The FReeper Foxhole Profiles The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III - April 16th, 2004

see educational sources

[snippy_about_it]

Lord,

Keep our Troops forever in Your care

Give them victory over the enemy...

Grant them a safe and swift return...

Bless those who mourn the lost.
.

FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer
for all those serving their country at this time.


...................................................................................... ...........................................

U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues

Where Duty, Honor and Country
are acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated.

Our Mission:

The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans.

In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel free to address their specific circumstances or whatever issues concern them in an atmosphere of peace, understanding, brotherhood and support.

The FReeper Foxhole hopes to share with it's readers an open forum where we can learn about and discuss military history, military news and other topics of concern or interest to our readers be they Veteran's, Current Duty or anyone interested in what we have to offer.

If the Foxhole makes someone appreciate, even a little, what others have sacrificed for us, then it has accomplished one of it's missions.

We hope the Foxhole in some small way helps us to remember and honor those who came before us.

To read previous Foxhole threads or
to add the Foxhole to your sidebar,
click on the books below.

The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III:


The New Global Airlift Standard

The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is designed to fulfill military airlift needs well into the 21st century. A high-wing, four-engine, T-tailed aircraft with a rear-loading ramp, the C-17 can carry large combat equipment and troops or humanitarian aid across international distances directly to small austere airfields anywhere in the world.

In August 2002, the U.S. Air Force extended its total C-17 order to 180, by committing to an additional 60 C-17s. This order means Boeing will design, build and deliver C-17s through at least 2008. By Mid-January 2004, 117 C-17s had been delivered, 112 to the U.S. Air Force, one to the Mississippi Air National Guard and four to the United Kingdom Royal Air Force.

The U.S. Air Force declared the first C-17 squadron operational in January 1995. Since then the fleet has amassed nearly 600,000 flying hours. The C-17 has been involved in numerous contingency operations, including flying troops and equipment to Operation Joint Endeavor to support peacekeeping in Bosnia, Allied Force Operation in Kosovo, Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom.



In Afghanistan, C-17s have flown more than 230 humanitarian missions, airdropping more than 2.4 million ration packages to refugees as well as landing bulk foods and blankets. In addition, C-17s continue to fly daily missions carrying troops, supplies and heavy equipment into austere fields in Afghanistan and into airfields in neighboring countries.

In 1998, eight C-17s completed the longest paratrooper airdrop mission in history, flying more than 8,000 nautical miles from the United States to Central Asia, dropping troops and equipment after more than 19 hours in the air, a feat repeated in 2000.



A cockpit crew of two and one loadmaster operates the C-17, which can be refueled in flight. This cost-effective flight crew complement is made possible through the use of an advanced digital avionics system and advanced cargo systems.

In the cargo compartment the C-17 can carry Army wheeled vehicles in two side-by-side rows. Three Bradley infantry-fighting vehicles comprise one deployment load. Similarly, the Army's newest main battle tank, the M-1, can be carried.



The four engines are Pratt & Whitney PW2040 series turbofans, designated as F117-PW-100 by the Air Force, each producing 40,440 pounds of thrust. The engines are equipped with directed-flow thrust reversers capable of deployment in flight. On the ground, a fully loaded aircraft, using engine reversers, can back up a two-percent slope.

With a payload of 160,000 pounds, the C-17 can take off from a 7,600-foot airfield, fly 2,400 nautical miles, and land on a small, austere airfield in 3,000 feet or less. The C-17 is equipped with an externally blown flap system that allows a steep, low-speed final approach and low-landing speeds for routine short-field landings.

C-17s have set 33 world records – more than any other airlifter in history – including payload to altitude, time-to-climb, and short-takeoff-and-landing marks in which the C-17 took off in less than 1,400 feet, carried a payload of 44,000 pounds to altitude, and landed in less than 1,400 feet. These records were set during flight-testing at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., in 2001.



In 1995, the C-17 received the prestigious Collier Trophy, symbolizing the top aeronautical achievement of 1994. In 1999, President Bill Clinton presented the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award to Boeing Airlift and Tanker Programs, maker of the C-17, for business excellence. In 2002, the C-17’s assembly facility in Long Beach, Calif., was recognized by Industry Week’s Best Plants award, for being one of the top 10 in the North America. In December 2002, the C-17 Program – and its Aerospace Support unit – won the U.S. Senate’s Productivity Award for Performance Excellence. And, in April 2003, the C-17 Program won the first ever “Best of the Best” California Governor’s Award for Performance Excellence.

C-17s are based at Charleston Air Force Base, S.C.; McChord Air Force Base, Wash.; and Altus Air Force Base, Okla., where initial aircrew training occurs. The Air National Guard Base at Jackson, Miss., received its first of eight C-17s on Dec. 18, 2003. Between now and 2007, other new C-17 units will be established at McGuire Air Force Base, N.J., and March Air Reserve Base,Calif. Additional domestic basing locations will be announced by the Air Force in the near future.

---

---

FReeper Foxhole Armed Services Links

[snippy_about_it]

...........

C-17 GLOBEMASTER III TACTICAL TRANSPORT AIRCRAFT, USA



The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III military airlift aircraft is capable of carrying payloads up to 169,000lb, and has an international range and the ability to land on small airfields. A fully integrated electronic cockpit and advanced cargo systems allow a crew of three; the pilot, copilot and loadmaster, to operate all systems on any type of mission. Since it entered service in January 1995, over 116 aircraft have been delivered to the US Air Force with 64 more on order. The UK Royal Air Force has leased four aircraft, delivered by August 2001, under a seven-year agreement, which also has an end-of-lease purchase option.

DESIGN



A propulsive lift system allows the C-17 to achieve safe landings on short runways. The C-17 is capable of landing a full payload in less than 3,000ft. The propulsive lift system uses engine exhaust to generate lift: the engine exhaust is directed onto large flaps, which extend into the exhaust stream, allowing the aircraft to fly a steep approach at a relatively low landing speed.

The aircraft is capable of turning in a small radius and can complete a 180-degree star turn in 80ft. The aircraft can also carry out routine backing. A fully loaded aircraft is capable of backing up a 2% gradient slope using the directed flow thrust reversers.

COCKPIT



The C-17 cockpit accommodates pilot, co-pilot and two observer positions. The digital avionics system has four Honeywell multi-function cathode-ray tube displays, two full-capability HUDs, or Head-Up Displays, plus cargo systems. The quadruple-redundant electronic flight control system also has a mechanically-actuated backup system. There are two Lockheed Martin central processing computers, one Hamilton Sundstrand data management computer and two Honeywell air data computers.

A program to upgrade the C-17A avionics includes new mission computers and displays, new software for the warning and caution system, being provided by Northrop Grumman Navigation Systems. The automatic flight control system will be upgraded with BAE Systems Controls CsLEOS real-time operating system and will be certified for GATM (Global Air Traffic Management) system requirements. First deliveries are planned for 2005.

CARGO SYSTEMS


Impressive Equipment Mix, prepares to load aboard a new C-17 Globemaster III transport at the U.S. Army's Fort Hood, Texas, home of the III Corps. Two HUMVEES (forward) are followed by an M110A2 self-propelled howitzer, weighing 62,500 pounds, a 2.5 ton truck and trailer and (at right) a 10-ton Oshkosh truck.

The design of the cargo compartment allows the C-17 to carry a wide range of vehicles, palleted cargo, paratroops, air-drop loads and aeromedical evacuees. The cargo compartment has a sufficiently large cross-section to transport large wheeled and tracked vehicles, tanks, helicopters (such as the AH-64 Apache), artillery, and weapons such as the Patriot Missile System. Three Bradley armoured vehicles comprise one deployment load on the C-17. The US Army M1A1 main battle tank can be carried with other vehicles.

The maximum payload is 170,900lb (77,519kg) with 18 pallet positions, including four on the ramp. Airdrop capabilities include: single load of up to 60,000lb (27,216kg), sequential loads of up to 110,000lb (49,895kg), Container Delivery System (CDS) airdrop up to 40 containers, 2,350lb (1,066kg) each; up to 102 paratroops. The aircraft is equipped for LAPES (Low Altitude Parachute Extraction System) drops. For Medevac, the C-17 can transport up to 36 litter and 54 ambulatory patients and attendants.



COUNTERMEASURES

The C-17 is equipped with BAE Systems Integrated Defense Solutions (formerly Tracor) AN/ALE-47 countermeasure flare dispensers and the ATK AN/AAR-47 missile warning system. AN/AAR-47 has a suite of surface-mounted thermal sensors around the aircraft, which detect the thermal signature of the missile exhaust plume. Frequency selection and signal processing techniques are used to minimise the false alarm rate. The system provides a warning to the crew via the cockpit indicator unit of the presence and direction of the missile threat. A signal is automatically sent to the ALE-47 dispenser.

AN/ALE-47 is capable of carrying a mix of expendable countermeasures, including jammers. The system interfaces to the C-17 aircraft's sensors. The aircrew can select the mode of operation of the dispenser for fully automatic, semi-automatic or manual operation. The cockpit control unit can be used to input mission data, together with the numbers and types of expendable countermeasures systems loaded into the ALE-47. The cockpit controller updates and displays the status of the dispenser and the numbers and types of countermeasures remaining. The ALE-47 is capable of dispensing the new-generation active expendable decoys, POET and GEN-X, in addition to the conventional chaff and flare decoys that are compatible with the previous-generation ALE-40 and ALE-39 dispensers.

The USAF has selected the Northrop Grumman Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures (LAIRCM) system to equip its C-17 aircraft. LAIRCM is based on the AN/AAQ-24(V) NEMESIS and entered low-rate initial production in August 2002. The system is scheduled to enter service in 2007, but 12 Air Mobility Command C-17s will have a single transmitter configuration (BOSS) by 2004.



ENGINES



The four Pratt and Whitney PW2040 turbofan engines are integrated in the wings. Engine thrust reversers, which are operable in flight, and speedbrakes enable the aircraft to carry out rapid deceleration and descent manoeuvres.

The cruise speed is between 0.74 and 0.77 Mach. The range without in-flight refuelling, and with a payload of 160,000lb, is 2,400 nautical miles. Aerial refuelling provides an intercontinental non-stop range.

C-17 Airframe Specifications



GENERAL DESCRIPTION: The C-17 Globemaster III is a high-wing, four-engine, T-tailed military transport.

EXTERNAL DIMENSIONS



Wingspan to winglet tip - 169.8 feet (51.76 m)

Length - 174 feet (53.04 m)

Height at tail - 55.1 feet (16.79 m)

Fuselage diameter - 22.5 feet (6.86 m)

ENGINES

Four Pratt & Whitney PW2040 (military designation F117-PW-100) 40,440 pounds thrust each

CARGO COMPARTMENT

Cargo compartment crew - One loadmaster

Cargo floor length - 68.2 feet (20.78 m)

Ramp length - 19.8 feet (6.04 m)

Loadable width - 18 feet (5.49 m)

Loadable height - 12.3 feet (3.76m) under wingbox, 14.8 feet (4.50m) aft of wingbox

Ramp to ground angle - 9 degrees

Ramp capacity - 40,000 lbs. (18,144 kg)



Aerial delivery system capacity:
Pallets - Eleven 463L pallets (including 2 on ramp)

Single load airdrop - 60,000 pound platform (27,216 kg)

Sequential loads airdrop - 110,000 pounds (49,895 kg), (60 feet of platforms) (18.29 m)

Cargo handling system - Eighteen 463L Pallets (including 4 on ramp)

Combat offload - All pallets from aerial delivery or cargo handling systems

SEATING

Sidewall (permanently installed) - 54 (27 each side, 18 inches wide, 24 inch spacing center to center)

Centerline (stored on board) - 48 (8 sets of six back-to-back)

Palletized (10-passenger pallets) - 90 on 9 pallets, plus 54 passengers on sidewall seats

AEROMEDICAL EVACUATION

Litter stations (onboard) - Three (3 litters each)

Litter stations (additional kit) - Nine

Total capability (contingency) - 36 litters, 102 ambulatory

COCKPIT

Flight crew - 2 pilots

Observer positions - 2

Instrument displays - 2 full-time, all-function, head-up displays (HUD), 4 multi-function cathode-ray tube displays plus conventional instruments as backup

Navigation system - Digital electronics

Communication - Integrated radio management system

Flight controls system - Quad-redundant electronic flight control with mechanical actuated backup system

WING

Area - 3,800 sq. ft. (353.03 sq. m)

Aspect Radio - 7.165

Wing sweep angle - 25 degrees

Airfoil type - Supercritical

Flaps - Fixed-vane, double-slotted, simple-hinged

WINGLET

Height - 8.92 feet (2.72 m)

Span - 9.21 feet (2.81 m)

Area - 35.85 sq. ft. (3.33 m)

Sweep - 30 degrees

Angle - 15 degrees from vertical



HORIZONTAL TAIL

Area - 845 sq. ft. (78.50 sq. m)

Span - 65 feet (19.81 m)

Aspect ratio - 5.0

Sweep - 27 degrees

LANDING GEAR

Main, type - Twin-strut tandem per side of aircraft, three wheels each strut

Width (outside to outside) - 33.7 feet (10.27 m)

Tires - 50x21-20

Nose, type - Single strut, steerable with dual wheels

Tires - 40 x 16 - 14

Wheelbase - 65.8 feet (20.06 m)

---

Today's Educational Sources and suggestions for further reading:

www.airforce-technology.com/projects/c17/
www.boeing.com/defense-space/military/c17/c17_back.htm

[snippy_about_it]

Veterans for Constitution Restoration is a non-profit, non-partisan educational and grassroots activist organization.

---

Tribute to a Generation - The memorial will be dedicated on Saturday, May 29, 2004.

Thanks to CholeraJoe for providing this link.

---

Actively seeking volunteers to provide this valuable service to Veterans and their families.

Thanks to quietolong for providing this link.

---

Iraq Homecoming Tips

~ Thanks to our Veterans still serving, at home and abroad. ~ Freepmail to Ragtime Cowgirl | 2/09/04 | FRiend in the USAF

---

The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul

Click on Hagar for
"The FReeper Foxhole Compiled List of Daily Threads"

[snippy_about_it]

FALL IN to the FReeper Foxhole!



It's Friday Good Morning Everyone.


If you would like added to our ping list let us know.

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Snippy.

[snippy_about_it]

Good night Sam.

[GeronL]

Is that pic of 8 C-17's for real??

wow

[Iris7]

"The USAF has selected the Northrop Grumman Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures (LAIRCM) system to equip its C-17 aircraft. LAIRCM is based on the AN/AAQ-24(V) NEMESIS and entered low-rate initial production in August 2002. The system is scheduled to enter service in 2007, but 12 Air Mobility Command C-17s will have a single transmitter configuration (BOSS) by 2004." Until I saw this paragraph I was unhappy. NEMESIS is excellent gear. Have to look up LAIRCM. Very fine to go to expedited installation.

Notice the Pratt engines. Somebody has very good taste. 44,440 pound thrust turbofans, real high bypass, excellent.

Very cool fully loaded short landing capability. Puts the engines up out of the way of sucked in debris, too.

Boeing is showing off here, making Antonov look clumsy. Excellent, also. Not to knock Antonov, very fine stuff is coming from them these days.

[E.G.C.]

Good morning, snippy and everyone at the Freeper Foxhole.

[snopercod]

That's a big mutha!

[The Mayor]

Submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. — James 4:7

To defeat Satan, surrender to Christ.

[Professional Engineer]

G;morning miss Feather. Here's the follow on to the 15star/15strip flag from yesterday. The single most famous flag in the world.

[tomball]

Good Morning everyone. Fantastic post for an incredible American aircraft! Great pics and information.

Best regards for a beautiful, blessed day.

[Valin]

On this Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on April 16:
1652 Clement XII [Lorenzo Corsini], Italy, Pope (1730-40)
1660 Hans Sloane England, physician/naturalist; founded British Museum
1682 John Hadley mathematician/inventor (1st reflecting telescope)
1696 Giovanni Battista Tupolo Italian painter
1808 Caleb Blood Smith Secretary of Interior (Union), died in 1864
1816 Edward "Old Allegheny" Johnson Major General (Confederate Army)
1821 Ford Maddox Brown painter
1823 Mother Joseph [Esther Pariseau] religious leader (US capital)
1823 Orlando Bolivar Wilcox Brevet Major General (Union Army), died in 1907
1867 Wilbur Wright of aeronautical fame (Wright Brothers)
1871 John Millington Synge Ireland, dramatist/poet (Riders to the Sea)
1889 Charlie Chaplin [The Little Tramp] Lambeth London England, comedian/actor/director (City Lights)
1897 John B Glubb British commandant/writer (A soldier with the Arabs)
1898 Marian Jordan Peoria IL, radio comedienne (Fibber McGee & Molly)
1900 Polly Adler Russia, bordello proprieter/author (House is not a Home)
1904 Clifford Case (Senator-Republican-NJ)
1906 Pigmeat Markham Durham NC, comedian (Here Comes da Judge-Laugh In)
1911 Christine McIntyre actress (3 Stooges movies)
1918 Spike Milligan Ahmed Nagar India, actor/comedian (Digby, 3 Musketeers)
1919 Merce Cunningham choreographer (Acrobat in Every Soul is a Circus)
1920 John William Farr Detroit MI, bank robber (FBI Most Wanted List)
1921 Peter Ustinov London England, actor (Death on Nile, Logan's Run, Billy Budd)
1922 Kingsley Amis London England, novelist (Lucky Jim, The James Bond Dossier)
1924 Henry Mancini Cleveland OH, composer/conductor (Pink Panther)
1928 Dick [Night Train] Lane NFL defensive back (St Louis Rams, Arizona Cardinals, Detroit Lions)
1929 Roy Hamilton singer (You'll Never Walk Alone)
1930 Herbie Mann Brooklyn NY, jazz flute/sax (Just Wallin')
1931 Edie Adams [Elizabeth Edith Enke] Kingston PA, actress/Mrs Ernie Kovacs (Ernie Kovacs Show, It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World)
1935 Bobby Vinton Pittsburgh PA, singer (Roses are Red, Blue on Blue)
1935 Haskell "Cool Papa" Sadler blues singer/guitarist
1939 Dusty Springfield [Mary Isabel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien] Hampstead London England, rock vocalist (Growing Pains)
1945 Goran Antunac Yugoslavia, International Chess Master (1975)
1947 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar [Lew Alcindor] NBA center (Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers)
1955 Ellen Barkin Bronx NY, actress (Big Easy, Sea of Love, Switch)
1963 Jimmy Osmond Ogden UT, singer (Donnie & Marie)
1965 Jon Cryer actor (Pretty in Pink, Superman IV)
1971 Selena [Quintanilla Perez] Lake Jackson TX, tejano singer (Grammy-1994)

---

Deaths which occurred on April 16:
1115 Svjatopolk II great monarch of Kiev, dies [or 1113]
1687 George Villiers 2nd duke of Buckingham dies at 59
1756 Jacques Cassini French astronomer (Discover rings of Saturn), dies at 79
1760 Laurence 4th Earl Ferrers, executed for murder of his steward
1865 Robert C Tyler US Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in battle
1879 Bernadette saint/(saw Virgin Mary at Lourdes), dies in Nevers France
1948 Babe Ruth baseball legend, dies
1955 Abdullah Seif el-Islam brother of Yemenite king Ahmed, beheaded
1978 Lucius D Clay General/Governor US zone West Germany (airlift), dies at 80
1988 Khalil al-Wazir PLO military commander, assassinated by Israeli commandos
1991 David Lean director (2 Academy Awards-Bridge on the River Kwai, Lawrence of Arabia), dies of pneumonia at 83
1992 Neville Brand actor (Stalag 17), dies of emphysema at 71
1994 Ralph Waldo Ellison US writer (Invisible Man), dies at 80
1997 Mae Boren Axton mother of Hoyt Axton, song writer (Heartbreak Hotel), dies at 82

---

Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1966 CHESLEY LARRY J.---BURLEY ID.
[02/12/73 RELEASED BY DRV, ALIVE AND WELL 98]
1966 JOHNSON SAMUEL R.---DALLAS TX.
[02/12/73 RELEASED BY DRV, ALIVE AND WELL 98]
1969 KONYU WILLIAM M.---PHILLIPSBURG NJ.
1970 AYERS RICHARD L.---WATERLOO IA.
1970 RAUSCH ROBERT E.---HICKSVILLE NY.
1972 JONES ORVIN C. JR.---NEWPORT NEWS VA.
1972 MATEJA ALAN P.---LOUISVILLE KY.

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

---

On this day...
0556 Pelagius I begins his reign as Catholic Pope
1346 King Stefanus IX of Serbia proclaims himself czar of Greece
1509 French army under Louis XII enters Alps
1521 Martin Luther arrives at Diet of Worms
1705 Queen Anne of England knights Isaac Newton at Trinity College
1746 Battle at Culloden Troops of "James VIII & III" defeat Charles Stuart
1777 Battle of Bennington-New England's Green Mountain Boys rout British
1787 1st American comedy, "The Contrast", makes its debut in NYC
1789 George Washington heads for 1st presidential inauguration
1818 Senate ratifies Rush-Bagot amendment (unarmed US-Canada border)
1854 San Salvador destroyed by earthquake
1854 Steamer "Long Beach" sinks off Long Beach NY, 311 die
1854 Franz Liszt's "Mazeppa", premieres
1861 US President Abraham Lincoln outlaws business with confederate states
1862 Confederate President Jefferson Davis approves conscription act for white males between 18-35
1862 Slavery abolished in District of Columbia
1865 Battle of Columbus & West Point GA (Fort Tyler)
1866 Nitroglycerine at Wells Fargo & Company office explodes
1866 Karakozov attempts to assassinate Tsar Alexander II of Russia
1868 Louisiana voters approve new constitution
1869 Ebenezer Bassett, 1st US Negro diplomat, begins service in Haiti
1871 German Empire ends all anti-Jewish civil restrictions
1874 Dr David Livingstones corpse arrives in Southampton
1883 Paul Kruger chosen President of Transvaal
1900 US Post Office issues 1st books of postage stamps
1908 Natural Bridges National Monument established (Lake Powell UT)
1912 Pittsburgh Pirates turn a rare 5-3-7 doubleplay (left fielder covers 2nd base)
1917 Lenin returns to Russia to start Bolshevik Revolution
1922 Annie Oakley sets record by breaking 100 clay targets in a row
1926 Book of the Month Club sends out its 1st selections "Lolly Willowes" & "Loving Huntsman" by Sylvia Townsend Warner
1929 New York Yankees become 1st team to use numbers on uniforms
1935 1st radio broadcast of "Fibber McGee & Molly"
1938 Great-Britain recognizes Italian annexation of Abyssinia
1939 Stalin requests British, French & Russian anti-nazi pact
1940 1st televised baseball game, WGN-TV, (White Sox vs Cubs exhibition)
1940 Cleveland Indian Bob Feller hurls an opening day no-hitter vs Chicago, 1-0
1945 Red Army begins Battle of Berlin
1945 US troops land on He Shima Okinawa
1946 1st US launch of captured V-2 rocket, White Sands NM; 8 km altitude
1947 Lens to provide zoom effects demonstrated (New York NY)
1947 Financier and presidential confidant Bernard M. Baruch said in a speech at the South Carolina statehouse: "Let us not be deceived _ we are today in the midst of a cold war."
1947 Massive explosion & fire kills 500 in Texas City TX
1948 Organization for European Economic Cooperation (EEC) forms in Paris France
1953 WAND TV channel 17 in Decatur IL (ABC) begins broadcasting
1954 KVAL TV channel 13 in Eugene OR (CBS) begins broadcasting
1956 1st solar powered radios go on sale
1958 French government of Gaillard falls due to Tunisia crisis
1962 Walter Cronkite begins anchoring CBS Evening News
1962 Brazil nationalizes US businesses
1964 9 men sentenced 25-30 years for Britain's 1963 "Great Train Robbery"
1965 Test flight of heavy Saturn S-1C-rocket
1966 Rhodesian PM Ian Smith breaks diplomatic relations with Britain
1972 2 giants pandas (Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing) arrive in the US, from China
1972 Apollo 16 launched; 5th manned lunar landing (Decartes Highlands)
1974 200,000 attend rock concert California Jam I in Ontario CA
1975 Cambodian Red Khmer occupy Phnom Penh
1977 Alex Haley finds his Roots in Juffure, Gambia
1979 Failed Palestinian attack on Zaventem Airport in Belgium
1980 Arthur Ashe retires from professional tennis
1982 Queen Elizabeth proclaims Canada's new constitution
1986 To dispel rumors he's dead, Moammar Qadhafi appears on TV
1987 Michael Jordan, becomes 2nd NBA to score 3000 points in a season
1990 Supreme Court rejects appeal from retarded man, Dalton Prejean, condemned to death for murdering a Louisiana state trooper in 1977
1992 The House ethics committee listed 303 current and former lawmakers who had overdrawn their House bank accounts, ending an inquiry into the House bank scandal
1992 Afghánistán President Najibullah resigns
1993 Jury reaches guilty verdict in Federal case against cop who beat Rodney King, but the verdict is not read until April 17th
1997 Police in Israel recommended indicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for breach of trust in an influence-trading scandal.

---

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Cuba : Militiamen Day
Denmark : Queen Margrethe's Birthday
Puerto Rico : José De Diego's Birthday (1867)
USA] National Garden Week Week (Day 6)
Mathematics Education Month

---

Religious Observances
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of St Bernadette Soubirous of Lourdes

---

Religious History
1521 German reformer Martin Luther, 34, arrived at the Diet of Worms, where he afterward defended his "Ninety-Five Theses," first advanced in 1517. At the Diet, Luther refused to recant his ideas 'unless overcome by Scripture.'
1772 Anglican clergyman and hymnwriter John Newton wrote in a letter: 'I think there is a scriptural distinction between faith and feeling, grace and comfort.... The degree of the one is not often the just measure of the other.'
1829 Death of Carl G. Glaser, 45, German choral master and composer of the hymn tune AZMON, to which we today sing, "O For a Thousand Tongues."
1904 Birth of Merrill C. Tenney, American N.T. scholar. In addition to his many scholarly writings, Tenney was dean of the Wheaton College Graduate School in Illinois from 1947-71.
1948 Christians in Action was incorporated in Compton, CA. Founded by Rev. Lee Shelley, this interdenominational overseas mission helps establish national churches in nearly two dozen overseas countries.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

---

Thought for the day :
"God never imposes a duty without giving time to do it."

---

What a Difference 30 Years Makes...
1970: Rolling Stones.
2000: Kidney stones.

---

New State Slogans...
Alaska: We're bigger than Texas! nyah ha!

---

Female Language Patterns...
"Let's paint the kitchen." REALLY MEANS,
"You paint the kitchen. I'm going to the store.
Don't get paint on the kids."

---

Male Language Patterns...
"Have you lost weight?" REALLY MEANS,
"I've just spent our last $30 on a cordless drill."

[SAMWolf]

Morning GeronL. As far as I know it's a legit picture.

[SAMWolf]

Snippy and I saw a program on the History Channel about military transports, a large part of which was covered the C-17. Impressive plane!

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning E.G.C. Looks like it's trying to clear up here.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Snopercod.

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Mayor.

[SAMWolf]

Morning PE. Fort McHenry Flag?

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning tomball. Heck of a plane!