Favorite Aircraft

[David]

dewman

Registered to :Apr 05, 2002
Messages :1
From :
Posted 14-04-2002 at 03:06
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What is your favorite aircraft? (just thought to lifven things up) THe F-22 for me.. all the way






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David

Registered to :Aug 21, 2001
Messages :604
From :San Diego, CA.
Posted 14-04-2002 at 04:55
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It's a great site dewman, nice work


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arrow

Registered to :Aug 21, 2001
Messages :1033
From :OKLAHOMA
Posted 14-04-2002 at 10:35
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Very cool! Nice work!
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The LT said: "Keep Movin"


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SgtBlake

Registered to :Oct 18, 2001
Messages :885
From :Mpls Mn
Posted 15-04-2002 at 10:26
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Well I'm kind of parital to the AV8B Harrior jump jet.
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Sgt G.A. Blake, MARINE, The Title says it all.


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Seascamp

Registered to :Feb 26, 2002
Messages :62
From :Gardnerville, Nevada
Posted 15-04-2002 at 11:20
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Bar none, it's the A1 Sky Raider, the ?Flying dump truck?. At least that?s what I called them. They brought out a couple for the movie ?We were Solders?. It was old home week for sure. Goodness, those birds could hold some ordinance and I loved to see them do their deal. Never cared much for the F4, A6 or A7 stove pipes. They were way too fast and pilots way too crazy for my liking. The only certain deal with those was that something was going to hit something due to gravity but beyond that, it was a crapshoot and hope for the best.
Fair seas, Bill





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ExAF

Registered to :Apr 05, 2002
Messages :3
From :
Posted 16-04-2002 at 13:23
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Ahh...I will take a C-130 anyday. Most forgiving aircraft in the world. Ok, not built for speed, not pretty, but reliable.


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DMZ-LT

Registered to :Aug 27, 2001
Messages :335
From :ATLANTA
Posted 16-04-2002 at 13:50
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Not sure what it was but I REALLY loved that bird that flew me out of Bitnam back to the world. Judging by the yells and hollers of my fellow passengers upon take off I think a few others would vote for that plane


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Hoyin

Registered to :Mar 25, 2002
Messages :39
From :California
Posted 16-04-2002 at 15:03
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Hrm...I lived near the Alameda Naval Air station. I mean NEAR..as in next door! The high school I went to had a jet parked on the lawn..it was an old F4 (?) its hard to remember. (We were the Encinal Jets,,how original) Anyway..for our senior prank we drug that thing out to the street where there was a large corner..so coming around you'd see looming before you a large airplane..looked like it missed the base and landed there instead. *G* We didnt get caught cause ALL the seniors were in on it..but we sure got bitched at. Later on after they tied it down we painted it with peace symbols and flowers. Just cause. I think that old plane is my favorite by far.
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Mongol Dai!

[dutchmil]

Mine is the F/A-18 Hornet, to bad it's not in the Dutch arsenal:(

[dewman]

Anyone think there is a better aircraft than the f22 (performance wise for the job of being a fighter jet)? Post here. (you probly can figuer i like the F22) HEHE:) Keep flyin'!

[David]

I would have to say the latest migs are the best production fighters out there right now. Once the F22 has some combat time maybe that will change.

[sn-e3]

I believe seascamp is right. even with all the new gadgits the jets have give me a a1 sky raider or spad anytime for close in air support. the jets are good fighters but even with smart bombs they ain't that accurate you only see the pictures of the ones that do hit there targets the other pictures are never released and if it were my ass on the line and i could make a call for any airplne for close in support it would deffintly be the a-1 sky raider they carryed so much ordenance off those carriers that when they launched off they were bearly able to out run the carrier but they were accurate very very accurate god love those pilots coming in slow and still putting the stuff where it was needed most. now the zoomies they came in so fast i don't know how they even got close but maybe its just me, and i'll be the first to admit i'm old fashion but i sure would like to hear from the mud grunts who you would rather have supporting your ass in a close in fight a sky raider or an f22 now there is a good question.

[BigTBird]

Being a relatively old geezer I am going back and picking the B-58 Hustler. That was one big, bad, fast, mean looking aircraft. If it didn't drink more fuel than my 1973 Pontiac Gran-Am it probably would have stayed around longer. But it was beautiful to me. :cool:

[dutchmil]

Originally posted by BigTBird
Being a relatively old geezer I am going back and picking the B-58 Hustler. That was one big, bad, fast, mean looking aircraft. If it didn't drink more fuel than my 1973 Pontiac Gran-Am it probably would have stayed around longer. But it was beautiful to me. :cool:

It's a fine aircraft, looks really great!:cool:
You probably know this site:
http://www.xs4all.nl/~mvburen/b-58/index.htm

[BigTBird]

Dutchy: No, I had not seen this site but appreciate your pointing it out to me. I took a quick gander and had to wonder about the first statement I read there: "With its introduction in 1960 the B-58 Hustler..." I saw my first one at Kelly AFB, Tx in 1957 or 1958 at an air show they had. Must have been a pre-production model, huh? Thanks again for the site...I will go there and take a good look. TBird

[RobertHenderson]

F22,F4,B58, etc. all had no props. How in the world did they fly??
at least the A1 and C130 had these basic needs. HOWEVER, Best of all time? simple P51

[dutchmil]

The great almighty Mustang, it's my favorite "oldie", althought I like the P-38 too very much.

[TheOldSarge]

Mine has always been, and most likely will remain, the F-4 Phantom. One baaaad lookin' jet.

The Old Sarge

[Jerry D]

I agree 100% with exAF the C-130 Hercules is the most dependable and versitile aircraft flying it can be built to haul, people,cargo,fuel,drones, and specially built ones are even known to fly sideways so always be sure to pass on the corect side of the Spectre :-) I have had the privalige of working on ones older then me and newer then myself as a Avionics Com/Nav tech

[Dragon Lady]

Of all the ones I worked on I would have to say...C5 Galaxy. Fred was huge but oh so sweet. The craziest thing the AF ever did was paint it in traditional camoflage. "Hey did you see that forest running down the runway?!"

But my all time favorite plane ever built is definately the F4U Coursair. Talk about a flying tank! They are so sleek and loud!

[Jerry D]

Hey Dragon Lady have you ever changed a C-Dipper on top of the C-5 T-Tail. I changed one in Yakota,Jp and there was a slight wind so when we opened it up we sat on it to keep it from flying off the tail !We changed the ELT battery that way. I do like the C-5 better then the C-141 Starlifter (working on the back ladder in the T-Tail was an oily job with all that Hyd.fluid dripping down and collecting on the ladder the FWD ladder wasn't to bad but you had to remember to duck when you went up and not get the hyd. ram accuator cover to spill water and etc. down your back :-(

[Dragon Lady]

Jerry,
I trained on the 141s at McChord. I was ISO and had a love hate relationship with that darn plane. I'm 5'4" and at that time barely tipped the scale at 100 lbs. As a result guess who they chose for the wing root inspects? Oh and that back ladder was awful, but I'd rather do that than gear struts anyday!
I remember one night in Mid-Jan on the flightline at Dover. We were de-icing a C5. I hate heights! And the cherrypicker isnt high enough for the T! Had to use the Condor, that stinker swayed in the slightest of breezes.
I have a lot of great memories from my days, some tragedies but oh so many more great days! This mess going on right now only makes me wish I was still in and DOING something about it. But I guess now I will leave it for the younger crowd.

Catch ya Later.

[Jerry D]

Wow :-), we both had our share of time in ISO docks at McChord.I didn't like the way cherrypickers swayed also. So, whenever I could, I would get them to tow the 141 over to the M-Stand so I could change HF Couplers and lightning arrestors. BTW were you there around the time they remodeled Hanger 1 a several years ago and the contracters ran the main door off the tracks and the door fell? It made a big noise that day. :zz:

[Mech28]

For me it's either the F4 (had an uncle that flew them grew up with posters of em plastered on my wall ) or the A10 I know its a flying tank but the thunderbolt is tough. And honestly i don't find it ugly like many people say it is.

[Tamaroa]

I'm into older aircraft. I'd have to say my favorites are: P-51 Mustang, F4U Corsair and #1 on the list would be the Douglas AD-6 Sky Raider.

Bill

[Dragon Lady]

Out of the oldies; Stearman Biplane, F4U, and believe it or not I really liked the T37. I thought they were cute!
The A10 is a hot beast of a plane with so much spunk! That was when planes had a personality. I suppose of the new kids on the block I do like the Stealth Fighter.
Oh and the dear Dragon Lady (U2) will always have a sweet spot in my heart!

[revwardoc]

Yo, Dragon Lady! You worked on 141's? So did I, but at Norton AFB in San Bernardino, CA. I should say the "late" Norton AFB since it's now San Bernardino International Airport. I arrived there in February '69 and it remained my primary duty station until my discharge in September '72, though I went TDY to many other bases (some AF, some Navy, some Marine, some Army, national and international) from there. I remember the first time I took part in a towing operation. It was in March of '69 and I shouldn't have even been on that crew since I hadn't yet gone to class to qualify. Ya know how you have to disconnect the nose gear steering arms, well they used my belt to hold up the lower arm but didn't show me how to re-connect them. When the 141 was towed to its proper place on the flightline I just went and retrieved my belt, leaving the gear disconnected. Later that day the plane was supposed to fly a mission to 'Nam but when they went to block out, the pilot turned the steering wheel in the flight station and it just kept going straight. Then the hammer fell. Since sh*t rolls downhill, guess who it rolled onto. NOT ME!! Once they found out I wasn't qualified to be on that detail they came down on my crew chief, the shift chief, the line chief, the flight engineer, etc., everyone but me. After that, I was quickly scheduled to attend every class they had available. Another snafu bullet dodged. My crew chief got it hard, he had to forfeit a week's pay and work his days off for a month. He then decided that my life should be a living hell for the next year (his last in the AF) and put me on every sh*t detail he could think of (greasing the gear and the horizontal stabalizer actuator, draining the fuel cell sumps, etc. and not just on the aircraft for which we were assigned, but for all others), all for something that wasn't my fault.:d: Fortunately his actions were noticed and the shift chief told him to cut me some slack. He finished his last 6 months behind a desk.

I'd like to hear some of your 141 stories, too, since you're the first gal I've heard of who worked on a flightline.

[Jerry D]

That was a big bullet to dodge "revwardoc" :) some days its good to be the new guy. I worked on C-141's up north at McChord AFB been to Norton back when it was an Airbase to NCO Leadership school. I was there a week before I realized there were mountains out there :) Some thick smog they had . I was a Radio tech on them and after the big rivot workforce experiment I learned about 50% of the Airframe I got to learn how to fuel/defuel, service tires, pull leading edges, do 7 level panel insp for pre flights. set right seat for engine runs, ride brakes for tow jobs, and was even asst crew chief on one of the Starlifters for a year till it went to the bone yard . They replaced it with a C-17 later ........ :ae:

[revwardoc]

Jerry D, I remember that NCO Leadership School (Lifer Tech, we called it). I had the CQ at their chow hall a couple of times and took definite advantage of my position. One Sunday morningsome multi-striper came in wearing civies and had forgotten his ID card, so when he went to sign in I told him I needed to see it. He gave me a cold look and told me he had been in the AF longer than I'd been alive. I said that was all well and good but, no ID, no breakfast. He started to rant and rave, turned 6 shades of red, sputtered, stammered and swore to have me busted but I held firm. The head of the chow hall came over to see what the fuss was all about and told him that I was right and to go get his ID. He left and came back in full dress blues, ribbons and all the stripes in the world. I smiled, thanked him for his co-operation, handed him the pen and told him to enjoy his meal. I don't think he did.

re; smog. Yeah, the San Bernardino Valley is horseshoe shaped and with the opening facing west so that all the smog in the LA basin blow into the valley and is held in by the mountains. If you drive up to Big Bear, above the 4,000 foot level, you can look down and see that lousy brown/grey "air". Did you notice that there were very few big trees in the valley? That's because the smog killed most of them off. On really bad smog days, it was trying to breath in chest deep water. Thank God the 141's had oxygen on board. Sometimes we'd have to sit for a few minutes and suck it down. Damned smog also ate away my windshield wipers. I had to replace them about every 2 months and my car always had a layer of "dust" on it. Yep, there's nothing like fresh air, too bad there wasn't any in Southern Cal.

From the description of what you were doing it sounds like you were APG, like me. The one good thing about working on 141's was that I got to go TDY quite a bit. I know 141's are still flying as I've seen them occaisionally but they may just be forAF Reserve or National Guard personnel. I only worked on C-5's twice, both times at Hickam, but the guys who were assigned to them on a regular basis said they sucked 'cause they leaked like the proverbial sieve. For a short time at Norton they instituted a program where E-4 and up APG mechanics would be eligible for flight status. It lasted for a year or so but was discontinued. Don't know why.

Did you guys at McChord wear hats other than the olive drab (that's what we wore)? We tried to talk the "powers that be" into letting us wear black baseball caps with the squadron logo on the front but they wouldn't let us. We also wanted to wear our squadron and wing patches on our fatigues, same answer. And then they started the PRIDE program...talk about a mixed message. I hope you guys had it better than we did.

[cadetat6]

Best AT-6 Texan
Why? Thats as far as I got in Air Cadets
They had too many pilots so they asked us!!!to transfer to the Infantry

Art a long ago air man

[Jerry D]

revwardoc: Yes, at McChord we got to wear organization Ball Caps with OMS,AMS,and FMS on them. I was in AMS till 89' then was AGS .In AGS they combined OMS and AMS together so us specialist got to learn how to be APG and some APG learned how to do electronics the younger APG airmen were eager to learn avionics to fill out there resume :) We also had to sew on Unit and Organization patches on our Fatigues OD green and later Cami uniforms. Getting back to the APG stuff I have a 623 full of APG stuff I was qualified to do from Pre-flight to post flight inspections and most stuff inbetween. about the only task we weren't allowed to cross train to do was LOX aircraft . And being a Communications troop I already had cherry picker on my license so I got to drive the deicer insted of deicing planes. In the winter that was nice sitting in the cab insted of being up there spraying fluid in the freezing air :) and I agree about the oxygen onboard the planes some nights on graveyard shift that kept me awake :) and it was good for some headaches too. :ae:
On interesting stories my funny one was one night working forward supply point I answer the phone "Duffys' Tavern open all Nite" and some Col. asked if I knew who he was and I said nope never heard of you still pretending to be someone at Duffys' he got a little irate and then hung up. The phone rang and I answer it " 314th Forward Supply Point Airmen Jerry speaking" and he asked if I had just been on the phone with him and I said flat out to the same Col. "No Sir I have been here all night and this is the first time you called" :) and this was before caller ID so he didn't know what to think since I was not acting like the last call and that was that . Another successful grave shift prank on a Saturday nite :) and on twelve hour shifts it sure helped kill time :) That was when I was stationed at Little Rock AFB back when Clinton was still just taking from the people of Arkansas LOL. I had a great first 12 years in the Airforce I got to go TDY to all the nice places (UK, Germany, Japan, Spain, Goosebay, Greece) and some I didn't care to go to (Saudi, Turkey) but the last 8 years were with Billy Bob Clinton and them military years were mighty lean and from what friends told me back in the 80's that was how the Carter Administration was to them. The only big difference we didn't miss a paycheck during Clinton like the guys did under Carter .

[revwardoc]

That LOX can be some damned dangerous stuff! I remember that normally when the LOX had to be serviced we'd have to leave the plane but this one time an outgoing flight developed a bad enough engine problem wherethey had to shift the cargo to the plane I was assigned to which needed LOX. So there we all were, running around like idiots trying to get the bird ready while the LOX truck was filling things up. Naturally some LOX fell in drops on the tarmac and one of the newbies tripped over the power unit cable and his hand fell right on a drop. Talk about a nasty burn!! It got him a desk job for a few weeks, not to mention the odd skin graft.

I used to do that phone gag, too. Once, on grave shift, I answered the phone in an old lady's voice and said, "Gramma's whorehouse, we don't give a f**k for nothing'!" Unfortunately for me it was the line chief calling with an emergency message for a guy and he had heard me do it before. He laughed back then but not this time. I had nothing to do the next few weekends, anyway. Are you drawing the conclusion that I was a bit too much ofa smartass for my own good?

Where did you go in Germany? I did a TDY at Bitburg AB in October of '70 and had a great time. I managed to get to the October Fest in Munich and got abismally drunk. At the Fest (and after many beers) they were changing oom-pah bands so, in the lull, one of our guys jumped up on the table and started singing the U of Notre Dame fight song. Those of us who knew it joined in and the locals all stamped their fists on the tables and a good time was had. A local sitting next to me asked me why we were singing so enthusiatically about a French cathedral! The beer induced haze made the explanation a bit of a trial but I think I got the point across.

We had the same problem with pay except it was because of the Johnson administration. I guess he didn't mind getting GIs killed but he didn't want to have to pay for it. The pay scale finally changed under "Tricky Dicky" but not until my final few months in. At that point a "mosquito wing" was making more than I did as a sergeant because I wasn't eligible for a raise since I wasn't going to re-enlist. Oh well, nobody said the the word "fair" was ever entered into the military dictionary.

One of my cousins was stationed at Little Rock back in the early 60s. He was a motor pool mechanic. He was offered changes of duty station and TDY's but turned them all down, literally never leaving Arkansas during his tour of duty after Basic, and didn't even take any leave. His brother had the same MOS but in the Navy at San Diego and he did the same thing, just stayed in San Diego and turned down any opportunities of sea duty or any overseas assignment. In the meantime their younger brother who was in the AF 2 years ahead of me became an air traffic controller at Upper Heyford AB in England and took his leave all over Europe. Lucky bastard!

[tech_corporal]

Almost anything with props. preferably P-47's, they were a hell of a lot more sturdier than the mustangs. Don't like jets its all energy management.

[wrbones]

too damn fixed wingers around here! Rotorheads do it everywhere!

CH-53 A or D model!

Second is the CH-46, any model!

damn grunts'd be lost without us! :D

[Jerry D]

wrbones: I worked on HH-53's at McConnel AFB in Sacramento,CA for 4 months and them helo's had personality :) and would let you know it if you forgot to close your Tool box you would come back to a box full of hydraulic fluid :)

revwardoc: I spent the weekend at Landstall Army Medical Center when I got Med-evac from Saudi to the states with a broken leg ( hard to work on planes with a busted up upper tibia) I got to find out about the infamous US Army green eggs there :) them powderd eggs turn green for real :) and I have been thru Rein Mein and Ramstein a few times also got to see a little bit of germany out the bus window but didn't get off to meet any Germans just transport from one base to another then on a plane to somewhere else like Turkey or Saudi . Did y'all ever freeze frogs in lox then let them thaw out later ? for some reason frog can be frozen in lox and live go figure :) (they start hopping off tables after being dip-frozen in lox ) BTW Bitburg brews a good Pilsner beer :ae:

[Boats]

I'd have to pick the A4 and A1E units. These little workhorse's and their pilots flew many missions - up close and personal. They could take a hit and keep on going and payloads were impressive.

I kindof favor the A1E because of its payload capabilities but the little A4 was impressive just to look at. It had short wings and looked like it was ready to fight just sitting there.

VN 1965 to 1967

[revwardoc]

Jerry D;Yeah, we'd freeze frogs (andother little critters) with LOX. We didn't thaw them, though. We'd toss them in the air andlet them shatter on the ground. Made for some nasty messes.Sometimes we'd take thestill frozen parts and put them in a guys field jacket pocket and, after a few days the stink would be unbearable.

Itook a tour of the Bitburg brewery. Not bad, but I'm an ale man. I remember being in a bar in downtown Bitburg and while sitting there I heard this sweet little voice say, "Ein bier, bitte!" I looked down to see this little German girl, about 5 years old. The bartender handed her a bottle of beer roughly half her size. She said, "Danke" and left. The guy told us her father would send her to fetch a beer for him about that time every day. Try that in the States! One day while touring downtownBitburg, we were standing at a fork in the road and up comes this German "jeep", screeching to a halt in front of us. Behind him is an armored column, tanks and all and he starts directing them to the left and right. I'll tell ya, after being brought up watching WWII flicks, it was a little unnerving to see that iron cross zooming past.

One day a few of us went into a bar in Trier, Germany (There were plaques hanging on the wall that were made in Camden, NJ. Go figure!). I was wearing a rough leather "Buffalo Bill" jacket complete with fringe that I had bought for $40 in San Francisco. This one local guy really liked the jacket and offered me 100 marks for it. At the time that was about $30 US dollars. I said no, and he upped it to 200 marks. That would've been a profit but the guy was so annoying I again refused. He yelled something at me in German and left. The barkeep, who spoke English, translated and told us the guy said he'd come back and leave with the jacket and he knew for a fact the guy had a Luger. Since discretion is the better part of stupidity, we made a strategic withdrawal to the train station. Allies, yeah, right! I did get to meet several very nice Germans, especially the, ahem, "ladies". There's a place in Nuremburg called "The Wall" where many of them congregate (and copulate). I loved the "cultural" exchange.

Army "food"; The only thing more vile than Army food is Marine chow. I think they call it that because it looks and tastes like doggie chow. I went TDY to El Toro Marine Air Station and we ate in what they laughingly refer to as a chow hall. AF garbage tastes better than that crap. No wonder those "jarheads" were so lean and mean. They couldn't hold the food down! Norton AFB was a major embarkation point for Marines leaving for 'Nam and they'd usually eat a meal at our chow hall which won the AF "Best" award several times. We had wall-to-wall carpeting, Muzac, civilian employees to bus tables, choice of 3 entrees and a seperate line for burgers, dogs and fries as well as Coke and milk dispensers. Those leathernecks would come in their and you could hear their collectivejaws drop in astonishment. And, man, did they eat!! Naturally! It was the first "real" food they had since they enlisted!:D

[Jerry D]

revwardoc : One of the unique Chow hall meals I enjoyed was a few years back around 1988 the Army was having an exercise and were coming over to McChord to camp out and there was a few Army Soldiers visiting the Chow Hall and they enjoyed the food enough the Visiting groups commander bought a few cases of Steaks for the Chow hall next to my barracks. And they were commercial grade Good steaks and we all enjoyed the meal the Army provided .That was good memory of the chow hall :ae:

[revwardoc]

JerryD; The worst AF chow hall I was ever in was at Chanute AFB in Rantoul, IL. Damn! That was some Gawd awful crap! Once I found fingernail clippings in the soup. Another time, at breakfast, I got some pancakes and, instead of syrup, they poured on cooking oil! Do you have any idea what that tastes like or feels like going down? And speaking of breakfast, not only were the eggs runny but that's what you felt like about an hour late and wished you were near a latrine. When they had SOS I think it was real shit on a real shingle. We used to use the burgers to pave the walkways. Even the birds refused to eat the toast if it was tossed to them, and you had to be careful when you did toss the toast 'cause if you hit someone it could be considered assault with a deadly weapon. Fortunately I was only there for just under 4 months; good thing, too, 'cause I damn near starved to death!

[MORTARDUDE]

AF dudes :

Really enjoyed all your posts.....

My picks :

Fighter prop

P-51 ... just about perfect for its era
runner-up P-38 a bad mutha

fighter jet

F-4 tough

Bomber prop

B-17 rugged as hell

Bomber jet

B-52 still going strong after 50+ years and will likely go another 50

Transport

C-47

all around kick-ass

A-10


Recon

SR-71 still way ahead of everything

[Jerry D]

MORTARDUDE: I personally prefer prop aircraft and think the B-17 bomber was definitely one of the sturdiest planes built the only other airplane to touch its stay in the air toughness is the A-10 Warthog :) A crew chief I met while stationed in Turkey once told me a neat Quote it was " I would rather screw my way around the world in a C-130 the suck and blow in a C-141" :) BTW if any ones ears are turning red these are actual aeronautical terms for aviation and refer to how air flows on Jets and prop engine planes :)

[revwardoc]

My dad enlisted in the Army just after Pearl Harbor but developed appendicitis during infantry training. By the time he got out of the hospital his unit went elsewhere and he was offered a change of assignment. He chose the Air Corps and asked to be assigned to a B-17 flight crew. He was sent to McDill Field in Florida for training only to "volunteer" for another assignment, North Africa. He was put on a ship bound for the Suez Canal and issued a British uniform. It seems the "tommies" were short of experienced truck drivers (its amazing what havoc can be caused by a truck convoy being savaged by Stukas). When he finally linked up with American troops he continued as a truck driver but would occaisionally fly on bombing missions over Italy and the Balkans in B-17's or -24's, taking photos. It wasn't extremely dangerous when the AA guns were manned by Italians who, at that point, were sick of war and Germans and had basically enough of the whole affair. Then came his last time up. Italy had surrendered and unbeknownst to him and the flight crew, Germans had taken over the air defense. So there he was, in a fortress, when all hell broke loose, ME-109's, accurate AA fire, the whole ball of wax. He was forced to man a waist .50 when one of the guys was killed. Then the plane was hit by flak. Most of the instruments were shot out and the pilot had a hell of time keeping the bird in the air. The made it back to North Africa but were forced to make a one-wheel, dead sticklanding 100 miles from the base. They had 2 killed and 3 wounded on that crew and my dad got back behind the wheel of his truck...and stayed there!

[Jerry D]

That was one eye opening tale revwardoc. Your dad had quite the adventure .

[BLUEHAWK]

My personal sentimental favorite is "The Provider", the old C-123, noisy, dirty, cold, simple, reliable, strong.

My aesthetic favorites are, the F-4, SR-71, C-119, P-38, F-111

[Dragon Lady]

I have a very personal love for the B17G. It wasn't until I was grown up and had already served 8 years in the AF that I found out my uncle had spent the last year of WWII marching across Germany as a POW with a broken back. I remember riding in a three-wheeled cart down the flightline at Tachikowa in Japan in the late 60's, but I never new of his secret pain. He was a flight engineer/Top Turret gunner on "Pistol Packin Mama" and flew out of Framingham. He was on his magic mission (#25) when he took a direct hit on his turret. The plane broke in half and he fumbled for his chute & toolbox. He didnt wear his chute because there wasn't enough room in the turret for him to maneuver with it on. He landed in a farmer's field and the old man turned him in. Roy was half blind from the hydraulic fluid and was banged up, but he was alive! Poor Mama tried so hard to bring her boys home and she almost made it.
Although he didn't talk about it for so many years; he was able to forgive and make peace with the people of Germany. He worked the museum at Davis Mothan and if he heard a tour of Germans were coming in he was right up front to greet them.
Last year Roy was finally awarded the Bronze Star, 50 years after the war was over. His brothers in arms fought for many years with the military to see that he was recognized for his efforts to help save some of his crewmen.
I can't help but think of him every time I see a picture of that old plane. He had some great insight when we worked on ShooShoo Baby.
Roy Bass had ALWAYS been my personal hero and his story just clinched it all the more for me. When he passed away earlier this year, I cried for a week. A painting of him was commissioned and was hanging in a museum in Tucson, AZ.

May God hold Roy Bass lovingly in his arms as I know he does with all of his heroes!

[revwardoc]

A former co-worker's father was a tail gunner on a -17 and was also shot down over Germany. He managed to parachute safely and, like your uncle, came down in a farmer's field and was quickly surrounded by several of the farmer's neighbors. He dropped his pistol and raised his hands (in the traditional French salute, figuring they'd recognize the gesture) only to find himself on thesharp end of their pitchforks. By the time the Home Guard arrived he had been stabbed several times. He spent the next 10 months in a POW camp hospital ward where they had to remove his spleen and a kidney. Fortunately the camp'sdoctor used the Red Cross penecillin on him instead of sending it to the front. He survived the war but was physically never the same and endured several more operations in VA hospitals. Unfortunately he chose the bottle as a way of life and died as a result of liver damage. War is hell, as well as its aftermath.:(

[Dragon Lady]

Doc,
You are so right war stinks! This is a family venue so I cant really use the words that are spitting out of my mouth right now to describe what I really think of war. I currently have friends in Iraq & Kuwait and I dread the news every day because I don't want to hear that another soldier has died because of a war. But I support those kids with all my heart and I appreciate their willingness to sacrifice their personal freedoms for what they feel is right. Who knows the path we would choose if faced with the same situation. Here were two men faced with the same hell and one was able to heal his emotional wounds to some extent and the other continued to bleed. I am sorry for the personal hell your friend's father lived through. But I am also very thankful that he fought that ugly fight so that each of us today are able to make the daily decisions that keep our lives worth living.
My husband is one of those who has chosen to give up a part of his life in the service of his country. He recently found out that he was selected for promotion to Chief Petty Officer. And I couldn't be more proud. He has worked so hard to for this and we made little sacrifice along the way. Heck we even rescheduled our wedding because his reserve unit had to go to Corpus Christi, Texas that week. By today's standards THAT was a sacrifice! :-)

[BilltheCat]

I worked with the Phantom F-4's. 4D and 4E.

It used to belch dark smoke like a trucker burning down the freeway. Used to scare the hell out of the bad guys. I had more than one bite from those pylons too.

Still think it the finest pile of junk to ever go to war.

[Sgt Pleiku]

As a Phormer " Phantom Catcher" I'm pretty partial to ol' " double ugly" the F-4.

Then again if you've ever seen a SR-71 take off, its like a religious experience.

Now a lot old timers will tell you though the best aircraft ever made was C-47 (DC-3).

[revwardoc]

I was TDY at Clovis AFB in New Mexico in support of an AF Academy summer program involving cadets becoming aquainted with various types of aircraft including C-141's (my planes) and F-4's. One day they took several cadets on flights in F-4's and the pilots took advantage of these kids, turning the training flights into roller-coaster-from-hell events. They would take the cadets up to heights where they had to keep the oxygen masks on then do a series of loops, turns, rolls, dives, etc where they were forced to keep their breakfasts down or drown in their own vomit if they hurled in their masks. It was funny as hell to watch them when they first got in the cockpit, grinning nervously, and comparing it to when they returned, white as a sheet (even the black cadets!), legs wobbling, hands shaking. One of them almost made it back to the "shack" before he puked...in his helmet! He had the whole damned flightline to foul, but chose his helmet, a future supply officer.

At the end of the day the pilots asked if any of us Starlifter mechanics wanted to fly with them in the Phantoms and we jumped at the opportunity. I remember sitting out at the end of that runway with the brakes locked, the engine going full bore and the pilot asking me if I was ready. Before I could finish saying, "Yes, sir!" he hit the afterburners and we took off like the proverbial rocket. I heard someone speaking to me and the following conversation went something like this:

me: "What? What?"

pilot: "I said, Why are you screaming?"

me:"Was I?"

pilot: "Yeah! Hold on to your balls! Here we go!"

He then proceeded to do all the "fun" things he had done with cadets. I remember almost laughing (almost) during a dive as I watched the ground approach with terrifying swiftness because it was just like watching a Bugs Bunny cartoon except I was Wiley Coyote, and we all know how he always ended up. All in all, it was a great experience and I'm proud to say I kept it all down, but it took me a few days to get my balls out of my throat!

[BilltheCat]

Great story. I was lucky enough to get a ride in an F106 delta dart the Canadian AF was using when we went to a Maple Flag one year. Imagine going a million mph just above the tree tops!

now THAT was a religious experience!

[MORTARDUDE]

Never got to ride on any of those great planes. I envy you all. A good friend of mine at work, who has since passed, told stories about the SR-71 being refueled and the fuel spilling out because the air body expands when it gets to top speed. Any truth to that ? How did you prevent fires ? One hell of an aircraft. Thanks.

Larry

[The Stripey 1]

My job involved aircraft... As a passenger Service Specialist, I manifested you troopers on your flight, sold you your in-flight meals, drove you to and from the aircraft, loaded and unloaded your baggage, then as Fleet Service Specialist at Travis, I pulled and replaced empty coffee and water jugs, replaced the chains and devices on C141s, delivered in-flight meals... a mundane job to be sure, but, someone had to do it.

I have a special place in my heart for the C-54. While stationed at Kindley AFB in Bermuda, I got to fly on one as Flight Attendent, serving tea, coffee and in-flight meals to the crew and passengers traversing between the mainland and our island paradise.
The bird, "seven too sick won't run" was UNpressurized so we didn't fly any higher than about 8000 feet. And yes, she did break down alot, but it was usually on the mainland when this or that would go out.
It was a Cush job until they closed the base and I volunteered for Nam.

I'd like to put in a good word for the JATO assisted C-123. A small version of the C-130, these lil work horses used to slam you in your seat upon take-off. And they could climb at about a 60 degree angle, quickly too.
Loved the C-130. Hated the C-7A.

[chucktoo1926]

Dutchy ------ I'm with you. To me; the most beautiful, most all around good fighter plane was the beloved P-38.
AS for bombers, can any other touch the B-17. They could shoot
that workhorse full of holes, loose a couple of engines and she would still bring her men back home.I never flew a plane, but then I can't sing either. but I can still spot the best when hear them

[Yossarian]

While a lot of really great aircraft have been named in this thread, my absolute favorite will always be the venerable Thud (D model).