Never Attribute to Malice...

Stormy Weather at Sea
Frank William Brangwyn

In the last 42 days I have spent about four hours physically at work, virtually I've been there the whole time thanks to the magic of the Internet and my trusty laptop.

For the first few weeks though, I had nothing to do, waiting on a contract to free up some shekels so I could get back on my old team. Failing that, to get on a new team. Well, (and I think I mentioned it in these spaces before) I got back on my old team. With some new stuff thrown in working with a guy I got to work with before. I am pretty excited about the whole thing.

At first it was a part time kind of gig, but now I'm head down, full up, and rocking forty hours a week. I'm actually busy again. The days go by much faster than before, and for the time being I can work at home. Makes for an easy commute dontcha know?

Though the trip down the hallway is sometimes fraught with difficulty as the feline staff don't ever use their turn signals. While I want to get the computers up and running, and online of course, they are more interested in having breakfast. I understand that but I need to check the overnight mail while I'm doing the glaucoma eye drop thing. One in the left eye, the lesser of the two, which used to be my "go to" eye, and a different one for both eyes. As I have to (read should) wait for five minutes between drops, firing up the machines, getting logged into the VPN and checking the mail is about five minutes.

When that's done, the feline staff gets breakfast and I get coffee. Then I may or may not get out of my gym shorts and t-shirt for my official work attire. (Jeans and a polo shirt, the only difference between the lab and home is that I don't wear shoes at home. It's a Korean thing dontcha know?)

Anyhoo. One of the things I find somewhat annoying is all of the virus-thingee news we get from corporate, half of whom I don't recognize as we merged with another company at the beginning of April. Most of the messages are from the new bosses, (same as the old bosses), which at least we get to learn who they are. Not all are from the other half of the merger, some are from my company's division out west. We consolidated some functions.

I mean a lot of it is good information, but some of it is of the "we're doing everything we can to prevent, protect, and yada, yada, yada." Okay, I get it, none of the multitude of corporate big shots want to kill us. Nice of 'em. But please, every day there is an update which actually doesn't really say anything new. Hey, if it's an update, shouldn't it contain an actual, ya know, "update."

So the virus-thingee, which was sorta the point of the post, which I will not speak (or write) it's actual "given" name. To name a thing is to give it power. Or something like that (I have no idea who said that). The virus-thingee is a good enough name.

Now there are many conspiracy theories floating about, "the gubmint is evil, they wish to steal our freedoms," etc., etc. That presupposes that people in government are actually competent, efficient, and hard working. The same government that many claim "can't do anything right" is trying to enslave us.

I don't think so.

Most politicians are elected based upon what they look like. At least it seems that way to me, often it's the choice of what one perceives as the lesser of two evils. I mean, most of these folks may seek office to "make a difference" or what-have-you but soon get bogged down in the party politics and the bureaucracy. If evil governments were so damned efficient, why then did the Nazis and the Soviets lose?

At any rate, the stay at home thing is probably a good idea for us susceptible old farts and if I hear one more nitwit use the phrase "herd immunity" I daresay I might have to DiNozzo the offending party. Yup, get out there, that way we'll all get "herd immunity." Most of the ee-jits who use that phrase don't even know what it means.

At any rate, soon the whole overreach by panicking nitwit politicians will subside, people will get sick, people will die. Happens anyway with the flu and a host of other things. As the virus-thingee is different, as in "new," we don't have a handle on it yet. Soon actual scientists  and doctors (i.e. not Bill Nye and his ilk) will get a handle on it and things will get better.

Or they won't.

My worry is for all the folks who have lost their livelihoods over this. Will they get them back? Given enough time yes, but the idiots in Congress won't be the cause of that. Their forte seems to be doing the stupidest thing possible over and over again and expecting different results. All the while spending money like an 18-year old Marine on Okinawa who spent the last month up in the Northern Training Area. (Or a sailor in Olongapo from what I've heard. I've seen the former, only heard about the latter.)

Will all the nonsense that is floating around out there, remember,

This life’s hard, but it’s harder if you’re stupid.²

Don't be stupid.

And no, I don't know if Kim Jong Un is dead or not.

And yes, I am a bit out of sorts lately. Aren't we all?

/rant


P.S. The painting at the beginning of the post doesn't really have anything to do with the post. I just like the painting.

P.P.S Started watching Season 6 of Bosch. Which is good. So I've got that going for me...



¹ Unknown
² George V. Higgins

PPE

Had a "mostly" uneventful week since last we spoke.  Went to the grocery store twice and the liquor store once.  While at the grocery store, saw and spoke to a couple of teachers that I knew and liked from my most recent prior existence.

One happens to teach first grade.  So I asked her how the home schooling was actually being accomplished at that level.  Parents would come by the school and pick up paper packets with assignments in them.

I blinked twice as I heard that.  She said "Yeah, I know...But most of my kids are lower income and don't have computers."  Which brought up a short question about Gov Abbott closing school for the duration of this school year regardless of starting the "re-opening" process.

"Damned if you do, damned if you don't."  There's been so much time lost so far, that getting butts in seats alone will take most of the day.  So...little upside.  Potential for big down side.  However, the other downside is with low income families, the school takes the place of child care.  Obviously, education is also part of that picture.

Or should be.  So, if the school's don't open, Mom and Dad are going to have to find someone to take care of Little Johnny, which means either one of them stays home, or they hire someone.  Both of which means less money for the family.  Best case is maybe a family member can help. 

As I said, no good answers.  I think if I ever hear "....an abundance of caution" again, I'll come unhinged.  I think that statement actually translated from the original Russian means " ...an overabundance of cowardice."

Just me....being charitable.

Other events for the week, MBD and T-Dawg  came over for a few days.

T-Dawg is the one in the middle.

Working from home has some perks.  One of them, for me, was listening to her running a meeting for her team on a project.  The young lady has some MAD people skills.  Must have come from her mother's side.

Her looks obviously came from me,  thank you very much!

The other highlight was a Skype call to our refugees.  That would be Little Juvat and his wife (comments here occasionally as LJW...get it?).  I may not have mentioned this, but they are assigned to the US Embassy in Kuwait.  Back in January, he was sent on a short TDY to another Embassy in the region.

Then, for some unknown reason (yeah right!) all travel to and fro was shut down.  He's been there 65 days now and counting.  No end in sight yet.  I asked him about short tour credit. He said he's quite likely to get it, I think he only needs about 3 more weeks.  Good news is he's staying busy, 10-12 hour days.  He keeps track of weekends by working only 8 hours.

LJW isn't much better off in Kuwait.  The Embassy compound is shut down, so there isn't a lot of activity to keep busy.  This is her first long term overseas experience and is a bit OBE.  She seems to be hanging in there, but...

Indications of "wearing thin"  are quite evident in both of them.

They are number one in my evening appeals to a higher power.

I read an excellent article this past weekend from a link of Feral Irishman's blog.   It's a bit long, but written by a Doctor in Alabama in consult with some other physicians he associates with.  He pretty well lays bare what's really going on.  Highly recommend reading the whole thing, but IMHO, here's the money quote.

According to worldometers.info from January 1 to April 1, 2020 the worldwide deaths from COVID-19 were 46,438 as opposed to 121,993 for influenza. To recap, during the same three months, with the same social distancing, the same shelter in place, and even handicapped with a vaccine against it, the flu still killed more than two and a half times as many people as COVID-19. (Emphasis mine)

Yep!  We must put millions out of work right now!  Because....

Stolen from BarbaCat's site  Thanks!

The dog's got the right answer!

Now that my blood pressure's up, we'll change the subject.  Anyone?

"What's going on with the "Big Project", juvat?"

"Well, Sarge, it was PPE week at Rancho Juvat."

"Personal Protective Equipment week?"

No, silly!  Painters, Plumbers and Electricians."

Monday morning I'm walking up to the Horsebarn to feed the Hay Burners and a truck drives by.  Asked him what he was here to do and he said we're the Painters.  By the time I got the hay thing done, they were starting to tape things off and by the evening feed, they were done.  Or at least for this part of the project.

Mrs J and I were a bit concerned as the hardy board was this puke yellow color and we were afraid that something had gotten lost in translation.  However, the actual color is a beige and really sets off the Cedar accents on the rear of the house.

The two walls to the right side of the picture will be all brick.  As one can see by the protuberances  on the roof, the plumbers have also been there.  The gas lines have been installed as well as the hot and cold water lines.

No, Beans, the drains are still in the middle of the hallway.

This is the hallway to the master suite.  The bathroom sinks are on the OTHER side of the wall to the left.

The electricians have installed most of the boxes and electric wire to each, so while progress is not as noticeable as it has been so far in the project, it is still being made.

My personal project is to do something about this.

My workshop.  Having a computer background, my first effort was to try and use Sketchup to figure out a more optimum configuration.

RIIIIIIIIGGGGGGHHHHHHTTTTT!  What a PITA that was!  So I got out the old drafting tools and some graph paper and drew me some scale plans

Now, an astute observer (AKA Beans) will quickly discern that the two elevations are not oriented correctly.  As the horizontal elevation is oriented with the observer at the top of the drawing looking in. Whereas the bottom one is looking in from the door.

So...the Draftsman didn't get paid for his work, but scale was more important than precise layout.  In a 15' X 11' space, storage is critical.  My plan is to build two plywood walled floor to ceiling garages where my router, drill press and bandsaw will be stored when not in use.  The middle section will be 2  60" W cabinets from Lowes with 4  30" W cabinets along the ceiling.  That should give me enough storage to clear off my work bench and stop using my table saw as one.  That will be a major improvement.

Lowes has got 10% off on the cabinets now, so I think I can do this whole thing for less than $500.  Mrs J has approved the expenditure, so now I just have to move stuff around so I have room on that wall to work it into being.

So.  I've got that going for me.  Hope all y'all are well, mostly sane  and will shortly be able to return to a somewhat normal living.

'Twas a Good Day

Spent the bulk of Saturday out in the back yard at Chez Sarge, you may have noticed a lack of me commenting on yesterday's post, Beans had it under control, so I slacked off and went sinker for the day. Which was gorgeous!

The weather in these parts has been consistently miserable for what seems months now. I know we've had a few nice days in there, but they have been few and far between. Not to mention that it seems colder than normal this year. Temperatures in the 30s at night which just seems unusual.

So the annual cleaning of the koi pond has been put off long past its normal date, which is usually in early April. What with the colder temps, we just weren't up to heading out and diving in to the task. Cold water, cold wind, and the stench of old pond water (near the bottom) just wasn't beckoning to us to come forth.

Friday's weather was très misérable, drizzly, rainy, windy, and cold for this time of year. (Though my memory could be playing tricks on me, after all this is New England where the weather is about as consistent as a politician's promises. I remember the First of June in 2000, a very long time ago I guess, turn of the century and all that (those of you who want to say, "No, the 21st Century started in 2001...," geh weg, I have my own rules for that), was dreadful. Old Air Force friends of ours were visiting from Minnesota and I remember distinctly being outside having a smoke with the lady of the visiting team, huddled under an umbrella, bundled up like Inuits, in the pouring rain. (Really glad I quit that habit, so did she as I recall.)

Anyhoo, The Missus Herself's crystal ball indicated that Saturday would be lovely. Low 60s, sunny, and very little wind. So we would be cleaning the pond. While it isn't my favorite thing to do I'm sure the fish appreciate having clean water to live in. (Believe me, over the winter the water gets green and nasty.)

So Saturday dawned and it was indeed lovely. Light windbreaker over a t-shirt weather. So to the pond we went. During that we had a supply drop (The WSO keeps us in groceries via delivery so we don't need to venture out, being old ya know, it worries the progeny if we go out) and we soldiered on with the pond. She does most of the work as she knows exactly how she wants it (I swear she will spend two hours cleaning each individual rock on the bottom of that pond) but we got it done.

I managed to convince the love of my life that picking up food from our local Mexican restaurant was not going to kill anyone so I ordered food for the both of us. When I picked it up the place was very quiet, but everybody inside (take out only mind you) was masked and gloved, as were the two other customers I saw. So I felt safe as can be in these whacked-out, crazy times.

So we had Mexican food: burritos and fajitas, refried beans, Mexican rice, guacamole, and salsa with home made chips. ¡Fue muy bueno!

So a good day indeed.

I have pictures!

Oh, one more thing, during the annual cleaning of the pond, a fox ran through the yard. Middle of the day it was! Haven't seen one of the sly ones in a while. I did warn the neighbors though, they have chickens!

A very good day, now with wildlife!

Be well.

Somebody Should Do Something

Children's Khorovod fountain¹ in Stalingrad after the battle.
Photograph by Sergey Strunnikov

So, on yesterday's post Retired had this to say -

I thought what his old boss said was pretty profound.

As to the picture? It's a rather famous fountain in the city of Volgograd (ex-Stalingrad) and had something to do with a kid's poem. But the way I'm using it here is that sometime's there isn't much you can do about a situation except pitch in and dance around the crocodile. Hoping it doesn't get you...

(Source)

Sometimes I like to quote Sir Winston Churchill, okay, I like to quote Churchill a lot -

“It’s no use saying ‘we’re doing our best.’ You have to succeed in doing what’s necessary.” This is from Churchill’s speech on 7 March 1916 in the House of Commons, cf. Gilbert, Official Biography, Winston S. Churchill, Vol. 3, The Challenge of War (London and Boston: 1971, page 719). (Source)

Which is somewhat ironic given the comments from yesterday's post. You can't just do your best, you can't just do something for the sake of doing something, you have to do what is necessary. Hopefully you'll succeed.

But like Gerry Rafferty said, if you get it wrong you'll get it right next time.

Next time.

Get It Right Next Time

Written by Gerry Rafferty

Out on the street, I was talking to a man

He said, there's so much of this life of mine that I don't understand

You shouldn't worry, I said, that ain't no crime

'Cause if you get it wrong, you'll get it right next time, next time

You need direction, yeah, you need a name

When you're standing in the crossroads every highway looks the same

After a while, you can recognize the signs

So if you get it wrong you'll get it right next time, next time

Life is a liar, yeah, life is a cheat

It'll lead you on and pull the ground from underneath your feet

No use complaining, don't you worry, don't you whine

'Cause if you get it wrong, you'll get it right next time, next time

You got to grow, you got to learn by your mistakes

You got to die a little every day just to try to stay awake

When you believe there's no mountain you can climb

And if you get it wrong, you'll get it right next time, next time

Next time, hmm

Yes, I rather like that song.

Stay healthy.

¹ The original fountain is no longer there. It was replaced by two replicas. (Source) IMHO the replicas aren't as good as the original.

Some Gave All...

Douglas A-20J-10-DO, 43-10129, of the 416th Bomb Group destroyed by flak over Beauvoir, France on 12 May 1944.

No doubt you've heard the phrase, "No, I'm not a hero. The heroes are the ones who didn't make it back. They're the real heroes."

I've heard it from a number of veterans, probably you have too.

I came across this story in Sand and Steel: The D-Day Invasion and the Liberation of France by Peter Caddick-Adams, page 141 as a matter of fact. I didn't get much further. It left me feeling rather thoughtful the rest of the day. So I thought I'd share it with you.

The British were getting antsy, wondering just when the Yanks were going to pitch in against the Nazis. Even Churchill, half-American himself, had mentioned somewhat querulously, that the Americans had yet to drop a bomb on Germany.

In May of 1942, US General Hap Arnold promised Prime Minister Winston Churchill that American troops would be fighting with the British by July 4th. Fulfilling that promise fell to US Generals Carl Spaatz, Ira Eaker and Dwight Eisenhower. Yet only two US outfits were in England – the 97th Bombardment Group and the 15th Bombardment Squadron (Light) – and neither was equipped with aircraft. The 15th‘s familiarity with Douglas A-20 Havocs and the presence of the same aircraft in British service, the DB-7 Boston III, secured them a place in Eighth Air Force history. Seven months earlier, members of the 15th had been dropping flour sack bombs on “enemy” troops as part the 1941 Louisiana Maneuvers. Now, a month of training in British bombing methods was the plan to get the Eighth Air Force in the war with its first official combat mission. (Source)

So on the 4th of July, 1942, Independence Day, six American aircrews would fly aircraft belonging to No. 226 Squadron of the Royal Air Force. 226 Squadron's own crews would man the other six aircraft going on the raid. Across the Channel to the Netherlands to hit four Luftwaffe airfields, three aircraft would hit each target. The targets were Fliegerhorst Katwijk¹, Fliegerhorst De Kooy, Fliegerhorst Haamstede, and Fliegerhorst Bergen Alkmaar. Hopefully speed, surprise, and hitting the fields simultaneously near dawn would bring all of the men home.

It was not to be.

(Source)

Alerted by a German vessel near the coast, the German flak crews were ready when the twelve aircraft reached their targets.

At Fliegerhorst De Kooy -

Two of the US-crewed aircraft attacked Fliegerhorst De Kooy and one, tail number A677, is listed as Missing in Action. This aircraft is shot down by anti-aircraft fire and crashes on Texel Island, Holland. The crew are: Pilot - 2Lt. Frederick A. Loehrl, O-432079, (KIA) commemorated on the Wall of Missing, Netherlands American Cemetery and awarded the Air Medal and Purple Heart; Navigator - 2Lt. Marshall D. Draper O-724624, (POW) held at Stalag 7A Moosburg, Bavaria, officially Returned to Military Control (RMC) 24-Jul-45. He was the first American airman form 8th Air Force to be captured; Gunner - James W. Wright, 19000376, (KIA) buried at Ardennes American Cemetery, Plot C, Row 36, Grave 7, awarded the Purple Heart; Dorsal Gunner - Sgt. Robert L. Whitham (KIA). His remains were recovered on 11-Jul-42 and he was buried in the general cemetery of Huisduinen, Den Helder, Holland. (Source)

From another account of the raid on De Kooy -

Turning into the attack, Captain Kegelman skimmed the ground as flak impacts forced his Boston to tilt then drop hard. The rear fuselage oil canned on the tarmac as the starboard propeller sheared its spindle and flew into space. Oblivious to the lacing crossfire of murderous 20mm rounds, Kegelman goosed the remaining engine to full throttle, shut down his bad engine, and pulled hard stick to gain altitude and control.

On one engine, Captain Kegelman cleared the aerodrome, silenced a flak tower to the south near Julianadorp with his nose guns, and salvoed his bombs into the sea on his way back to Swanton Morley – with a belly full of Dutch dirt.

Lt. Fred A. Loehrl was mere seconds behind Kegelman and flew full force into the zeroed flak barrage put up by the units around the field. Lt. Loehrl dropped his incendiary payload along two rows of camouflaged hangars housing Bf-110’s and at least one larger mine-laying Heinkel 111 bomber. Hit by punishing flak, Lt. Loehrl’s Boston caught fire then crashed just past the Balgzand canal into the shallow seawater. Miraculously, the bombardier, Lt. Marshall Draper, was thrown clear of the shattered nose section, and survived to become the first 8th Air Force POW. Lt. Fred A. Loehrl’s body was never found.(Source)

At Fliegerhorst Bergen Alkmaar -

One American-crewed A-20, tail number AL741 was listed as Missing in Action (MIA) on this target. This aircraft was shot down by anti-aircraft fire and crashed near Bergen-aan-Zee, Holland. The crew of this aircraft were: Pilot - 2Lt William G. Lynn, O-432081, (KIA) buried at Netherlands American Cemetery, Plot B, Row 5, Grave 10, awarded the Purple Heart; Navigator - 2Lt Boyd S. Grant, buried in the Allied Plot of the general cemetery of Bergen, Holland; Gunner - SSgt William A. Murphy, (KIA) buried in the Allied Plot of the general cemetery of Bergen, Holland; Dorsal Gunner Cpl Charles P. Kramarewicz, 1109157, (KIA) buried at Netherlands American Cemetery, Plot I, Row 14, Grave 18, awarded the Purple Heart.(Source)

One of the RAF aircraft, piloted by P/O Charles M. Henning, after making its attack on the field, started it's trip home with a German fighter in hot pursuit. It was a Focke Wulf-190 piloted by Unteroffizier² Hans Rathenow -

While agile and fast for a bomber, the Boston was no match for a 190 in the open. With two MG 131’s in the nose and four 20mm cannon in the wing roots and outer wings, Rathenow’s Fw-190 had more than enough lethal firepower to dispatch the twin engine bomber. Fifteen miles off of Callantsoog, Rathenow caught up with Z2213 MQ-U and downed her in the cold sea. The RAF airmen were never found. They were P/O Charles M. Henning, Sgt. Percey J. Voysey and Sgt. Herbert T. Willig. (Source)

Twelve aircraft went out, only nine returned, one so badly damaged that it had to be written off. Three aircraft lost, three aircrews, eleven men.

Despite some success and the bravery of the RAF and USAAF aircrews, the loss of eleven men (three out of twelve aircraft – two US, one British) was considered unacceptable. General Eisenhower was dismayed by the news of the loss. Far too high a price had been paid in a costly gesture to sustain national prestige and bolster morale on the home front. General Eisenhower was mindful moving forward that American aircrews would not engage in needless combat to satisfy American pride or produce media events for propaganda use.(Source)

Captain Kegelman was decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions that day. He later lost his life in the Pacific Theater as a major, commanding a B-25 unit. So he too eventually gave the last full measure.

Some gave all...

• 2Lt Frederick A. Loehrl, USAAF
• 2Lt. Marshall D. Draper, USAAF
• Sgt James W. Wright, USAAF
• Sgt Robert L. Whitham, USAAF
• P/O Charles M. Henning, RAF
• Sgt Percey J. Voysey, RAF
• Sgt Herbert T. Willig, RAF
• 2Lt William G. Lynn, USAAF
• 2Lt Boyd S. Grant, USAAF
• SSgt William A. Murphy, USAAF
• Cpl Charles P. Kramarewicz, USAAF
• Major Charles C. Kegelman, USAAF

The motto of No. 226 Squadron, RAF, provides a fitting tribute to those men.

Non sibi sed patriae

~ For country not for self ~

Sources:

• American Air Museum Link
• History Net Link
• The National Interest Link

¹ Fliegerhorst = air base.
² A rank roughly equivalent to a corporal, a junior non-commissioned officer.

A Magnificent Officer

(Source)

He was 29 years old at the time of his death. He flew with Groupe de Chasse 1/2 Cigognes, a squadron which had inherited the history¹ of the famous Escadrille 3 Les Cigognes (The Storks), the World War I French fighter squadron which the ace Georges Guynemer had helped to make famous.

It was the spring of 1940, the Germans had invaded Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, and France on the 10th of May and were now charging hard towards the Channel after breaking out of the Ardennes near Sedan.

His name was André Monty, he was a Lieutenant in the Armée de l'Air, the French Air Force. He flew the Morane-Saulnier M.S.406.

(Source)

While the aircraft seems rather stumpy, she was popular with her pilots. Though very maneuverable and able to take a lot of punishment, by 1940 the type was outclassed by the Messerschmitt Bf-109E, the fighter which equipped the invading Luftwaffe.

Lt André Monty
GC 1/2 Cigognes

From what I can find, he had some skill as a fighter pilot -

His aerial victories include: a Heinkel He-111 (11/05/1940) in the Ligny-en-Barrois sector, a Junkers Ju-87 (8/06/1940) in the Soissons sector, and another Junkers Ju-87 (08/06/1940) in the Villers-Cotterêts sector. (Source)

His luck ran out on the 8th of June 1940. His squadron was returning from a mission when they spotted nine Ju-87 Stuka dive bombers², Lt. Monty peeled off to attack what he thought was a lone Bf-109. It wasn't alone, while going after the one he was jumped by another Messerschmitt and was downed in aerial combat against two aircraft technically superior to his own.

His aircraft came down in a forest outside the small commune of Longpont in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. He was buried near the wreckage of his M.S.406, which is still there, next to his grave.

(Source)

(Source)

He left behind a wife and a six month old child. It was said of him -

"Sa finesse et sa modestie cachaient une instruction très complète et étendue. Son esprit du devoir faisait de lui un magnifique officier." 

(His finesse and modesty hid a very complete and extensive education. His spirit of duty made him a magnificent officer.)

In that forest outside Longpont, a traveler visited Lt. Monty's gravesite and had this to say -

On the road from Corcy to Longpont we discover an unusual monument. It is the tomb of aviator lieutenant André Monty, shot down on June 8, 1940 during an air combat. That day, at 7:30 p.m., he took off at the controls of his aircraft, a Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 No.225. Its Fighter Group is the GC 1/2, better known under the name of "Storks" in reference to the emblem which has adorned its planes since the First World War. The mission of the nine pilots accompanying him is to attack ground targets in the Attigny / Soissons region. Along the way, they encountered a flight of the German Ju-87 Stuka bombers, escorted by Messerschmitt ME 109 fighters. During the ensuing combat, Lieutenant Monty is separated from his group after engaging an ME 109. Another ME 109 then comes to the rescue of his comrade.

It is likely that Lieutenant Monty was killed in his cockpit because he made no attempt to escape from his plane which crashed in the forest near Longpont. He was buried next to the debris from his aircraft, of which the engine, propeller and part of the structure can still be seen.

He had four victories in his record although he piloted an aircraft largely outclassed by the German Messerschmitt His flower-decked grave testifies that his memory remains in the memory of his family and the people of the village.³ (Source)

I trust that we can remember him as well. A warrior of the air, lost in a conflict which for many seems ancient history. Not to me.

Say his name.

Remember...



¹ As near as I can tell from a number of sources.
² The sources aren't clear as to whether the two Ju-87s he downed were before his group's encounter with the nine Ju-87s which led to his death. I would guess that was the case as they were in different sectors of the front. That same source also indicates that he had four aerial victories, but only lists three.
³ The original French can be seen at the source listed.

Simpler Times?

(Source)

I think most of our species has a streak of nostalgia running through us. If we're happy, healthy, and content with our current lot, there's no need for a "sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations." Though the times being lived may someday become the times one longs for in some unknown future.

Do I wish I could go back in time to be somewhere else? Nope, not now, not ever. Do I wish certain things would change in my current existence? Of course, I would like to see this virus-thingee banished to some dark memory, that it had never existed. I would like to have the people in my life who have passed on be with me once again. I miss them. Do I want to go back to when they were still alive? Not really.

Time moves on. We're only along for the ride and we can't change the past. All we can do is optimize the present. Make the best of things as they are, not how you'd wish them to be. Can one strive to improve things as they are? Of course, but there really are things in this world that are completely beyond our control. So we make do.

I went all thoughtful on a Bean's comment from yesterday.

I just love the sound of large piston engines. Whether radials or in-lines. Harkens back to a past that was so much simpler in a lot of ways.

Yes, I get that...

So let's give those old birds a listen.

Wow, I've never seen some of those aircraft in flight! Right after noting how quickly the Spitfire got airborne, the Fieseler Storch came down the runway. She got airborne very quickly.

Twice.

Never seen a Sturmovik or a Rata in the air either, the Military Aviation Museum down in Pungo has a Rata which I've seen in person. (One of Your Humble Scribe's favorite places on earth, just so you know.) Here's proof -

Comrade Sarge with Soviet flying machine.

And one without Your Humble Scribe blocking the view...

Go back to older times? No.

Revisit cool places?

Absolutely.

Bonus Footage!

Now with engine start up and views from the cockpit, in the air!

More piston-engined goodness...

Be well!