tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post4280336152934691560..comments2024-03-28T04:51:43.723-07:00Comments on Chant du Départ: The Friday Flyby - 06 DecemberOldAFSargehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-67113531582267846152013-12-08T12:20:05.718-08:002013-12-08T12:20:05.718-08:00Like I mentioned above, government stupidity is no...Like I mentioned above, government stupidity is not a new phenomenon.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-66907051162689122232013-12-08T12:19:18.516-08:002013-12-08T12:19:18.516-08:00Thanks for the info Virgil. I thought the handle l...Thanks for the info Virgil. I thought the handle looked familiar.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-52075084079799372412013-12-07T21:31:19.332-08:002013-12-07T21:31:19.332-08:00Sarge, Max was/is a plank owner of the Mothership ...Sarge, Max was/is a plank owner of the Mothership commentariat --a NAVY and/or contractor EE type, iirc..virgil xenophonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11491836830352263438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-78633268848094182832013-12-07T21:24:23.242-08:002013-12-07T21:24:23.242-08:00The F-111: The greatest long-range, all wx, low-le...The F-111: The greatest long-range, all wx, low-level strike fighter ever <i>accidentally</i> invented..<br /><br />If you want a good read on the history and politics of the F-111 procurement process and selection of design criteria read "The TFX Decision" by the political scientist Robert J. Art. A seminal work. <br /><br />Y'all DO realize, don't you, that there are STILL some VITAL msn profiles that we now cannot fly because we retired the F-11 just to save its high maint costs to free up money for the F-35? NOT TO MENTION the loss of the best ECM bird we had when the EA-111 went awayvirgil xenophonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11491836830352263438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-81657831026560468432013-12-07T07:41:04.501-08:002013-12-07T07:41:04.501-08:00I remember watching that Herky trap a few months a...I remember watching that Herky trap a few months ago.<br /><br />Now <b>that</b> blew my mind.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-218992621697647102013-12-07T00:03:42.094-08:002013-12-07T00:03:42.094-08:00That F-111 trapping blew my mind- I had no idea th...That F-111 trapping blew my mind- I had no idea the Navy ever had them, even for just a short time due to their weight.They couldn't put it on FEP? (Fitness Enhancement Program). Heck, if we can land a C-130 onboard, we can land an Aardvark https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfwJJD5jGXk<br />Tunahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04930237104692982421noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-53030761939273255752013-12-06T18:21:11.670-08:002013-12-06T18:21:11.670-08:00Yup, just what you want for a carrier bird.
(Gove...Yup, just what you want for a carrier bird.<br /><br />(Government stupidity has been around for a long time, hasn't it?)OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-17169889213487048202013-12-06T18:20:12.056-08:002013-12-06T18:20:12.056-08:00Sweet!
Fine looking boys. You should be very prou...Sweet!<br /><br />Fine looking boys. You should be very proud of your sons.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-74169626682124646152013-12-06T17:43:02.294-08:002013-12-06T17:43:02.294-08:00Navy was 'forced' to take a squadron of th...Navy was 'forced' to take a squadron of them, they were immediately flown to the boneyard, where they sit to this day... Too heavy, couldn't carry enough gas if loaded out with armament...Old NFOhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16404197287935017147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-46769683673629612452013-12-06T15:59:17.410-08:002013-12-06T15:59:17.410-08:00Speakin' o' Lawn Darts... here's SNs O...Speakin' o' Lawn Darts... here's SNs One and Three <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_go0QYOkH4xU/Rq4KBujOeUI/AAAAAAAABBM/OAEzxLCIr7c/s1600-h/SN1+%2B+SN3+Cannon+AFB+hangar.jpg" rel="nofollow">with one of 'em</a>. Life was pretty good when SN1 was at Cannon... I got to go to a lot o' neat places and stuff.Buckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05319116022465066060noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-40315677768182974702013-12-06T14:50:57.638-08:002013-12-06T14:50:57.638-08:00No kidding? Wow.
I still get kick out of that &qu...No kidding? Wow.<br /><br />I still get kick out of that "Lawn Darts" nickname.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-40217201887680105902013-12-06T14:49:57.561-08:002013-12-06T14:49:57.561-08:00I've only heard them a few times. But I couldn...I've only heard them a few times. But I couldn't tell how loud they were with all the Phantoms and Dash-60s in my vicinity when I did see them.<br /><br />A fellow airman? Nice to hear from you.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-29942884897925619822013-12-06T14:46:19.442-08:002013-12-06T14:46:19.442-08:00Spark 'vark, I like it.
As to the day Aardvar...Spark 'vark, I like it.<br /><br />As to the day Aardvark did become the "official" nickname? Classic Air Force. (He said with a great deal of chagrin...)OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-13741923383854087382013-12-06T14:44:59.997-08:002013-12-06T14:44:59.997-08:00I with you there Juvat. Later on they started call...I with you there Juvat. Later on they started calling her the FB-111. Closer to the mark, but I'd go with A-111. Way more accurate.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-82768608881845824622013-12-06T14:43:58.166-08:002013-12-06T14:43:58.166-08:00Cool link. You have far too much time on your hand...Cool link. You have far too much time on your hands <em>Spill</em>.<br /><br />;-)OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-70950273705143917002013-12-06T12:51:48.864-08:002013-12-06T12:51:48.864-08:00So yeah, this could have been me!
That WAS SN1......<i>So yeah, this could have been me!</i><br /><br />That WAS SN1... his first USAF job was working on the laser designator system on-board the F-111s at Lakenheath... so any of those "LN" birds pictured might have felt his tender ministrations.<br /><br />The "CC" birds hit kinda close to home, too. We have one of those SparkVarks sitting in the grass near the Class Six store at Cannon Airplane Patch. But that was before my time... when I arrived in the area Lawn Darts were the airframe o' choice. Now it's all about AC/EC-130s, drones, and some "non-standard" stuff.Buckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05319116022465066060noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-36134025237258721232013-12-06T09:49:00.797-08:002013-12-06T09:49:00.797-08:00I spent 15 months at Plattsburgh with the mighty F...I spent 15 months at Plattsburgh with the mighty FB-111. If I'm not mistaken, the picture captioned, "This could have been me" was taken at P-Burgh. Loudest freakin' airplane in the inventory. MaxDamagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02717741878320707605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-68529920661881464582013-12-06T09:33:41.733-08:002013-12-06T09:33:41.733-08:00The EF-111A was known colloquially as the "Sp...The EF-111A was known colloquially as the "Spark 'vark."<br /><br />And the Aardvark *did* become the official nickname. On the very day the last of the fleet was retired. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-37993403236354518052013-12-06T07:21:32.006-08:002013-12-06T07:21:32.006-08:00Never agreed with the F part of the designation. ...Never agreed with the F part of the designation. In my mind, A or B would have been better suited.juvathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096708575138552532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-62911428167527091542013-12-06T06:27:56.537-08:002013-12-06T06:27:56.537-08:00The F-111 was also a test aircraft for the first F...The F-111 was also a test aircraft for the first FADEC (Full Authority Digital Engine Controls) systems. NASA and the USAF collaborated on the IPCS (Integrated Propulsion Control System), which was the forerunner to FADEC.<br /><br />http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/multimedia/imagegallery/F-111E-IPCS/index.htmlThemav1977https://www.blogger.com/profile/02175525736667113596noreply@blogger.com