|
|
Preface: I
have developed this site as a testament to a great aeroplane along with the pilots who flew her through an operational
life that spanned three major wars, as well as numerous other world conflicts, finally ending up
as a bomber of wild fires, as well as undertaking the roll of an executive transport.
I
know there will be many "aviation enthusiasts" out there, that will view this site and criticize it for its lack of historical
reference and for claiming credit based on other peoples efforts........fair comment.
This
site is an effort to accumulate as much visual and technical data as is possible via one site, with a bias on the pictorial.
However, many many people have contacted me regarding the site and offered contributions ranging from
photos to technical, historic and personal information.
Throughout the week, I get at least half a dozen e-mails from people with stories of how they
flew invaders in various conflicts or who's relatives where involved in some way with the A-26.
In reality this site is as much dedicated to those who contributed to the site, as did actually have
a physical role in the history of the A-26 Invader
Some
of these people are established photographers and others are guys with personal information relating to them or members of
their family having had experience with the A-26, so even though I have only submitted a limited number of personal items
to this site, the pictorials and historics have generally been donated with enthusiasm via these other contacts.
Over the years, I have always tried to take the ethical route when utilising other photographers or
historians contributions on this site and have spent many thousands of hours obtaining or trying to obtain the permission
for use of material that has been formulated by others.
I have on many occasions had to pay for the use of this information, but
on the whole people have been good enough to allow me usage of their material with just the credit against their valuable
contribution.
I have also on occasion had to withdraw pictures from my site at the request of the owners.
Sometimes I create a page dedicated to a contributor, i.e. Randal McFarlane, who purchased
"No 2" from Air spray, John lear who famously raced "76" at Reno, Richard E. Fulwiler who has an unlimited knowledge of On Mark or Al Shortt, who flew with the Nimrods in Vietnam or maybe Steve Aaron US
Army, who was indirectly associated with the invader but who's father flew in WWII and who has a passion for the
A-26.
Or
maybe Robert baetke who is a volunteer A & P at the classic aircraft aviation museum at Hillsboro who's currently working
on the former Air spray A-26 tankers, # 4 and #10 ( see features ) but not forgetting the pilots and crew of
the 609th and guys such as Richard Fulwiler who contributed some invaluable data and photographs on On Mark Engineering.
I could list two or three dozen contacts who have contacted me over the years offering their stories
and photos for their inclusion into the site and I have felt proud to have been asked.
I have also spent hundreds of hours creating illustrations for your enjoyment without the request for
credit when used by other sites.
I do not claim to be the oracle when it comes to knowing every little detail
about the A-26, but hope that the collection of photos and data on this site is a coming together of all that’s good
about the A-26 on the web and will benefit the " general enthusiast" and give them an insight into this wonderful aeroplane.
I have at great cost to myself, created logos and emblems for a number of
A-26 based organisations which they have adopted as their design for their apparel and look upon it as an honour to be part
of their team.
Even though the large majority of material on this site is a collation of other peoples fine efforts,
a great deal of time has been spent as you can imagine by me, preparing and collating the information available for all to
enjoy.
If it came down to basics, I could probably boast that in my many years as an aviation Anorak, I
have probably clocked up more flying time, more cockpit time ( not pilot in control, although I do fly ) flown in more aircraft
types, travelled more air miles and landed at more airfields "major and the back and beyond" than the large majority of the
guys I know, but I look upon that experience with fondness and feel lucky to have had such a wonderful life and even luckier
to be able to share my experiences with you guys.
Finally.....like a good Anorak I pay my annual subscriptions to various organisations, have dished out
volumes of cash to various aviation charities, paid hundreds of Dollars for photographs to put on this site, have at times
donned my flying suite to scrub down or mop up the oil form around the hangar floor beneath a tired an ageing warbird, paid
out vast amounts of money to see air shows, spent hours and hours on planes visiting museums and war bird race events throughout
the world and even paid for a warbirds to be flown to events, but I do it and will continue to do it because this is my
hobby and I feel happy knowing that in some small way my financial contributions keep the vintage and veteran air scene alive
and kicking.
On that profound note, to all those who just love aeroplanes and never ever take it too seriously
.........Fly safe, keep it real
 |
|
|
"Any Time Any Place"
Assistance with VA Claims & Other Potential Benefits
Asbestos.com's Veterans Assistance Department can help you with
questions about veterans and asbestos-related illnesses or about potential benefits. Fill out the form below for more information.
Call: 800 615 2270
Veterans Assistance
My name is Colin Hare and I'm the Veteran Liason for the Mesothelioma Center (Asbestos.com);
an organization devoted to assisting veterans through their application processes for VA benefits, and helping them obtain
the maximum benefits for which they are entitled. While I was browsing through a number of Veterans sites I came
across your website and was very impressed by the information you have listed.
Countless veterans
are currently suffering from life-threatening illnesses that are a result of exposure to asbestos, a material that was commonly
used in hundreds of military applications, products, and ships because of its resistance to fire.
The Mesothelioma
Center provides a complete list of occupations, ships, and shipyards that could have put our Veterans at risk for developing
asbestos-related diseases. In addition, we have thousands of articles regarding asbestos and mesothelioma and we've even created
a veterans-specific section on our website in order to help inform about the dangers of asbestos exposure.
According to the U.S. Department of Veterans
Affairs, there are currently 25 million living individuals who have served in the United States' armed forces. Hundreds of
thousands, if not millions of these living veterans were exposed to toxic asbestos-containing materials during military service.
According to a revealing statistic, more than 30 percent of Americans beset with a terrible disease called mesothelioma were exposed to asbestos during military service. What is mesothelioma? It is a rapacious cancer that attacks the internal
lining of the lungs, abdomen, and heart.
Widely used by every military branch,
asbestos was highly regarded for its heat resistance and fireproofing capabilities. In fact, asbestos was so valued that the
military even mandated widespread usage before eventually phasing out the material in the 1970s.
Most military divisions utilized the
caustic substance mainly for insulation purposes, but more than 300 products containing asbestos were used by the military,
primarily by the Navy from the 1930s through the 1970s. Every ship and shipyard built by the Navy before the mid-70s was fitted
with numerous asbestos-containing materials.
Asbestos.com
offers information on mesothelioma & veterans, as well as a complete list of occupations, ships, and
shipyards that could have put our Veterans at risk for developing a mesothelioma disease. Additionally their Veterans
Assistance Department offers extensive experience in filing VA claims and can help any veteran coping with mesothelioma receive
benefits from the VA system.
Because so
many veterans visit your site, I thought that you may be interested in posting our link to help educate veterans on the dangers
of asbestos exposure by linking to our website from your page at vectaris.net/id2.html. Please let me know. You can reach
me at chare(@)asbestos.com or at 407-965-5755.
Thanks again.
Best Regards,
Colin Hare
Mesothelioma
Center
Please, please click on the link below and help save
one of the worlds icons from disapearing
Your donations to any of the below organisations will
always be greatfully received
Site tested by
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gratitude
I would like to thank the following people below for
their invaluable contribution to this site, who without their effort and enthusiasm for aviation, this site would probably
not exist with the level of detail you see today
|
|
|
|
And finally, may
I add this note and thank all those Photographers and Graphic artists, who have given there permission, for me to use the
shots included within this Web site, I can honestly say without exception, that everyone who I have contacted has given me
their unequivocal support to this web site. I would also like to thank all those I have contacted but am still awaiting their
confirmation on this matter.
I have tried my best to make the accreditation of photographers
work easier to follow, but the actual shot, by shot accreditation, is going to take a bit longer, so if you can all bear with
me I would appreciate it.
Thank you
Due too comments from various poeple regarding the lack
of information relating to specific photgraphs on the site, I will over time try and update the site by
adding information about the photos i.e. place, time and subject......Thank you
Your comments on this site would be gratefully received so please mail me on techml@btinternet.com
|
|
|
