The FReeper Foxhole Revisits "Little Friends" - USAAF Fighter Escorts - April 3rd, 2004

http://www.cebudanderson.com/europe.htm ^ | Scott Richardson

[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

Excerpts from
Scott Richardson's Thesis
"A History of Eighth Air Force Fighter Operations 1942 to 1945"


* In early 1944 an event of historic importance took place - the release of fighters from the close escort policy and the establishment of a relay escort pattern,. General James H. Doolittle replaced General Eaker as head of the Eighth Air Force on 5 January 1944. Doolittle was a fighter pilot at heart and understood the frustrations caused by the close escort policy. He often came to Fighter Command operations and listened to the radio chatter of his fighter pilots in combat. Sitting in a chair with eyes closed and ear phones on, he stayed until the last of his fighter pilots returned to their bases.

Doolittle changed the close escort policy after his arrival when he ordered General Kepner to "flush them (Luftwaffe fighter aircraft) out in the air and beat them up on the ground on the way home. Your first priority is to take the offensive." He told Kepner to tear down a sign posted in Eighth Fighter Command Headquarters that read "THE FIRST DUTY OF THE EIGHTH AIR FORCE FIGHTERS IS TO BRING THE BOMBERS BACK ALIVE" and replace it with one that read " THE FIRST DUTY OF THE EIGHTH AIR FORCE FIGHTERS IS TO DESTROY GERMAN FIGHTERS." General Kepner was overjoyed at this order and tore the sign down as Doolittle walked out the door.



The death of the close escort policy resulted in a modification of the relay system. Instead of flying to a rendezvous point, Eighth fighter groups now patrolled predetermined areas along the bomber's route to the target. Thunderbolts groups patrolled the shallow and medium range distances with the most experienced groups flying where enemy opposition was expected. Target area support was assigned to the P-38s and P-51s because of their long range.

Lightning groups took over escort from the P-47s and handed the bombers over to the Mustang groups about 100-150 miles from the target. Major Thomas Hayes of the 357th Fighter Group remembers his group: "...provided area support ahead of the bombers and five to ten miles laterally. The group leader would continue ahead of the bombers plus or minus thirty to forty miles with a squadron on each side, the high squadron usually on the right side, then execute a 180 degree turn in a race track pattern bringing the group over the lead bomber to repeat the pattern."

The North American P-51 Mustang was designed, built, and flown in 102 days. It languished on RAF and USAAF air fields as a result of being under powered until the British put a Rolls Royce Merlin engine in the air frame. The results were dramatic, transforming the once scorned Mustang into the best overall fighter of the war. Carrying four fifty caliber machine-guns in the B Model and six fifty caliber machine guns in the D Model, the Mustang was equal to the Me 109 in maneuverability and more maneuverable than the FW 190. It had a top speed of 445 mile per hour at 24,000 feet and a service ceiling of 40,000 feet. "Traffic pattern air speeds were 115 to 120 miles per hour on final approach with touch down around 100 to 90 miles per hour." A low fuel consumption rate of one gallon a minute at cruise speed, combined with a fuel capacity of 485 gallons allowed Mustang pilots to fly to any target within 2,120 miles from base.

*Another piece of equipment that gave the Eighth fighter pilot an advantage over his Luftwaffe counterpart was the G-suit. Standard flight gear of an American fighter pilot consisted of a helmet, sloping goggles, a white silk scarf, a gabardine flight suit, an A-2 leather jacket, leather gloves, and fur lined boots. This outfit kept the pilot warm at high altitude, but failed to keep the pilot from blacking out during high-G maneuvers. The G-suit was designed to solve this problem.

Two types of G-suits were tested by Eighth fighter groups. The British suit used water and was tested by the 357th, while the 4th Fighter Group tested the American design that used air. the British suit, known as the "Frank suite," resembled fishing waders. It was made of rubber and came up to the pilots armpits. Major Thomas Hayes remembers, "...the suit was very stiff and cumbersome and the ground crew filled it with water while the pilot stood. Once filled, the ground crew helped the pilot into the cockpit. Cumbersome as it was, the suit was effective in delaying the black outs. However, the 357th did not think the tradeoff was worth the fatigue on the pilot."

The American suit, know as the "Berger suit," had a tight fitting band around each calf and thigh as well as the stomach. It was pressurized from the positive side of the vacuum pump through a valve that opened when the pilot experienced G-load maneuvers. The suit, when pressurized, tightened up and squeezed the pilot so the blood did not drain from his brain and cause a black out. Eighth fighter pilots agreed the Berger suit was superior to the Frank suit and were equipped with the American version during the summer.



*A second development arrived later in the summer of 1944 in the form of a new gun sight. Eighth fighter aircraft were equipped with a fixed sight, called the N-3 and later N-9 gun sight,. Both sights were optical with a ring and dot of light called the "pipper," which projected onto the clear glass in front of the sight. The pilot looked at his target through the gun sight, putting the pipper on the target only when there was no angle off involved, which is from directly ahead or directly behind. To make a deflection shot, he estimated the angle off to the target and then placed the pipper ahead to get proper lead.

The new K-14 gyroscopic gun sight solved this problem for the pilot. the pilot used the k-14 much like the N-3 or N-9, but with a few exceptions. The K-14 had a dial attached to the throttle, which enabled the pilot to set a ring of diamonds around the target's wing span. Once the target's wing span was selected, the pilot placed the ring and pipper on the aircraft and maneuvered his fighter to keep the target centered for a brief second. The K-14 computed the range and angle of the target in relation to the attacking fighter, and moved the pipper to the proper aim point. The fighter pilot then moved the nose of his aircraft to center the pipper. Once this was accomplished, he could open fire on the target.

The K-14 was not too popular at first, due to its mounting in the cockpit. Mounted right on top of the instrument panel, the new gun sight extended back to within inches of the pilot's face. this blocked the pilot's vision and created a serious hazard if he was forced to belly land his fighter. This problem was solved by a sergeant in the 357th Fighter Group.

Sergeant Idalo E. Auguliaro solved the problem by cutting a hoe out of the glare shield and moving the sight forward. The group's pilots were pleased with this modification and sent the specifications to the Air Corps engineering center at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio. The engineering center rejected the improvement and ordered the 357th to place the sight back in it's original position. The Yoxford Boys ignored the order, remounted the rest of their sights in the same fashion, and shared their discovery with the rest of the Mustang equipped groups., This resulted the the North American factory retooling their assembly line to mount the gun sight as the 357th had discovered. Sergeant Auguliaro received the Bronze Star for his efforts.

*Strafing airfields was particularly dangerous due to the numerous antiaircraft guns. German flak-towers lined the fields and were usually the first guns attacked by strafing aircraft. A flak tower consisted of a concrete pillar sixteen to twenty feet high with a circular platform mounted on top. the platform averaged six feet in diameter and had a five foot wall. Usually, these towers had a twenty millimeter or forty millimeter gun mounted on top.

Because of the placement of these flak-towers, no two strafing attacks were the same. Ideally, Eighth fighter pilots would fly high over the field as if they had o interest in the target below. The would pick out landmarks to help them line up their attack run and then dive to tree top level. Racing along at 400 miles per hour, they would pop up over the trees, line up on gun emplacements or aircraft, and open fire,. The first wave usually caught Luftwaffe ground personnel and antiaircraft gunners by surprise, while the succeeding waves of strafing aircraft flew through a hail storm of antiaircraft fire. Several leading Eighth Air Force pilots would become prisoners of war as a result of ground fire.

Conclusion:





The vital role Eighth Air Force fighter pilots played in defeating Nazi Germany extended beyond protecting the bombers. Descending to tree top altitude, Eighth fighter pilots severely hampered the German transportation system by strafing locomotives, rolling stock, barges and road vehicles. These marauding fighter aircraft also destroyed large numbers of German transport aircraft in addition to the bombers and fighters parked on air fields and by the side of the rode.

The fighter-bomber capability enabled Eighth fighter pilots to play a tactical role on or behind the battlefield by blasting enemy strongholds, supply dumps, tanks, troop concentrations, and gun emplacements. Their ground attack capability enabled them to isolate the enemy by destroying bridges, tunnel entrances, and crossroads.

Eighth fighter pilots also played havoc with the Luftwaffe's pilot training program. Young, inexperienced pilots soon found themselves unable to learn the basic fundamentals of flying without interference from Eighth fighter pilots, As a result, new Luftwaffe pilots failed to get the experience they needed before being posted to operational fighter units. This had the effect of weakening Luftwaffe fighter units, which also weakened the ferocity of their attacks on B-17s and B-24s.

Eighth Air Force fighter pilots were the reason for the bomber's success. Their presence provided security to the bombers, and torment to Luftwaffe fighter pilots. Without the presence of the Eighth fighter pilot, Luftwaffe forces could possibly have stopped the daylight strategic bombing campaign just as they had done against the RAF.



The Eighth's fighter pilots forced Luftwaffe commanders to transfer desperately needed day fighter units from the Eastern and Mediterranean fronts. This had a detrimental effect, especially on the Eastern Front, where Luftwaffe fighter pilots were out numbered two to one at the Battle of Kursk in early July 1943. History records the engagement at Kursk as the largest tank battle of the Second World War, but fails to mention it marked the decline of the Luftwaffe fighter strength on the Eastern Front. Eighth fighter pilots were not deterred by the increased strength of Luftwaffe day figher units in Germany and the Western Front in 1943. In stead, they threw themselves at the enemy, and not only won air superiority, but achieved air supremacy.

This supremacy removed the threat of the Luftwaffe's ground attack capability. Therefore, Eighth fighter pilots helped the Normandy invasion to succeed on 6 June 1944., because of their operations during the previous twenty-two months. Without them, a healthy German Air Force could possibly have repulsed the Normandy invasion. This point was acknowledged by General Eisenhower, a week after the successful invasion, when his son pointed out the vehicles moving bumper to bumper from the landing craft to the roads violated West Point textbook doctrine. "You'd never get away with this if you didn't have air supremacy," remarked Second Lieutenant John Eisenhower. His dad replied, "If I didn't have air supremacy, I wouldn't be here."

There is no question of the important role Eighth fighter pilots played for the heavy bomber crews. Bomber crews loved their "Little Friends" and hated to fly any mission without them. This love and admiration persists fifty-one years later, when a B-24 crewman wrote the author, "Little Friend, My Friend. One of the prettiest sights I ever saw was the P-51, the P-47, or the P-38 flying with our group., I still say an occasional prayer for those fighter pilots."

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FReeper Foxhole Armed Services Links

[Mudboy Slim]

"I sure wish it's set faster."

You and me both...but as long as we remain RELENTLESS, the future is pre-ordained, my FRiend!!

The Righteous Shall Triumph...MUD

[SAMWolf]

It took a long time to get here, I guess it'll take a while to reverse it. I'm just too impatient.

[Mudboy Slim]

"The Right is Right!!"
(To be sung to Bruce Springsteen's "The Ties That Bind")

Left is hurtin', but "Libs're all fired up", you say...
RATS walk down the street pushin' FReepers outta their way...
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Left's lookin' rough, Nation...'cuz they're walkin' blind!!
Folks, the Right is right!!

The Right is ri-i-i-i-i-ight!!
Now, fools can't sa-a-a-a-a-ay, "The Right is Right!!"

The FReepers dance, 'cuz we love so much...
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Right's not fools, but Dubyuh, will you walk the line?!!
And face that Right is Right!!
Yes, Right is Ri-i-i-i-ight!!
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Woah-woah...
Right would rather see the TRUTH, that's Right...yes, we would, Darlin'...
We know the sleaziness the Left must hide...
Left, they're fools, America...Left is foolhardy...
Yes, they are, Nation!!

(Musical interlude)

Fools sit and wonder...just HOO's gonna stop the pain...
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JimRob says, "Stand and Fight!!"
The Right is Ri-i-i-i-ight!!
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FReegards...MUD

[Valin]

Bump for the morning.

[Aeronaut]

Good morning Snippy.

North American P-51H

[E.G.C.]

Good morning, Snippy and everyone at the Freeper Foxhole.

Some parts of SW Oklahoma received excessive rain yesterday. Flash Flood Warning for Kiowa County for a time.

Good luck to OSU tonight in the Final Four.

Daylight Savings Time begins at 2 AM tommorow in most parts of the country. Be sure to sert your clocks ahead one hour.

[The Mayor]

He caused the waters to flow from the rock for them; He also split the rock, and the waters gushed out. —Isaiah 48:21

God is the only King who can never be defeated.

[Valin]

On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on April 03:
1367 Henry IV Bolingbroke Lincolnshire, King of England (1399-1413)
1569 Giovanni Battista Massarengo composer
1593 George Herbert English poet (5 Mystical Songs)

1715 John Hanson Port Tobacco MD, 1st US President under Articles of Confederation

1783 Washington Irving New York NY, American writer (Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip Van Winkle)
1798 Charles D Wilkes Commander (Union Navy), died in 1877
1822 Edward Everett Hale US, clergyman/author (Man without a Country)
1823 William Marcy "Boss" Tweed corrupt NYC political boss
1825 Adolf Rzepko composer
1837 John Burroughs writer/nature enthusiast (Burroughs Medal namesake)
1842 Ulric Dahlgren Colonel (Union volunteers), died in 1864
1858 Matthew Ricketts 1st Black man elected to Nebraska State Legislature
1860 Frederik W van Eeden Dutch utopian writer (Walden)
1885 Harry St John Philby [sheik Abdullah], British explorer
1894 Dooley Wilson Tyler TX, actor (Bill-Beulah, Sam-Casablanca)
1898 George Jessel toastmaster general/entertainer (Diary of Young Comic)
1898 Henry R Luce Tengchow China, publisher (Time, Fortune, Life, 1965 Fisher Award)
1900 Camille Chamoun President of Lebanon
1904 Sally Rand US, actress/fan dancer (1933 Chicago World Fair)
1904 Iron Eyes Cody Tulsa OK, actor (Black Gold, Ernest Goes to Camp)
1907 Isaac Deutscher Polish/English historian (Stalin/Trotsky biography)
1915 Paul Touvier war criminal
1916 Herb Caen Sacramento CA, columnist (San Francisco Chronicle)
1921 Marilyn Maxwell Clarinda IA, actress (Grace-Bus Stop)
1924 Doris Day Cincinnati OH, "girl next door" actress (Pillow Talk)
1924 Marlon Brando Omaha NE, actor (On the Waterfront, A streetcar Named Desire, Godfather)
1926 Virgil Grissom Mitchell IN, Lieutenant Colonel USAF/astronaut (Merc 4, Gemini 3)
1929 Miyoshi Umeki Otaru Hokkaido Japan, actress (Best Supporting Actress Oscar-1957-Sayonara, Mrs Livingston-Courtship of Eddie's Father)
1930 Max Frankel journalist
1930 Helmut Kohl chancellor (Germany, 1982- )
1930 Lawton Chiles (Senator/Governor-Democrat-FL, 1971-89/91- )
1933 Robert K(B-1 Bob) Dornan (Representative-Republican-CA, 1977-83, 85- )
1934 Jane Goodall London England, ethologist (studied African chimps)
1941 Jan Berry Los Angeles CA, rock vocalist (Jan & Dean-Deadman's Curve) died 3/04
1942 Billy Joe Royal Valdosta GA, country singer (Down in the Boondocks)
1942 Marsha Mason St Louis MO, actress (Blume in Love, Cinderella Liberty)
1942 Wayne Newton Roanoke VA, singer (Danke Schön)
1944 Tony Orlando New York NY, singer (& Dawn-Tie a Yellow Ribbon)
1945 Richard Manuel rock pianist/vocalist (The Band-Up on Cripple Creek)
1946 Carlos Salinas de Gortari President (México, 1988-94)
1946 John Virgo British snooker player
1947 Pat[rick] Proft Minneapolis MN, comedy writer (Naked Gun, Airplane)
1949 Lyle Alzado NFLer (Los Angeles Raiders)/actor (Oceans of Fire, Hangfire)
1955 Mick Mars [Bob Allen Dale] Terra Haute IN, guitarist (Mötley Crüe-Girls Girls)
1955 Aleksandr Nikolayevich Yablontsev Russian Lieutenant-Colonel/cosmonaut
1958 Alec Baldwin Amityville NY, actor (Joshua-Knots Landing, Beetlejuice)(STILL living in the USA)
1959 David Hyde Pierce Saratoga Springs NY, actor (Niles Crane-Fraiser)
1961 Eddie Murphy Brooklyn NY, actor (Saturday Night Live, 48 Hours, Beverly Hills Cop, Raw)

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Deaths which occurred on April 03:
0033 Christ crucified (according to astronomer Humphreys & Waddington)
0628 Chosroes II emperor of Persia (579..628), murdered by his son
1287 Honorius IV [Giacomo Savelli], Italian Pope (1285-87), dies
1512 Richard Pafraet Dutch printer, dies
1525 Giovanni Rucellai Italian poet (Le Api), dies at 49
1826 Reginald Heber bishop & hymn writer, dies
1838 Francesco Antommarchi Napoleon's physician on St Helena, dies at 57
1862 James Clark Ross Arctic explorer, dies
1882 Jesse James outlaw, shot dead at 34, in St Joseph MO by Robert Ford
1901 Richard D'Oyly Carte promotor (Gilbert & Sullivan operas), dies
1936 Bruno Hauptmann convicted Lindbergh baby killer, executed
1941 André Michelin French tire manufacturer, dies at 88
1943 Conrad Veidt German/US actor (Cabinet of Dr Calgary), dies at 50
1946 Lieutenant General Masaharu Homma (responsible for Bataan Death March), executed
1956 T Kostov Bulgarian vice-premier, executed
1962 Benny "Kid" Paret US welterweight boxer, dies after fight, at 24
1971 Joseph Valachi US gangster, dies at 66
1971 Manfred Bonnington Lee [Ellery Queen], detective writer, dies at 65
1982 Warren Oates actor (East of Eden, Stoney Burke, The Wild Bunch), dies at 53
1986 Richard Manuel rock pianist/vocalist (Band), dies on 41st birthday
1988 Milton A Caniff US cartoonist (Terry & the Pirates), dies at 81
1990 Sarah Vaughan jazz singer, dies of lung cancer at 66
1991 Graham Greene British writer (3rd Man, Our man in Havana), dies at 86
1993 Pinky Lee kiddie host (Pinky Lee Show), dies of heart attack at 85
1994 Betty Furness actress/news consumer reporter (WNBC), dies at 78
1996 Carl Stokes 1st black mayor of a major US city (Cleveland OH), dies
1996 Ronald Harmon Brown Secretary of Commerce, dies in an "accident" at 54
1996 Roosevelt "Booba" Barnes bluesman, dies at 59

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Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1965 MORGAN HERSCHEL S.---CANDLER NC.
[02/14/73 RELEASED BY DRV/INJURED,ALIVE IN 98]
1965 SMITH GEORGE C.---ST LOUIS MO.
1965 VOHDEN RAYMOND A.---SPRINGFIELD NJ.
[02/12/73 RELEASED BY DRV/INJURED, ALIVE IN 98]
1966 LAWS RICHARD LEE---SACRAMENTO CA.
1968 HARDY JOHN CHARLES---TROY MO.
[04/12/68 REMAINS RECOVERED]
1968 REXROAD RONALD REUEL---RANKIN IL.
1968 THOMAS JAMES C.---SAFFORD AZ.
1969 ECKLUND ARTHUR G.---PHOENIX AZ.
1969 JEFFERSON PERRY H.---DENVER CO.
1972 CHRISTENSEN ALLEN D.---FRANDREAU SD.
1972 HENDERSON WILLIAM J.---MILWAUKEE WI.
[03/27/73 RELEASED BY PRG, ALIVE IN 98]
1972 MUREN THOMAS RICHARD---LAKEWOOD CA.
1972 O'NEIL DOUGLAS L.---BAYONNE NJ.
1972 WILLIAMS EDWARD W.---CLEARWATER FL.
1972 ZICH LARRY A.---LINCOLN NE.

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

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On this day...
0309 -BC- Origin of Seleucid Era
0419 [Etalius] ends his reign as Catholic Pope
1043 Edward the Confessor crowned king of England
1645 English parliament accept Self-Denying Ordinance
1657 English Lord Protector Cromwell refuses crown
1721 Robert Walpole becomes England's 1st Lord of the Treasury
1764 Austrian arch duke Jozef crowned himself Roman Catholic king
1776 Washington receives honorary Ll.D. degree from Harvard College
1783 Sweden & US sign a treaty of Amity & Commerce

1790 Revenue Marine Service (US Coast Guard), created

1848 Thomas Douglas becomes 1st San Francisco public teacher
1860 Pony Express began between St Joseph MO & Sacramento CA
1864 Skirmish at Okolona AR
1865 Union forces occupy Confederate capital of Richmond VA & Petersburg VA
1865 Battle at Namozine Church VA (Appomattox Campaign)
1868 An Hawaiian surfs on highest wave ever, he rides a 50' tidal wave
1882 Wood block alarm invented, when alarm rang, it dropped 20 wood blocks
1908 Frank Gotch wins world heavyweight wrestling championship in 2 hours
1910 Highest mountain in North America, Alaska's Mount McKinley climbed
1913 British suffragette Emily Pankhurst sentenced to 3 years in jail
1917 Lenin leaves Switzerland for Petrograd
1918 House of Representatives accepts American Creed written by William Tyler
1919 Austria expels all Habsburgers
1922 Stalin appointed General Secretary of Communist Party
1923 2 "Black Sox" sue White Sox (unsuccessfully) for back salary
1925 Great Britain goes back to gold standard
1926 2nd flight of a liquid-fueled rocket by Robert Goddard
1926 1st performance of Jean Sibelius' 7th Symphony in C
1927 Interstate Commerce Commission transfers Ohio to Eastern time zone
1930 Ras Tafari becomes Emperor Haile Selassie of Abyssinia (Ethiopia)
1933 1st airplane flight over Mount Everest
1933 The longest North American hockey game requires a 1:44:46 overtime as Maple Leaf Ken Doraty scores to beat Canadiens 1-0
1936 Al Carr KOs Lew Massey on 1 punch, :07 of the 1st round (shortest boxing bout with gloves)
1941 Churchill warns Stalin of German invasion
1941 Rasjid al-Gailani forms pro-German regime in Iraq
1944 Supreme Court (Smith vs Allwright) "white primaries" unconstitutional
1944 British dive bombers attack battle cruiser Tirpitz
1945 Nazi's begin evacuation of camp Buchenwald
1946 Netherlands-German postal relations resume
1948 Harry Truman signs Marshall Plan ($5B aid to 16 European countries)
1949 KQW-AM in San Francisco CA changes call letters to KCBS
1949 North Atlantic Treaty, pact signed by US, Britain, France & Canada
1954 Don Perry climbs a 20' rope in under 2.8 seconds (AAU record)
1956 German war criminals Hinrichsen/Rühl/Siebens/Viebahn are freed
1957 Samuel Beckett's "Endgame", premieres in London
1957 USSR performs atmospheric nuclear test
1958 Fidel Castro's rebels attacked Havana
1962 Jockey Eddie Arcaro retires after 31 years (24,092 races)
1964 US & Panamá agree to resume diplomatic relations
1965 1st atomic powered spacecraft (SNAP) launched
1966 Luna 10 orbits Moon
1966 Tom Seaver, signs with the Mets for a reported $50,000 bonus
1967 113 East Europeans attending World Amateur hockey championships in Vienna, ask for political asylum
1968 North Vietnam agrees to meet US representatives to set up preliminary peace talks
1970 Miriam Hargrave of England passes her drivers test on 40th try
1974 148 tornadoes are reported over an area covering a dozen states in the east, south & midwest killed approximately 315
1974 Gold hits record $197 an ounce in Paris France
1975 Bobby Fischer stripped of world chess title for refusing to defend
1977 Egyptian President Anwar Sadat's 1st meeting with President Jimmy Carter
1979 Jane M Byrne (D) elected 1st woman mayor of Chicago IL
1981 Race riots in London's Brixton area
1982 UN Security Council demands Argentina's withdrawal from Falkland Islands
1985 Vic Elliot pocketed 15,780 pool balls in 24 hours in London
1987 Bill Elliott sets NASCAR qualifying record of 212.809 mph at Talladega
1987 Chicago Cubs trade Dennis Eckersley to A's for 3 minor leaguers
1988 Mario Lemieux wins NHL scoring title, stopping Gretzky's 7 year streak
1988 Somalia & Ethiopia sign accord about Ogaden desert
1991 "Penn & Teller - Refrigerator Tour" opens at Eugene O'Neill NYC
1991 Bo Jackson signs 1-year contract with Chicago White Sox
1991 UN Security Council adopts Gulf War truce resolution
1996 St Francis Fighting Saints scores college baseball run record 71-1
1996 Theodore Kaczynski Jr. was arrested by FBI agents and charged with being the "Unabomber".

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

Switzerland : Glarius Festival (1388) (Thursday)
Massachusetts : Student Government Day (Friday)
US : American Circus Day
US : Don't Go to Work Unless It's Fun Day
US : Tweed Day
National Fresh Celery Month

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Religious Observances
Anglican : Commemoration of Richard, Bishop of Chichester
Christian : Holy Saturday

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Religious History
1189 The Peace of Strasbourg was signed, resolving the differences between Emperor Frederick Barbarossa of Germany and Pope Clement III.
1528 In Cologne, German reformer Adolf Clarenbach, 28, was arrested for teaching Protestant (some say Anabaptist or Waldensian) doctrines. The following year, Clarenbach was burned at the stake for his faith.
1593 Birth of George Herbert, English clergyman and poet. One of his verses endures today as the hymn, "The King of Love My Shepherd Is."
1759 Anglican clergyman and hymnwriter John Newton wrote in a letter: 'I believe that love to God, and to man for God's sake, is the essence of religion and the fulfilling of the law.'
1950 Death of American hymnwriter Ira B. Wilson, 70. Associated with Lorenz Publishing in Dayton, Ohio for over 40 years, Wilson's most enduring sacred composition was "Make Me a Blessing" (aka "Out of the Highways and Byways of Life").

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

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Thought for the day :
"Be wary of strong drink. It can make you shoot at tax collectors... and miss."

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New Words for 2004...
OHNOSECOND: That minuscule fraction of time in which you realize that you've just made a BIG mistake.

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New State Slogans...
FLORIDA: If you think we can't vote, wait till you see us drive.

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Male Language Patterns...
"I'm getting more exercise lately," REALLY MEANS,
"The batteries in the remote are dead."

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Female Language Patterns...
I'm not upset REALLY MEANS,
Of course I'm upset, you moron!

[radu]

Good morning to all at the Foxhole!

To all our military men and women, past and present,
THANK YOU for serving the USA!

I'd love to meet the fella who did this and shake his hand. It's sooooo cool! Lawrenceburg isn't all that far from us.

[Soaring Feather]

Morning radu!!

Have a wonderful time today. Great pic there.

[Soaring Feather]

Hiya Aeronaut.

Nice plane.

[Soaring Feather]

Morning snippy, had your StarBucks yet??? LOL

How do you like waking up in your own pad in Oregon?? I bet you just love it. :-)

[SAMWolf]

Morning Aeronaut. Not just the best Fighter of WWII, the best looking fighter of WWII. :-)

[SAMWolf]

Morning E.G.C. Thanks for the "Spring Ahead" warning.

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Mayor. Snippy is going stir crazy not having Internet access.

[SAMWolf]

1790 Revenue Marine Service (US Coast Guard), created

Happy Birthday U.S. Coast Guard

[SAMWolf]

Morning Radu. That is so cool!!

[SAMWolf]

Morning snippy, had your StarBucks yet??? LOL

Yep! Hand delivered to her door by SAM. (After climbing over piles of boxes and "stuff" ):-)

[Professional Engineer]

I've been outside doing some brick work. I heard the unmistakable sound made by only one type of plane flying overhead. I was surprised, since I was unaware of any Warbird group at the local aerodrome.

[Darksheare]

I'm in, finally.