From the Forward Area Controller network Date:
Sat, 11 Sep 2004 11:16:45 -0400 Guys, Balad got slammed several times today. Two rounds went right over my
tent and impacted about 40 yards away. One dudded, the other severely injured a
young airman. When I heard the ZZZZZZZZZZ I knew instinctively what it was.
Certain sounds you never forget. We have had two more attacks since and the
sirens just went off again. I see real fear in people's eyes. Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2004 14:55:48 -0400
Guys, just a little update on life at Balad Airbase, Iraq. I arrived Friday with
a cargo of several other replacements and was immediately issued body armor. Two
hours later, the bad guys celebrated our arrival with several rounds of mortar
fire. Hadn't heard that in a while. This was also the location of the Iraqi Air Force Academy. Those facilities are now the home of the 332nd Expeditionary Fighter Wing. To the victors go the spoils. We fly a King Air. It is "modified" with some special gear which requires night work. I flew my first three sorties last night - 31 years and 8 days after my last combat sortie. Can't say where I went, but ground fire still looks the same. I expect to be here three months. But that may be extended as things go. I will pass updates as I can. We take incoming on average two times a day. This morning, we had a very bad attack. You may hear about it on the news. So that is life at Balad. Best wishes to you all. Darrel Whitcomb
From: "Randy Roberts" < nail38@earthlink.net > Darrel,
Now for the important stuff - any Philippine bands and dancing girls?
(Yellow Liver, Yellow Liver), Neu Paul passin' out drinks? Any nursettes or
Intel honeys? The people have a right to know!!!! Keep your head down and kick ass. R2
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2004 17:42:46 -0400
R2 wants to know about the important stuff. Sorry, Iraq is a dry country. No
hooch bars. But we have a big rec center and a great Gym. entertainment groups do come in. Besides, I am not interested. I met my lieutenant 31 years ago. She still turns my eye. I have noticed some rubbery devices in some of the bomb shelters though.
Darrel
Guys, The governator has announced new rules for California drivers. There is
hardly a day goes by that I don't witness most of these being put to use by
other drivers. I have to confess the I did call a fellow commuter a F*#@ing
A#**%le after he drove around the line of cars trying to merge into one lane and
cut into the space in front of me.(Note #2 below) I did what any level headed
driver would do....punched it and closed the gap and asked him if he had a
problem waiting his turn like most of us adding the expletive to close the
conversation. I think he got the message as he gave me a wide passage and fell in behind me in line.
Frustrated in CA 2. Under no circumstance should you leave a safe distance between your car and the car in front of you, or the space will be filled in by somebody else, putting you in an even more dangerous situation. 3. The faster you drive through a red light, the smaller the chance you have of getting hit. 4. Never, ever, come to a complete stop at a stop sign. No one expects it and it will result in you being rear-ended. (That's why they call it a California Stop) 5. Braking is to be done as hard and late as possible to ensure that your ABS kicks in, giving you a nice, relaxing foot massage as the brake pedal pulsates. For those of you without ABS, it's a chance to stretch your legs. 6. Never pass on the left when you can pass on the right. It's a good way to scare people entering the highway. 7. Speed limits are arbitrary figures, given only as a suggestion and are apparently not enforceable in California during rush hour. 8. Just because you're in the left lane and have no room to speed up or move over doesn't mean that a California driver flashing his high beams behind you doesn't't think he can go faster in your spot. 9. Always slow down and rubberneck when you see an accident or even someone changing a tire or getting a ticket. 10. Learn to swerve abruptly. California is the home of the high-speed slalom driving, thanks to the State Highway Department, which puts potholes in key locations to test drivers' reflexes and keep them on their toes. 11. It is traditional in California to honk your horn at cars that don't move the instant the light turns green. 12. In the California area, "flipping someone off" is considered a polite California salute. This gesture should always be returned!
13. Remember that the goal of every California driver is to get there first, I once heard a State Trooper say that here in Colorado we seem to follow the "dental" theory of driving. That is, if there is a hole, people think they have to fill it. Ed Kalkbrenner -------------
I did get to see what a marvelous a/c the A-7E was for delivery of ordnance in
the hands of a skilled aviator. After watching a pair of AF F-4s scatter dirt
and rocks all around the line of trucks, two USN A-7Es made scrap metal of
twelve trucks along the roadside. Mark 82s placed neatly in the truck beds and I
have never seen such skill in strafing as the number two had in that flight. 9
or 10 passes and hardly a round not in the line of trucks. Eye watering to watch. Brad...
By the time I got over there ...we had two types of fighters available in
Thailand...Fox Fours....and Alpha Sevens. The A-7Ds were from Myrtle and were
based out of Korat...the Fox Fours were from everywhere and were of course the
most prevalent fighter in our inventory. There was no Navy air..and as noted in
a post a while back there were Marine F-4s from The Rose Garden (Marine base in Thailand).
Phantoms were all over the place from absolutely outstanding to piss
poor...accuracy varied by Squadron and Wing (some wing CCs put additional
restrictions on their aircraft such as higher min alts and number of passes)...
...the A-7s were just plain WONDERFUL. It was the one time that you could
literally point out a target and have an 90 percent or greater chance of having
to call "Shack Lead"....two...er...ah...go through high and dry while
I talk to the ground commander (As in...I need a new target...lead just blew away the one I had!!).
What was really fun (hmmm...is that PC?? Perhaps I should use satisfying!!) was
having a tight TIC (Troops in Contact) and being told by Cricket that Sandy flight of four was inbound!!
The A-7's had taken over the Sandy Role and would sit SAR alert till late
afternoon and then launch after the last fighters hit the Fence inbound to their
FACs. They carried a mini load compared with the Lamented and lost A-1s...but
what they lacked in carrying capacity they made up for with large Frontal lower
appendages and pinpoint accuracy. They carried a mixed load of CBU 52(clamshell
delivered baseballs) and 2.75 RX...and they always had the gun to back them up.
They would arrive off of the Tank over the beaver tail ( Thai/Khmer frontier)
with about 45 minutes of playtime and could be counted on to ruin the Khmer
Rouge's day. Controlling them as they worked a wheel was a real challenge...and
not something for a Newbie to try...there were (it seemed) A-7s all over the
place. I personally loved to fly final off the wing between the friendlies and
the Big D's and call their ordinance away (it also allowed me to see where they
were pointing!!) but with four of them it would be impossible to be everywhere
at once with them working a wheel...worked ok if they were using recips ....
The only aircraft I ever controlled with better accuracy was the AC-130....but
that, as they say....is another story...
Yeah ...the A-7...we could have used allot more of them.... Crash ------
Here is the AF Cross Story...Tank tops and Tracers... Ned,
I still remember the pleasure I felt at seeing Jerry Funderburk at Charlotte
at the mini gathering last fall. A great guy and a true warrior. Brad Wright |