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Sherlock.
This almost deserted town was a busy hub in early years. The Pinnaroo railway came through here in 1906 and this was an important siding as it was the nearest to the town of Karoonda to its north. This importance did not last as the railway line went through to Karoonda in March of 1912. The Hundred of Sherlock was gazetted in 1899 and the town was proclaimed in 1906 and named after a friend of Governor Buxton. There was soon a Post office and general store in Sherlock. Near the town was a government bore for a water supply to residents, trains and farms although most farms soon had their own bores. The Baptists were strong in this district and a wooden and iron Baptist church was built in 1908. In 1912 this was replaced with the fine stone edifice that still stands in Sherlock. A government primary school opened in Sherlock in the old Baptist church in 1911 and it moved into the stone Baptist church in 1912. Early crops at Sherlock produced high yields. Some got 18 bushels per acre but this soon fell to 7 or 8 bushel per acre in a good year. Although Sherlock was a reasonably prosperous district its stone institute and hall was not completed until 1927 as the Baptist Church was always used for town meetings, polling booth functions etc. In 1930 the government built a fine stone and brick school room at Sherlock. That building closed as a school in 1970, ten years after other schools in the district closed to support Coomandook Area School. It then became a school camp for city schools but it is now a private residence. The District Council of Peake was formed in 1911 and it covered the towns of Moorlands, Sherlock, Peake, Ki Ki and Yumali. The first District Clerk lived for decades in Sherlock and when new Council Chambers were built in 1973 they were located in Sherlock instead of Peake. The District Council of Peake closed in 1997 when part of it was amalgamated into the Coorong Council with Meningie, Coonalpyn etc. One highlight for the locals was the official Vice Regal visit to Sherlock by the Governor and his party in 1962. Like some other Mallee towns Sherlock and Moorlands (also Coomandook, Yumali etc) all supervised Italian prisoners of war during World War Two. Labour was short and these prisoners of war were important to maintain agricultural production. Today Sherlock has no public services and few residents.
Cast iron cooking implementations have always been a popular method for cooking -- don't forget the iron too.
This is the kitchen in the McDonald House at Westville. Just off from the main house of course, to avoid the risk of fire.
Implementing best practices for a given piece of land and chosen crop are important to a successful year. Decisions such as row spacing and tillage practices bring with them trade offs, but are geared towards environmental and economic sustainability.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry addresses reporters gathered at the Vienna International Center in Vienna, Austria, on January 16, 2016, after the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action outlining the shape of that country's nuclear program. [State Department Photo/Public Domain]
Participants at World Economic Forum on Latin America 2016 in Medellin, Colombia. Copyright by World Economic Forum / Benedikt von Loebell
The Implementation Force (IFOR) was a NATO-led multinational peacekeeping force in Bosnia and Herzegovina under a one-year mandate from 20 December 1995 to 20 December 1996 under the codename Operation Joint Endeavour. NATO nations that contributed forces included Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, The United States of America, and the United Kingdom.
The Albertina
The architectural history of the Palais
(Pictures you can see by clicking on the link at the end of page!)
Image: The oldest photographic view of the newly designed Palais Archduke Albrecht, 1869
"It is my will that the expansion of the inner city of Vienna with regard to a suitable connection of the same with the suburbs as soon as possible is tackled and at this on Regulirung (regulation) and beautifying of my Residence and Imperial Capital is taken into account. To this end I grant the withdrawal of the ramparts and fortifications of the inner city and the trenches around the same".
This decree of Emperor Franz Joseph I, published on 25 December 1857 in the Wiener Zeitung, formed the basis for the largest the surface concerning and architecturally most significant transformation of the Viennese cityscape. Involving several renowned domestic and foreign architects a "master plan" took form, which included the construction of a boulevard instead of the ramparts between the inner city and its radially upstream suburbs. In the 50-years during implementation phase, an impressive architectural ensemble developed, consisting of imperial and private representational buildings, public administration and cultural buildings, churches and barracks, marking the era under the term "ring-street style". Already in the first year tithe decided a senior member of the Austrian imperial family to decorate the facades of his palace according to the new design principles, and thus certified the aristocratic claim that this also "historicism" said style on the part of the imperial house was attributed.
Image: The Old Albertina after 1920
It was the palace of Archduke Albrecht (1817-1895), the Senior of the Habsburg Family Council, who as Field Marshal held the overall command over the Austro-Hungarian army. The building was incorporated into the imperial residence of the Hofburg complex, forming the south-west corner and extending eleven meters above street level on the so-called Augustinerbastei.
The close proximity of the palace to the imperial residence corresponded not only with Emperor Franz Joseph I and Archduke Albert with a close familial relationship between the owner of the palace and the monarch. Even the former inhabitants were always in close relationship to the imperial family, whether by birth or marriage. An exception here again proves the rule: Don Emanuel Teles da Silva Conde Tarouca (1696-1771), for which Maria Theresa in 1744 the palace had built, was just a close friend and advisor of the monarch. Silva Tarouca underpins the rule with a second exception, because he belonged to the administrative services as Generalhofbaudirektor (general court architect) and President of the Austrian-Dutch administration, while all other him subsequent owners were highest ranking military.
In the annals of Austrian history, especially those of military history, they either went into as commander of the Imperial Army, or the Austrian, later kk Army. In chronological order, this applies to Duke Carl Alexander of Lorraine, the brother-of-law of Maria Theresa, as Imperial Marshal, her son-in-law Duke Albert of Saxe-Teschen, also field marshal, whos adopted son, Archduke Charles of Austria, the last imperial field marshal and only Generalissimo of Austria, his son Archduke Albrecht of Austria as Feldmarschalil and army Supreme commander, and most recently his nephew Archduke Friedrich of Austria, who held as field marshal from 1914 to 1916 the command of the Austro-Hungarian troops. Despite their military profession, all five generals conceived themselves as patrons of the arts and promoted large sums of money to build large collections, the construction of magnificent buildings and cultural life. Charles Alexander of Lorraine promoted as governor of the Austrian Netherlands from 1741 to 1780 the Academy of Fine Arts, the Théâtre de Ja Monnaie and the companies Bourgeois Concert and Concert Noble, he founded the Academie royale et imperial des Sciences et des Lettres, opened the Bibliotheque Royal for the population and supported artistic talents with high scholarships. World fame got his porcelain collection, which however had to be sold by Emperor Joseph II to pay off his debts. Duke Albert began in 1776 according to the concept of conte Durazzo to set up an encyclopedic collection of prints, which forms the core of the world-famous "Albertina" today.
Image : Duke Albert and Archduchess Marie Christine show in family cercle the from Italy brought along art, 1776. Frederick Henry Füger.
1816 declared to Fideikommiss and thus in future indivisible, inalienable and inseparable, the collection 1822 passed into the possession of Archduke Carl, who, like his descendants, it broadened. Under him, the collection was introduced together with the sumptuously equipped palace on the Augustinerbastei in the so-called "Carl Ludwig'schen fideicommissum in 1826, by which the building and the in it kept collection fused into an indissoluble unity. At this time had from the Palais Tarouca by structural expansion or acquisition a veritable Residenz palace evolved. Duke Albert of Saxe-Teschen was first in 1800 the third floor of the adjacent Augustinian convent wing adapted to house his collection and he had after 1802 by his Belgian architect Louis de Montoyer at the suburban side built a magnificent extension, called the wing of staterooms, it was equipped in the style of Louis XVI. Only two decades later, Archduke Carl the entire palace newly set up. According to scetches of the architect Joseph Kornhäusel the 1822-1825 retreaded premises presented themselves in the Empire style. The interior of the palace testified from now in an impressive way the high rank and the prominent position of its owner. Under Archduke Albrecht the outer appearance also should meet the requirements. He had the facade of the palace in the style of historicism orchestrated and added to the Palais front against the suburbs an offshore covered access. Inside, he limited himself, apart from the redesign of the Rococo room in the manner of the second Blondel style, to the retention of the paternal stock. Archduke Friedrich's plans for an expansion of the palace were omitted, however, because of the outbreak of the First World War so that his contribution to the state rooms, especially, consists in the layout of the Spanish apartment, which he in 1895 for his sister, the Queen of Spain Maria Christina, had set up as a permanent residence.
Picture: The "audience room" after the restoration: Picture: The "balcony room" around 1990
The era of stately representation with handing down their cultural values found its most obvious visualization inside the palace through the design and features of the staterooms. On one hand, by the use of the finest materials and the purchase of masterfully manufactured pieces of equipment, such as on the other hand by the permanent reuse of older equipment parts. This period lasted until 1919, when Archduke Friedrich was expropriated by the newly founded Republic of Austria. With the republicanization of the collection and the building first of all finished the tradition that the owner's name was synonymous with the building name:
After Palais Tarouca or tarokkisches house it was called Lorraine House, afterwards Duke Albert Palais and Palais Archduke Carl. Due to the new construction of an adjacently located administration building it received in 1865 the prefix "Upper" and was referred to as Upper Palais Archduke Albrecht and Upper Palais Archduke Frederick. For the state a special reference to the Habsburg past was certainly politically no longer opportune, which is why was decided to name the building according to the in it kept collection "Albertina".
Picture: The "Wedgwood Cabinet" after the restoration: Picture: the "Wedgwood Cabinet" in the Palais Archduke Friedrich, 1905
This name derives from the term "La Collection Albertina" which had been used by the gallery Inspector Maurice von Thausing in 1870 in the Gazette des Beaux-Arts for the former graphics collection of Duke Albert. For this reason, it was the first time since the foundation of the palace that the name of the collection had become synonymous with the room shell. Room shell, hence, because the Republic of Austria Archduke Friedrich had allowed to take along all the movable goods from the palace in his Hungarian exile: crystal chandeliers, curtains and carpets as well as sculptures, vases and clocks. Particularly stressed should be the exquisite furniture, which stems of three facilities phases: the Louis XVI furnitures of Duke Albert, which had been manufactured on the basis of fraternal relations between his wife Archduchess Marie Christine and the French Queen Marie Antoinette after 1780 in the French Hofmanufakturen, also the on behalf of Archduke Charles 1822-1825 in the Vienna Porcelain Manufactory by Joseph Danhauser produced Empire furnitures and thirdly additions of the same style of Archduke Friedrich, which this about 1900 at Portois & Ffix as well as at Friedrich Otto Schmidt had commissioned.
The "swept clean" building got due to the strained financial situation after the First World War initially only a makeshift facility. However, since until 1999 no revision of the emergency equipment took place, but differently designed, primarily the utilitarianism committed office furnitures complementarily had been added, the equipment of the former state rooms presented itself at the end of the 20th century as an inhomogeneous administrative mingle-mangle of insignificant parts, where, however, dwelt a certain quaint charm. From the magnificent state rooms had evolved depots, storage rooms, a library, a study hall and several officed.
Image: The Albertina Graphic Arts Collection and the Philipphof after the American bombing of 12 März 1945.
Image: The palace after the demolition of the entrance facade, 1948-52
Worse it hit the outer appearance of the palace, because in times of continued anti-Habsburg sentiment after the Second World War and inspired by an intolerant destruction will, it came by pickaxe to a ministerial erasure of history. In contrast to the graphic collection possessed the richly decorated facades with the conspicuous insignia of the former owner an object-immanent reference to the Habsburg past and thus exhibited the monarchial traditions and values of the era of Francis Joseph significantly. As part of the remedial measures after a bomb damage, in 1948 the aristocratic, by Archduke Albert initiated, historicist facade structuring along with all decorations was cut off, many facade figures demolished and the Hapsburg crest emblems plunged to the ground. Since in addition the old ramp also had been cancelled and the main entrance of the bastion level had been moved down to the second basement storey at street level, ended the presence of the old Archduke's palace after more than 200 years. At the reopening of the "Albertina Graphic Collection" in 1952, the former Hapsburg Palais of splendour presented itself as one of his identity robbed, formally trivial, soulless room shell, whose successful republicanization an oversized and also unproportional eagle above the new main entrance to the Augustinian road symbolized. The emocratic throw of monuments had wiped out the Hapsburg palace from the urban appeareance, whereby in the perception only existed a nondescript, nameless and ahistorical building that henceforth served the lodging and presentation of world-famous graphic collection of the Albertina. The condition was not changed by the decision to the refurbishment because there were only planned collection specific extensions, but no restoration of the palace.
Image: The palace after the Second World War with simplified facades, the rudiment of the Danubiusbrunnens (well) and the new staircase up to the Augustinerbastei
This paradigm shift corresponded to a blatant reversal of the historical circumstances, as the travel guides and travel books for kk Residence and imperial capital of Vienna dedicated itself primarily with the magnificent, aristocratic palace on the Augustinerbastei with the sumptuously fitted out reception rooms and mentioned the collection kept there - if at all - only in passing. Only with the repositioning of the Albertina in 2000 under the direction of Klaus Albrecht Schröder, the palace was within the meaning and in fulfillment of the Fideikommiss of Archduke Charles in 1826 again met with the high regard, from which could result a further inseparable bond between the magnificent mansions and the world-famous collection. In view of the knowing about politically motivated errors and omissions of the past, the facades should get back their noble, historicist designing, the staterooms regain their glamorous, prestigious appearance and culturally unique equippment be repurchased. From this presumption, eventually grew the full commitment to revise the history of redemption and the return of the stately palace in the public consciousness.
Image: The restored suburb facade of the Palais Albertina suburb
The smoothed palace facades were returned to their original condition and present themselves today - with the exception of the not anymore reconstructed Attica figures - again with the historicist decoration and layout elements that Archduke Albrecht had given after the razing of the Augustinerbastei in 1865 in order. The neoclassical interiors, today called after the former inhabitants "Habsburg Staterooms", receiving a meticulous and detailed restoration taking place at the premises of originality and authenticity, got back their venerable and sumptuous appearance. From the world wide scattered historical pieces of equipment have been bought back 70 properties or could be returned through permanent loan to its original location, by which to the visitors is made experiencable again that atmosphere in 1919 the state rooms of the last Habsburg owner Archduke Frederick had owned. The for the first time in 80 years public accessible "Habsburg State Rooms" at the Palais Albertina enable now again as eloquent testimony to our Habsburg past and as a unique cultural heritage fundamental and essential insights into the Austrian cultural history. With the relocation of the main entrance to the level of the Augustinerbastei the recollection to this so valuable Austrian Cultural Heritage formally and functionally came to completion. The vision of the restoration and recovery of the grand palace was a pillar on which the new Albertina should arise again, the other embody the four large newly built exhibition halls, which allow for the first time in the history of the Albertina, to exhibit the collection throughout its encyclopedic breadh under optimal conservation conditions.
Image: The new entrance area of the Albertina
64 meter long shed roof. Hans Hollein.
The palace presents itself now in its appearance in the historicist style of the Ringstrassenära, almost as if nothing had happened in the meantime. But will the wheel of time should not, cannot and must not be turned back, so that the double standards of the "Albertina Palace" said museum - on the one hand Habsburg grandeur palaces and other modern museum for the arts of graphics - should be symbolized by a modern character: The in 2003 by Hans Hollein designed far into the Albertina square cantilevering, elegant floating flying roof. 64 meters long, it symbolizes in the form of a dynamic wedge the accelerated urban spatial connectivity and public access to the palace. It advertises the major changes in the interior as well as the huge underground extensions of the repositioned "Albertina".
Christian Benedictine
Art historian with research interests History of Architecture, building industry of the Hapsburgs, Hofburg and Zeremonialwissenschaft (ceremonial sciences). Since 1990 he works in the architecture collection of the Albertina. Since 2000 he supervises as director of the newly founded department "Staterooms" the restoration and furnishing of the state rooms and the restoration of the facades and explores the history of the palace and its inhabitants.
Bhutan is not a country that is generally well known. If asked, most people might say that it lies somewhere in the Himalayas and is a bit hilly. If pressed, they might think of yaks and snow leopards and rhododendrons, or maybe know it as the land where development is measured in terms of Gross National Happiness rather than Gross Domestic Privation.
And in fact, this latter characteristic most fits with my experiences of this mountainous kingdom – the happiness of the people stands out a mile. In the short time that I was there I cannot recall a frown or a curse or even so much as a tiny disagreement. Even the use of the car horn is limited to polite little peeps or playful messages sent to pretty girls as they saunter along the pavement. It is such a gentle society.
It’s also an equal and an emancipated one. Women are first in line to inherit following the death of their parents; it is they who get the house and the property and the rights, not the son (whether he’s older or not). Women can have as many spouses as men. Women are very forthright when it comes to flirting: within a couple of hours at my first hotel I was invited to a dance that evening and asked if I wanted to marry one of the waitresses. I didn’t take advantage of either offer but, given the beauty of the women here, I was sorely tempted. They really are extremely lovely – slim and wiggly bodies, velvety black hair that never seems to grey, wonderful dimpled smiles, and eyes that just penetrate into the heart of you.
They seem to be a very sexually liberated lot (well, that’s one way of calling it). My guide, Kinlay, was forever talking about his girlfriends (even though he’s married with two sons), hanky-panky (but no spanky, perhaps that was pushing revelations a mite too far given that I’d only just met him), and jiggy-jiggy (or, in local parlance, ‘jeggy-jeggy’), or shouting, ‘Charimdumaray’ (‘You’re lovely’) through the window at any passing female. But then he’s very young, he’s in his thirties … Or maybe he’s just trying to live up to the reputation of his namesake, Lama Drukpa Kunley (1455-1529), aka ‘The Divine Madman’, a saint who had the MO of driving out demons by means of excessive drinking and fornication which sounds a perfectly valid and jolly method of exorcism to me. His signature, a big phallus , now adorns many buildings throughout the area – a sign to ward off evil and protect the household. I wonder how this would go down with the good citizens of Ayr?
Many people still revere His Mad Divineship / Holy Madness and consequently many people have been given his name (or that of the temple that was dedicated to him, ‘Chimey Lhakhang’). The first two people I met in Bhutan were called Kunley. Then the third (who was confusingly a woman ) turned out to be a Kunley too. And so was the fourth. I gave up asking after that.
Bhutan is now a constitutional monarchy since the present king relinquished absolute rule in 2008. Like a 21 year old with the keys to life, the new democracy is revelling in its liberation, independence and autonomy and is enjoying furnishing its own flat and buying its own clothes and food. But at the same time it looks up to the person who granted it its freedom, and the whole country remains loyal and truly affectionate towards the Royal Family.
The king (31, Pisces - they like such details here) married his young betrothed (21, Virgo ) on the 13th October. Every shop had photos of the couple posted outside and inside, decorated with ribbons in the colours of the Buddha – blue (for the sky), white (for the clouds), red (for fire), green (for water) and yellow (for the soil). Huge banners adorned hillsides and town gates. Radio programmes were filled with callers wishing the happy pair a long, fruitful, loving union. And as I watched the wedding in a restaurant in Paro , with the assembled masses in the crowds and in the organised dances that must have taken weeks to rehearse, and thought that there could not be a single person in the nation who was not either at the ceremony or who was not glued to the TV, it occurred to me that this was what it must have been like with QEII 50 years ago . How long will this state of innocent bliss last?
Maybe for a long time yet. Not only is this a peaceful society (I never once felt threatened) but it’s also relatively prosperous, well organised, and, crucially and in a real way, it actually is a society. It is not a collection of individuals out to benefit for themselves. This is one big nation of people (about 650 000 of them) who believe they are part of a larger community of family, friends and neighbours. The neighbours may be from the east of the country (300 miles away and effectively 2 days travelling) who speak another dialect and wear different clothes, but they are still part of the same community.
Free education for all plays an important role in levelling classes and bringing people together. The king (apparently) lives in a ‘cottage’ and he is certainly one who puts much effort in meeting and greeting. The ceremony he attended in Thimpu, after the wedding, lasted from 0900 to 1700 and for a lot of that time he was moving amongst the crowds, shaking hands and speaking with (not ‘to’ – I don’t think he’s a Charlie. ‘And what do you do?’ – probably isn’t his stock, opening gambit) virtually everyone there.
Communities work in unison to improve the environment and their own lives. They harvest the rice together, it’s a communal thing. Often I saw small congregations on the hillside, burning juniper as incense, intoning incantations, chanting with monks. Several times I saw parties of villagers or school children walking along the roadside picking up litter. The land is free of piles of rubbish. This is a clean country. The drains and rivers are not open sewers. Not once did I see a rat.
Smoking was banned recently. It’s an offence to smoke – you could be imprisoned. For grass it’s up to three years for possession and 9 years for dealing. This was the first country to outlaw plastic bags too. Unfortunately, however, for both fags and bags neither law is strictly enforced and both are commonly (if expensively for the former) available.
But Bhutan is not Shangri La. In 1999 TV was introduced for the first time. Now the two favourite programmes are World Federation Wrestling from the USA, and ‘Bhutan Idol’ (the third series) – it was this programme that Kinlay said would prevent me from watching any footie on TV in the bars. ‘Idol’ was that popular! Everyone now has a TV and there is a good link between the growth in its distribution and the incidence of crime in the country.
Mobile phones came in in 2003 (so my guide said) and they are now ubiquitous. Young people have adopted the global practice of meeting up and then spending all the time texting and / or phoning other friends elsewhere. That’s when they can stop blowing bubble gum for long enough to say anything. One person I met had a sophisticated ring tone system that alerted him to whoever was trying to contact him: his wife’s ring tone was his young son’s crying and gurgling; his mate’s tone was an extract from his favourite blue movie accompanied by the obligatory image of a busty brunette.
The people like to dress up for occasions (like the festival – Tseschu – in Thimpu) with their finest national gear: beautiful, iridescent, brightly coloured silk dresses for the women; rather more subdued but still unique skirts and knee-high stockings for the men. When visiting national monuments (such as museums, temples, dzongs ) or events they have to dress in national costume. But these days, for normal everyday wear, they tend far more towards the boring western norm of t-shirts and jeans and track-suits (usually with ‘Man Utd’ written on them. Damn their souls!). There was a great contrast between the clothes worn to the formal Tseschu festival and the far less formal singalong in Thimpu town square – colourful, vibrant, exciting of the exotic compared with the dull, drab, grey and black of the mundane (and the future).
Traditional sports seem to be holding their own against the overwhelming and inexorable influence of football . Archery is something the Bhutanese are especially good at having won medals of all colours at recent Olympics. These days they employ carbon composite bows for main competitions. Traditional bows of bamboo are still found and used but mainly to simply maintain the tradition. The target is a wooden board about 40cm high and usually 140m from the archer. No wonder they’re good at it.
Darts (not the UK variety) – about 15cm long consisting of a 3cm metal point, a wooden shaft and 5cm feathers – is also played at weekends. The ‘court’ is longer than a cricket pitch and the target is a 30cm wooden board with a bulls-eye near the top. A wall of earth or concrete backdrops the target, really just a sop to health and safety. They are not overly concerned with H&S, which is healthy.
For both archery and darts, the opposing team (all wearing fine traditional skirts ) line up alongside the target and watch intently as the projectile is released and heads towards them. The observers’ reaction time for the darts is far less than that for archery. I think I was happier watching the archery. When a dart or arrow actually hits the board it triggers a mediaeval ritual of chanting and dancing by both of the teams, in praise of the gods for such a blessing. If only our supporters and ‘sportsmen’ took win and loss in the same spirit.
There are cars in Bhutan as well. Not many of them because there aren’t that many people. They are in good condition and few of them send out blasts of poisonous black smoke. I saw my first privately-owned electric car here. They are generally new (the favourites being Hyundais and Toyota) and without any dents. Motorbikes are rare and tuc-tucs are entirely absent (which is such a relief!). Roads (maintained and built by Indians, and funded by the RoI government) are largely pothole-free and gloriously smooth. It still takes a long time to get anywhere because of the winding nature of the terrain, but at least it’s almost painless.
But, of course, this road system comes at a cost. Gangs of Indians, thousands of them, have been imported and have set up semi-permanent residence in Bhutan (without citizen rights, of course) and their sole employment, occupation and raison d’etre is road building and repair. They work very long hours (0600 to 1600 hrs) for a pittance. Their tools are mainly their hands: hauling large stones over cliffs or onto lorries. Primitive implements are provided: back bent double as they use pathetic brushes to sweep the road; women shovelling sand and gravel and throwing it through sieves. Some (men as well as women) actually break rocks with hammers, all day long, like a work detail from a ‘40s state penitentiary, a modern day chain-gang. These gangs have their own settlements and schools; they are separate from mainstream Bhutanese society. But they don’t seem to be discriminated or prejudiced against. There is, at least, no bigotry in Bhutan.
Except perhaps against the Nepalese. This is not talked about, but many Bhutanese who originated in Nepal (two or three or more generations back) were forcibly deported in the ‘90s (?) and now reside in refugee camps in Nepal. I met only one person whose ancestors came from Nepal but he seemed contented and calm. He might have said more but we’d been caught up in a delay caused by a landslide and the obstruction had just been removed so we had to move on. 11 days is not enough in Bhutan.
You might think that a Buddhist democracy consisting of less than three quarters of a million people might not need or, especially, want an army. How could they justify killing? And anyway, what could their paltry population hope to accomplish against the might of the Indians or Chinese if they chose to invade ? But it’s a career path to some (Kinlay considered it after university (in Chennai) if tourism didn’t work out), and for others the army really is a necessity.
Earlier in the noughties there was some trouble with Assamese rebels. They had occupied some of the forests of the duars in Bhutan (just across the border) and were causing problems (not with the locals – the Assamese were generous with their payment for goods – but with the (Indian?) politicians). Negotiations with the rebels were not successful and so the Bhutanese government sent in the troops. This resulted in the insurgents being ousted but at the cost of 12 Bhutanese soldiers being killed. The effects of this battle / war seems to have become deeply embedded within the psyche of the Bhutanese; a large memorial (at Dochu La consisting of 108 chortens) was established to commemorate the conflict and one of the on-going repercussions is that the army are more popular than ever. Not that it would ever sink to the depths of the Burmese army and become a junta. That would be unthinkable.
So the army is needed . But what about religious or moral objections, after all Costa Rica doesn’t have a standing army so surely a strict Buddhist nation could do without one? But then the Bhutanese love meat. They are devout devourers of pork and beef and, to a slightly lesser extent, chicken? So long as they don’t have to kill the animals themselves they are happy to consume flesh.
Do I hear calls of ‘Hypocracy’? Well, I’m not going to shout them down.
But all religions are institutionally hypocritical and Buddhism is no worse than any other. An army of a Buddhist nation sounds contradictory but religion has always been political, nations are essentially political beasts with artificial boundaries, politicians need to maintain and protect those boundaries as well as they can given limited resources, and armies are the main way of providing protection.
At least this army is not there to violate other nations or supress the population or support an unauthorised government. It provides comfort and a sense of security, a source of pride, and a life for many people. Who am I to criticise it?
The trekking in Bhutan was far better than in Nepal (although Nepal was good). Here it was proper camping, there it was in Guesthouses. Nepal is over-populated, there is no getting away from people; waves of trekkers (ramblers) met you head on along the Poon Hill circuit; football crowds gathered to catch the dawn view of Annapurna; dogs, locals, cows, agricultural terraces … they all swarm and cover the slopes of Nepal.
But in Bhutan … ah, it’s different. I met perhaps 10 other trekkers on my 5 day stint. Yes, there were monks and the occasional dog, but mainly it was me in the wild, in untouched, blue pine forests and stands of huge or dwarf rhodies and junipers and alpine meadows of the highest hills. Alongside the soft beats of the wings of the goshawk, and ‘glowps’ of ravens, and cheeky cawings of choughs there was the whisper of winds and ripple of drying leaves. No sounds of machinery. No barking . No drunken laughter . It was heaven.
Of course I was spoilt. Apart from the landscape, and the views, and the sky and the clouds, and the wildlife and the vegetation, I had a platoon of (for wont of a better word ) servants to look after my every needs. I had my own chef, and he had a helper. I had a guide who made sure I didn’t fall down a cliff or take the wrong path. I had a horseman who looked after the seven ponies that accompanied our small expedition. The only person I lacked was a masseur (which, incidentally, was what I really needed).
They erected my tent and decamped for me. They cooked me three meals a day and washed up after me. I was served at my table and they even ran off to buy beer for me . They set up my own private lav, provided loo paper, and filled the hole in after me. My guide even carried my water bottle. They did everything for me except tuck me in at night (for which I was grateful).
It was hard walking, some of the slopes were steep, and it was bloody cold at night. I met a couple of Aussies on the second day and, after I remarked how bloody cold it was the previous night (not that I was fixated or anything), they said, ‘Well, it gets colder. There was frost on the ground two nights ago.’ I said, ‘Great. Good job my sleeping bag isn’t as good as I thought it was (and the zip’s broken), and that I forgot my socks.’ They said, ‘You forgot your socks?! Are you mad?’ I didn’t say anything. ‘But you’re from Scotland, right?’ ‘Aye,’ I said, ‘You’ll be fine then.’ They were nice people but they could afford to be because they’d survived the ordeal and were now heading back to civilisation. They had had socks. Smug bastards. Nice people though.
Ten minutes later, as I was watching a huge thanka being unfolded by the Phajoding monks, the lady (to my shame I never did get to know her name) ran up to me and offered, like a true Buddhist using both hands, a pair of socks. ‘They’re a day and a half old,’ she said, ‘but they’ll save your life!’ I didn’t know what to say so I kept repeating, like the simpleton John Miles played in ‘Ryan’s Daughter’, ‘Thank you, thank you.’ I refrained from saying ‘God bless’, but I was genuinely touched (in more ways than one) and didn’t even have the sense to ask for their address so that I could send them back to Oz. Which was just as well. But I would have had them washed.
And the socks really were a Godsend. Never before have I held so much regard for footware. They (along with the extra blanket supplied by chef) actually made the next three nights bearable (just. There was still the issue of the bells and the thin mattress). Thanks Australia ;-)
Overall, you might think that a minimum of $200 a day to visit and exist in Bhutan is a lot of money. And it is. No argument. But … this money covers everything apart from incidentals such as snacks and souvenirs , and so, although it’s expensive, it’s not that expensive and is, actually, when it comes down to it, damned good value for money. Outside of Bhutan, how much would it cost to have what they provided me? A personal guide (just for little old me) who answers most of the inane and arcane questions I usually pose to myself or strangers (who aren’t good at responding. Either of them) and panders to almost my every whim My own transport (so I can say, ‘Why don’t we go down this wee road?’, ‘Can we just stop here for a minute to take a photo’, and ‘STOP! There’s a bird I haven’t seen, I’m sure of it. Might be new to science too. Come on, we’ll be famous!’ ) My your own private expeditionary force to conquer the Himalayas? The chance to stay in top class hotels (with clean, unstained sheets and electrics that work. Luxury). To have all your meals provided for you (most of them excellent). And to have the flexibility to be able to change itinerary and venues / hotels depending on how you feel … and all this amongst the beauty, serenity and unspoilt splendour of a country which is Bhutan …
Well, what can I say? It’s not a perfect country, but it comes damned close to it.
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The Hyderabad Metro is a rapid transit system, serving the city of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It is in Secant Operational model. It is being implemented entirely on public-private partnership (PPP) basis, with the state government holding a minority equity stake. A 30 km stretch from Miyapur to Nagole, having 24 stations was inaugurated on 28 November 2017 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. No other rapid transit metro service in India opened for public operations on such a long stretch of 30 km. As of October 2018, it is the second longest operational metro network in India after the Delhi Metro, after a 16 km stretch between Ameerpet-LB Nagar Metro route was opened on 24 September 2018. It is estimated to cost ₹18,800 crore (US$2.6 billion). As of October 2018, about 200,000 people use the Metro per day. Trains are now crowded during the morning and evening hours, when employees travel to and from work. A ladies only coach was introduced on all the trains from 7 May 2018.
HISTORY
To respond the rising public transport needs and mitigate escalating vehicular traffic in the twin-cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, the State Government and the South Central Railway jointly launched the Multi Modal Transport System (MMTS) in [August] 2003. The increase in population of Hyderabad made MMTS alone insufficient for public transport, which led to Union Ministry of Urban Development giving the nod for the Hyderabad Metro Rail Project and directed the DMRC to conduct a survey on the project.[ this project was seen necessary in view that the population of Hyderabad was forecasted to reach 13.6 million by the year 2021. According to the initial plan, the metro was to be connected with the already existing MMTS to provide commuters with alternate modes of transport. Simultaneously, the proposals for taking up the construction of MMTS Phase-II were also taken forward.
On March 26, 2018, Telangana Govt announced that it would set up a SPV "Hyderabad Airport Metro Limited (HAML)", jointly promoted by HMRL and HMDA, to extend the Blue line from Raidurg to Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Shamshabad.
INITIAL BIDDING
The bidding process was completed by July 2008 and awarded to Maytas which failed to achieve financial closure for the project as per schedule By March 2009. In July 2009, the State Government cancelled the contract and called for fresh bids for the project.
RE-BIDDING
In the July-2010 rebidding process, Larsen & Toubro (L&T) emerged as the lowest bidder for the ₹121.32 billion (US$1.7 billion) project. L&T came forward to take up the work for about ₹14.58 billion (US$200 million) as viability gap funding as against the sanctioned ₹48.53 billion (US$680 million).
MASCOT
The mascot of Hyderabad Metro Rail is Niz. It was derived from the word Nizam, who ruled the princely state of Hyderabad.
AWARDS AND NOMINATIONS
HMR project was showcased as one of the top 100 strategic global infrastructure projects at the Global Infrastructure Leadership Forum held in New York during February–March 2013.
L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Limited (LTMRHL) has been conferred the SAP ACE Award 2015 in the 'Strategic HR and Talent Management category.
In 2018, Rasoolpura, Paradise and Prakash Nagar metro stations were awarded Indian Green Building Council’s (IGBC) Green MRTS Platinum Award.
CONSTRUCTION HISTORY
Groundbreaking (Bhoomi Puja) for the project was conducted on 26 April 2012 the concessionaire started the pillar erection on the same day for Stage-I and on 6 June 2012 for Stage-II. The work for Corridor 2 has been delayed due to traders in Koti and Sultan Bazar demanding realignment of the route to safeguard traders and old age heritage markets. If the recent bill proposed in Parliament which allows construction within a 100 metre radius of heritage structures and sites of historical or archaeological importance is passed, Metro might receive a chance as it helps to connect the Old city with IT corridor.
The construction of the entire 71.16 km has been split into 6 stages with the first stage originally scheduled to be completed by March 2015.
In November 2013, L&T Hyderabad Metro started laying of rails on the metro viaduct between Nagole and Mettuguda, a stretch of 8 km.
The first highly sophisticated train of the Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) came from Korea during the third week of May 2014. Stringent trial runs commenced from June 2014 till February 2015. The trial runs started on the Miyapur to Sanjeeva Reddy Nagar stretch in October 2015.
CMRS inspection for Stage-II (Miyapur and S.R.Nagar Section) was done on 9, 10 August 2016. Three interchanges are planned at Mahatma Gandhi Bus Terminus, Parade Grounds and Ameerpet.
The steel bridge of the HMR was successfully placed over the Oliphant bridge in August 2017.
In November 2017, Commissioner of Railway Safety (CMRS) granted safety approval for 12 km stretch from Miyapur to SR Nagar, 10 km stretch from SR Nagar to Mettuguda and 8 km stretch from Nagole to Mettuguda.
Ameerpet-LB Nagar Metro stretch is open for commercial operations from 24 September 2018.
CONSTRUCTION PHASES
The construction work was undertaken in two phases. There are six stages of completion in Phase I
PHASE I
The Phase I of the project includes 3 lines covering a distance of around 72 km. The metro rail stretches between Nagole and Secunderabad 11 km originally scheduled to be operational by December 2015, is now partially operational since 29 November 2017. The entire 72 km 57-station first phase is due to be completed by December 2019 with Hitec City - Raidurg line and MGBS - Falaknuma line is scheduled to be completed by December 2019.
Line 1 - Red Line - Miyapur – L B Nagar - 29.2 km
Line 2 - Green Line - JBS - Falaknuma 15 km
Line 3 - Blue Line - Nagole – Raidurg - 28 km
PHASE II
The Government is planning second phase of metro rail extending further. The construction of Phase II will be taken up solely by the state government, instead of public private partnership (PPP) mode in Phase I. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) was entrusted to give a detailed project report (DPR) for Phase II. Metro Rail Phase II expansion plan is for about 60 km, which includes providing link to Shamshabad RGI Airport.
LINES
Since the first version of the plans, the three corridors mostly remained the same, but minor changes were introduced. These include the lack of stop at Lalaguda, or a stop at Lakdikapul instead of Secretariat. Also, the lines have been marked with several different combination of color. Ameerpet- LB Nagar metro stretch opened on 24 September 2018. HiTec City to Raidurg, 1.5-kilometre stretch on Corridor Three - Nagole to Raidurg, is scheduled to be completed in November 2019, as it involves construction of 49 pillars and the Raidurg terminal station. Efforts are being made to complete the 8.5-km stretch from Ameerpet to HiTec City by December 2018.
RECEPTION
The Metro has opened to overwhelming response, with over 200,000 people using it on Day 1. On the first Sunday of operations, the Metro was used by 240,000 people.. As of September 2018, the daily ridership was about 2,00,000.
Trains are initially being operated at a frequency of 3.5 minutes in very peak hours and every 6.5 minutes in peak hours (between Miyapur-Ameerpet) and 6.5 minutes in peak hours (between Ameerpet-Nagole),, though maximum achievable frequency is every 90 seconds. Similarly, three-car trains are being used currently, though it is planned to use six-car trains in the future.
In December 2017, Hyderabad Metro Rail launched its mobile app, TSavaari. Hyderabad Metro timings are available on T-Savari app. Ola Cabs and Uber tied up its services with app.
COST
The initial official estimated cost of the 72 km long Metro project stood at ₹14,132 crore (US$2.0 billion). The Central Government decided to bear 10% of it, while L&T was to bear the remaining 90% of the cost. The construction work which was supposed to commence on 3 March 2011 commenced in 2012. In March 2012, the cost of the project was revised upwards to ₹15,957 crore (US$2.2 billion). This has been further revised upwards to ₹18,800 crore (US$2.6 billion) (as of November 2017).
INFRASTRUCTURE
The 71.3 km standard-gauge network will feature ballastless track throughout and will be electrified at 25kV ac 50 Hz. An operations control centre and depot are constructed at Uppal. At some places, a flyover, underpass and metro has been constructed at the same place, as part of Strategic road development plan (SRDP).
CBTC TECHNOLOGY
At the end of 2012, L&T Metro Rail awarded Thales a Rs 7.4bn ($US 134m) contract to provide CBTC and integrated telecommunications and supervision systems on all three lines. Thales will supply its SelTrac CBTC technology, and trains will initially run in automatic train operation mode with minimum headways of 90 seconds, although the system will support eventual migration to unattended train operation (UTO).
ROLLING STOCK
On 12 September 2012, Larsen and Toubro Metro Rail Hyderabad Ltd (LTMRHL) announced that it has awarded tender for supply of rolling stock to Hyundai Rotem. The ₹18 billion (US$250 million) tender is for 57 trains consisting of 171 cars which will be delivered in phases at least 9 months before the commencement of each stage. On 2 October 2013, LTMRHL unveiled its train car for Hyderabad Metro. A model coach which is half the size of the actual coach, was on public display at Necklace Road on the banks of Hussain Sagar in the heart of Hyderabad. The trains will be 3.2m wide and 4m high. There will be 4 doors on each side of each coach.
On 10 April 2014, the first metro train for HMR rolled out of Hyundai Rotem factory at Changwon in South Korea and reached Hyderabad in May 2014. On 31 December 2014, Hyderabad Metro Rail successfully conducted a training run in Automatic Train Operation (ATO) mode for the first time between Nagole and Mettuguda.
TICKETING
The L&T Hyderabad project will have an automated ticketing system with features such as contactless smart card based ticketing, slim automatic gates, payment by cash and credit/debit card, passenger operated ticket vending machine and provision of common ticketing system. It will also have a provision of NFC-based technology to enable usage of mobile phones as fare media and high performance machine to avoid long queues. Samsung Data Systems India, a subsidiary of South Korean firm Samsung, has been awarded the automatic fare collection system package for the L&T metro rail project. The package involves design, manufacture, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of the system.
Official ticket prices were announced on 25 November 2017. The base fare is ₹10 for up to 2 km and going to slap 10 with ₹60 for more than 26 km.
STATIONS
Hyderabad metro will have 64 stations in phase I. They will be provided with amenities such as escalators and elevators to reach the stations, announcement boards, electronic display systems among others for passengers. Commercial will also be provided on stations. Hyderabad metro stations will also have service roads underneath them to provide last mile connectivity by allowing other public transportation systems use it for dropping/picking passengers right in front of the stations and ensure uninterrupted traffic. Currently the service lane works are currently on at Nagole and Uppal stations. The signboards of Hyderabad Metro are displayed in Telugu, English, Hindi and Urdu at metro stations.
Otis Elevator Company of United States won the contract to supply and maintain 670 elevators.
In May 2018, L&T Metro Rail announced that it had signed a contract with Powergrid Corporation of India to install electric vehicle charging facilities at all metro stations beginning with Miyapur and Dr. B R Ambedkar Balanagar stations. L&THMRL has setup free wifi access units for commuters at Miyapur, Ameerpet and Nagole metro stations, in association with ACT Fibernet, as part of a pilot project.
WIKIPEDIA
Netherlands, Amsterdam, Bijlmermeer (Siegfried Nassuth), Bijlmer-West, Rechte H-buurt, Hofgeest building. (uncut)
Much has been said about the Bijlmer, that grandiose utopist Dutch implementation of the Le Corbusian ‘Ville Radieuse’ and the 'Cité Contemporaine', the place that would liberate modern man and give him light and space and the freedom to move safely thru a green park like environment…. and in the 90s eventual became known as one big crime ridden dilapidated “no go area”, comparable with the worst Parisian suburbs (“La Zone”).
The 12.500 apartments, mosty build in the form of high rises in a honeycomb urban pattern, were meant for the Amsterdam (lower) middle classes , to alleviate the shortage in the inner city (the Newmarkt urban restructuring operation was a factor in this). The fundamental problem of the Bijlmer was neither the urban plan or the characteristics of the buildings but the development of the market and the being out of sync of the national and municipal policy making machineries. When the first Bijlmer appartments were ready in ‘68, middle class ‘Amsterdammers’ could choose between these well designed and spacious apartments and the terraced houses that were build thru the national Dutch ‘groeikernen’ policy (a policy to manage sub-urbanization in a more or less controlled way and foster the growth of a number of towns and villages in the vicinity of big cities like Amsterdam and Rotterdam to accommodate their fast growing population).
The people choose the terraced housing ("grondgebonden ééngezinwoning" always a middle class dream of course) in Nieuw Vennep, Hoofddorp and Lelystad. And the Bijlmer stayed largely empty.
Eventually through the dropping of the prize it was used as low income housing and some years later accommodated the influx of people from Surinam after its independence in 1975. And a bit later though the economic crisis Holland was going through in the 80s most of the people in the quarter were out of work. This put great strain on the Bijlmer quarter. It wasn’t designed for the type of use which followed from this, the park like structure with its separation of different types of traffic (elevated roads for the cars) proofed to be ‘sociaal onveilig’ (unsafe public space), there weren’t enough public facilities (probably the only fundamental design flaw of the Bijlmer) and owner of the buildings in the quarter ‘Patrimonium’, later ‘Nieuw Amsterdam’ didn’t nearly spend enough on maintenance.
From the end of the 90s onwards the Bijlmer underwent a massive restructuring with involved the demolition of some 50% of the high-rises and a renovation of the ones that were left. A proportion of the apartments was sold.
The apartment building on display here is the renovated Hofgeest building. The prizes of the apartments vary from 100.000 – 190.000 € (the latter for the two storied apartments in the ‘plint’ of the building). In the foreground is one of the elevated roadways.
Shot during a Arena Boulevard & Bijlmer walk and lunch with Arlette.
Best viewed: LARGE.
The Hyderabad Metro is a rapid transit system, serving the city of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It is in Secant Operational model. It is being implemented entirely on public-private partnership (PPP) basis, with the state government holding a minority equity stake. A 30 km stretch from Miyapur to Nagole, having 24 stations was inaugurated on 28 November 2017 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. No other rapid transit metro service in India opened for public operations on such a long stretch of 30 km. As of October 2018, it is the second longest operational metro network in India after the Delhi Metro, after a 16 km stretch between Ameerpet-LB Nagar Metro route was opened on 24 September 2018. It is estimated to cost ₹18,800 crore (US$2.6 billion). As of October 2018, about 200,000 people use the Metro per day. Trains are now crowded during the morning and evening hours, when employees travel to and from work. A ladies only coach was introduced on all the trains from 7 May 2018.
HISTORY
To respond the rising public transport needs and mitigate escalating vehicular traffic in the twin-cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, the State Government and the South Central Railway jointly launched the Multi Modal Transport System (MMTS) in [August] 2003. The increase in population of Hyderabad made MMTS alone insufficient for public transport, which led to Union Ministry of Urban Development giving the nod for the Hyderabad Metro Rail Project and directed the DMRC to conduct a survey on the project.[ this project was seen necessary in view that the population of Hyderabad was forecasted to reach 13.6 million by the year 2021. According to the initial plan, the metro was to be connected with the already existing MMTS to provide commuters with alternate modes of transport. Simultaneously, the proposals for taking up the construction of MMTS Phase-II were also taken forward.
On March 26, 2018, Telangana Govt announced that it would set up a SPV "Hyderabad Airport Metro Limited (HAML)", jointly promoted by HMRL and HMDA, to extend the Blue line from Raidurg to Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Shamshabad.
INITIAL BIDDING
The bidding process was completed by July 2008 and awarded to Maytas which failed to achieve financial closure for the project as per schedule By March 2009. In July 2009, the State Government cancelled the contract and called for fresh bids for the project.
RE-BIDDING
In the July-2010 rebidding process, Larsen & Toubro (L&T) emerged as the lowest bidder for the ₹121.32 billion (US$1.7 billion) project. L&T came forward to take up the work for about ₹14.58 billion (US$200 million) as viability gap funding as against the sanctioned ₹48.53 billion (US$680 million).
MASCOT
The mascot of Hyderabad Metro Rail is Niz. It was derived from the word Nizam, who ruled the princely state of Hyderabad.
AWARDS AND NOMINATIONS
HMR project was showcased as one of the top 100 strategic global infrastructure projects at the Global Infrastructure Leadership Forum held in New York during February–March 2013.
L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Limited (LTMRHL) has been conferred the SAP ACE Award 2015 in the 'Strategic HR and Talent Management category.
In 2018, Rasoolpura, Paradise and Prakash Nagar metro stations were awarded Indian Green Building Council’s (IGBC) Green MRTS Platinum Award.
CONSTRUCTION HISTORY
Groundbreaking (Bhoomi Puja) for the project was conducted on 26 April 2012 the concessionaire started the pillar erection on the same day for Stage-I and on 6 June 2012 for Stage-II. The work for Corridor 2 has been delayed due to traders in Koti and Sultan Bazar demanding realignment of the route to safeguard traders and old age heritage markets. If the recent bill proposed in Parliament which allows construction within a 100 metre radius of heritage structures and sites of historical or archaeological importance is passed, Metro might receive a chance as it helps to connect the Old city with IT corridor.
The construction of the entire 71.16 km has been split into 6 stages with the first stage originally scheduled to be completed by March 2015.
In November 2013, L&T Hyderabad Metro started laying of rails on the metro viaduct between Nagole and Mettuguda, a stretch of 8 km.
The first highly sophisticated train of the Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) came from Korea during the third week of May 2014. Stringent trial runs commenced from June 2014 till February 2015. The trial runs started on the Miyapur to Sanjeeva Reddy Nagar stretch in October 2015.
CMRS inspection for Stage-II (Miyapur and S.R.Nagar Section) was done on 9, 10 August 2016. Three interchanges are planned at Mahatma Gandhi Bus Terminus, Parade Grounds and Ameerpet.
The steel bridge of the HMR was successfully placed over the Oliphant bridge in August 2017.
In November 2017, Commissioner of Railway Safety (CMRS) granted safety approval for 12 km stretch from Miyapur to SR Nagar, 10 km stretch from SR Nagar to Mettuguda and 8 km stretch from Nagole to Mettuguda.
Ameerpet-LB Nagar Metro stretch is open for commercial operations from 24 September 2018.
CONSTRUCTION PHASES
The construction work was undertaken in two phases. There are six stages of completion in Phase I
PHASE I
The Phase I of the project includes 3 lines covering a distance of around 72 km. The metro rail stretches between Nagole and Secunderabad 11 km originally scheduled to be operational by December 2015, is now partially operational since 29 November 2017. The entire 72 km 57-station first phase is due to be completed by December 2019 with Hitec City - Raidurg line and MGBS - Falaknuma line is scheduled to be completed by December 2019.
Line 1 - Red Line - Miyapur – L B Nagar - 29.2 km
Line 2 - Green Line - JBS - Falaknuma 15 km
Line 3 - Blue Line - Nagole – Raidurg - 28 km
PHASE II
The Government is planning second phase of metro rail extending further. The construction of Phase II will be taken up solely by the state government, instead of public private partnership (PPP) mode in Phase I. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) was entrusted to give a detailed project report (DPR) for Phase II. Metro Rail Phase II expansion plan is for about 60 km, which includes providing link to Shamshabad RGI Airport.
LINES
Since the first version of the plans, the three corridors mostly remained the same, but minor changes were introduced. These include the lack of stop at Lalaguda, or a stop at Lakdikapul instead of Secretariat. Also, the lines have been marked with several different combination of color. Ameerpet- LB Nagar metro stretch opened on 24 September 2018. HiTec City to Raidurg, 1.5-kilometre stretch on Corridor Three - Nagole to Raidurg, is scheduled to be completed in November 2019, as it involves construction of 49 pillars and the Raidurg terminal station. Efforts are being made to complete the 8.5-km stretch from Ameerpet to HiTec City by December 2018.
RECEPTION
The Metro has opened to overwhelming response, with over 200,000 people using it on Day 1. On the first Sunday of operations, the Metro was used by 240,000 people.. As of September 2018, the daily ridership was about 2,00,000.
Trains are initially being operated at a frequency of 3.5 minutes in very peak hours and every 6.5 minutes in peak hours (between Miyapur-Ameerpet) and 6.5 minutes in peak hours (between Ameerpet-Nagole),, though maximum achievable frequency is every 90 seconds. Similarly, three-car trains are being used currently, though it is planned to use six-car trains in the future.
In December 2017, Hyderabad Metro Rail launched its mobile app, TSavaari. Hyderabad Metro timings are available on T-Savari app. Ola Cabs and Uber tied up its services with app.
COST
The initial official estimated cost of the 72 km long Metro project stood at ₹14,132 crore (US$2.0 billion). The Central Government decided to bear 10% of it, while L&T was to bear the remaining 90% of the cost. The construction work which was supposed to commence on 3 March 2011 commenced in 2012. In March 2012, the cost of the project was revised upwards to ₹15,957 crore (US$2.2 billion). This has been further revised upwards to ₹18,800 crore (US$2.6 billion) (as of November 2017).
INFRASTRUCTURE
The 71.3 km standard-gauge network will feature ballastless track throughout and will be electrified at 25kV ac 50 Hz. An operations control centre and depot are constructed at Uppal. At some places, a flyover, underpass and metro has been constructed at the same place, as part of Strategic road development plan (SRDP).
CBTC TECHNOLOGY
At the end of 2012, L&T Metro Rail awarded Thales a Rs 7.4bn ($US 134m) contract to provide CBTC and integrated telecommunications and supervision systems on all three lines. Thales will supply its SelTrac CBTC technology, and trains will initially run in automatic train operation mode with minimum headways of 90 seconds, although the system will support eventual migration to unattended train operation (UTO).
ROLLING STOCK
On 12 September 2012, Larsen and Toubro Metro Rail Hyderabad Ltd (LTMRHL) announced that it has awarded tender for supply of rolling stock to Hyundai Rotem. The ₹18 billion (US$250 million) tender is for 57 trains consisting of 171 cars which will be delivered in phases at least 9 months before the commencement of each stage. On 2 October 2013, LTMRHL unveiled its train car for Hyderabad Metro. A model coach which is half the size of the actual coach, was on public display at Necklace Road on the banks of Hussain Sagar in the heart of Hyderabad. The trains will be 3.2m wide and 4m high. There will be 4 doors on each side of each coach.
On 10 April 2014, the first metro train for HMR rolled out of Hyundai Rotem factory at Changwon in South Korea and reached Hyderabad in May 2014. On 31 December 2014, Hyderabad Metro Rail successfully conducted a training run in Automatic Train Operation (ATO) mode for the first time between Nagole and Mettuguda.
TICKETING
The L&T Hyderabad project will have an automated ticketing system with features such as contactless smart card based ticketing, slim automatic gates, payment by cash and credit/debit card, passenger operated ticket vending machine and provision of common ticketing system. It will also have a provision of NFC-based technology to enable usage of mobile phones as fare media and high performance machine to avoid long queues. Samsung Data Systems India, a subsidiary of South Korean firm Samsung, has been awarded the automatic fare collection system package for the L&T metro rail project. The package involves design, manufacture, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of the system.
Official ticket prices were announced on 25 November 2017. The base fare is ₹10 for up to 2 km and going to slap 10 with ₹60 for more than 26 km.
STATIONS
Hyderabad metro will have 64 stations in phase I. They will be provided with amenities such as escalators and elevators to reach the stations, announcement boards, electronic display systems among others for passengers. Commercial will also be provided on stations. Hyderabad metro stations will also have service roads underneath them to provide last mile connectivity by allowing other public transportation systems use it for dropping/picking passengers right in front of the stations and ensure uninterrupted traffic. Currently the service lane works are currently on at Nagole and Uppal stations. The signboards of Hyderabad Metro are displayed in Telugu, English, Hindi and Urdu at metro stations.
Otis Elevator Company of United States won the contract to supply and maintain 670 elevators.
In May 2018, L&T Metro Rail announced that it had signed a contract with Powergrid Corporation of India to install electric vehicle charging facilities at all metro stations beginning with Miyapur and Dr. B R Ambedkar Balanagar stations. L&THMRL has setup free wifi access units for commuters at Miyapur, Ameerpet and Nagole metro stations, in association with ACT Fibernet, as part of a pilot project.
WIKIPEDIA
*La Policía Nacional implementa Sistema de Monitoreo Integrado para fortalecer las operaciones contra el narcotráfico*
*LA INNOVACIÓN Y LA TECNOLOGÍA* operacional para la lucha antidrogas se fortalecen con un Sistema Táctico de Comunicaciones, Comando y Control y con aeronaves no tripuladas que serán entregadas por la Embajada de los Estados Unidos. La seguridad en las áreas de operaciones y de cultivos ilícitos cuenta con nuevas y avanzadas herramientas, en el marco del eje de control y prevención del plan de choque ‘El que la hace la paga’.
*BOGOTÁ D.C*. Para seguirles haciendo frente a los retos que exige la lucha contra el narcotráfico y atendiendo la dinámica en el ejercicio de nuevas estrategias para contrarrestar y atacar este flagelo, la Dirección de Antinarcóticos de la Policía Nacional de todos los colombianos, a través de las alianzas con el Gobierno de los Estados Unidos, recibe los Sistemas Aéreos Remotamente Tripulados ‘SIART’ y el Sistema Integrado de Comunicaciones, los cuales permiten, mediante un software, la interacción de imágenes e integración de datos en las áreas de operaciones.
Los nuevos equipos de última generación y avanzada innovación tecnológica que implementará la Dirección de Antinarcóticos están estructurados por un Sistema Integrado Táctico, que mantendrá una comunicación permanente con las patrullas desplegadas en la zonas de operación a nivel nacional y de cultivos ilícitos y con el centro estratégico en tiempo real, transmitiendo voces, datos y videos durante el transcurso de operaciones contra el Sistema de Drogas Ilícitas (SDI), brindando de esta manera líneas seguras, oportunas y confiables.
Este Sistema Táctico de Comunicaciones, Comando y Control se convierte en un apoyo fundamental para las operaciones de la Policía Nacional. Se trata, en síntesis, de unos equipos de radio que permiten mayor alcance en terreno e integrar múltiples redes de comunicaciones, para obtener un mayor control sobre las zonas en las que se adelantan las acciones de la Policía Nacional, en ocasiones articuladas con otras fuerzas.
Adicionalmente, la Institución cuenta ahora con 28 Sistemas Aéreos Remotamente Tripulados ‘SIART’ que serán asignados a las Compañías Antinarcóticos para la seguridad de la erradicación de cultivos ilícitos, lo que permitirá el desarrollo de operaciones diurnas y nocturnas filmadas en alta definición las cuales transmitirán en tiempo real el control de multitudes, la seguridad perimetral de las compañías que se encuentran en el área y el reconocimiento cercano sobre el terreno, todo para minimizar los riesgos.
Entre tanto, desde el Centro Estratégico de Control se podrá verificar la seguridad en los desplazamientos, la detección de cultivos ilícitos a corta distancia, la deforestación y se logrará monitorear el desarrollo de actividades de inteligencia y procedimientos judiciales.
Este avance tecnológico, que funcionará en el marco del eje de control y prevención del plan de choque ‘El que la hace la paga’, Más cerca del ciudadano, tiene el objetivo de mantener las condiciones de convivencia y seguridad ciudadana, también como parte de la misionalidad constitucional de conservar y proteger el medio ambiente, todo alineado al monitoreo y verificación de la sustitución de cultivos ilícitos.
Lo anterior teniendo en cuenta la Estrategia de Intervención Integral contra el Narcotráfico, contemplada en el Plan Estratégico Institucional ‘Colombia Bicentenaria’, Seguridad con legalidad, más cerca del ciudadano, que compila la política antidrogas del Gobierno Nacional y los alcances del proceso de Modernización y Transformación Institucional (MTI), hoja de ruta con visión 2030 que busca entregarle al país policías más humanos, íntegros, disciplinados, innovadores y efectivos en su gestión; policías más cerca del ciudadano.
La Institución reitera que está disponible la Línea 167 Antidrogas ‘Todos contra el narcotráfico’, en la que la colaboración ciudadana, especialmente a través de la Red de Participación Cívica, es clave para reportar la presencia de jíbaros u ‘ollas’ en barrios y comunidades y cualquier actividad relacionada con el tráfico de drogas ilícitas.
The EAF-Nansen Programme fielded a mission to Cote d’Ivoire, Togo and Benin in November 2018 as part of the Programme’s support for the implementation of management plans for beach seine fisheries in the Gulf of Guinea. The team for the mission was made up of Dr Kwame Koranteng, who was the Coordinator of the EAF-Nansen Project until 2017, and Mr Matthieu Bernardon, an independent consultant. The objectives of the mission were:
1.To assess the status of implementation of the beach seine management plan in each country,
2.To understand recent developments in the fisheries sector since 2013 when the plans were completed and approved for implementation and the need for possible updates,
3.To identify other projects and initiatives in place that could be in synergy with or in support of the implementation of the beach seine fisheries management plan, and
4.To prioritize activities from the plan that could be supported by the EAF-Nansen Programme, and to assess the needs for the same.
In each country, the team had initial discussions with the Director of Fisheries, the Focal Point of the Programme and relevant staff of the FAO Representation. A national workshop was then held which was attended by stakeholders (fishers, fisheries managers and researchers, security personnel and environmental protection/management officers, among others). At the workshop, the group reviewed the activities included in the management plan, identified priority actions and agreed on implementation modalities including the role of a national implementation or steering committees. In Cote d’Ivoire, the team also visited a community of beach seine operators in Jacqueville, a coastal town 40 km west of Abidjan.
At Jacqueville, some of the problems that the beach seine fishery is facing, particularly poor catches were evident. The dependence of a large sector of the fishing community on the beach fishery was also obvious as so many women and children were at the beach waiting for the catch from the only unit that operated that day. Interestingly, many of the women were able to take home small portions of the rather poor catch. One of the issues identified in the management plans is the clogging of nets by marine litter and sargasum weeds during fishing operations. On the day of the visit the entire beach was full of the weed which had been washed ashore over days and the bag of the beach seine net was also full of weeds together with the catch.
The mission noted that in all three countries key actions have been taken towards implementation of the management plan. In Togo, the government has provided funds to procure netting materials of the appropriate mesh size to replace the existing bags of the beach seine nets as recommended in the management plan. In Cote d’Ivoire and Benin, new laws have come into force that give legal backing to the implementation of the management plan. Discussions are ongoing in Benin that could lead to a complete ban of the beach seine fishery in the country.
It would be recalled that between 2009 and 2013, the then EAF-Nansen Project provided technical and financial support to a number of partner countries in Africa to develop management plans for selected fisheries using the ecosystem approach to fisheries (EAF) framework. In each country, a multi-stakeholder National Task Group was set up and facilitated by the EAF-Nansen Project to lead the preparation of the management plan. The plans for Cote d’Ivoire, Togo and Benin were among those that were finalised and approved for implementation by the Minister responsible for fisheries in each country. The NTGs of the three countries, as well as Ghana, collaborated in the preparation of the management plans to ensure that the recommended actions and management measures were similar in the region since the fishery is the same. In this phase of the Nansen Programme, support is being provided for the implementation of the plans through the establishment and operationalization of a fisheries management cycle (FMC) in each country.
I'm no good at digi post, can't get this to look right. am learning though.
Pentax 67
Olympus xa2
Bessa R3a
Leica M4p
Yashica Electro 35cc
Zeiss Ikon Super Ikonta
... should have been a melon.
the garden stands ready but it isn't time to plant. olympus e-300 with meyer-optik gorlitz lydith 30mm f/3.5
The EAF-Nansen Programme fielded a mission to Cote d’Ivoire, Togo and Benin in November 2018 as part of the Programme’s support for the implementation of management plans for beach seine fisheries in the Gulf of Guinea. The team for the mission was made up of Dr Kwame Koranteng, who was the Coordinator of the EAF-Nansen Project until 2017, and Mr Matthieu Bernardon, an independent consultant. The objectives of the mission were:
1.To assess the status of implementation of the beach seine management plan in each country,
2.To understand recent developments in the fisheries sector since 2013 when the plans were completed and approved for implementation and the need for possible updates,
3.To identify other projects and initiatives in place that could be in synergy with or in support of the implementation of the beach seine fisheries management plan, and
4.To prioritize activities from the plan that could be supported by the EAF-Nansen Programme, and to assess the needs for the same.
In each country, the team had initial discussions with the Director of Fisheries, the Focal Point of the Programme and relevant staff of the FAO Representation. A national workshop was then held which was attended by stakeholders (fishers, fisheries managers and researchers, security personnel and environmental protection/management officers, among others). At the workshop, the group reviewed the activities included in the management plan, identified priority actions and agreed on implementation modalities including the role of a national implementation or steering committees. In Cote d’Ivoire, the team also visited a community of beach seine operators in Jacqueville, a coastal town 40 km west of Abidjan.
At Jacqueville, some of the problems that the beach seine fishery is facing, particularly poor catches were evident. The dependence of a large sector of the fishing community on the beach fishery was also obvious as so many women and children were at the beach waiting for the catch from the only unit that operated that day. Interestingly, many of the women were able to take home small portions of the rather poor catch. One of the issues identified in the management plans is the clogging of nets by marine litter and sargasum weeds during fishing operations. On the day of the visit the entire beach was full of the weed which had been washed ashore over days and the bag of the beach seine net was also full of weeds together with the catch.
The mission noted that in all three countries key actions have been taken towards implementation of the management plan. In Togo, the government has provided funds to procure netting materials of the appropriate mesh size to replace the existing bags of the beach seine nets as recommended in the management plan. In Cote d’Ivoire and Benin, new laws have come into force that give legal backing to the implementation of the management plan. Discussions are ongoing in Benin that could lead to a complete ban of the beach seine fishery in the country.
It would be recalled that between 2009 and 2013, the then EAF-Nansen Project provided technical and financial support to a number of partner countries in Africa to develop management plans for selected fisheries using the ecosystem approach to fisheries (EAF) framework. In each country, a multi-stakeholder National Task Group was set up and facilitated by the EAF-Nansen Project to lead the preparation of the management plan. The plans for Cote d’Ivoire, Togo and Benin were among those that were finalised and approved for implementation by the Minister responsible for fisheries in each country. The NTGs of the three countries, as well as Ghana, collaborated in the preparation of the management plans to ensure that the recommended actions and management measures were similar in the region since the fishery is the same. In this phase of the Nansen Programme, support is being provided for the implementation of the plans through the establishment and operationalization of a fisheries management cycle (FMC) in each country.
The exploitation rights for this text are the property of the Vienna Tourist Board. This text may be reprinted free of charge until further notice, even partially and in edited form. Forward sample copy to: Vienna Tourist Board, Media Management, Invalidenstraße 6, 1030 Vienna; media.rel@wien.info. All information in this text without guarantee.
Author: Andreas Nierhaus, Curator of Architecture/Wien Museum
Last updated January 2014
Architecture in Vienna
Vienna's 2,000-year history is present in a unique density in the cityscape. The layout of the center dates back to the Roman city and medieval road network. Romanesque and Gothic churches characterize the streets and squares as well as palaces and mansions of the baroque city of residence. The ring road is an expression of the modern city of the 19th century, in the 20th century extensive housing developments set accents in the outer districts. Currently, large-scale urban development measures are implemented; distinctive buildings of international star architects complement the silhouette of the city.
Due to its function as residence of the emperor and European power center, Vienna for centuries stood in the focus of international attention, but it was well aware of that too. As a result, developed an outstanding building culture, and still today on a worldwide scale only a few cities can come up with a comparable density of high-quality architecture. For several years now, Vienna has increased its efforts to connect with its historical highlights and is drawing attention to itself with some spectacular new buildings. The fastest growing city in the German-speaking world today most of all in residential construction is setting standards. Constants of the Viennese architecture are respect for existing structures, the palpability of historical layers and the dialogue between old and new.
Culmination of medieval architecture: the Stephansdom
The oldest architectural landmark of the city is St. Stephen's Cathedral. Under the rule of the Habsburgs, defining the face of the city from the late 13th century until 1918 in a decisive way, the cathedral was upgraded into the sacral monument of the political ambitions of the ruling house. The 1433 completed, 137 meters high southern tower, by the Viennese people affectionately named "Steffl", is a masterpiece of late Gothic architecture in Europe. For decades he was the tallest stone structure in Europe, until today he is the undisputed center of the city.
The baroque residence
Vienna's ascension into the ranks of the great European capitals began in Baroque. Among the most important architects are Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach and Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt. Outside the city walls arose a chain of summer palaces, including the garden Palais Schwarzenberg (1697-1704) as well as the Upper and Lower Belvedere of Prince Eugene of Savoy (1714-22). Among the most important city palaces are the Winter Palace of Prince Eugene (1695-1724, now a branch of the Belvedere) and the Palais Daun-Kinsky (auction house in Kinsky 1713-19). The emperor himself the Hofburg had complemented by buildings such as the Imperial Library (1722-26) and the Winter Riding School (1729-34). More important, however, for the Habsburgs was the foundation of churches and monasteries. Thus arose before the city walls Fischer von Erlach's Karlskirche (1714-39), which with its formal and thematic complex show façade belongs to the major works of European Baroque. In colored interior rooms like that of St. Peter's Church (1701-22), the contemporary efforts for the synthesis of architecture, painting and sculpture becomes visible.
Upgrading into metropolis: the ring road time (Ringstraßenzeit)
Since the Baroque, reflections on extension of the hopelessly overcrowed city were made, but only Emperor Franz Joseph ordered in 1857 the demolition of the fortifications and the connection of the inner city with the suburbs. 1865, the Ring Road was opened. It is as the most important boulevard of Europe an architectural and in terms of urban development achievement of the highest rank. The original building structure is almost completely preserved and thus conveys the authentic image of a metropolis of the 19th century. The public representational buildings speak, reflecting accurately the historicism, by their style: The Greek Antique forms of Theophil Hansen's Parliament (1871-83) stood for democracy, the Renaissance of the by Heinrich Ferstel built University (1873-84) for the flourishing of humanism, the Gothic of the Town Hall (1872-83) by Friedrich Schmidt for the medieval civic pride.
Dominating remained the buildings of the imperial family: Eduard van der Nüll's and August Sicardsburg's Opera House (1863-69), Gottfried Semper's and Carl Hasenauer's Burgtheater (1874-88), their Museum of Art History and Museum of Natural History (1871-91) and the Neue (New) Hofburg (1881-1918 ). At the same time the ring road was the preferred residential area of mostly Jewish haute bourgeoisie. With luxurious palaces the families Ephrussi, Epstein or Todesco made it clear that they had taken over the cultural leadership role in Viennese society. In the framework of the World Exhibition of 1873, the new Vienna presented itself an international audience. At the ring road many hotels were opened, among them the Hotel Imperial and today's Palais Hansen Kempinski.
Laboratory of modernity: Vienna around 1900
Otto Wagner's Postal Savings Bank (1903-06) was one of the last buildings in the Ring road area Otto Wagner's Postal Savings Bank (1903-06), which with it façade, liberated of ornament, and only decorated with "functional" aluminum buttons and the glass banking hall now is one of the icons of modern architecture. Like no other stood Otto Wagner for the dawn into the 20th century: His Metropolitan Railway buildings made the public transport of the city a topic of architecture, the church of the Psychiatric hospital at Steinhofgründe (1904-07) is considered the first modern church.
With his consistent focus on the function of a building ("Something impractical can not be beautiful"), Wagner marked a whole generation of architects and made Vienna the laboratory of modernity: in addition to Joseph Maria Olbrich, the builder of the Secession (1897-98) and Josef Hoffmann, the architect of the at the western outskirts located Purkersdorf Sanatorium (1904) and founder of the Vienna Workshop (Wiener Werkstätte, 1903) is mainly to mention Adolf Loos, with the Loos House at the square Michaelerplatz (1909-11) making architectural history. The extravagant marble cladding of the business zone stands in maximal contrast, derived from the building function, to the unadorned facade above, whereby its "nudity" became even more obvious - a provocation, as well as his culture-critical texts ("Ornament and Crime"), with which he had greatest impact on the architecture of the 20th century. Public contracts Loos remained denied. His major works therefore include villas, apartment facilities and premises as the still in original state preserved Tailor salon Knize at Graben (1910-13) and the restored Loos Bar (1908-09) near the Kärntner Straße (passageway Kärntner Durchgang).
Between the Wars: International Modern Age and social housing
After the collapse of the monarchy in 1918, Vienna became capital of the newly formed small country of Austria. In the heart of the city, the architects Theiss & Jaksch built 1931-32 the first skyscraper in Vienna as an exclusive residential address (Herrengasse - alley 6-8). To combat the housing shortage for the general population, the social democratic city government in a globally unique building program within a few years 60,000 apartments in hundreds of apartment buildings throughout the city area had built, including the famous Karl Marx-Hof by Karl Ehn (1925-30). An alternative to the multi-storey buildings with the 1932 opened International Werkbundsiedlung was presented, which was attended by 31 architects from Austria, Germany, France, Holland and the USA and showed models for affordable housing in greenfield areas. With buildings of Adolf Loos, André Lurçat, Richard Neutra, Gerrit Rietveld, the Werkbundsiedlung, which currently is being restored at great expense, is one of the most important documents of modern architecture in Austria.
Modernism was also expressed in significant Villa buildings: The House Beer (1929-31) by Josef Frank exemplifies the refined Wiener living culture of the interwar period, while the house Stonborough-Wittgenstein (1926-28, today Bulgarian Cultural Institute), built by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein together with the architect Paul Engelmann for his sister Margarete, by its aesthetic radicalism and mathematical rigor represents a special case within contemporary architecture.
Expulsion, war and reconstruction
After the "Anschluss (Annexation)" to the German Reich in 1938, numerous Jewish builders, architects (female and male ones), who had been largely responsible for the high level of Viennese architecture, have been expelled from Austria. During the Nazi era, Vienna remained largely unaffected by structural transformations, apart from the six flak towers built for air defense of Friedrich Tamms (1942-45), made of solid reinforced concrete which today are present as memorials in the cityscape.
The years after the end of World War II were characterized by the reconstruction of the by bombs heavily damaged city. The architecture of those times was marked by aesthetic pragmatism, but also by the attempt to connect with the period before 1938 and pick up on current international trends. Among the most important buildings of the 1950s are Roland Rainer's City Hall (1952-58), the by Oswald Haerdtl erected Wien Museum at Karlsplatz (1954-59) and the 21er Haus of Karl Schwanzer (1958-62).
The youngsters come
Since the 1960s, a young generation was looking for alternatives to the moderate modernism of the reconstruction years. With visionary designs, conceptual, experimental and above all temporary architectures, interventions and installations, Raimund Abraham, Günther Domenig, Eilfried Huth, Hans Hollein, Walter Pichler and the groups Coop Himmelb(l)au, Haus-Rucker-Co and Missing Link rapidly got international attention. Although for the time being it was more designed than built, was the influence on the postmodern and deconstructivist trends of the 1970s and 1980s also outside Austria great. Hollein's futuristic "Retti" candle shop at Charcoal Market/Kohlmarkt (1964-65) and Domenig's biomorphic building of the Central Savings Bank in Favoriten (10th district of Vienna - 1975-79) are among the earliest examples, later Hollein's Haas-Haus (1985-90), the loft conversion Falkestraße (1987/88) by Coop Himmelb(l)au or Domenig's T Center (2002-04) were added. Especially Domenig, Hollein, Coop Himmelb(l)au and the architects Ortner & Ortner (ancient members of Haus-Rucker-Co) by orders from abroad the new Austrian and Viennese architecture made a fixed international concept.
MuseumQuarter and Gasometer
Since the 1980s, the focus of building in Vienna lies on the compaction of the historic urban fabric that now as urban habitat of high quality no longer is put in question. Among the internationally best known projects is the by Ortner & Ortner planned MuseumsQuartier in the former imperial stables (competition 1987, 1998-2001), which with institutions such as the MUMOK - Museum of Modern Art Foundation Ludwig, the Leopold Museum, the Kunsthalle Wien, the Architecture Center Vienna and the Zoom Children's Museum on a wordwide scale is under the largest cultural complexes. After controversies in the planning phase, here an architectural compromise between old and new has been achieved at the end, whose success as an urban stage with four million visitors (2012) is overwhelming.
The dialogue between old and new, which has to stand on the agenda of building culture of a city that is so strongly influenced by history, also features the reconstruction of the Gasometer in Simmering by Coop Himmelb(l)au, Wilhelm Holzbauer, Jean Nouvel and Manfred Wehdorn (1999-2001). Here was not only created new housing, but also a historical industrial monument reinterpreted into a signal in the urban development area.
New Neighborhood
In recent years, the major railway stations and their surroundings moved into the focus of planning. Here not only necessary infrastructural measures were taken, but at the same time opened up spacious inner-city residential areas and business districts. Among the prestigious projects are included the construction of the new Vienna Central Station, started in 2010 with the surrounding office towers of the Quartier Belvedere and the residential and school buildings of the Midsummer quarter (Sonnwendviertel). Europe's largest wooden tower invites here for a spectacular view to the construction site and the entire city. On the site of the former North Station are currently being built 10,000 homes and 20,000 jobs, on that of the Aspangbahn station is being built at Europe's greatest Passive House settlement "Euro Gate", the area of the North Western Railway Station is expected to be developed from 2020 for living and working. The largest currently under construction residential project but can be found in the north-eastern outskirts, where in Seaside Town Aspern till 2028 living and working space for 40,000 people will be created.
In one of the "green lungs" of Vienna, the Prater, 2013, the WU campus was opened for the largest University of Economics of Europe. Around the central square spectacular buildings of an international architect team from Great Britain, Japan, Spain and Austria are gathered that seem to lead a sometimes very loud conversation about the status quo of contemporary architecture (Hitoshi Abe, BUSarchitektur, Peter Cook, Zaha Hadid, NO MAD Arquitectos, Carme Pinós).
Flying high
International is also the number of architects who have inscribed themselves in the last few years with high-rise buildings in the skyline of Vienna and make St. Stephen's a not always unproblematic competition. Visible from afar is Massimiliano Fuksas' 138 and 127 meters high elegant Twin Tower at Wienerberg (1999-2001). The monolithic, 75-meter-high tower of the Hotel Sofitel at the Danube Canal by Jean Nouvel (2007-10), on the other hand, reacts to the particular urban situation and stages in its top floor new perspectives to the historical center on the other side.
Also at the water stands Dominique Perrault's DC Tower (2010-13) in the Danube City - those high-rise city, in which since the start of construction in 1996, the expansion of the city north of the Danube is condensed symbolically. Even in this environment, the slim and at the same time striking vertically folded tower of Perrault is beyond all known dimensions; from its Sky Bar, from spring 2014 on you are able to enjoy the highest view of Vienna. With 250 meters, the tower is the tallest building of Austria and almost twice as high as the St. Stephen's Cathedral. Vienna, thus, has acquired a new architectural landmark which cannot be overlooked - whether it also has the potential to become a landmark of the new Vienna, only time will tell. The architectural history of Vienna, where European history is presence and new buildings enter into an exciting and not always conflict-free dialogue with a great and outstanding architectural heritage, in any case has yet to offer exciting chapters.
Info: The folder "Architecture: From Art Nouveau to the Presence" is available at the Vienna Tourist Board and can be downloaded on www.wien.info/media/files/guide-architecture-in-wien.pdf.
Rural farm near Huntsdale in Boone County Missouri by Notley Hawkins. Taken with a Canon EOS 5D Mark III camera with a Canon EF16-35mm f/2.8L USM lens at ƒ/4.0 with a 108 second exposure at ISO 100. Processed with Adobe Lightroom CC.
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©Notley Hawkins
A Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) team member inspects a soil sample after the Thompson Ridge Fire in the Sante Fe National Forest in New Mexico. The Thompson Ridge Fire in the Sante Fe National Forest approximately 10 miles north of Jemez, NM began on May 31, 2013 by human ignition consumed over 23, 965 acres. BAER is a rapid assessment of burned watersheds by a BAER team to identify imminent post-wildfire threats to human life and safety property and critical natural or cultural resources on National Forest System lands and take immediate actions to implement emergency stabilization measures before the first major storms. Fires result in loss of vegetation exposure of soil to erosion and increased water runoff that may lead to flooding increased sediment debris flows and damage to critical natural and cultural resources. BAER team members implement seeding and mulching installation to prevent erosion, erect temporary water run-off control structures that will protect recovering areas, and installation of warning signs, replace safety related facilities, remove safety hazards, prevent permanent loss of habitat for threatened and endangered species, and prevent the spread of noxious weeds and protect critical cultural resources. U.S. Forest Service photo.
The leaves are pretty much on the ground for the next 6 months or more but the color that is left still pops in the sun. A not quite ancient haybine does it's best to blend in with pine and aspen at Saginaw Minnesota
This implement(cultivater?) was downstream of the house from yesterdays post. I wish it would have been closer and with brush between them. It is what it is. Cooper County, Missouri.
+++ 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:
During the interwar period, the U.S. Navy Command had placed considerable emphasis upon the role of armed aerial reconnaissance aircraft. To meet this interest, during 1931, the young Great Lakes Aircraft Company (founded in 1929 in Cleveland, Ohio) decided to embark on the development of a new naval combat aircraft to meet this role. The new aircraft, which was designated as the SBG, was a relatively modern all-metal design, even though some conservative traits like a fixed landing gear were kept.
The SBG was a low-wing cantilever monoplane, featuring all-metal, metal-covered construction. The crew of three consisted of a pilot, a bombardier and a rear gunner. The bombardier's combat station was situated in a gondola underneath the hull. The pilot was positioned well forward in the fuselage with an excellent field of view, within a fully enclosed, air-conditioned and heated cockpit, while the observer was seated directly behind him and could descend into the ventral gondola during applicable parts of a given mission, where he had an unobstructed field of view underneath the aircraft. A lookout station at the gondola’s front end could be outfitted with a bombsight.
The fixed undercarriage was covered with spats and comprised a pair of cantilever struts and single tail wheel, all of which were outfitted with pneumatic shock absorbers. One of the more unusual features of the SBG was the design of its three-piece low-mounted wing: In order to produce a wing that was both light and strong, the wing construction combined a revolutionary heavy-gauge corrugated duralumin center box and a multi-cellular trailing edge, along with a partially stressed exterior skin composed of duralumin. It was one of the earliest implementations of a metal sandwich structure in the field of aviation. Furthermore, the wings could, for storage on carriers, be manually folded back, just outside of the landing gear.
The fuselage of the SBG had an oval-section structure, composed of a mixture of duralumin frames and stringers, which were strengthened via several struts on the middle section. The fuselage exterior was covered with smooth duralumin sheet, which was internally reinforced in some areas by corrugated sheeting. The rear fuselage featured a semi-monocoque structure. A cantilever structure composed of ribs and spars was used for the tail unit; fin and tail plane were covered by duralumin sheeting, while the rudder and elevators had finely corrugated exterior surfaces.
The SBG’s original powerplant was a Pratt & Whitney R-1830-64 Twin Wasp radial engine of 850 hp (630 kW). The aircraft's offensive payload consisted of bombs. These were carried externally underneath the fuselage and the wings, using racks; the maximum load was a single 1,935 lb. (878 kg) Bliss-Leavitt Mark 13 aerial torpedo or 1,500 lb. (700 kg) of bombs, including a single 1,000 lb. (450 kg) bomb under the fuselage and up to 200 lb. under the outer wings.
The SBG was also armed with several machine guns, including rearward-facing defensive ventral and dorsal positions, each outfitted with a manual .30 in (7.62 mm) Browning machine gun. Another fixed machine gun fired, synchronized with the engine, forward through the propeller arc.
The first XSBG-1 prototype, which was christened “Prion” by Great Lakes, was ready in early 1934 and made its maiden flight on 2nd of April. While the aircraft handled well, esp. at low speed, thanks to generously dimensioned flaps, it soon became clear that it was seriously underpowered. Therefore, Great Lakes tried to incorporate a more powerful engine. The choice fell on the new Pratt & Whitney R-2180-A Twin Hornet. However, the bigger and heavier engine called for considerable changes to the engine mount and the cowling. The R-2180 also precluded the fixed machine gun, so it was, together with the synchronization gearbox, deleted. Instead, a pair of .30 in machine guns were added to the spats, which were deepened in order to take the weapons and the magazines.
Furthermore, the heavier engine shifted the aircraft’s center of gravity forward, so that the tail section had to be lengthened by roughly 1’ and the tail surfaces were enlarged, too. Various other alterations were made to the wings, including the adoption of more effective slotted ailerons, improved flaps and center-section slots. The latter feature served to smooth the airflow over the tail when flown at high angles of incidence. However, despite these changes, the SBG’s good handling did not suffer, and the modified XSBG-2 took to the air for the first time in late 1935, with a much better performance.
Satisfied with the changes, the US Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer) placed an initial order for 54 SBG-2s in 1936 with the aircraft entering service during 1938, serving on USS Yorktown and Enterprise. However, faults were discovered with the Mark XIII torpedo at this point. Many were seen to hit the target yet failed to explode; there was also a tendency to run deeper than the set depth. It took over a year for the defects to be corrected. Another problem of the SBG when carrying the torpedo was the aimer’s position, which was located directly behind the weapon and obstructed the bomb aimer’s field of view forward. When deploying bombs from higher altitudes, this was not a problem at all, but as a consequence the SBG rarely carried torpedoes. Therefore, a second order of 48 aircraft (designated SBG-3) were pure bombers. These lacked any torpedo equipment, but they received a ventral displacement yoke that allowed to deploy bombs in a shallow dive and release them outside of the propeller arc. Furthermore, the bomb aimer/observer station received a more generous glazing, improving the field of view and offering the prone crewman in this position more space and comfort. Another modification was the reinforcement of the underwing hardpoints, so that these could now carry stores of up to 325 lb each or, alternatively, drop tanks. While the total payload was not changed, the SBG-3 could carry and deploy up to three depth charges against submarines, and the extended range was a welcome asset for reconnaissance missions.
In prewar use, SBG units were engaged in training and other operational activities and were gradually approaching the end of their useful service life with at least one aircraft being converted to target tug duty. By 1940, the US Navy was aware that the SBG had become outclassed by the fighters and bombers of other nations and a replacement was in the works, but it was not yet in service when the US entered World War II. By then, attrition had reduced their numbers to just over 60 aircraft, and with the arrival of the Curtiss SB2C “Helldiver” in December 1942, the obsolete SBGs were retired.
General characteristics:
Crew: 3
Length: 31 ft 9 in (9.682 m)
Wingspan: 45 ft 9 in (13.95 m)
Height: 10 ft 10 in (3.3 m)
Wing area: 288 sq ft (26.8 m²)
Empty weight: 4,251 lb. (1,928 kg)
Gross weight: 6,378 - 6,918 lb. (2,893 - 3,138 kg) for reconnaissance missions
7,705 - 7,773 lb (3,495 - 3,526 kg) for bombing missions
Fuel capacity: 200 US gal (740 l; 160 imp gal) in six wing tanks plus
7.9 US gal (30 l; 6.6 imp gal) in a gravity feed collector tank in the fuselage
18 US gal (70 l; 15 imp gal) of engine oil was also carried in a forward fuselage tank
Powerplant:
1 × Pratt & Whitney R-2180-A Twin Hornet 14 cylinder radial engine with 1,200 hp (865 kW),
driving a 3-bladed Hamilton-Standard Hydromatic, 11 ft 3 in (3.43 m) diameter constant-speed
fully-feathering propeller
Performance:
Maximum speed: 245 mph (395 km/h, 213 kn) at 3,650 m (11,980 ft)
210 mph (338 km/h, 183 kn) at sea level
Stall speed: 110 km/h (68 mph, 59 kn)
Range: 1,260 km (780 mi, 680 nmi)
Service ceiling: 7,300 m (24,000 ft)
Time to altitude: 2,000 m (6,600 ft) in 4 minutes
4,000 m (13,000 ft) in 11 minutes 10 seconds
Wing loading: 116 kg/m² (24 lb/sq ft) to 130 kg/m2 (27 lb/sq ft)
Power/mass: 6.3–6.8 kg/kW (10.4–11.2 lb/hp)
Armament:
2x fixed forward firing 0.30 “ (7.62 mm) Browning machine guns in the spats, firing forward,
plus 2x flexibly mounted 0.30 “ (7.62 mm) Browning machine guns in ventral and dorsal positions
A total of up to 1,500 lb (700 kg) of bombs on hardpoints under the fuselage (max. 1.000 lb; the SCG-2
could carry a single Mk. XIII torpedo) and under the wings (max. 325 lb per hardpoint, SCG-2 only 200 lb)
The kit and its assembly:
I had the idea to convert a PZL.23 into a carrier-borne light bomber on the agenda for a long time and also already a Heller kit stashed away – but it took the “In the Navy” group build at whatifmodelers.com in early 2020 to dig everything out from the stash and start the hardware phase.
Originally, this was inspired by a picture of a Ju 87D with USN “Yellow wings” markings which I came across while doing online research. This looked really good, but since the USN would never have accepted a liquid-cooled engine on one of its pre-WWII aircraft, the concept had IMHO some flaws. When I came across the PZL.23 in another context, I found that the aircraft, with its cockpit placed well forward and the generous window area, could also be a good carrier-based recce/light bomber/torpedo aircraft? This was the conceptual birth of the SBG.
The basis is the vintage, original Heller kit of the PZL.23: a VERY nice kit. It has been crisply molded, fit is very good, and even the interior detail is decent, e.g. with a nice fuselage structure and dashboard. Surface details are raised but very fine, and the styrene is also easy to handle.
Basically the PZL.23 was built OOB. The only changes I made are a crew of three figures (all Matchbox WWII pilots, two of them with their heads in different directions), a tail wheel instead of the original skid, an opening for an arrester hook under the fin (there’s even plausible space available!) and a new engine: the PZL.23’s bulky 9 cylinder Jupiter radial engine with its generous cowling and the two-blade propeller was completely replaced. The engine dummy is actually a matching R-2600 and comes from a Matchbox SB2C, even though its rear bulkhead was trimmed away so that it would fit into the new cowling. The latter came from an Italeri La-5FN, cut off long time ago from another conversion project, and I added a carburetor/oil cooler fairing underneath. Inside of the new engine I implanted a styrene tube which attaches the engine to the fuselage and also takes the metal axis of the new propeller, a (rather clumsy) donor from a Matchbox Douglas A-20G. The whole package works well, though, and gives the PZL.23 a more modern and different look.
A late modification is the glasshouse for the rear gunner. Since the PZL.23 offered considerable comfort for its crew, at least for pilot and observer, I thought that a closed rear position would make sense. I found an old rear gunner station glaizing from a vintage Airfix B-17G in the stash, and with some tailoring (including an opening for the OOB manual machine gun) the piece could be inserted into the fuselage opening. Small gaps were left, but these were simply filled with white glue. I think this was a good move, since it changes the PZL.23’s profile a little.
Other small cosmetic changes include the machine guns instead of the original large landing lights on the spats, an additional antenna mast and a cranked pitot, made from brass wire. Furthermore, I added small underwing bomb pylons and a ventral hardpoint with a scratched swing arm and a 500 lb iron bomb from an Academy kit.
Painting and markings:
For proper anachronism and some color in the shelf, I wanted the SBG to be a pre-WWII aircraft in the USN’s bright “Yellow Wings” markings, just like the Ju 87 mentioned above. As a slight twist, the fuselage was finished in all-over Light Gull Grey (FS 36440, Humbrol 40) instead of a NMF – some aircraft like F4Bs were finished this way, even though some fabric-covered parts were still painted with alu dope. In 1940, however, the bright colors would be replaced by a uniform light grey livery with subdued markings, anyway.
The aircraft’s individual markings were a bit tricky, because the USN has a very complicated color code system to identify not only the carrier to which an aircraft would belong, color markings would also identify the individual aircraft within a full squadron of 18 aircraft and its six sections. I won’t go into details, but I chose to depict the lead aircraft of section two of the scout bomber squadron on board of USS Enterprise.
For this carrier, the tail surfaces became blue (I used Modelmaster French Blue for the authentic “True Blue”), while the 2nd section had white aircraft markings on fuselage and wings. The lead aircraft (connected with the individual aircraft code “4”) had a full ring marking around the cowling. The fuselage band seems to be rather optional on bomber aircraft (more frequent on fighters?), but I eventually decided to add it - pictures suggest that probably only lead aircraft of a Section in the scout or torpedo squadrons carried this marking?
Like the cowling ring, it was painted with white and then black borders were added with decal strips. The wings were painted with Revell 310 (Lufthansa Yellow, RAL 1028), which is a pretty rich tone, and the section markings on top of them were fully created with decal material, a white 5mm stripe over a black 6mm stripe on each wing.
The aircraft’s tactical code was created from single US 45° numbers; the “S” had to be scratched from an “8”, since the decal sheet did not contain letters… Other decals were gathered from the scrap box and improvised.
After the free-standing exhaust pipes had been fixed, the kit received a light weathering treatment and was finally sealed with a coat of semi-matt acrylic varnish (Italeri semi-gloss with some matt varnish added).
A colorful aircraft model, and the transformation from a Polish light bomber into an American armed scout aircraft worked well – for an interesting result with that anachronistic touch that many interwar designs carried. However, even though the conversion has been conceptually successful, I am not happy with the finish. The glossy Humbrol paints I used refused to cure properly, and the decals were also not without problems (e.g. when you realize that the roundels you wanted to use had a poor opacity, so that the yellow underneath shines blatantly through). But despite a lot of improvisation, the outcome is quite O.K.
Actualmente, Gamboa es el "Jefe Apolo", jefe de la policía de tránsito del DF. Pero hace unos años, Rosales aprobó el operativo policiaco en el News Divine, el cual estuvo tan mal hecho que 12 personas murieron debido a la pobre actuación de la Policía ( roblesmaloof.wordpress.com/2011/08/16/luis-rosales-gamboa... )
El primero de Diciembre pasado, Luis Rosales estuvo a cargo de la Secretaría de Seguridad Pública del DF e implementó el operativo policiaco en donde se dieron 69 detenciones injustificadas, se propinaron sendas golpizas a los manifestantes y se demostró gran descontrol sobre los grupos de granaderos de la Policía ( www.excelsior.com.mx/index.php?m=nota&seccion=seccion... )
En la nota de hoy de Julio Hernández López de la Jornada, un agente de la Policía que actúo ese día denuncia la ineptitud de los mandos policiacos para llevar a cabo operativos de este tipo (www.jornada.unam.mx/2012/12/10/politica/007n1pol )
-------------
Sobre la foto: Se la tomé en el Sanborns que está al lado del Ángel de la Independencia cuando estaba cenando ahí al mismo tiempo que nosotros nos manifestábamos contra las detenciones injustificadas en el Ángel. Supongo que nunca se imaginó que alguien lo reconocería.
Aquí un video del momento: revoluciontrespuntocero.com/luis-rosales-el-jefe-apolo-en...
+++ 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:
The Hawker Hunter was a transonic British jet-powered fighter aircraft that was developed by Hawker Aircraft for the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It was designed to take advantage of the newly developed Rolls-Royce Avon turbojet engine and the swept wing and was the first jet-powered aircraft produced by Hawker to be procured by the RAF. On 7 September 1953, the modified first prototype broke the world air speed record for aircraft, achieving a speed of 727.63 mph (1,171.01 km/h; 632.29 kn).
The single-seat Hunter was introduced to service in 1954 as a maneuverable day interceptor aircraft, quickly succeeding first-generation jet fighters in RAF service such as the Gloster Meteor and the de Havilland Venom. The all-weather/night fighter role was filled by the Gloster Javelin. Successively improved variants of the type were produced, adopting increasingly more capable engine models, and expanding its fuel capacity amongst other modifications being implemented.
The Hunter was exported to many countries all over the world, and one of the first foreign customers was Sweden. In the early 1950s, the Swedish Air Force saw the need for an interceptor that could reach enemy bombers at a higher altitude than the J 29 Tunnan that formed the backbone of the fighter force. A contract for 120 Hawker Hunter Mk 50s (an export version, equivalent to the RAF’s contemporary Mk. 4) was therefore signed on 29 June 1954 and the first aircraft was delivered on 26 August 1955. The model was locally designated J 34 and was assigned to two fighter wings F 8 (Barkaby) and F 18 (Tullinge) near Stockholm to defend the country’s capital as an interim solution before a more modern interceptor in the form of the indigenous Saab J 35 Draken was ready for service.
The J 34 was not fitted with a search radar, it only had a simple ranging radar for the guns and was consequently a pure day fighter aircraft. Its flying characteristics were excellent, though. It was a fast aircraft, with a maximum speed of 1.150 km/h, in spite of the fact that the Rolls-Royce Avon 23 (locally designated RM 5B) engine with a thrust of 4.080 kp lacked an afterburner. The Swedish Hunters’ mission was primarily to intercept enemy bombers, which were expected to attack from high altitudes, and they complemented the Swedish Air Force’s fleet of Saab J 32B, a radar-equipped all-weather/night fighter version of the Saab 32 Lansen fighter-bomber..
The J 34 was initially only armed with four 30 mm (1.18 in) cannon but soon retrofitted with launch rails for two AIM-9 Sidewinders (Swedish designation Rb 24) under the outer wings that markedly improved the interceptor’s effectiveness. A project to improve the performance of the J 34 further resulted in one Hunter being fitted with a Swedish-designed afterburner in 1958. While this significantly increased the engine's thrust, there was little improvement in overall performance, so that the project was shelved.
The Hunters’ career as an interceptor in Swedish service did not last long, though: During the 1960s, the J 34s were gradually replaced by supersonic J 35 Draken and reassigned to less prominent air wings, F 9 in Gothenburg and F 10 in Ängelholm.
At that time the Swedish Air Force was in a critical transitory phase concerning tactical photo reconnaissance. The current standard type for this mission was the Saab S 29C from the late Forties, complemented by the bigger Saab S 32C, which was a photo reconnaissance version developed from the A 32A attack aircraft. 45 of the latter aircraft had been built between 1958 and 1959 and the machines were equipped with a PS-432/A radar with extended range and with six cameras. Additionally, a photo reconnaissance version of the state-of-the-art supersonic Saab 35 Draken was under development, but when its first prototype flew in 1963, it was uncertain when it would become fully operational - the Draken’s interceptor variants had priority, and technology was advancing so fast at that time that upgrades were already in the making while the first production J 35s were delivered. In the meantime, the S 29C had become outdated and the more modern S 32C was rather optimized for maritime patrol. The relatively young surplus of J 34s fighters offered the opportunity to convert several airframes into tactical photo reconnaissance aircraft for low-level use over land, primarily as a replacement for the S 29Cs and as a stopgap until the S 35E would arrive at frontline reconnaissance units.
This led to the S 34B (the J 34s were consequently re-designated J 34A for better differentiation) conversion program. Sixteen airframes with relatively few flying hours were set aside and modified by Saab at Linköping in 1963. The airframe remained at the Hunter Mk. 50/Mk.4s’ standard and retained the type’s original non-afterburner engine and unmodified wings (in the meantime, a dog-toothed wing had been introduced with the Mk.6 that improved handling). The nose section was thoroughly modified to carry a broad array of cameras, and lengthened by about 4'. To compensate for the center of gravity shift through the extra equipment in the nose and create enough space for it, the Hunter’s fuselage-mounted 30 mm guns were completely deleted. The area under the cockpit was widened into a shallow tub with a flat floor, together with an extended, pointed tip which improved low-level flight stability with the now nose but still lacked any radar.
The re-contoured nose/cockpit section contained climatized compartments and windows for a total of six cameras, optimized for low-level reconnaissance and mountable in different angles:
- a long focal-length forward-looking SKA 16b (Vinten F.95) camera in the nose tip
- a sideways-looking wide angle SKA 42-44 camera (facing either to portside or starboard)
- a left oblique/forward infrared camera (various types were used, e.g. an SKA 16a/150 or an SKA 10/92
- a right oblique/forward SKA 16/10
- a vertical SKA 15/15 (F.49 Eagle IX Mk. 2)
- a vertical SKA 16a/150 infrared camera
The Hunter’s four underwing hardpoints were retained, though. All were plumbed to accept drop tanks for long-range missions and the capability to carry a pair of Sidewinders on the outer stations for self-defense was retained, too – even though this option was later in service almost never used. Later during their career, the S 34Bs could alternatively carry defensive equipment like chaff dispensers (e.g. the Motmedelskapsel KB a.k.a. BOZ-100) and early ECM devices like the Petrus/Adrian jamming pods from the Saab 32. However, most of the time the S 34Bs were operated in clean configuration to maximize low-level speed and handling, or just with a pair of drop tanks for long-range patrols along the Swedish borders.
An initial S 34B prototype was built in 1964 and flown late during the same year. Thorough operational tests with the camera installations lasted until mid-1965 at the Swedish Air Force’s Försökscentralen in Linköping. The full conversion program started in June 1964 and the first S 34B conversions were delivered to the Södermanland Wing (F11) in August 1965, where they were exclusively operated and replaced all S 29Cs of the unit’s first squadron, while the second squadron stuck to the S 29C but received four Sk 35C Draken trainers, a measure to prepare the unit for the eventual complete conversion to the S 35D. A total of seventeen Hawker Hunter Mk.50s were modified until 1966, including the prototype, which was brought to the operational S 34B status, too, and integrated into the active fleet. Unlike the J 34A fighters, the recce Hunters received a disruptive and unique three-tone camouflage in dark blue and two shades of dark green on the upper surfaces, reflecting their low-altitude mission profile. Another odd feature of F11’s J 34Bs were their individual tactical codes in the form of colored (red) numeric characters instead of letters, sharing this practice with F11’s contemporary S 32C Lansens.
Overall, the Hunter’s service with the Swedish Air Force was not long, though. The J 34A day fighters were already retired from service in 1969 and partly sold, while the S 34Bs were kept active until 1974, when operations at F11’s home base were expanded: the Swedish Air Force Intelligence School (FV UndS) was relocated to Nyköping and Saab 35 Draken fully replaced the last S 29Cs and the recce Hunters (which both lacked trainer versions). But already a year later, when the Palme government presented its bill 1975:75, a dismantling of two flotilla administrations, Södermanland's air fleet (F 11) and Kalmar air fleet (F 12), was proposed. The background was that the Swedish Defense Forces' peace organization investigation (FFU) in January 1971, tasked with investigating how the air force's peace organization from the mid-1980s could be adapted to the development of the war organization. That the flotilla would be dismantled was a matter of course, as the FFU considered that the reconnaissance divisions should be redistributed to other flotillas, primarily for operational and readiness reasons. Furthermore, the aircraft that the flotilla was armed with, the S 32C Lansen and the S 35D Draken, were to be replaced in the 1980s with the new SH/SF 37 Viggen. This also meant that aerial reconnaissance could then be solved in three aviation divisions, instead of the five reconnaissance aviation divisions that then existed within the Air Force.
General characteristics:
Crew: 1
Length: 49 ft 0.5 in (14.98 m)
Wingspan: 33 ft 8 in (10.26 m)
Height: 13 ft 2 in (4.01 m)
Wing area: 349 sq ft (32.4 m²)
Airfoil: Hawker 8.5% symmetrical
Empty weight: 14,122 lb (6,406 kg)
Gross weight: 17,750 lb (8,051 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 24,600 lb (11,158 kg)
Powerplant:
1× Rolls-Royce RM5B1 (Avon 23) turbojet engine, 9,000 lbf (40.8 kN) thrust
Performance:
Maximum speed: 623 mph (1,003 km/h, 541 kn, Mach 0.94) at 36,000 ft (11,000 m)
715 mph (621 kn; 1,151 km/h) at sea level
Range: 385 mi (620 km, 335 nmi) with internal fuel only,
1,900 mi (3,100 km, 1,700 nmi) ferry range with maximum external fuel
Service ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,000 m)
Rate of climb: 17,200 ft/min (87 m/s)
Wing loading: 51.6 lb/sq ft (252 kg/m²)
Thrust/weight: 0.56
Armament:
No internal guns;
4× underwing hardpoints with a total capacity of 7,400 lb (3,400 kg)
The kit and its assembly:
This fictional converted Hawker Hunter is a submission to the 2022 “Lightning, Canberra & Hunter” group build at whatifmodellers.com. The idea for a recce Hunter came when I wondered why there had not been a more dedicated variant than the FR.10, and when the GB came up I decided to build one from a Revell 1:72 kit. Sweden appeared as a good potential and attractive operator, as the Hunter would fit well between the Tunnan and Draken era – and I also had some donor parts from Swedish aircraft that would find their way into the rhinoplasty.
The kit is Revell’s 1:72 Hawker Hunter F.6 – initially I wanted to use an FGA.9 variant of this kit, but upon close inspection I found out that the Swedish Hunters were of a much earlier standard that made the FGA.9 an unsuitable starting point. While the Mk.4/50’s dog-teeth-less wings would be realized with a conversion set from Wolfpack, the early variants’ non-afterburner jet exhaust would have had to be scratched. It was eventually easier to procure a suitable variant of the Revell kit that offered this nozzle OOB, #04350, the first boxing from 2007 which was subsequently re-issued several times with slightly modified parts/sprues that depict later Hunter variants.
When I started building the kit, however, I found out that the kit was missing two parts – very untypical for Revell?! Apparently, the missing parts had broken off of the sprues during the packaging process, since both box and bag inside were still sealed when I received the kit. One missing piece was one of the separate dog-tooth slat sections for the wings, which could be easily replaced with the parts from the very crisp Wolfpack Hunter F.1/2/4/5 resin conversion set (which also includes a longer metal pitot) that was actually designed for the Revell kit, the other was a main landing gear cover. The latter was replaced by Revell of Germany for free within a couple of days after I had placed a request for a spare part at their service touchpoint. Great service!
The Revell Hunter is nice and probably the best contemporary kit of this aircraft in 1:72, even though it needs some PSR, esp. around the wing attachment seams on the fuselage. Beyond the wing modifications to create a Swedish F.4/Mk. 50 export variant I decided to thoroughly change the nose section, more than the FR.10’s small camera nose tip (which is available as a clear resin piece from Quickboost). I used the Saab 29 as a design benchmark and decided to replace the Hunter’s gun bays with camera compartments, using a leftover optional tray from a Heller S 29C to re-shape the area under the cockpit sides. I wanted to retain the original front landing gear well, though, so that only the “edges” from the Tunnan’s camera ports were transplanted under the Hunter’s front fuselage, creating pronounced “cheeks” and a more or less flat bottom.
To take the photo recce conversion even further I replaced the Hunter’s stub nose with a pointed alternative, a spare SF 37 nose with a forward-facing camera window from a Heller kit that I had received from a good friend a while ago. The Viggen nose was trimmed down to the same diameter as the Hunter’s, and its pitot was removed since the Hunter would retain the original wing-mounted sensor.
This recontoured nose section was blended into the Hunter’s fuselage with several layers/turns of PSR. My initial hope to retain the clear parts’ transparency for the finished S 34B soon evaporated, though, because the body work became so thorough that everything disappeared under layers of putty. At least the parts’ shape was retained, and they thoroughly changed the Hunter’s profile! At times I thought that the modified aircraft had a Soviet touch, and when I installed the landing gear it struck me that the pointed nose gave the Hunter a very F-105-ish look, like a missing link between the Thunderchief and the earlier RF-84G Thunderflash? Well, an idea for a potential future what-if project…
Anything else was taken OOB from the Revell kit, including the cockpit and the short drop tanks on the inner wing pylons.
Painting and markings:
This was a challenge. I did not want to give the fictional recce Hunter the J 34’s simple camouflage with dark green upper surfaces (Olive Green 328M) and grey undersides. The contemporary dark blue/olive green paint scheme was an alternative, but I found it to be quite boring and I also already had some Swedish whiffs with this scheme in my collection.
A suitable alternative eventually came from literature, where I found pictures of privately operated J 32E Lansen target tugs (SE-DCM and -DCN) which carried in the early Nineties a three-tone camouflage on their upper sides, consisting of mörk olivgrön (328M), mörkgrön (326M) and mörkblå (438M). I was not able to find pictures that provided detail information about the aircrafts’ concrete camouflage pattern, though, esp. from above, so that I adapted a pattern from an USN aggressor A-4E Skyhawk with adjusted colors to the Hunter airframe. The blue/green pattern on the contemporary J 32 and J 35 could not simply be expanded to a third shade, since the dark blue forms a kind of net pattern over the green background. The lighter green would always have looked like an enforced foreign matter, so that I rather went for an SEA-ish application in which all three colors appear pari passu. The aggressor pattern yet ensured that the dark blue would still form a kind of “river delta” within a murky green landscape.
The paints I used were Humbrol 77, 163 and 224 – lighter than the original tones, but for better contrast, scale effect and some weathering it turned out O.K. The undersides were painted in standard Swedish grey (058M), and I used Humbrol 165 (RAF Medium Sea Grey) as a proxy. The drop tanks were painted in standard J 34 colors, as a small contrast, in Humbrol 116 (FS 34079) and 165.
The cockpit interior was painted in anthracite, the ejection seat received bright green cushions (seen on a Swedish Hunter on museum display); the landing gear and the respective wells’ interior became aluminum bronze (Humbrol 56), while the interior of the air intakes became shiny aluminum (Revell 99) except for the splitter plates, which received the external camouflage colors. Copying the real J 34s’ look, the area around the jet efflux was painted in Aluminum (Revell 99) and separated from the rest of the hull with a thin 0.5 mm black line (generic decal material). The camera windows were created with black decal material, which had some light reflexes manually added and received a coat with glossy varnish.
The kit received the usual light black ink washing and some post-panel-shading for dramatic effect, and with markedly lightened tones from above to simulate bleached paint.
The decals/marking came mostly from RBD Studio (today Moose Republic, very good stuff!) sheets for Saab 32 Lansen in Swedish service. The unusual tactical code in the form of a number in the squadron’s color (instead of a colored letter or a white or yellow two-digit numeral that came next) was taken over from a real-world F11 S 32C from around 1963 – an exotic option, but it falls into the S 34B’s time frame and was a suitable option for this whiffy model, too. To reflect the 1st squadron’s code color even more and add a small color highlight, I painted the front wheel well cover in red and placed a white “2” on it.
Finally, the model was sealed overall with matt acrylic varnish. The Swedish Hunters’ rather glossy finish was only carried during the aircrafts’ early career years, when the machines still carried the factory finish with British colors under a clear protective coat. When the machines were later re-painted with Swedish paints during overhauls, they received a matt finish.
This modified photo reconnaissance Hunter looks simple, but the nose modifications were more severe and demanding than expected. The result looks pretty strange, esp. the pointed nose takes away the Hunter’s Fifties look. The Swedish markings and the three-tone camouflage suit the Hunter well, though, the S 34B looks quite convincing.
THE TRADEMARK OF QUALITY
JOHN DEERE
QUALITY FARM
EQUIPMENT
MADE FAMOUS BY GOOD IMPLEMENTS
Sales .. Service
PORTER COUNTY
IMPLEMENT CO.
Phone 4-3701
1008 E. Lincolnway
VALPARAISO, IND.
There's a
JOHN DEERE
TRACTOR
For Every Farm...
Crop...Purpose
Source Type: Matchcover
Publisher, Printer, Photographer: The Ohio Match Company
Collection: Steven R. Shook
Copyright 2017. Some rights reserved. The associated text may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of Steven R. Shook.
President Jacob Zuma with Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown and Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa, Mayor Danny Jordaan and Premier Pumello Masuella officially launch the TUG Mvezo in Port Elizabeth. President Zuma is to provide a progress report on the implementation of South Africa's ground-breaking Operation Phakisa: Oceans Economy initiative at the Port of Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape. (Photo: GCIS)
Spotted on our travels through Mid Wales. This old implement would have had a seat on the support between the two wheels and judging by the set up at the front would have been pulled by a large horse. Any ideas what it may have been used for.
View On Black Then select Large for the bigger picture.
Antiqued version here. www.flickr.com/photos/wdig/4702143163/
A rural farm under a cloudy moonlit sky near McBaine in Boone County Missouri by Notley Hawkins Photography. Taken on a cool August summer's evening with a Canon EOS 5D Mark III camera with a EF16-35mm f/2.8L USM lens. Colored gels were used with an exposure of 90 seconds.
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©Notley Hawkins
Lutfey Siddiqi, Visiting Professor-in-Practice, London School of Economics and Political Science, United Kingdom; Young Global Leader speaking during the Session "Implementing Stakeholder Capitalism 2" at the World Economic Forum, Annual Meeting of the Global Future Councils 2019. Copyright by World Economic Forum / Benedikt von Loebell
I spent a delightful Saturday with the Famous Flickr Five+ Group in Blackwood at the Garden of St Erth. As my first Famous Flickr Five+ excursion, I was just delighted by how kind and welcoming everyone was. I look forward to future trips to places I have never been (such as the garden of St Erth) with the Famous Flickr Five+ Group in the future.
In 1854 a Cornish stonemason named Matthew Rogers decided to pursue his luck in the goldfields around Mount Blackwood in Victoria, so he packed up his life in Sydney and journeyed south. His venture proved successful, as he became one of the gold rush's most successful miners.
In the 1860s, Matthew built a modest sandstone cottage from stone quarried from around Bacchus Marsh behind a boot factory in an area known as Simmonds Reef, just outside what was then the very busy and thriving gold mining community of Blackwood which at the time had a population of some 13,000 people. He named it "St Erth" after his Cornwall birthplace. The original title was dated 1867, but it is believed the house was built before then.
The sandstone cottage is typical of Victorian architecture found in Australia at that time. Built in Victorian Georgian style. It features a symmetrical facade of exposed sandstone brick with sash windows either side of the front door, all of which are characteristics of Victorian Georgian architecture. The shady verandah, today covered in curling wisteria vine, features elegant, slender posts, which is also typical of the architectural style, as is the medium pitch corrugated iron roof.
Matthew attached a wooden building to the western end of his neat stone cottage which served as the Blackwood post office for a time, and also a general store; both essential parts of the burgeoning community.
The gold rush lasted for twenty eight years. Matthew's daughter Elizabeth and her husband Jim Terrill continued to maintain the store, but as gold ran out, the wooden buildings of the town were moved to Trentham. For a time the house lay empty and the bush moved back in. Eventually it was bought by a group of Melbourne businessmen who called themselves the Simmons Reef Shire Council.
Today, "St Erth" is the Garden of St Erth; a wonderful garden featuring fruit trees, an espalier orchard, heirloom vegetables, perennials, daffodils, tulips, flowering shrubs and a plant nursery. The Garden of St Erth is one of two main sites in Victoria for the Diggers Club, who specialise in growing and selling heirloom variety plants and old fashioned exotic plants. The homestead forms the entry to the beautiful garden, as well as a shop showcasing the heritage seeds, gardening equipment and myriad gardening products in line with the Diggers Club's commitment to sustainable gardening. Outside there's a plant nursery with a wonderful array of trees and plants for sale. A pretty cafe offers drinks, cakes and meals indoors or out featuring where possible local produce and some sourced from the garden.
Matthew Rogers was born at St. Erth, Cornwall, on 11th June 1824, he arrived in Victoria in 1854 with his wife Mary, and came to Blackwood about 1855. Matthew and Mary Rogers were the wealthiest people in Simmons Reef. Matthew did well from his mine called "Mount Rogers Big Hill Mine". He is stated to have made a fortune out of ore that yielded one and a half pennyweights to the ton. Mary Ann Rogers was born in Hayle in Cornwall 24th June 1828. She looked after the store and the Post Office attached to the house. The Rogers had no children, and adopted a girl born in 1872, called Elizabeth. Mary Ann Rogers died on the 27th of August 1896, aged 68 years. Matthew Rogers died on the 6th of January 1902.
Nestled against the Wombat State Forest, the township of Blackwood was originally founded in 1855 during the Victorian gold rush. The township's post office was opened in September 1855, and was known as Mount Blackwood until 1921. The township has shrunk significantly since the gold rush ended, and today many of its properties are weekenders for Melbourne professionals. The town still has a main street featuring a post office and general store, a pub, a cafe and an antique shop. It still retains some of its original miners cottages beyond "St Erth". It is a quiet, sleepy town, and is a delightful retreat for some peace and quiet. Blackwood is perhaps best known today for its music and culture festival held in November. It attracts artists from across the world.
WASHINGTON - On Wednesday, June 6, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood (Inside Left), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Acting Deputy Commissioner Kevin McAleenan (Speaker), Delta Chief Executive Officer Richard Anderson (Right) and JetBlue Airways Senior Vice President for Government Affairs and Associate General Counsel Robert Land (Far Left) announced the implementation of new partnerships to combat human trafficking as part of the Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign, CBP and the Department of Transportation. Photo by James Tourtellotte
WASHINGTON - On Wednesday, June 6, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood (L), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Acting Deputy Commissioner Kevin McAleenan (C), Delta Chief Executive Officer Richard Anderson (R) and JetBlue Airways Senior Vice President for Government Affairs and Associate General Counsel Robert Land announced the implementation of new partnerships to combat human trafficking as part of the Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign, CBP and the Department of Transportation. Photo by James Tourtellotte
Manila, Philippines - Workers load sacks of rice onto trucks inside a warehouse in Manila, Philippines, March 31, 2020.
The Asian Development bank together with the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Philippine Army started distributing aid to some of the marginalized barangays in Metro Manila as capital enters its 15th day of enhanced community quarantine due to the covid19 pandemic.
Photograph by Veejay Villafranca/Asian Developement Bank
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Norwood Farms owners and producers Don and son Grant Norwood work with U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) District Conservationist Ron Harrison to implement their crop rotation and residue management practices to reduce erosion leading to improved land use and crop production; they also practice no-till farming on nearly every acre in the operation, in Henry County, TN, on Sept 19, 2019.
The stover of remaining corn stalk stubs, leaves, and cobs that are expelled and and left behind the corn harvester becomes a cover crop. The stover can be seen between soybean crop.
Crop dusters adapted with a seed spreader can seed directly into standing corn and standing soybeans. This gives the seeds a chance to get established before it freezes. In the spring, the cover crop will grow up through the corn stover.
Norwood Farms have successfully established the building blocks of conservation with conservation crop rotation on the entire Norwood operation. The crops are rotated between corn, wheat, soybeans and in some cases, corn cover crops and soybeans cover crops. The practices are implemented to reduced erosion sediment in surface water and are leading to improved land use and crop production.
Conservation Crop Rotation (Practice Code 328) is a management practices where growing a planned sequence of various crops takes place on the same piece of land for a variety of conservation purposes. Crops included in conservation crop rotation include high-residue producing crops such as corn or wheat in rotation with low-residue- producing crops such as soybeans. Crop rotations vary with soil type, crops produced, farming operations, and how the crop residue is managed. The most effective crops for soil improvement is fibrous-rooted high-residue producing crops such as grass and small grain.
Residue and Tillage Management (Practice Code 329) is managing the amount, orientation and distribution of crop and other plant residue on the soil surface throughout the year. For our area, we are utilizing reduced tillage and no-till. Residue and Tillage Management should be used on all cropland fields, especially where excess sheet and rill erosion are a problem. Residue and tillage management is most effective when used with other conservation practices like grassed waterways, contouring, field borders, etc.
NRCS has a proud history of supporting America's farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners. For more than 80 years, we have helped people make investments in their operations and local communities to keep working lands working, boost rural economies, increase the competitiveness of American agriculture, and improve the quality of our air, water, soil, and habitat. As the USDA's primary private lands conservation agency, we generate, manage, and share the data, technology, and standards that enable partners and policymakers to make decisions informed by objective, reliable science. And through one-on-one, personalized advice, we work voluntarily with producers and communities to find the best solutions to meet their unique conservation and business goals. By doing so, we help ensure the health of our natural resources and the long-term sustainability of American agriculture.
Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) is the Department's focal point for the nation's farmers and ranchers and other stewards of private agricultural lands and non-industrial private forest lands. FPAC agencies implement programs designed to mitigate the significant risks of farming through crop insurance services, conservation programs, and technical assistance, and commodity, lending, and disaster programs.
The agencies and services supporting FPAC are Farm Service Agency (FSA), NRCS, and Risk Management Agency (RMA).
For more information please see www.usda.gov
USDA Photo by Lance Cheung.