For those that sacrificed we have our holiday, thank you.

Red
White
And Blue
Thank you for your service.

I had the luxury of serving in the Marines during peace time, but even in times of routine training, injuries and fatalities still occurred. In my squadron of VMAT-102 at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, AZ, we lost Lt. Murphy during my time there. He was on a flight practicing bombing runs, and apparently pulled up a bit late after dropping a bomb. Aviation is dangerous enough without intentionally flying towards the ground at high speeds and waiting until the last moment to release a bomb for the best accuracy. VMAT-102 was a training squadron, and basic weapons delivery was one of the skills that the pilots learned during their time with us.

I'll also mention a pilot from VT-24 (or VT-25?) that was part of a deployment from Naval Air Station Beeville Texas. He was the third of three aircraft taking off together. I was out working on the flight line and happened to look up when the third aircraft was just getting off the ground. Unfortunately, the aircraft was trailing a white vapor and had rolled nearly 90 degrees to the right (towards the flight line where the military aircraft and hangars were). The aircraft, a TA-4J Skyhawk, continued to roll and lost altitude. It was perhaps 50 feet above the ground when the pilot ejected, which meant that he was rocketed into the ground. The Skyhawk's trajectory was to the right, and was headed towards the VT-24 flight line. It slid into a couple of other TA-4J's, setting them on fire, but stopped just short of going into the squadron's hangar. Fortunately, nobody else was injured, which is just incredible, all things considered. The aircraft's fuel caught on fire, and there were minor explosions (probably the small explosive cartridges that force the bombs away from the aircraft when released).

I should note that a year earlier, VT-24 had been deployed to Yuma and had an aircraft experience a severe problem on take-off. The pilot safely ejected, but the aircraft flew into a civilian hangar and killed a person. I suspect that is why the pilot stayed so long with the aircraft that I watched crash.

In summary, I want to recognize those that have given their lives in peace time while engaging in the training that keeps the military prepared to defend the nation.

and just for the sake of tenuously connecting this to bikes.. a shot of my Raleigh Gran Sport in front of one of the squadron buildings (I think I had overnight duty in the ready room).



and a shot of one of our single seat A-4M Skyhawks. I took this from the back seat of one of our two-seat TA-4F's....



Steve in Peoria

When I lived in Yuma in 1988-1989, I didn't get much riding in because of long work days (before sunrise to sunset, typically 6 days a week), but I remember watching the Harriers practicing their hovering & spinning at and around the MCAS. Thanks for serving.