Broken Bone in Amarillo ...

A B-1B strategic bomber from Dyess Air Force Base near Abilene was forced to land at Amarillo/Rick Husband International airport today due to an in-flight emergency. Sources say the problem was described as being electrical in nature . The big bomber landed without incident.

A repair crew is being dispatched from Dyess. As a result it is expected to remain at least over night.


The B-1B "Lancer" is a common site over Amarillo as they come here often to train practicing touch and go landings - but because they are a strategic bomber and nuclear capable they rarely land anywhere except on secure air force bases.
Video by Steve Douglass

West Texas Windmill at Sunset

Amarillo built Osprey was bin Laden's last ride.

According to an article in the New Yorker includes never before published details on the bin Laden raid - including the fact that a V-22 Osprey was used to ferry bin Laden's body to the USS Carl Vinson. All V-22s are assembled here in Amarillo.

It's a great read!

Begin excerpt:

At dawn, bin Laden was loaded into the belly of a flip-wing V-22 Osprey, accompanied by a JSOC liaison officer and a security detail of military police. The Osprey flew south, destined for the deck of the U.S.S. Carl Vinson—a thousand-foot-long nuclear-powered aircraft carrier sailing in the Arabian Sea, off the Pakistani coast. The Americans, yet again, were about to traverse Pakistani airspace without permission. Some officials worried that the Pakistanis, stung by the humiliation of the unilateral raid in Abbottabad, might restrict the Osprey’s access. The airplane ultimately landed on the Vinson without incident


READ THE REST OF THE STORY AT THE NEW YORKER

The forecast?

Drought uncovers space shuttle Columbia debris

(CNN) -- The recent drought has ruined millions of acres of farmland in Texas, turning lakes into mud puddles, and has many praying for rain.
But in the East Texas city of Nacogdoches, authorities say, the drought may have done something good by helping unearth a piece of the space shuttle Columbia.

The object, which is about 4 feet in diameter, was found in a local lake. NASA says it is a tank that provides power and water for shuttle missions.
"It's one of ours," said Lisa Malone, a spokeswoman for the agency.
Malone added that NASA is trying to develop a plan to recover the item,
But it could take weeks to get it, she said.

"We're looking into whether we'll send a team out or local authorities can," Malone said.

Authorities say the object was found after the drought caused the waters to recede in Lake Nacogdoches, and they notified representatives from NASA on Friday.

"The lower water level has exposed a larger than normal area on the northern side of the lake," said Sgt. Greg Sowell of the Nacogdoches Police Department.
The item is full of mud and is in a remote area near a private shoreline, Sowell said.

Nacogdoches made headlines in 2003 when debris from the shuttle Columbia disaster was found there.

The spacecraft broke up while re-entering Earth's atmosphere near the end of its mission on February 1, 2003.

"We want to remind everyone that the rules are the same as they were back in 2003. If this object is indeed a part of the shuttle, it is government property, and it is a criminal offense to tamper with it," Sowell said.

Chopper -fest in Amarillo

Undoubtedly lots of Amarilloans noticed many choppers buzzing over the city this afternoon. They were Marine and Army helicopters returning from an exercise in Arizona. Here's some video of them shot at Rick Husband-Amarillo Int. Airport.

Special thanks to the folks at Tac-Air who let us shoot from the ramp.

Rain in Amarillo - Almost.

Narrow curtain of rain (briefly) cut off our view of the Amarillo skyline from the airport. It threw a couple of bolts - dropped some rain - and went away.

Woman dies on Lighthouse Trail in Palo Duro Canyon

CANYON, Texas — A 20-year-old girl has been found dead after she went missing while hiking through a canyon in the Texas Panhandle.

Randall County sheriff's spokesman Danny Alexander tells KVII-TV of Amarillo that the girl was an exchange student from Germany who was hiking along Lighthouse Trail in Palo Duro Canyon Monday afternoon when she was reported missing about 4 p.m. Monday. He says some other hikers came upon her body about two hours later.

The woman's identity was being withheld until her family can be notified, but Alexander says heat exhaustion is suspected in her death. Temperatures inside the canyon was reported to be about 120 degrees at the time of the disappearance.

The trail is about 22 miles southeast of Amarillo.

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Read more: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/7669113.html#ixzz1TFdD0thP

Storms at dusk - just west of Amarillo.

So close - so far. Beautiful - yes- but no rain for the city.

(C) Steve Douglass

Cruise Night - Amarillo - July, 2nd 2011

Just a few pix from the Panhandle Council of Car Clubs - monthly "Cruise Night."
Enjoy!

Click to enlarge:

Self portrait in a Cadillac ...



Old truck - Old Glory ...



Three generations of motorheads ...


Stang ...





Fuzzy dice ...


Cushman Ken ...


Cool hat ...


Goldsmobile ...


Van blue ...


Metal mouth ...

American "Buffalo & Kat"


All Images (C) Steve Douglass - approved for private use only! Publication or reproduction requires permission from the photographer. Contact: webbfeatproductions.com