Flying Tiger Reunion   Flying Tigers Reunion: Past and present members of the Flying Tigers gathered at MacDill AFB, Fla., earlier this month for the latest in the series of reunions held since 1947. This year, five of the surviving original Flying Tigers pilots attended. So did some of the maintainers, intelligence, and medical staff who supported them when they flew P-40 Warhawks in defense of China against Imperial Japan during World War II. "It's an honor to meet with these generations of warriors," said Col. Ronald Stuewe, commander of the 23rd Fighter Group at Moody AFB, Ga., an A-10C unit that carries on the Flying Tigers name and shark's teeth nose art. "I've looked up to these guys since I was a little boy, so to actually meet them and hear their stories is truly, truly humbling," said Capt. Matthew Cichowski, a Moody A-10 pilot. (Tampa  by SrA. Brigitte N. Brantley)       Remains of WWII Airmen Identified   Remains of WWII Airmen Identified: The DOD POW/Missing Personnel Office identification of the remains of four airmen, part of a 10-man B-17 crew lost in the Pacific in 1943. The airmen were on a bombing mission over Papau New Guinea in their B-17 Naughty but Nice on June 26, 1943, when the bomber was hit by antiaircraft fire and ultimately shot down by a Japanese fighter aircraft. The four airmen were:  1st Lt. William J. Sarsfield of Philadelphia; 2nd Lt. Charles E. Trimingham of Salinas, Calif.; TSgt. Robert L. Christopherson of Blue Earth, Minn.;  and TSgt. Leonard A. Gionet of Shirley, Mass. Their remains are to be buried as a group in a single casket at Arlington National Cemetery. Previously, DOD had identified other members of the crew that perished in the crash: 2nd Lt. Herman Knott, 2nd Lt. Francis G. Peattie, SSgt. Henry Garcia, SSgt. Robert E. Griebel, and SSgt. Pace P. Payne—all of whom were buried individually in 1985. A 10th airman, 2nd Lt. Jose L. Holguin, was the only survivor and was held as a prisoner of war until 1945.       Last of the Piston Engineers retires   Last of the Piston Engineers: CMSgt. Michael Reinert, the Air Force's last piston-engine flight engineer, retired this week from the Missouri Air National Guard's 139th Airlift Wing at Rosecrans ANG Base. Reinert joined the service in 1970 and embarked on Operation Creek Party—the Air Guard's first sustained overseas commitment—as a KC-97 Stratotanker and C-97 Stratofreighter flight engineer. During two-week rotations to Rhein-Main AB, Germany, Reinert helped refuel fighter aircraft, allowing USAF's then-limited KC-135 fleet to focus on operations in Southeast Asia. The historic Creek Party effort, which took place between 1967 and 1977, "established a template for overseas deployments by the Air Guard" in support of Total Force operations, explained Charles Gross, ANG history program director at the Air Guard Readiness Center at JB Andrews, Md. When the Air Force scrapped the KC-97L, Reinert retrained on the C-130. (by MSgt. Mike Smit     The Navy took delivery of PCU California (SSN 781) from Huntington Ingalls Industries – Newport News Shipbuilding (HII–NNS), Aug. 7.     B-58 Designer Robert Widmer Dies   B-58 Designer Robert Widmer Dies: Robert H. Widmer, the aeronautical engineer who designed the Air Force's first operational supersonic bomber, the Convair B-58 Hustler, died in Fort Worth, Tex., at age 95. Widmer died June 20, 2011. Born on May 17, 1916, in Hawthorne, N.J., Widmer received an aeronautical engineering degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., and then earned a master's degree at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena CA, before joining Convair at its headquarters in San Diego. He later transferred to the company's aircraft factory in Fort Worth TX, where he established the design and engineering department. He worked at Fort Worth well into his 80s, as the company became General Dynamics, then Lockheed, and then Lockheed Martin. Among his accomplishments, Widmer also played instrumental roles in developing the F-111, F-16, and Tomahawk cruise missile.       Last China Burma "Hump" reunion They braved the highest mountains in the world, terrible weather, Japanese fighters, and routine equipment malfunction to supply troops during World War II. This month they met for the last time. The pilots who flew the notorious "Hump," airlifting supplies over the Himalayas from India to allied forces in China, have met up every year since 1946. With the average Hump pilot now 90 years old and with only six attending this year's reunion at JB Charleston, S.C., the decision was made that it would be their final gathering. Nonetheless, still spry and animated, enjoyed the fellowship at this year's gathering. "Every time we meet, the Himalaya Mountains get higher, the weather gets worse, and there are more Japanese fighters," joked 91 year-old-pilot Tex Rankin.     Last World War I veteran dies     Steel Buildings     New kit from Alpine Division Scale Models, L.L.C.     Doolittle Raider Dies     Christmas Drop     VA information     Allen Dale June, Code Talker, Dies at 91     New Ship for the US Navy     UPS Store Branson, MO     USS Denver Arrives in Inchon for Anniversary of Historical Landing     Medal of Honor for CMSgt Richard L. Etchberger     Maj. Gen. William Eubank Dies     9-11-2010 OERM Swap Meet     Harvey Girls Orange Empire Railway Museum     Lt. Gen. David Deptula retiring     Black Bark Mine and Shaft     SSN 779 New Mexico commissioned     USS Sampson (DDG-102) help Tao Fong Shan Christian Center     WASP Women's Airforce Service Pilots     Alcoa 50,000-Ton Forging Press     Big River Train Town Hannibal , MO     LeRoy O. King Jr. 1921 - 2009     US ARMY MARKSMANSHIP UNIT     Sierra Division Summer Picnic     ECHO METAL WORKS     NMRA Information     Future NMRA National Conventions     Doc Blanchard Fighter Pilot and Heisman Trophy winner dies     Lt. Gen. William O. Senter dies     Great Train Show check it out in 2010.     Mt. Wilson Toll Road     Orange Empire Railway Museum Swap Meet and Meeting     U.S. Army Band Schedule     US Army receives new locomotives     1962 Vintage C-130 retired.     WWII Airman Finally gets his DFC     Old Town Brass Band schedule 2009     Doolittle Radiers     The Harvey Girls Historical Society at Orange Empire Railway Museum , Perris CA     Join the Southern Pacific Hist. & Tech. Soc.     CNC Cutting, Milling & Conventional     The Scenic Mt. Lowe Railway Historical Committee     USDA Forest Service Los Angeles River Ranger District     Retired Brig. Gen. Gustav E. Lundquist passes     Pacific Northwest Truck Museum     Coal to liquid fuel     Olde Town Brass Band Schedule for 2008     Canadian Fighter Jets plug hole in US Air Defences NORAD     Olde Town Brass Band Schedule for 2008     NMRA Convention July 13-19, 2008 Manufactures Tour     Napa Valley Wine Train in Town     Trainfest November 10-11 ,2007 Milwaukee Wisconsin     Grand Opening of J.B Hobbies     October 28, 2007 Travel Throught Union Station Los Angeles CA     Calico Ghost Town Narrow Gauge Railroad     Brookville Equipment Corp.     Famed Flying Tiger Tex Hill Dies     The Nevada State Railroad Museum     Earthquake Recovery in Peru     Raptors in Alaska     Cover the Cars     Directions to the Illinois Railway Museum     Legendary fighter pilot Gen. Robin Olds dies     Chicago Fire Department Green Lights     Pilot in Doolittle Raid Dies     2007 USAF Outstanding Airmen     Air Force Airman's Creed     Ohio Firefighter Bikes for Burn Survivors     Baskin-Robbins Scoops for Firefighters     I watched the flag pass by one day.     Lt. Col. Chase Nielsen service held March 28, 2007     Train Show at Anaheim Conventation Center 1-6 & 7, 2007     Personal Products needed for Wounded at Walter Reed     Partners in Preservation     Bamberger Bullet 127 at Orange Empire Railway Museum     Cal Poly's Little Love Affair With Steam     Amboy is purchased by a new investor!     17th Annual Stater Bros. Route 66 Rendezvous® Presented by Firestone,     American Forest & Paper Association     Rail Car Builder Moving to Philadelphia Naval Yard     Kit #71 Hobby Shop 2 story. light green sides     Laws Railroad Museum and Historical Site, Bishop, California     Air Compressor Sales and Service in Southern California     "Railfest 2006     Building A 'Lift-Bridge Module' for a traction layout     Used Eyeglasses and old greeting cards collected by LADWP     Great Hobby Shop in Rancho Palos Verdes, California     Membership Open Southern California     New Web Site for Alpine Division Scale Models