Pilatus PC-24 - The Number One Choice for Bond Villains Worldwide

It’s a really good time to be a James Bond villain. Obviously, the introduction of satellite communications and GPS completely revolutionized the field, enabling instant data transfer and real-time monitoring of your henchmen’s various locations. 

But what about those occasions when you’re lounging on the beach in Nice and suddenly need to access your secret lair buried deep in the Swiss Alps?

In the past, you would have had to board your Gulfstream, fly to Lugano or Lucerne, arrange for your helicopter to meet you on the ramp, board the helicopter, and then continue on to your lair, schlepping along at a maddeningly slow 150 knots while Bond closes in on you.

But those days are now behind you.

With the revolutionary Pilatus PC-24, you can enjoy door-to-door convenience at 440 knots and 45,000 feet while also accessing your remote grass or dirt mountain airstrip. And the airstrip needn’t be fully maintained. With a tire pressure of only 73 psi (5 bar), long-travel trailing-link main gear, and an 82-knot stall speed, the PC-24 provides comfort and control on even the roughest strips.

Because Pilatus designed the PC-24 specifically around versatility and low-speed performance, you’ll be able to take off and land on unimproved strips as short as 2,930 feet (893m) while loaded to the jet’s maximum gross weight.

And load it you will. The huge rear cargo door measures 51×49 inches (1.30×1.25m), enabling you to load up to 12 W80 low-yield nuclear warheads without even having to remove them from their shipping crates.

Need to transport hostages? The cargo door will easily accommodate multiple stretchers, allowing you the peace of mind of keeping them fully restrained for the trip while you reveal every detail of your cunning plan.

And should one of the flight crew need to be eliminated along the way, the PC-24’s certification for single-pilot operation will ensure your trip continues to proceed without a hitch.

With the PC-24, even the most demanding Bond villain will be accommodated with a unique blend of performance, luxury, and versatility that is unmatched by any other aircraft manufacturer. Visit www.pilatus-aircraft.com for details.

Memorial Day

To commemorate Memorial Day here in the US and pay tribute to those who gave their lives for our country, I thought I'd try to find a cool old photo of a tough-looking fighter pilot.

I figured a shot of a WWII pilot would be perfect, perhaps showing him posing in front of his P-51

Then I ran across this series of photos by Howard Sochurek...a man who himself served in WWII prior to working as a photojournalist.

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Over the years, Howard conducted photo shoots from behind enemy lines, covering the First Indochina War, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.

He won many awards for his work, which comes as no surprise when you take some time to appreciate it.

I really love this set of shots, featuring an unnamed pilot flying what I believe is a C-47 in Vietnam.

The first shot is my favorite, showing him looking back at the camera while enjoying a cigar and perhaps cracking a joke.

In contrast to carefully-posed shots of command staff and fighter pilots with their pressed uniforms and spit-shined shoes, he appears fatigued and a bit disheveled, as though he’s been at it for months without leave, good food, or quality lodging. Which was probably the case.

But still, he appears relatively upbeat and in good spirits, at least for the photo shoot.

Subsequent shots convey the teamwork that was essential to meet the demands of flying transport planes into and out of jungle airstrips in Vietnam.

The final shot in this set features our unnamed pilot looking back over his shoulder with a particularly steely-eyed expression, perhaps judging his turn to base as he reads the terrain and prepares for an approach to what must have been just one of a seemingly endless series of remote airstrips.

The great thing about this set of photos is how it takes the viewer behind the scenes and into the trenches of one of the less glamorous flying jobs that was nevertheless crucial to the war effort.

We can almost smell the cigar smoke and feel the big radial engines as we reflect upon the sacrifices made by the brave men and women who have selflessly chosen to serve their country.

So here’s to them, and particularly to those who never made it home. May they never be forgotten.

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UPDATE - After performing some additional research, I've uncovered a few key pieces of information about these photos.

First, the aircraft. It is, in fact, a Douglas C-47B Skytrain, serial number 43-48415. It was, for a time, stored at Davis-Monthan AFB in Tuscon, AZ. Since then, it has been converted to an EC-47 and put on display at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas.

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Additionally, we can see from the new photos that the pilot's name tag reads "Barnett":

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 A truly great collection of photos that transport us back in time to people and times that should never be forgotten.

Avoid GlassFrogBooks on Amazon

Long story short, they sometimes mistakenly list expensive books at very low prices, and then back out of the deal by claiming the book was found to be damaged.

Here's the evidence:

Back in late November, I found a copy of Jane's All the World's Aircraft listed at GlassFrogBooks for the amazingly low price of roughly $30.

As you can see by this chart, the price of that book is, on average, $1,384:

Of course, I jumped on the opportunity, and purchased it for the ~$30 price.

A few weeks later, I received this message:

Ok, fair enough. I have a problem with the fact that I was never given the opportunity to take the book in its damaged state, but I chalked it up to bad luck and took the refund because I had no other option.

Fast forward to April of this year, and I once again find a copy of Jane's All the World's Aircraft, again listed by GlassFrogBooks for the unusually low price of $30.

Again, I jump on the opportunity, since that edition typically sells for $427:

...and once again, I receive a message from GlassFrogBooks, AGAIN claiming the book I want was found to be damaged.

The message was identical to the first, literally copied and pasted word for word:

Again, I was never given the opportunity to take delivery of the damaged book. This is frustrating, as I would have paid the $30 for even a badly damaged copy.

I contacted GlassFrogBooks multiple times. First, I asked for photos of the damaged books. They claimed none exist, and that the book had been discarded.

I then pointed out how suspicious it is that, on two separate occasions:

1) A normally very expensive book was priced at the incredibly low price of $30

2) After purchasing the book, it was mysteriously found to be damaged

3) No evidence existed of the damaged book

All evidence suggests that GlassFrogBooks mistakenly priced a very expensive book at a very low price and then backed out of the deal by lying about it being damaged.

Today, I see that the exact same book I tried to purchase back in November is in stock...and listed for sale at $921.53:

I contacted GlassFrogBooks and asked that they honor their original agreement to sell me that book...that they now claim to have in stock...for $30.

Two hours later, I heard back. They had removed the listing shown above and now claimed it wasn't in stock at all.

So avoid GlassFrogBooks at all costs. They're dishonest, and cannot be trusted to sell the items they have listed as being in stock for the prices they advertise.