Photographic Display Unit

The Photographic Display Unit, or PDU, was a large-format display system used by the Royal Air Force to present radar images for interpretation by a number of operators and commanders. Made by Kelvin Hughes, it projected a diameter image that could optionally be overlaid with a map and range rings. The PDU was originally designed for the ROTOR system and subsequent AMES Type 80-based Master Radar Stations. A smaller version with a display was used onboard Royal Navy ships, and a larger version projected onto movie screens was used in the SAGE system in the US.
Description.
The PDU was essentially an automated 35mm film processing system. A bright cathode ray tube duplicated the image from one of the radar consoles, while the film was exposed in front of it through an f2 lens. Each complete scanning rotation of the radar took 15 seconds, but as it reached a selected location, normally opposite the direction the radar was designed to observe, the film was pulled out from in front of the lens and a new frame pulled into place.
The recently exposed frame then moved through four stations, moving through one every 15 seconds. The first sprayed it with a developer, the next with water, then a fixer, water again, and then it was dried with an air blower. The entire developing process took one minute, after which the frame was pulled into a large film projector that shone upwards into the bottom of the plotting table.
Plotters viewing the table from the top used methods developed in World War I to maintain tracks for the various aircraft. As each new frame appeared, they would place small arrow-shaped markers on the new location, leaving behind the ones they had placed earlier. This produced a trail that indicated the direction of travel. The plotting table was normally covered with a large sheet of semi-transparent paper that contained a National Grid map and allowed the operators to make notes directly on its surface.
Each PDU was fed from a reel of film. Two machines were used at each site. When the film or developer system ran low or there was any sort of problem, the operator could switch to the second unit simply by moving a mirror under the projector. The used reel could then be removed and used as a record of action.
The Navy version differed only in size, using 16mm film and being generally smaller.
The US SAGE system used the PDU hardware to project an even larger display onto a movie screen, which was used for overall battle control in the "subsector command post", more widely known as the "blue room". In these systems the original CRT was replaced with a charactron driven by the FSQ-7 computer, outputting both graphics and character data onto the film.


USS Bennington Monument

The USS "Bennington" Monument is a granite obelisk in the Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, Point Loma, San Diego, California, United States. It serves as a memorial to the crew of the , a gunboat of the United States Navy, whose boiler exploded on the morning of 21 July 1905, in San Diego Bay. The explosion showered the vessel with live steam and scalding water, killing 66 men (1 officer and 65 other sailors) and burning an additional 46. It was the worst peacetime disaster for the U.S. Navy up to that time.
The dead were buried at Fort Rosecrans; some were later disinterred and shipped home for burial by their families. The monument at the site of the graves was dedicated three years later, on 7 January 1908.


USCGC Tern

USCGC "Tern" (WPB-87343) is an long Marine Protector-class coastal patrol boat of the United States Coast Guard stationed on Yerba Buena Island in San Francisco, California. Built by Bollinger Shipyards in Lockport, Louisiana and commissioned in 2002, "Tern" is a multi-mission platform capable of performing search and rescue (SAR), law enforcement (LE), and fisheries patrols, as well as drug interdiction and illegal alien interdiction duties up to 200 miles off shore spanning from Mendocino County, California south to the Mexico–United States border.
Designed in accordance with the American Bureau of Shipping's "Guide of Building and Classing High Speed Crafts" to replace the 82-foot (25 m) Point-class cutter, "Tern" features a stern launching ramp allowing for underway launch and recovery of the cutter's 7 meter (RHIB) and is capable of towing vessels weighing up to 200 tons.
History.
On November 7, 2005, "Tern" hosted and provided transit for Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall from Jack London Square to the San Francisco ferry terminal.
Members of the U.S. Coast Guard Maritime Safety and Security Team 91105 descend from a U.S. Air Force HH-60G Pave Hawk from the 129th Rescue Wing, California Air National Guard, Moffett Federal Airfield, California, onto "Tern" in the San Francisco Bay Jan. 28, 2009. Crewmembers conducted vertical insertion training, which is a fast-paced technique used to effectively deploy law enforcement teams to a high-risk situation. On January 29, 2009, "Tern," Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco, and the 129th Rescue Wing, California Air National Guard rescued a pilot who crashed his plane near Pillar Point Harbor. The rescue ironically occurred the day after Coast Guardsmen and Air National Guardsmen conducted training in the San Francisco Bay.
On July 20, 2011, "Tern" rescued a 31-foot commercial fishing vessel taking on water off the coast of San Francisco in concert with a pilot boat, helicopter, and lifeboat. The boat, FV"Two Sons", was being flooded with about 100 gallons of water per hour and the boaters were only able to discharge 20 gallons per hour using onboard de-watering equipment. Two "Tern" crewmembers went aboard to assist and were able to completely dewater the vessel. "Two Sons" was escorted to Pier 45 (San Francisco) and no injuries were reported.
On September 4, 2017,"Tern's" small boat crew rescued two women whose sailboat capsized near Richmond.
On May 15, 2019, Commandant of the Coast Guard, Admiral Karl L. Schultz, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region 9 administrator, Mr. Robert J. Fenton, California Office of Emergency Services director, Mr. Mark Ghilarducci, and representatives from local partner agencies met to discuss shared concerns and issues facing the complex maritime environment in and around the Bay Area while touring the Port of San Francisco aboard "Tern".
On March 7, 2020, "Tern" transported a 70-year-old woman with a non-COVID-19 medical emergency and her husband from the quarantined "Grand Princess" cruise ship to awaiting emergency crews and Center for Disease Control personnel at Sector San Francisco on Yerba Buena Island.
External links.
https://www.uscg.mil//


Sri Lanka Air Force Regiment

The Sri Lanka Air Force Regiment is a specialized ground combat corps within the Sri Lanka Air Force, responsible for capturing and defending airfields and associated installations. Its members are the SLAF Regiment Officers and the airmen of operations ground specialization. The SLAF Regiment is fully capable of protecting all its air bases, installations by itself using infantry and light armored units as well as launch air assaults with Airborne Infantry elements (paratroopers). Ground-based air defense of vital military and civil installations around the country is carried out by the SLAF Regiment along with combat search and rescue missions (CSAR). The corps itself is simply known as the 'regiment'.
History.
The first RCyAF Regiment Squadron was formed under Flt Lt Gerry W. Weeraratna in 1956 to provide ceremonial guards and security for bases and airfields of the Royal Ceylon Air Force based on the RAF Regiment of the Royal Air Force. However the ground defence of the air bases and civil airports were supplemented by the Ceylon Army. This limited the ability of the army to deploy it troops in offensive operations and made the air force dependent on the army. This was seen specially during the 1971 JVP Insurrection.
With the start of the Sri Lankan Civil War the SLAF Regiment underwent a large expansion due to the SLAF increasing the number of airfields and the threat to these from the LTTE. In 1971 SLAF Regiment was formed with 101 squadron, 102 squadron and the only one volunteers suqdron was formed as 106 squadron. In addition to that special squadron was formed as SLAF Commando Unit with elite 52 commandos commanded by Flt. Lt. J.E.Peiris. Later, The Regiment formations increased to a total of 25 Field Wings by 2000 and later to 45 Field Wings. When the Sri Lanka Artillery disbanded its Anti-Aircraft Regiments in 1962, the air defence role of Sri Lanka has been taken up by the SLAF Regiment which it provides today, by the Land Based Air Defence Wing.
Since 1956, the SLAF Regiment frequently mounts the guard at the Presidents House. In March 2009, the SLAF Regiment was presented with the President’s Colours.
Organisation and role.
SLAF Regiment officers and gunners are organized into 45 Field Wings, which are subdivided into squadrons that are and further subdivided into flights specially trained in ground combat. As conduct of operations related to ground defence is placed under the purview of the Directorate of Ground Operations, the Director Ground Operations is the de facto commander of the SLAF Regiment.
At first the primary role was airfield security and ceremonial duties. In recent years with expansion of the number of wings the SLAF Regiment has begun supporting the Sri Lanka Army in manning defence lines in the north central part of the country and taking part in offensive operations jointly or independently. SLAF Regiment detachments have been established in Morawawa, Pulukunawa-Mahaoya, Puliyankulam, Mankulam and Poovarasnkulam and has been deployed in Trincomalee and Peraru. But airfield security remains the corps primary task, members of the SLAF Regiment guards both Civilian and military airports around the country. It also handles the Ground-Based Air Defence role of the Sri Lankan military, protecting both civilian and military installations. To achieve its objectives the regiment uses infantry, light armoured, parachute, mortar and anti-aircraft units.
In addition to these roles, the regiment carries out Airborne Rescue Operations and provide ground support such as Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) requirement of the Air Force, its personal serve as SLAF's firefighters and intelligence. The Regimental Training Centre is located at "SLAF Ampara" in Ampara.
Special Forces.
Regiment Special Force is an elite Special Forces unit of the Sri Lanka Air Force, part of the SLAF Regiment, formerly Air Base Defence Rescue Squadron, established on 7 July 2003.
The task and role of RSF's Squadrons involves
SPECIAL AIR BORNE FORCE (SABF)
A highly trained troops primarily assigned for VIP Protection duties.


Glenn Dawson

Glenn V. Dawson is an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the Illinois House of Representatives from 1979-1980 and the Illinois Senate from 1980-1987.
Early life.
Dawson was born January 31, 1944 in Chicago. He attended Annunciata grade school and George Washington High School. He attended college at Calumet College of St. Joseph. He also attended the Chicago Marine Navigation School. He became a licensed Master and First Class Marine Pilot with the United States Coast Guard.
Business career.
Dawson's business career has centered around maritime industries. In the 1980s, he owned Chicago Fleeting and Marine Repair Service, a firm which was later accused of inappropriately using public resources. Dawson owns Chicago Cruises Company, which operates the MV Chicago. In 2000, it was revealed that one of his companies was misrepresented as a female owned business, costing its contracts with the City of Chicago. As of 2013, he owns Dawson Marine Services.
Political career.
Dawson was first elected to the Illinois House of Representatives in the 1976 general election and sworn into office November 14, 1976. After Dawson was elected to the Illinois Senate, Maragos resigned which allowed Dawson to take office a month early. After the decennial reapportionment, Dawson was slated into a majority-black district, but was able to be re-slated by the district's committeemen.
During his time in the legislature, he opposed additional landfills in Hegewisch, where he resided.
He lost the 1986 Democratic primary to Howard Brookins, a State Representative from Washington Heights. Dawson, who had once been considered heir apparent to Ed Vrdolyak's city council seat, chose to back Clem Balanoff in the 1987 aldermanic election after Ed's brother Victor Vrdolyak was appointed instead. Dawson had previously run against Balanoff for Democratic Committeeman as an Ed Vrdolyak ally after the latter switched to the Republican Party.


USCGC Bailey T. Barco

USCGC "Bailey Barco" (WPC-1122) is the United States Coast Guard's 22nd cutter, and the second to be stationed in Alaska, where she was homeported at Coast Guard Base Ketchikan.
The vessel's manufacturer, Bollinger Shipyards, of Lockport, Louisiana, delivered the ship to the Coast Guard on February 7, 2017, for her acceptance trials. After completion sea trials, USCGC "Bailey Barco" was commissioned on June 14, 2017 in Juneau, Alaska.
Mission.
The Sentinel-class cutters are lightly armed patrol vessels with a crew of approximately two dozen sailors, capable of traveling almost 3,000 nautical miles, on five day missions. The cutter is a multi-mission vessel intended to perform law enforcement, search and rescue, fisheries and environmental protection, and homeland security tasks.
Namesake.
In 2010, Charles "Skip" W. Bowen, who was then the United States Coast Guard's most senior non-commissioned officer, proposed that all 58 cutters in the Sentinel class should be named after enlisted sailors in the Coast Guard, or one of its precursor services, who were recognized for their heroism. In 2014 the Coast Guard announced that Bailey T. Barco, a keeper in the United States Lifesaving Service, one of the agencies merged to form the US Coast Guard, who earned a Gold lifesaving medal for managing the daring rescue of the crew of a sailing schooner that ran aground during a severe winter storm off Virginia Beach, in 1901, would be the namesake of the 22nd cutter.


Special operations capable

Special operations capable (SOC) is a collaborated concept formulated of the United States Marine Corps and Navy, under the direction of the Department of the Navy, concerning the expeditionary roles whom the Fleet Marine Force and its subordinate Marine task forces are assigned. This designation is restricted only to the Marine Expeditionary Units—as per "Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable)", or "MEU(SOC)", and is unique to the Marine Corps and is NOT associated with the common "special operations" although considered special operational forces capable these units do not fall under the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM)—or by any other military branches of the United States—and its primarily and strictly limited to the United States Marine Corps and Navy.
The theory behind the MEU(SOC) is to provide a continuous and perpetual projection of Naval forces that are able to respond to any type of crisis, to provide any forms of security and military presence to any given region within 24–72 hours anywhere in the world. Such crises may range from natural disasters to civil or national discord, or total invasion of forces into a hostile area. The term "special operations" in the Non-SOF context, therefore, refers to special taskings of limited duration in support of a combat commander. These operations include:
Therefore, "the primary objective of the MEU(SOC)...is to provide the theater CINC's with an effective means of dealing with the uncertainties of future threats, providing a forward deployed unit that is inherently balanced, sustainable, flexible, responsive, expandable and credible."
Special operations capable (SOC) Marine expeditionary units.
Each Marine expeditionary force (MEF) has MEUs. When specifically trained and operationally qualified to perform special operational duties, they are then known as a Marine expeditionary units (special operations capable), or MEU (SOC); designed under the battle plans of combined maritime-based ground and air elements that make up a MAGTF.
Conventional operations.
Beyond those conventional missions assigned to a MEU, the specialized units within the Marine Corps's special operations capable community are able to perform the following capabilities assigned:
MEU-special operations.
The Marine Corps does not deploy traditional special operations forces (SOF); the Marine Corps's special operations contribution, the Marine Raider Regiment, is directed by the United States Special Operations Command. Therefore, forward-operating MEU(SOC)s receive enhanced training and are specially equipped and organized to provide selected maritime special purpose capabilities complementary and in support of combat commanders. In addition to the conventional capabilities noted above, MEU(SOC)s will, upon deployment, possess the following skills and
capabilities:
Pre-deployment training program (PTP).
Every 18-months, all units that are under the Marine air-ground task force's MEFs assemble the MEUs and train them individually within their units, or together in a cohesive exercise. They have one purpose, to become certified special operations capable. The Special Operations Capable Certification process is in three phases: initial, intermediate, and final. Once certified, they are under status as "force-in-readiness" for 15-months.
Initial training phase.
The initial training phase is the phase that focuses on training of individual personnel and small units of the Marine Expeditionary Units. Many Marines attend courses or training schools that may require advancement or additional skills to meet the demand of their unit's quota. Training and exercises by many cooperative cross-service agencies also help set courses of instruction for the MEU's Command Elements, subordinate elements (MSE), and the Maritime Special Purpose Force. Also, staff training is included in the MEU's CE and MSE elements. Because of time constraints and limited training resources, every effort must be made to efficiently use the training time available during this phase.
Intermediate training phase.
All the training and exercises that are conducted by the Marine Expeditionary Units while either on pre-deployment, or currently deployed, under a training curriculum, or not deployed operationally are during the Intermediate Training Phase. The purpose of this phase is to build unit cohesion and leadership, and emphasis on functioning as a team. A string of exercises are begun, and a MEU utilizes this time to rehearse for the upcoming Special Operations Capable Exercise that will determine their Special Operations Capable certification.
At the beginning of the intermediate training phase, an operational analysis is conducted by the MEU Commander in order to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the subordinate elements. This will also assist in developing the commander's guidance regarding training priorities. Once developed, the MEU Commander will provide training guidance to improve and sustain the MSE's required capabilities.
Final training phase.
The final training phase is the culmination of all predeployment training activities. Its focus is on preparation for the Special Operations Capable Exercise, and predeployment embarkation requirements.


Allied Air Command

The Allied Air Command (AIRCOM) is the central command of all NATO air and space forces and the Commander Allied Air Command is the prime air and space advisor to the Alliance. When directed by the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), it provides the core of the headquarters responsible for the conduct of air operations. The command is based at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
AIRCOM is also in charge of the NATO Integrated Air Defense System (NATINADS) which controls not only the air forces assigned to active NATO duty but also gathers information and coordinates the activities of the radar and ground facilities of the member states.
Post Cold War.
Originally established in 1974 as Allied Air Forces Central Europe (AAFCE) the command's task was to provide centralized direction and control for NATO air forces in the European Central Region corresponding to West Germany south of the river Elbe, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg.
During the early 1990s, following the relaxation of the tensions between East and West, a major reorganization of the NATO command and control structure was undertaken. As part of this, and to take account of the decrease in the number of allied aircraft in Europe, a rationalization of the Central Region air force headquarters occurred in 1993 with the closing of Second Allied Tactical Air Force and Fourth Allied Tactical Air Force and the expansion of AAFCE to meet the new increased task as it absorbed functions previously undertaken by the two subordinate ATAFs.
This change in structure was marked by a ceremony at Ramstein on 1 July 1993, when the headquarters was officially renamed AIRCENT. A further consequence of NATO's reorganization was an increase in the area of responsibility for Allied Forces Central Europe by the addition, on 1 January 1994, of Denmark and the northern parts of Germany, both of which were previously under NATO's Allied Forces Northern Europe command. As a result, Denmark joined the six nations, which staffed the headquarters since its inception: Belgium, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States.
NATO expansion.
With the accession of three new members, Hungary, Poland, and the Czech Republic to NATO in March 1999, Poland's and the Czech Republic's airspaces and air forces became part of the AIRCENT and have since contributed to AIRCENT's task and mission.
On 3 March 2000, AIRNORTHWEST (High Wycombe, UK) and AIRCENT were amalgamated. The new command was named AIRNORTH and also took over the air responsibilities of the former HQ BALTAP (which became JHQ NORTHEAST (Karup/DA)), and HQ NORTH (which became JHQ NORTH (Stavanger/NO)). HQ AIRNORTH now included also personnel from Norway, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Italy and Spain.
With the accession to NATO of seven new members (Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia) in March 2004, the Baltic States Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania as well as Slovakia became a part of AIRNORTH. On 1 July 2004, AIRNORTH was renamed Component Command-Air Ramstein (CC AIR) and a new internal HQ-structure was implemented.
With effect of 1 March 2010 the command was renamed to Allied Air Command Ramstein and with effect from 1 January 2013, following the deactivation of Allied Air Command İzmir, the command was renamed Allied Air Command ('AIRCOM').
Role.
The Commander of AIRCOM is currently a United States Air Force General who also serves in the U.S. national appointment of Commander United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa. He is the designated Commander Allied Air Command for all air and space missions ask tasked by SACEUR and the Air and Space Advisor to SACEUR. AIRCOM has a multinational staff, which may include liaison elements from other NATO headquarters and national commands as specified in agreements. The Deputy Air Commander is ordinarily a French or a British 3-star, now appointed by rotation.
One of its previously subordinate activities was Combined Air Operations Centre Finderup, in Denmark.
Subordinate activities of AIRCOM Combined Air Operations Centre Uedem, Combined Air Operations Centre Torrejon, and the Deployable Air Command and Control Centre at Poggio Renatico in Italy. The CAOC in Uedem's primary peacetime role is the tactical Command and Control of Quick- Reaction Alert Forces used to police NATO airspace above the Benelux countries, above Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the Baltic States (Baltic Air Policing). There are also over 50 Control and Reporting Centres and Points, plus linkages with civilian air traffic control networks.
Baltic Region Training Events (BRTE) are held designed to offer training opportunities for enhancing interoperability, building capabilities and continuing the integration of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.


Francis Joseph Fitzgerald

Francis Joseph Fitzgerald was a Canadian who became a celebrated Boer War veteran and the first commander of the Royal Northwest Mounted Police detachment at Herschel Island in the Western Arctic (1903). From December 1910 until February 1911, he led a mail patrol from Fort McPherson southward to Dawson City. When the patrol did not arrive in time, a search party, led by Corporal William Dempster, was sent from Dawson City and found the bodies of Fitzgerald and the other patrol members. The trip became known as "The Lost Patrol" and as "one of Yukon’s greatest tragedies."


Automated aerial refueling

Automated aerial refueling (AAR) refers to methods for autonomous refueling of manned and unmanned aircraft.
History.
An Air Force Research Laboratory program was started in 2004 at the AFRL Air Vehicles Directorate. The initial program was the evaluation of technologies that could be used for AAR. The key new concept is the use of precision GPS. The AAR program has since held several flight tests. The important factors were the software and communication systems that kept the aircraft at the proper altitude and speed.
In 2007, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), with the help of NASA, demonstrated automatic refuelling from a conventional tanker by a high-performance aircraft. A pilot was on board to supervise, so the demonstration was not entirely automated. It served as the basis for DARPA's Autonomous High-Altitude Refueling program which, in 2012, demonstrated the potential for fully autonomous aerial refueling of unmanned air vehicles. The final test involved modified RQ-4 drones flying in close formation less than 100 ft from a tanker, close enough for refueling to take place.
Automated flight control.
Appropriate flight control systems (FCS) include sensors to detect the position of the tanker and its refueling drogue along with rules to control the client aircraft. Several different techniques have been proposed for controlling the refueling process. One proposal involves the use of LED beacons on the drogue and an optical sensor on the tanker to determine the drogue's position and attitude. A second involves treating the drogue's position as fixed, ignoring turbulence with the help of a low-pass filter in the control system.


Board of Inspection and Survey

The Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) is a United States Navy organization whose purpose is to inspect and assess the material condition of U.S. Navy vessels.
The Board is currently headquartered at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia.
INSURV teams.
The Board performs its tasks by sending out teams at intervals not to exceed 60 months per Naval Ship. These teams evaluate a ship's readiness to conduct combat operations at sea, through an extensive system of checks on installed equipment.
New construction.
When a ship has been constructed by a shipyard and turned over to the U.S. Navy, an INSURV team must certify the vessel prior to declaring it operational.
History.
The "Board of Inspection and Survey" was established by Congress to ensure that the ships of the United States Navy are properly equipped for prompt, reliable, sustained mission readiness at sea. Originally established in 1868 under Admiral David Farragut, the board was reconstituted in 1877 with Admiral David Porter as head of the board, expanding on the tasks he had assumed as duties under an instruction of November 16, 1870.
On August 5, 1882, Congress enacted legislation which established the "Board of Inspection and Survey" under statutory authority. Commodore Alexander A. Semmes was the first officer to assume the title as President, "Board of Inspection and Survey". INSURV has been operating continuously under this authority since that date.
In 2008, six Navy ships, including the destroyer "Stout", guided missile cruiser "Chosin", and amphibious assault ship "New Orleans", failed their INSURV inspections. More than two dozen other ships were found to have critical deficiencies. Parting from a past practice of publicly releasing INSURV inspection results, the Navy immediately classified the 2008 reports. In response, US Senator Jim Webb, in April 2009, asked the Senate Armed Services Committee to look into the Navy's decision. Said Representative Rob Wittman in support of Webb's action, "I am deeply concerned that a decision to classify these reports across the board would inhibit the Congress' ability to provide necessary and constitutionally mandated oversight."
Mission.
The Secretary of the Navy and the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) have designated the President, "Board of Inspection and Survey" (PRESINSURV) as their agent to perform the following statutory, regulatory and contractual requirements:


Charles Edgar Edgett

Colonel Charles Edgar Edgett (25 September 1881 - 9 January 1947) was the warden of the British Columbia Penitentiary (1929–1931), the Chief Constable of the Vancouver Police Department (1931–1933), an active anticommunist and opponent of organized labour in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Colonel Edgett was born in Moncton, New Brunswick, and briefly served in the North-West Mounted Police before receiving training as a veterinarian (giving him the nickname "Doc"). He enlisted in 1914 and served in the First World War as part of the Royal Canadian Army Veterinary Corps, winning a DSO for distinguished service at Vimy Ridge in 1917. He was also Mentioned in Despatches twice.
He lived in the Okanagan Valley as a fruit grower and ran as a candidate in provincial elections before moving to the Lower Mainland. Edgett was lured from his position as warden to become the new police chief in 1931 by a comparatively lucrative salary offer. During his tenure as chief, he oversaw a degree of modernization of the police force, including the introduction of radio-equipped patrol cars.
In February 1933, Edgett was fired by Mayor L. D. Taylor for inefficiency. Edgett unsuccessfully challenged this move in court before becoming the spokesman for the Shipping Federation of British Columbia's new "Citizens League" in 1935. The Citizens' League was established as a propaganda vehicle to combat Communist organizing that was leading a movement of militancy in BC, particularly amongst the unemployed and longshoremen. Edgett soon established himself as one of the pre-eminent anticommunist polemicist in Vancouver. Although he did not explicitly identify himself as a fascist, he made it clear in his fierce opposition to Communism that the extreme of fascism was preferable to the extreme of Communism. He viewed the latter as an international Jewish conspiracy and despised the internationalism promoted by Communist ideologues. His views were most widely disseminated in a speech he gave that was published in a local newspaper and in the "RCMP Gazette" in 1936.
The Citizens' League was short-lived, and was dismantled after problems with the Communists dissipated in Vancouver following the On-to-Ottawa Trek. Edgett continued on however in the Shipping Federation's successor anti-labour organization, the Industrial Association. Edgett also served as the president of the Terminal City "gentlemen's club" in the 1940s.


2nd Army (Yugoslav Partisans)

The 2nd Army of the Yugoslav Partisans was a Partisan army that operated in Yugoslavia during the last months of the Second World War.
The Army was created on 1 January 1945, when Chief Commander Marshal Josip Broz Tito converted the guerilla National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia in a more regular "Yugoslav Army".
History.
As commander was named General lieutenant Koča Popović, as Political Commissioner Blažo Lompar, and as Chief of staff, Ljubo Vučković.<br>
The Army was first formed from the units of the Southern Operational Group of Divisions : the 14th Corps (23rd Serbian, 25th Serbian and 45th Serbian divisions) and the 1st Army Group (17th Eastern Bosnian and 28th Slavonian divisions).
Later it also included in operational terms, the 2nd, 3rd and 5th Corps, which until then formed the "Sarajevo Task Force".
Until April 1945, it operated in Northern Bosnia, between the 1st Army (north of the Sava) and the 4th Army (in Lika). In the final offensive for the liberation of Yugoslavia, it liberated a large part of Central and Western Bosnia and part of Croatia. It participated in the liberation of Zagreb on May 8 and part of Slovenia, where at the end of the war it captured a considerable number of enemy units, including the 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen and 373rd (Croatian) Infantry Division.


Spitfire Kings

The Spitfire Kings is a Royal Canadian Air Force musical group which was formerly a small ensemble of the Royal Canadian Air Force Band. While being part of the regular band as well as being an independent organization, it was based out of CFB Winnipeg in Manitoba and reports to 17 Wing. The 6 piece rock band has a diverse repertoire that includes classic rock, blues and R&B.
History.
The ensemble was formed in 2014 as part of the CF Music Branch's effort to introduce more contemporary music in Canadian military bands. It was founded by Sergeant Mike Hall who originally joined the Canadian Forces in 2009 and was inspired to create a new musical group in the RCAF Band after performing in Afghanistan with a civilian band. The group then grew from Hall to a max of 6 musicians. Since then, the group has performed shows at the Grey Cup, the intermission of the 2016 Heritage Classic, and the Canada Games. In early May, it toured northern Canada, performing at CFS Alert and Thule Air Base on Ellesmere Island. In the summer of 2019, it released its first album which is titled "Dead Reckoning", and includes 4 original tracks as well as 5 others.
Members.
During the war the members were:


Ausburn Birdsall

Ausburn Birdsall (November 13, 1814 – July 10, 1903) was an American politician and a U.S. Representative from New York.
Biography.
Born in Otego, New York, Birdsall was the son of Michael and Wealthy Webster Birdsall. He married Louisa and they had a son, Ausburn. His second wife was Eliza Reynolds Montgomery and they had a daughter, Grace.
Career.
Birdsall was a lawyer in private practice. He served as district attorney of Broome County, New York.
Birdsall was elected as a Democrat to the Thirtieth Congress as United States Representative for the twenty-second district of New York from March 4, 1847, to March 3, 1849. He served as supply supervisor of the United States Navy.
Death.
Birdsall died in Manhattan, New York County, New York, on July 10, 1903 (age 88 years, 239 days). His original interment was at Spring Forest Cemetery, Binghamton, New York, and his reinterment in 1910 was at Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, New York.


Coast Guard Station Menemsha

United States Coast Guard Station Menemsha is a United States Coast Guard station located in Menemsha, Massachusetts, within the town of Chilmark. Primarily a Search and Rescue unit, other activities include Law Enforcement in commercial fisheries and recreational boating safety. The unit is classified as a Heavy Weather Station, capable of operating in up to 20 foot seas and 50 knots wind.
The United States Life-Saving Service (a forerunner to the Coast Guard) established a station at Gay Head in 1895. In 1952, the Coast Guard station located at Cuttyhunk was moved by barge to Menemsha, replacing the Gay Head station. The station was not renamed Menemsha, however, until 1974.
In July 2010, a fire destroyed the boat house as well as damaged other buildings and the dock at the station.
In April 2015 a new boathouse was opened on the footprint of the one destroyed in July 2010.


Sri Lanka Light Infantry

The Sri Lanka Light Infantry (SLLI) is the oldest regiment in the Sri Lanka Army and the oldest infantry regiment in the army. It is made up of ten regular battalions and five volunteer battalions, and is headquartered at the Panagoda Cantonment, Panagoda. Over the years it has become the most distinguished and dependable regiment in the army.
History.
The regiment's origins can be traced back to the formation of the Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers (CLIV) force which was formed on 1 April 1881 by a proclamation issued by the Governor of Ceylon as a reserve unit in Ceylon. The first commanding officer of the force was Lieutenant Colonel John Scott Armitage and the Colonel of the Regiment was Albert Edward, the Prince of Wales. The regiment's current Regimental March "I am Ninety Five" and the Regimental Bugle Call were adopted soon after this. In the same year, the Prince of Wales accepted the Honorary Colonelcy of the Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers, and the unit adopted his crest and motto as its badge. In 1892, a mounted infantry company was formed and later it became a regiment of its own by the name of the Ceylon Mounted Rifles.
The Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteer force troops were sent to South Africa in 1900, where they took part in the Second Boer War. As a result of their service, the force was awarded a Banner from the Duke of York. In 1902, King Edward VII became the Colonel-in-Chief.
In 1910, after the formation of the Ceylon Defence Force, the CLIV became a part of it and was renamed the Ceylon Light Infantry. With the outbreak of World War II, CLI was mobilized and consisted of two battalions and was under the command of Lieutenant Colonel John Kotelawala. The CLI soon expanded and was deployed for home defense and overseas in the Seychelles and the Cocos Islands. The third battalion was raised in 1941, a fourth battalion in late 1942, and a fifth battalion in April 1943. One battalion each was deployed at Colombo, Kandy and Trincomalee, with the fourth fourth battalion under training and one battalion reserved for special duties. Soon after the war a regular element of the regiment was formed to take up garrison duties in Ceylon. This unit was named the Mobilised Detachment of Ceylon Light Infantry (Mob. Det., CLI).
Ceylon gained its independence from Britain in 1948 and after the Army Act of 1949 was passed the CLI became the Ceylon Infantry Regiment and came under the newly formed Ceylon Army. In 1950, the regiment was reorganized, with two battalions being formed: the 1st Battalion, The Ceylon Light Infantry, became a regular unit and the Volunteer Battalion was re-designated as the 2nd (Volunteer) Battalion, Ceylon Light Infantry.
The regiment was deployed for counter insurgency operations during the 1971 Insurrection and in 1972, when Sri Lanka became a republic, the regiment changed its name to Sri Lanka Light Infantry. Since the early 1980s units of the regiment have been deployed to the northern parts of the island. After being deployed, a patrol from the 1st Battalion's 'C' Company – designated Four Four Bravo – was ambushed, marking the beginning of the Sri Lanka civil war. Since then the SLLI has been deployed on combat operations throughout the island and has expanded a total of 15 battalions.
The regiment also took part in the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti in 2003.
Regimental colours.
The regimental colours were awarded in 1921 and on 22 March 1922 the Ceylon Light Infantry was awarded with the King's and the Regimental Colours. When the regular 1st Battalion was formed in 1949, HM Queen Elizabeth II presented the new colours to the battalion. The Queens and Regimental Colours were presented to the 1st Battalion on 21 April 1954. With the declaration of the Republic of Sri Lanka, the colours were laid to rest within the regimental museum on 29 June 1974. On 10 October 1978, H.E. President J.R. Jayawardena awarded President's and Regimental Colours to both the 1st and 2nd Battalions.
Regimental insignia.
In the early stages of the regiment's history, from March 1881 to 28 November 1881, the volunteer corps used an elephant and a coconut tree as their emblem. With the declaration of the Republic of Sri Lanka the regiment's 1st and 2nd Battalions decided to retain as much of the configuration and pattern of the badge as possible, although a new insignia was introduced consisting of a silver bugle horn bound in brass to represent the regiment's role as a light infantry unit, and three paddy sheaves to signify prosperity. It also retained the motto of the Prince of Wales "ICH DIEN", which was adopted as the motto of the regiment in its translated form "I SERVE".


List of aircraft of the Royal Thai Air Force

The following is a list of aircraft of the Royal Thai Air Force, past, present, and future.
Historic aircraft.
Aircraft of the Royal Thai Air Force and its precursors, the Siamese Flying Corps (1914–1919), Royal Siamese Air Service (RSAS) (1919–1937) and Royal Siamese Air Force (RSAF) (1937–1939).


Order of battle of the Battle of Quatre Bras

The following units and commanders fought in the Battle of Quatre Bras on 16June 1815 at Quatre Bras in the Belgian province of Wallonia. The numbers following each unit are the approximate strengths of that unit.
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington
Anglo-allied Army.
Headquarters and support regiments.
Major General Prince Willem of Orange G.C.B.
Reserve.
Under the command of Wellington.
Brunswick Corps.
Frederick William, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (KIA)
French Army.
Left Wing, "Armee du Nord"
Marshal of the Empire Michel Ney
II Corps.
Gen de Division Honoré Charles Reille
III Cavalry Corps.
Gen de Corps d'Armee François Étienne de Kellermann, Comte de Valmy


National Bands Agreement

The National Bands Agreement () was an agreement concluded on 5 July 1943 at the village of Liaskovo, between the British military mission to occupied Greece and the three main Greek Resistance organizations, EAM-ELAS, EDES and EKKA. Its aim was to coordinate the actions of the Resistance movement in Greece, including the establishment of a joint headquarters under the aegis of the British GHQ Middle East .
The negotiations were begun by the British military mission in March 1943 as an attempt to avoid a repeat of the clashes between the Communist-controlled ELAS, by far the largest armed guerrilla organization, and the other groups. In addition, the British were concerned with presenting the Germans with the real possibility of an Allied invasion of the Balkans, and an increased and coordinated guerrilla effort was vital for this (Operation Animals, cf. also Operation Mincemeat and Operation Barclay).
On 6 June, representatives from ELAS (Colonel Stefanos Sarafis and Andreas Tzimas), EDES (Colonel Napoleon Zervas and Komninos Pyromaglou) and the British mission (Eddie Myers and Christopher Woodhouse) assembled in the village of Liaskovo. The negotiations lasted on-and-off for a month, until the agreement was signed on 5 July. EKKA, which at the time did not have any armed force in the field due to its forcible disarmament by ELAS, signed the agreement on 18 July, represented by Colonel Dimitrios Psarros and Georgios Kartalis. The Panhellenic Liberation Organization (PAO), another nationalist group active in Macedonia but also hostile to ELAS, was also considered for later inclusion.
In the event, the agreed joint headquarters, where ELAS had the majority, failed to coordinate the guerrillas' movements, best evidenced following the capitulation of Italy in September 1943, when each organization tried to get as much as it could from the spoils of the Italian army of occupation. ELAS seized the majority, and clashes between the groups began again in October 1943 with an attack on EDES by ELAS forces.


Julian C. Smith Hall

The Julian C. Smith Hall is a historic building located on Julian C. Smith Drive, on Hadnot Point in Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, Jacksonville, North Carolina. It currently serves as the headquarters building for the II Marine Expeditionary Force and the 2d Marine Division. It is named after Lieutenant General Julian C. Smith, former commanding general of the 2d Marine Division during World War II. The Camp Lejeune address is Building H-1.
History.
The building was initially used as a Naval hospital.


Terry Wilson (police officer)

Terry D Wilson (born 1964) is a retired Canadian police officer and hate crime investigator based in London, Ontario.
Early life.
Wilson grew up in St. Thomas, Ontario as the eldest son of two children of immigrants from England. He graduated from Arthur Voaden Secondary School, where he played football, soccer and wrestled. From 1984 he attended the University of Guelph, graduating in 1988 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. The following year he joined the London Police Service.
Police service.
He began serving with the London Police Service in 1989, where he occupied several roles including patrol officer, undercover officer and detective with both a Youth Crime/Gang unit and a Major Crime Unit. In 1995 Wilson adopted the hate crime portfolio for the London Police Service.
Wilson investigated a multitude of hate crimes which included investigations into organized hate groups, such as Northern Alliance, Tri-City Skins and the Canadian Ethnic Cleansing Team. The investigation into the Canadian Ethnic Cleansing Team resulted in two members of the group (James Scott Richardson and Alexian Kulbashian) being charged and convicted for spreading material likely to incite hatred, contrary to Section 13(1) of the Canadian Human Rights Act.
In 2003 Wilson left the London Police Service to join the New Westminster Police Service in British Columbia as a detective with the Domestic Violence and Elder Abuse Response Team. During this time Wilson became a leading authority into Gender-based crimes. Although Wilson occupied the role of a full-time detective with the domestic response team he continued to assisted the BC Hate Crime Team in the education of police in the identification, investigation and prosecution of crimes motivated by hate. In January 2009, Wilson was awarded the 20 Year Exemplary Medal Award for his 20 years service to the force.
In November 2009 Wilson was seconded as the municipal police representative to the BC Hate Crime Team. In this position Wilson investigated, assisted and advised in hate investigations throughout the province of British Columbia. Wilson was the lead investigator into a series of assaults involving members of a white supremacist group known as Blood and Honour Canada.
Wilson was also the lead investigator in two different internet hate propaganda investigations involving the websites www.Radicalpress.com and www.podblanc.com. These investigations resulted in charges under Section 319(2) of the Criminal Code against Arthur Topham and Craig Cobb.
Wilson has been designated an expert in hate symbols by the British Columbian Provincial Court and has testified at the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.
Wilson has lectured extensively in Canada and internationally on the investigation of hate crimes.
In April 2015 Wilson retired from policing in Canada.
In 2016 and 2017 Terry Wilson was a Lead Investigator with the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) for the Hillsborough disaster. This investigation is the largest police corruption investigation in UK history. At the completion of the Coroners inquest and the criminal investigation, which resulted in multiple criminal charges, Wilson left the IPCC.
In March 2018 Wilson was highlighted in the World Class Investigators podcast.
From May 2018 to Sept 2019 Terry Wilson worked for the UK Ministry of Defence conducting investigations into Harassment and Bullying activity by Service and Non Service personnel.
Wilson presently consults on Hate Crimes, Human Rights, Gender-based violence and Harassment.


James C. Mahan

James Cameron Mahan (born December 16, 1943) is a Senior United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nevada.
Education and career.
Born in El Paso, Texas, Mahan received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Charleston in 1965 and a Juris Doctor from Vanderbilt University Law School in 1973. He was in the United States Navy from 1966 to 1969. He was in the United States Navy Reserve from 1970 to 1972. He was in private practice in Nevada from 1973 to 1999. He was a District Judge in the Eighth Judicial District Court for the State of Nevada (which covers Clark County, Nevada) from 1999 to 2002.
District Court Service.
Mahan is a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nevada. Mahan was nominated by President George W. Bush on September 10, 2001, to a new seat created by 114 Stat. 2762. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on January 25, 2002, and received his commission on January 30, 2002. He assumed senior status on June 29, 2018. In 2006, Mahan was investigated by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals after it became known that he had awarded a total of nearly $5 million in court awards and fees to individuals with whom he had personal and business relationships. The Ninth Circuit's special committee unanimously recommended that the complaint be dismissed, finding no misconduct.
Notable cases.
Nevada same-sex marriage ban.
On October 9, 2014, Judge Mahan issued an injunction barring enforcement of Nevada's ban on same-sex marriage. A different judge of the Nevada District Court upheld Nevada's same-sex marriage ban in 2012, but was reversed by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and remanded. The judge recused himself and the case was assigned to Mahan, who promptly issued the injunction.
Attempted assassination of Donald Trump.
On June 18, 2016, an attempt was made to assassinate the presumptive Republican nominee for the 2016 United States presidential election, Donald Trump, in the final weeks of the Republican presidential primaries by Michael Steven Sandford, a British national.
Sandford was arraigned on July 7, 2016, pleading not guilty. His trial was set for August 22, 2016. On September 13, 2016, Sandford pled guilty in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada to charges of being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm and disrupting an official function. Prior to his trial, Sandford had signed a plea agreement that reduced his maximum sentence from 20 years to 27 months. A third charge of being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm was dropped. Sandford apologized for his actions, saying "I know saying sorry is not enough. I really do feel awful about what I did. I wish there was some way to make things better. I have cost taxpayers so much money. I feel terrible." Sandford subsequently claimed to have no memory of the assassination attempt.
Sandford was sentenced on December 13, 2016, receiving 12 months and 1 day's imprisonment. He will be eligible for release from April 2017, at which time he will be deported. The sentencing judge, James C. Mahan, acknowledged Sandford's mental health issues, stating "I don't think you harbored malice in your heart...You have a medical problem...I don't see you as evil or a sociopath". In January 2017, Sandford's mother expressed concerns that President Trump would seek to extend Sandford's sentence, and claimed that Sandford was being harassed by "Trump-supporting guards and inmates". Sandford was released from prison and deported on May 5, 2017 and has been permanently removed from the U.S.


Coast Guard Aviation Station Ten Pound Island

Coast Guard Aviation Station Ten Pound Island was a United States Coast Guard air station located in Gloucester, Massachusetts. It was established in 1925, initially to use seaplanes to spot rumrunners during Prohibition. In its first four years of operation, aircraft and personnel from the air station rendered assistance to stranded mariners and other persons on 212 occasions. Aircraft operated from the facility included the Vought UO-1 and UO-4, OL-5, and Grumman JF-2. As larger aircraft such as the General Aviation PJ-1 were developed, the facility became obsolete. It was replaced by Coast Guard Air Station Salem in 1935. As of 2008 there were no remains of the air station on the island, though the Ten Pound Island Light remains active.
Coast Guard Station Gloucester is currently on the former air station site.


Franco-German Brigade

The Franco-German Brigade (; ) is a special military brigade of the Eurocorps, founded in 1989, jointly consisting of units from both the French Army and the German Army.
History.
The Brigade was formed in 1987 following a summit between President Mitterrand of France and Chancellor Kohl of Germany. The Brigade became operational on October 2, 1989, under the command of General Jean-Pierre Sengeisen. Currently, the FGB is stationed at Müllheim, Metz, Donaueschingen, Illkirch-Graffenstaden, Sarrebourg, and Immendingen as part of the Eurocorps.
In February 2009 it was announced that a German battalion of the force was to be moved to Illkirch near Strasbourg, the first time a German unit had been stationed in France since the German occupation of World War II.
On 31 October 2013, France announced that in 2014 it would shut down the 110th Infantry Regiment based in Donaueschingen and thus withdraw around 1000 men from Germany. This would leave the brigade with 4000 men, but would put an end to each country having a major presence in the other, France would be left with ~500 troops in Germany and vice versa.
Since 2016, French units are part of 1st Division and German units are part of "10th Panzer Division".
Organisation.
The Franco-German brigade can be described as a mechanised formation; its combat units are an armoured reconnaissance regiment, three infantry battalions, and an artillery regiment. The logistical support unit and the brigade's HQ have mixed complements drawn from both countries.


Royal Auxiliary Air Force

The Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF), formerly the Auxiliary Air Force (AAF), together with the Air Force Reserve, is a component of Her Majesty's Reserve Air Forces (Reserve Forces Act 1996, Part 1, Para 1,(2),(c)). It provides a primary reinforcement capability for the regular service, and consists of paid volunteers who give up some of their weekends, evenings and holidays to train at one of a number of squadrons around the United Kingdom. Its current mission is to provide trained personnel in support of the regular RAF. Queen Elizabeth II is Air Commodore-in-Chief of the RAuxAF.
Formation.
The Royal Auxiliary Air Force owes its origin to Lord Trenchard's vision of an elite corps of civilians who would serve their country in flying squadrons in their spare time. Instituted by Order in Council on 9 October 1924, the first Auxiliary Air Force squadrons were formed the following year. The pilots of AAF squadrons were generally formed from the wealthier classes, as applicants were expected to already have, or be prepared to obtain, their pilot's licence at their own expense, at a cost of £96, about £ today. The Royal Air Force Reserve (RAFR) differs in that its members were trained in the RAF and left, but are obliged to return to service if required. Pilots of the AAF were expected to join for a period of no less than five years, and were required to fly a few hours every quarter and attend annual training for 15 days. Each squadron was provided with a town base for training, and facilities at an aerodrome. All serving members were required to wear the letter A on their uniforms.
Second World War.
By March 1939, 21 flying squadrons had been formed, the 20 surviving units being 'embodied' (included) with the Royal Air Force at the outbreak of war. Notably, all enlisted men continued to serve under their auxiliary conditions of service until they expired when they were required to transfer to the RAFVR. The squadrons were equipped with a variety of operational aircraft which included Hurricanes and Spitfires. The squadrons scored a number of notable successes before and during the Second World War: the first flight over Mount Everest, undertaken by auxiliary pilots from 602 Squadron, the first German aircraft destroyed over British territorial waters – and over the mainland, the first U-boat to be destroyed with the aid of airborne radar, the first kill of a V-1 flying bomb; the first to be equipped with jet-powered aircraft, and the highest score of any British night fighter squadron. In the Battle of Britain, the AAF provided 14 of the 62 Squadrons in RAF Fighter Command's Order of Battle and accounted for approximately 30% of the accredited enemy kills. Indeed, in 11 Group Fighter Command, that saw the heaviest fighting over South East England in 1940, of the 15 top scoring squadrons, eight were auxiliary. The losses sustained during the Battle of Britain, as with all other squadrons, were replaced by drafting in regular and RAFVR pilots. In fact, the volunteer reserves of the RAF outnumbered the regular RAF pilots in the Battle of Britain.
The Tactical Air Force squadrons were chosen to carry out several successful ultra low-level raids on key 'pin-point' targets in occupied Europe. The Balloon Squadrons also played their part, downing and deterring many hostile aircraft, and were accredited with the destruction of 279 V-1 flying bombs.
The Auxiliary Air Force was also responsible for the anti-aircraft balloon defences of the UK. At the outbreak of war in 1939 there were about 42 Squadrons operating barrage balloons, with the number of squadrons peaking at about 102 in 1944.
Cold War.
These achievements were honoured by the prefix "Royal", conferred by King George VI in 1947. Twenty of the pre-war squadrons were reformed postwar as fighter units. Events after the Second World War heralded a time of great danger for the UK. The onset of the Cold War with the Communist Bloc leading to the Berlin Air Lift and ultimately the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950. During these crises the RAuxAF fighter squadrons, the five newly formed Air Observation Post (AOP) squadrons and other RAuxAF units, played their part in the UK's air defence and participated in many NATO air exercises. In 1951, at the height of the Korean War, all 20 RAuxAF fighter squadrons (representing one third of Fighter Command strength) were called up for three months full-time service; they were required for home defence in place of regular squadrons earmarked for deployment to Korea. In the event RAF fighter squadrons were not needed in Korea, but the RAuxAF squadrons were retained for intensive refresher training at their home bases.
The 10 March 1957 saw the disbandment of all 20 RAuxAF fighter squadrons, the five post-war AOP squadrons and the Light Anti-Aircraft ground-based squadrons of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force Regiment. In the following two years or so, the Auxiliary Fighter Control Units associated with them were also disbanded. On 16 March 1960, the Air Commodore-in-Chief and His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, invited the Squadron Commanders and Flight Commanders of all the disbanded Royal Auxiliary Air Force units to a Reception at Buckingham Palace. All were given the following letter from the Air Commodore-in-Chief:
The renaissance of the RAuxAF began in 1959 with the formation of three Maritime Headquarters Units and one Maritime Support Unit. The MSU in Belfast was short-lived, but No 1 (County of Hertford) MHU in Northwood, No 2 (City of Edinburgh) MHU in Edinburgh and No 3 (County of Devon) MHU in Mountbatten continued in existence until No 3 was amalgamated into No 1 in 1999. Later that year No 1 was renumbered 600 (City of London) Squadron and No 2 was renumbered 603 (City of Edinburgh) Squadron. These three units formed the entirety of the RAuxAF for twenty years until expansion starting in 1979, with the formation of three Regiment Field Squadrons, continuing with a Movements Squadron in 1982, and, following lessons learned during the Falklands conflict, an Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron in 1983. A later addition, in 1987, was an auxiliary element (The Grampian Troop) formed within a regular RAF Regiment Rapier Air Defence Squadron. Another step forward was taken in 1986, with the raising of four Defence Force Flights with the role of ground defence of key points on air bases. In 1984, the RAuxAF's Diamond Jubilee was marked by the award to the Service of its own badge, which forms the basic motif of the Sovereign's Colour for the Royal Auxiliary Force presented by Her Majesty the Queen in 1989. The words of the badge motto are "COMITAMUR AD ASTRA" – Latin "We go with them to the stars".
Gulf War and beyond.
During the Gulf War in 1991, the Aeromedical and Movements Squadrons were mobilised and performed with great distinction in theatre and at other locations in the UK and overseas.
On 5 April 1997, all of the four war-appointable flights of the then Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve were fully amalgamated into the RAuxAF, each with squadron status. In recognition of their origins, and in the absence of direct county or city territorial affiliations, they were each given the honour of retaining the letters "VR" within their squadron titles. The remaining non-active support elements of the RAFVR were and remain unaffected by this amalgamation, namely the RAFVR(T), the RAFVR(UAS), and at its point of formation, the RAFVR(DTUS) (being the branches for Training, University Air Squadron, and the Defence Technical Undergraduate Scheme, respectively).
During 2003 the RAuxAF was involved in the first large-scale mobilisation for over 50 years. More than 900 personnel, over 70% of its trained strength, were called into full-time service and were deployed to support RAF operations in Cyprus, Kuwait, Iraq, Afghanistan and the Falkland Islands, as well as those in the UK.
The Royal Auxiliary Air Force establishment (liability) is set at 2,920 – though recruitment difficulties mean the RAuxAF is currently at a strength well below that; the RAuxAF's compromised 1,510 personnel as of April 2014.
On 19 July 2007, Senior Aircraftman Chris Dunsmore, aged 29, of 504 (County of Nottingham) Sqn RAuxAF was one of three men killed by a rocket attack on the RAF base at Basrah Airport, Iraq. He was the first serving RAuxAF member killed by enemy action since the Second World War.
On 13 April 2008, Senior Aircraftman Gary Thompson, aged 51, of 504 (County of Nottingham) Sqn RAuxAF was killed by a roadside bomb while on patrol in Kandahar. SAC Thompson was the oldest British serviceman killed in Afghanistan.
In November 2014 the Ministry of Defence announced the creation of six new RAuxAF units: No 502 Squadron to be based at RAF Aldergrove, No. 505 Squadron to be based at RAF St Mawgan in Cornwall, No. 605 Squadron to be based at RAF Cosford in Shropshire, No. 607 Squadron to be based at RAF Leeming, No. 611 Squadron to be based at RAF Woodvale near Formby, Merseyside and No. 614 Squadron to be based in Cardiff.
In August 2016, it was announced that RAuxAF personnel will no longer wear identifying Auxiliary insignia on Parade and Mess Dress. The wearing of such on working dress was discontinued earlier in the 2000s.
On 1 April 2019, No 616 (South Yorkshire) Squadron was re-formed at RAF Waddington.
Structure.
Current RAuxAF Units.
None of the squadrons listed below are flying units with their own allocated aircraft.
Former Squadrons and Units.
Air Observation Post Flying Squadrons formed in 1949.
The Fighter Control Units.
With the advent of the atomic age, there was a need to relocate most of the radar stations on the east and south coast underground and introduce into service more advanced radars. However, manning difficulties in the immediate post-war regular RAF led to a number of Fighter Control and Radar Reporting units of the RAuxAF being formed, from 1948 onwards. In the early and uncertain days of the Cold War, the Fighter Control and Radar Reporting units were largely responsible for manning the entire UK Control and Reporting system. All were disbanded by 1961. They were:
Radar Reporting Units
The Regiment Squadrons.
In 1948, 20 RAuxAF Regiment Squadrons were proposed. In the event, 12 were formed in the Light Anti-Aircraft role, equipped with 40mm anti-aircraft guns and attached to the RAuxAF flying squadrons. By 1955, due to the introduction into service of more sophisticated weapons, the squadrons were converted to Regiment Field Squadrons. All 12 squadrons were disbanded, along with the flying squadrons, in 1957. However, three new field squadrons were re-formed in 1979, followed by two more in 1982 and a sixth in 1983. Since then, two have been disbanded and two have been re-roled. In addition, No 1339 Wing was formed in 1085 and consisted of 2729 and 2890 (both City of Lincoln Squadrons) equipped with Skyguard Raddar and Oerlikon guns both captured from the Argentinians during the 1982 Falklands War Both squadrons were disbanded in 1994 to become the Rapier Cadreisation Unit and then No 27 and 48 Squadrons RAF Regiment.
Regiment Squadrons took the number of their parent flying squadron, prefixed with 2. Fighter Control Units were nominally attached likewise and their numbers were prefixed with 3, although they were not necessarily formally attached to any particular flying squadron, not being based at any airfield.
Airfield Defence Force Flights 1986–1993.
and
A localised recruiting drive began in the summer of 1986. At the time, the Cold War was still in progress and the Soviet Union was regarded as a considerable threat to UK bases. So a plan was created to develop a system of ground defence for the vital bases without extending regular forces and for a modest outlay. As the Royal Auxiliary Air Force had already been revived in 1979 to provide aeromedical evacuation services, air movements and Regiment Field squadrons, it was planned to set up the Defence Force flights and task one of them to protect RAF Lyneham, home of the UK's air transport squadrons.
Volunteers between 18 and 50 were sought within a radius of 50 miles of Lyneham and the first training flight came into being in late 1986, under the command of Flt Lt Bryan Tovey, a retired RAF Squadron Leader. Within five years, over 100 volunteers attended Lyneham on Wednesday evenings and weekends, trained in all the essential field combat skills such as weapons handling and live-firing practice, fieldcraft, perimeter defence, fighting in built up areas, reconnaissance, intelligence-gathering, fire-fighting and rescue techniques plus nuclear, biological and chemical monitoring. Battlefield skills were regularly tested at military training areas and such was the reputation built-up by the Lyneham Defence Force that their personnel were once used to assist regular special forces in training scenarios. The Defence Force field sections and Combined Incident Teams were based with the RAF Regiment contingent at Lyneham and played a full part in the station's Tactical Evaluation tests, conducted by NATO examiners. In the final TacEval before the Defence Force was stood down, Lyneham received outstanding marks and its Station Commander particularly thanked the Auxiliaries for their contribution. Such performance did not go unnoticed in the wider air force and in 1993, the Lyneham DF was awarded the Robins Trophy as the outstanding RAuxAF unit of the year. The trophy was presented by the RAuxAF Inspector General at a ceremony at Lyneham in 1994.
The Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF).
The foundations of the Women's Auxiliary Air Force were laid by the Women's Royal Air Force (WRAF) which was formed early in 1918, but, although plans were formulated for the continual employment of women with the RAF in peacetime, they had to be abandoned on account of the drastic post-war economy and by April 1920, the disbandment of the WRAF was complete.
When the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) came into being in September 1938, it contained separate RAF companies, but following the Munich crisis of 1938, it became apparent that these companies should be brought more closely under RAF control. Accordingly, the Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) was constituted by Royal Warrant on 28 June 1939.
Initially, recruiting was limited to officers and NCOs only, recruiting for the original RAF companies being undertaken by the AAF. However, with the coming of the Second World War, airwomen were to join the ranks and, by mid 1943, there were 182,000 women serving in the WAAF, in all the RAF trade groups. In common with the AAF, the women's force became less 'auxiliary' as the war went on; but on the outbreak of war, the WAAF consisted of 234 officers and 1500 airwomen, all of whom could be considered pre-war volunteers in the true auxiliary mould.
Initially, entry was confined to the few service trades then open to women, namely MT Driver, Equipment Assistant, Cook, Clerk and Mess and Kitchen Staff. A small number of fabric workers were also employed. By August 1939, additional trades were authorised: Teleprinter Operators, Telephone Operators and Plotters. Without the services of the WAAF, the RAF would have required an additional 150,000 airmen who could not have been obtained as easily as the women and who could only be provided at the expense of other Services or production. The success of the women's Service is all the more remarkable in view of the prejudice against employing women that undoubtedly existed at the beginning of the war.
Bibliography.
"The RAF Reserves and Auxiliaries" London. The Royal Air Force Historical Society 2003


Coast Guard Station Provincetown

Military structure
Coast Guard Station Provincetown
1st District
location:Provincetown, Massachusetts
Heavy weather Coast Guard Station
built: 1977-1979
builder: symmes maini & mckee associates inc
used: 1979-Present
The station is NOT open to the public
United States Coast Guard Station Provincetown is a United States Coast Guard station located in Provincetown, Massachusetts.
The station is a sub-unit of Sector Southeast New England.


Black Sea Rotational Force

Black Sea Rotational Force began in 2010 with the purpose to form a Security Cooperation Marine Air-Ground Task Force. The forward postured troops' ability to conduct military-to-military engagements with partner nations in Eastern Europe while providing the capacity for rapid crisis response made it an essential year-round mission to U.S. European Command (EUCOM) and their partners in the Eastern European Theater. The biannual rotation of Marines and sailors with BSRF are postured in Mihail Kogălniceanu Airbase, Romania, which enables the continuation of promoting regional stability, increasing interoperability, and building and maintaining enduring partnerships with allied and partner nations.
It is an outgrowth of the previous Joint Task Force East, which was planned to be a rotational brigade-sized Army force.
In 2010, the first year of the program, more than 100 Marines from across the United States deployed to form a Security Cooperation Marine Air-Ground Task Force, primarily based at Romania's Mihail Kogălniceanu International Airport.
Black Sea Rotational Force 13 deployed for six months from February to August 2013 as a Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force (SP-MAGTF) and consisted of almost 300 United States Marines and United States Navy sailors primarily from 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. The unit trained with 21 partner nations in the region, including Romania, Georgia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Albania, Greece, Azerbaijan, Montenegro and Croatia.
Training evolutions consisted of counterinsurgency and peacekeeping operations, communications, logistics, non-lethal weapons employment, military decision-making processes and non-commissioned officer development. The unit also participated in larger exercises such as Agile Spirit 13 in the Republic of Georgia. BSRF-13 will also conduct community relations and civic action projects in and around Constanța, i.e. improving schools and hospitals, as well as in Bulgaria, Georgia and Ukraine.
Roughly 500 Marines and sailors from 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division are assigned to the current iteration, BSRF-15.1.
BSRF-15.1 is scheduled to engage with more than 20 countries to include: Romania, Bulgaria, Latvia, Slovenia, Azerbaijan, Macedonia, Serbia, Estonia, Kosovo, Georgia, Lithuania, Hungary, Armenia, Czech Republic, Poland, Moldova, Albania, Macedonia and Bosnia. The military engagements consist of military-to-military familiarization events in the areas of basic infantry skills, communications, logistics, non-lethal systems employment, combat life-saving and emergency first aid techniques, the military decision-making process, and noncommissioned officer and junior officer development.
The targeted security cooperation activities with partner-nations in the Black Sea, Balkan and Caucasus regions enhance professional military capacity and increase interoperability. These engagements, along with several joint-level training exercises bolster the United States' relationships with partner nations in order to collectively address common security challenges in the region.
In 2015 the effort included a Combined Arms Company, bringing tanks for training. In late August of that year one-hundred and sixty Marines arrived at the Novo Selo Range in eastern Bulgaria, along with armor, artillery, and reconnaissance vehicles, to train with allied forces. Training will involve anti-tank tactics and other weapons skills and involve three six-month rotations.


Paul E. Trimble

Paul Edwin Trimble (March 24, 1913 – November 16, 2005) was a Vice Admiral in the United States Coast Guard who served as the 10th Vice Commandant from 1966 to 1970. He was born in Agenda, Kansas and was raised in Milaca, Minnesota.
Trimble earned a B.S. degree from the United States Coast Guard Academy in June 1936 and later received an M.B.A. with Distinction from the Harvard Business School in June 1942.


Manning control

Manning control is a policy in the British Army that allows the force to terminate the service of soldiers after 3, 6, 9, 12 or 15 years' service to maintain the balance of age and capability within the force and ensure that there are opportunities for talented individuals to move through the ranks. The policy has been criticised as a way of dismissing committed and loyal soldiers and to avoid providing suitable pensions or redundancy compensation. During the seven year period its alleged the Manning Control policy was abused its estimated as having saved 6.3 Billion in service pension commitments.
Motivation.
Manning control was created to allow the army to maintain a balance of experience and to ensure that there were opportunities for talented soldiers to progress through the ranks. It was originally designed to review soldiers' careers at six, nine and 12-year points of service and to free up the promotional logjam in the junior NCO ranks of corporal and lance-corporal. If a soldier was not progressing through the ranks they may be redeployed or dismissed. The regulations are defined in para 9.413 of Queen's Regulations 1975. A similar system is used by the United States Armed Forces, which insists that certain ranks be held for no longer than a set amount of time, with lack of promotion in that time being used as grounds for dismissal.
History.
Manning Control was first introduced in the late 1950s to reduce the numbers of soldiers in the British Army after conscription ended. It was suspended in the 1970s and 80s. The policy resumed in 1993 after 34,600 redundancies in the UK Armed Forces with almost half from the army taking redundancy after the Cold War. The Territorial Army (TA) was also cut from 57,000 to around 40,000 people.
The redundancies caused under-manning in various trades and a huge black hole in the Ministry of Defence (MOD) budget as many more soldiers opted for the attractive redundancy package than expected. Weeks later, soldiers who had taken the redundancy package were back in uniform at the request of the MOD for a short period, to ameliorate what was hoped to be a temporary manpower shortage. The contract used was an S/Type contract used primarily for the TA soldier and called a Type S contract if a TA member wished to serve with a regular battalion.
Soldiers who joined the Army in the 90s signed on for 22 years, with an option to leave after three, six or nine years. At the end of their 22 years, they receive an immediate pension for life.
Lists of soldiers subject to Manning Control were being sent by APC Glasgow, the Army administrative wing, even when there was a well reported shortfall in Army manning. Soon more and more soldiers were falling victim to the "Brown envelope" as it was known. Soldiers who are regarded as excellent in their reports were pressured into leaving the Army "voluntarily" or signing a new "S-type engagement" contract and giving up the prospect of an immediate pension when they left.
Forms such as the AFB130A application against the soldiers discharge were negated from the process, preventing the soldier from making a representation against the Manning Control order until it was too late.
The absence of the form also hid the real number of soldiers subject to Manning Control from the Defence Analytical Services Agency as most soldiers would "jump ship" rather than it be known on their record of service that they were forced out. This was later admitted by Geoff Hoon the secretary of state for defence in a letter to Paul Keetch the Liberal Democrat defence spokesman.
Controversy.
A soldier from the Parachute Regiment, Corporal Paul Biddiss, was told in November 1999 by his Commanding Officer Lt Col Kennett that he would be manning controlled. He refused to sign off his old contract as it was alleged he should never have been subject to the system; it is believed he was the first soldier to refuse. He won his fight against the system and is still a serving soldier. This was the turning point for Manning Control due mainly to the treatment Cpl Biddiss and his family were alleged to have endured during the Manning Control process. This generated media attention to what was until then an unknown system of mass discharging of soldiers, allegedly for their pension rights.
On 29 Apr 2002, Michael Smith, defence correspondent of "The Daily Telegraph", Tom Newton Dunn, defence editor of the "Daily Mirror" and Andrew Gilligan from the Radio 4 "Today" programme, publicized the case of Cpl Paul Biddiss, in a combined effort and with the campaigning solicitor Thomas Reah, who later went on to help establish the British Armed Forces Federation under the leadership of Douglas Young.
Tom Reah campaigned for the change in pension rights for the partner of a SAS soldier who was killed rescuing British hostages in Sierra Leone. The Liberal Democrats defence spokesman Paul Keetch called for the immediate suspension of the scheme, known as "manning control" and an inquiry into its administration. Mr Breed from the Liberal Democrats defence team stated that
During the next few months more and more stories were being reported about alleged abuse of the system by former soldiers. During Parliamentary questions the Ministry of Defence admitted that hundreds of medically unfit soldiers were thrown out of the Army rather than being given medical discharges, in an apparent contravention of its own rules. The Army admitted it had used Manning Control to throw out soldiers who should have been Medically Discharged. The admission came in a written answer from Adam Ingram, the Armed Forces minister, who said 259 soldiers, who were medically downgraded to a point where they could no longer carry out their roles, had been sacked since 1997.
A number of the medically unfit soldiers were sacked under the "manning control" system that allowed the Army to discharge soldiers it did not want. Medically Discharged. It was used to discharge hundreds of soldiers who had done nothing wrong, in an apparent attempt to ensure they did not qualify for an immediate pension. An unnamed serving soldier told Channel 4 News he believed the Army was forcing servicemen to “jump before they are pushed” in a bid to save money".
The Army was facing a class action by hundreds of former soldiers alleging that they were sacked or forced out under the manning control system to stop them attaining the length of service that would have entitled them to an immediate pension. Soon after, Manning Control was suspended but it is expected to be reintroduced, raising questions as to whether soldiers wounded in Afghanistan will find themselves "brown-enveloped".
In December 2007, BAFF discovered a plan to sack Gurkhas early to reduce their pension rights using Manning Control. "The Ministry of Defence (MoD) is facing legal action over plans to cut the pensions of Gurkhas by sacking them three years before they are due to leave the army". The move, which means the MoD will avoid having to pay an ordinary Gurkha soldier more than £200,000, is to be challenged in the courts by the British Armed Forces Federation (BAFF).
When Bill Rammell, the Secretary of State for Defence, was asked in parliament how many soldiers subject to manning control are (a) awaiting discharge and (b) have been discharged since 2007, he responded "No soldiers have been discharged under Manning Control Points since 2002, and no soldiers are awaiting discharge".
Prime Minister David Cameron, answering MPs' questions following his Statement on the SDSR, gave the assurance that the resulting reductions in the numbers of service personnel would not involve the use of manning control instead of "proper redundancy payments". Against a historic background of injustice to some individuals during earlier times of financial stringency and forces downsizing, BAFF welcomes this important confirmation by the PM and looks to the MoD and service authorities to ensure that it is not overlooked in practice.


United States Air Force Band of Liberty

The United States Air Force Band of Liberty was a United States military band of forty-five active duty members, based at Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts. It entertains audiences in New England, New York, and New Jersey. The band was inactivated in summer 2013. Some of its personnel joined the U.S. Air Force Heritage of America Band, which took up some of its functions.
History.
The band is a select group of professional Airmen-musicians who support the global Air Force mission by providing musical products and services for official military, recruiting, and community relations events, and by fostering America’s rich national heritage. Originally known as the 541st Air Force Band of the Southwest, stationed at Luke AFB, Arizona, the unit relocated to Pease AFB, New Hampshire in 1978. Renamed the Air Force Band of New England, the band brought its musical message of pride, patriotism, and professionalism to concerts and events throughout New England. In 1991, the band received its current name and was assigned to Electronics Systems Center, Hanscom Air Force Base, in Massachusetts. This change fostered another new name: the United States Air Force Band of Liberty.
The Band of Liberty consists of forty-five active duty personnel assigned to two primary ensembles—the Concert Band and the Afterburner popular music group. The organization has several subgroups, including the Ceremonial/Marching Band, Liberty Big Band, Colonial Brass, New England Winds woodwind quintet, and the Bay State Winds clarinet quartet. The band performs around four hundred engagements a year, and has appeared at such venues as Lincoln Center in New York City and the Hatch Shell in Boston. On January 20, 2009, the Band of Liberty's Colonial Brass provided musical support at the Farewell Ceremony of President George W. Bush. On January 3, 2007, members of the Ceremonial Band performed at Grace Episcopal Church in East Grand Rapids, Michigan for the state funeral of Gerald Ford, 38th President of the United States.
As part of larger restructuring of and cuts to military bands, the band was disbanded in mid-2013.
Mission statement.
Support the Global Air Force Mission—by fostering our national heritage and providing professional musical products and services for official military, recruiting, and community relations events
Vision.
World Class—Mission Ready Air Force Music Professionals
using the "power of music" to:
– "Inspire" our Air Force and the great nation we serve
– "Produce" innovative musical programs and products
– "Communicate" Air Force excellence


RAF Wyton Area Voluntary Band

RAF Wyton Area Voluntary Band is one of eight Voluntary bands within the Royal Air Force providing musical support to the RAF and local communities. Founded in 1955, the military band is based at RAF Wyton in Cambridgeshire and is under the administration of RAF Brampton Wyton Henlow. Its membership consists of volunteer musicians from local RAF stations (Wyton, Brampton, Henlow, Cottesmore, Marham and Wittering) and members of the local community.
The concert band appear regularly at military events, civic parades, church services and charity concerts, largely in the East of England, although the band have also performed in London and Birmingham, and toured in Cyprus. The band also have a big band, "Rhythm in Blue", and can also provide a fanfare team, and clarinet or brass quintets. Under bandmaster Graham Sheldon, they have produced a number of widely available CDs.
On 28 February 2015 RAF Wyton Area Voluntary Band became the first of the RAF Voluntary Bands to ever perform alongside the Central Band of the Royal Air Force.


USS Okisko (YTL-735)

USS Okisko was a Small Steam Harbor Tug in service with the United States Navy from 1940 to 1947. Built in 1939 as the Tugboat "Cornelius Kroll", she was purchased from Terry Dalehite Towing Co. on 29 October 1940 by the U.S. Navy, renamed "USS Okisko (YN-42)" and converted for naval service at Naval Station New Orleans and in active service by 19 December 1940. Allocated to the 6th Naval District at Charleston, South Carolina, she also served in the 8th Naval District in 1944 before being decommissioned on 21 February 1947 after a naval career of 7 years. After being struck from the naval register, on 8 May 1947, she made a return to civilian life, as the Tug "Wilcox" of the Wilcox Floating Equipment Co. Over 20 years later, she was purchased by the Reinauer Transportation Co., of Staten Island, New York whilst retaining her name. Her current or Final Disposition is unknown.
Ship names and designations.
Over the years, "Okisko" has enjoyed a variety of names, including;