navychief

These are two illustrations I thought everyone might enjoy. One is of a carrier, with a special message on the bow. The other is of a Navy Chief, reaming out a recruit. I like the picture, as it shows the inimidating nature of a CPO.....hehehehehe. Nahhhh, we aren't that way, are we? Only when riled. Heh, heh. Chief W.

I have posted several times, asking for help in configuring my CH Pro game controllers. Recently, another member (Beer) has offered help, and I hope to be contacting him soon. What I am wondering, however, is if anyone out there knows where I might be able to download CH Pro game controller profiles? I have seen such files listed for other game controllers such as Saitek, and Microsoft. Just wonderin'... Go Navair... Chief W.

Did anyone see the actress Janeane Garofalo on FOX last night? She is featured in an anti-war ad, sponsored by the National Council of Churches. In the ad, the commercial begins with a warning that some scenes may not be suitable for children. Garofalo suggests that up to a half-million people could be killed or wounded if the United States invades Iraq. "Do we have the right to do that to a country that's done nothing to us?" Garofalo asks. Give me a break, Garofalo. During WW2, it wasn't the German civilians that wreaked havoc on the Jews and the rest of the world; it was the Nazi regime. So, I suppose with that idiotic way of thinking, that we should not start a war with Iraq because the people are not to blame? Sheeeesh! Can you imagine what the outcome of WW2 WOULD have been, using this warped logic????? Oh well, I will simply add this mindless idiot to my list of actors and actresses I will no longer watch, or give credence too. Chief W.

To quote a phrase I once heard stated by Rush Limbaugh many years ago: "The purpose of war is to kill people and break things." Duh. When a war is raged, lots of people are killed. It is the nature of war. It cannot be any other way. Since the beginning of man, wars have taken place, and as long as mankind exists.....there will be more wars. There will always be differences of opinions as to the reasons why the US is dedicated to ousting Saddam Hussein, but all efforts to contain him have not worked. He needs to be snuffed out. Not sent to another country to live in luxury. No, I think a well-placed round in his cranium would be a much better solution. The unfortunate consequences of a war will, of course, include innocent casualties. There has never been, nor will there ever be a time when this does not happen. The following excerpt is from the Online Plain Text Dicitionary: War (v. i.) To make war; to invade or attack a state or nation with force of arms; to carry on hostilities; to be in a state by violence. It is noble to hope for an end to all wars, and for everlasting peace. The problem is it will never happen. This world is made up of thousands of different cultures. There will always be differences between races that will end up in conflict. It is just the way things are. Accept it or not. Chief W.

I agree Nixon's "contributions" to the Office of the Presidency were not noteworthy, to say the least. As for Ron Reagan? I feel strongly (as a retired career Navy) that Reagan did more to uplift the morale of our military than any other President had done in my lifetime. Jimmy Carter viewed the Navy as merely a way to transport the troops and supplies overseas; and not as our first line of defense. Billy Bob Clinton was NOT respected by the military. His position was, but not the man (if I may use that term loosely). The fact that he was even Commander-In-Chief did not sit well with most. Speaking for myself, when I was given a certificate that was signed by Clinton, thanking me for my 20 years of active service upon my retirement, I did not frame it. Oh no. Instead, I placed it in my cat's litter box and let them "do their thing" on it for a few days; then I burned it. Hmmmm....get the idea I wasn't fond of BC? Nope Chief W.

Bill Clinton, George Bush, Janet Reno and Bo Derek were all in the same train compartment. After several minutes of the trip, the train passes through a dark tunnel and the unmistakable sound of a slap is heard. When they leave the tunnel, Clinton has a big red slap mark on his cheek. Bo Derek thought - "That sleazeball Clinton wanted to touch me and by mistake, he must have put his hand on Janet Reno, who in turn must have slapped his face." Janet Reno thought - "That dirty Bill Clinton laid his hands on Bo Derek and she smacked him." Bill Clinton thought - "George put his hand on Bo Derek and by mistake she slapped me." George Bush thought - "I hope there's another tunnel soon so I can smack Clinton again."

Hmmm....best as I can tell, the F/A-18 Hornet and the F-14 Tomcat have replaced the F-16. Right? Haven't found answer to other question, but still looking. Btw way, I found two GREAT urls you need to go check out. One is a Tomcat page at: http://www.topedge.com/alley/alley.htm The other is a fantastic place to go for Navy Aviation pictures at: http://www.air-navy.com GO NAVAIR! Chief W.

Well Skipper I know that Top Gun uses them for adversary training...... Chief W. Do I get the cigar?

All of the game controllers I use are CH products. I am quite satisfied with them, but the program that CH provides for configuring them (Control Manager) is not exactly user friendly; leastwise I don't find it to be that way. Surely someone out there in the Bio Hazard community uses the same brand of controllers, and is familiar with my problem. I was fortunate enough to have received a .Map file for Ch controllers for SF; however I would still like to know how to edit these types of files to customize the functions of my equipment. Please, if anyone out there can help me with this, I sure would be grateful. Thanks. Chief W.

Speaking of the public not knowing the difference, I seem to recall a scene in the movie, "The Final Countdown", where an F-8 Crusader was launched to do reconnaissance; but when it recovered, it suddenly became an A-7 Corsair....... Same aircraft manufacturer, Ling Temco Vought (LTV); but a slighly different aircraft mod. Chief W.

Well, in my humble retired military opinion, it is probably a waste of time to attempt diplomacy with North Korea. Their mindset appears to be, "To hell with the U.S.; we will do whatever we choose, and you can't stop us, so there!" That's ok. It's their funeral. I hear China is in need of more parking space anyway...... Chief W.

Well, 'tis been a few days since my last post. I installed a new hard drive, and with that task came a lot of work - reinstalling everything. Such a pain. But worth it in the end, I hope. I was wondering how difficult it would be to include an option for selecting Flaps in increments, rather than just landing, or takeoff? Also, I seem to recall reading someone else's comments on this, but it would be nice to be able to start/stop the engines; maybe even be able to control each one? Just a thought. Oh yeah, what about adding the capability to fold the wing tips? Or maybe even in-flight refueling capability? One last thing. Can anyone out there give me some instruction on how to use the CH Control Manager for making & editing Map files for the game controllers? Hey, this old Navy Chief is gettin' older by the day, and I need all the help I can get! I would appreciate some help with this. Thanks. Chief W.

Carrier ops were my reasons for introduction of these mods, if they can be added. It would be fantastic to have a mp setup, where everyone would cat off a carrier, one by one...or side by side at the same time! The possiblities are interesting, eh? Maybe even have a flyable A-6 for refueling? One thing though....you can leave the voice of a screamin' Air Boss outa the picture! Whew! Chief W.

I had a Line Division Officer, when I was in VFA-83, who gave me his calling card. He had been prior service with the US Air Force, and had been trained as a Russian Linguist. Keep that in mind, as you read the card. What a comedian, that guy....hehehehehehehe.... Chief W.

I thought I would post some more aviation and art photos I gleaned from the net.... FLY NAVY! Chief W.

The best thing I like about SF is flying the Phantom. I don't have much experience with landing flight sim aircraft, and I was pleased to find it wasn't as hard as I thought (much thanks to help from Fast Eagle!). Although I never got the opportunity to actually pilot an F-4, I remember what it was like to ride in the backseat. When I "fly" in SF, I envision in my mind what it must have been like to be in control of such an awesome warbird! I recall vividly the feeling of the afterburners kicking in, the pressure from G-forces pushing me into the seat, and the smell of JP-5 exhaust...... Oh, 'tis seems like yesterday. Chief W. GO NAVAIR!!!!

Sure, I can do that from now on. To find my pictures, I usually use Google Images. I am amazed at what can be found sometimes. And quite often, I run across aircraft pictures I never thought I would find.... Chief W.

As the Pukin' Dogs Line CPO, I want to invite anyone interested in gaining a lot of experience with flight sims, to join up with VF-143. I have learned a lot from Fast Eagle, and I look forward to gaining knowledge from Sundowner and everyone else that joins "ranks" with Da Pukin' Dogs. Additionally, everyone on Bio Hazard has been so helpful in answering my questions. Hey Dagger! Trashman! Being retired from the Navy is a great thing. Now, instead of "Phixing Phantoms", I get to "fly" them! I gotta tell you; changing out either of the F-4s airconditioning system turbines was NOT fun. Talk about a maze of ducting!! I ran the flight line for VQ-1 for four years, up until my retirement in '97. Prior to that, I ran the flight line for the Rampagers of VFA-83 for a year also. But the GREAT thing about being the Line CPO for the Pukin' Dogs, is I don't have to worry about getting the jets fueled, or having to complete all those %&$@ing 14-Day Aircraft Washes before heading to the boat. I don't miss FOD walkdowns, or writing evals either! What I DO miss is the close-knit comraderie of military life. You can't spend 20 yrs in an occupation, and not miss some of its' aspects. Navy aviation terms are still part of my everyday language. Always will be. So, being able to converse with other F-4 fans, be you ex-military, active duty, or just plain lovers of the greatest fighter of its' time....is a great thing! Join up with the Pukin' Dogs. It's great fun, period! How 'bout them Puppies, eh? Have a great Navy Day. Turn and Burn! Chief W.

The year was 1975. The Navy did a stunt where they "raced" an F-14 Tomcat off the T-7 Catapults at Pax River vs Don Garlits in his "Mongoose" race car in a nearby 258 foot stretch of drag strip not far from Lexington Park, MD. Needless to say, the Tomcat won handedly. The whole thing was PR for the Navy. Years later, the Navy did a commercial on the USS Saratoga flight deck, where they photographed a race car sponsored by Anheiser Busch - hooked up to a catapult, as if it would be launced. I still have one of the ball caps they handed out that says, AB-1 USS Budwieser. Chief W.

I was on the USS Saratoga, (CV-60), during Desert Shield, assigned to VFA-83 (Strike Fighter Squadron Eighty-Three). On December 22, 1990, I was on liberty in Haifa, Israel; and had just gotten to sleep in a hotel room. I was wakened by loud knocking at my door. It was the Shore Patrol. They were going to all the hotels, telling crewmembers to return to Fleet Landing, as an emergency muster had been called. Upon reaching Fleet Landing, it was apparent something bad had happened. The word quickly spread that one of the ferry boats (used to transport sailors from the ship to Fleet Landing) had capsized in the rough waters. The rumor was that all but 2 of the sailors who had gone overboard had been rescued. Unfortunately, when the muster was completed, it was determined that 22 sailors were unaccounted for. UDT divers from the Saratoga immediately began searching for bodies. Additionally, the ferry boat was raised. One of the missing and presumed drowned, was AN Randy Neel, NM who had worked for me in VFA-83's Operations Dept. Later the next day, I was asked if I would escort Randy's body back to the U.S. I said yes, and the same day I joined 21 other escorts and were flown by H-53 to a location in Haifa, to identify the bodies and make preparations for shipping them back home. Now, understand that all 22 of us were in dress blue uniform. We had to place the bodies in metal containers, and pack them with ice. By the way, ice is not a common commodity in Israel; leastwise, not large amounts. Afterwards, we flew back to the states in an Airforce C-141. It was, to say the least, a very long, somber flight. All of the metal coffins were strapped to the aircrft cargo deck, complete with American flags draped over them. When we arrived at Dover AFB, the base Commander ordered the PX opened for us to purchase new uniform items, as we needed to be presentable to meet the deceased's families. All of the escorts went different directions, flying with their shipmates' remains to all parts of the U.S. I arrived in Albuquerque on Christmas Day, and met with Randy's parents. Not something I would want to repeat. So much sorrow. I stayed with them until the funeral on New Year's Day, and I flew back to GA, and then on to duty at Saufley Field, FL, as a Test Writer for the AME rating. I have attached an artist's rendering of what the ferry boat sinking may have looked like. It was originally published in an issue of Fathom (a Navy safety magazine). I can only imagine the horror those sailors felt, as they were thrown in the frigid waters, late that night on 22 Dec. 1990. AMEC(AW) Peter Ward US Navy CPO, Retired.

I scanned this photo this morning. Note the unusual item attached to the front of the nose.... Chief W.

Well, I don't know if his wife knew about the card or not. I remember that he told me he and his wife first met, while working together as Russian linguists. Lt. "Dave" was the best Div. O. I had the pleasure of serving with. He always listened to my suggestions, and never interfered with the way I ran things. My LPO was an AT2, named McHale. He viturally ran the division for me, and made my life so easy, the year before I retired. Chief W.

I was going through some memorabilia, and thought I would scan some of the patches that I had collected during my career. These are, but a few of them.

That's for sure, skipper.

And some squadron patches......