From owner-skunk-works-digest@netwrx1.com Sat Jan 27 00:32:21 2007 Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2007 23:31:29 -0600 From: skunk-works-digest Reply-To: skunk-works@netwrx1.com To: skunk-works-digest@netwrx1.com Subject: skunk-works-digest V15 #14 skunk-works-digest Friday, January 26 2007 Volume 15 : Number 014 Index of this digest by subject: *************************************************** skunk-works SR-71 Simulator at Frontiers of Flight Museum, Dallas TX skunk-works A Search for Anomalies skunk-works FWD [sourcebookdiscussion] Ancient knowledge skunk-works Crash listing for U-2s and SR-71s Re: skunk-works Crash listing for U-2s and SR-71s skunk-works "Donuts on a rope" contrail photo skunk-works FWD [tlc-brotherhood] Jet Man Re: skunk-works "Donuts on a rope" contrail photo skunk-works New F-117 book Re: skunk-works New F-117 book Re: skunk-works New F-117 book Re: skunk-works New F-117 book Re: skunk-works New F-117 book Re: skunk-works New F-117 book Re: skunk-works New F-117 book RE: skunk-works New F-117 book Re: skunk-works New F-117 book skunk-works Anybody remember Jim Goodall? *************************************************** ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 21 Oct 2006 11:52:45 -0600 From: gregd@habu2.net Subject: skunk-works SR-71 Simulator at Frontiers of Flight Museum, Dallas TX The Frontiers of Flight Museum at Love Field in Dallas TX is christening their new exhibit, the SR-71 Flight Simulator, this coming Friday 10/27 with a reception and SR-71 crewmembers as guests and speakers.. The following link has details: http://flightmuseum.com/docs/fofm_sr71.pdf Greg ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2006 20:15:18 -0700 From: "Terry W. Colvin" Subject: skunk-works A Search for Anomalies http://www.scientificexploration.org/jse/articles/pdf/16.3_corliss.pdf [A Search for Anomalies by William R. Corlis, 2002] Terry - -- "Only a zit on the wart on the heinie of progress." Copyright 1992, Frank Rice Terry W. Colvin, Sierra Vista, Arizona (USA) < fortean1 at mindspring.com > Alternate: < fortean1 at msn.com > Home Page: < http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Stargate/8958/index.html > Sites: * Fortean Times * Mystic's Haven * TLCB * U.S. Message Text Formatting (USMTF) Program - ------------ Member: Thailand-Laos-Cambodia Brotherhood (TLCB) Mailing List TLCB Web Site: < http://www.tlc-brotherhood.org > [Southeast Asia/Secret War in Laos veterans, Allies, CIA/NSA, and "steenkeen" contractors are welcome.] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 28 Nov 2006 18:18:40 -0700 (GMT-07:00) From: Terry Colvin Subject: skunk-works FWD [sourcebookdiscussion] Ancient knowledge The mathematics in his PDF writings do lend a bit of credibility. Anyone wishing to analyze is welcome to do so. Terry - -----Forwarded Message----- > >My introduction to William R. Corliss is through the article he >published in the Journal of Scientific Exploration (JSE). > >http://www.scientificexploration.org/jse/articles/pdf/16.3_corliss.pdf > >It seems we both ran across the books of Charles Fort while browsing >through a university library looking for something else. I was a young >engineering student and I had not been exposed to many of the subjects >presented by Charles Fort. I realized that some of the phenomena that >C.Fort wrote about were undocumented natural events(when I read >Fort's books some 50 years ago), but there are other items that did >not fit anything, and still don't. > >My personal experience with an "anomaly" is related to a subject >mentioned a couple of times in the JSE article. Some five years ago I >picked up a book for what I thought was some casual Winter reading, >but I questioned the conclusions that had been made. I used an >engineering approach (which I later found no one else had considered) >and identified a couple of "dimension sets" that had not been >recognized by others. I was astounded that so much mathematics >and scientific knowledge could be embedded in a simple dimension set. > >The dimension set is 47.713 cm at an angle of 26.25400 degrees. >Consider it a semi-self extracting information set, the more you know >the more you can extend what you know. > >I found out early on that I could not present the technical meaning >embedded in that "dimension set" and at the same time mention its >source. We are culturally conditioned, and this seems to go double >for those in the scientific community, to reject anything that doesn't >fit within the accepted paradigms. > >I want the content of the "MTime.pdf" article to be examined for its >worth, thus I did not mention its associated anomaly (where the >dimension set came from and how it was extracted). > >http://vip.ocsnet.net/~ancient/MTime.pdf > >I wrote it up in a number of forms as it seems certain subjects >attract more interest. The following highlights a popular subject. > >http://vip.ocsnet.net/~ancient/SETI-Offsets.pdf > >I have longer articles that cover all the "features" I am aware of >that are contained in the "dimension set", but this seems to be too >much information for many people to accept at one time, and causes >undesired controversy. > >Frank ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 3 Dec 2006 18:36:02 -0700 (GMT-07:00) From: Terry Colvin Subject: skunk-works Crash listing for U-2s and SR-71s Anyone have a list of crashes? Terry ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 04 Dec 2006 13:58:20 +0000 From: john.szalay@att.net (John Szalay) Subject: Re: skunk-works Crash listing for U-2s and SR-71s this site has what may be a good listing. http://www.blackbirds.net/u2/u2local.html - -------------- Original message from Terry Colvin : -------------- > Anyone have a list of crashes? > > Terry ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 30 Dec 2006 00:07:01 -0700 From: "Terry W. Colvin" Subject: skunk-works "Donuts on a rope" contrail photo Finally, an unusual aircraft exhaust contrail photographed in Ohio last month suggests that experimental research into "pulsed detonation engines" or other forms of exotic propulsion continues. The distinctive "donuts on a rope" contrail was photographed east of Dayton, Ohio on November 10, 2006 by William D. Telzerow. See: http://www.fas.org/irp/mystery/donuts.html - -- "Only a zit on the wart on the heinie of progress." Copyright 1992, Frank Rice Terry W. Colvin, Sierra Vista, Arizona (USA) < fortean1 at mindspring.com > Alternate: < fortean1 at msn.com > Home Page: < http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Stargate/8958/index.html > Sites: * Fortean Times * Mystic's Haven * TLCB * U.S. Message Text Formatting (USMTF) Program - ------------ Member: Thailand-Laos-Cambodia Brotherhood (TLCB) Mailing List TLCB Web Site: < http://www.tlc-brotherhood.org > [Southeast Asia/Secret War in Laos veterans, Allies, CIA/NSA, and "steenkeen" contractors are welcome.] ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 31 Dec 2006 03:13:24 -0500 (EST) From: Terry Colvin Subject: skunk-works FWD [tlc-brotherhood] Jet Man - -----Forwarded Message----- > >Following was sent to me by General Bob. First jet-powered manned flight without an airplane body. Click on the URL below. > > >On Thu, 28 Dec 2006 23:31:39 -0800, "Brig Gen R. Clements USAF ret" ><> wrote: > >Thu, 28 Dec 2006 20:44:27 -0800, MG Hank Stelling, USAF ret, forwarded the >film clip of this remarkable feat. I would like to join with Hank in making this >pioneering event available to the net. It is quite a pioneering step into the >possible future. Shades of what the "Wright Stuff" with a lot of "guts"..Look >out Chuck: >bob > >tguenther wrote: > >While it may not be exactly what more traditional aircraft makers have in >mind for the term, it would be hard to argue the definition with Yves Rossy. >The 47-year-old adventurer, who made headlines two years ago by gliding >across the English Channel with a pair of strap-on wings, has taken the >natural evolution of that feat and added power -- and plenty of it -- to his >birdman exploits. For the past couple of years he's been tinkering with >model jet engines and earlier this year felt ready to demonstrate their >remarkable effectiveness with the fold-out, strap-on wings that he'd >developed earlier and produced a pretty interesting video of his exploits. >Rossy has swooped around for six minutes or more after first dropping from a >skydiving airplane. Human landing gear is a little tender for the landing >speed that would be required so recovery is via parachute. Still, the video >shows a man fully in control of himself as an integral part of his flying >machine, and it sure looks like fun. > >The Ultimate Personal Jet? > > >If you have them, turn on your speakers and click on this link: >http://jet-man.com/actuel_eng.html > > >chk6 >bob ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 31 Dec 2006 04:19:17 -0800 From: Patrick Subject: Re: skunk-works "Donuts on a rope" contrail photo Terry W. Colvin wrote: > Finally, an unusual aircraft exhaust contrail photographed in Ohio > last month suggests that experimental research into "pulsed detonation > engines" or other forms of exotic propulsion continues. The > distinctive "donuts on a rope" contrail was photographed east of > Dayton, Ohio on November 10, 2006 by William D. Telzerow. See: > > http://www.fas.org/irp/mystery/donuts.html > > "Donuts on a rope" contrails can be produced under the proper weather conditions by a commercial jet aircraft. This photo tells us nothing about what produced it or its source of propulsion. Although the photo exhibits excellent clarity it shows no planform of the aircraft that produced the contrail. The Cleveland ARTCC handles upwards of 3,000,000 flights year. Lots of opportunity for donut rope contrails. At some point, someone is going to have to produce some photos of an airplane and not just more contrail pictures. Patrick ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 23 Jan 2007 22:03:39 -0800 From: Patrick Subject: skunk-works New F-117 book I buy every book I see on the F-117 and just received a new one from an Ebay purchase. I had no idea what it was but when I looked at it today I am beside myself, so to speak. It is entitled "F-117 NIGHTHAWK Stealth Fighter" and was written by Yancy D. Mailes and Tony R. Landis. To say it was written is a bit incorrect. It is mostly a collection of photos. Most of which I don't believe have been seen before if you weren't in the program. Landis was an early Skunk works photographer. And although the photo credits are given as "Lockheed Martin" I know that many of the photos are actually photos originally taken by Landis for the Skunk works. They cover HAVE BLUE, many early testing programs, RCS testing, aerial testing, and many bits and pieces of events that took place while the plane was being developed. The plane was extensively tested against different radars from the ground and the air and the book covers some of these little known aspects. There are even 4 movie frame photos of Jon Beesley losing the left rudder on 781. He evidently landed the plane at the "test site" and according to the authors was secretly awarded the DFC for his heroic effort. The book is full of some great information and fascinating photos of the program. I bought it from: Redline Distributing and Entertainment 251 Mt. Olive Church Rd. Dept. R Commerce, GA 30599 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 24 Jan 2007 07:55:32 -0600 From: gregd@habu2.net Subject: Re: skunk-works New F-117 book This book is also available online: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/158007099X/ref=cm_sp_item/104-9090707-822956 3 > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Patrick > To: skunk-works@netwrx1.com > Subject: skunk-works New F-117 book > Date: Tue, 23 Jan 2007 22:03:39 -0800 > > > I buy every book I see on the F-117 and just received a new one from an > Ebay purchase. I had no idea what it was but when I looked at it today > I am beside myself, so to speak. It is entitled "F-117 NIGHTHAWK > Stealth Fighter" and was written by Yancy D. Mailes and Tony R. Landis. > > To say it was written is a bit incorrect. It is mostly a collection of > photos. Most of which I don't believe have been seen before if you > weren't in the program. Landis was an early Skunk works photographer. > And although the photo credits are given as "Lockheed Martin" I know > that many of the photos are actually photos originally taken by Landis > for the Skunk works. > > They cover HAVE BLUE, many early testing programs, RCS testing, aerial > testing, and many bits and pieces of events that took place while the > plane was being developed. The plane was extensively tested against > different radars from the ground and the air and the book covers some of > these little known aspects. There are even 4 movie frame photos of Jon > Beesley losing the left rudder on 781. He evidently landed the plane at > the "test site" and according to the authors was secretly awarded the > DFC for his heroic effort. > > The book is full of some great information and fascinating photos of the > program. > > I bought it from: > > Redline Distributing and Entertainment > 251 Mt. Olive Church Rd. > Dept. R > Commerce, GA 30599 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 24 Jan 2007 14:28:34 +0000 From: john.szalay@att.net (John Szalay) Subject: Re: skunk-works New F-117 book And a story that is soon to end. shame.. http://www.holloman.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123024501 Current plans have the Air Force placing 36 aircraft at Holloman beginning in November 2008 with the final F-117A retiring in October 2008. http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123030185 10/28/2006 - HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. (AFPN) - -- After 25 years of storied service, the F-117 Nighthawk, the Air Force's first stealth fighter, is about to retire. The technology that once made it a unique weapon system has now caught up to it and newer fighter aircraft are now joining the fleet. Still, the Nighthawk was the first of its kind, a fact anyone who has spent time around the aircraft is quick to point out. http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123027010 Another issue facing the Air Force with regard to its fleet of aircraft is maintaining the older aircraft it would like to retire. Congressional legislation has specifically precluded the Air Force from retiring aircraft it no longer needs. These congressional restrictions on retiring obsolete aircraft include the C-5, KC-135E, C-130E, F-117A, U-2, and the B-52. - -------------- Original message from Patrick : -------------- > I buy every book I see on the F-117 and just received a new one from an > Ebay purchase. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 24 Jan 2007 09:09:57 -0600 From: Jay Miller Subject: Re: skunk-works New F-117 book Just a minor collection to Patrick's "review" - for posterity - of Tony Landis' and Yancy D. Mailes "new" (it's actually about six months old) F-117 book. Tony is an old and very close friend. We've worked together for years, as many of you know. For your edification, Tony was never an employ of the Skunk Works. Has never done anything with Lockheed or the Skunk Works on an official basis. He's strictly (and for many of us authors - very fortunately) a dedicated and conscientious collector of aviation photos when he's not working full-time for NASA Dryden as a - damned good - photographer. Tony's background before NASA does include a long-time stint with the several government satellite imagery review "facilities". Hope all of you are doing well! Jay Miller ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 24 Jan 2007 10:26:57 -0500 From: James Stevenson Subject: Re: skunk-works New F-117 book Just a minor correction to your "collection" On Jan 24, 2007, at 10:09 AM, Jay Miller wrote: > Just a minor collection to Patrick's "review" - for posterity - of > Tony Landis' and Yancy D. Mailes "new" (it's actually about six > months old) F-117 book. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 24 Jan 2007 23:10:24 -0800 From: Patrick Subject: Re: skunk-works New F-117 book Picky, picky, picky! Well to be corrected by Jay Miller is an honor in itself. My exuberance for this book obscured my memory of Tony's resume. Thank you Jay for correcting my review. Patrick Jay Miller wrote: > Just a minor collection to Patrick's "review" - for posterity - of > Tony Landis' and Yancy D. Mailes "new" (it's actually about six months > old) F-117 book. > > Tony is an old and very close friend. We've worked together for years, > as many of you know. For your edification, Tony was never an employ of > the Skunk Works. Has never done anything with Lockheed or the Skunk > Works on an official basis. He's strictly (and for many of us authors > - very fortunately) a dedicated and conscientious collector of > aviation photos when he's not working full-time for NASA Dryden as a - > damned good - photographer. Tony's background before NASA does include > a long-time stint with the several government satellite imagery review > "facilities". > > Hope all of you are doing well! > > Jay Miller ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 25 Jan 2007 12:51:17 -0500 (EST) From: "D. Allison" Subject: Re: skunk-works New F-117 book First the blackbirds. Then Concorde. Now the F-117 and space shuttle. Jeremy Clarkson's right, the world really is going backwards. - D - David Allison webmaster@habu.org S L O W E R T R A F F I C K E E P R I G H T tm / \ / \ _/ ___ \_ ________/ \_______/V!V\_______/ \_______ \__/ \___/ \__/ www.habu.org The OnLine Blackbird Museum On Wed, 24 Jan 2007, John Szalay wrote: > And a story that is soon to end. shame.. > http://www.holloman.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123024501 > > > Current plans have the Air Force placing 36 aircraft at Holloman beginning in November > 2008 with the final F-117A retiring in October 2008. > > > http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123030185 > > 10/28/2006 - HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. (AFPN) > -- After 25 years of storied service, the F-117 Nighthawk, the Air Force's > first stealth fighter, is about to retire. The technology that once made it a > unique weapon system has now caught up to it and newer fighter aircraft > are now joining the fleet. Still, the Nighthawk was the first of its kind, a > fact anyone who has spent time around the aircraft is quick to point out. > > http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123027010 > Another issue facing the Air Force with regard to its fleet of aircraft is > maintaining the older aircraft it would like to retire. Congressional > legislation has specifically precluded the Air Force from retiring aircraft > it no longer needs. These congressional restrictions on retiring obsolete > aircraft include the C-5, KC-135E, C-130E, F-117A, U-2, and the B-52. > > > > -------------- Original message from Patrick : -------------- > > >> I buy every book I see on the F-117 and just received a new one from an >> Ebay purchase. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 25 Jan 2007 11:23:45 -0800 From: "Smith, Larry O" Subject: RE: skunk-works New F-117 book Nah, it's just vehicles that carry people that are obsolete ! (sarcasm intended). Actually, there is some cool stuff going on in hypersonics. Larry - -----Original Message----- From: owner-skunk-works@netwrx1.com [mailto:owner-skunk-works@netwrx1.com] On Behalf Of D. Allison Sent: Thursday, January 25, 2007 9:51 AM To: skunk-works@netwrx1.com Subject: Re: skunk-works New F-117 book First the blackbirds. Then Concorde. Now the F-117 and space shuttle. Jeremy Clarkson's right, the world really is going backwards. - D - David Allison webmaster@habu.org S L O W E R T R A F F I C K E E P R I G H T tm / \ / \ _/ ___ \_ ________/ \_______/V!V\_______/ \_______ \__/ \___/ \__/ www.habu.org The OnLine Blackbird Museum On Wed, 24 Jan 2007, John Szalay wrote: > And a story that is soon to end. shame.. > http://www.holloman.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123024501 > > > Current plans have the Air Force placing 36 aircraft at Holloman beginning in November > 2008 with the final F-117A retiring in October 2008. > > > http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123030185 > > 10/28/2006 - HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. (AFPN) > -- After 25 years of storied service, the F-117 Nighthawk, the Air Force's > first stealth fighter, is about to retire. The technology that once made it a > unique weapon system has now caught up to it and newer fighter aircraft > are now joining the fleet. Still, the Nighthawk was the first of its kind, a > fact anyone who has spent time around the aircraft is quick to point out. > > http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123027010 > Another issue facing the Air Force with regard to its fleet of aircraft is > maintaining the older aircraft it would like to retire. Congressional > legislation has specifically precluded the Air Force from retiring aircraft > it no longer needs. These congressional restrictions on retiring obsolete > aircraft include the C-5, KC-135E, C-130E, F-117A, U-2, and the B-52. > > > > -------------- Original message from Patrick : - -------------- > > >> I buy every book I see on the F-117 and just received a new one from an >> Ebay purchase. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 25 Jan 2007 20:40:48 -0800 From: Pangaea@sonic.net Subject: Re: skunk-works New F-117 book As one of those who worked on the F-117, I will be sad to see it retired. At least (unlike the SR-71) there are (more capable) replacements. I am happy that Patrick resurrected discussion on this list, and that Jay Miller still participates. George ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 26 Jan 2007 21:30:36 -0800 From: Patrick Subject: skunk-works Anybody remember Jim Goodall? Wall Street Journal January 26, 2007 Stealthy Maneuver: The CIA Captures An A-12 Blackbird Spy Plane Was on Display In an Air Guard Museum; Minnesota Is Up in Arms By Jonathan Karp The Central Intelligence Agency is closing in on a high-value landscaping target: a 1960s spy plane called the A-12 Blackbird. The CIA plans to mount the once-secret, 102-foot-long supersonic plane on a pole at its Langley, Va., headquarters in time for the agency's 60th anniversary in September. The jet chosen for the mission is a particularly well-preserved specimen that has been at the Minnesota Air Guard Museum, next to the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport, since 1991. Even though a moving crew began the 10-day process of dismantling the spy plane this week, volunteers who painstakingly restored it at their own expense are continuing to oppose what they consider a hijacking. Their pleas for mercy, backed by the governor and entire Minnesota congressional delegation, have fallen on deaf ears. "Possession is nine-tenths of the law, so until they drag it away with me screaming, we have a chance," said James Goodall, an aviation buff and retired Minnesota National Guardsman who salvaged the plane and led efforts to preserve it. The A-12 Blackbird, retired in 1968, was the forerunner to the better-known SR-71 Blackbird. The stealthy A-12 is one of the fastest aircraft ever made, capable of flying at more than three times the speed of sound and at the edge of space. The plane originated as part of a CIA program code-named "Oxcart." Of the 15 A-12s built by Lockheed Martin Corp.'s famed Skunk Works advanced projects unit, nine remain. One is on display at an Air Force base, and the others are at museums around the country. Mr. Goodall and his supporters don't question the right of the Air Force, which controls these decommissioned warplanes, to reclaim an A-12 and lend it to the CIA as an oversize lawn ornament inside the agency compound. Instead, their two-month dogfight has been aimed at getting the Air Force to justify removing the Minnesota museum's crown jewel while three A-12s sit in Alabama, including one that has been neglected since suffering hurricane damage. Another is parked on the USS Intrepid aircraft carrier, a floating Manhattan museum that will be closed until late next year because of renovation work across the Hudson River. The CIA, whose headquarters isn't open to the public, had no role in selecting which plane it would receive. The Air Force says the Minnesota Air National Guard doesn't have a historical connection to the A-12, and though the Minnesotans have taken good care of their A-12, the volunteer-run museum doesn't meet the Air Force's current legal requirements for its museums. For one thing, it doesn't have a salaried director. After reviewing all nine A-12s, "The only one that didn't have a legitimate rationale for its location was Minnesota's," said Terry Aitken, senior curator at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. That logic outrages Mr. Goodall, 61 years old, who spent 20 years in the Minnesota Air National Guard and his entire adult life smitten with the A-12. He says he became an "airplane nut" at age 5 when he saw a squadron of B-36 bombers flying over San Francisco Bay. He first glimpsed a Blackbird as an 18-year-old Air Force recruit at Edwards Air Force Base in California. It was March 10, 1964, and "it affected me forever," he says. Over the years, Mr. Goodall became an expert, writing five books on the supersonic plane. He built a rapport with Ben Rich, who developed the Blackbird for Lockheed and eventually ran Skunk Works. Mr. Goodall says he got a tip from Mr. Rich in 1989 that the Blackbird program would be canceled. "If anyone can scrounge one, you can," he says the late Mr. Rich told him. At the time, Mr. Goodall was the staff historian for the 133rd Airlift Wing of the Minnesota Air National Guard. He hatched a scheme to rescue an A-12 from the scrapheap in Palmdale, Calif. In 1990, Minnesota's congressional delegation backed the Air Guard museum's request, citing the fact that companies in Minnesota supplied key Blackbird components and that some Blackbird pilots hailed from the state. The Air Force was happy to unload the A-12 to avoid a costly process of destroying the asbestos-packed plane. Once the Air Force museum agreed to the loan, Mr. Goodall arranged for two massive cargo planes from the New York Air National Guard to haul the Blackbird in pieces from California. He persuaded a local hotel to put up the flight and moving crews free of charge for 10 days. "The Air Force estimated the move would cost $500,000. I got it done for $27,000. That makes me the deal-of-the-century guy," Mr. Goodall says. Back in St. Paul, he marshaled volunteers and corporate donations for restoration work. He then spent years -- and thousands of his own dollars, he says -- scrounging for cockpit instruments, at one point swapping a prized ejection seat from his private collection to get a supersonic speedometer known as a Mach meter. All was well until last November, when the museum got a letter from Mr. Aitken, the Air Force museum curator, invoking a provision of the loan agreement that allows the Air Force to reclaim its plane by giving 60 days' notice. The only reason Mr. Aitken cited for the decision was the need to "satisfy current exhibit requirements." Distressed local Air Guard commanders appealed to save the A-12, calling it a "labor of love." Mr. Aitken replied that the plane didn't conform to the air park's primary mission, which is to commemorate the state guard wing's history, and said it would be better suited at the CIA. Mr. Goodall, who is now retired in Seattle but returns to the Twin Cities occasionally to visit his beloved Blackbird, energized the opposition movement by urging guardsmen and the museum's civilian nonprofit foundation to enlist Minnesota and national politicians. He also mobilized support from former A-12 pilots. Mr. Goodall's plea: If the Air Force wants a plane to commemorate the CIA's pioneering past, it should take one that actually flew in combat. Minnesota's plane never saw action. The A-12 in Birmingham, Ala., on the other hand, photographed North Vietnamese surface-to-air missile sites in 1967, later sustained flak damage, and flew over North Korea on a spy mission in 1968 after the North Koreans captured the USS Pueblo, claiming the Navy ship had strayed into its territorial waters. Some Minnesotans are upset that the Air Force gave short notice and didn't offer to discuss its A-12 plans. "This is a museum, a community, not a war game," said Mark Ness, vice chairman of the museum foundation and a retired Air National Guard brigadier general. Mr. Goodall knew the odds were long. The Air Force has plucked other planes despite local resistance, including a B-36 bomber taken from Fort Worth, Texas, and the celebrated World War II B-17, the Memphis Belle, from its namesake city in Tennessee. Even as another joint appeal from Minnesota's congressional delegation was delivered to the Air Force secretary Friday, the Air Force museum told guardsmen in Minneapolis-St. Paul to prepare for the movers. The Minnesota museum's supporters have retained a former state supreme court justice as their lawyer, but as the moving crew continued to unbolt the A-12's wings yesterday, they had yet to decide whether to seek a court injunction against the move. Mr. Goodall, who refers to the plane as "my A-12," has made his own unilateral sortie. He has removed some cockpit instruments he had donated. "No one will see them anyway if the plane is on a pole," he says. "I'll be damned if the CIA...will get their hands on these." ------------------------------ End of skunk-works-digest V15 #14 ********************************* To subscribe to skunk-works-digest, send the command: subscribe skunk-works-digest in the body of a message to "majordomo@netwrx1.com". If you want to subscribe something other than the account the mail is coming from, such as a local redistribution list, then append that address to the "subscribe" command; for example, to subscribe "local-skunk-works": subscribe skunk-works-digest local-skunk-works@your.domain.net To unsubscribe, send mail to the same address, with the command: unsubscribe skunk-works-digest in the body. Administrative requests, problems, and other non-list mail can be sent to georgek@netwrx1.com. A non-digest (direct mail) version of this list is also available; to subscribe to that instead, replace all instances of "skunk-works-digest" in the commands above with "skunk-works". Back issues are available for viewing by a www interface located at: http://www.netwrx1.com/skunk-works/ If you have any questions or problems please contact me at: georgek@netwrx1.com Thanks, George R. Kasica Listowner