Cool Weapons

[zippyt]

I wounder if they ALL fired at once ??

[Gravdigr]

Heh, I bet they did, occasionally.

[Gravdigr]

[Gravdigr]

From the top: F-2 Banshee, F-3 Demon, and F-4 Phantom

[xoxoxoBruce]

Mr Gatling's patent for his weapon to end all wars.

[xoxoxoBruce]

In March 1945, 15 battleships, 29 carriers, 23 cruisers, 106 destroyers, and a train of oilers and supply ships sailed from "a Pacific base." What was this base? The mightiest force of naval Power ever assembled must have required a tremendous supporting establishment. Ulithi, the biggest and most active naval base in the world was indeed tremendous but it was unknown. Few civilians had heard of it at all. By the time security released the name, the remarkable base of Ulithi was a ghost. The war had moved on to the Japanese homeland, and the press was not printing ancient history about Ulithi.

Ulithi is 360 miles southwest of Guam, 850 miles east of the Philippines, 1300 miles South of Tokyo. It is a typical volcanic atoll with coral, white sand, and palm trees. The reef runs roughly twenty miles north and south by ten miles across enclosing a vast anchorage with an average depth of 80 to 100 feet - the only suitable anchorage within 800 miles. Three dozen little islands rise slightly above the sea, the largest only half a square mile in area.

Ulithi is an amazing story, from the 400 natives and three Jap soldiers in Sept of 1944, to the ice cream barge that made 500 gallons a shift. Providing not only ships and men, but supplies like 600,000 gallons of fuel oil, 1500 freight cars of ammunition, and enough food to provide every person in Vermont and Wyoming with three meals a day for fifteen days, just for the Invasion of Okinawa.

Not a lot of dialog but tons of pictures

[glatt]

Good pictures at that link

[JuancoRocks]

This short video tells a lot.......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEgsA07E9Ok

Great pictures as well......500 Gallons of ice cream a shift?

Thanks

JR

[xoxoxoBruce]

Coming to a government agency near you.

[Gravdigr]

The Last Avro Vulcan Bomber Flying Just Pulled Off An Amazing Stunt

Some good video at that link.

[Lamplighter]

The "praetorian guard" fly-by gives a bit of perspective on size...

[xoxoxoBruce]

I was looking at a magazine in the waiting room and it described how our new secret spy plane uses a turbojet from runway to 2,000 mph, and a ramjet to 4,000 mph, then a scramjet to 6,000 mph.



HOLY SHIT, 6,000 MPH!!

[Gravdigr]

A B-52 landed at Oshkosh for AirVenture. For the first time ever.

What's the big deal, you ask?

The Buff (Big Ugly Fat Fucker) usually uses a 10,000 x 300 foot runway. Oshkosh's largest runway is ~8,000 feet by 150 feet.

The B-52 is 159 feet wide.

6,000 feet of runway lighting was removed for clearance.

It stopped in 5,000 feet.

[BigV]

Another badass airplane from another era.

I've been to one up close to one at air shows, and among the many surprising facts listed on the placard by the plane, I learned that the wings are designed to flex during flight. Up to six feet at the wingtip! Whoa, that seems like flapping practically.

[Gravdigr]

The mission date, and one of the pilot names should help you out: