The FReeper Foxhole Revisits The Berlin Airlift - January 28th, 2005

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.


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The FReeper Foxhole Revisits

Operation Vittles
June 1948 - September 1949

PRELUDE TO CONFLICT

At the end of WWII, a defeated Germany was divided amongst the victors, the United States, the Soviet Union, Great Britain, and France. The Soviet Union took control of the Eastern half of Germany, the Western half was divided amongst the US, Great Britain, and France. Like the rest of the country, the capital city of Berlin, sitting dead in the middle of the Soviet-controlled Eastern half, was also divided into four parts, one half being Soviet controlled, and the rest divided amongst the others. A four-power provisional government, called the Allied Control Council, was installed in Berlin. This union of governments was to control and rebuild the city of Berlin.



By 1948, it became apparent that the Western Powers (Great Britain, France, and US) plan to rebuild Germany differed from the Soviet Union's plan. Currency, German Unification, Soviet War reparations, and mere ideology were among the many differences the two sides had. There would be no compromise. As a result, Stalin wanted them out of Berlin. In early 1948, tensions between the once former Allies climaxed. On April 9, 1948, Stalin ordered all American Military personnel maintaining communications equipment out of the Eastern Zone (Soviet controlled Berlin). Trains were halted on June 1and June 10. On June 21, the Soviets halted a US Military Supply Train and refused it passage to Berlin. On the 22nd, they placed armed guards aboard, attached a Soviet engine and hauled it back to Western Germany. In a final move to spurn the Americans, British, and French out, on June 24, 1948, all land and water access to West Berlin was cut off by the Soviets. There were to be no more supplies from the West. What was going to happen? Where were the necessary supplies going to come from for the Occupation Forces? For that matter, where were the supplies for the 2,008,943 Berliners going to come from? It was a grave situation.

The Allies were certainly not going to stand for this. Diplomacy failed, Ground invasions were planned, and World War 3 was on the brink of existence. US Military Commander Lucius Clay had developed a plan by which an armed convoy through Soviet Controlled Germany would break the blockade. This action would certainly create a war.

MEAGER BEGINNINGS

However, British Commander Sir Brian Robertson offered an alternative: supply the city by air. A daunting task. Supplying the Occupation forces of 2,2679 was easy, but the entire population? The only aircraft the Americans had available for the task were 5 year old Douglas C-47 Skytrains, which would only hold 3.5 tons each. After some consultation, the decision was made: it was worth a try. Earlier in April, US Forces airlifted in supplies to replace the ones being delayed by the Soviets. This was what became known as the "Little Lift". West Berlin had two airports, Tempelhof, which was Berlin's main airport and located in the American Sector, and Gatow, in the British Sector. Supplies could be airlifted in by C-47 and there was nothing the Soviet Union could do about because in 1945, someone had foresight. On November 30, 1945, it was agreed, in writing, that there would be three 20-mile wide air corridors providing access to the city. These were unarguable.



When the blockade began, the Soviets rejoiced, because they believed the Western powers had only one option, to leave Berlin. But they underestimated the West airlift supplies. Gen. Clay called upon General Curtis E. LeMay, commander of USAFE and asked him if he could haul supplies to Berlin. LeMay responded, "We can haul anything". Two days later Gen. LeMay called upon Brig. Gen. Joseph Smith, Commander of the Wiesbaden Military Post, and appointed him Task Force Commander of an airlift operation estimated to last a few weeks. The only US aircraft initially available were 102 C-47's and 2 C-54 Skymasters. On June 26, the first C-47's landed at Tempelhof Airfield, foreshadowing the great operation that was to come. Smith dubbed the mission "Operation Vittles", because he said "We're haulin' grub." The British called their part "Operation Plane Fare".

It was determined that the city's daily food ration would be 646 tons of flour and wheat; 125 tons of cereal; 64 tons of fat; 109 tons of meat and fish; 180 tons of dehydrated potatoes; 180 tons of sugar; 11 tons of coffee; 19 tons of powdered milk; 5 tons of whole milk for children; 3 tons of fresh yeast for baking; 144 tons of dehydrated vegetables; 38 tons of salt; and 10 tons of cheese. In total, 1,534 tons were needed daily to keep the over 2 million people alive. That's not including other necessities, like coal and fuel. In fact, the largest quantity of anything required was coal. It wasn't needed to heat homes as much as it was necessary for industry. In addition, there was limited electricity, because the city's power plant was located in the Soviet sector, so that was cut off, too. It was determined that in total supplies, 3,475 tons would be needed daily. A C-47 can haul 3.5 tons. In order to supply the people of Berliners, C-47's would have to make 1000 flights each day. Impossible.

Initially, Gen. Clay determined that, with the limited number of airplanes available to him, he could haul about 300 tons of supplies a day, the British effort, was estimated to be capable of 750 tons a day. This leaves a 2,425-ton deficit daily. Realizing that this kind of tonnage could not be achieved using C-47's, Gen. Clay and Gen. LeMay made requests for more C-54's, for they could carry over three times more cargo than C-47's. On June 27, an additional 52 Skymasters were ordered to Berlin.

On June 28, President Truman made a statement that abandoning Berlin was out of the question. He then ordered US B-29 Superfortresses to be stationed at British airfields to show the Soviets that the Western powers were not taking this lightly. We would not abandon these people!



By July 1, C-54's were slowly taking over airlift flights, and they were operating 24 hours a day. Rhein-Main Air Base in Frankfort was made exclusive C-54 base, and Wiesbaden was a mix of C-54's and C-47's. To accommodate these two different aircraft, General smith established a block system, giving the bigger, faster C-54's priority. They were also given radio codes to identify each type and the direction it was going. C-47's going East to Berlin were called "Easy", returning C-47's traveling West, were called "Willie". C-54's had the names 'Big Easy' and "Big Willie". Aircraft were also given a spacing of three minutes apart.

The size of the operation had to be increased in order to sufficiently supply this city and keep these people going. It needed to be commanded by someone who had expertise in air transport. That man came in the form of Maj. General William H. Tunner. He was revered as "The transportation expert to end all transportation experts" by LeMay. Tunner had previously established the Ferrying Command in WWII, and successfully organized and commanded the "Hump" operation into China near the end of the war. His reputation was not falsely earned. Tunner hated to see airplanes parked on the ramp not being utilized. This was a waste to him. He longed for efficiency and was about to set the standard for all that followed.

BLACK FRIDAY

Tunner assumed command of airlift operations on July 28, 1948. The airlift had been operating for just over a month. One of the first major changes he made came as a result of "Black Friday". On Friday, August 13, Tunner flew into Berlin to grant an award to Lt. Paul O. Lykins, and airlift pilot who had made the most flights into Berlin up until that time. Weather that day was awful, and conditions in Berlin were impossible. Clouds had lowered to the tops of buildings and heavy rain had disrupted radar. One C-54 had crashed and burned at the end of the runway a second landed behind him and blew its tires trying to stop to avoid hitting the burning C-54. A third ground looped on the auxiliary runway. Pure havoc was reigning supreme. Aircraft were beginning to stack up over Tempelhof and a huge number of airplanes were circling stacked from 3000 to 12000 feet in no visibility conditions. These conditions spur red Tunner to make a fateful decision. He called the tower. "Tunner here, send everyone back to their base and let me know when it's safe to come down". To avoid this stacking problem, a new policy was created. Any aircraft that missed its approach was to continue back to its station via the outgoing center corridor. This created a continuous loop of planes to and from Berlin. If a pilot missed his approach, he would immediately become a departure and head back to his base. The loaded aircraft would get a fresh crew and be sent back as a regular flight. In addition, all aircraft were required to fly by instrument rules to maintain the same speed, interval and altitude. This almost eliminated accidents and became the key to the success of the operation.



Another essential decision was to standardize aircraft, parts, and procedures. It was decided to base these around the C-54. One of the reasons was that it took just as long to unload a 3-1/2 ton C-47 as it did to unload a 10-ton C-54. One of the reasons for this was the slanted floor made truck loading difficult, whereas the C-54 was level and a truck could back up to it and cargo could be unloaded fast. In addition, no pilot was to be away from his aircraft. General Tunner had seen many aircraft sitting idle, loaded and waiting for their crews to return from inside the terminal. He thought this to be a great waste of resources, therefore the order was sent that no pilot should be away from his aircraft from the time it landed until the time it took off from Berlin. Weather and up to date information was brought out to the aircraft while they were being unloaded, so the crews didn't need to go inside the terminal. In addition, several trucks were outfitted as mobile snack bars and staffed by some of the prettiest Berlin girls. This enabled the crews to get coffee, a snack or other goods without having to leave the airplane. This reduced the average turn around time from landing to departing to about 25 minutes.

FLYING THE CORRIDORS

Pilots flying in the corridors encountered numerous problems; one was the erratic German weather. Weather changed so often that it was not uncommon to leave a base in West Germany under ideal conditions, only to find impossible conditions in Berlin. What made it even more treacherous was the approach to Tempelhof. In order to land there, a pilot had to literally fly between the high rise apartment buildings at the end of the runway so he could land. A second runway required a steep drop over a building in order to land soon enough so there was enough runway for braking. All these conditions plus a fully loaded C-54 with a 10 ton cargo load were more than enough for any pilot to handle, especially during the German winter.



Unfortunately, that wasn't all the pilots had to deal with. The Soviets constantly harassed the pilots during the operation. Between 10 August 1948 and 15 August 1949, there were 733 incidents of harassment of airlift planes in the corridors. Acts of soviet pilots buzzing, close flying, shooting near, not at airlift planes were common. Balloons were released in the corridors, flak was not unheard of, radio interference and searchlights in the pilots' eyes were all forms of Soviet harassment in the corridors. However, this did not stop the pilots, the planes kept chugging on in. In spite of all these acts of harassment, no aircraft was shot down during the operation. That would have started a war, and the Soviets did not want that. Especially with B-29's stationed in England. Although the B-29's that were there were not atomic bomb capable, the Soviets did not know that and did not want to find out.



So, the airlift went on. American C-54's were stationed at Rhein-Main, Wiesbaden, Celle and Fassberg in the British Sector. The British flew Lancasters, Yorks, and Hastings aircraft. They even used Sunderland Flying Boats to deliver salt, using Lake Havel in the middle of Berlin for a base. Every month the tonnage increased and soon exceeded the daily requirements. Every day, tonnage records were being set, and the constant drone of airplanes overhead was music to the Berliners ears. Eventually, rations were increased and life in was improving.

THE EASTER PARADE

By April 1949, airlift operations were going rather smoothly, and General Tunner wanted to break up the monotony. He liked the idea of a big event that would show the capabilities of his command, as well as give everyone a big morale boost. He wanted to set a record. In order to do that, much planning was necessary, and it was decided that on Easter Sunday, the only cargo was to be coal. In fact general Tunner wanted to desecrate all previous tonnage records set so far. Secretly, coal was stockpiled for the event. Maintenance schedules were altered so that the maximum number of planes was available. Everyone put in extra effort for this special event. From 12:00PM April 15, to 12:00PM April 16, 1949, crews worked overtime to deliver more tonnage than had ever been delivered in a 24 hour period. When it was over, 12,941 tons of coal had been delivered as a result of 1,383 flights without a single accident. As a matter of fact, as a result, the daily tonnage also increased from 6,729 tons a day befor the Easter Parade, to 8,893 tons per day, an unexpected benefit. This was the straw that broke the camel's back.

THE END OF THE BLOCKADE

On May 12, 1949, the Soviets capitulated. The blockade was over. It was decided to continue supplying Berlin by air in addition to the land routes in order to build up a sufficient supply of goods. The Airlift officially ended on Sept. 30, 1949, fifteen months after its meager beginnings in June of '48. In total, the US delivered 1,783,572.7 tons, while 541,936.9 tons were delivered by the British totaling 2.3 Million tons from 277, 569 total flights to Berlin. C-47's and C-54's alone traveled over 92 million miles in order to do so. These were astounding figures, considering that in the beginning it seemed impossible to even try. Nevertheless, even the greatest operation is not without risk. A total of 101 fatalities were recorded as a result of the operation, including 31 Americans, mostly due to crashes.



The end of the blockade was unexpected; however, as bigger plans were made and bigger planes were set to replace the existing fleet of C-54's. The USAF had already used a C-74 "Globemaster" and one Boeing YC-97A "Stratofreighter" in the airlift, testing the feasibility of heavy-lift transports and their use in a continued operation. The Douglas C-124 "Globemaster II" was coming and the plan was to use C-97's and 124's to continue the operation without as many flights. Fortunately, that was not necessary.

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FReeper Foxhole Armed Services Links

[SAMWolf]

Morning Aeronaut.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Iris7.

I don't know why wives are like that. Putting a crimp in a man's "hobbies".

[SAMWolf]

Morning E.G.C.

Turned out to be a nice day after all yesterday. Sun came out and the temps were nice.

[SAMWolf]

Morning alfa6.

Great article. Brought a smile to my face this morning.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Mayor.

Ants And Elephant Seals: the difference between Conservatives and Liberals. :-)

[E.G.C.]

Well, Im' happy to report that so far this morning our ISP's primary database server has not broken down like it did the last two mornings. Hopefull we won't have anymore problems for awhile.

We had a little bit of rain and sleet but it's moved North of us. Winer advisories for central and Northern Oklahoma.

How's it going, snippy?

[Darksheare]

Anyone notice the two chunks of French controlled West Germany were at convenient "retreat/backstab" positions?

The airlift sounds pretty amazing in terms of equipment at the time.
Nowadays, it sounds paltry compared to what the C5's and C141's can do.
Too easy these days to forget the accomplishments of the previous generations.

[Soaring Feather]

Merning, it's Friday ain't it?? LOL A little Foxhole humor.

[Valin]

On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on January 28:
1457 Henry VII Pembroke Castle, 1st Tudor king of England (1485-1509)
1600 Clement IX [Giulio Rospigliosi], Pistoia, Italy, 238th pope (1667-69)
1608 Giovanni Alfonso Borelli Naples Italy, mathematician/astronomer/physiologist
1611 Johannes Hevelius Danzig, astronomer (star cataloger)
1706 John Baskerville English printer (typeface inventor)
1717 Mustapha III Sultan of Turkey (1757-74)
1815 Andrew Jackson Hamilton Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1875
1822 Alexander MacKenzie (L) 2nd PM of Canada (1873-78)
1825 George Edward Pickett Major General (Confederate Army), died in 1875
1828 Thomas Carmichael Hindman Major General (Confederate Army), died in 1868
1831 Henry Brevard Davidson Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1899
1833 Charles George Gordon London England, military hero/general (China, Khartoum)
1841 Henry Stanley England, journalist/explorer (found Livingston in Africa)
1853 José Martí y Perez Cuba, poet/essayist/politician
1855 William Seward Burroughs New York, inventor (recording adding machine)
1884 Auguste Piccard Switzerland, scientist/explorer (balloonist)
1910 John Banner Vienna Austria, actor (Sergeant Hans Schultz-Hogan's Heroes)
1912 Jackson Pollock Cody WY, abstract artist (Lavender Mist)
1924 Frank R Lautenberg (Senator-D-NJ)
1928 Slade Gorton (Senator-R-WA, 1981-96 )
1929 Acker Bilk clarinetist (Stranger on the Shore)
1933 Susan Sontag New York City NY, essayist/novelist/film director (The Benefactor, 1966 Pol Award)
1936 Alan Alda [Alphonso D'Abruzzo], New York City NY, actor (Hawkeye Pierce-M*AS*H)
1948 Mamoru Mohri Yoichi-machi Hokkaido Japan, astronaut (STS 47)
1950 Barbi Benton [Klein], California, Playboy model/actress (Hee Haw, Sugar Time!)
1950 David Carl Hilmer Iowa, Colonel USMC/astronaut (STS 51-J, 26, 36, 42)

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Deaths which occurred on January 28:
0814 Charlemagne King of the Franks/ King of the Lombards (774-814), Holy Roman emperor, dies at 71
1119 Gelasius II [Giovannis Caetani], pope (1118-19), dies
1256 Willem II Earl of Holland/German emperor (1238, 47-56), dies at 22
1547 Henry VIII King of England (1509-47), dies at 55
1595 Sir Francis Drake English navigator/pirate (Porto Bello West Indies), dies at about 50
1621 Paulus V [Camillo Borghese], 233rd pope (1605-21), dies at 68
1725 Peter I "the Great" Romanov czar of Russia, dies at 52
1829 William Burke murderer/body snatcher, executed in Edinburgh
1939 William Butler Yeats Irish poet (Nobel), dies in France at 73
1963 Jean Felix Piccard swiss explorer, dies on his 79th birthday
1973 John Banner actor (Schultz-Hogan's Heroes), dies on 62nd birthday
1980 Jimmy Durante New York City NY, comedian (Jimmy Durante Show), dies at 86

1986 Christa McAuliffe astronaut/teacher, dies in Challenger disaster
1986 Ellison S Onizuka Hawaii, Major USAF/astronaut, dies in Challenger disaster
1986 Francis R Scobee Washington, USAF/astronaut, dies in Challenger disaster
1986 Gregory B. Jarvis Detroit Michigan, payload specialist/astronaut, dies in Challenger disaster
1986 Dr Judith Arlene Resnik Akron OH, astronaut, dies in Challenger disaster
1986 Michael J Smith Beaufort NC, Commander USN, astronaut, dies in Challenger
1986 Ronald E McNair Lake City SC, astronaut, dies in Challenger disaster

1994 Hal Smith actor (Otis Campbell-Andy Griffith Show), dies at 77
1996 Dan Duva boxing promoter, dies at 44
1996 Jerry Siegel comic book writer (Superman), dies at 81
2004 Jack Parr Pioneered tv talkshow format (Tonight Show)

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Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1966 MC PHERSON FRED LAWER---OAKLAND CA.
1967 BIEDIGER LARRY W.---LA COSTE TX.
[REMAINS RETURNED 06/03/83]
1967 THORNTON WILLIAM D.---TERRYTOWN NY.
1968 BENGE MICHAEL
[03/05/73 RELEASED BY PRG, ALIVE IN 98]
1968 SINGSON WILFREDO D.
1970 ANDERSON GREGORY L.---WHEATON IL.
["MIG HIT, EXPLODED"]
1970 BELL HOLLY G.---BEAUMONT TX.
[REMAINS RETURNED 05/89]
1970 LEESER LEONARD C.---FLORAL PARK NY.
1970 MALLON RICHARD J.---PORTLAND OR.
[REMAINS RETURNED 05/89]
1970 PANEK ROBERT J. SR.---CHICAGO IL.
[PROBABLY KIA, REMAINS RETURNED 04/89]
1970 PRUETT WILLIAM D.---BLUEFIELD VA.
1970 SHINN WILLIAM C.---WOODLAND CA.
1970 SUTTON WILLIAM C.---GOLDSBORO NC.

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

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On this day...
0028 The Roman Emperor Nerva names Trajan, an army general, as his successor.
1077 Pope Gregory VII pardons German emperor Heinrich IV
1099 1st Crusaders begins siege of Hosn-el-Akrad Syria
1495 Pope gives his son Cesare Borgia as hostage to Charles VIII of France
1547 9-year-old Edward VI succeeds Henry VIII as king of England
1561 By Edict of Orleans persecution of French Huguenots is suspended
1581 James VI signs the 2nd Confession of Faith in Scotland
1613 Galileo may have unknowingly viewed undiscovered planet Neptune
1689 English parliament ends king Charles II reign
1787 Philadelphia's Free Africa Society organizes
1788 Lord Gordon found guilty of libel of queen of France
1807 London's Pall Mall is 1st street lit by gaslight
1821 Bellingshausen discovers Alexander Island off Antarctica
1851 Northwestern University (Chicago) chartered
1858 John Brown organized raid on Arsenal at Harper's Ferry
1864 Battle of New Bern, NC
1865 President Jefferson Davis names 3 peace commissioners
1871 Paris surrenders to Prussians ((SHOCK!)
1878 1st telephone exchange (New Haven CT)
1878 George W Coy hired as 1st full-time telephone operator
1878 Yale Daily News published, 1st college daily newspaper
1881 Battle at Laing's Neck Natal Boers beat superior powered British
1899 American Social Science Association incorporated by Congress
1902 Carnegie Institute founded in Washington DC
1904 1st college sports letters given to Seniors who played on University of Chicago's football team are awarded blankets with letter "C" on them
1909 US military forces leave Cuba for 2nd time
1914 Beverly Hills, California, is incorporated
1915 1st US ship lost in WWI, William P Frye (carrying wheat to UK)

1915 US Coast Guard created from Life Saving & Revenue Cutter services

1915 US President Wilson refuses to prohibit immigration of illiterates
1916 1st Jewish Supreme Court justice, Louis Brandeis, nominated
1922 American Pro Football Association renamed "National Football League"
1922 J E Clair turns Green Bay franchise back to NFL
1923 1st "Reichs Party" (NSDAP) forms in Munich
1925 -46ºF, Pittsburgh NH (state record)
1932 1st US state unemployment insurance act enacted-Wisconsin
1932 Japan occupies Shanghai
1933 French government of Paul Boncour falls
1933 German government of Von Schleicher falls
1934 1st US ski tow (rope) begins operation (Woodstock VT)
1935 Iceland becomes 1st country to legalize abortion
1936 Pravda criticizes Shostakovich's "Lady Macbeth" opera
1942 General Timoshenko's troops move into Ukraine
1942 German troops occupy Benghazi Libya
1944 683 British bombers attack Berlin
1945 General "Vinegar Joe" Stillwell & truck convoy reopen Burma Road to China
1945 Swedish ships bring food to starving Netherlands
1949 UN Security council condemns Dutch aggression in Indonesia
1950 Preston Tucker, auto maker, found not guilty of mail fraud
1951 "La Vie Commence Demain", which depicted artificial insemination & is the 1st X-rated movie, opened in London
1956 Elvis Presley's 1st TV appearance (Dorsey Brothers Stage Show)
1958 Construction began on 1st private thorium-uranium nuclear reactor
1958 Dodger catcher Roy Campanella is paralyzed in an automobile wreck
1959 Soviet Union wins 62-37 for 1st international basketball loss by US
1960 1st photograph bounced off Moon, Washington DC
1960 NFL announces Dallas Cowboys (1960) & Minnesota Vikings (1961) franchises
1962 Johanne Relleke gets stung by bees 2,443 times in Rhodesia & survives
1963 -34ºF, Cynthiana KY (state record)
1965 The Who make their 1st appearance on British TV
1967 Rolling Stones release "Let's Spend the Night Together"
1968 Goose Goslin & Kiki Cuyler elected to baseball Hall of Fame
1969 Barbara Jo Rubin becomes 1st woman jockey to win in North America
1973 Ron Howard appears on M*AS*H in "Sometimes You Hear the Bullet"
1978 "Fantasy Island" starring Ricardo Montalban premieres on ABC TV
1978 Ted Nugent autographs a fan's arm with his knife
1981 Olympic Glory tanker at Galveston Bay, Texas, spills 1 million gallons of oil in a ship collision
1981 William J Casey becomes the 13th director of CIA (until 1987)
1982 US General Dozier freed from Red Brigade of Padua Italy
1984 Mr Glynn Wolfe marries for non-bigamous record 26th time, Las Vegas NV (AH! True Love!)
1984 Record 295,000 dominoes toppled, Fuerth, West Germany

1986 25th Space Shuttle (51L)-Challenger 10 explodes 73 seconds after liftoff

1986 Angolan Unity Leader Jonas Savimbi visits Washington, DC
1987 Wrestler Jim Neidhart indicted for assaulting a flight attendant
1988 Canada's Supreme court declares anti-abortion law unconstitutional
1991 Dictator Siad Barre flees Somalia ending 22 year rule
1997 Algeria union leader Abdelhak Benhamouda was killed by an assassin. Separately a bomb in the marketplace at Blida killed 15 people
1998 In Kenya it was reported that 77 people died in the month in attacks aimed at ethnic Kikuyus, who opposed Pres. Moi’s re-election.
2000 Sister Jeanne O’Laughlin, the Florida nun selected by Attorney General Janet Reno as a neutral party in the custody battle over Elian Gonzalez, sought unsuccessfully to persuade Reno to change her mind about returning the six-year-old to Cuba.
2001 In Algeria an armed group killed 2 dozen people in Oued Fares in the Chlef region. 16 of the dead were children.
2002 US forces and Afghan militiamen attacked and killed 6 al Qaeda gunmen, who had been holed up at the Mir Wais Hospital in Kandahar (Don't run, you'll just die tired)
2003 US and Afghan forces battled rebels aligned with renegade leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar in the largest-scale fighting in 10 months. 18 enemy fighters were killed in 2 days of fighting. Norwegian F-16s participated in bombing enemy targets

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

Rwanda : Democracy Day (1961)
US : Meat Week (Day 6)
US : School Nurse Day
US : National Kazoo Day
US : Popcorn Day
US : Spieling Day
National Be On-Purpose Month

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Religious Observances
Roman Catholic : Feast of St Valerius
Roman Catholic : Feast of St Charlemagne
old Roman Catholic : Commemoration of St Peter Nolasco (now 1/31)
Anglican, Roman Catholic : Memorial of St Thomas Aquinas, priest, friar

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Religious History
1581 Scotland's King James VI, who in 1603 would become England's James I, signed the Second Scottish Confession of Faith.
1822 Birth of William D. Longstaff, English philanthropist. A close acquaintance of Dwight L. Moody and Ira D. Sankey, Longstaff is better remembered today as author of the hymn, "Take Time to Be Holy."
1834 Birth of Sabine Baring-Gould, Anglican clergyman and author. A man of widely diverging interests, he published numerous books on history, biography, poetry and fiction. He also penned the enduring hymns, "Onward, Christian Soldiers" and "Now the Day is Over."
1947 In NY City, a copy of the 1640 Bay Psalm Book was purchased at an auction at Parke-Bernet Galleries for $150,000 --the highest price ever paid to date for a single volume. (The original title of the book was: "The Whole Book of Psalmes Faithfully Translated into English Metre.")
1977 The Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith published an 18-page document ruling out the admission of women to the Roman Catholic priesthood because women lacked a "natural resemblance which must exist between Christ and his ministers."

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

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Thought for the day :
"Winter is nature's way of saying, "Up yours."

[stand watie]

GM, snippy, et.al.!

free dixie,sw

[Valin]

Have to demolish a wall to get it in, too. Wife did not approve. Never bought the machine, sigh. People have no appreciation for great art.

I don't understand how any one couldn't want a great conversion piece like this in their living room. Whatta gonna do..philistines everywhere.

[Samwise]

What a great cat picture!

[Professional Engineer]

Good morning ladies. It's Friday!

Are we done interviewing yet?

[Professional Engineer]

General LeMay was one of the best assests the USAF ever had.

[Professional Engineer]

General LeMay was one of the best assests the USAF ever had.

[Professional Engineer]

Hiya Sam

[Professional Engineer]

[Professional Engineer]

1910 John Banner Vienna Austria, actor (Sergeant Hans Schultz-Hogan's Heroes)

[Professional Engineer]

hic

[Soaring Feather]

Awwwwwwwwww that's so cute!

Thanks.