Question of the Hour

[Centurian1985]

Useless trivia:
the first shot of the 1991 Gulf war was fired before the war even started - any guesses by which country and which trade , or even IN which country?

 

[Cloud Cover]

Iran? Iranian Pilots? Iranian airspace?

 

[geo]

Useless trivia:
the first shot of the 1991 Gulf war was fired before the war even started - any guesses by which country and which trade , or even IN which country?

well.... there was a patrol from Marine force recon that did open fire on some Iraqis. Per my friend the Gunny, the shots were fired in Iraq.

 

[geo]

whiskey....
not a canvas jacket..... coveralls

 

[Michael Dorosh]

Michael: I think he has dispossessed some poor Chinese fellow of his ox horn cigarette holder, and quite possibly is wearing somebody else's light canvas jacket or heavy shirt. 

 

Or overalls.

I was actually thinking it is the only photograph I've ever seen of a Patricia wearing his beret properly.  But don't tell them I said that.

 

[Centurian1985]

Answer: November 1990, Qatar, deployment in preparation of offensive ops, by a US marine exchange pilot, into the roof of my office. 

 

[Cloud Cover]

Answer: November 1990, Qatar, deployment in preparation of offensive ops, by a US marine exchange pilot, into the roof of my office. 

They strafed the john? ;D

 

[Centurian1985]

Actually with his pistol - he forgot to clear his weapon before he came in and when he was asked if his weapon was cleared he said 'sure it is', took out his pistol and ... well you can guess the rest!

CF-18 Fighter: In excess of 5 million dollars

ATCO trailer: Over $3,000 dollars

9mm Automatic: $475

Sight of a US pilot holding a discharged smoking weapon: priceless

P.S. Cost of acquiring and building within 24 hours a sandbag station for the clearing and discharge of weapons: $10 plus labour

 

[Centurian1985]

Actually the CF-18 pilots didnt strafe the john, but they did do soemthing close that caused the first injury of the 1990 deployment ...  any guesses?

 

[Rhibwolf]

I remember this happening, and thought it amusing then.  not sure if its the answer youre looking for, but still a good piece of trivia:
It was during a CAP mission, at 2:00am on January 30 that two Canadian pilots, Maj. David “DW” Kendall and Capt. Steve “Hillbilly” Hill were called upon to attack an Iraqi patrol boat, a TCN-45 which carry the deadly anti-ship Exocet missile and anti-aircraft guns. Both aircraft strafed the speeding boat, well illuminated by moonlight, with observed 20 mm cannon hits. Passes were made to try a weapons system lock for the-air-to ground Sidewinder, but the boat’s heat signature was insufficient. In a subsequent pass, Kendall received a full system lock on air-to-air mode and launched a Sparrow missile which impacted the water close to the boat. This event represented the first instance of Canadian forces firing on an enemy in a declared combat since the Korean War.

 

[Centurian1985]

Hey that was my next question!

Ah well...

Anyway, the incident I refered to was when the CF-18's made a low pass over the Qatar airfield so the deployment ground crew could get a 'photo op'; this was also about Nov 1990, the jets passed so low that their backwash blew apart a modular tent by the runway.  Two ground crew were injured by flying aluminum tent poles.  They had no ice so the used frozen bread on the bruised pumpkins involved.

 

[AJFitzpatrick]

Since no one has answered who was the other member of the hockey hall of fame killed in WW I. I'll give the answer:

Lt. Frank McGee 21st Bn.

He was part of the Ottawa Silver Seven who held the Stanley Cup from 1904-1906 and was inducted into the HHOF in 1945.

 

[Centurian1985]

Hey Fitz, Where are you findng this stuff?

 

[Michael Dorosh]

Here's an easy one:

“We looked at one another. Something was terribly wrong. Everything was intact! We expected a town shattered by the RAF’s saturation bombing the previous night. We thought we would see a lot of damage to the seafront buildings from the shelling. There was no sign of bombing. The window panes were glittering, unbroken, in the (rays of the morning sun)."
Denis Whitaker
(Tragedy to Triumph)

The above is quoted in a transcript of a War Amps video on Dieppe.

What is wrong with this picture?

 

[Cloud Cover]

The rising sun would be behind the buildings, if it was even over the horizon on the the first wave. Maybe it was flickering flames on the windows they saw.

 

[Michael Dorosh]

The rising sun would be behind the buildings, if it was even over the horizon on the the first wave. Maybe it was flickering flames on the windows they saw.

But what would be on fire? The chert stones on the beach?  The tanks landed after the infantry, and none of them were penetrated by enemy fire in any event.

Sounds like a John Wayne moment on BGen Whitaker's part.  Wayne was the guy who had the sun setting in the wrong direction at the end of The Green Berets...

 

[vonGarvin]

I think the problem is that it wasn't sunny that day?

 

[Michael Dorosh]

I think the problem is that it wasn't sunny that day?

Did you miss the last three posts?  ???

 

[Rhibwolf]

Technically, as the sun rises in the E, and the coast runs NE-SW, its possible that someone looking in the right direction "might" see something like reflections. There was bombing done, but RAF fighters not by proper bombers. Naval gun fire was also present, so either of these two might account for some fires, but as the buildings were "intact" the glow would be coming from other buildings, and its unlikely that Capt Whitaker would mistake the sun's first rays with burning buildings.
That said, Im at a loss.

 

[scoutfinch]

C'mon... bring on a new question...I am on a streak having gotten two right this week!!!

(It ain't global warming, baby -- I am ON FIRE!)