Israel Day 2 : More Jerusalem

There was much more of Jerusalem to see.

Next we explored the Cardo, the main-street and outdoor strip mall built by the Romans around 130 AD, and was one of the causes of the Second Jewish Revolt against Rome. Hadrian's renaming Jerusalem to Aelia Capitolina and building a Roman city over Jerusalem rubbed the Jews the wrong way for some very obvious reasons. It was later expanded by Justinian to connect to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.

The Cardo still remains today, under the current street level and with a supporting superstructure above today.

An illustration of how the Cardo looked in its heyday:

Mainly artisan shops line the modern lower Cardo today including an artist by the name of Udi Merioz, who makes some amazing paintings. It turns out Mr. Merioz was also a personal friend with M.Sgt Roy P. Benividez. Yes, the hero and Medal of Honor holder M.Sgt Roy P. Benividez. An interesting letter to Udi was published in front of his shop, and a picture of M.Sgt Benividez still adorns the inside of his shop to this day:

Then we headed out of the Cardo area and entered into the Christian Quarter.

Flying - Taking Some Friends Up And Then An Airshow

So this morning the sky was pretty clear, winds were light and variable so I got up to the airport to meet a couple friends of mine.

Ed was interested about learning to fly and Denise was willing to join him up in a small plane.

So I did the preflight and showed him how that's done and then we got in the plane, I did the safety brief and started it up.

Due to the airport getting ready for the Open House and Airshow starting at noon, we were ready to be airborne at 9:00. The neat part was the ATIS not only had split towers but also requested all pilots to do their run-ups before they called ground to taxi.

So I did the run-up at the hangar row and then called ground and got permission to taxi to Runway 27R.

We then got clearance to take off and headed to the northeast.

A smooth takeoff and we headed for the GM proving grounds near Romeo and I climbed above it to 4,500 feet and then let Ed fly the plane for a bit.

He had fun, and I was glad we started at 4,500 feet, just saying.

Much fun flying over the lakes and Lake Orion and Oxford and seeing Pine Knob was a highlight for them, and then we headed back.

So I headed back to Pontiac and did a base entry to 27R. A bit of a crosswind had kicked up but nothing major and I did a nice smooth landing.

I got compliments on my landing and they both said they had a great time, and Ed now really wants to get his pilots license. My work was done.

Then I got to go to the airshow and see some sweet planes up close. Including: A D-25 New Standard - New is a relative term. It's made in 1929 and still flying regularly.

A sweet looking Nanjing Yak-18A

An A1D Skyraider and A P-51 Mustang

Lots of helicopters giving rides.

And my friends at Crosswinds Aviation were out in force giving rides in their trainers. Very nice, well-maintained trainers with quality instructors, I might add.

One of my friends there saw me approach towards him around the line of people waiting to get a ride and asked if I wanted an airplane ride.

I said only if I'm flying and were they short of pilots again and needed assistance with the rides? You kinda had to be there but it was funny at the time.

A great flight, then a great time wandering around the tarmac looking at some nice planes and chatting with friends.

That's 1.1 and 1 rather perfect landing.

Flying - Birthday Flight To KJXN

Turning 47 today was a trip, and it deserved a trip.

So I left work and did a lunch flight with my trusty co-pilot, Leah.

I had planned a Birthday $100 burger fligth to Jackson.

Fair bit of crosswinds gusting 17-22 from anywhere from 280-310 on the way there and quite a bit more chop than my co-pilot was used to feeling. Nothing too much but her first time feeling bumps in the air.

Clouds were a fair bit lower than forecast and the chop was similarly unreported in the weather brief. The clouds were hanging out about 5,500 so we flew at 4,500 on the way there.

Landing at Jackson was no problem, a light direct left crosswing at about 7 knots and we landed on Runway 25. Firm but a good landing, not a bouncer or anything like that. The apron was busy as a Nascar race will take place this weekend at Jackson Speedway, so lots of jets were there and we were directed to taxi and park a bit farther away, which was no problem.

Stopped, shut down and pushed the plane back by some other props, chocked it in place, and headed into the restaurant.

Decent service and the burger was ordered.

Good food was had with decent service, as the place was hopping. Then back to the plane and a pre-flight.

Jackson Tower was nice and we took off from Runway 32 heading back to Pontiac and picked up fight following. There was quite a bit more chop on the way home but we were making 120+ knots which was kinda nice.

Then at Pontiac I got to enter the left downwind for Runway 27L and was then told to land on 27R as we came around on base which put us closer to our hanger which again was nice of them.

Winds were 13-23 gusting from 310 which made for an exciting crosswind landing. I only put in two notches of flaps and kept my approach speed up a little faster than usual for the gusts. Amazingly enough, I landed it smooth as silk, crosswind and all, I could not have done it better.

Then we headed back to the hangar, refueled, and cleaned and put the plane away.

That was a fantastic flight and definitely one of the reasons why I learned to fly - being able to take the kid for a lunch on my birthday.

That's 1.5 and two landings.

Israel: Day 2 Part 2 City of David and Hezekiah's Tunnel

After the ceremony and going to the main Western Wall plaza, we changed and started to explore Jerusalem.

We headed to the City of David, an active archeological site that includes many recent discoveries.

We first headed down into the area of the Burnt House and House of the Bulae - an area destoryed by the Babylonians when the First Temple was destroyed.

Then we headed towards Hezekiah's tunnel, a water system dug in 1750 feet long dug through solid rock in the 8th century BCE. An inscription found inside the tunnel describes it being but by two teams working form either end and then meeting up, which was quite a feat of engineering.

Flashlights in hand we stepped into water up to our knees and headed through the tunnel.

If you have claustrophobia or fear of dark cramped spaces, entry is not recommended. I had to crouch and duck walk through some sections.

On the upside the tunnel was nice and cool and the water was also nice and refreshing for our feet, and where else can you walk through a water tunnel built thousands of years ago?

The map gives a pretty good idea of the layout.

We emerged and passed by a new wall that had been recently found dating to the First Temple Period.

In short Jerusalem is absolutely covered in history, and more history and archeological discoveries are being found there everyday.

And the day wasn't even done yet.

Jiu Jitsu Achievement Unlocked

So last night at Jiu-Jitsu I found out I had officially passed my Gracie Combatives test and earned my Gracie Combatives Belt, being awarded it at the end of class.

The Belt is white with a Navy Blue strip across it. Basically, it marks passing the Combatives test and the interim period before earning a blue belt. To earn the blue belt takes a minimum 6 months after getting your combatives belt and learning lots more techniques and regular rolling/sparring and learnign lots of jiu-jitsu vs jiu-jitsu tactics and techniques.

The Combatives test is a rather challenging one.

You have five minutes to do all of the moves and variations in each of the phases: Mount, Guard, Side-mount, and Standing. Time starts when the video begins rolling. Yes, the test is on camera which adds 10 pounds and 100 pounds of pressure as the test is assessed not just by the center instructor but by two other instructors - one at Gracie Headquarters and one at another center to ensure the test quality. For Mount I had 10 seconds left, for Guard 35 seconds and plenty of time remaining for the side-mount and standing techniques. You do get short breaks between each phase. Then, after the 4 phases there is a 4-minute fight sim where the instructor really brings the heat and you have to respond to indicators and defend yourself from punches while executing proper techniques.

Each mistake drops a point from your score and you start at 100 points, and a pass is a 90. Even standing up incorrectly loses a point.

I passed with a 93.

On to master cycle and working towards a blue belt.

Israel: Day 2

We woke up and realized we were waking up in Jerusalem. Since we were a bit jet-lagged we had no trouble getting up early and we were rather excited to take on the day.

The day was set for Leah's Bat Mitzvah at the Wall.

We got up early and met our tour guide and picked up the Rabbi and then were dropped off and walked to the Robinson's Arch at the Southern End of the Western Wall. As we did we passed by blowing shofars and other musical instruments being played to mark Orthodox Bar Mtzvahs that were going on at the time.

The Robinson's Arch was first discovered and excavated in the 1860s and is used by the non-orthodox for religious ceremonies at the wall, unlike at the main plaza which is separated by gender.

The ceremony took place on a platform set by the Western Wall.

We did the morning service and Leah read form the Torah for the first time.

All her practice and hard work paid off. She was letter-perfect with the portion and did great. She also gave a good D'var Torah, which is a speech concerning her understanding of the portion she read (in English) and how it applies to her.

It was a great and meaningful ceremony and we were extremely proud parents.

After the ceremony we walked to the main Western Wall plaza, where we split up and each went to the Wall to say a prayer and to put in a kvitl (a prayer) into the wall.

Pretty awesome moment, that.

That ended the first half of Day 2, in the next half, we explored Jerusalem.

Ave, Atque, Vale - Oakland County Has Lost A Giant

L. Brooks Patterson, the Oakland County Executive who steered the county throughout tumultuous times, has died.

The Detroit Free Press: L. Brooks Patterson dies after leading Oakland County for a generation

He made the county an economic powerhouse and a soundly managed, fiscally responsible county with competent government.

His willingness to put his constituents, the county residents, first, and not letting them become a piggy bank for Detroit "Regionalism" (read Oakland County pays, Detroit spends it with no oversight) and his leadership will be sadly missed.

His fiscal responsibility, business acumen, and leadership that made Oakland County a AAA rated county will be sadly missed.

While not perfect, with plenty of foibles, Brooks put the county and its residents first and we've all benefited from his solid management and stewardship of the county.

I fear we will not see his like again, and Oakland County will be the worse for it.

Israel: Day 1

We flew out of Toronto, driving there in the early hours of the morning for a direct flight on Air Canada.

We arrived at the airport a suitable number of hours early, checked in our bags, cleared security, had lunch and then got on the plane. The plane was a 787-9 Dreamliner. Seated in Economy, the seats were decent room wise, but the backs were thin enough that the little bugger sitting behind me hitting my seat with his knee at dd times got annoying after awhile.

A nice, smooth 10 hour flight where I got to catch up on some movies with the in-flight entertainment system (The Mule, Green Book, and Super Troopers 2 'cause by the end of the flight I wanted mindless comedy and got it). Service was good and friendly , food palatable enough for airline food - but pass on the omelet, order the pancakes, trust me. Interestingly, every announcement was first in English, and then repeated in French, Hebrew, and Arabic which made every announcement take forever. A tad bit of turbulence but nothing terrible, managed to catch a short nap even. Landing was smooth as silk and we had arrived in the Holy Land.

We cleared passport control and customs quickly.

We then got transport for th ride to Jerusalem and arrived at our AirBnB on Jabotinsky street.

The AirBnB owner courteously allowed us to drop our bags off when we arrived there at 11am even though check in is at 2. We then headed off much less encumbered, to explore and walked about 25 minutes to the Mahane Yeyudah market.

Quite a huge market it is.

Fruit and vegetable stalls were evrywhere and we bought some fresh fruit, some dried fruit and other delicacies as we wandered around.

Then we headed back to the AirBnB at 2, dropped off our purchases and headed off to the German Colony.

The German Colony was, as you guessed it and as the name suggests, founded by Germans.

In 1873 the Templers (note not Templars, but Templers) settled in the area. Today it has trendy shops and eateries and was very nice to walk around. Some shopping was done, including at Sabon that had a delightful fountain/sink "well" for washing hands and trying some Sabon products.

Very nice,a nd they got to try and then by some nice prodicts and felt very refreshed after doing so, and then we went to a nice fresh bakery which had delicious baked goods as a snack.

After the German Colony, we headed home and had a light dinner.

Then to bed, as the next day would be for an event that was the main reason why we had traveled to Israel.

Flying - Escanaba In The Daylight

Delta County Gun Owners [The county in which Escanaba is located] and Michigan Open Carry held their 2nd Annual Picnic in Escanaba.

This time I'd be flying up there in my own aircraft.

I also had a couple passengers who wanted to go as well. Both were ATP Pilots with Endeavor, a subsidiary of Delta. Both fly Regional Jets. No pressure, right? They were also on board as backup in case the weather turned and we needed someone with an IFR cert to take over. Both the Diamond and Seneca frrm Last year were also flying along so we had a three ship visit rather than two last year.

So this would be not only my longest cross country as pilot in command to date, but also my first over a great lake.

Aside from about a 15 minute window, the route I had planned kept us within gliding distance of land should an issue arise. They liked that plan.

So I flew on up.

9,500 feet, about the highest I've flown so far as well. Altitude is your friend when crossing the lake.

The air was nice and smooth and it was a great flight up. I picked up flight following and soon talked to various flavors of Great Lakes Approach and then Minneapolis Center. Quite a bit of radio work and frequency and transponder code changes.

Unfortunately which flying near Saginaw on Great Lakes Approach (Saginaw) frequency, we heard an emergency in progress and as a plane went down due to an engine failure. You could tell the controller was shook up and a few planes assisted in looking for the ELT and rescue was dispatched to the location of the crash. Thankfully, it seems injuries were minor and everyone survived- 25 News: BREAKING NEWS: Plane crash in Saginaw County.

On we flew, and going "feet wet" over Lake Michigan was pretty cool.

When over water you don't want to adjust your power setting, mixture or fuel tank as those are the three most likely causes of engine failure, which would be bad.

I landed at KESC just minutes behind the other two aircraft in the group.

The landing was one of my best, nice and smooth and one of the pilots on board said it was smoother than how they land their CRJs. Bit of an ego boost, that as I always like to have my passengers happy with my landings.

Then to the picnic.

Quite a good turnout and both State Senator Ed McBroom [in the blue shirt] and State Rep Beau LaFave were there. Both are pro-second amendment and have been working on a variety of bills, including one to fix an issue with Concealed Carry Permits.

Some speeches took place including one from Tom Lambert, President of Michigan Open Carry.

Food was eaten, friends made, and as usual the people up in Escanaba are just top-rate nice folks.

Heck, even the airport manger was at the picnic and he was open carrying! He replaced the prior airport manager who had been from California and called the Sheriff on us last year when our passengers were open carrying in the General Aviation section of the airport, which is legal. Bit of a culture change at the airport.

On the flight home however, weather presented some issues. We were able to remain VFR but had to skirt some storm cells and instead of trying to thread through them we decided to stay on the west side of the state to about Grand Rapids to get well around them before heading for Pontiac. One of the flight tried to IFR their way through and ending up delayed and re-routed to the north to avoid the storms for quite awhile and I beat them home by a considerable margin even as they had a faster airplane. The ATP pilots were very helpful in planning the route back, the guys had weather route planning down to a science and made it look easy - I learned a lot from them and still have more to learn for sure.

Large cloud formations abounded, and I could only get as high as 6,500-7,500 due to cloud layers.

Here's the route back:

Contacting Pontiac, I was told to notify them when I was 2 miles from the downwind and then to land on 27R.

Again I did a really nice smooth landing. I was most pleased at keeping the professionals happy. Both enjoyed the flights a lot and enjoyed getting out for a jaunt in a GA aircraft. Really nice guys the both of them.

Thanks to a tailwind, we were doing 130 knots ground speed on the way back, so even with the route we got back quicker than when we headed out into a 9 knot headwind. 3.0 hours there versus 2.6 back.

It was a great flight both ways.

That's 5.6 hours and 2 landings.

I'm Back

With many a tale to tell and journeys to recount.

In the past two weeks I've been to Israel for a very special occasion, spent a 5-hour layover in Germany, visited Canada, and then yesterday flew myself to and from Escanaba.

Heckuva couple weeks.

You Know That "No Weapons " Sign On The Courthouse Door?

They mean it when they put that sign up. They really mean it. It's not a polite suggestion.

The Detroit Free Press: Pontiac woman arrested after trying to bring stun gun to court

You need a Concealed Pistol License CPL to even carry a stun gun (Taser-type) in Michigan. The article isn't clear if this even was a legal stun gun device, but it is clear she lacked a CPL so could not have been legally carrying it in any case.

Now, even if she had CPL, which she did not, that still wouldn't let her carry it into the court. You would think the no weapons sign and metal detectors, not to mention the court officers at the door, would have tipped her off that she really shouldn't try to bring it into court.

Some people really can't pick up on very obvious clues not to do something felony-stupid.

33 Killed In Mass Murder, No Firearm Involved

In a land with pretty much perfect gun control, Japan, evil people still can come up with ways to kill a lot of people.

In this case a whole lot of people, with a higher death count than Parkland or Newtown.

The Detroit News: Man screaming ‘You die!’ kills 33 at anime studio

A man screaming “You die!” burst into an animation studio in Kyoto, doused it with a flammable liquid and set it on fire Thursday, killing 33 people in an attack that shocked anime fans across Japan and beyond.

Like the 1990 Happy Land club mass murder by gasoline in the US which killed 87 people, flammable liquids are very easy for murderous criminals to obtain and use.

When You Come At the King, You Best Not Miss

The Democrats just had a rather embarrassing swing and a miss today.

The Detroit Free Press: Democratic-controlled House kills articles of impeachment against Trump

The impeachment attempt, done apparently against Pelosi's wishes, based on the rationale that Orange Man Bad, He Hurts Widdle People's Feewings, went down in flames in the Democrat controlled House 332-95. Such flames in fact that it seems mighty difficult to retrieve the resolution itself from the House's website (it comes up page not found), and the vote is not listed on the front page of the House's website that lists activity that took place today. Perhaps they're a tad embarrased they even brought it up.

The Four Donkeywomen of the Derpocalypse voted for the impeachment resolution. Interestingly and likely mindful of his upcoming contested race, Rep and former Republican Justin Amash, who had called for Trump's impeachment did not vote for this futile gesture. Nor did most Democrats for that matter who knew it was baseless and not a hill to even fight on, making it much sound and fury, signifying nothing. Without any impeachable offenses behind it, the resolution was doomed to fail and just one more example of the Democrat party being unable to not act like crazy spoiled children chasing a shiny bauble.

The crazy progressive wing of the Democrats just took a shot at the President, and they missed, which will likely cost them with voters that aren't pat of their progressive crazy fan base.

Some Legal Considerations For After A Self-Defense Incident

I'm currently representing a client in a self-defense case where he succeeded in defending himself in an incident but is now being charged by the prosecutor with felonious assault with a firearm, a 4-year felony. He did not discharge his firearm during the incident.

Without discussing the case further, as it is pending, and while it is a self-defense case, it has some "he said - he said" and conflicting witness accounts with grey areas that certainly let the prosecutor bring charges.

So Here's some Important Things to keep in mind in a self-defense incident:

1. Expect To Be Arrested.
You may have done it right, but the police and prosecutor may not agree or not even care to know at the time. My client had been arrested on the weekend, after the incident, and got to spend a night in jail as there was no judge available for Sunday arraignments. He did get a phone call, and he used it to contact me which was good. He also cooperated completely with the police and jail staff during his arrest and jail stay. This is important - don't do anything to increase any charges against you or make a court reluctant to grant you bail by acting out when under arrest. Instead, continue to behave as a law-abiding citizen at all times. Yes, it sucks, don't make it worse.

2. Have Bail Money.
At the arraignment, I was able to get the judge to see my client's perspective concerning the incident and presented an outline of the evidence to set the stage for it being a self-defense case. This was good and the judge actually told my client to thank me as based on the prosecutor's urging and the public defender, who I replaced at the arraignment, he was going to set bail at $50,000 (which my client did not have). But instead, based on my lawyering, he set it at a $2,000 / 10% down bond, meaning my client had to come up with $200 to get out of jail.
In short I did a nice job.

The problem was, my client didn't have $200 on him, nor did his family member who came to pick him up. This led to some interesting moments but it got worked out. Make sure whoever is coming to pick you up has money available for bail. Instead of buying your umpteenth firearm, have some money set aside in an envelope that your family member or trusted friend can get to for these ugly occasions. While item 3 below may help with bond, it can take time to get that arranged, so having cash easily available beats sitting in jail waiting to get bailed out. Trust me, you don't want to stay in jail any longer than you have to.

3. Concealed Carry Insurance Is Highly Recommended.
Good lawyers are not cheap, bail money isn't cheap, potential expert witnesses aren't cheap. The judicial process in a felony charge situation is not cheap. Having Concealed Carry Insurance is a darn good idea. I can say that the client has USCCA insurance and the USCAA is really stepping up and providing coverage for him which is vital. I have no experience as an attorney with other insurance programs for CPL holders, but based on my interactions with USCCA in this and prior incidents for clients, I can say their personnel, including their legal staff, are extremely responsive, on the ball, and do step in to get their member help. USCCA does get a retainer to the representing attorney, fast. Unless you have $5k-10k lying around just for a retainer for a felony case, you will want insurance, and an insurance program that pays up front.

4. Please be the one to call (or have someone on your side call) the police immediately and report the incident.
While no lawyer wants you making voluminous off-the-cuff statements where you may unknowingly be implicating yourself, any time you draw your firearm to protect yourself you're in a race to the phone. Not contacting the police immediately afterwards is very much not helpful. It is sufficient to state in the call that you were attacked; the attacker went that-away; you used a firearm to protect yourself; and you will happily stay where you are and wait for the police to arrive so you can report the incident (assuming that's safe to do, otherwise state you will drive or otherwise go direct to the police station); and yes, you do want to press charges if they catch the attacker.

Drawing your gun and preventing the attack is only the first stage in the encounter, winning the race to the phone is the next stage. Yes, bad guys do lie, call the police, and claim they're the victim and demand charges against you. It happens in real life.

5. Expect Not To Be Allowed To Own Firearms While The Case is Pending.
Most release terms for felony charges will include no alcohol, no drugs, and no possession of firearms. It's not a bad idea to have someone you can trust be ready to take possession of your firearms in such a situation.

In short, unless your self-defense incident was absolutely crystal clear, your protecting yourself and prevailing in the face of a violent attack is just the beginning.

Last Night's Meeting With Good Friends

Some people you can not see in person for years, just online, but meet up with them and the conversation flows and its like you've never been apart. Some people are like that.

I had a good meetup with Keads and Nancy yesterday when they visited Michigan to tour the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village.

They had a great time visiting one of this Country's finest museums, and I was able to meet up with them afterwards for dinner at the Dearborn Inn.

Keads even brought be a gift which is otherwise unobtainable in Michigan:

Yuengling is not distributed in Michigan, so getting any of it is always a treat.

Thankfully, I had planned ahead knowing he was coming, and on my last trip to Canada had gone to duty free to buy a case of his favorite libation (in bottles, not cans mind you), which is similarly very hard to find this side of the border.

I had a darn good dinner with both of them, the fine southern gentleman and southern lady that they are.

39 Warning Shots Are Kinda Excessive And Dangerously Ineffective

Breitbart: Father Fires 39 Shots to Fend off Naked Suspect Claiming to Be ‘the Devil’

A female home invader claiming to be the devil (naked, of course), breaks into a family's home and attacks them.

Father of the house fires shots in her direction to get her to leave, which only annoys her, leading to her attacking him.

He fires a total of 39 shots to no effect, eventually throwing furniture at her and she's not stopped until the man's son nails her with a wrench to the neck.

Note that the report is that

the father and the alleged intruder were both injured during the altercation but none of the injuries were from the gunshots

39 shots fired, zero hits. If they were warnign shots, they were impressively ineffective in warning off anything.

Either he needs some remedial marksmanship training, and/or some legal retraining to know that warning shots, especially 39 warning shots, really aren't.

Tasers Aren't 100% Effective

Especially when they are used against large drunken football players, as can be seen in the video in the attached story.

The Detroit News: TMZ releases video of ex-MSU star Malik McDowell in scuffle with police

The scene: Lathrup Village north of Detroit.

In short, a rather drunk and rather large Detroiter is pulled over, exits his vehicle, refuses to comply with an officer, goes into the convenience store where he's pulled over, keeps refusing to comply, and then sparks fly.

Sparks from repeated tasings that can be heard in the video don't seem to affect this guy at all.

Finally multiple other officers arrive and get him properly arrested as the original officer on the scene definitely had his hands full.

The drunken fellow gets charged with assault and resisting arrest, and operating while intoxicated, and also has some outstanding charges for receiving and concealing stolen property.

P30SK At 1,750 Rounds

Finally got out to the range with the P30SK. I met up with a friend at an indoor range in Utica, Close Quarters Tactical, trying it out for the first time. Decent range, nice staff, no issues at all.

I shot 200 rounds of Remington 115 grain 9mm brown box through it

No failures of any sort.

Since it was an indoor range, and this batch of 9mm seems to be rather full powered, being marked for military and police training, we saw a healthy amount of muzzle flash, including muzzle doughnuts heading out of the P30SK's short barrel.

Yes, lots of muzzle flash.

It was also markedly loud, which was interesting. A shooter in a neighboring lane was wondering if I was shooting a 357 Sig. Nope, just 115gr 9mm.

No failures or any malfunctions of any sort, and no issues accuracy wise even after 1,750 rounds through with no cleaning or additional lubrication.

Fifi! And Friends

The Commemorative Air Force's B-29 Superfortress came to Oakland County International Airport this week.

I managed to go see her today, along with the CAF's Stearman and a T-6 Texan that came for the event.

This was not a mere static display. They flew!

First the T-6 Texan took to the skies, taking off from Runway 9R.

She passed above Fifi on the way:

Then wheels going up, she headed off for the tour.

The Stearman was next:

Then the Grand Dame of the show taxi'd

Then Fifi was told to line up and wait on Runway 9R to start her two outboard engines and do the run up.

Then clearance to take off:

Fifi was purchased from the Air Force in 1971 and transferred to the Commemorative (then Confederate) Air Force and restored to flying condition. The restoration then took three years. She's one of only two flying B-29s.

So she took off this morning and at 8:16 am, directly over Detroit's City hall she opened her bomb bay does and serious urban renewal took place. Just kidding. Although, much of Detroit still looks worse than if it had been bombed, just saying.

Fifi took people on flights yesterday and today and she'll be wrapping up her visit here.

An awesome visit by some mighty historic aircraft.