tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post901256679279287050..comments2024-03-28T10:50:29.895-07:00Comments on Chant du Départ: Im Kampf gefallen an diesem Tag im Jahr 1918*OldAFSargehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-76622410069273370102016-04-24T10:42:24.706-07:002016-04-24T10:42:24.706-07:00Yup, living breathing human beings. People who had...Yup, living breathing human beings. People who had parents who loved them (usually) and worried about them. Friends, aunts, uncles, siblings, grandparents, teachers, the whole nine yards.<br /><br />I remember them, not the icons they became.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-72339734693102353542016-04-24T06:59:20.340-07:002016-04-24T06:59:20.340-07:00History has always happened to real people. I wond...History has always happened to real people. I wonder how many of my friends and neighbors realize that. PrairieAdventurehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06466447251827774900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-91958699382470075532016-04-22T05:27:07.676-07:002016-04-22T05:27:07.676-07:00Now that is a good question.Now that is a good question.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-32656626780366637932016-04-22T05:18:48.338-07:002016-04-22T05:18:48.338-07:00Those were MEN back then. Richtofen, Hartmann, Gal...Those were MEN back then. Richtofen, Hartmann, Galland, Rommel, Prien...I wonder what they'd think of the world--and Germany--today.Murphy's Lawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17164780742334950772noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-17340271126180309892016-04-22T04:53:48.410-07:002016-04-22T04:53:48.410-07:00Heh.Heh.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-88339389830437080662016-04-21T18:52:14.325-07:002016-04-21T18:52:14.325-07:00Beagles everywhere danced in the streets!Beagles everywhere danced in the streets!SCOTTtheBADGERhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12859188068159799373noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-53972272630759803032016-04-21T17:07:49.866-07:002016-04-21T17:07:49.866-07:00No Bruce, I haven't been there yet but it'...No Bruce, I haven't been there yet but it's on the list of places I need to visit.<br /><br />The Military Aviation Museum down in Pungo has a nice collection of reproduction WWI birds, couple of Triplanes, a Nieuport, a Fokker DVII an Albatross or two, all flyable!OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-82378783406645592872016-04-21T17:06:01.741-07:002016-04-21T17:06:01.741-07:00Juvat- roger that on the Golden BB.Juvat- roger that on the Golden BB.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-18296808635703421432016-04-21T17:05:39.122-07:002016-04-21T17:05:39.122-07:00Vic - I imagine that 12.7mm ain't no fun at al...Vic - I imagine that 12.7mm ain't no fun at all.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-79464477941947396742016-04-21T17:04:43.256-07:002016-04-21T17:04:43.256-07:00Bruce - good point. Coal dust can be "excitin...Bruce - good point. Coal dust can be "exciting."OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-43602133534050612092016-04-21T16:17:53.156-07:002016-04-21T16:17:53.156-07:00As the Red Baron found out, it only takes that Gol...As the Red Baron found out, it only takes that Golden BB.juvathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096708575138552532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-19091272838502403912016-04-21T15:42:34.839-07:002016-04-21T15:42:34.839-07:00Dueling with AAA, although "only" 12.7mm...Dueling with AAA, although "only" 12.7mm/.51 cal., was never one of my favorites. Fortunately, it only happened a couple of times. regards, Alemaster Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-13017110480632341702016-04-21T14:57:52.365-07:002016-04-21T14:57:52.365-07:00Coal mines can be splodey, too, if you're not ...Coal mines can be splodey, too, if you're not careful.Brucehttps://www.facebook.com/bruce.brews.5noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-1127434644126232042016-04-21T14:14:23.800-07:002016-04-21T14:14:23.800-07:00Have you been to Old Rhinebeck in New York? They&#...Have you been to Old Rhinebeck in New York? They've got several WWI planes and reproductions.Brucehttps://www.facebook.com/bruce.brews.5noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-59503257673737001262016-04-21T13:45:29.675-07:002016-04-21T13:45:29.675-07:00AAA sucks.
I hate it almost as much as I hate min...AAA sucks.<br /><br />I hate it almost as much as I hate mines. (The splodey type, not the coal/diamond/what-have-you type.)OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-74724835810145194272016-04-21T13:43:26.045-07:002016-04-21T13:43:26.045-07:00Anti-Aircraft fire has always been the primary war...Anti-Aircraft fire has always been the primary wartime killer of aircraft, more than SAMS and more than Air To Air fighters. One of my Dad's IPs at Webb spent about 5 under the kind, loving care of the North Vietnamese when his F-105 was shot out of the air by a company of infantry laying on their backs as he flew over a hill. When he got back, he related the story of flying up one side of the hill, rolling over on his back to pull down the back side and seeing a guy waving a flag, as he got directly over the guy, he drops that flag and begins vigorously waving a different one. He has a momentary WTF? thought before his Thud essentially is disintegrated by small arms fire. He bails out immediately and same group captures him within minutes. <br />AAA always concerned me.juvathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096708575138552532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-73803336465639614292016-04-21T12:48:06.734-07:002016-04-21T12:48:06.734-07:00That's a fine summary, Bruce, I would have to ...That's a fine summary, Bruce, I would have to agree with all of your points. Though he did have 23 victories after his wounding in July of 1917, including two on the day before his death, one of whom was a British ace (Major Richard Raymond-Barker) with six kills, the pace of his victories seems to have slowed. Prior to his wounding he averaged a victory every five days, afterwards it was a victory every ten days. At least that's what a cursory statistical look yields.<br /><br />At any rate, flying low like he was that day, not a good idea. TBI, PTSD and target fixation all fit.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-43787925392301846092016-04-21T12:25:54.380-07:002016-04-21T12:25:54.380-07:00There are a number of streets in Germany named aft...There are a number of streets in Germany named after the Red Baron (that I could find), using the spelling Richthofenstraße there are streets in: Nordeney, Sankt Augustin, Detmold, Villingen-Schwennigen, Kiel, Kitzengen, Bremen, Königsbrunn, Lippstadt, and Dransfeld.<br /><br />With the spelling Von-Richthofen-Straße, there are (in addition to Landstuhl): Regensburg, Giebelstadt, Leipheim, and Günzburg.<br /><br />Spelled as Manfred-von-Richthofenstraße we have: Berlin, Münster, Pinneberg, Mainz, and Fürstenfeldbruck.<br /><br />He's pretty much a national hero and as he is not associated with the bad old days of 1933 to 1945 it's pretty much okay to name things after him.<br /><br />For comparison, there are a number of streets in the USA named after Eddie Rickenbacker, for example: San Jose (CA), Boise (ID), Jacksonville (FL), Mather (CA), Lancaster (SC), and Portland (OR). That's not an exhaustive list.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-63830580157627320742016-04-21T12:01:59.556-07:002016-04-21T12:01:59.556-07:00Medical issues may have played as much of a role i...Medical issues may have played as much of a role in Richtofen's death as enemy forces. He was severely affected by the traumatic brain injury he suffered when he was shot down in 1917, suffering changed mood and headaches long afterward. Operated on several times, he doesn't seem to have recovered completely. He surely was also worn down by the cumulative effect of two years in combat. Called shell shock in those days, we now call it post-traumatic stress disorder. <br /><br />On his last mission, he violated one of his own cardinal rules ("don't take unnecessary chances") by flying low over the front lines. The medical term is "disinhibited." He may also have been concentrating on shooting down the Sopwith Camel too much, something we now call target fixation. Both of these kinds of conduct are consistent with both TBI and PTSD.<br /><br />A 1999 article from 'The Lancet' questions, based on medical records supplied by his family, whether he was even fit to fly. Unfortunately, you can't read the whole thing online unless you're willing to shell out $31.50.Brucehttps://www.facebook.com/bruce.brews.5noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-45092230715919458982016-04-21T11:07:32.387-07:002016-04-21T11:07:32.387-07:00While on TDY to Ramstein AB, Germany, I noticed du...While on TDY to Ramstein AB, Germany, I noticed during our wanderings in the town of Landstuhl that we were walking on Von-Richtofenstraße. I had always wondered if he had been born nearby, but apparently he had no connection with the region, aside from his military service for Germany. From what I can find he was born in Breslau, now the Polish city of Wroclaw.<br /><br />Maybe the city fathers had a big interest in history, as Landstuhl also has Beethovenstraße and similarly-named roads.Bruce Brewshttps://www.facebook.com/bruce.brews.5noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-21649346296417545702016-04-21T08:00:55.518-07:002016-04-21T08:00:55.518-07:00The Baron was between a rock and a hard place at t...The Baron was between a rock and a hard place at that point.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-3666003634228390212016-04-21T07:32:57.591-07:002016-04-21T07:32:57.591-07:00Whether it was Capt Brown or ground fire is moot. ...Whether it was Capt Brown or ground fire is moot. Brown's attack put the Fokker in a position where one or the other would get him.Well Seasoned Foolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16670165728759453075noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-6586248269438466522016-04-21T06:27:23.054-07:002016-04-21T06:27:23.054-07:00The airmen on both sides, for the most part, respe...The airmen on both sides, for the most part, respected each other. Chivalry wasn't quite dead.<br /><br />I read that the Baron's plane was actually in pretty good shape after he put it down. But it was torn apart by souvenir hunters when it was discovered who the pilot was.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-22759830632494807672016-04-21T05:59:20.461-07:002016-04-21T05:59:20.461-07:00To paraphrase a song, the man lived hard, died you...To paraphrase a song, the man lived hard, died young, and left a lasting memory. I think the best part of the story of his death is that his opponents treated his body with great respect and afforded him full military honors. It was a time when the idea of Knights of the Air still prevailed. Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15482185271178889753noreply@blogger.com