A treasure trove of World War II-era aviation blueprints have been saved for posterity. Warbird Digest reports: AirCorps Aviation of Bemidji, Minnesota has just announced that they have acquired a massive trove of original manufacturing drawings for North American Aviation (NAA) covering types such as the P-51, T-6, B-25 and P-82. Ken Jungeberg was the… Continue reading OK, warbird fans, you can geek out now
Tag: Rescue
Saved from the scrap heap of history – for now, at least
I was interested to learn that one of the ancient crowns of Ethiopia’s emperors has been saved from looters. After 21 years tucked away inside a Rotterdam flat, a priceless 18th century crown is finally being repatriated to Ethiopia with the help of a Dutch art detective. For more than two decades, the crown has… Continue reading Saved from the scrap heap of history – for now, at least
Low-flying helicopters and power lines don’t mix well
A French rescue helicopter was involved in a training exercise when it had an unfortunate encounter with low-hanging power lines. Very fortunately, no-one was hurt this time. The helicopter was equipped with a wire-cutter, ringed in the photograph below (a screen-capture from the video above). That may have helped prevent a crash, by deflecting or… Continue reading Low-flying helicopters and power lines don’t mix well
I warned about a pension bailout . . . now, guess what?
For years I’ve been pointing out how federal, state and local government pensions (not to mention many private pension funds, particularly those organized by trades unions) are woefully underfunded, sometimes so much so that they’re effectively bankrupt already. I’ve also warned that we can expect calls for a federal bailout of such funds, forcing the… Continue reading I warned about a pension bailout . . . now, guess what?
Tsunami “survival pods”? I doubt it!
City Journal recently published an excellent article about the danger of a megaquake in the Cascadia Subduction Zone off the west coast of North America. I highly recommend reading it in full – it’s certainly enough to give anyone in their right minds pause for thought! One aspect in particular, though, caught my eye. Tsunami… Continue reading Tsunami “survival pods”? I doubt it!
Now that’s student assistance squared!
An extraordinary tale has emerged from Sweden of how a Yazidi student from Iraq was saved from ISIS terrorists by his professor and her university colleagues. A chemistry professor at Lund University [in Sweden] dispatched a team of mercenaries into an Islamic State (also known as IS, Isis or Daesh) war zone to free one… Continue reading Now that’s student assistance squared!
If at first you don’t succeed . . .
. . . they used to say “Try, try again!”, but in this case, I think that may be too expensive. Also, this miss was not as good as a mile! (A tip o’ the hat to reader Snoggeramus for sending in the picture.) Peter
A challenging rescue
Reader Ed C. e-mailed me the link to this video clip after reading my previous post. Thanks, Ed! It depicts a hazardous helicopter rescue in Washington state in 2010. From an article about the rescue: At about 1830 HRS, after a quick 20-minute flight from Whidbey Island, the helo crew began looking for the rescue… Continue reading A challenging rescue
Haunting images of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire
The San Francisco Chronicle has published a selection of photographs from its archives covering the 1906 earthquake and fire. Here are just three examples, reduced in size to fit this blog. There are many more at the link, all in larger sizes. Interesting viewing in general, and essential for those who enjoy history. Peter
Doofus Of The Day #989
Today’s award goes to an idiot in Wolverhampton, England. In many ways, he and his friends define doofidity. A tip o’ the hat to reader Philip E. for sending me the link. Five firefighters spent an hour working to release a YouTube prankster who cemented his head inside a microwave. The 22-year-old and a group… Continue reading Doofus Of The Day #989