Senator John McCain Passes Away

 

Senator John McCain passed away on August 25, 2018. He was 81.

 

He was a Naval Officer. He was also a Senator from 1987 until his death. He was the Republican Party’s candidate for the President of the United States in 2008 and lost the election to Barrack Obama.

 

He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1958. Both his father and grand father were 4 star Admirals in the U.S. Navy. He was a naval aviator.

 

While McCain was on a mission in Vietnam in 1967 bombing Hanoi, his plane was shot down and was captured by the North Vietnamese. He was seriously injured at that time. He was a POW (Prisoner of War).

 

The North Vietnamese came to know he is the son of the Chief of U.S. Navy. They then offered him to release and return him to the United States immediately unharmed. But the young John McCain refused and said he will stay with the other POWs. The North Vietnamese took that gesture as McCain was a headstrong and wanted to teach him a lesson. He was subjected to the most brutal punishment and torture for any American POW with the North Vietnamese. He was released in 1973.

 

After returning home McCain entered politics. He was elected Senator 5 times from 1987 to 2016. He was very independent as a Senator. He was a Republican. But disregarded the party line many times and voted with his conscience. He was nominated as the Republican Presidential Candidate in 2008 against Barrack Obama and lost the election.

 

John McCain served his country very well. May he rest in peace.

And Now, You Know

One day last week, July 20, was the 49th anniversary of Apollo 11 Moon Landing. American Astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first human being to ever land on the moon. There were 3 Astronauts on that Apollo 11.

 

Neil Armstrong, Commander of Apollo 11

Buzz Aldrin, Lunar Orbit Pilot

Michael Collins, Command Module Pilot

 

The general rule in NASA is if someone was to spacewalk, it was always the junior person. The space commander will stay inside because he has to be safely behind the controls and in a better position to take action if there was an emergency. On Apollo 11, it was Buzz Aldrin who was junior in rank.

 

So it should have been Buzz Aldrin as the first man on the moon. But some mucky mucks in NASA decided to break the protocol. Their reason? The lunar module posed logistical challenges that made this order impossible.

 

There is a rumor that Armstrong pulled rank and made the authorities change the protocol of who should get out of the spacecraft first.

 

After stepping on the moon, Armstrong said: One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.

 

Aldrin set his foot on the moon 20 minutes after Armstrong.

 

Here is what Aldrin said:  It sucks Armstrong was the first man on the moon and I am the second man on the moon.   But I was promised I would be the first one when we land on the sun. (This is my attempted joke.)

A Page from the Past

I read a news item that 2 PIA (Pakistan International Airlines) female pilots, Commander Maryam Masood and her First Officer, Shumaila Mazhar, flew from Islamabad to Gilgit and back safely. The airline said this route is “"very challenging and requires a lot of precision and technique".

 

Captain Maryam Masood (L) and First Officer Shumaila Mahar (R)

 

This reminds me of an incident that happened while we were living in Salt Lake City, Utah. I was going to Chicago on a Sunday morning on company business. I was traveling in Economy. I had the aisle seat. In the middle and window seats were a young newly married couple on their honeymoon. The lady was in the middle and her new husband was in the window seat.

 

The moment the plane was air borne, the weather turned worse. The plane was shaking a lot. The flight attendants did not get up from their seats. These 2 newly weds were very nervous and literally shaking. The girl was more nervous than the guy. I started to talk to her.

 

She said they are on their honeymoon. They both are afraid to fly. And, this turbulence makes her more nervous. I told her not to worry and the plane is more safe than the car or train. She calmed down a little but still nervous. She asked me if she could hold my hand. What can I say? I agreed.

 

I then used the call button to get the attention of a flight attendant. One of the FAs came near us. I explained the situation to her and asked her to get two glasses of double vodka with little orange juice and give to them. (Before calling the FA, I got the information from this couple they enjoy drinking vodka with orange juice.) The flight attendant brought a strong Screw Driver to this couple. They seem to calm down a little.

 

Finally the plane made a safe landing in Chicago. While still taxi-ing, they both thanked me. I told them both the commander and the copilot of this plane are female. (When I entered the aircraft in Salt Lake City I looked inside the cockpit and noticed both pilots are female.)

 

The young lady told me: Thanks a million for not telling us this information while in the air. I would have died on the spot.

 

As for as I am concerned the gender of the pilots has nothing to do with how they perform. I have no problem flying with 2 female pilots.

 

Are you comfortable with 2 female pilots operating the plane in which you are flying?