From: skycowboy@aol.com Subject: Vomit Comet and Ol' Shakey <NOFAC>

In a message dated 12/03/2005 2:45:17 PM Central Standard Time, baron58@sbcglobal.net writes: ...I guess I won't have that bowl of Campbell's vegetable soup for lunch after all. My Cream of Mushroom went right back on the shelf!

Speaking of the Vomit Comet and C-124's:

In 1965 on what was called the Zone of the Interior (ZI) field trip for Air Force Academy cadets, we were being hauled on a C-124s from Peterson Field to San Diego to take part in the Navy portion of the field trip.

The group I was with was a C-124 at about 8,000 ft somewhere over New Mexico when the crew handed out box lunches. Almost everyone was feeling a bit uncomfortable after spending the three hours since takeoff at COS in the noise, vibration, and turbulence, but most decided to start eating the lunches.

One of my squadron buds took a pint of milk, some cheese crackers, and a small can of tomato juice and put them into a barf bag while no one was watching. He then pretended to get sick and barf into the already filled bag. After finishing, he apologized to everyone around him, then held the barf bag up to his mouth, slurped down the contents, and wiped his lips with the back of his hand.

As he finished wiping his lips, an explosive wave of sympathetic vomiting spread through the rest of the passenger compartment as almost everyone else threw up whatever part of their box lunches they had already eaten.

The loadmaster had to open several of the windows as we continued droning on towards San Diego at what was probably 120 KIAS.

Regards,

Gary Dikkers "Mike 57"

Some things never change. My son recounted a later variation of this taking a load of paratroopers for their very first aircraft jump from Pope. One loadmaster insisted all the jumpers take airsick bags since the Captain would be livid if anyone messed up his plane (as first time jumpers often did). Another loadmaster (partner in crime) would station himself at the rear of the plane and fake falling asleep. The first one would be up front, acting more and more nervous, as the flight progressed towards the drop zone, finally faking the barf bag deal with the soup mix. He'd then tell the first guy in line he didn't dare get on the intercom to wake up the guy in back (the Captain would find out) so they had to pass the bag to the guy in back, telling each one, in turn, not to spill the vomit and to get the guy in back to throw it out. The guy in back would appear hard to wake, drowsy, and not fully comprehending the instructions, before looking at the guy in front gesturing wildly, and saying "Oh, thanks for the lunch", downing the whole bag.

I don't remember how we got on the subject, but one tough, PJ-type, customer insisted no one could "make" him puke, and was willing put money on it. A smelly, 2-foot long, stringy, gob of semi-dried contact cement held to my nose as I turned and asked for a Kleen-Ex, quickly convinced him otherwise. I was a teary-eyed, laughing, puking, mess myself, seeing how quickly he succumbed. After 36 years, I can still picture his face and am prone to break out in laughter when someone mentions vomiting (totally mystifying my son-in-law).

Jim Young