Author

Till Daisd

Till Daisd

Till is an aviation enthusiast blogger who has been writing since 2013. He started out writing about personal readings since expanded his blog to include information and stories about all aspects of aviation. Till's blog is a go-to source for anyone interested in learning more about aviation, whether you're a pilot or just a curious onlooker.

F 4 Blue Angels

That Time a Blue Angels F-4 Phantom II went Supersonic during an Air Show and Knocked Out the windows of eight blocks of a Canadian City

by Till Daisd November 10, 2022

written by Till Daisd

In August 1969, the Phantom demonstrated its ability to exceed the speed of sound at Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada.

The McDonnell two-place, twinjet, all-weather F-4 Phantom II, with top speeds more than twice that of sound, was one of the most versatile fighters ever built. It served in the first line of more Western air forces than any other jet. Just 31 months after its first flight, the F-4 was the U.S. Navy’s fastest, highest-flying, and longest-range fighter. It first flew on May 27, 1958, and entered service in 1961.

F-4s saw combat in both the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm and served with the air forces of 11 countries in addition to the U.S. Both U.S. military flight demonstration teams, the Navy Blue Angels and the Air Force Thunderbirds, flew the Phantom II from 1969 to 1973.

The F-4 allowed the Blue Angels to perform the Dirty Loop maneuver on takeoff, in which the aircraft’s landing gear and flaps are left down, while they climb directly into a loop. The maneuver highlighted the Phantom’s raw power. Teal Leader Bill Wheat recalls in Nicholas A. Veronico’s book The Blue Angels a Fly-By History: “We could just leave the gear and flaps down and go right up over the top after takeoff.”

Because the Phantoms were faster, the BluenAngels were also able to add enough maneuvers to fill a 22-minute demonstration.

In August 1969, the Phantom demonstrated its ability to exceed the speed of sound at Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada.nWheat said, “We were practicing over the waterfront area. There are mountains on either side and a straight flight line above the waterfront and the center of town. We were practicing the crossing maneuver where we broke apart at altitude, and we came down and crossed in front of the crowd from four different directions. Ernie Christensen was flying number three and VincenDonile was flying number two. When Christensen saw that Donile was going to be late for the crossover, he told him to hustle. When he told him that, Donilenput it into a burner and didn’t quite take it out in time, and he broke the sound barrier right at the crossing. He made the cross, but we knocked all of the windows out for eight city blocks.

“The mayor’s office sat right on thenwaterfront looking out on a nice beautiful park and water. We had been in hisnoffice earlier in the day to receive a key to the city, and I’m sorry to say his whole 8-foot by 10-foot glass window was knocked out.

“They had a parade scheduled for the next day and they had to cancel that. All the windows were boarded up when we drove downtown,” Wheat recalled. There were signs on the boarded-up windows saying ‘Yankee Go Home: So I got the city fathers together that nightnand told them it was an error, a mistake that we would not make again if theynwould please let us fly. I told them we would fly very safely and sane—a good air show. Thankfully, they said OK. We flew a beautiful air show for them the next day. It was rather embarrassing to say the least.’

The cool video in this post features the Blue Angels flying the mighty Phantom. Nearly always the team kept the F-4 back seat empty for flight demonstrations.

Photo by U.S. Navy

November 10, 2022 0 comment

Battle of Berlin

The Battle of Berlin: How aviation played a key role in the defeat of the Nazis

by Till Daisd November 10, 2022

written by Till Daisd

Airpower played a crucial role in the Battle of Berlin. Aircraft were used to drop bombs on Berlin, protect advancing ground troops, and transport soldiers and equipment.
Aviation technology helped the allies take control of the skies long before they reached Berlin.
The Allies had an advantage from the beginning of World War II. The German Luftwaffe had better planes, but they didn’t have as many planes or trained pilots to fly them. They also lacked a clear strategy for air superiority and were often forced into defensive measures due to shortages of fuel and other resources. In contrast, the British Royal Air Force (RAF) was able to put together a well-defined plan that used multiple methods including radar technology, precision bombing tactics, and new aircraft designs such as modified Spitfires which could outmaneuver their opponents in dogfights above Berlin itself—all of these factors contributed significantly towards Allied victory during The Battle Of Berlin

The Luftwaffe was already a weakened force in the fall of 1944, as it had been fighting on multiple fronts since the beginning of the war. By this point, Germany was essentially surrounded by Allied armies from all sides, with only Italy still under Axis control.

In its weakened state, the Luftwaffe could not stop or even slow down Allied bombing missions during World War II. The Allies’ superior planes and pilots meant that they were able to drop bombs on Berlin without much interference from German forces. The bombings by British and American bombers resulted in high civilian casualties and contributed greatly to Germany’s defeat in World War II.

The Luftwaffe’s strategy had been to destroy the Allied bomber forces, but they were unprepared for the Allies’ use of heavy bombers, radar, and ground-based anti-aircraft guns. These factors combined to leave them with a lack of experienced pilots and inefficient planes. For example, the Bf 109 was one of their primary fighters but had only two machine guns compared to its British counterpart—the Spitfire—which had eight machine guns. The Luftwaffe also didn’t have enough fighters available; their production was limited by Adolf Hitler’s insistence that only he could authorize large-scale production changes or increases in aircraft numbers. This meant there were fewer planes available than needed during the Battle of Berlin.

The German air force also suffered from a lack of spare parts due to Allied bombing raids on factories producing such materials or destroying transportation networks necessary for moving them around Europe (such as bridges). A further complication was that if fuel supplies were interrupted then aircraft couldn’t fly out again once they landed back at base—and without fuel, there would be no way for them even if they did manage this feat! In addition, there wasn’t enough food leftover after the fighting started so pilots began starving too!

Aviation played a massive role in the outcome of the Battle of Berlin and the fall of Nazi Germany. The Battle of Berlin was the final battle of World War II in Europe. It began on April 16, 1945, and ended on May 2, 1945, when an Allied victory became imminent.

In the months preceding this conflict, there were thousands upon thousands of aerial raids that took place over Germany by Allied pilots and their aircraft carriers. The Nazis lost massive amounts of territory because they couldn’t keep up with all the bombings and attacks by pilots from Britain and America. There were also many small-scale skirmishes between airmen such as one where Americans shot down two German planes while another saw them lose three planes to friendly fire from British soldiers who were trying to guide them through enemy territory with flares but accidentally shot down their planes instead.

Airplanes played a vital role in transporting troops into battle zones during this period — they could fly over enemy lines without being spotted easily since they weren’t visible once they got high enough up above ground level (they weren’t tracked either because radar technology wasn’t advanced yet). They also helped deliver supplies quickly so that no one would get hungry or thirsty even if there weren’t any food left for days at a time – which happened often since most people didn’t know how long things might last before finding out whether or not peace had been declared yet.

Supermarine-Spitfire — Supermarine Spitfire

Hawker_Typhoon_MkIB — Supermarine Spitfire

The Battle of Berlin saw some of the most brutal battles in aviation history. The Messerschmitt Bf 109 was pitted against the Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Typhoon. Each side had a plane that represented their nation’s pride in aviation. The Me 109 and Spitfire are still of the top planes from World War II, each with its pros and cons.

November 10, 2022 0 comment

C 5M Wheels Fire 1170x802 1

Watch this video featuring a C-5M Super Galaxy Experiencing Brake Fire at Oshkosh AirVenture 2019

by Till Daisd November 9, 2022

written by Till Daisd

Taken last August at Oshkosh during AirVenture 2019 the interesting video in this post features the wheels of the C-5M Super Galaxy that took part in the air show taking fire after overheating brakes during landing.

Taken last August at Oshkosh during AirVenture 2019 the interesting video in this post features the wheels of the C-5M Super Galaxy that took part in the air show taking fire after overheating brakes during landing.

The issue, which was due to a leaky hydraulic line, was fixed in a few hours giving the mighty FRED the chance to fly back home safely.

Despite its massive size, the C-5 is able to operate on runways 6,000 feet long (1,829 meters), quite an impressive (especially for its size) capability.

The C-5 has a greater capacity than any other airlifter. It has the ability to carry 36 standard pallets and 81 troops simultaneously. The Galaxy is also capable of carrying any of the Army‘s air-transportable combat equipment, including such bulky items as the 74-ton mobile scissors bridge. Ground crews are able to load and offload the C-5 simultaneously at the front and rear cargo openings, reducing cargo transfer times. Other features of the C-5 are:
– Five sets of landing gear totaling 28 wheels to distribute weight
– Nose and aft doors that open the full width and height of the cargo compartment to permit faster and easier loading
– A “kneeling” landing gear system that permits lowering the parked aircraft to facilitate drive-on/drive-off vehicle loading and adjusts the cargo floor to a standard truck-bed height
– Full-width drive-on ramps at each end for loading double rows of vehicles
– A maintenance diagnostics system that records and analyzes data from more than 800 (C-5A) and 7000 (C-5M) test points, reducing maintenance/repair time.

November 9, 2022 0 comment

The P51-D Mustang: From the Battle of Britain to the Flying Tigers

by Till Daisd November 9, 2022

written by Till Daisd

The P51-D Mustang was, and is, arguably one of the best all-around fighters ever to grace the sky. Its tremendous range and load capacity made it a good bomber escort, while its speed made it an excellent long-range photo-reconnaissance aircraft.

The plane could also be converted into a fighter-bomber by replacing its armament with bombs. This was one of its main purposes after World War II ended: it served as a ground attack aircraft during Vietnam and in other conflicts around the world where U.S airpower was required but there were no enemy jets to contend with.

The Mustang was a sturdy aircraft that could take a lot of abuse. If a pilot had to make an emergency landing, they would often find themselves just fine after the impact. One British pilot who had flown many missions in B-17s and B-24s said that he never had more than minor damage on any of his P51 Mustangs.

For pilots and crew members who were not used to handling these planes, however, things were different. A common issue for inexperienced pilots was having trouble getting out if there were problems with the canopy (the top part of the plane). The first thing they would try was pulling up on it from below and then pushing down from above—but this didn’t work very well at all because it only popped open about halfway before getting stuck again! After trying unsuccessfully for several minutes (and attracting attention), they finally realized that it opened by pressing forward on both sides simultaneously instead of pulling up or pushing down alone.

But, at first, it never really took off with any air forces. The P-51 was an excellent fighter plane, but it wasn’t the best fighter.
The problem was that the Germans had something better at the time: their Messerschmitt Bf 109s were faster and more maneuverable than most of what they could throw against them. The Mustang might have been able to match speed and dive rate with these aircraft (and out-climb them), but its guns were mounted too far apart for accurate shooting in a dogfight.

The British were the ones who initially embraced the Mustang, recognizing its potential as a long-range escort fighter. The British also recognized that it would need some modifications to improve its range and performance. The Supermarine Spitfire was already an outstanding fighter airplane at that time, but it could only fly up to about 400 miles. The RAF needed something with longer legs to provide cover over Germany from bases on the island of Britain or close by in France and Belgium.

The first P51-D Mustangs arrived at Royal Air Force airfields in September 1942 and immediately began being used in combat against German aircraft like Messerschmitt Bf 109s and Focke Wulf 190s—fighters that had been developed during World War II as more advanced replacements for those earlier models which had appeared during World War I (the Russian Revolution caused them not only not to see much action during their intended era but also prevented any further development).

And when the Americans finally got around to developing it further, they found a winner on their hands.
Meanwhile, the British were toying with their version of the Mustang—the P51B. It was faster and had a longer range than its predecessor, but it was armed with only four .50 caliber machine guns. The British also developed a bubble canopy for this model, which provided better visibility in flight.

In 1943, North American Aviation made further improvements to their aircraft as they created the P51C model. This variant had a more powerful engine and improved armament (6 x .50 caliber machine guns). The new aircraft was known as an excellent fighter in both Europe and Asia; however, there were some issues with overheating due to its high rate of speed (over 460 mph/740 km/h), which led to some early deaths among pilots flying it during combat conditions at high altitudes above 20 000 feet/6400 meters above sea level.

Such a winner that after the Mustangs were delivered to China in 1944, a group of U.S. pilots flew them in combat against Japanese fighters from Japan’s bases! Unfortunately for the Japanese, who were flying on home turf and had air superiority over much of China, the P51-D Mustang was a very effective plane. The only real drawback to using it was that it wasn’t as powerful when carrying bombs or rockets as other planes were at that time. But its primary role was to shoot down enemy fighters and bombers, not attack ground targets like tanks or ships.

So effective were these Mustangs that after they arrived in 1944 there was some discussion about whether they could be used in combat over Japan itself! While this never happened (at least not during World War II) an interesting footnote is that some of those same Mustangs later flew against Japanese forces from bases within Japan itself!

The origins of the P51-D Mustang began with Britain’s unexpected entry into World War II. While the British had been preparing for war since 1936, when Germany remilitarized the Rhineland, their efforts were not as far-reaching as those of Germany’s military buildup. The Battle of Britain in 1940 would prove that despite all their preparations, Britain was still woefully unprepared to meet an overwhelming enemy threat in the skies over England and Europe.

The British immediately requested help from North American Aviation (NAA) and asked if their new fighter could be modified so that it would have an extended range. NAA responded positively and set about making changes to both its airframe and engine configurations so that it could carry extra fuel tanks internally or externally depending on where they fit best on each aircraft model type.

The Royal Air Force had not been able to prepare itself for war as quickly as Germany had prepared itself to fight one, and they were now facing an overwhelming enemy threat in the skies over England and Europe. The British were desperate for new fighters, but America was still neutral at this point.

In 1940, the British War Ministry asked North American Aviation (NAA) if they could design and build a single-seat fighter based on their P-40 Tomahawk/Kittyhawk series of fighters that had been built by NAA under license from Curtiss-Wright Corporation. In addition to facing enormous odds when they went into battle pilots often found themselves without sufficient fuel to make it home again.

For the RAF, this meant that pilots often found themselves without sufficient fuel to make it home again. In those cases, they would have to ditch their aircraft in the English Channel and await rescue by British ships. However, many RAF pilots did not survive these water landings due to hypothermia or drowning as they waited for rescue boats to arrive.

A P51-D Mustang with drop tanks could fly 1,600 miles (2,575 kilometers). This was long enough for USAAF units stationed on island bases like Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima to strike targets deep within Japanese territory—and return safely home after doing so!

The British asked North American Aviation if their new fighter could be modified so that it would have an extended range and be fitted with larger fuel tanks under its wings. The result was the P51-D Mustang, which became one of the most successful fighters of World War II.

The P51-D Mustang had an exceptional reputation for being rugged and easy to fly. It was equally effective at low or high altitudes, and its six .50 caliber machine guns gave it plenty of firepowers. By the end of 1944, over 21,000 Mustangs had been built (more than any other USAAF [United States Army Air Force] fighter plane) and they would go on to serve in various roles until 1952 when they were decommissioned from service by the USAF (the United States Air Force).

The P51-D is still in use by the U.S. Air Force as part of the Heritage Flight program, which allows vintage aircraft to fly in formation with more modern jets for ceremonial purposes. The P51-D is one of five World War II aircraft that fly as part of this program, along with two B-17s and two P-38s.

The airplane was also used by the Flying Tigers during World War II when it was flown by American pilots who had been recruited from the U.S. Army Air Corps before Pearl Harbor. The Flying Tigers were an independent squadron composed entirely of American volunteers who fought for China against Japan during World War II; they flew American planes under Chinese colors and uniforms so as not to anger Japan too much while they were still officially neutral at that time (although that didn’t last long).

November 9, 2022 0 comment

Where have all the Tomcats gone? This F-14-Map featuring all the remaining Tomcats, their crash sites, and their historic sites will give you the answer

by Till Daisd November 8, 2022

written by Till Daisd

The story behind the F-14-map “Where have all the Tomcats gone”

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 712 F-14 Tomcats that were built between 1970 andn1992?

Several of them were lost in crashes or scrapped due to structural failures during service. Most of the aircraft were scrapped after the retirement of the Tomcat in 2006 because of the fear that parts could end up in Iran to keep their F-14 fleet airworthy.

But some 140 survived and are still out there. In Iran, there are still 12 to 50 (depending on the sources) airworthy Tomcats.

Click Here and check out the project of a map with all the remaining Tomcats, the crash sites, and the historic sites.

Where have all the Tomcats gone? This F-14-Map featuring all the remaining Tomcats, their crash sites and their historic sites will give you the answer — Photo by Google MyMaps

But whatnkind of geek does it take to set up a map with more than 400 markers thatnrepresent the life of a 50-year-old plane, a plane that he hasn’t ever seen innreal life? Let’s start from the beginning…

Thenhuman dimension (for the human-geeks)

(For thentechnical dimension see below (for the geek-geeks))

A little boy, fascinated by aviation and living in Luxembourg (Europe) … (Luxembourg??? … heard about it, but where is that??? Here!)… , buys on a holiday in South France a little “matchbox” plane with sweep wings … cool stuff in the early 1980s.

Where have all the Tomcats gone? This F-14-Map featuring all the remaining Tomcats, their crash sites and their historic sites will give you the answer

Where have all the Tomcats gone? This F-14-Map featuring all the remaining Tomcats, their crash sites and their historic sites will give you the answer

During thenperiod of deepest cold war in the early 1980s, this boy plays with his little (as he later found out) Tomcat, fighting the “evil”.

Later henwas given an Aviation-history-book with 500 pages that becomes his favouritenbook. He is lying on the floor, looking in it with big eyes to the technicalndetails and pictures (no, reading wasn’t his thing).

He sees a picture of a US Navy plane landing on a carrier and he recognizes the sweep wings of the toy plane. He compares it with the images in the book and discovers… “Oh…so it is an F-14?!”!

“The Final Countdown” … “looks like an F-14!” … “Top Gun” … “wow… that’s an F-14 too!” … Pictures on the wall, building some models… Growing up, studying, working, marrying, childing … and the passion fades and the time passes.

In 2016 “Hachette Collections” (a weekly magazine where you get parts to build a Tomcat-model) comes with a 1:32 F-14 Tomcat with moving parts …!!! HOW COOL IS THAT!!!

Where have all the Tomcats gone? This F-14-Map featuring all the remaining Tomcats, their crash sites and their historic sites will give you the answer

After 2nyears of collecting, building and reading (the magazines filled 5 binders, andnhe reads EVERYTHING, because suddenly, reading became his thing), the 1:32 Tomcatnwas finished and the passion had grown again!

But since henhas not seen a Tomcat in real life yet, he wonders: where is the nearest one?

He isnworking for the local administration and maps and geodata are his business, so henputs some markers on “Google Earth”.

He startsnreading, searching more and putting the data together… YES.. indeed … thensimple idea of a map with the location of the remaining Tomcats, escalated anbit …

So todaynthe map shows all the places where you can find Tomcats, where they were built,nwhere they crashed, and where they made history. Every spot is accompanied withndata, pictures, documents, statements and stories of all kinds.

But why allnthis work (“meaningless” for some)?

The answernis passion! Trying to find out something, needing to know everything, sharingnit with others…and …to be with YOU … and other geeks …talking about our belovednTOMCAT!

You can even join the Facebook group dedicated to the map and getting in touch with other Tomcat-geeks.

There are stillnmany unknown crash sites, parts or even entire aircraft that are undiscoverednand we need your help, experiences and memories …before they fade!

Keep thenmemory of the F-14 Tomcat alive!

… and no … that “little boy” still hasn’t seen any Tomcat innreality yet.

The technical dimension (for the geek-geeks)

A littlen“How to” to collect data, combine them with locations and share them.

The “F-14non display “

The name isna bit confusing because some are in restricted areas and aren’t displayed to thenpublic.

The base of this dataset was the list from the “F-14 Tomcat Association”-homepage. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been kept up to date for a long time because of staff problems.

I combined it with the data from Aerial Visuals and Warbird Registry.

At the beginning I used “Google Earth” fornpointing them on the map and kept the lists in Excel.

Quite quickly I wanted to combine thencoordinates and the different alphanumeric data in one dataset.

I imported all the Excel-data to Access andnlinked them together via the BUNO as key. As output I had one big table withnall the information fields.

Then I imported all the locations into a shapefile with QGIS and linked the Access file too. By linking the shapefile and the Access file in QGIS, I could display the data. And so, the map was born!

To complete the information of the different fighters, I added the data from Home of th e M.A.T.S., The Grumman F-14 Tomcat Reference Work website, although this data has not been updated for a long time too. Adding it was particularly difficult because I had to copy the data page by page to Excel and then transform it to have the BUNO on every line. But this work was very useful because it turned out important for the later “crash sites”-part.

After that, I imported the spots as KML to “Google Earth Pro desktop” and I checked one by one on the aerial pictures. “Google Earth” is faster than Google maps and you may also compare with older aerial pictures. This is easy with the outside standing Tomcats. The ones that are inside, I had to compare with the pictures and maps from the museum sites, internet pictures etc … and I tried to move them to the exact position inside the building.

At some point I couldn’t get any further because there were many contradictions. As mentioned before, I live in Luxembourg and my research had shown that the nearest Tomcat is about 5000km/3000miles away. So, I couldn’t check by myself. I needed the help of the Tomcat community to check on site. In addition, other people would probably be interested in the dataset as there was no current public list of all Tomcats.

So, I had to find a way to share the map. After some searching, I discovered that “Google MyMaps” was perfect for this task. I could export my data from QGIS into KML and import it directly to MyMaps.

During thenearly phase I had to make a lot of modifications and so I kept the data in QGISnand imported the entire dataset to MyMaps on every update. But after some time,nI decided to edit the data directly in MyMaps. So today the main database is innMyMaps and I only do regularly backups to KML-files which can easily benimported to Googleearth, Qgis etc..

Then“F-14 related Sites“

This section is a collection of POIs that I addedngradually.

The „F-14 Crash Sites and Mishaps“

During my researches I discovered a lot of pictures and films of crashes and mishaps and I wanted to add them in some way. Especially Aviation Safety Network inspired me to go further.

I importednthe data like before and combined it with the prementioned “Home of the MATS”-list.nAfter some very tricky “filter and sorting” by date and BUNO I could againngenerate one list with one presumed crash per line. A lot of guessing andncomparing…!

After thenlist was completed, I checked line per line (some 200) and searched fornlocation indications in the text. Sometimes there were exact locations, likenthe Yuma-Crash site with coordinates from “Home of the MATS”, but most werenlike “in the Atlantic”. So I copied this location indications into the “CrashnPlace”-Field and made an “Place-Status”-Field, in which I evaluated thisnlocation in following categories:

“OK” :nfor “Known”, an exact location, like coordinates

“A” :nfor “Area”, a small area, like “near El Centro”

“LA” :nfor “large Area”, a large area, liken“into the Atlantic”

“?” :nfor “unknown”, without any indications

After thatnI had to place all the spots one by one on the map.

Herenit became REALY TRICKY !!! only for NERDY-GEEK-GEEKS

How to put somethingnon a map without any location indication?

So, whatnare relevant information in the dataset?

Thenidentification of the Tomcat : The BUNO
ThenCrash-date
ThenCrash-location
Thenprecision of the location indication

The data with “known location” would be displayed:

onnthe presumed right spot
withna marker in the colour, corresponding to the “Place-Status”
withna Label with the BUNO and the crash date ex: “1XXXXX / YYYY MM DD”

The data “withoutnlocation”:

To find somethingnin such a dataset, you would search for a BUNO or the “Crash date”. So, theynshould be displayed in a logical way to find them. I tried to put them in a Cartesianncoordinate system with the “Crash Date” on the “X-axis” and the BUNO on the “Y-axis”n

withna “?” marker because the location is unknown
withna Label with The BUNO and the crash date ex: “15XXXX / YYYY MM DD”

Sometimesnthe BUNO wasn’t known. But because I couldn’t leave the field empty I usedn“157000” for unknown BUNO’s.

But I didnnot want to put the spots one by one, but “automatically”?

So, I made ancalculated transformation in Excel.

Tonunderstand the transformation, you need to know that I used a local coordinatensystem. It is a simple XY-System with 1 millimetre as unit and its centrensomewhere in north of France. The values that I added in the formulas were selectednby “try and fail”. It went quite quickly and I got the result I wanted. Sonplease do not ask me for scientific explanations for the chosen values, there arennone!

I searched on Google maps for an area with a lot of space where I wouldn’t place “regular” spots.

The Antarctic sea was be perfect for this.

To make thencalculation as easy as possible, I chose, after analysing the data (see below),nthe following range:

X: 10959000nto 25569000

Y :n15700000 to 16500000

Here is thenreasoning:

X-axis:nCrash Date
- FirstnCrash : 03.12.1970
- Lastnpossible crash : 04.11.2006
- So,nthe range would be : 01.01.1970 to 31.12.2010
- Converting the date to text innExcel: 25569 to 40179

(01/01/1900 = Day #1; 02/01/1900 = Day #2; 03/01/1900 = Day #3…

So, … 01.01.1970 = Day #25569 and 31.12.2010 = Day #40179 …)

Tonenlarge the display area, I multiplied it by 1000
- To “move” the area to annempty space over the sea, I subtracted 14610000
- Here is the formula I usednto transform the Date (in column A) to the X-Coordinate : =((TEXT(A2;0))*1000)-14610000
- So, the X coordinates would be 10959000 to 25569000
Y-axis : BUNO
- First BUNO : 157980
- Last BUNO: 164604
- So, the range would be 157000 to 16500
- To enlarge the display area, I multiplied it by 100
- So, the Y-coordinates would be 15700000 to 16500000

Where have all the Tomcats gone? This F-14-Map featuring all the remaining Tomcats, their crash sites and their historic sites will give you the answer

All I hadnto do then was to apply this formulas on every line of my “crash-site-table”, importnit in QGIS as csv-file and then export it into a KML-file in QGIS, which may bendirectly imported to MyMaps.

After thatnI attributed symbols and colours to the different “Place-Status”’s and thennplaced manually one-by-one on the map using the text from the “Crash Place”.

Where have all the Tomcats gone? This F-14-Map featuring all the remaining Tomcats, their crash sites and their historic sites will give you the answer

After that,nonly the “unknown Crash places” remained in the “Cartesian coordinate system” .

To makensearching easier I added a grid with labels, which I created the same way asnthe crash sites.

Photo by Marc Wolff and Google MyMaps

November 8, 2022 0 comment

The Hollywood icon who rose to the rank of Air Force 2-Star general flying B-52s

by Till Daisd November 8, 2022

written by Till Daisd

Jimmy Stewart, a skilled pilot, and a devoted patriot insisted on taking part in an airstrike against VC sites in 1966 by piloting B-52F 57-0149 on a mission

The B-52 provided crucial Cold War support by standing ready to fly atomic strikes against the USSR with a succession of increasingly more deadly weapons. It was built to form the core of Strategic Air Command’s nuclear deterrence.

Stratofortress aircraft were sent to Southeast Asia in 1965 and served as the mainstay of the USAF’s bombing campaign in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. During Operation Arc Light in June 1965, the aircraft engaged in its first aerial combat over the Vietnam jungles.

Although the region’s first B-52s deployed were B-models, the B-52F, a superior variant, was the first to see combat service.

Even in 1966, the Vietnam War was divisive and not something a Hollywood actor focused on advancing his career could be considered to endorse too strongly. The B-52F deployment was therefore doubly pleased when a USAF Reserve brigadier general arrived at Andersen AFB as part of a two-week inspection tour, as described by Jon Lake in his book B-52 Stratofortress Units in Combat 1955-73. That officer was none other than Jimmy Stewart. In 1959, as his time in the USAF was concluding, he was promoted to brigadier general in the USAF Reserve.

When Jimmy Stewart flew B-52's in Vietnam: the Story of the Hollywood Star who became an Air Force 2-Star General

Stewart asked for a combat deployment during his two weeks of active duty in 1966, and he was accordingly despatched on an inspection tour of Vietnam, where his stepson, 1Lt Ronald McLean, had only recently died at the age of 24. Stewart, a skilled pilot, and a devoted patriot insisted on taking part in a bombing strike against VC sites while piloting B-52F 57-0149.

Stewart had a spectacular and illustrious military career, despite being best known to the general public as a Hollywood actor. He volunteered for service in 1940 after recognizing the approaching war clouds and joined the USAAC in March 1941, which was more than nine months before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the US’s entry into the conflict. Stewart, who was 33 years old and too old to be an aviation cadet, used his own aircraft—a Stinson 105—to accrue flight time until he was old enough to be admitted as an experienced pilot. According to the Army Air Corps doctors, the gangly Stewart was also underweight. He binged until he gained the ten pounds required to meet the Army’s minimal weight requirement.

Stewart, who had previously flown BT-13s as an instructor and later twin-Beeches and Boeing B-17s, was compelled to serve in overseas warfare and took great efforts to overcome government reluctance to put him in danger and avoid the propaganda responsibilities that were assigned to him.

Capt. Stewart, a B-24 pilot from Tibenham, Norfolk, who had been assigned to the 445th BG as the operations officer, led the unit during a 1,000-bomber attack against Berlin on March 22, 1944, before rising to the commander of the 703rd BS. After the 453rd BG sustained significant losses, Stewart was assigned to it. With him as operations officer and a new CO in charge, the 453rd’s proficiency rate on raids improved, moving it up the list of Eighth Air Force units from near the bottom to near the top.

In July 1944, Stewart was appointed full colonel and assigned as the 2nd BW’s chief of staff. In the spring of 1945, Stewart was promoted as the wing CO. Against targets such as Brunswick, Bremen, Frankfurt, Schweinfurt, and Berlin, he performed 20 bombing missions over Germany. His awards include the Croix de Guerre (with palm), two Distinguished Flying Crosses, a string of oak leaf clusters, seven battle stars, and an Air Medal. To maintain his reputation as an officer who was incredibly diligent, conscientious, and dedicated, Stewart took care to avoid being remembered for who he was before the war rather than for what he was doing in the military.

Stewart continued to take his duties as a member of the Air Force Reserve very seriously even after picking up his acting career again, making sure that he flew the B-36, B-47, B-52, and B-58. He had been a diligent study of bomber tactics and doctrine during the war and had become quite knowledgeable about and enthusiastic about daylight precision bombing. The respected brigadier general’s exposure to the carpet bombing of nearby targets in Vietnam must have surprised him somewhat.

B-52 Stratofortress Units in Combat 1955-73 is published by Osprey Publishing and is available to order here.

Photo by U.S. Air Force via This Day in Aviation and San Diego Air & Space Museum

November 8, 2022 0 comment

F 16 Crash Islamabad

Shocking Video Shows Pakistani F-16 Crashing in Islamabad during rehearsal for The Pakistan Day Parade

by Till Daisd November 8, 2022

written by Till Daisd

A Pakistan Air Force fighter pilot died on Mar. 11, 2020, when his F-16 jet crashed in a wooded area near Islamabad during a rehearsal for the upcoming Pakistan Day parade.

As the shocking video in this post shows, a Pakistan Air Force (PAF) fighter pilot died on Mar. 11, 2020, when his F-16 jet crashed in a wooded area near Islamabad during a rehearsal for the upcoming Pakistan Day parade in the capital, the country’s air force said in a statement.

The service also pointed out that there were no casualties on the ground or damage to property.

According to the Associated Press, Pakistan’snPresident Afif Alvi expressed his condolences to the family of the pilot, who has been identified as Noman Akram.

The US-built F-16 was taking part in rehearsals for a Pakistan Day airshow and parade planned for Mar. 23, according to a statement by the PAF.

“Rescue teams have been dispatched towards the site of the crash,” the statement said, adding that “ a board of inquiry has been ordered by Air Headquarters to determine the cause of the accident”.

A video that appeared on social media featured a large plume of smoke billowing into the sky after the plane hit the ground, after having apparently attempted a loop.

A second security official speaking on condition of anonymity also confirmed the crash.

With a fleet of about 50 F-16s, the Vipersnare among the most valuable defense tools in the Pakistani military’s arsenal.

On Feb. 27, 2019, two PAF F-16s, one F-16AM Block 15 MLU (S. No. 92731), were flown by Wg. Cdr. Nauman Ali Khan, Officer Commanding (OC) No. 29 ‘Aggressor’ Squadron, and one F-16BM Block 15 MLU (S. No. 92606), flown by Sqn. Ldr. Hassan Mehmood Siddiqui, both aircraft from No. 11 ‘Arrows’ Squadron, shot down two Indian Air Force fighters, one MiG-21 Bison (from No. 51 Squadron, flown by Wg. Cdr. Abhinandan Varthaman, the Squadron’s OC) and one Su-30MKI (from No. 221 Squadron, call sign “Avenger”) over Kashmir using AIM-120C AMRAAMs. These were the first air-to-air kills using beyond-visual-range (BVR) missiles in South Asia. India disputes the loss of the Su-30MKI and instead claimed the downing of an F-16. The only confirmed loss from the engagement was the MiG-21.

November 8, 2022 0 comment

The F-111: A versatile aircraft that can handle any mission

by Till Daisd November 8, 2022

written by Till Daisd

One of the first things pilots always point out is that no matter how bad the weather, the F-111 will get you there. The reason for this is a variety of systems designed to ensure safety and success in all conditions.

The F-111’s radar system can scan through clouds, rain, fog, and snow to find threats. Ground-mapping radar helps pilots land safely on short strips or in difficult terrain conditions like mountains or jungles while terrain-following radar (TFR) keeps them safely above the ground at night or in low visibility conditions by keeping them at a fixed distance above the earth’s surface. A TFR also means that even if you’re flying at night and looking out your window all you’ll see is blackness so it can be disconcerting for some pilots who don’t have experience with this type of navigation tool since they rely on visual cues from outside their aircraft instead of relying on instruments inside their aircraft.

Being an aircraft whose performance is measured in terms of its purpose, it has been exceptionally well received by its users.
The F-111 is a versatile aircraft that can handle any mission. It is easy to fly, reliable, and easy to maintain. The F-111 was used for air-to-air combat during the Vietnam War, but it was also used for air-to-ground combat.

The F-111 has a crew of two and is one of the first aircraft to use terrain-following radar. It was designed as a supersonic bomber, but can also be used as a fighter bomber and even as a supersonic fighter bomber.

The terrain-following radar is a system that can be used by pilots to fly at extremely low altitudes. It works by keeping the aircraft at a constant distance from the ground, thus allowing pilots to fly under clouds and avoid enemy radar detection or missiles. A pilot would use this feature when flying over enemy territory at night, where visibility is limited by cloud cover or darkness.

The F-111 was designed by General Dynamics (now Lockheed Martin). The original plan called for four different versions of this plane: F-111A Tactical Bomber, F-111B Smaller tactical bomber with less range and payload, F-111C Intermediate-range fighter designed for air defense roles, and lastly an Advanced Tactical Fighter that would replace all other versions in service.

This plane had several design flaws which made it difficult to operate including a lack of room inside the cockpit where pilots had limited visibility due to lack of space between seat backs!
Terrain Following Radar or TFR is an onboard system that allows a pilot to fly at extremely low altitudes by measuring the terrain below and displaying it on a screen for him.

The radar feeds information on the height, shape, and slope of the ground directly under the aircraft. This enables the pilot to fly the plane at very low levels without having to look out of his cockpit window, thereby greatly reducing his exposure to enemy fire. In addition, as he flies in this manner, he can keep himself well below cloud cover so that he cannot be detected by enemy radar or missiles.
This allows him to fly under cloud cover and avoid enemy radar detection and missiles.

You may have heard of low-level flights before. It’s a type of flight where aircraft fly at very low altitudes, usually less than 200 feet above ground level.

Low-level flights are used when enemy radar and surface-to-air missiles are expected to be present, as these threats can be avoided by flying at such low speeds and altitudes. The F-111 is able to fly at these altitudes with no difficulty because of its powerful turbofan engines—which give it an advantage over slower aircraft that might not have been able to achieve the same speeds without stalling or running out of fuel.

It is also equipped with electromagnetic interception gear which locates enemy anti-aircraft and missile guidance radars and gives a warning to the pilot so that he can take avoiding action. This is an important feature in a combat aircraft. The F-111 has a computer that detects the source of electromagnetic radiation and calculates the bearing and distance to it. The pilot can then avoid action by turning away from this source of electromagnetic radiation.

The F-111 carries a sophisticated navigational system that will enable it to find its way back home even when there are cloud banks over large areas or when airfields have been bombed out of operation by enemy aircraft or missiles. This navigational system enables the F-111 to attack targets without any visual reference points such as cities, towns, lakes, or rivers as landmarks for navigation purposes. Besides all this, it has two engines and an internal bomb bay which allows it to refuel mid-flight without needing an external source.
In addition to being able to fly at supersonic speeds and carry weapons, the F-111 can also serve as a reconnaissance aircraft or even as a tanker for other planes during combat missions!

The F-111 is a versatile aircraft that can handle any mission. It’s capable of flying in any weather conditions and at low altitudes, which means it has a wide range of capabilities. The aircraft can fly fast and far, making it ideal for both close air support missions and long-range bombing runs. No matter how far or how high you need to travel from your base of operations, the F-111 has got your back!

From North Vietnam to Serbia, the F-111 was fruitful in its lifetime. Furthermore, its capabilities cannot be matched by newer designs in the US’s arsenal. While its ability as a bomber is still unrivaled, other UAVs perform better when taking on the reconnaissance aspects of the mission. All this proves that it is still a viable weapon today, with many supporters from both supporting and line forces in the USAF. With its impressive capabilities and history at just 27 years old, it is unlikely the F-111 will ever be decommissioned by the USAF or RAAF anytime soon, even with newer drones coming into service.

The F-111 aircraft experienced various technical and operational problems but managed to serve with distinction until the A variant was retired in 1998. It formed an essential part of the US Air Force’s power projection capabilities for three decades, and it continues to form an important part of the Brazilian Air Force’s fleet to this day. Despite its age and numerous design flaws, the F-111 is still used efficiently and effectively in a variety of roles. With support from NASA, its capabilities are set to increase even further in the near future.

November 8, 2022 0 comment

CVW-17 crewmembers aboard USS Nimitz reproducing a Grumman Avenger photo

by Till Daisd November 7, 2022

written by Till Daisd

The original 1943 image, which is shown here, illustrates that it took roughly 90 persons to launch one Grumman TBF-1 Avenger

The interesting photo in this post is a reproduction of a CVW-17 photograph taken on board the USS Nimitz and features a F/A-18C Hornet from VMFA-323. The original image (bottom) shows CVE-11 displaying a Grumman TBF-1 Avenger and was taken in 1943 while the USS Card was an aircraft carrier.

The original 1943 image, which is shown here, illustrates that it took roughly 90 persons to launch one Grumman TBF-1 Avenger. Can you estimate the number of people required to launch a single F/A-18C Hornet into the air?

Check out this image of CVW-17 Sailors aboard USS Nimitz recreating a 1943 photo featuring Grumman Avenger aboard USS Card

Photo by U.S. Navy via U.S. Naval Air Forces Facebook Page

November 7, 2022 0 comment

F 16 V MiG 29 1170x731 1

Why ‘who would win a 1-v-1 air engagement, (Turkish) F-16 or (Syrian) MiG-29?’ is a No Go Question

by Till Daisd November 7, 2022

written by Till Daisd

Combat aircraft aren’t some kind of medieval knights in a jousting tournament. They’re not even ‘Spitfires vs Bf.109s’ anymore. On the contrary, modern aerial warfare is one of the most complex disciplines in the history of humankind.

Again and again, I’m getting the same question, usually in the style of ‘who would win a 1-v-1, F-16, or MiG-29‘?

Please, people, get it into your heads, finally: that’s not how modern warfare works. Combat aircraft aren’t some kind of medieval knights in a jousting tournament. They’re not even ‘Spitfires vs Bf.109s’ anymore. On the contrary, modern aerial warfare is one of the most complex disciplines in the history of humankind.

Nowadays, nobody—repeat for emphasis: nobody—is as stupid as to operate single-combat aircraft entirely on their own. Even smaller air forces are going to support their F-16s or MiG-29s with at least ground-based early warning/surveillance radars, COMINT/SIGINT (i.e. ELINT) assets, probably also with the help of electronic support measures (ESM, like electronic countermeasures: ECM). Combat aircraft—and their pilots—are much too expensive, much too vulnerable, much too much a matter of national prestige—but to get blown up just because somebody there was too lazy, incompetent, or simply incapable of providing them the support they need to ‘work’ (i.e. function as designed and intended).

Moreover, the essence of modern aerial warfare is something called ‘situational awareness (SA). SA consists of finding out where is the enemy, what are enemy’s intentions and capabilities, and then killing that enemy—and denying all the same to the enemy. The situation in regards to the SA is such that in every air war since around 1968, one side usually has it and the other does not. The side in possession of the SA (or at least ‘superior SA’) wins, something like 1934% of the time. The side without the SA is losing, every time.

Thus, when you ask me, ‘who would win a 1-v-1, F-16, or MiG-29’, the first thing that comes to my mind is to ask you back such stuff as, What kind of support platforms are around? …and only then: what version of F-16? What version of MiG-29? What armament? In what position, vis-à-vis each other, are they? What’s the local terrain and weather…? …and that’s just the start.

Check what happened the last week over NW Syria.

– Turkish F-16C Block 40/50s, supported by E-7 AWACS and a host of advanced ground-based radars, Koral ECM-systems, armed with AIM-120C-7s, etc…

– Syrian MiG-29SEs, supported by obsolete ground-based radars, minimum ECM systems (if any), and armed with R-77.

The outcome? 2 Syrian Su-24MK2s, 1 L-39, and perhaps also a Mi-25 splashed, all by AIM-120-C-7 shots taken with the help of E-7s, launched from within the Turkish airspace. The Syrians never got as far as to at least get any of their MiG-29s near the combat zone, and they’re unlikely to risk doing anything of that kind: You can bet your annual income; they know why.

Check out Helion & Company’s website for books featuring interesting stories written by Tom Cooper.

Photo by U.S. Air Force

November 7, 2022 0 comment

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