Picture Of The Week - No 14 - V22 Osprey

This weeks picture is one taken when I attended the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) at RAF Fairford in July 2006.  The V22 Osprey, what a bizarrely fabulous looking aircraft !
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6 Mind-Blowing Things Recently Discovered From WWII

We think of the world as a crowded place in an era when even Mt. Everest has cell phone coverage, you wouldn't think that anything could go undiscovered for long. But you'd be surprised for instance, nearly seven decades after World War II ended, stuff is still turning up and we're not talking about an old rusty Luger here or a set of dog tags there. We're talking about stuff like... Read more: Link
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Humour - FOR THOSE WHO LOVE THE PHILOSOPHY OF AMBIGUITY, AS WELL AS THE IDIOSYNCRASIES OF ENGLISH:

1. ONE TEQUILA, TWO TEQUILA, THREE TEQUILA...... FLOOR.

2. ATHEISM IS A NON-PROPHET ORGANIZATION.

3. IF MAN EVOLVED FROM MONKEYS AND APES, WHY DO WE STILL HAVE MONKEYS AND APES?

4. THE MAIN REASON THAT SANTA IS SO JOLLY IS BECAUSE HE KNOWS WHERE ALL THE BAD GIRLS LIVE.

5. I WENT TO A BOOKSTORE AND ASKED THE SALESWOMAN, "WHERE'S THE SELF- HELP SECTION?" SHE SAID IF SHE TOLD ME, IT WOULD DEFEAT THE PURPOSE.

6. WHAT IF THERE WERE NO HYPOTHETICAL QUESTIONS?

7. IF A DEAF CHILD SIGNS SWEAR WORDS, DOES HIS MOTHER WASH HIS HANDS WITH SOAP?

8. IF SOMEONE WITH MULTIPLE PERSONALITIES THREATENS TO KILL HIMSELF, IS IT CONSIDERED A HOSTAGE SITUATION?

9. IS THERE ANOTHER WORD FOR SYNONYM?

10. WHERE DO FOREST RANGERS GO TO "GET AWAY FROM IT ALL?"

11. WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU SEE AN ENDANGERED ANIMAL EATING AN ENDANGERED PLANT?

12. IF A PARSLEY FARMER IS SUED, CAN THEY GARNISH HIS WAGES?

13. WOULD A FLY WITHOUT WINGS BE CALLED A WALK?

14. WHY DO THEY LOCK GAS STATION BATHROOMS? ARE THEY AFRAID SOMEONE WILL BREAK-IN AND CLEAN THEM?

15. IF A TURTLE DOESN'T HAVE A SHELL, IS HE HOMELESS OR NAKED?

16. CAN VEGETARIANS EAT ANIMAL CRACKERS?

17. IF THE POLICE ARREST A MUTE, DO THEY TELL HIM HE HAS THE RIGHT TO REMAIN SILENT?

18. WHY DO THEY PUT BRAILLE ON THE DRIVE-THROUGH BANK MACHINES?

19. HOW DO THEY GET DEER TO CROSS THE ROAD ONLY AT THOSE YELLOW ROAD SIGNS?

20. WHAT WAS THE BEST THING BEFORE SLICED BREAD?

21. ONE NICE THING ABOUT EGOTISTS: THEY DON'T TALK ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE.

22. DOES THE LITTLE MERMAID WEAR AN ALGEBRA? (This one took me a minute)

24. HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO HAVE A CIVIL WAR?

25. IF ONE SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMER DROWNS, DO THE REST DROWN TOO?

26. IF YOU ATE BOTH PASTA AND ANTIPASTO, WOULD YOU STILL BE HUNGRY?

27. IF YOU TRY TO FAIL, AND SUCCEED, WHICH HAVE YOU DONE?

28. WHOSE CRUEL IDEA WAS IT FOR THE WORD 'LISP' TO HAVE 'S' IN IT?

29. WHY ARE HEMORRHOIDS CALLED "HEMORRHOIDS" INSTEAD OF "ASSTEROIDS"?

30. WHY IS IT CALLED TOURIST SEASON IF WE CAN'T SHOOT AT THEM?

31. WHY IS THERE AN EXPIRATION DATE ON SOUR CREAM?

32. IF YOU SPIN AN ORIENTAL WOMAN IN A CIRCLE THREE TIMES, DOES SHE BECOME DISORIENTED?

33. CAN AN ATHEIST GET INSURANCE AGAINST ACTS OF GOD?

34. WHY DO SHOPS HAVE SIGNS, 'GUIDE DOGS ONLY', THE DOGS CAN'T READ AND THEIR OWNERS ARE BLIND?

WW2: Test of captured German Armour in Haustenbeck,Germany (1945)

Testing of German Armour by the French army at the secret Henschel tank testing grounds (Henschel Panzerversuchsstation) in Haustenbeck,Germany
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Comment:  Some interesting footage here.
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Time-lapse: Space shuttle Endeavour squeezes through L.A. streets

The space shuttle Endeavour made its last journey, traveling 12-miles on city streets from Los Angeles International Airport, through Inglewood, to the California Science Center in Exposition Park.
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'Battlegroup North’ at the Elvington Air Museum

Yesterday I went along to ‘Battlegroup North’ at the Elvington Air Museum. I had a choice of attending on either the Saturday or the Sunday, and decided on the Sunday as it was forecast to have the better weather of the two days. Leaving home at 08:20 I rolled in with my CCKW into the vehicle show area adjacent to the museum at 09:00 and joined the other 150+ vehicles parked up. Mainly WW2 there was however a spread of more modern vehicles. I had hoped there might be the odd WW2 tank but the most heavily armoured vehicles from that era were a couple of half-tracks, both in beautiful condition it has to be said.
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I met up with a few GMC owners I knew and had a good natter about the vehicles foibles. I thought there might be an extra GMC to add to my CCKW Photo Blog, but as it happens I already had all seven vehicles already recorded.
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An old friend of mine Chris Jenkins along with his sons Graham and Gareth was part of 25pdr display team who put on an excellent little firing display.
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One of the wiper blades on my GMC has been knackered for quite some time, so I was pleased when browsing the outdoor stalls to pick up a pair of replacements for £10.
The air museum as well as throwing open its doors as part of the joint event fired up a couple of its aircraft, and we were treated to a Buccaneer and Victor tanker charging up the 3,094 meter runway doing fast taxi runs.
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They have one of my favourite aircraft at the museum an English Electric Mk 6 Lightning, although it is not a runner like the Buccaneer.
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Unfortunately the weather forecasters got the days mixed up, and for about 2.5 hours in the afternoon we were subjected to quite persistent rain that saw most people leave early. Still not a bad day all in all, and I'm already looking forward to next year :)

Stunning Beauty Of Bunkers

Here's a link to an interesting article on WW2 bunkers along the French coast.

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Blade Runner - Tears In Rain

"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments will be lost in time... like tears in rain..." -Roy Batty
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Comment:  Such a classic movie, I just couldn't resist posting this clip.
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Top 10 Sci-Fi Weapons

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Comment:  The Aliens Pulse rifle, is the one to have... :)
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Battle Group North - Forthcoming Event

This coming weekend the Yorkshire area group of the Military Vehicle Trust are holding their annual show Battle at the Yorkshire Air Museum. Link  I shall be going along with my truck to join the other 200+ military vehicles expected.

The 7 Most Ridiculously Advanced Machines Built Out of LEGOs

Check out some of the amazing things things that these people have made out of Lego - Link
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Wrecked Panther found in a Ukranian river.

Some interesting pictures here of a wrecked Panther tank being recovered from a river bed. Link
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Humour - You could have Heard a pin drop...

JFK'S Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, was in France in the early 60's when DeGaulle decided to pull out of NATO.
DeGaulle said he wanted all US military out of France as soon as possible.
Rusk responded "Does that include those who are buried here?"
You could have Heard a pin drop...

A Royal Navy Admiral was attending a naval conference that included Admirals from the U.S. , English, Canadian, Australian and French Navies. At a cocktail reception, he found himself standing with a large group of Officers that included personnel from most of those countries. Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped their drinks but a French admiral suddenly complained that, whereas Europeans learn many languages, the English learn only English.
He then asked, 'Why is it that we always have to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking French ?'
Without hesitating, the British Admiral replied, 'Maybe it's because the Brit's, Canadians, Aussie's and Americans arranged it so you wouldn't have to speak German.'
You could have Heard a pin drop...

Finally, Robert Whiting, an elderly gentleman of 83, arrived in Paris by plane. At French Customs, he took a few minutes to locate his passport in his carry on.
"You have been to France before, monsieur?" the customs officer asked sarcastically. Mr. Whiting admitted that he had been to France previously.
"Then you should know enough to have your passport ready."
The Englishman said, 'The last time I was here, I didn't have to show it."
"Impossible. You English always have to show your passports on arrival in France !"
The English senior gave the Frenchman a long hard look. Then he quietly explained, ''Well, when I came ashore at Gold Beach on D-Day in 1944 to help liberate this country, I couldn't find a single Frenchmen to show a passport to."
You could have Heard a pin drop...
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3D map raises the real-life Atlantis from the deep: Scientists recreate Egyptian trading town buried for 1,200 years

A real-life Atlantis which sunk off the coast of Egypt nearly 1,200 years ago has now been brought back to the surface with the help of 3D. The city of Heracleion, home of the temple where Cleopatra was inaugurated, was one of the most important trade centres in the Mediterranean area before it disappeared into what is now the Bay of Aboukir. Heracleion was discovered in 2001, and after more than a decade of excavation, researchers have now been able to create a map depicting life in the ancient trade hub. Read more: Link
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Campbelltown Operation Market Garden

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Comment:  A very impressive terrain set-up of the WW2 Market Garden Operation.  It took 4 people 3 and 1/2 hours to set up the table and terrain, all 40 ft of it.  It then took 3 people 2 hours to put down the troops.
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Humour - Robot for Sale

A father buys a lie detector robot that slaps people when they lie.

He decides to test it out at dinner one night.
The father asks his son what he did that afternoon.
The son says, "I did some schoolwork."
The robot slaps the son.
The son says, "Ok, Ok. I was at a friend's house watching movies."
Dad asks, "What movie did you watch?"
Son says, "Toy Story."
The robot slaps the son.
Son says, "Ok, Ok, we were watching porn."
Dad says, "What? At your age I didn't even know what porn was."
The robot slaps the father.
Mom laughs and says, "Well, he certainly is your son."
The robot slaps the mother.

Robot for sale.

Exclusive footage on the Tank Armour on Challenger 2, Leopard 2 and Abrams

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Comment: This is worth watching if you are interested in armoured vehicles.
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Drive It Day 2013

Each year The Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs (FBHVC) encourages the members from affiliated clubs to get their classic/ancient vehicles out and about for one day.  Last year was the first time we had participated Link, and we decided to go out and about for a short drive this year as well.  The day started out with me retrieving the truck from where I have it currently stored and deciding to top the tank up with £100 worth of fuel.  I have frequented the local Tescos several times since we moved to York in Dec 2012 in my car, and felt that although tightish, the forecourt would be okay for the truck.  Biggggg error of judgement there !  It was busy, and after tanking up I had the devils own job manoeuvring around to get out without:
a)  crashing into multiple cars,
b)  destroying a newspaper stand,
c)  wearing out the thrust bearing on the clutch !

Anyway, back home I collected the family we drove to the nearby now semi-derelict WW2 bomber base of RAF Rufforth. This airfield at its height had over 1700 personnel on site when No. 1663 Heavy Conversion Unit (HCU) 7 Group Training Command was operating from their with, Halifax I / II / III / V, Stirling I, Oxford II, Spitfire Vb and Hurricane IIC aircraft.

Here's a photo of us at the bottom of one the surviving runways.  I've tweaked it using a program called Photomatrix which I find can produce some interesting results.  
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The German sniper of WW2

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Comment:  This make quite interesting viewing.
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Mechwarrior Online - Update

Last Saturday I posted how my son and I had started playing Mechwarrior Online.  Well, the term 'slightly addicted' does spring to mind.  We have both been playing games like mad this week.  I've managed to earn enough experience credits (called C-Bills) to purchase myself one of the biggest (in terms of weight) Mechs in the game, the 100 ton Atlas.  Size isn't everything though, and I'm getting destroyed with regular monotony !  LOL.  Excellent fun though :)
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Humour - Two Simple Truths and Five Rules To Remember

SIMPLE TRUTH #1

Lovers help each other undress before sex.

However after sex, they always dress on their own.

Moral of the story: In life, no one helps you once you're screwed.

SIMPLE TRUTH #2

When a lady is pregnant, all her friends touch the stomach and say, "Congrats".

But, none of them come and touch the man's penis and say, "Good job".

Moral of the story: "Hard work is never appreciated."


THE FIVE RULES TO REMEMBER IN LIFE

1. Money cannot buy happiness, but it's more comfortable to cry in a Corvette than on a bicycle.

2. Forgive your enemy, but remember the ass-hole's name.

3. If you help someone when they're in trouble, they will remember you when they're in trouble again.

4. Many people are alive only because it's illegal to shoot them.

5. Alcohol does not solve any problems, but then neither does milk.


AND A BONUS RULE:

Condoms do not guarantee safe sex; a friend of mine was wearing one when he was shot by the woman's husband. 

MechWarrior Online

A must check out for all Battletech fans is the new MechWarrior Online game.  Currently free to play in Beta mode, my son and I had a couple of quite enjoyable battles this evening.  Aim to link up with a couple of other friends as well, and get our own Lance together :)  Link
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Yorhshire MVT - 'Crank-up' Event

Went along on Sunday to the first event of the year for the Yorkshire branch of the Military Vehicle Trust (MVT). Held at Cliffords Tower in York, it was a bit of Jeep fest it has to be said, however my CCKW brought a touch of class to the event :) The three M35 Reo (trucks) were a revelation to me in how great the engines sounded, with the Turbos whistling away. Fabulous ! I really want one !
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From Wargaming BLOG Photos

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Flames of War In 10mm

On Thursday I joined in with a game already underway that the Harrogate Club.  Assigned a Infantry unit Stalins in army,  as a real FoW rule novice I was supporting my chum Andy B as we attempted to crush the Fascist dogs in the shape of John E and Steve R.  They were equipped with a Tiger platoon and Jagdpanzer IV platoon some infantry and an 8 vehicle Opel Mautlier rocket battery as their main units.  We had a KV85 unit (using JSII models though), an SU85 unit, a 57mm AT unit, some JSU152 'Beast Killers', plus an vehicle Katyusha rocket battery, some Sturmovicks and a shed load of Infantry.
When I joined the game the Soviets were taking a right beating and had lost all the SU85s and AT guns for no loss.  The Kraut Tigers then proceeded to knock out the KV85s for no loss again.  However, our Infantry got to grips with his on the left flank and after routing them off, managed to seize an objective just before the end of game.
Here's a few photos.
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Friday Humour - Scottish Compassion...

SCOTTISH COMPASSION...............

A man was sitting on a blanket at the beach.
He had no arms and no legs.
Three women, from England , Wales , and Scotland , were walking past and felt sorry for the poor man.
The English woman said "Have you ever had a hug?"
The man said "No," so she gave him a hug and walked on.
The Welsh woman said, "Have you ever had a kiss?"
The man said, "No," so she gave him a kiss and walked on.
The Scottish woman came to him and said, "'ave ya ever been f*****), laddie?"
The man broke into a big smile and said, "No".
She said, "Aye, well ya will be when the tide comes in."

M4 Sherman Tank - Crew Comments

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Comment:  Some the of the commentary is a bit suspect, but worth a watch for tank fans.
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Pentagon Wars - Bradley Fighting Vehicle Evolution

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Comment:  Not saying I agree with this, but it is entertaining viewing :)
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8,000 artefacts and rising: City dig pronounced the 'most important ever' in London

Archaeologists have nicknamed the site 'the Pompeii of the North'. When archaeologists were called to a site in the City of London where an ugly office block and a bar once stood, they were sceptical that it held any secrets.  Link
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Battle of the Brick: Built for Combat - The Movie

Alex and I love well-done stop-motion movies.  Have experimented ourselves we can appreciate the amount of effort involved.  This is a really well done one, based on the Halo computer game.

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The Battle of Berlin

This is worth a read about the Battle For Berlin in 1945.  Link
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King Tiger Being Restored By The Swiss

A King Tiger is being restored by a team in Switzerland. The photos are worth a look at Link.
Comment:  I would love to be involved in this sort of activity.
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Black Power ACW - Part 2

Back on the 22 March I posted about an American Civil War (ACW) game I was having at my gaming club Link. Well, as planned we continued the game the following week. I was holding out quite well until I screwed up series of critical dice throws and of my 2 Regts failed their Morale rolls, and fled the field of battle. Here is a photo just after this critical moment, with the way seemingly clear for the ungodly Unionists to advance up the hill and win the game.
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Fortunately our overall commander on the Confederate side (John multiple rule-sets Savage) had foreseen such an possibility and had ordered me to move a couple of cannons up just in case. I had been quite happily bombarding a Regt of Chris's cavalry at long range and through a combination of skilful dice rolling (snigger) had kept them out of the game as such. John S however saw the greater danger in the centre, so following his orders I had moved them across to support.
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This happened to be incredibly timely as when the Union advanced after my two Regts fled I was able to give them a blast of canister in their flank. This pic shows the Confederate team in various poses just before I fired (chuckle).
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Their forward Regts did not take it well, and promptly broke and fled the field. At this point the Umpire ended the game (as it was getting pretty late) and called it in our favour, just... My thanks to Theo for organising such a great scenario, and for being such a a good umpire, and my thanks to everyone else for such an enjoyable game.  I'm now going read the rules in detail, and look forward to the next game. -

Connection times / Link to the Past

This site is well worth checking out. Old pictures carefully blended with ones taken today. Link
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"I was the last Desert Rat left firing at Rommel’s Panzers": Incredible tale of heroism behind Antiques Roadshow painting

Ordered to ‘fight to the last man and the last round’, they stuck to their guns as their comrades fell around them.
For three days, the brave band of Desert Rats suffered relentless Panzer attacks and mounting casualties as they held the line in North Africa from Rommel’s advancing tanks. Their heroism during one of the bloodiest battles of the Second World War was later immortalised on canvas.
Now the only surviving ‘Tommy’ depicted in the painting, 93-year-old Ray Ellis, has told of the ‘miracle’ that saved his life.  Link
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Picture Of The Week - Tiger Problem

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Comment:  Just a tiny problem here, nothing trivial...  

Super Hornet Low Level Training

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Comment:  Some jaw dropping flying here.
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Flagship Magazine

Years ago I used to play a lot of Play-By-Mail (PBM) games and for a while subscribed to a dedicated magazine called ‘Flagship’ that was devoted solely to this type if gaming. I’m currently trying to encourage a group of my friends to go into a Dark Age II Play By E-Mail (PBEM) game with me, and on a whim today I Google'd ‘Flagship Magazine’ and was pleased to find that it is still going, both in a hardcopy format and as a ‘free’ downloadable pdf.  They have expanded to scope of the magazine so that it covers wider gaming as well, so I found quite a lot to enjoy. Certainly worth a look. Link
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Black Powder ACW Game

Last night I played my first proper game of the Black Powder rules published by Warlord Games. My friend Theo Street had done an excellent job of generating a scenario for us loosely based on the First Battle of Bull Run 1861. Myself Andy B, and John S were the clean living Confederates on the left flank of the Confederate line, taking on the corrupt Northern scum in the shape of John E, Steve, Simon A and Chris J who have flanked crossing the Bull Run creek. The Union forces can be seen crossing the Bull Run Creek from Sudley Mill with Sudley Church clearly visible.  We each had a Brigade (or 2) under our command, and a persona on the battlefield. Myself, I was the famous Stonewall Jackson :)
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The Confederate battery is positioned further east covering the Stone Bridge with Union forces visible having crossed Farm Ford.
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I’m afraid I don’t have time to write up a full AAR, plus the battle is still under way and we will continue it next week. Suffice to say though it must rank as one of my top gaming nights ever. Fabulous banter round the table and wildly varying dice throws at critical times made for an incredibly entertaining game with a perfect blend of Strategic and Tactical decisions having to be made on some great looking terrain. I’m indebted to my friends for the loan of a Brigade of troops (3 Inf Regts of 24 Figs each and 2 guns + 1 mounted C/O).  Deep into the game although they have taken some casualties, all my units are still intact. Inspired as I am, I’ve been and ordered the rules from Amazon. I'm now seriously considering whether to buy the Brigade pack from Perry Miniatures, which at £45 for over 100 figures looks excellent value for money.

Bolt Action at the Harrogate Club

Joined in another game of WW2 20mm using the Bolt Action rules last Thursday.  Like at X-Mas I had a Panther.  -After being quite badly pinned I pulled back round behind a hill, cleared the pins and then moving forward, taking out a Sherman 75 that was sat near the objective. - -+1 for each second and subsequent shot at Target.+1 if target hit in previous turn.+1 If firer has Optics bonus and firing at long range.-1 Long range shot with High Velocity (HV) round or AT Gun HEAT round.-1 Target moving at 45% to 90% across front of firer up to 9" movement.-2 Target moving at 45 – 90 across front of firer over 9" movement.Quite an enjoyable game however I am slightly frustrated by inaccuracies in the vehicle listings.  I have therefore resolved to come up with my own listings, and have made a start on German listing.  In my next game in a few weeks time I hope to trial some house rules we have been talking about.I'm currently thinking of introducing: (for AT fire on vehicles):-

Honoured at last: Heroes of the Arctic convoys, the "worst journey on the world"

Today crowds of well-wishers cheered as General Sir David Richards, Chief of the Defence Staff, pinned the medal to the chest of frail retired Commander Eddie Grenfell. Link
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In pictures: HMS Belfast at 75

In pictures, HMS Belfast at 75.   Link to the BBC Web site.

Knight's grave found under car park

The grave of a medieval knight and the foundations of a monastery built by a former king of Scotland have been found under an old city car park.

 Archaeologists made the discoveries, with dozens of other artefacts, during the excavation of a building site in Edinburgh's Old Town. Link to MSN News.
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Iraq War - 10 Years On: UK MOD accused of neglecting Iraq war casualties

In the first of a three-part series marking the 10th anniversary of the invasion, an army officer tells how he lost his marriage, his career and, for a while, his mind through PTSD. Link
Comment: Worth a read to get a small insight into the problems guys with PTSD suffer.
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Borderlands: Claptrap Web Series Episodes 1 + 2

Comment:  If your a fan of Borderlands this is brilliant !
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Space Hulk

Comment:  This is excellent !  LOL
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The T-34 in WWII: the Legend vs. the Performance

The technical superiority of the T-34 in 1941 (and during WWII in general) has become the stuff of legend. Its apparent superiority has become so entrenched in the psyche of post WWII authors that it is now assumed without question. Some go as far as to claim the T-34 as “the finest tank of the twentieth century” and the T-34 “rendered the entire fleet of German tanks as effectively obsolete”.(1) However, if battle performance was (and indeed still is) the ultimate determinant of the effectiveness of any weapon system, then unlike some legends in WWII, the tactical combat record of the T-34 does not match up to its legendary status. An objective look at the T-34’s record, without preconceptions, reveals questions which are hard to answer given the T-34’s apparent superiority. Link
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Comment:  Worth a read if your into WW2 tanks.
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'Panzer Marsch'

Limited-edition prints of an oil painting depicting Tiger 131’s final moments in military service are to be sold to raise money for the upkeep of The Tank Museums most famous exhibit. Link
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Comment:  This would look good on the wall of my study  :)
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Sherman - 'Tanking Up'

Spotted this picture on a thread on the Historic Military Vehicle Forum (HMVF), and just felt I had to re-post here :)
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And I quote, "nearly at the end of the road run the Sherman was decidedly short of petrol so Rod drove the tank straight onto the forecourt. The mayhem this caused was hilarious, the manager thought the tank was going to disappear below ground, but all went well and we continued on to the pub"
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The Land Mattress: Canadian Ingenuity Takes Flight

The Land Mattress, a multi-barreled rocket launcher was the brain child of Canadian artillery officer Lt. Col. Eric Harris and perhaps more than any other Canadian weapon of the war demonstrates not just ingenuity but versatility. Necessity is often called the mother of invention and war the crucible of progress, in late 1944 Canadian forces fielded a rocket launcher that demonstrated both these philosophies. Read more on the Flames Of War web site: Link.
Comment: This is an excellent article on a system I had never read about before.
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Taking to the skies on RAF's new transport plane - A400M

The MoD is buying 22 A400M Atlas transport aircraft to replace the RAF's fleet of C-130 Hercules planes, with the first aircraft set to enter service in late 2014.  Link to the BBC.
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