#andrews afb

[nocternalrandomness]

A Wild Weasel from the 121 TFS/113 TFW District of Columbia ANG at Joint Base Andrews - 25 Sep 1976

[petervintonjr]

Can't imagine why, but manned spaceflight is very much on my mind as of late. I dunno: after nonstop daily assaults of little else but horrifying and cruel headlines, I have apparently latched barnacle-like onto what seems to be the only genuinely uplifting and encouraging news story of 2026, so far. And while we are of course rightly celebrating the literally-out-of-this-world accomplishments of Black astronaut Victor Glover and his equally amazing colleagues Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen... there is another name that fails to come up when speaking of Black firsts in space travel, and that is Robert Lawrence, Jr., America's first Black astronaut.

Born in 1935 Chicago, Lawrence earned his degree in chemistry at Bradley University and then enrolled in the ROTC program, ascending to corps commander. He graduated in 1956 and received his commission as a U.S. Air Force lieutenant, and completed his flight training at Malden AFB. Early in his career his aptitude caught the attention of his superiors, and he was assigned as an instructor pilot at Furstenfeldbruck AFB for Germany's Air Force. Later he was transferred to Kirtland AFB in Albuquerque, New Mexico as a research pilot --ultimately accumulating more than 2500 hours' worth of flight time.

For Robert, now at the rank of Major, the truly seismic shift happened shortly after he earned his Ph.D in Chemistry from Ohio State University. On June 30, 1967 he was named as a research pilot to the Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL), a joint USAF and the National Reconnaissance Office project. This achievement didn't come without its pitfalls; on one occasion during a press briefing, a reporter snarkily asked if Lawrence "would be expected to sit in the back of the capsule." While the MOL project was ultimately shelved, literally every one of its members were rotated over to the replacement program: the Space Shuttle. Which certainly would have meant that Robert would have found himself amongst the first Shuttle crews.

Unfortunately, history had other plans. On December 8, 1967, at Edwards AFB during an instruction flight with another trainee pilot aboard an F-104 starfighter, the plane flared too late on its landing, skidded on the runway, and crashed --while both men ejected, Lawrence did not survive the wreck. His name faded into relative obscurity but in 1997 NASA made the decision to include Lawrence's name on the Space Memorial Mirror, citing Lawrence's brief but important contribution to human spaceflight. The Cygnus resupply craft launched on February 15, 2020, was renamed the S.S. Robert H. Lawrence. The asteroid Robertlawrence 92892 (located in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter), was formally named in 2020.

[unclesamsmisguidedclub]

F-16C Crash Caused by "Missing Aircraft Part"

F-16C Crash Caused by “Missing Aircraft Part”

In April of 2017, an F-16C crash occurred near Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, as we reported previously. A report released by the Air Combat Command reveals that the incident involving the Fighting Falcon was caused by “improper assembly of the main engine control.” In other words, it was missing parts. Missing a pin and ring The Air Combat Command stated in their report, “During the departure…

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[nocternalrandomness]

2010 Joint Services Open House and Air Show at Andrews AFB - May 15, 2010

[nocternalrandomness]

F-105D of the District of Columbia ANG 121 TFS/113 TFG at joint base Andrews - 3 May 1975

[richardnixonlibrary]

2/28/1972 President & Mrs. Nixon at Andrews Air Force Base upon their return from China. Read his remarks on China, Taiwan, the press corps, and peace:

[maggierogers-re]

It's Not Business, It's Personal

It’s Not Business, It’s Personal

It’s a little early to celebrate Thanksgiving but being “thankful” is always in season. I’ve had a lot of things swirling around in my head that have needed to come out: my aunt is sick, my business has changed substantially this year, my son has graduated and moved out, lots of changes… Every experience can be looked back on as a lesson. I tend to collect clients as eventual friends and family.…

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[thenewestbaylor]

I got in! I got in! I got in!

So after my last appointment, my horrific appointment, I got a referral to the place I have wanted to receive care from since I was about 12 weeks pregnant. HALLELUJAH! I no longer have to deliver at Southern Maryland Hospital, I don't have to deal with my joke of an OBGYN, the list can continue forever.

Except Fort Belvoir wasn't accepting new patients. After they told me all I had to do was get a referral, they told me they were maxed out and I would have to contact my primary care manager for an appointment.

Now, there are a couple of big "UH NO"'s in that. First, you told me I only needed a referral to get into your hospital and to start my prenatal care there. If you knew you would be at max capacity, why wouldn't you tell me that so I can get referred to the next best hospital? Second, I REFUSE TO SEE ANYONE BUT AN OBGYN FOR PRENATAL CARE. No. NO NO NO. I will not see a doctor who isn't qualified specifically in everything for my baby's health. PCMs are for referring you to specialists or minor check ups and such. Not to diagnose me with diseases or look for every possible symptom to make sure there is nothing wrong with my baby.

Not only was I not going to see just any doctor, but my PCM was booked for seven weeks straight. So NO, that just wasn't happening.

I called Fort Belvoir back and they said the best they could tell me was that Tricare (my insurance company) could make an exception to a civilian hospital and I could go there. But Tricare isn't allowing this right now because civilian doctors are obviously a much greater cost to them than their own military doctors, and they are hit with budget cuts, too. So, the lady on the phone said she would talk to the nurse about getting me in, but she couldn't make any guarantees.

I waited a week for her to get back to me before I accepted my fate- I was going to have to go back to Andrews. So when I called, they told me it was going to be a four week wait before I could get an appointment. I needed one for next week. ANOTHER NO.

Once again, I called Fort Belvoir and told them even ANDREWS had no openings for me, so they were obligated to make me an appointment.

And they did, right then and there. I have an appointment tomorrow at 8am, and another scheduled for two weeks from now already.  I am one happy mommy.