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Post by jesse on Feb 23, 2011 11:40:30 GMT -5
They had to make it to the moon because with me sitting at the console in NASCOM, they knew they would get a Royal Butt chewing by one PO'd little Irishman if they didn't. Jesse
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Post by herkpilot on Feb 23, 2011 16:29:46 GMT -5
For flying boat fans, www.users.waitrose.com/~mbcass/Flying Empires.pdf This may have been posted here in the past, but this is the complete book about the magnificent aircraft of Short Bros. Written by Brian Cassidy, it is online in pdf. Two hundred -five pages with photos and specifications. If you have any interest at all in big flying boats, this is definitely for you. And the price is right. Hy
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Post by jesse on Feb 23, 2011 18:39:08 GMT -5
Thanks Hy, for that heads up. I'll check that out. Will have to order some more ink for the printer though, I just installed my last two cartridges. ;D I have a really great book pertaining to the Boeing B-314s called The Last of the Flying Clippers by M.D. Klaas. 320 Pages. Jesse www.netdot.com/jcallahan/Flying Clippers.jpg[/img]
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Post by herkpilot on Mar 10, 2011 20:11:55 GMT -5
Jesse - this is one for you,
"The Ravens" by Christopher Robbins
The story of the Raven FACs who flew Cessna O-1s out of bases in Laos supporting General Vang Pao and the Hmong army. These are some of the bravest Heros you never heard of. I just discovered that I went through USAF pilot training with several of these men. There are many Viet Nam era fighter pilots who owe their lives to these guys. Their annual reunions at Randolph AFB are legendary. I could not put this book down.
If you can not find the book, google "Raven FAC",there is a lot of information that has finally been declassified. Really eye-opening.
Hy
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Post by jesse on Mar 11, 2011 9:12:51 GMT -5
Hy, I found the book on Ebay. Got it for $14.00 plus shipping. I checked it on Amazon.com and they have several but priced way up. The highest price for a used one was $335.00 and the lower ones ran anywhere from $35.00 to $150.00
Jesse
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Post by jesse on Mar 16, 2011 12:02:35 GMT -5
You are right. The book arrived in this morning's mail and I have not been able to put it down. My wife had to call me more than once to come to lunch. That's unusual. ;D
Jesse
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Post by herkpilot on Mar 16, 2011 19:22:33 GMT -5
I'm glad you are enjoying it Jesse. Hope you didn't miss any more meals! The group has a web site WWW.Ravens.org with a lot of stuff on it. They offer college scholarships to Hmong (Meo) children and have been very successful at it over the years. If the FAC business interests you, I can highly recommend "A Lonely Kind of War" by Marshall Harrison, an OV-10 FAC (Pocket Books, 1989). Quite a few of my classmates went off to FACs. A number of them also went to the "Electric Goon" (EC-47), although I've never read anything about that mission. The whole FAC business was started by Col William O. Eareckson during the battle of the Aluetians. He used an old Kingfisher borrowed from the Navy. He later took the idea to Korea. The airfield at Shemya was recently named for him. He's another real character. An infantryman in WWI, he got an appointment to West Point. Washed out of pilot training and became a balloon pilot. Won a national balloon race and the Litchfield trophy. Back to flight school at the age of thirty (successful this time) and Commanding the 36th Bomb Squadron by 1939. Aggravated a lot of people however and retired a Colonel after 13 years in grade. Hy
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Post by jesse on Mar 16, 2011 21:08:10 GMT -5
Thanks Hy for the info on the FACs. I was never a FAC. They came along after my career had ended. I began my career in January '42 as a liaison pilot flying L-4 Grasshoppers, L-5 Stinson Sentinals and the UC-78 Bamboo Bomber. I wish I could have been a member of the Ravens, but as the old saying goes...I was born 30 years too soon. I do still fly my FS9 OA-2 quite a bit though up in Alaska. I flew an L-19 bird dog as a civilian but it belonged to a friend of mine in Roanoke, VA. My OA-2 was designed and developed by FSD and it flies great. Jesse
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Post by herkpilot on May 1, 2011 17:48:56 GMT -5
Time for a new read. This one should be of particular interest to the CC audience.
"A Pilots Log", the career of Capt E.L. "Slonnie" Sloniger.
I found this book at Amazon after a comment on the recent thread about "Matson Air Lines". Written by his son, based on interviews with his dad and old photos, notes and stories of family members. "Slonnie" held seniority # 1 with American Airlines until he left to fly as head of aviation with Matson. He started flying in the Army in WW I , barnstormed after the war and flew the mail with Robertson. He was the ultimate flier's flier.
Lots of interesting and frightening anecdotes and photos of the aviation world between the wars. It is amazing how far we have progressed since then.
Hy
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Post by jesse on May 1, 2011 20:18:13 GMT -5
Thanks, Hy. I'll look for it. My reading for the past month or so has more or less switched to Nautical and CIA type operations. A friend steered me to books written by Clive Cussler and I bought six of them. Very well written and keeps you involved. The first one was VIXEN 03, code nade for a USAF C-97 on a classified mission for the Navy in 1954...The plane disappears somewhere over the Colorado Rockies after taking off from Buckley outside Denver. The story picks up in 1988 and goes from there.
Jesse
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Post by Al on Aug 11, 2011 19:00:21 GMT -5
Here are a couple that i have enjoyed a lot.
For fiction, Night over Water by Ken Follett is great, good period peace at the beginning of world wart two on a b314 heading for the US. lots of intrigue etc. give you the feeling of flying on the plane
Boeing, The First Century and beyond. Picked it up at the Boeing museum a couple of years ago. An excellent history of the company written by an insider.
Pan Am Pioneer, Stanford B Kauffman. an insiders view from the beginning of Pan Am. Great story and pics
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Post by jesse on Aug 11, 2011 21:47:23 GMT -5
I also have Night Over Water. I'll have to look for the Boeing Story.
Jesse
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Post by mdeval on Oct 29, 2011 20:13:31 GMT -5
One of my favorites, I didn't see it mentioned elsewhere is: "Flight of Passage", by Rinker Buck. No relation to Bob.
I recently discovered a great non-fiction book called, "From Props to Jets", by Jon Proctor. This is a really great one in my opinion.
Mike
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