Today in US military history: first flight of the Bone

Unto the Breach ^ | Oct. 18, 2018 | Chris Carter

[fugazi]

Today’s post is in honor of Staff Sgt. Jarred S. Fontenot, who was killed in action on this day in 2007. The 35-year-old native of Port Barre, La. died in Baghdad of wounds from an improvised explosive device and enemy small-arms fire. Fontenot was assigned to 2d Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2d Brigade Combat Team, 2d Infantry Division.

1775: A small British fleet commanded by Capt. Henry Mowat bombards the town of Falmouth, Mass. (modern-day Portland, Maine), setting most of the coastal settlement on fire with incendiary cannonballs. Mowat then sends a landing party ashore to destroy any buildings that were still standing, and the “Burning of Falmouth” will provide the inspiration for the Continental Congress to establish the Continental Navy.

1917: A convoy bearing the newly created 42d “Rainbow” Infantry Division sails from Hoboken, N.J. for France. The unit consists of federalized National Guard soldiers from 26 states and the District of Colombia, and its chief-of-staff is Col. (later, five-star general) Douglas MacArthur.

1942: Adolf Hitler issues his “Commando Order”, stipulating that any captured Allied commandos – even if they are wearing uniforms – will be executed without trial. Numerous Office of Strategic Services (OSS) agents and Army Air Force pilots and crewmembers are killed because of the order, and German officers carrying out illegal executions under the Commando Order will be tried for war crimes during the Nuremberg Trials.

1943: After 11 months of intense training, the 29th Ranger Battalion (Provisional) is disbanded before the American commandos can participate in combat action. The Rangers return to their original units, bringing with them advanced skills they can share with the regular troops, like penetrating deep behind enemy lines, staging raids, and intelligence gathering.

[fugazi]

Image of the day: Maj. John Glenn after flying the first supersonic transcontinental flight

[fugazi]

Ping list

[Don Corleone]

Major John H. Glenn, Jr., United States Marine Corps, with his Chance Vought F8U-1P Crusader after finishing the first supersonic transcontinental flight on July 16, 1957. Glenn flew 2,360 miles from Naval Air Station Los Alamitos in Southern California to Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, N.Y. in just 3 hours and 23 minutes. (U. S. Navy)

Sadly, his baggage was lost.

[fugazi]

Sadly, his baggage was lost. But hey, there were no layovers and he had a window seat.

[M Kehoe]

I guess no beer or peanuts either.

5.56mm

[Snickering Hound]

France launches and recovers the first and to date only Astrocat Félicette into space in 1963.

[reg45]

A CVN is an aircraft carrier, not a submarine.

[mass55th]

Thank you!!

[M Kehoe]

???

5.56mm

[reg45]

Proofread the entire article. See entry for 1977.

[fugazi]

Wow I don’t know how on earth I missed that. Thanks!

[fella]

The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) is a carrier not a submarine.

[AlaskaErik]

1917: A convoy bearing the newly created 42d “Rainbow” Infantry Division sails from Hoboken, N.J. for France.

Sadly, in today's army, a "Rainbow" infantry division would be something altogether different.