Today at 1400 the US Navy will broadcast the flight of its “Green Hornet,” an F/A-18 operating on a blended biofuel, live on the internet.
The flight can be watched here. You can also read the Navy announcement, which contains another link.
While it is yet another public relations coup on the part of the Navy flight testers, it is also a significant risk. Normal military aviation Read more
US Army Chaplain (Capt) Geoffrey Whitaker, the garrison Chaplain at COB Marez, Iraq, took a unique path to the Chaplaincy. He was originally a Navy SEAL; in 2003, he fell during a helicopter speed rope and crushed his skull. Doctors gave him a 10% chance of survival, with far less a chance he’d ever recover.
He rejoined his SEALs within 12 months.
He said he owes his recovery to the thousands of people praying for him around the world. Read more
Similar to the bio/synthetic fuel powered Air Force aircraft, the US Navy has embarked on an alternative fuels effort with its “Green Hornet.” The Navy plans to fly the F/A-18 Super Hornet on Earth Day, April 22nd.
The “Green Hornet” was a backdrop to President Obama’s remarks at Andrews AFB (now Joint Base Andrews) on his energy policy. During his remarks, Obama also recognized the Air Force’s efforts and the recent flight of the A-10 on biofuel.
Because the Navy operates different engines and has slightly Read more
Two F/A-18E Super Hornet pilots were grounded–permanently–after a board decided that their flyby of a college football game was intentionally too low and thus “unsafe.” A Military Times article states that the pilots performed a flyby of the November 7, 2009 Georgia Tech v Wake Forest game below the 1,000 foot minimum set by Navy rules…and then reported the incident after landing. (The flyby in question is on YouTube, which also lists the names of the pilots and indicates they were both 96 grads of Georgia Tech. The flyby was low-speed, gear down, and high power.)
The pilots went before a Naval Aviator Evaluation Board, which is likely Read more
A recent article at the Military Times suggests its “time to bail” on the Navy version of the JSF (the F-35C). (The online article is a lead-in to a longer story in the print version of the Military Times.) The proposal instead is that the Navy purchase more F/A-18E/F Super Hornets.
This would not be the first time the Navy “bailed” on a joint program. The F-111 was also supposed to be a joint program; the Navy bailed on the F-111 “B” and later acquired the F-14 instead. In the 1970s, the YF-16 and YF-17 had a “fly-off” won by the YF-16. The Navy, which was part of the program, didn’t like the single engine F-16 and instead Read more
Two single seat F/A-18E Super Hornets collided in the airspace over Nevada during a training sortie Monday night. One pilot ejected and was recovered safely, while the other was able to land his damaged aircraft.
The Super Hornet is a larger, more modern and advanced version of the F/A-18A/C Hornet. The crash occurred on the heels of another Hornet ejection just last week.
A somewhat under-the-radar controversy erupted in late January at Vanderbilt University. Apparently, the Muslim Students Association and the Army and Navy ROTC programs jointly sponsored a discussion about Muslims in the military, a forum entitled “Common Ground: Being Muslim in the Military.”
Vanderbilt junior Devin Saucier, who is also a member of the Youth for Western Civilization, and Vanderbilt Islamic chaplain Awadh Binhazim participated in a heated exchange that was videotaped and made the rounds of the internet. (It received enough publicity that Vanderbilt issued a statement clarifying Binhazim’s relationship with the school and expressing its support for free speech.)
Through several iterations of the question, Saucier asked Binhazim if he supported the Islamic belief that homosexuality was a capital crime. After a variety Read more
The body of the instructor pilot of the T-34C that crashed in Louisiana has been recovered. Lt Wermers was reportedly found near the sunk wreckage in the lake.