Month: April 2010

T-6 Pilot Ejects at Vance AFB

The Air Force reported that a pilot ejected from his T-6A Texan II near Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma.  Based on the report, it seems the aircraft went off the end of the runway (into the mud) and the pilot ejected:

The aircraft is intact, sitting off of the end of the base’s runway 17L, with gear extended in the mud.

The report does not indicate if he was a student or instructor; only that he was solo.  (The term “he” is generic, as the Air Force report carefully avoided the use of gender-specific pronouns.)

Also noted at the Air Force Times.

Navy Set to Fly “Green Hornet”

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

“Collateral Murder” Video Released

Several major news outlets have reported on the “leaked” video of what appears to be a US helicopter gun attack on civilians.  News of the video has been distributed under the “collateral murder” moniker.  Reportedly, a Reuters photographer and driver were killed, as were about a dozen others in a small group.  A van subsequently comes to the scene and is also fired upon; in the van were two children who were wounded.

While not exclusively a fighter pilot topic, the video does shed some light into an area not often discussed in the public eye.  There are times when Read more

USAFA Pagan Cross Investigation Closed

The US Air Force Academy closed its investigation into the placement of the shape of a cross at a pagan site on the Academy grounds.  No new information was apparently determined, nor was any action taken.  To their credit, the Colorado Springs Gazette printed the most accurate description so far of the incident, saying

The cross – consisting of two railroad ties propped against a boulder…

Other organizations and individuals had inaccurately implied a ‘large cross’ was ‘made of railroad ties’ and ‘carried to the site’ to be ‘erected in the center’ of the pagan circle.  The Gazette left out only the facts the two boards were not connected and were already on the site before the incident occurred.

In noting the end of its investigation, the Air Force refused to characterize the incident as a hate crime:  Read more

President Obama Cites Fighter Pilot Easter

A few days ago, this site noted that a self-described religious freedom organization, Michael Weinstein’s MRFF, had criticized deployed servicemembers for publicly celebrating Easter in the combat theatre.

In an interesting convergence of topics, a message by President Obama recently cited just such a celebration of Easter–and not by just any servicemembers, but by a unit of deployed fighter pilots.  A fascinating photo (below) helps explain.

In his “holiday greetings” distributed on 3 April 2010, the President commented on “war time” observances of Easter, saying:  Read more

Marine Base Guilty of Viewpoint Discrimination

As noted nearly 18 months ago, the US Marines at Camp Lejeune directed 25-year Marine veteran Jesse Nieto to remove stickers from the back of his car that they deemed offensive.  Nieto sued, and a federal judge has now ruled that the base violated Nieto’s rights.

The stickers were described as “anti-Islam;” Nieto put the stickers on his car not long after his son, a Navy Sailor, was killed on the USS Cole when it was bombed in 2000.

Interestingly, it appears the judge did not rule the policy that Camp Lejeune used was inherently bad; instead, he seemed to say it was the unbalanced application Read more

Fighter Pilot Speak: Saved by the Wedge

The Wedge principle is a time-honored military mantra; while it may be present in a wide variety of career fields in the military, the high-visibility nature of the fighter pilot profession has made the Wedge principle a strong and lasting tradition.

The Wedge principle has nothing to do with lever arms, inclined planes, or any other form of engineering.  It is also not to be confused with the callsign “Wedge,” which is given to those who resemble the “simplest tool” ever invented.  Instead, it is a time-honored, unwritten principle that basically says  Read more

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