From: skunk-works-digest-owner@mail.orst.edu To: skunk-works-digest@mail.orst.edu Subject: Skunk Works Digest V5 #573 Reply-To: skunk-works-digest@mail.orst.edu Errors-To: skunk-works-digest-owner@mail.orst.edu Precedence: bulk Skunk Works Digest Sunday, 17 December 1995 Volume 05 : Number 573 In this issue: Re: U-2s to deploy to France Re: U-2s to deploy to France Another triangle Help with the family tree U 2's in France Re: CREDIBLE SPORT C-130 More A-12 See the end of the digest for information on subscribing to the skunk-works or skunk-works-digest mailing lists and on how to retrieve back issues. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Charles_E._Smith.wbst200@xerox.com Date: Sat, 16 Dec 1995 03:46:18 PST Subject: Re: U-2s to deploy to France I don`t think any U-2`a are still active in military service, but who knows. Probably mean TR`s don`t you think. Many more differences than meet the eye, like the B1(a) vs. the B1B. Does anyone know if there are active U2,s or have they all been relegated to NASA as research platforms? Hot tip: Skunk watch at Chemung County Airport, Elmira NY Chuck ------------------------------ From: dadams@netcom.com (Dean Adams) Date: Sat, 16 Dec 1995 04:04:12 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: U-2s to deploy to France > I don`t think any U-2`a are still active in military service, but who knows. > Probably mean TR`s don`t you think. Nope. The TR-1As were all redesignated as U-2Rs about a year ago. > Many more differences than meet the eye, like the B1(a) vs. the B1B. Hmm... it was my impression that the differences were fairly minor. > Does anyone know if there are active U2,s or have they all been > relegated to NASA as research platforms? USAF has the only active U-2s, but NASA Ames has two ER-2s and one TR-1A. ------------------------------ From: kerry@Hungerford.chch.cri.nz (Kerry Ferrand) Date: Sun, 17 Dec 1995 01:15:34 -1200 Subject: Another triangle I found the below account on a web page today. I find it interesting as its the first time I've ever seen the "engine pod" mentioned in a witness report of one these aircraft (mabye the corner spotlights usually drown out such detail). It also is the only one not said to be black or dark grey..although the writer didn't state a colour as such. I know somewhere I have another report of a triangular UFO in the UK around the same time period. I had an interesting experience a some months ago which I would like to run past you: I was driving home one evening, not too late, along the main road that joins Oxford to Reading over here in the UK. About halfway home I noticed the proverbial "lights in the sky" over one of the fields off to the side of the road. This was odd as there are no airfields nearby. A couple of other motorists had stopped in a nearby layby, and were stood watching over the fence so I decided to join them. We all watched these "lights" for about 5 minutes, dancing around in the sky above the field, and then the source of this display came a little closer to the road and slowly flew over us to the field opposite, and then carried on maneuvering. After another 3 or 4 minutes or so, it turned south and set off at modest speed, climbing at the same time, until it was out of sight. The whole experience was far from frightening. In fact it was quite mesmerising watching this craft dance around a few tens of feet off the ground. Nobody suffered any burns, distress, nausea or any weird shit, and we all just shrugged it off as "another military toy" and went our own ways after that. Unfortunately, it didn't occur to me at the time to take anyone's names or numbers. There must have been 8 or 9 people accumulated by the end of the "display." The Object. I can best describe it's shape as similar to the A12 flying wing but with an extension to the rear edge, and somewhat smaller. (see text-o-gram below) It seemed unpainted except for two black patches, one on each of the rear two corners, and some markings under what I assumed to be the engines. These were slung underneath in a "pod" similar to the engines on the XB70 Valkyrie, the same sort of shape too. There were no navigation lights that I could recognise, instead just 3 bright yellowish white lights, one at each extreme of the craft. These were steady lights, not blinking, pulsating or flashing or anything dramatic like that. We never got a chance to see the top of it, obviously because it was above us. There was very little noise from it, but what there was was like that of a diesel generator that you might find in a large train, but much quieter. As it passed over us, I could feel the displacement of the air, and there was a slight warmth to the exhaust (if that's what it was) but nothing like what you'd expect from a jet exhaust for example. When I could see the back of it, there was a dark orange glow from the rear end of the engine "pod". Do you know if this type of thing might belong to "them" in Area 51? Or have you perhaps heard of anything similar in the UK before? BTW: This is an honest account This is the best I can do given the limited graphics available to a text editor :-) [FRONT] __ / \ / \ / \ / ____ \ / | | \ |#__|__|__#| #=dark patches ^^ engine "pod" >From a curious believer who is, at the same time, mildly skeptical about the whole thing. P.S. Feel free to include this with my email address if you think it's a valid contribution. Chris Longhurst, Bristol, England chrisl@division.co.uk - ----------------------- Headers -------------------------------- From chrisl@division.co.uk Tue Aug 29 13:43:25 1995 ------------------------------ From: "JOHN F. REGUS" Date: Sat, 16 Dec 1995 09:00:03 -0600 Subject: Help with the family tree Dear Skonkz; I have read some recent posts about Northrop-Grumman, Lockheed-GD. Are these all of the current mergers and acquisitions? Didn't McDoug split into military and commercial, and, the commercial portion is on its own and the military division has teamed up with...? I should have paid more attention when all of this high-finance backwood hillbilly inbreeding was going on, but I have not, so if one of you will please post the family tree, I would be appreciative. Also, what happened to Convair? And, was the company that made the old M404 passenger plane of the '60s. Regards, ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ + John F. Regus + SYS/370/390 SYSTEMS SOFTWARE, DATA AND + TELECOMMUNICATIONS ENGINEERING ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ + internet: wizard@sccsi.com + internet: jregus@aol.com + voice : (713) 960 0045 + data : (713) 960 0015 (SECURED) ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ------------------------------ From: celestine@cix.compulink.co.uk (Michael Stockton) Date: Sat, 16 Dec 95 18:03 GMT Subject: U 2's in France On 15th december Andreas said: Well officially...yet I can vaguely remember many years ago, in the U2 heyday, when I was an interested military aircraft fanatic, that one landed in France...how is your RAM on this matter? Grahame ~~~more-heart-less-head~~~ ------------------------------ From: Edward_R._Hotchkiss@atlmug.org (Edward R. Hotchkiss) Date: 16 Dec 1995 22:22:55 GMT Subject: Re: CREDIBLE SPORT C-130 I saw that C-130 at Warner-Robins and had wondered about its history. From what I can gather the plane was able to land and takeoff in a soccer field. After about 15 cycles the frame started showing the strain from its operations. /Ed Hotchkiss/ edward_r_hotchkiss@atlmug.org ------------------------------ From: VVKW99B@prodigy.com (MR THEODORE CORMANEY) Date: Sat, 16 Dec 1995 20:09:46 EST Subject: More A-12 Last week there was a meeting at the Asst Sec Navy level to dicuss handling the A-12 press. Sounds like they expect some kind of court decision. TC/DC ------------------------------ End of Skunk Works Digest V5 #573 ********************************* To subscribe to skunk-works-digest, send the command: subscribe skunk-works-digest in the body of a message to "majordomo@mail.orst.edu". 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