Author Archives: atcDave

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About atcDave

I'm 5o-something years old and live in Ypsilanti, Michigan. I'm happily married to Jodie. I was an air traffic controller for 33 years and recently retired; grew up in the Chicago area, and am still a fanatic for pizza and the Chicago Bears. My main interest is military history, and my related hobbies include scale model building and strategy games.

Sherman IC Firefly

Posted on August 6, 2020 by atcDave

The most effective version of Sherman against German heavy armor was a British modification. Let’s take a look at the Firefly.

Posted in Armor, Britain, USA | Tagged , , | 16 Comments

Programming Note

Posted on August 3, 2020 by atcDave

Just a quick comment.  Its been a week with no new finishes, say it ain’t so!  Well, my wife and I were out of town visiting family for five days; even during a pandemic, life happens… Obviously I can post … Continue reading →

Posted in Administrative | 8 Comments

Panzerjager Tiger (P) Elefant

Posted on July 22, 2020 by atcDave

An odd, improvised weapon that had serious anti-tank ability. Let’s take a look at a sort of quasi-Tiger.

Posted in Armor, Germany | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Mitsubishi A6M2 Model 21 Zero

Posted on July 21, 2020 by atcDave

Air Raid, Pearl Harbor! Obviously the most famous Japanese fighter of World War II. The US military was abruptly introduced to the type on December 7, 1941. Let’s take a look at a participant in that attack.

Posted in Fighter, Japan | Tagged , , | 23 Comments

Race of Aces by John R. Bruning

Posted on July 17, 2020 by atcDave

This book is really a fascinating look at the competition among the top pilots of the 5th Air Force. I would guess most visitors to this site know that the top two American Aces of World War II came from … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews | Tagged , | 13 Comments

GMC CCKW

Posted on July 12, 2020 by atcDave

Love that catchy title! Truck nomenclature is definitely a bit odd. But of course, trucks themselves are hugely important in any modern military.

Posted in USA, Vehicle | Tagged , | 9 Comments

Curtiss P-40B Warhawk

Posted on July 9, 2020 by atcDave

December 7, 1941 I’ll assume we all know that date! Despite all the should’ves and could’ves, the Japanese achieved complete surprise against the US Navy base at Pearl Harbor and the surrounding military installations on Oahu, Hawaii. Most American air … Continue reading →

Posted in Fighter, USA | Tagged , , | 24 Comments

Status Update

Posted on July 6, 2020 by atcDave

I had a few minutes, so I thought I’d make a couple of quick comments that likely interest no one… I have been working fast, and I hope this will continue for quite some time. Since I retired I have … Continue reading →

Posted in Administrative | 10 Comments

Northrop P-61B Black Widow

Posted on July 3, 2020 by atcDave

Northrop’s big Black Widow was the largest allied fighter of World War II. Let’s look at the nocturnal air war and a weapon design for that purpose.

Posted in Fighter - Night, USA | Tagged , , | 22 Comments

Opel Blitz

Posted on June 30, 2020 by atcDave

At this site we’ve mostly looked at weapons and weapon systems of the Second World War.  But every now and then its fun to look at the more mundane, yet essential machines every military had in substantial numbers. So let’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Germany, Vehicle | Tagged , | 11 Comments