ten years of war hadn't hit "close to home" - until tonight.
Friday April 1stLieutenant Colonel Siri Skare (52) was killed during an attack on a UN-office in Mazar-e Sharif.
Siri Skare lived in Oslo, was married and had one child. She served in the UN operation UNAMA(United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan) as a military advisor. Her background was from the Norwegian Air force and she was Norway's first female military aviator.
"It is tragic when we lose one of our own, but out thoughts now go to her friends and relatives. We still don’t know exactly what happened, but we are working on that", said chief of the Norwegian troops in Afghanistan, Lieutenant Colonel Knut Eide.
The aggressive riots started after what was a peaceful demonstration at the Blue Mosque in Mazar-e Sharif. About a thousand demonstrators gathered outside the end UNAMA headquarters and went to a violent attack on the building. In the attack several shots were fired inside the heaquarters. During this attack Lieutenant Colonel Siri Skare was killed along with several other people in the building.
UNAMA headquarters is located a few hundred yards from the Blue Mosque in the centre of Mazar-e Sharif. What started as a peaceful demonstration was a protest against Reverend Wayne Sapp who burned a copy of the Koran on March 2.
I knew Siri from my time at Lockheed Martin working on the Royal Norwegian Air Force's P-3 Orion UIP project. Launched and recovered her acft many times during test flights here in the States, and we'd kept in touch, on and off, over the past ten years or so.
Lt. Col. Skare was the very first female RNoAF pilot, earning her wings in 1984, and spending her time flying P-3's and C-130's. She lost her life while serving her country as a military advisor to the United Nations in Afghanistan after an idiot preacher in Florida decided to "make a point" by burning a book. What a waste.
Til Valhall / Till Valhalla, Siri, I'll keep the 333 Squadron patches you gave me forever.
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WARNING: PURE SPECULATION AHEAD
Related to the F-22 Class A last year?
I see your speculation and add some more from a defensenews.com article from six weeks ago:
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Raptors grounded today over potential Onboard Oxygen Generating System issues.
F-22s Grounded ‘Until Further Notice’ for Malfunction ProbeBy Tony Capaccio - May 4, 2011 15:31 EDT
May 4 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Air Force has temporarily halted flights of the Lockheed Martin Corp. F-22 jet because of “recent reports of potential oxygen system malfunctions,” according to Air Combat Command.
“The Commander of Air Combat Command directed a stand-down May 3 of the Air Force’s F-22 fleet until further notice,” the command, based at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, said in an e-mailed statement. The Air Force has taken delivery of 160 of the stealth jets.
“The stand-down is a prudent measure following recent reports of potential oxygen system malfunctions” and gives Air Force officials time to investigate the system, which provides oxygen to the pilot, it said. The F-22 Raptor is the U.S. military’s most advanced fighter.
The suspension of flights was spurred by a recent incident involving a pilot assigned to the 302nd Fighter Squadron in Alaska, according to an e-mail to Senate and House lawmakers.
The pilot “scraped the underside of the aircraft on trees during a landing approach,” said the e-mail. “The pilot does not recall the incident and is being treated for physiological symptoms,” the e-mail to Congress said.
Lockheed Martin spokesman Johnny Whitaker said in an e-mail that the company was aware of the stand-down and has dispatched a five-member engineering team “to provide technical expertise and information.”
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Probably be able to solve everything with a new uniform combination and some new disco belt rules...
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Short article from the UAE-based Gulf News that might ask even more questions about what Pakistani military and government officials might have known about bin Laden's location.
Bin Laden compound in Pakistan was once an ISI safe houseDubai: The compound in Abbottabad where Osama Bin Laden was killed was once used as a safe house by Pakistan's premier intelligence agency ISI, Gulf News has learnt.
"This area had been used as ISI's safe house, but it was not under their use any more because they keep on changing their locations," a senior intelligence official confided to Gulf News. However, he did not reveal when and for how long it was used by the ISI operatives. Another official cautiously said "it may not be the same house but the same compound or area used by the ISI".
The official also confirmed that the house was rented out by Afghan nationals and is not owned by the government. The house is located just 800 metres away from the Pakistan Military Academy and some former senior military officials live nearby.
Abbottabad is a garrison town located just 50 kilometres north of Islamabad and it is a popular summer resort, originally built by the British during colonial rule. The city houses a number of upscale educational institutions and religious schools as well.
Secluded affluence
According to the briefing by senior US officials on the killing of Bin Laden, the area is relatively affluent, with lots of retired military staff. It is also insulated from the natural disasters and terrorist attacks that have afflicted other parts of Pakistan — an extraordinarily unique compound. The compound sits on a large plot of land in an area that was relatively secluded when it was built. It is roughly eight times larger than nearby homes.
The physical security measures of the compound are extraordinary.
It has 12-to-18-foot outer walls, topped with barbed wires. Internal walls sectioned off different portions of the compound to provide extra privacy.
Access to the compound is restricted by two security gates and the residents of the compound burnt their trash, unlike their neighbours, who put the trash out for collection.
The property is valued at approximately $1 million (Dh3.67 million), but has no telephone or Internet connection.
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Google maps already has it pinpointed. Search "Obama bin Laden's compound Abbottabad Pakistan".
A few block from a police station, airport, movie theater. And the Pakistani government had no idea? He was supposedly in there for over six months.
Also reported that one UAV involved was RQ-170 Sentinal drone, and two helos, one of which had maintenance issues and crashed, but no injuries.
Apparently a compound with 18 foot walls and a 'blockhouse' with few windows built in 2004-05 of steel reinforced concrete. Abbottabad is described as a relatively large Pakistani Army garrison town. The compound is on Pakistani TV now (shown on ABC) and is now on fire.
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Late word via ABC says US ground troops took the shots taking out bin Laden and his entire party in a firefight. His body is in US custody and will be buried at sea.
An excellent end to a day where I lost my last grandparent at 100 years old. Was feeling pretty down and heading for bed when I checked the news one last time. Congratulations, and thank you, to all those involved.
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"Meet the new boss, same as the old boss..."
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Like this is some kind of new thing? Go grab a doofer book from Desert Storm, or Vietnam, or Korea, and see what kind of world-class sport bitching there is in there. There's no more bitching and whining today than there was at any other point in USAF history; there are just more public outlets for it.
If the military in general has one overriding tradition, probably back to Roman times, it's bitching. It's our heritage.
Overheard in 1776: "@*#$%& Washington, getting us up on @*#$%& Christmas night and here we are floating across some &@%#& icy river. Could be *@%@&$ sleeping rather than in this &@%&# leaky boat. Wish he'd just *$%@&! fall in..."
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Sounds like a real big pic kind of guy.
Worry about shoe shines, patches, haircuts and reflective belts and all the really important stuff will fall right into place. Works every time.
ACC posted this 'epic' just today: "Customs, courtesies crucial to mission success"
I replied on their facebook page to the best of my ability. While all of their other posts have multiple replies, to that one - beyond mine - nothing. Maybe even that says something.
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Back when they held the Robin Olds estate auction, I was able to buy his 1949 edition of Winston Churchill's "Their Finest Hour" (was about all I could afford...)
I'd always known that Churchill had written his "Second World War" series (it earned him the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1953) but always figured that it would read like a college textbook and wasn't really all that interested in that. This volume though (the second in the series), while it certainly isn't an 'easy' or quick read, seemed a lot more like you were having a conversation, probably in a tall backed leather chair and with a glass of something stronger than tea, with the wartime British leader.
What really struck me was just how "positive" he was of the eventual outcome, not only as the book was written after the war concluded, but also in his 'real time' private memos and correspondence (which the volumes are almost 'illustrated' with) during the dark days of 1940's Battle for France, Battle of Britain and the Blitz. It was always "With a little bit of luck, if we can make it through these next few days, we're not only going to survive, but we're going to win."
I don't know if I felt more "privileged" to be reading about the day to day decisions made during WWII from one of the people that actually made them, or the fact that I was reading them from the same book that Robin Olds - a personal hero of mine - read them.
I never met General Olds, but only if the book could speak. Did the wear on the cover come from the volume traveling traveling around the world with him? On exchange in England? Maybe at Wheelus in Libya? Perhaps while based in Thailand with the 8th TFW during Vietnam? The turned over corners on pages with especially interesting passages, the a torn address (on Sunset Blvd) from an envelope that was used as a book mark and even the cigarette ashes between the pages all tell a story...
Boss, I quit...
in General Discussion
Posted
Hell, I was a member of the enlisted corps, and I agree with you. Was never closer to being a pilot or aircrew than kicking chocks, but we've lost so much heritage due to self-inflicted political correctness as an Air Force, that perhaps this is just a bit of an opportunity to push back a little, so I'm in. I've lucked into a pretty good group of friends, who are way above my station, that flew between the 60's and the 90's that I've forwarded the Colonel's message to. Hopefully he'll be able to put together a package that will, if nothing else, send a message that gets heard.