DC10FE

David Clark & Bose headsets? Are the issued now? What ever happened to those gray plastic headsets? I hated them! I thought I died & went to heaven when I bought myself a David Clark headset when I went to commercial aviation. BTW, I have 2 of them for sale. Don R.

I think what Chris was asking is if the J-model uses the pogostick the same way the legacy Hercs do. Do they drain the water using the same pogo stick? Don R.

Hey Hush, Had lunch in Berlin lately? Check Google Earth sometime -- the Waldorf Legion building is gone; just an empty lot now. Don R.

Very debatable. Even though I was a Herc FE (military &commercial) for many years, I think the J-model, even with the 2-man cockpit is an already proven airframe. As I mentioned in another thread, a lot of airplanes have been lost unnecessarily even with an FE & nav on board. Don R.

Chris, Having been away from airplanes with dipsticks for almost 20 years, my reply will be just a guess. I would think that 8 inches of water weighs more than 8 inches of JP-4 or JP-8. Fuel is measured in weight, remember? Don R.

When I was in the 773rd at Clark, a good loadmaster could find "evidence of rats on board" at Bangkok -- always good for an overnight there. Don R.

ECHS? For us dinosauers. Don R.

As I remember when I was at TSN in 1965/66, Rebel Ramp did not have revetments. I was also in SAC at K.I. Sawyer, MI. The phrase up there was "A suck for SAC is a blow for freedom." Don R.

Yes, it is a "niche market," but Transafrik has 5 commercial Hercs parked at Fujairah and 1 at Entebbe because they can't find contracts. This is according the the ex-Director of Operations. They are being low bidded by East European Antonov and Ilyushin operators who will lease their airplanes to the UN for, I think he said, either $650 or $850/hour (An-12). A Herc operator can't compete with that. Of course, as I stated in a previous post, the condition of TFK's airplanes leaves a lot of legitimate lessors pretty leery to lease them unless it would be an AMCI type of contract. The Ugandan 5X registration doesn't help either. Just my 2¢. Don R.

Bob, I agree with MHeflin. I think the only way they could sell those airplanes would be for scrap and spares -- and I think the spares would be questionable to a legitimate buyer. No telling how old they are or where they came from. Even back when I left Transafrik in 12/95, the airplanes (both the Hercs & the 727's) were flying simulators. Even though Safair flew the crap out of their Hercs, they were maintained with some semblance of a scheduled maintenance program. It was when they were dry leased to operators like Angola Air Charter that they were abused. Without checking Lars' book, I'm pretty sure that AAC crashed a couple of leased Safair Hercs. I also agree with MHeflin's "last man standing" comment. Don R.

Ernie, I think Tepper Aviation has also replaced their CWB's, as has Prescott Support. There are 3 others operating 3 L-100-30's that Lockheed says were never built. I can't recall the msn's right now. I don't know what their CWB status is though. I think your point, though, is that Lynden is the last actual US commercial airline to operate the L-100. Just had to pick that nit. Don R.

Again, citing Lars' book, 73J is the MC-130J. Don R.

Ernie, Well, here I go hijacking a thread again. You mentioned the weights were in kilos. Were the fuel gauges in kilos, too? The reason I ask is that Transafrik had a 727 with the fuel gauges in kilos. It was a real panic attack when you'd look down at the gauges and momentarily think you were almost out of gas! OK, back to the original thread. Don R.

I came across these photos of 64-0524 (4008) in the gallery. Does anyone know the history of them -- when, where and how? Thanks, Don R.

Thanks, Bob. That makes sense now. Don R.

Thaks, Bob. Now that's an FE panel!!! I just spent 90 minutes of my Saturday morning roaming around that cockpit. One thing that confused me was that all the engine instruments and controls were numbered from right to left. We had an FE at Dyess years ago that used to be a B-36 FE at Biggs AFB in El Paso, TX. Some old Dyess guys may remember him -- Noley Rumble. Don R.

Bob, I have the same photo in my files, except with the American flag on the tail. The notes say "1972, MAAG, Abu Dhabi, UAE." Don R.

arschuck72, I found this photo of some nose art on 282. Maybe some of the old head SOS guys may recognize it. Don R.

Ernie, According to Lars' book, 282 was originally assigned to the 15th SOS from 1994 to 2005. It then went to the 7th SOS in 2005. From there, it went to the 1st SOS from 2008 to 2009 and is now with the 550th SOS. No mentiom of any artwork in his book. Don R.

Giz, I'm not sure when, but a couple of years before I retired in 1985, they changed the rules and you could use your flight orders in lieu of TDY orders to file for per diem; i.e. an out and back to POB for drops, etc. Made things a lot easier. The best money-maker TDY's I had were the BAT trips to Saudi Arabia with the 37th TAS. Good flying and relatively big bucks. Don R.

I've hesitated to post anything here because it seems everyone has posted what I wanted to say. Like many, I only knew Dan via this forum, but I feel as if I knew him personally. He was a unique individual who will be sorely missed for his (usually) unsolicited, but direct opinions. Like Giz, I hope his family gets to read these posts. RIP, Dan. Don R.

Bob, I forgot about his French wife. They divorced when we were at Rhein Main. He married Patty a short while later. She was an air traffic controler stationed at Spangdahlem. She worked the tower there. Don R.

Scott, You're right about the photos -- not very promising. The crew, pilot, copilot and boomer were from Fairchild AFB, WA. Don R.

The load was 5 heavy military vehicles. The restraint system of the 747 makes a pallett breaking loose almost impossible, but securing vehicles is another story. It was an augmented crew; besides the flying crew, there was another captain and FO. There was also a loadmaster and 2 mechanics on board. They were on their way to Dubai, probably a tech stop. Don R.