Linda and I visited the Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson. It is remarkable how powerful jet engines are to push planes supersonic. Among the very many planes on display were four that my father flew many years ago.

The T-33 Shooting Star was the first jet my father trained in during the mid 1950s. Coincidentally, he was based in Southern Arizona during that time.

My father flew the F-101 Voodoo out of Bentwaters RAF Base in England 1959-1962. This aircraft was nominally an interceptor, but was designed mainly to carry and deliver a nuclear device deep into enemy territory. I wonder how seriously they intended the pilot to be able to escape afterwards.

My father was a F-105 Thunderchief instructor at Nellis AFB near Las Vegas from 1962-1964. One day he was pleased to tell us he had just flown Mach 2.2 over the Grand Canyon. Subsequently I have learned that Mach 2.2 is the reported record speed of this aircraft.

This is similar to the A-1E my father flew in Vietnam in 1965. He flew over 125 combat missions in the “Spad”. It was a tough plane for surviving enemy fire during ground attacks. My father’s luck eventually ran out when the external fuel tank under the fuselage was hit by ground fire.