wanttaja@ssc-vax.UUCP (Ronald J Wanttaja) (07/10/85)
> 1. What was the official desination of Pappy Boyington's Black Sheep Squadron? Actually, somewhat of a trick question. In Boyington's book, he states they used the aircraft and facilities of units on furlough, and would also use that squadron's designation... VMF-217, VMF-215, VMF-214, Etc. However, they eventually received the VMF-214 designator on a permanent basis, and the Black Sheep Squadron still flies as VMF-214 > 2. Who were "Blackman and Robin"? Figured no one would get this one... Vietnam era! Col. Robin Olds, into his third war, commanding the 8th Fighter Wing. His Deputy Commander, Col. Daniel (Chappie) James, was destined to become the first black General in the USAF. Hence, "Blackman and Robin!" > 3. Jimmy Stewart played Lindbergh in the movie, "The Spirit of St. Louis." Who had the higher military rank, Lindbergh or Stewart? General Stewart obviously outranked Col. Lingbergh. In my early CAP cadet days, Stewart was in the introduction of several aviation educational films we were shown. He would be in full uniform. > 4. Who was the top U.S. Ace in Korea? Capt. McConnell... 16 kills. Later played by Alan Ladd in, "The McConnell Story." > 5. Supply the rest of the verse for this famous song: "...With our full crew aboard, and our trust in the Lord, we're----" "---Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer!" > 6. How did Frank Tallman lose his leg? Go-cart accident. > 7. How did Frank Clarke (King of the Hollywood stuntmen during the '30s) break his? Frank Clarke made headlines when he broke his leg... stepping off a curb. Little known today, he was really big in the '30s. Pilot in "Wings", member of the Black Cats, etc. How did he die? A friend of his was camping in the mountains, and Clarke (a practical joker) loaded a bag of manure into his BT-13, intending to open the canopy, roll upside down, and dump the manure on his friend. When he rolled upside down, the bag jammed in front of the stick, blocking forward movement. He crashed inverted. > 8. If you are a Navy pilot with "Rhodes" as a surname, what is your nickname? "Dusty," of course. All roads are dusty to a sailor...this line was used in "Dive Bomber," starring Errol Flynn and Fred MacMurray. > 9. What is Ensign George Gay famous for? Only survivor of Torpedo Squadron 8 (flying Devastators) at Midway. > 10. What shot down the only U.S. blimp lost in combat during WWII? A U-boat. I kid you not. > 11. AIRCRAFT NICKNAMES: Everybody knows the official nicknames of aircraft... but can you name which planes had these unofficial names? a. "Thud" (easy) <F-105 Thunderchief> b. "Stringbag" <Fairey Swordfish> c. "Whale" <Douglas A-3 Skywarrior...also Roland C-11> d. "Harry Tate" <RE-8 (RFC observation airplane)> > 12. In what context was the first A-Bomb mentioned in the movie, "Jaws"? When the Scheider, Dreyfuss, and Shaw (playing the boat's captain) are comparing scars, Shaw points to one and says he got it when he was on the "Indianapolis." He then tells the story about that ship. The Indianapolis was a cruiser which carried the first A-Bomb overseas to Tibbet's group. Due to wartime secrecy, the usual Navy channels were not informed that the ship was at sea. The day after delivering the bomb, the ships was sunk by a Japanese sub. Casualties in the sinking were light. However, many men were lost to shark attack in the days until a passing airplane spotted the survivors and brought assistance. The ship hadn't got off a distress call, and nobody knew it was out there. > 13. What famous General Aviation aircraft was faster than front-line Army fighters, when it was introduced? The Beech D-17 "Staggerwing" was the answer I was looking for. > 14. The F-15 is not the first US fighter named "Eagle". Name an earlier example. The P-75, built by General Motors. An attempt at a "quickie" fighter during WWII, it used a contrarotating engine, and was supposed to use major structural components from other aircraft in production. For instance, it (the prototype) had P-40 wings, and tail feathers from an SBD. Later versions dropped the attempt to use off-the-shelf parts. No more than a half dozen were built. > 15. Other than the C-5 or C-141, name a Lockheed aircraft with four jet engines. The Jetstar was the answer, if you didn't include prop-jet A/C. > 16. What type of aircraft did "Wrong Way" Corrigan make history in? A Curtiss Robin. > 17. PACTRA SPECIAL BONUS QUESTIONS: These all have to do with stuff painted on the sides of airplanes. > a. "The Flying Undertaker"- What is its pilot famous for? Lt. Shomo shot down seven enemy aircraft on his first combat mission. upon return to base, he was initially chastised for doing seven victory rolls (people thought he was kidding). His wingman, who shot down four, was asked why he didn't do any rolls. His response..."I don't know how to fly a Mustang that well." > b. "LO!"- What kind(s) of airplane had this painted on it, who flew it, and what did it mean? Ernst Udet's Fokker D-7 had LO! painted on it (may have had it on earlier A/C he flew, too). Didn't really mean anything... "Lo" was the nickname of his girlfriend. But he did have "Du Dach Nicht" painted on his elevators... > c. "A(national star)DF- What famous a/c had this designation? B-17F "Memphis Belle" Star of a WWII documentary. > d. "7-11"- What airplane? Gee-Bee Super sportster, as flown by Jimmy Doolittle. > e. <Mickey Mouse smoking a cigar>- Whose emblem? Adolf Galland "General def Jadgflieger" during WWII > f. <A clock face showing 12 O'clock>- Whose emblem? Heh, heh, heh. "Captain Midnight," a comic book character from the '30s and '40s... Congrats to Jeff Williams, who got most of these. Ron Wanttaja (ssc-vax!wanttaja)