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Posted on 03/29/2005 9:29:57 PM PST by SAMWolf
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 are acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated.
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| 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.
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Taking part in Brig. Gen. John J. Pershing's 1916 Mexican expedition was a learning experience for the U.S. Army's first air arm -- mainly in regard to its own deficiencies.  The first aero Company, New York National Guard, was called to Federal service during the border crisis with Mexico on July 13, 1916. This was the first time a National Guard aviation unit was mobilized. The unit was commanded by Capt. Raynel C. Bolling. The flight had been jinxed from the start. Pre-flight preparations consumed more time than expected, so the eight planes of the 1st Aero Squadron had not taken off until late in the afternoon on March 19, 1916. Not long after they flew south from Columbus, New Mexico, Lieutenant Walter G. Kilner had turned back with engine problems. Navigation errors contributed to the squadron's problems. Each plane carried a different type of compass, and the aviators were equipped with poor maps. Only one flier, Lieutenant Townsend F. Dodd, had ever made a night flight before. After the sun dropped behind the Sierra Madre, Gorrell lost sight of his fellow pilots and flew on alone. Finally, hopelessly lost, Gorrell turned and headed north again, but his plane had reached the limit of its endurance. With the engine on the verge of seizing up, the young pilot brought the crippled plane in for a rough but successful landing by moonlight. Gorrell knew that he was deep within enemy territory -- territory occupied by the mounted and heavily armed followers of Mexican revolutionary General Francisco "Pancho" Villa (the assumed name of Doroteo Arango). He drew his .45-caliber pistol, abandoned his plane and fled into the darkness. Gorrell's first journey into northern Mexico was typical of the fate awaiting the pilots of the 1st Aero Squadron, the only American air unit to fly in combat prior to World War I.  After 8 of 14 of its Wright-trained pilots were killed in 1914, the Army desperately sought a new, safe training aircraft - and following a period of testing and evaluation it ordered eight Curtiss JN-2 aircraft (Nos. 41-48); the first, No. 41, was received at North Island on June 21, 1915 The outbreak of World War I during the summer of 1914 first revealed the inadequacy of America's military aviation program. At the war's outset, the entire air force consisted of 12 officers, 54 men and six planes. At the same time, dozens of British, French and German airmen fought daily over the trenches of the Western Front. Although the numbers of U.S. men and aircraft tripled in the next year, then tripled again, the 1st Aero Squadron remained America's sole operational air unit until 1917. The squadron was organized in September 1914 and first based at North Island, San Diego. But in March 1915, five pilots, 30 men and three planes had been sent to Galveston, Texas, in response to tensions along the U.S.Mexican border. The entire squadron was transferred to Fort Sill, Okla., where the pilots were issued eight Curtiss JN-2s and charged with learning aerial artillery spotting. Shortly after arriving at Fort Sill, two planes and four pilots were transferred to Brownsville, Texas. It was there, on August 26, 1915, that the airmen first took up one of their new planes. Lieutenants J.C. Morrow and B.Q. Jones encountered turbulence at 1,100 feet, and their Jenny unexpectedly dropped 200 feet. The shaken aviators managed to coax the plane up to 4,500 feet but found it extremely difficult to control. On a subsequent flight, Morrow and his observer were badly hurt when their JN-2 nose-dived during takeoff and smashed into the ground.  The rest of the squadron also tried out the JN-2s and found them less than satisfactory. Pilot R.B. Sutton was badly injured and his observer (who sat in the front seat) was killed during one flight. After that accident, the artillery officers at Fort Sill categorically refused to fly in the JN-2s except during "war and in case of absolute necessity." The worried young pilot flew south, deeper into hostile territory, navigating by the stars. Below the fabric-covered wings of his Curtiss JN-3 "Jenny" darkness had already obscured the unfamiliar landscape of northern Mexico. Lieutenant Edgar S. Gorrell had never flown at night before, and his engine was overheating. The flight had been jinxed from the start. Pre-flight preparations consumed more time than expected, so the eight planes of the 1st Aero Squadron had not taken off until late in the afternoon on March 19, 1916. Not long after they flew south from Columbus, New Mexico, Lieutenant Walter G. Kilner had turned back with engine problems. Navigation errors contributed to the squadron's problems. Each plane carried a different type of compass, and the aviators were equipped with poor maps. Only one flier, Lieutenant Townsend F. Dodd, had ever made a night flight before. After the sun dropped behind the Sierra Madre, Gorrell lost sight of his fellow pilots and flew on alone. Finally, hopelessly lost, Gorrell turned and headed north again, but his plane had reached the limit of its endurance. With the engine on the verge of seizing up, the young pilot brought the crippled plane in for a rough but successful landing by moonlight.  Lt. Gorrell, left, and unknown pilot, Mexico, 1916: Gorrell knew that he was deep within enemy territory -- territory occupied by the mounted and heavily armed followers of Mexican revolutionary General Francisco "Pancho" Villa (the assumed name of Doroteo Arango). He drew his .45-caliber pistol, abandoned his plane and fled into the darkness. Gorrell's first journey into northern Mexico was typical of the fate awaiting the pilots of the 1st Aero Squadron, the only American air unit to fly in combat prior to World War I. The outbreak of World War I during the summer of 1914 first revealed the inadequacy of America's military aviation program. At the war's outset, the entire air force consisted of 12 officers, 54 men and six planes. At the same time, dozens of British, French and German airmen fought daily over the trenches of the Western Front. Although the numbers of U.S. men and aircraft tripled in the next year, then tripled again, the 1st Aero Squadron remained America's sole operational air unit until 1917. The squadron was organized in September 1914 and first based at North Island, San Diego. But in March 1915, five pilots, 30 men and three planes had been sent to Galveston, Texas, in response to tensions along the U.S.Mexican border. The entire squadron was transferred to Fort Sill, Okla., where the pilots were issued eight Curtiss JN-2s and charged with learning aerial artillery spotting.  Pancho Villa, Alvaro Obregon and John J. Pershing Shortly after arriving at Fort Sill, two planes and four pilots were transferred to Brownsville, Texas. It was there, on August 26, 1915, that the airmen first took up one of their new planes. Lieutenants J.C. Morrow and B.Q. Jones encountered turbulence at 1,100 feet, and their Jenny unexpectedly dropped 200 feet. The shaken aviators managed to coax the plane up to 4,500 feet but found it extremely difficult to control. On a subsequent flight, Morrow and his observer were badly hurt when their JN-2 nose-dived during takeoff and smashed into the ground. The rest of the squadron also tried out the JN-2s and found them less than satisfactory. Pilot R.B. Sutton was badly injured and his observer (who sat in the front seat) was killed during one flight. After that accident, the artillery officers at Fort Sill categorically refused to fly in the JN-2s except during "war and in case of absolute necessity."
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Morning E.G.C.
More rain predicted for today.
Morning GailA.
They're forecasting lower 80's here today. Chance of rain tommorow.
Today is Norton Update Day. Be sure to update your anti-virus software.
How's it going, Snippy?
Sunny and 70 here in Richmond, Virginny...Spring has finally sprung...MUD
In contrast, I have often been deeply moved when people in great sorrow or battling a grave illness have told me that the Lord had spoken to their heart and made Himself very real to them. I have come away with the sense that they truly did experience God's unseen presence. G. K. Chesterton, trying to think of an analogy to what these believers feel, wrote: "Plato has told you a truth; but Plato is dead. Shakespeare has startled you with an image; but Shakespeare will startle you no more. But imagine what it would be to live with such men still living, to know that Plato may break out with an original lecture tomorrow, or that at any moment Shakespeare might shatter everything with a simple song." Jesus is alive in every sense of the word and He is fully aware of each of us and our needs. As we live in obedience to Him, we can expect Him to keep His promise to manifest Himself to us (John 14:21). Then we can say with humility, "The Lord spoke to me." -Herb Vander Lugt
How my soul delights to hide! Oh, how precious are the lessons Which I learn at Jesus' side! -Goreh God speaks to those who are willing to hear Him.
10 Reasons To Believe In The Christian Faith |
Spring = rain here. ;-)
Good Morning Mayor.
I understand...the infamous Great Northwest...MUD
We've been making up for all the rain we didn't get in Feburary.
Hi Sam
Good day to you, hope it's a fine one where you're at.
Sunny, and windy. Winds expected to reach 45 mph today.
Cheers!
On This Day In History
Birthdates which occurred on March 30:
1135 Maimonides [Moses Ben Maimon] Còrodoba Spain, philosopher/physician
1432 Mehmed II [Fâtih] Sultan of Turkey (1451-81)
1672 Peter I "the Great" Romanov great tsar of Russia (1682-1725)
1674 Jethro Tull agricultural writer (Basildon), baptised
1719 Sir John Hawkins England, wrote 1st history of music
1746 Francisco Jose de Goya Fuendetodos Spain, painter/etcher (Naked Maja)
1790 Joseph Smith Rear Admiral (Union Navy), died in 1877
1804 Salomon Sulzer composer
1823 Joseph Farmer Knipe Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1901
1824 Innis Newton Palmer Brevet Major General (Union volunteers)
1825 Samuel Bell Maxey Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1895
1836 Karl Freiherr von Stumm-Halberg German industrialist/politician
1842 John Fiske [Edmund Fisk Green] US historian/philosopher
1853 Vincent van Gogh Zundert Netherlands, artist who always lent an ear (Irises)
1880 Sean O'Casey Ireland, playwright (Playboy of the Western World)
1886 Stanislaw Lesniewski Poland, logician/mathematician
1888 Anna Q Nilsson Ystad Sweden, actress (Shenandoah, Uncle Tom's Cabin)
1894 Sergei Ilyushin Russian airplane builder (Ilyushin)
1913 Frankie Laine [Frank Paul LoVecchio] Chicago IL, singer (Hey, Good Lookin', That's My Desire)/ actor (Frankie Laine Show, Rawhide)
1913 Richard Helms CIA head (1966-73)
1914 Sonny Boy Williamson [John Lee] blues musician (Down & Out Blues)
1919 McGeorge Bundy Boston MA, national security adviser under JFK
1930 David Staple joint president (Council of Churches for Britain & Ireland)
1930 Peter Marshall [Pierre LaCock] Huntington Long Island NY, TV game show host (Hollywood Squares)
1931 Aleksey Vasilyevich Sorokin Russian cosmonaut
1937 Warren Beatty Richmond VA, actor (Bonnie & Clyde,Shampoo, Dick Tracy)
1940 Astrud Gilberto Brazil, singer (Girl From Ipanema)
1940 Jerry Lucas Middletown OH, NBA center (New York Knicks, NBA rookie of year 1964, Olympics-gold-60)
1945 Eric Clapton [Eric Patrick Clapp] Ripley England, legendary guitarist/singer (Yardbirds, Cream, Tears in Heaven)
1948 Dave Ball rocker (Procul Harum)
1957 Yelena Vladimirovna Kondakova Russian cosmonaut (Soyuz TM 20, STS 84)
1968 Celine Dion Québec Canada, singer (I'm Your Woman)
1970 Secreteriat race horse, triple crown (1973)
1973 Caroline Ramagos Miss Mississippi-USA (1996)
Morning Feather!
Yep. Out the door now!
How's the Mrs. this morning, Mayor?
I hope she was able to rest well.
You must be in he same choir that snippy is.
We're back from Wright-Patterson. Boy, do I have pictures for you.
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I feel uncomfortable at times with preachers who are always saying, "The Lord told me," as if they had just heard from God directly. They give the impression that we must believe that everything they say is true. After all, how can we argue with God.