Typhoid

Without going into politics - impossible. Without taking sides - The Democrats who controlled the House, Senate and WH last year did not pass a budget for this year. (it was higly political - I'll decline comment) So now, without a budget, operations have been funded by Continuing Resolutions. The last one ran out today (actually at midnight) The Republican House has proposed CR's and a rest-of-year Budget that makes some minor cuts to the $1.5 Trillion portion of the budget which they can affect. The Senate will not agree to that .05% of cuts. The President has vowed to veto the latest proposal even if it passed the Senate - which it won't and the Senate won't even schedule a hearing to consider it. So the Congress and WH are deadlocked and the funding ends at midnight. In a shutdown, the President has the authority to designate who is Mission Essential and who is not. In the past when this has happened (and it has from time to time - this is nothing new. We joked at one time during the Carter years about "working for peanuts" and really being in an "All Volunteer" military) the military was off-limits. Not this time. The President has specifically included the military into the mix. The active duty types have to report for duty, but may not get paid on time, until the budget is settled. Programs that are not fully funded, are stopped. Military operations will continue, we just won't pay the troops carrying out the operations. Of note, the DIC payment is specifically suspended during the shutdown! (this will make sense only to US military personnel, if you don't get it, don't worry about it) That, in short, is what is going on right now. I've left the specific issues off in order to stay out of the political issues being fought over.

I know what you mean. My previous slot was in-sourced (with 3 years left on the contract). I elected to move on to other tasks within my company. Better and more opportunities. So far that has worked out well.

I passed up the GS slot and stayed in the contracting business. My two contracts are fully funded, so for now I keep going. But a lot of task orders and contracts are just sitting waiting for funding. Oh well. I've got enough leave saved up to outlast the Congresscritters!

Very nice! I was wondering why you landed on the taxi-way, and then the answer became obvious. Very nicely done!

Hope they can find the recorders. After this long on the bottom, the data might not be very good, but hopefully they can find something more definitive about the cause. We know of course what the cause was - a thunderstorm that exceeded the capabilities of the aircraft. But the sequence of failures may shed light on just how it all came apart.

Good Luck!

Awesome!!! We get out and do some model rockets every now and again. That is outstanding!! (and expen$ive - those engine$ co$t a bundle!!)

"(think they only had to light ther radars to be considered a threat in 89)" not quite. But - no comment............ I rather doubt that Libyan Migs today would be much of a contest, it that is what the comment is about. Against F-14's, they certainly didn't do well. We never took them lightly, though.

-- Typhoid, I found something un~really interesting in a related topic, in the forum discussion following one of Karl Denninger's recent "Market Ticker" poasts, on Iceland. Alot of ex~military (and airline) souls poast over there and among some Iceland stories, one poaster on page 2 tells about being able to track Tu-95s across the ocean with the hydrophones. Ever hear of this? PROSECUTING! ~> http://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=177996 discussion page 2:: Were the Bears that loud? I know I've got the BS flag around here somewhere..................... I think someone up there has been dipping a little to heavily into the imported Vodka!!

Good Luck!!!

Similar happened to me there on a trip out there when I brought my brother and parents out to the Midway. We were overlooking the flightdeck from the aft part of the island and the guide was explaining what each plane did. One of the visitors asked what the funny plane with the saucer on top did and the guide, or docent they called themselves, said he didn't know. So I ended up giving that part of the tour and explained the E-2, crew composition and mission parameters. Kinda cool. But I didn't expect that.

Hang Him!! and then expunge the record when he's 18...............

Heading out on the NEACP (E-4B) on an exercise mission with the Launch Correlation Unit up listening to Range Control. We all heard the call "non-nominal" and it slowly sank in what they meant. I'll forget that feeling. Some gentlemen showed up later that evening when we were back on the ground and on alert - and took all of our tapes.

That's awesome!

brought tears to my eyes (former Navy Squadron Maintenance Officer)

Thanks Wrench! I've been waiting for this one!!

The link doesn't seem to be working

I agree with the ground crew accident. Otherwise, the nose radome would not likely have been crunched as it is and hanging over the tow bar. It will be interesting to see if any details come out on this.

They're pretty good. I've subscribed to them for about a year now. Short and to the point. I like them much better than Stratfor. You do have to keep in mind that they are adding analysis which is only as good as the analyst and his or her biases. But I like Nightwatch, sitting in my inbox in the morning.

That should buff right out.............

very well done!

those dumb @$$ can't tell the difference between UFO's and the nuclear inspection team

sadly missed and will never be forgotten.