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From: wanttaja@ssc-vax.UUCP (Ronald J Wanttaja)
Newsgroups: net.aviation
Subject: Answers to Aviation Trivia Mark II
Message-ID: <115@ssc-vax.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 12-Aug-85 17:52:19 EDT
Article-I.D.: ssc-vax.115
Posted: Mon Aug 12 17:52:19 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 17-Aug-85 15:30:25 EDT
Distribution: net
Organization: Boeing Aerospace Co., Seattle, WA
Lines: 177

> 1.  Most everyone has seen the B-17 belly landing sequence that was
originally filmed for the movie, "Twelve O'Clock High."  You know, that's
the one where the Fort slides through a tent, etc.

    > a.  What famous stunt pilot was flying the B-17?
    Paul Mantz  
    > b.  What component of the B-17 was missing?    
    The ball turret.  I do believe that it was removed before takeoff,
    however, I think the wartime crews jettisoned it before gear-up
    landings.  Could really mess up the belly slide, I suppose...

> 2.  What superstition did Manfred von Richtofen violate before he took off
on his last flight?

He allowed his picture to be taken.  Ever since Boelke had his picture
taken just before his final mission, no GAF pilot would allow it.

> 3.  Speaking of the Red Baron, who replaced him as commander? 

Fella by the name of Herman Goering...

> 4.  In the movie, "Test Pilot," what type of aircraft is Clark Gable flying
when he tries to set the transcontinental record (Real type... not what
they called it in the movie)?

Seversky P-35.  According to a older friend of mine, the P-35 was the
standard "Hi-tech" aircraft in movies of the '30s.

> 5.  Airplane Nicknames!  What aircraft have (had) the following unofficial
nicknames?

    a.  Tante Ju  
    b.  Converter 
    c.  Wichita Fokker 
    e.  Mossie (easy)  

> 6.  Name the song:

 >"You can keep the goddamn Zeros
 > for the other goddamn heroes,
 > For I'd rather lay a woman
 > than be shot down in a Grumman,
 > Buster..."

"I Wanted Wings" (till I got the goddamn things, now I don't want them
		  anymore...)

> 7.  Where did FDR say Doolittle's Tokyo raiders came from?

"Shangri-La"

> 8.  Who was Tomi Zai?  (Now THAT is an obscure one...)

He was the kamikaze pilot that finally took USS Enterprise out of the war,
in early 1945.  He crashed his Zero, carrying a 500 lb bomb, into the
forward elevator.  They found calling cards with his name on what was left
of the body...

> 9.  Although bombardiers and navigators operated machine guns from their
stations, gunners assigned to bombers were non-commissioned officers
(Corporals, Sergeants, etc)- with one exception.  Who was the only
commissioned waist gunner in the Eighth Air Force?

Now, I can hear you gnashing your teeth out there about ridiculously
trivial trivia, but... the guy was Captain Clark Gable!  He volunteered
for the Air Force, was commissioned, and washed out of flying school.  He
also had no aptitude for navigating or dropping bombs, so all that was left
was gunnery school.  They couldn't take his captaincy away without cause.
His war record?  He flew a few missions, and after a particularly rough
one, climbed out of the airplane shaking his head and saying, quote, "This
shit's not for me!"  He was transferred stateside.

> 10.  If you see a picture of a German aircraft with "FE-" and a number on
it, what does that signify?

Axis aircraft returned to the US for evaluation were assigned a "Foreign
Equipment" serial number.  Therefore, if it has an "FE" number, the plane
was in the CONUS undergoing evaluation.

> 11.  Pactra special time again, folks:

     a.  "Ding Hao!"- whose aircraft had this painted on it?  

     b.  - whose aircraft (no, not ENEMY ACE :-) ) 

     c.  "Hotter than a pistol, and twice as fast"- what aircraft?  

     d.  "The Body" What novel (and movie) featured a B-17 with this name?
        

> 12.  What kind of aircraft was Knute Rockne killed in?

Fokker Trimotor.  The aircraft was banned from service soon after, as it
was found the sealed wooden wing spars had a tendency to rot internally.
Ford (whose trimotor was a metal copy of the Fokker) had really pushed
for the ban, for obvious reasons.

> 13.  Last quiz, we found out that the McDoug F-15 was not the first fighter
named "Eagle."  Well, for that matter, the McDoug Eagle wasn't the first US
aircraft designated "F-15!"  What was the first F-15?

The Recce version of the Northrup P-61 Black Widow.  The designation "F"
(for photo) was used to redesignate several famous aircraft that were used for
reconnaisance.  The recce P-38 was the F-5, the P-51 was the F-6, etc.

> 14.  What type of jet did BLACK HAWK and his squadron fly?

Lockheed F-90s, which were essentially swept-wing F-80s.

> 15.  For that matter, what kind of airplane did Jet Jackson fly?  (making
up for my errors about Capt. Midnight :-)  )

If I remember correctly, they used a model of the Douglas D-558/2 for Jet
Jackson's flying sequences.

> 16.  Who was the first person to undress in an heavier-than-air aircraft?

The most famous pre-WWI stunt pilot, Lincoln Beachey, who was blessed with
a large ego.  After a demonstration in which he felt he hadn't flown very
well, a bunch of well-wishers crowded around him, slapping him on the back
and telling him what a great pilot he was.  Contemptuous of their
perception, he took off, and began bombing them with articles of his
clothing.  If I remember right, he kept his red "union suit" on.  I was
originally going to word this, "...undress in flight," until I remembered
that the "Mile Hi club" predated the Wright brothers...

> 17.  Kiwis are a popular net subject, lately.  What did that term mean in
the Army Air Force? 

Kiwis were aviation cadets who had not yet soloed.  When an upperclassman
asked for the definition of a Kiwi, an underclassman was supposed to reply:

"Sir, a kiwi is a birds that runs around in circles, tighter and tighter,
'till it runs up its own ass and says, 'kiwi, kiwi, keeerist, it's dark in
here..."

> 18.  Special Bonus question:  Indentify the source of this:

"He was only eighteen when he downed his first machine,
 and any chance of living through this war was small;
 He was nineteen when I met 'im... and I never will forget 'im,
 The pilot by the name of Albert Ball.

This is from "Billy Bishop Goes to War," a one-man (one and a half, if you
count the piano player) play about the wartime experiences of the WWI ace.
I highly recommend it, if it comes your way.  The whole thing is a "No
sh*t, there I was" sort of thing, with many laughs and interesting songs,
yet not glossing over the darker side of war.  The Canadian stations
broadcast it occasionally, and I've heard PBS plays it, too.  Definitely a
must-see.

Well, that about wraps up another one.  I may do another, in the
next few years.... 

                                            Ron Wanttaja
					    (ssc-vax!wanttaja)

"Did you know he checks his sanity with a stopwatch?"
"What do you check yours with, a dipstick???"