November Is Coming

Pic Of The Day

He's going vertical and so am I!

The 343

Later today I will ride with my brothers in memorial to the 343 brothers who lost thier lives on 9/11

Never Forget

9/11

Courage

I think this says it all.

Cornfield Bomber

I can't remember who wrote this but it's a great story

In 1970, while assigned to the 71st FIS at Malstrom AFB, Montana , 58-0787 had it’s pilot eject during an inflight emergency. The pilot somehow got himself into a flat spin -- considered generally unrecoverable in an F-106 - and he ejectedit , i.e. eject.

After the pilot did just that, 58-0787 recovered itself from this 'unrecoverable' situation. In a vain attempt to break the spin, the pilot had lowered half flaps, rolled in takeoff trim, and throttled the engine back to an approach power setting.

After the ejection, the aircraft recovered from the spin on its own, and established a wings level low rate descent under reduced power to the ground. Ground effect broke its rate of descent, and it settled into a near-perfect gentle belly landing in a farmer's snow-covered cornfield.

When the local sheriff came upon the scene, the engine was still running. The aircraft was situated on a slight incline, and was creeping forward slowly under the thrust of its still-running engine, as the snow compressed to ice under it. Concerned about where it might be headed, the sheriff didn't think he could wait for the recovery team to get there from Malstrom which, was about 50 miles away; so he got himself connected to the aircraft's squadron for engine shut down instructions before he entered the cockpit to secure the engine.

A depot team from McClellan AFB recovered the aircraft and it was eventually returned to service. When the 71st FIS was disbanded in 1971, 58-0787, now famously known as the "Cornfield Bomber, was transferred to the 49th FIS, where it finished out its operational service life.

Pilots of the 49th FIS would occasionally run into ex-71st FIS guys at William Tell and rag them unmercifully about the "emergency" so dire that the plane landed itself.

58-0787 is now on permanent display in its 49th FIS markings at the USAF Museum at Wright Patterson AFB, where its story is told in the exhibit. While the the 49th FIS Eagle jocks are reportedly glad to see their squadron immortalized in this way for millions to see, they would prefer to see it made more clear that it was the 71st, and not one of theirs, who jumped out of this perfectly good aircraft.

Cops and donuts

I don;t know what it is with the boys in blue and donuts but these two pics are great.

Sad Obama milestone

I just can't help but think that the changes to the ROE has led to more U.S. deaths. Marines should not be calling for and denied artillery support like happened in July because we are so worried about civilian casualties. There will be civilian casualties, I agree with the notion that we should try and limit this but at the same time there is no way I can support a policy that fails to give all the support needed to a unit under fire. If this means arty or airstikes on a walled compound that the Marines are taking fire from, so be it.

Pic Of The Day

W at DFW

George W at DFW, can you imagine the current resident on Pennsylvania Ave doing this? I thought not.

W at Ground Zero

After The one fumbled the ball Friday and showed once again were his loyalties are. Here is the video of George W as he talked to the rescue workers digging through the rubble. I think we all know were George would stand on the Ground Zero Mosque

CF-18 Hornet Down

This was one lucky pilot with a great ejection system. This CF-18 was lost a few days ago while practicing for an airshow in Alberta. While making his high angle of attack pass the Hornet apparently lost an engine causing the excess yaw and forcing the pilot to eject. A board of inquiry from the Canadian Air Force will be investigating the crash to determine the cause.

Pic Of The Day

Nice shot of the welcome ceremony for the F-22 at Hickam AFB with the Hawaii ANG
Photo USAF

Apache's 2 Terrorists Zero

Via Weasel Zippers. It is amazing that one terrorist survived the Hellfire shot. Nice work with the 30MM

First Rig Leaves Gulf

As predicted many weeks ago when the one shut down oil drilling in the gulf, the first rig is leaving for Egypt. When these deep water rigs all go so will numerous high paying jobs in the Gulf. More of that hope and change for you.

WASHINGTON — Diamond Offshore announced Friday that its Ocean Endeavor drilling rig will leave the Gulf of Mexico and move to Egyptian waters immediately — making it the first to abandon the United States in the wake of the BP oil spill and a ban on deep-water drilling.

And the Ocean Endeavor's exodus probably won't be the last, according to oil industry officials and Gulf Coast leaders who warn that other companies eager to find work for the now-idled rigs are considering moving them outside the U.S.

Devon Energy Corp. had been leasing the Endeavor to drill in the same region of the Gulf as BP's leaking Macondo well, which has been gushing crude since a lethal blowout April 20.

But Diamond announced Friday it will lease the rig through June 30, 2011, to Cairo-based Burullus Gas Co., which plans to send the Endeavor to Egyptian waters immediately.

Devon is one of three companies that has cited the deep-water drilling ban in trying to ease out of contracts to lease Diamond rigs. Diamond, a drilling company, said it expects to make about $100 million from the deal, including a $31 million early termination fee it recovered from Devon.

Larry Dickerson, CEO of Houston-based Diamond, signaled that other of his company's rigs could be relocated, too.

"As a result of the uncertainties surrounding the offshore drilling moratorium, we are actively seeking international opportunities to keep our rigs fully employed," Dickerson said. "We greatly regret the loss of U.S. jobs that will result from this rig relocation."

It was unclear how many U.S. jobs could leave with the Ocean Endeavor, but typically more than 100 workers are on the rig at any given time, doing everything from drilling to cooking meals. Onshore, a network of businesses supplies the rigs with groceries, equipment, uniforms and drilling materials.

"It's not unusual for an energy service company to have 1,000 vendors that they buy from or purchase services from," noted Rep. Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands. As a result, Brady said, the economic damage from the moratorium stretches far and wide.

Fearing for investment
Brady and other oil-patch lawmakers have been pressing President Barack Obama to end the six-month moratorium he imposed on 33 deep-water projects May 27 after the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon rig that was drilling a well for BP.

Obama said the ban was needed to allow time for new safety standards to be implemented and a commission to investigate the cause of the April 20 blowout at BP's Macondo well.

Although the administration on Thursday lost its second bid to keep the ban in place while it appeals a federal court's decision to strike down the moratorium, federal regulators plan to try again with a revised version soon.

Dan Pickering, a financial analyst with Tudor, Pickering Holt & Co. Securities, said the legal uncertainties surrounding the ban - and the administration's plan to issue a new, revised moratorium - ensure that no companies will resume deep-water drilling in U.S. waters anytime soon.

"Are you really going to spend $5 million … getting ready to drill a well that someone would then probably block you from drilling?" Pickering said.

Lawmakers complain
Pickering added that prospects are high that a dozen rigs ultimately could leave the Gulf of Mexico because of the ban.

Brady said the rig owners are searching for revenue - even if it means relocating to get it.

"There are two types of rigs in the deep-water Gulf today: those that are leaving the country and those that want to, because with this moratorium hanging over their heads, they simply can't go back to work," Brady said. "I'm afraid this is the first of many rigs and many American jobs to leave the Gulf."

Once the rigs relocate, it could be a minimum of five to 10 years before they return, predicted Rep. Pete Olson, R-Sugar Land.

"We cannot afford to lose these jobs or the energy they provide," Olson said. "President Obama should allow this moratorium to remain lifted and let Americans get back to work."

During trading Friday, Diamond Offshore stock fell 86 cents - or 1.32 percent - to close at $64.40. It has fallen 29 percent from its closing price of $91.20 on April 20, the day the Deepwater Horizon exploded.

jennifer.dlouhy@chron.com