PHILIPINE SEA (Aug. 24, 2021) Sailors assigned to forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) and Marines assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) wave to Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer JS Asahi (DD 119). America, flagship of the America Expeditionary Strike Group, along with the 31st MEU, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility to enhance interoperability with allies and partners and serve as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Vincent E. Zline)

she seems lost, not knowing what to do or where to go, but she holds her head high, refusing to give in to panic

Landscape photography is deffinitely what I love and enjoy most ... and if the landscape I point my camera against happens to include large quantities of water, so much the better ... I am particularly intrigued by the single lonely tree that stands proud in the middle of the small peninsula but that was not the reason why I took this picture ...

I was driving along the Egnatia Highway - a great road that cuts along all North Greece - and I was feeling strong sidewinds threatening my car's stability ... Having not much of a choice I slowed down and it was then I saw this beautiful, light wave on the lake's surface turning its usually greenish hue into a bluish one, giving the impression that the lake had been turned into a living organism with a continuously shuddering cuticle ...

When I was younger scenes like the above one were left totally unnoticed ... Now not anymore !!!

EXIF: NIKON D90 with Tamron 70 - 300 lens, manual mode, f 16 (needed a pin sharp middle frame detail and a crystal clear DOF), ISO 200, focal length 105 mm, manual exposure mode, manualy adjusted white balance, center weighted average light metering mode, HDR made by only one original RAW shot with shutter speed 1/160 s and EV biased -1 stop, managing to accurately convey the scene's lighting conditions to the viewer, flash didn't go off, no tripod ....

SOUTH CHINA SEA (Oct. 15, 2020) - An F/A-18E assigned to the “Royal Maces†of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 27 launches off the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) while conducting security and stability operations in the South China Sea. Ronald Reagan, the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 5, provides a combat-ready force that protects and defends the U.S. as well as the collective maritime interests of its allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Codie L. Soule) 201015-N-KP021-1097

** Interested in following U.S. Indo-Pacific Command? Engage and connect with us at www.facebook.com/indopacom | twitter.com/INDOPACOM |

www.instagram.com/indopacom | www.flickr.com/photos/us-pacific-command; | www.youtube.com/user/USPacificCommand | www.pacom.mil/ **

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!

Some background:

The Reno Air Races, officially known as the National Championship Air Races, is a multi-day event tailored to the aviation community that takes place each September at the Reno Stead Airport a few miles north of Reno, Nevada. Air racing is billed as "the world's fastest motor sport" and Reno is one of the few remaining venues. The event includes races in 6 classes and demonstrations by airshow pilots.

After racing for several years with limited success, the aircraft was sold in 1983 to Wiley Sanders of Sanders Truck Lines, and it lost its characteristic blue and orange livery. After frequent participations in various air races, the aircraft was sold again in late 1989 and moved to the United Kingdom, not to return to the United States again until 1995. Since then, the aircraft has not made any public appearance yet.

General characteristics:

Crew: 1

Length: 32 ft 3 in (9.83 m)

Wingspan: 32 ft 6½ in (9.93 m)

Height: 13 ft 5 in (4.10 m; tail wheel on ground, vertical propeller blade.)

Wing area: 197.6 sq ft (18.42 m²)

Empty weight: 7,030 lb (3,194) kg

Loaded weight: 8,750 lb (3,972 kg)

Max. take-off weight: 11,450 lb (5,200 kg)

Powerplant:

1× modified Rolls Royce Griffon 65 supercharged V12,

with a race output of ~3,000 hp (2,160 kW) at low altitude

Performance:

Maximum speed: 473 mph (763 km/h) at 25,000 ft (7,600 m)

Stall speed: 100 mph (160 km/h)

Mach limit 0.82

The kit and its assembly:

This is another group build submission, this time the topic was “Racing and Competition” – and what’s more obvious than a (fictional) Reno Racer? The Mustang is a classic choice for the Unlimited Class, with many warbirds and some exotic, dedicated constructions with high-volume piston engines. I wanted something plausible, though, that perfectly blends into the class’ pedigree, so I took inspiration from different real P-51 racers and modified my build with whatever I considered plausible.

The basic kit is Academy’s P-51D, which I like because of its good fit, surface structure and nice details like the good cockpit and landing gear, as well as the option to build the model with lowered flaps. Just the tail wheel is IMHO a little short and needs an extension at its base for a proper stance of the model.

However, in order to turn the Mustang into a mutated Reno Racer and high speed aircraft, I gave it the following modifications – everything gathered from real-world Mustang modifications throughout the years:

Clipped wings, a traditional way to reduce drag and improve low altitude handling. I cut away about 1cm from each wing – and there have been more radical modifications in real life, even including the transplantation of swept wings from a Learjet! The original wing tips were retained, though, and slightly extended so that they would match with the slightly deeper, shortened wing.

The ventral radiator was cut away and faired over; instead, two smaller radiators were integrated into the wings where the machine gun bays had been, scratched from styrene sheet material. This was inspired by Anson Johnson’s Mustang N13Y, as flown in 1949.

The spacious bubble canopy was replaced by a much smaller hood. At first, I wanted to use a Spitfire or Typhoon bubble canopy, but, after some dry fitting tests, these were still too big for a radical racer. Eventually I came up with a weird combo: the cockpit glazing from an 1:100 Tamiya Il-28 bomber (which, unfortunately, turned out to be quite thick), extended rearwards with the rear section of an 1:72 Academy Fw 190 cockpit canopy/fairing. Both had to be tailored to match each other, as well as the Mustang’s different fuselage shape, and the cockpit opening itself in the fuselage had to be drastically made smaller, with the help of styrene sheet and lots of PSR.

The engine was upgraded from a V-1710/Merlin to a Griffon engine; this was pretty easy, thanks to the transplantation of conformal rocker cam fairings from a Special Hobby Spitfire kit: they almost match the cowling shape perfectly!

In order to create a more Griffon-esque look (using the Griffon-powered RB-51 “Red Baron” Mustang as benchmark), I made the original carburetor air intake under the propeller disappear and modified the lower cowling. A new carburetor intake was scratched from a piece of a small drop tank and placed further back, just in front of the landing gear wells. Looks very Spitfire-like now!

Additionally, a different propeller with more blade area was incorporated, a one-piece five-blade propeller from a Frog Spitfire Mk. XIV. The new piece was mounted onto a metal axis and a styrene tube adapter was inserted into the Mustang’s nose. Since the new propeller’s spinner came with a slight increase in diameter (overall maybe just 1mm, but it would be recognizable), the cowling was adjusted accordingly, realized through some PSR work.

As a visual counterbalance to the bigger nose section, the fin tip was slightly extended (maybe by 2mm) through the integration of a piece from a Special Hobby He 100.

Finally, the OOB pitot under the wing was replaced by a more delicate alternative made from thin wire, and no other antennae were fitted, for a sleek and clean look.

In the end, a lot of changes - but the overall effect is IMHO still subtle, and the whole thing looks quite plausible. And there had been more radical conversions in real life!

Painting and markings:

This started as a tough challenge, since I wanted a simple livery, yet something well-known from the Seventies. One option was a black “JPS Special” livery, but I eventually came across a very nice “Gulf Racing” sponsor markings set from A.C.B.-Shop, a German car model specialist. The team’s light blue and orange cars are still iconic and popular today, and why should Gulf Oil not even have sponsored a Reno Racer…?

Painting started with an overall coat of pastel blue from the rattle can – a generic tone from Duplicolor, which comes close to RAL 5024, but it’s less saturated. Initially I thought that the blue tone was just too pale, but things became more convincing once I added orange bands (Humbrol 18, it comes very close to the decals’ tone) to the wings and the fuselage, as well as to the nose section and the spinner. The latter received a chrome silver tip, created with Humbrol’s Polished Aluminum metallizer, which was also used on the blades’ front side. Their back side became black. Black was also used for a narrow anti-glare panel in front of the windscreen.

The cockpit interior became dark grey while the landing gear wells and covers were painted in zinc chromate yellow (Humbrol 81) – an ugly but deliberate contrast to the colorful exterior. The struts were painted in aluminum (Humbrol 56). As another color highlight, the wheel discs were painted in bright red – seen on a WWII Mustang, probably a personal addition of the pilot?

Once dry, the kit received a light black ink wash, in order to emphasize the engraved panel lines. Then orange sections received black rims, created with generic 2mm decal stripe material from TL Modellbau. The lowered flaps were a bit problematic, but the curved trim under the nose posed serious problems because the straight decal stripes had to be bent into curves. Thanks to some Gunze decal softener, this eventually worked – not perfect, but O.K. for what I wanted to achieve.

Next came the major sponsor markings and the race numbers. The Gulf logos came from the aforementioned decal set while the number was puzzled together with white decal circles from a Hasegawa Ki-61 (actually foundations for hinomaru with white borders!) and single numerals, which actually belong to contemporary Russian Air Force aircraft, from a Begemot sheet with generic tactical codes in various sizes.

In the scrap box I also found some sponsor decals (from a Heller 1:43 Lancia Delta), and some stencils were taken from an Academy P-47D sheet.

Finally, after some finishing touches, the kit was sealed with semi-gloss acrylic varnish from Italeri.

Well, the “Gulf-Mirage” looks simple and plausible, but in the end a lot of modifications were integrated that shift the Reno Racer away from the standard warbird. I am actually quite pleased with the outcome, because neither the technical modifications, nor the fictional/adapted Gulf Racing livery look out of place. The combo works well!

PHILIPPINE SEA (Sept. 15, 2020) Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Handling) 3rd Class Alex Sagastume, left, from Pearson, Ga., supports Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Handling) Airman Tony Holland, from Dallas, as he directs the landing of an MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor aircraft from Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 262 on the flight deck of the amphibious transport dock ship USS New Orleans (LPD 18). New Orleans, part of the America Amphibious Ready Group assigned to Amphibious Squadron 11, along with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility to enhance interoperability with allies and partners and serve as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Kelby Sanders)

INDIAN OCEAN (Dec. 21, 2019) The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville (CG 62) maneuvers alongside the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) prior to a replenishment-at-sea. Chancellorsville is forward-deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations in support of security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Jeremy Graham)

Lebuh Chulia, Pulau Pinang. Malaysia.

A good friend has this wee beauty parked in his garage awaiting some restoration work , I have hoped to capture it many times in the past however on this occasion the light was right and he had her parked in his drive , this photo is one of a few I took .

Vehicle details

Vehicle make: VOLKSWAGEN

Date of first registration: January 1973

Year of manufacture: 1972

Cylinder capacity (cc): 1584 cc

CO₂Emissions: Not available

Fuel type: PETROL

Export marker: No

Vehicle status: SORN in place

Vehicle colour: ORANGE

Wheelplan: 2-AXLE-RIGID BODY

The Volkswagen Beetle—officially the Volkswagen Type 1, informally in German the Käfer (literally "beetle"), in parts of the English-speaking world the Bug, and known by many other nicknames in other languages—is a two-door, rear-engine economy car, intended for five passengers, that was manufactured and marketed by German automaker Volkswagen (VW) from 1938 until 2003.

History of the Volkswagen T1 Beetle

Introduction

The VW Beetle has become an iconic vehicle worldwide, and has built a huge loyal following. It is known by numerous names, for example, in Germany it’s a Kafer, in the USA a Bug or salon, England a Beetle etc. As the floor pan and running gear can be used without the body being attached, they became a firm favourite of the kit car builders. They were turned into Porsche 356 replicas, beach buggies, and Nova kit cars to mention just a few. When production stopped in 2003 in Mexico over 21 million air-cooled Volkswagen Beetles had been produced. During eight decades of manufacturing came a whole variety of models, ranging from 25Hp through to the 1303S or Super Beetle with its Independent Rear Suspension (also known as IRS). Salons, sunroof models, cabrios and even specialist versions as police cars, German post office delivery vehicles and in Mexico City, the green and white Beetle taxi, with its missing passengers seat, was a common sight until recently.

Personalisation and the custom scene

Fashions change and over the years the VW Beetle or Bug has seen styles come and go. The 1950’s saw shiny and standard Beetles as the common style. But by the 1960’s the trend to ‘soup them up’ and build street legal drag racers was taking hold in the USA, especially on the West Coast. This was the time of legends such as Gene Berg and cars such as the Empi Inch Pincher. In the UK, smaller tuning companies such as Speedwell developed carb tuning kits and alloy wheels. By the mid 1970’s the Bug was being used for time trials and autocross racing.

This was also the start of a ‘dark’ time for the Beetle customising scene, as the fat whale tailed body kits were fitted, so if you saw it on a dark foggy night, it could look a little like a Porsche 911! However as the whale tail was strapped on, in California they developed what has come to be known as ‘Calook’ or Californian Look. Lowered, smoothed out, de-chromed, alloys, neat interiors and performance engines were the main features of the Calook scene. Luckily by the mid 1980s in the UK, the body kits were out of fashion and the Calook scene took hold, initially from Essex. Since then there have been a variety of fashions, with the VW drag racing scene now in its fourth decade. We’ve seen ‘Old School’ lowered, lots of chrome and accessories, neat and tidy. ‘Rat look’ is almost the polar opposite, with flat mat paint, original and lived in interiors but shares the passion for vintage accessories! Calook in various rebirths has been a steady influence. However, today there seems to be strong move back to ‘stock’.

Please Note: When trying to identify a Beetle, bear in mind that on all models (except 1302/1303) most body panels are interchangeable, so if a Beetle has sloping headlights, don’t assume that it is a 1957>1967 model. Many late Beetles have early wings, lights, bonnet, engine lid and front and rear valances, making them, at first glance identical to a 1964 to 1967 model, but generally if it has an external fuel filler cap it is likely to be built between 1968 and 2003.

Production history and technical changes

Here are the main changes that took place to the Volkswagen Beetle during its eight decades of production.

1936 > 1952 ‘Splitscreen Beetle’ The Beetle story started in the early 1930’s, but production started officially in 1936. The Second World War all but stopped production until the British army rebuilt the factory and production commenced of the ‘Splitscreen’ Beetles (named after the shape of the small ‘split’ rear window). These were very basic cars with engines from 985cc (24bhp) to 1131cc (25bhp) but are rare and very desirable.

1953 > 1956 ‘Oval Beetle’ Very similar to the Splitscreen, but with the split removed from the rear window making it an oval. Small developments aimed at improving driver comfort and making the Beetle appeal to foreign markets, including a new 1192cc (30bhp) engine.

1957 > 67 Little difference in appearance from the Oval Beetle, the biggest being the rear window, which was enlarged in August 1957 to the large rectangular shape that would remain for the remainder of production. The windscreen and side glass were also enlarged in August 1964. These Beetles still retained the sloping headlights, long bonnet, link and king pin torsion bar front suspension and swing axle torsion bar suspension at the rear and 5 bolt wheels as previous models, but in Aug 1966 the link pins were replaced with ball joints and the wheels used four bolts instead of five. Engine options were now 1192cc (34bhp), 1285cc (40bhp) and in Aug 1966 the 1493cc engine with (44bhp).

1968 > 2003 August 1967 saw the first major styling change with upright headlights, a shorter bonnet and engine lid, plus an exterior mounted fuel filler cap. These models retained the torsion bar front suspension and swing axle rear suspension, which remained until the end of Brazilian production in 2003. The only exceptions were the semi-automatic Beetle which came with I.R.S rear suspension and the 1302 and 1303 models which used front coil springs... (see below). Engine options for these were 1192cc (34bhp), 1285cc (44bhp), 1493cc engine with (44bhp) and 1584cc (50bhp).

1971 > 72 ‘The 1302 Beetle’ In an effort to make the Beetle more practical and improve sales, VW offered a restyled version alongside the regular Beetle which was badged the 1302 (1285cc) and the 1302S (1584cc). This had a more bulbous front bodywork but retained the flat windscreen and the torsion bar front suspension was replaced with MacPherson struts with coil springs, similar to the VW Golf. The rear suspension was also the much improved I.R.S torsion bar system similar to the Porsche 911 of the same era. These changes improved the handling, ride comfort and stability, plus the front luggage area increased from 5 cu ft to over 9 cu ft, however, the styling proved unpopular and it was replaced after 2 years by the 1303 model.

1973 > 80 ‘The 1303 Beetle’ This was a revision of the 1302 Beetle and was available as the 1303A (1192cc) 1303 (1283cc) and the 1303S (1584cc). The only major change was that the flat windscreen was replaced with a more modern curved windscreen, which improved aerodynamics and interior space. This was also sold alongside the regular, torsion bar; flat windscreen Beetle, with the last 1303 was built in 1980.

The classic styling of the torsion bar Beetles helped them outlive the improved design of the 1302/1302 ‘Super Beetles’ and production was ended in 2003 to free up factory space for the front engined, water-cooled ‘New Beetle.’

German Beetle production chassis numbers

The chassis number is very useful when ordering parts for your Beetle as it gives the date of manufacture, model type. These can be found in two places. Firstly, in the front luggage compartment, by the bonnet lock and secondly, under the rear seat on the central tunnel.

Please read my profile for more information about my craft.

This 105 carat handcrafted Ammonite pendant is created swirling and shaping sterling silver filled wire by hand, adding Tiger Eye chips, jasper beads and shells to enhance the natural beauty and shape of the stone. This stone has shades of brown and gold with slight specks of green and quartz-like crystals. An incredible jewel of nature.

It measures 1 1/2" across and 2" top to tip including the bail.

The bail is designed to be large enough to accommodate your favorite chain, choker or cord.

All purchases are nicely packaged in a gift box.

Ammonite's healing effects:

Aids in seeing 'the whole picture'. A protective stone used to create stability and structure in your life. Transforms the negative energies in your life into a positive flow. It promotes harmony and a sense of beauty. It releases mental obsessions and aids in relaxation especially in the birthing process. Good for treatment of lungs and limbs.

Astrological sign: Aquarius

Ladli — which in Indian languages (Hindi and Urdu) means ‘beloved daughter.’

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LADLI - The loved one! campaign by SOCIAL GEOGRAPHIC

Photo: Firoz Ahmad Firoz

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"Worst of all, violence against women and girls continues unabated in every continent, country and culture. It takes a devastating toll on women’s lives, on their families and on society as a whole. Most societies prohibit such violence -- yet the reality is that, too often, it is covered up or tacitly condoned." (UN SECRETARY-GENERAL in International Women’s Day 2007 Message.)

“Almost every country in the world still has laws that discriminate against women, and promises to remedy this have not been kept.” (UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on the eve of International Women's Day 2008)

According to one United Nations estimate, 113 to 200 million women are “demographically missing” from the world today. That is to say, there should be 113 to 200 million more women walking the earth, who aren’t. By that same estimate, 1.5 to 3 million women and girls lose their lives every year because of gender-based neglect or gender-based violence and Sexual Violence in Conflict.

In addition to torture, sexual violence and rape by occupation forces, a great number of women and girls are kept locked up in their homes by a very real fear of abduction and criminal abuse. In war and conflicts, girls and women have been denied their human right, including the right to health, education and employment. “Sexual violence in conflict zones is indeed a security concern. We affirm that sexual violence profoundly affects not only the health and safety of women, but the economic and social stability of their nations” –US Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rice, 19 June 2008 (Read more about UN Action against Sexual Violence in Conflict www.stoprapenow.org/ ).

Millions of young women disappear in their native land every year. Many of them are found later being held against their will in other places and forced into prostitution. According to the UNICEF ( www.unicef.org/gender/index_factsandfigures.html ),Girls between 13 and 18 years of age constitute the largest group in the sex industry. It is estimated that around 500,000 girls below 18 are victims of trafficking each year. The victims of trafficking and female migrants are sometimes unfairly blamed for spreading HIV when the reality is that they are often the victims.

According to the UNAIDS around 17.3 million, women (almost half of the total number of HIV-positive) living with HIV ( www.unaids.org ). While HIV is often driven by poverty, it is also associated with inequality, gender-based abuses and economic transition. The relationship between abuses of women's rights and their vulnerability to AIDS is alarming. Violence and discrimination prevents women from freely accessing HIV/AIDS information, from negotiating condom use, and from resisting unprotected sex with an HIV-positive partner, yet most of the governments have failed to take any meaningful steps to prevent and punish such abuse.

United Nations agencies estimated that every year 3 million girls are at risk of undergoing the procedure – which involves the partial or total removal of external female genital organs – that some 140 million women, mostly in Asia, the Middle East and in Africa, have already endured.

We can point a finger at poverty. But poverty alone does not result in these girls and women’s deaths and suffering; the blame also falls on the social system and attitudes of the societies.

India alone accounts for more than 50 million of the women who are “missing” due to female foeticide - the sex-selective abortion of girls, dowry death, gender-based neglect and all forms of violence against women.

Since the late 1970s when the technology for sex determination first came into being, sex selective abortion has unleashed a saga of horror in India. Experts are calling it "sanitized barbarism”. The 2001 Census conducted by Government of India, showed a sharp decline in the child sex ratio in 80% districts of India. In some parts of the country, the sex ratio of girls to boys has dropped to less than 800:1,000.

It's alarming that even liberal states like those in the northeast have taken to disposing of girls. Worryingly, the trend is far stronger in urban rather than rural areas, and among literate rather than illiterate women, exploding the myth that growing affluence and spread of basic education alone will result in the erosion of gender bias. The United Nations has expressed serious concern about the situation.

Over the years, laws have been made stricter and the punishment too is more stringent now. But since many people manage to evade punishment, others too feel inclined to take the risk. Just look at the way sex-determination tests go on despite a stiff ban on them. Only if the message goes out loud and clear that nobody who dares to snuff out the life of a female foetus would escape effective legal system would the practice end. It is only by a combination of monitoring, education, socio-cultural campaigns, and effective legal implementation that the deep-seated attitudes and practices against women and girls can be eroded.

The decline in the sex ratio and the millions of Missing Women are indicators of the feudal patriarchal resurgence. Violence against women has gone public – whether it is dowry murders, the practice of female genital mutilation, honour killings, sex selective abortions or death sentences awarded to young lovers from different communities by caste councils, rapes and killings in communal and caste violence, it is only women’s and human rights groups who are protesting – the public and institutional response to these trends is very minimal.

Millions of women suffer from discrimination in the world of work. This not only violates a most basic human right, but has wider social and economic consequences. Most of the governments turn a blind eye to illegal practices and enact and enforce discriminatory laws. Corporations and private individuals engage in abusive and sexist practices without fear of legal system.

More women are working now than ever before, but they are also more likely than men to get low-productivity, low-paid and vulnerable jobs, with no social protection, basic rights nor voice at work according to a new report by the International Labour Organization (ILO) issued for International Women’s Day 2008. Are we even half way to meeting the eight Millennium Development Goals?

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Unite To End Violence Against Women!

Say No To Sex Selection and Female Foeticide!!

Say No To Female Genital Mutilation!!!

Say No To Dowry and Discrimination Against Women!!!!

Say Yes To Women’s Resistance !!!!!

Educate & Empowered Women for a Happy Future !!!!!!

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www.un.org/womenwatch/

www.un.org/women/endviolence/

www.saynotoviolence.org/

www.unaids.org

www.un.org/millenniumgoals/

arcane trajectories

EAST CHINA SEA (Aug. 31, 2021) Chief Damage Controlman Jared Moon photographs Sailors observing the sunset aboard amphibious transport dock ship USS Green Bay (LPD 20). Green Bay, part of Amphibious Squadron 11, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet to enhance interoperability with allies and partners and serve as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Darcy McAtee/Released)

EAST CHINA SEA (Jan. 11, 2020) Sailors assigned to amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) chock and chain an F-35B Lightning II assigned to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 121 to the flight deck. The America Expeditionary Strike Group, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit team is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations to enhance interoperability with allies and partners and serve as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Vance Hand)

EAST CHINA SEA (Aug. 4, 2020) Lt. j. g. Andrew Barrie, from Yokosuka, Japan, stands watch on the bridge as the officer of the deck during a full power engine run aboard the amphibious dock landing ship USS Germantown (LSD 42). Germantown, part of America Expeditionary Strike Group, is operating in the 7th Fleet area of operations to enhance interoperability with allies and partners, and serves as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Taylor DiMartino)

PHILIPPINE SEA (Feb. 8, 2021) Chief Gunner’s Mate Adam Parker, from El Paso, Texas, right, instructs Aviation Ordnanceman Airman Derek Garcia, from Deltona, Fla., left, as he fires a M240B machine gun during a live-fire crew-served weapons training exercise aboard forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6). America, flagship of the America Expeditionary Strike Group, along with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility to enhance interoperability with allies and partners, serving as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Kelsey Culbertson)

On our train ride from Ghent to Amsterdam we had a train change in Antwerp. How nice was that. Antwerp's train station is gorgeous. This is the station waiting hall viewed from the train hall entrance.

The Antwerp Central Station is one of the world's most impressive railway stations. Dubbed the 'Railway Cathedral', it is one of the main landmarks in Antwerp.

Between 2000 and 2009 the monumental building was completely modernised and expanded to accommodate the high-speed rail line. More platforms were opened on two additional underground levels.

The unique metal platform roof had previously been restored. In the past Antwerp Central Station was a terminus where trains had to turn around. But since 2007, trains can continue their journey thanks to the railway tunnel between Antwerp Central Station and the north of the city.

The first station building was constructed between 1895 and 1905 as a replacement for the original terminus of the Brussels-Mechelen-Antwerp Railway. The stone clad terminus buildings, with a vast dome above the waiting room hall were designed by Louis Delacenserie.

In 2009 Newsweek judged Antwerpen-Centraal the world's fourth greatest train station. In 2014 the British-American magazine Mashable awarded Antwerpen-Centraal the first place for the most beautiful railway station in the world.

Train hall:

The originally iron and glass train hall (185 metres long and 43 metres high) was designed by Clément Van Bogaert. The height of the station was once necessary for the steam of locomotives. The roof of the train hall was originally made of steel.

World War II damage and restoration:

During World War II, severe damage was inflicted to the train hall by the impact of V-2 bombs, without destroying the structural stability of the building. However warping of the roof substructure due to V-2 bombing caused constructional stresses.

The impact of the bombs are still visible due to a lasting wave-distortion in the roofing of the hall.

In the mid-twentieth century, the building's condition had deteriorated so far that its demolition was being considered. The station was closed on 31 January 1986 for restoration work to the roof and façades.

The stress problems due to the impact of bombs during the war was reportedly solved by the use of polycarbonate sheets instead of glass, due to its elasticity and relative low weight (40% less than glass).

After replacing or repairing steel elements, the structure was painted the burgundy seen today.

The railway station was built between 1895 and 1905 and replaced a wooden train station built in 1854 by engineer Auguste Lambeau.

The rich interior is lavishly decorated with more than twenty different kinds of marble and stone. The main hall and the railway cafeteria can match the interiors of many palaces. Not a single square meter either inside or outside the building is not decorated.

The platforms are covered by a huge iron and glass vaulted ceiling, which was restored in the 1990s. Besides the platform, the vault also covers many of the small diamond and gold shops, which are part of the diamond district next to the Central Station.

The huge glass vault was designed by the architect J. Van Asperen. It is 185 meters long and 44 meters at its highest point. The original platform and tracks themselves are elevated, the two lower levels were added later to accommodate the high speed train connection to Amsterdam.

Hi-tech fishing of Woodman Point Regional Park, Munster, Western Australia.

BUSAN, Republic of Korea (Nov. 21, 2014) The guided-missile cruiser USS Cape St. George (CG 71) arrives in Busan for a port visit. Cape St. George is on deployment to the 7th Fleet area of operations supporting security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific. (Photo courtesy of Republic of Korea Navy)

I've previously documented that when Adventure Travel held the contract for TrawsCymru Service T1c between Aberystwyth and Cardiff, Aberystwyth-based Mid Wales Travel provided the drivers. Coaches from the Mid Wales fleet would also substitute for Adventure Travel vehicles in the event of failures.

Mid Wales became the replacement contractor from April 2023, and a further two year contract was awarded from September 2023.

The company owns a pair of PSVAR-compliant Plaxton Panther 3-bodied Volvo B8Rs that were new in 2022, and these would often appear as substitutes in Adventure Travel days. After a few months of operating in all-white livery, YX22 LWA has recently received the two-tone grey and red TrawsCymru livery.

This November 2023 shot was taken at the Bowen Arms stop in North East Swansea, on the border of the City & County of Swansea and Neath Port Talbot, as she was waiting time for a few minutes when Cardiff bound.

PHILIPPINE SEA (Oct. 6, 2020) An MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to the Archangels of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 25 Detachment 6 transports cargo to the flight deck of the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) during a replenishment-at-sea. America, flagship of the America Expeditionary Strike Group, assigned to Amphibious Squadron 11, along with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility to enhance interoperability with allies and partners and serve as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Matthew Cavenaile)

200823-N-IO312-1350 PHILIPPINE SEA (Aug. 23, 2020) A Marine assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit conducts fast-rope sustainment training on the flight deck of the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6). America, flagship of the America Expeditionary Strike Group, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility to enhance interoperability with allies and partners and serve as a ready response force to maintain security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Matthew Cavenaile)

PHILIPPINE SEA (Sept. 14, 2020) As seen from the amphibious dock landing ship USS Germantown (LSD 42), the amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) and an MH-60S Seahawk helicopter from the “Archangels” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 25, Detachment 6, transit the Philippine Sea following a replenishment-at-sea with the dry cargo/ammunition ship USNS Washington Chambers (T-AKE 11). Germantown, part of the America Amphibious Ready Group assigned to Amphibious Squadron 11, along with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility to enhance interoperability with allies and partners, and serve as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Taylor DiMartino)

SOUTH CHINA SEA (March 3, 2019) The guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53) performs a break away from the USNS Walter S. Diehl (T-AO 193) during a replenishment-at-sea. The John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group is deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations in support of security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Bryan Niegel)

NASA conducted a key stability test firing of the J-2X rocket engine Dec. 1, marking another step forward in development of the upper-stage engine that will carry humans farther into space than ever before.

The Dec. 1 test firing focused on characterizing the new engine's combustion stability, a critical area of development. During the test firing, a controlled explosion was initiated inside the engine's combustion chamber to introduce an energetic pulse of vibrations not expected during nominal operations. Data from this and future combustion stability tests will help engineers understand more about the engine's performance and robustness during engine operation.

The J-2X engine was test fired on the A-2 Test Stand at NASA's Stennis Space Center, in south Mississippi. The engine is being developed by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne for NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. It will provide upper-stage power for NASA's new Space Launch System. The SLS will carry the Orion spacecraft, its crew, cargo, equipment and science experiments to space -- providing a safe, affordable and sustainable means of reaching the moon, asteroids and other destinations in the solar system.

Read the NASA press release:

www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/j2x/stability1.html

Watch the video:

www.nasa.gov/multimedia/videogallery/index.html?media_id=...

Image credit: NASA/SSC

More about the J-2X Engine Development:

www.nasa.gov/j2x

There's a Flickr photoset about the J-2X egnine development, if you'd like to know more: www.flickr.com/photos/28634332@N05/sets/72157625345364038/

_____________________________________________

These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...

OKINAWA, Japan (Aug. 27, 2020) Landing Craft, Air Cushion 30, assigned to Naval Beach Unit 7, arrives at White Beach from the amphibious dock landing ship USS Germantown (LSD 42). Germantown, part of America Expeditionary Strike Group, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit team, is operating in the 7th Fleet area of operations to enhance interoperability with allies and partners, and serves as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Taylor DiMartino)

The SAI Shahak (שחק/Sky) was a tactical bomber developed at the end of the 1940s, that entered service in 1950. After two prototypes crashed due to buffeting and stability issues, a redesigned aerofoil was used that solved the problems. Power comes from two engines in the wings, and top speed is 923 km/h /580 mph, and range is 1900 km/1180 mi. Crew consists of three, two of which are housed in a spacious bubble canopy, allowing for great all-round visibility and comfort. The bomb aimer lies in the front. The pilots like flying their Shahaks, due to their reasonable agility and comfort. However, the engines are a bit underwhelming, and top speed is only reached on the long stretch or during a steep dive.

A payload of 4,700 kg/ 10,362 lbs can be carried, but never in combat.

A typical full bomb load consists of eighteen 227 kg/500 lb GP bombs, 12 in the bomb bay, and six on wing-mounted pylons. This can be switched for three 1,050 kg/2,315 lb laser-guided bombs, a jamming pod and a targeting pod, or a rotary launcher, limiting the bombs carried internally to 8. Other combinations can also be carried. Two 231 kg/ 508 lb torpedoes can be carried by the B-model.

After nine prototypes, the A-model was accepted into service. This is the basic bomber model, virtually identical to the last prototypes. The A* is an updated model, with provisions for a jamming pod and a Gomorra missile for self-defence. The engines produce more thrust, but the added weight means the performance is identical to the previous model.

The Shahak B is the version for coastal defence, and is basically an A* with equipment that allows for navigation over the ocean and provisions for two torpedoes and specialized equipment for anti-ship and -submarine warfare.

The Shahak D is a ground-attacker/ medium- to low-altitude bomber. The bombardier was replaced with an armour plate, and the pilot was given a fancy sight to aim the four 20mm cannons in the wings, each holding 230 rounds.

Quick summary:

Tactical Bomber

5,000 kg Bomb load: +0

Mediocre agility: +1

Subsonic: +0

2000km Range: -2

Comfy: +1

Good visibility: +1

Underpowered: -1

Cost: 30₪

For D&C VI

Loosely based on the English Electric Canberra

60 leaves

Aluminum shaft runs down the center for stability.

WATERS SOUTH OF JAPAN (June 24, 2016) Sailors start their Friday morning using their cellphones during a cellphone approved period aboard the Navy's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76). As Sailors used their cellphones, they were also treated to a view of Okinawa, Japan. The USS Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group is on patrol in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility supporting security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Ryan McFarlane/Released)

PHILIPPINE SEA (Sept. 25, 2020) - As seen from the amphibious dock landing ship USS Germantown (LSD 42), an E-2 Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft leads a formation of F/A-18 Super Hornets as they fly above the Philippine Sea. Germantown, part of Expeditionary Strike Group Seven (ESG 7), along with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility to enhance interoperability with allies and partners, and serve as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Taylor DiMartino) 200925-N-CL550-1529

** Interested in following U.S. Indo-Pacific Command? Engage and connect with us at www.facebook.com/indopacom | twitter.com/INDOPACOM |

www.instagram.com/indopacom | www.flickr.com/photos/us-pacific-command; | www.youtube.com/user/USPacificCommand | www.pacom.mil/ **

LEICA SL2

PHILIPPINE SEA (Oct. 19, 2020) - A U.S. Air Force CV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft assigned to the Air Force 21st Special Operations Squadron stands by on the flight deck of the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6). America, lead ship of the America Amphibious Ready Group and assigned to Amphibious Squadron 11, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility to enhance interoperability with allies and partners and serve as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Walter Estrada) 201019-N-NJ919-1018

** Interested in following U.S. Indo-Pacific Command? Engage and connect with us at www.facebook.com/indopacom | twitter.com/INDOPACOM |

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+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

Some background:

Clarence L. "Kelly" Johnson, vice president of engineering and research at Lockheed's Skunk Works, visited USAF air bases across South Korea in November 1951 to speak with fighter pilots about what they wanted and needed in a fighter aircraft. At the time, the American pilots were confronting the MiG-15 with North American F-86 Sabres, and many felt that the MiGs were superior to the larger and more complex American design. The pilots requested a small and simple aircraft with excellent performance, especially high speed and altitude capabilities. Armed with this information, Johnson immediately started the design of such an aircraft on his return to the United States.

In the course of the ongoing withdrawal, a lot of German aircraft with sufficiently enough flying hours left were transferred to other NATO partners like Norway, Greece, Turkey and Italy, and two were sold to the NASA. One specific Starfighter was furthermore modified into a CCV (Control-Configured Vehicle) experimental aircraft under control of the German Industry, paving the way to aerodynamically unstable aircraft like the Eurofighter/Typhoon. The last operational German F-104 made its farewell flight on 22. Mai 1991, and the type’s final flight worldwide was in Italy in October 2004.

General characteristics:

Crew: 1

Length: 54 ft 8 in (16.66 m)

Wingspan: 21 ft 9 in (6.63 m)

Height: 13 ft 6 in (4.11 m)

Wing area: 196.1 ft² (18.22 m²)

Airfoil: Biconvex 3.36 % root and tip

Empty weight: 14,000 lb (6,350 kg)

Max takeoff weight: 29,027 lb (13,166 kg)

Powerplant:

1× General Electric J79 afterburning turbojet,

10,000 lbf (44 kN) thrust dry, 15,600 lbf (69 kN) with afterburner

Performance:

Maximum speed: 1,528 mph (2,459 km/h, 1,328 kn)

Maximum speed: Mach 2

Combat range: 420 mi (680 km, 360 nmi)

Ferry range: 1,630 mi (2,620 km, 1,420 nmi)

Service ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,000 m)

Rate of climb: 48,000 ft/min (240 m/s) initially

Lift-to-drag: 9.2

Wing loading: 105 lb/ft² (510 kg/m²)

Thrust/weight: 0.54 with max. takeoff weight (0.76 loaded)

Armament:

1× 20 mm (0.787 in) M61A1 Vulcan six-barreled Gatling cannon, 725 rounds

7× hardpoints with a capacity of 4,000 lb (1,800 kg), including up to four AIM-9 Sidewinder, (nuclear)

bombs, guided and unguided missiles, or other stores like drop tanks or recce pods

The kit and its assembly:

A relatively simple what-if project – based on the question how a German F-104 interceptor might have looked like, had it been operated for a longer time to see the Luftwaffe’s low-viz era from 1981 onwards. In service, the Luftwaffe F-104Gs started in NMF and then carried the Norm 64 scheme, the well-known splinter scheme in grey and olive drab. Towards the end of their career the fighter bombers and recce planes received the Norm 83 wraparound scheme in green and black, but by that time no dedicated interceptors were operational anymore, so I stretched the background story a little.

The model is the very nice Italeri F-104G/S model, which is based on the ESCI molds from the Eighties, but it comes with recessed engravings and an extra sprue that contains additional drop tanks and an Orpheus camera pod. The kit also includes a pair of Sidewinders with launch rails for the wing tips as well as the ventral “catamaran” twin rail, which was frequently used by German Starfighters because the wing tips were almost constantly occupied with tanks.

Fit and detail is good – the kit is IMHO very good value for the money. There are just some light sinkholes on the fuselage behind the locator pins, the fit of the separate tail section is mediocre and calls for PSR, and the thin and very clear canopy is just a single piece – for open display, you have to cut it by yourself.

Since the model would become a standard Luftwaffe F-104G, just with a fictional livery, the kit was built OOB. The only change I made are drooped flaps, and the air brakes were mounted in open position.

The ordnance (wing tip tanks plus the ventral missiles) was taken from the kit, reflecting the typical German interceptor configuration: the wing tips were frequently occupied with tanks, sometimes even together with another pair of drop tanks under the wings, so that any missile had to go under the fuselage. The instructions for the ventral catamaran launch rails are BTW wrong – they tell the builder to mount the launch rails onto the twin carrier upside down! Correctly, the carrier’s curvature should lie flush on the fuselage, with no distance at all. When mounted as proposed, the Sidewinders come very close to the ground and the whole installation looks pretty goofy! I slightly modified the catamaran launch rail with some thin styrene profile strips as spacers, and the missiles themselves, AIM-9Bs, were replaced with more modern and delicate AIM-9Js from a Hasegawa air-to-air weapons set. Around the hull, some small blade antennae, a dorsal rotating warning light and an angle-of-attack sensor were added.

Painting and markings:

The exotic livery is what defined this what-if build, and the paint scheme was actually inspired by a real world benchmark: some Dornier Do-28D Skyservants of the German Marineflieger received, late in their career, a wraparound scheme in three shades of grey, namely RAL 7030 (Steingrau), 7000 (Fehgrau) and 7012 (Basaltgrau). I thought that this would work pretty well for an F-104G interceptor that operates at medium to high altitudes, certainly better than the relatively dark Norm 64 splinter scheme or the Norm 83 low-altitude pattern.

The camouflage pattern was simply adopted from the Starfighter’s Norm 83 scheme, just the colors were exchanged. The kit was painted with acrylic paints from Revell, since the authentic tones were readily available, namely 75, 57 and 77. As a disrupting detail I gave the wing tip tanks the old Norm 64 colors: uniform Gelboliv from above (RAL 6014, Revell 42), Silbergrau underneath (RAL 7001, Humbrol’s 127 comes pretty close), and bright RAL 2005 dayglo orange markings, the latter created with TL Modellbau decal sheet material for clean edges and an even finish.

The cockpit interior was painted in standard medium grey (Humbrol 140, Dark Gull Grey), the landing gear including the wells became aluminum (Humbrol 56), the interior of the air intakes was painted with bright matt aluminum metallizer (Humbrol 27001) with black anti-icing devices in the edges and the shock cones. The radome was painted with very light grey (Humbrol 196, RAL 7035), the dark green anti-glare panel is a decal from the OOB sheet.

The model received a standard black ink washing and some panel post-shading (with Testors 2133 Russian Fulcrum Grey, Humbrol 128 FS 36320 and Humbrol 156 FS 36173) in an attempt to even out the very different shades of grey. The result does not look bad, pretty worn and weathered (like many German Starfighters), even though the paint scheme reminds a lot of the Hellenic "Ghost" scheme from the late F-4Es and the current F-16s?

The decals for the subdued Luftwaffe markings were puzzled together from various sources. The stencils were mostly taken from the kit’s exhaustive and sharply printed sheet. Tactical codes (“26+40” is in the real Starfighter range, but this specific code was AFAIK never allocated), iron crosses and the small JG 71 emblems come from TL Modellbau aftermarket sheets. Finally, after some light soot stains around the gun port, the afterburner and some air outlets along the fuselage with graphite, the model was sealed with matt acrylic varnish.

A simple affair, since the (nice) kit was built OOB and the only really fictional aspect of this model is its livery. But the resulting aircraft looks good, the all-grey wraparound scheme suits the slender F-104 well and makes an interceptor role quite believable. Would probably also look good on a German Eurofighter? Certainly more interesting than the real world all-blue-grey scheme.

In the beauty pics the scheme also appears to be quite effective over open water, too, so that the application to the Marineflieger Do-28Ds made sense. However, for the real-world Starfighter, this idea came a couple of years too late.

a slow and lazy tide creeps in around the base of this lone boulder

www.facebook.com/roseandarrow

www.roseandarrow.com

Must attribute with link to: www.ptpioneer.com

Image of a girl working out Outside doing stability ball Crunches with arms crossed in a park.

PHILIPPINE SEA (June 26, 2016) The fleet replenishment oiler USNS Tippecanoe (T-AO 199) comes alongside the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS McCampbell (DDG 85) to conduct a replenishment-at-sea. McCampbell is on patrol with the Carrier Strike Group Five (CSG 5) in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility supporting security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Elesia K. Patten/Released)

Please note the huge rear wing for stability on the Mulsanne Straight!

SOUTH CHINA SEA (Sept. 6, 2020) Sailors assigned to the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) prepare an AH-1Z Viper helicopter assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 262 (Reinforced) to launch during a visit, board, search and seizure exercise. America, flagship of the America Amphibious Ready Group, assigned to Amphibious Squadron Eleven, along with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility to enhance interoperability with allies and partners and serve as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Vincent E. Zline)

Must attribute with link to: www.ptpioneer.com

Image of a girl working out Outside doing stability ball Overhead stretches in a park.

PHILIPPINE SEA (Aug. 26, 2020) Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) 3rd Class Steven Weaver, left, from Green River, Wyo., and Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) 3rd Class Devin Call, from Winchester, Va., both assigned to the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6), signal a CH-53 Super Stallion helicopter assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unite (MEU), Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 262 to launch from the ship’s flight deck. America, flagship of the America Expeditionary Strike Group, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit team, is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations to enhance interoperability with allies and partners and serve as a ready response force to defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Vincent E. Zline)

Stability Diffusion and Photoshop

The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was a World War II American fighter aircraft built by Lockheed. Developed to a United States Army Air Corps requirement, the P-38 had distinctive twin booms and a single, central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament. Named "fork-tailed devil" (der Gabelschwanz-Teufel) by the Luftwaffe and "two planes, one pilot" (2飛行機、1パイロット Ni hikōki, ippairotto?) by the Japanese, the P-38 was used in a number of roles, including dive bombing, level bombing, ground-attack, night fighting, photoreconnaissance missions, and extensively as a long-range escort fighter when equipped with drop tanks under its wings.

The P-38 was used most successfully in the Pacific Theater of Operations and the China-Burma-India Theater of Operations as the mount of America's top aces, Richard Bong (40 victories) and Thomas McGuire (38 victories). In the South West Pacific theater, the P-38 was the primary long-range fighter of United States Army Air Forces until the appearance of large numbers of P-51D Mustangs toward the end of the war.

The P-38 was unusually quiet for a fighter, the exhaust muffled by the turbo-superchargers. It was extremely forgiving, and could be mishandled in many ways, but the rate of roll in the early versions was too slow for it to excel as a dogfighter. The P-38 was the only American fighter aircraft in production throughout American involvement in the war, from Pearl Harbor to Victory over Japan Day.

Design and development[edit]

Lockheed designed the P-38 in response to a February 1937 specification from the United States Army Air Corps. Circular Proposal X-608 was a set of aircraft performance goals authored by First Lieutenant Benjamin S. Kelsey (later Brigadier General) and First Lieutenant Gordon P. Saville (later General) for a twin-engine, high-altitude "interceptor" having "the tactical mission of interception and attack of hostile aircraft at high altitude." Kelsey recalled in 1977 that he and Saville drew up the specification using the word interceptor as a way to bypass the inflexible Army Air Corps requirement for pursuit aircraft to carry no more than 500 lb (227 kg) of armament including ammunition, as well as the restriction of single-seat aircraft to one engine. Kelsey was looking for a minimum of 1,000 lb (454 kg) of armament. Kelsey and Saville aimed to get a more capable fighter, better at dog-fighting and at high-altitude combat. Specifications called for a maximum airspeed of at least 360 mph (580 km/h) at altitude, and a climb to 20,000 ft (6,100 m) within six minutes, the toughest set of specifications USAAC had ever presented. The unbuilt Vultee XP1015 was designed to the same requirement, but was not advanced enough to merit further investigation. A similar single-engine proposal was issued at the same time, Circular Proposal X-609, in response to which the Bell P-39 Airacobra was designed. Both proposals required liquid-cooled Allison V-1710 engines with turbo-superchargers and gave extra points for tricycle landing gear.

The Lockheed design team, under the direction of Hall Hibbard and Clarence "Kelly" Johnson, considered a range of twin-engine configurations, including both engines in a central fuselage with push-pull propellers.

The eventual configuration was rare in terms of contemporary fighter aircraft design, with only the preceding Fokker G.1, the contemporary Focke-Wulf Fw 189 Luftwaffe reconnaissance aircraft, and the later Northrop P-61 Black Widow night fighter having a similar planform. The Lockheed team chose twin booms to accommodate the tail assembly, engines, and turbo-superchargers, with a central nacelle for the pilot and armament. The XP-38 gondola mockup was designed to mount two .50-caliber (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns, with 200 rpg, two .30-caliber (7.62 mm) Brownings, with 500 rpg, and a T1 Army Ordnance 23-mm (.90 in) autocannon with a rotary magazine as a substitute for the non-existent 25-mm Hotchkiss aircraft autocannon specified by Kelsey and Saville. In the YP-38s, a larger John Browning-designed, Colt-made M9 37-mm (1.46 in) autocannon with 15 rounds replaced the T1. The 15 rounds were in three 5-round clips, an unsatisfactory arrangement according to Kelsey, and the M9 did not perform reliably in flight. Further armament experiments from March to June 1941 resulted in the P-38E combat configuration of four M2 Browning machine guns, and one Hispano 20-mm (.79 in) autocannon with 150 rounds.

P-38 armament, concentrated in the nose of the aircraft

Clustering all the armament in the nose was unlike most other U.S. aircraft, which used wing-mounted guns with trajectories set up to crisscross at one or more points in a convergence zone. Nose-mounted guns did not suffer from having their useful ranges limited by pattern convergence, meaning that good pilots could shoot much farther. A Lightning could reliably hit targets at any range up to 1,000 yd (910 m), whereas other fighters had to pick a single convergence range between 100 and 250 yd (230 m). The clustered weapons had a "buzz saw" effect on any target at the receiving end, making the aircraft effective for strafing as well. The rate of fire was about 650 rounds per minute for the 20×110-mm cannon round (130-gram shell) at a muzzle velocity of about 2,887 ft/s (880 m/s), and for the .50-caliber machine guns (43–48-gram rounds), about 850 rpm at 2,756 ft/s (840 m/s) velocity. Combined rate of fire was over 4,000 rpm with roughly every sixth projectile a 20-mm shell. The duration of sustained firing for the 20-mm cannon and .50-caliber machine guns was approximately 14 seconds and 35 seconds, respectively.

The Lockheed design incorporated tricycle undercarriage and a bubble canopy, and featured two 1,000-hp (746 kW) turbo-supercharged 12-cylinder Allison V-1710 engines fitted with counter-rotating propellers to eliminate the effect of engine torque, with the superchargers positioned behind the engines, with the exhaust side of the units exposed along the dorsal surfaces of the booms. Counter-rotation was achieved by the use of "handed" engines, which meant that the crankshaft of each engine turned in the opposite direction of its counterpart. The V-12 engines required changing only the spark plug firing order in order for the direction of the crankshaft to be reversed, according to the General Motors Allison V-1710 Service School Handbook.

It was the first American fighter to make extensive use of stainless steel and smooth, flush-riveted butt-jointed aluminum skin panels. It was also the first fighter to fly faster than 400 mph (640 km/h).

Pacific theater

Wartime poster encouraging greater production of P-38s

The P-38 was used most extensively and successfully in the Pacific theater, where it proved ideally suited, combining excellent performance with very long range, and had the added reliability of two engines for long missions over water. The P-38 was used in a variety of roles, especially escorting bombers at altitudes between 18–25,000 ft (5,500-7,600 m). The P-38 was credited with destroying more Japanese aircraft than any other USAAF fighter. Freezing cockpits were not a problem at low altitude in the tropics. In fact, since there was no way to open a window while in flight as it caused buffeting by setting up turbulence through the tailplane, it was often too hot; pilots taking low altitude assignments would often fly stripped down to shorts, tennis shoes, and parachute. While the P-38 could not out-turn the A6M Zero and most other Japanese fighters when flying below 200 mph (320 km/h), its superior speed coupled with a good rate of climb meant that it could utilize energy tactics, making multiple high-speed passes at its target. Also, its focused firepower was even more deadly to lightly armored Japanese warplanes than to the Germans'. The concentrated, parallel stream of bullets allowed aerial victory at much longer distances than fighters carrying wing guns. It is therefore ironic that Dick Bong, the United States' highest-scoring World War II air ace (40 victories solely in P-38s), would fly directly at his targets to make sure he hit them (as he himself acknowledged his poor shooting ability), in some cases flying through the debris of his target (and on one occasion colliding with an enemy aircraft which was claimed as a "probable" victory). The twin Allison engines performed admirably in the Pacific.

Postwar operations[edit]

The end of the war left the USAAF with thousands of P-38s rendered obsolete by the jet age. The last P-38s in service with the United States Air Force were retired in 1949.[82] A total of 100 late-model P-38L and F-5 Lightnings were acquired by Italy through an agreement dated April 1946. Delivered, after refurbishing, at the rate of one per month, they finally were all sent to the AMI by 1952. The Lightnings served in 4 Stormo and other units including 3 Stormo, flying reconnaissance over the Balkans, ground attack, naval cooperation and air superiority missions. Due to unfamiliarity in operating heavy fighters, old engines, and pilot errors, a large number of P-38s were lost in at least 30 accidents, many of them fatal. Despite this, many Italian pilots liked the P-38 because of its excellent visibility on the ground and stability on takeoff. The Italian P-38s were phased out in 1956; none survived the inevitable scrapyard.

Surplus P-38s were also used by other foreign air forces with 12 sold to Honduras and 15 retained by China. Six F-5s and two unarmed black two-seater P-38s were operated by the Dominican Air Force based in San Isidro Airbase, Dominican Republic in 1947. The majority of wartime Lightnings present in the continental U.S. at the end of the war were put up for sale for US$1,200 apiece; the rest were scrapped. P-38s in distant theaters of war were bulldozed into piles and abandoned or scrapped; very few avoided that fate.

Variants:

Over 10,000 Lightnings were manufactured in all, becoming the only U.S. combat aircraft that remained in continuous production throughout the duration of American participation in World War II. The Lightning had a major effect on other aircraft; its wing, in a scaled-up form, was used on the L-049 Constellation.

Popular culture

1950 Studebaker Champion

Harley Earl arranged for several of his designers to view a YP-38 prototype shortly before World War II, and its design directly inspired the tail fins of the 1948–1949 Cadillac

The P-38 was also the inspiration for Raymond Loewy and his design team at Studebaker for the 1950 and 1951 model-year Studebakers.

The whine of the speeder bike engines in Return of the Jedi was partly achieved by recording the engine noise of a P-38, combined with that of a North American P-51 Mustang.

Cadillac 1948 Series 62 Fastback.

Cadillac had been one of the leading builders of luxury cars in the US between the wars. As part of the greater General Motors Corporation, Cadillac was well placed to resume car production after the end of WW II. Not only to resume production, but to fund the development of all new models, incorporating an all-new engine (for 1949), and advanced styling influenced by developments in aviation during the war.

This new styling and bodies were first seen in 1948.

For 1948, the Series 62 was moved to the same 126 in (3,200 mm) chassis as the Series 61, making the vehicles virtually identical. The main difference, apart from extra chrome, was the availability of a convertible model. Distinguishing features included grooved bright metal front fender gravel guards, rocker panel brightwork, chevron style chrome slashes below taillights and slightly richer interior trim. Also in 1948 the first tail fins were added. Sales fell to 34,213, nevertheless accounting for a record 68% of all Cadillacs sold.

A combination of factors allowed Cadillac to firmly place itself at the forefront of the luxury market, and stay there for the next 40 years.

This Lockheed P-38 Lightning from 1941, and 1948 Cadillac Series 62 Fastback Coupe has been created in Lego miniland-scale for Flickr LUGNuts 79th Build Challenge, - "LUGNuts goes Wingnuts", - featuring automotive vehicles named after, inspired by, or related to aircraft.

Goofing off with an idea I’ve had for a long time about Tatyana and Dominique being mortal enemies.

Foes, if you will.

Similar to each other, but total opposites. On opposing sides in a struggle, not for the ultimate domination of good verses evil, but to maintain the shades of grey between evil and good to maintain the balance of the universe on a microcosmic scale.

I like mixing metaphors and symbolism, so while Tatyana represents the ultimate evil she is the one the light is shining on more fully. Her symbol, the unicorn, normally represents purity, innocence, and goodness; this unicorn is tarnished and dull and wielded as a weapon by Tatyana represents a purity of evil.

Dominique is surrounded by more color and variety even if she isn’t bathed in light. Often goodness thrives in the shadows, and that is sortof Dominique’s M.O. as a secret agent.

The polished and bright Pegasus as Dominique’s icon represents true freedom and power with “polished” or pure intentions, along with the balance and stability normally represented by a Pegasus.

I was fascinated to see that the Redback rotated her quarry in every direction to encase him in a cloak of web. To the right of her quarry you can see a line of web that was anchored to the ground. I expect this was for stability; no good working in midair and being blown around by the breeze.

I had to take good care while watching and taking photos, not to brush against her amazing superstructure.