Joe, American Avgeek 🇺🇸

Mach Superfan + Drone Pilot + Sorta Aviation Twitter Rando + #NAFO

DISCLAIMER: My pinning board so RTs not always endorsements.

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[Joe, American Avgeek 🇺🇸 @AvwriterJoe]

This means a lot more than you can possibly realize.
@newsbrooke

[Washington Coalition for Open Government @WashingtonCOG]

Congratulations to Joe Kunzler for recognition of his access activism with a WashCOG Key Award!
https://t.co/jUCjd4PGog

[Joe, American Avgeek 🇺🇸 @AvwriterJoe]

Thank you

[יצחק הרצוג Isaac Herzog @Isaac_Herzog]

I just called Washington Post photographer Heidi Levine, who was brutally attacked by violent rioters on Friday.

As President of the State of Israel, I strongly condemn this outrageous and shocking violence, both the terrible attack on Heidi and other grave incidents of violence, such as what took place today in Taybeh.

I expressed my deepest sorrow to Heidi and apologized for what she went through.

The despicable behavior of the perpetrators of this attack does not represent the citizens or the values of the State of Israel.

Israel is a democratic state governed by the rule of law, and it must act with full force against every form of violence. Each incident is being thoroughly investigated, and we await the findings.

All government, security, and law enforcement authorities must use every means at their disposal to investigate thoroughly, apprehend these lawbreakers, and bring them to justice with the fullest extent of the law.

On behalf of the entire nation, I wish Heidi good health and a speedy recovery.

[The Washington Post @washingtonpost]

Masked Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian villagers on Friday, setting olive groves on fire and slinging rocks.

Caught in the attack was Post photographer Heidi Levine. “They just kept kicking me and kicking me, like probably 50 times,” Levine said. https://t.co/9YLUuU9ktP

[Ambassador Mike Huckabee @GovMikeHuckabee]

Heidi Levine, photojournalist for @wapo suffered serious injuries from vicious & cowardly attack. Heidi is US Citizen, clear ID as journalist. Details of who under investigation, but those who attacked unarmed reporter should spend YRS in prison. We have called for a full investigation, arrest, and prosecution to the fullest extent of the law to whoever participated in this. Attacking a female photographer is despicable act of terror carried out by masked cowards. Dishonorable act of senseless violence.

[medoyid_ua @LetsArmUKR]

Six Ukrainian private companies now make small turbojet engines in series. Eleven more are developing them. Brave1 only opened a dedicated funding line in 2025. Getting from zero to first production capacity took more than 1.5 years.

Why it matters: Russia is mass-producing jet Gerans on imported Chinese engines. Catching them takes interceptors, and those must be fast. Only jet propulsion gets them there. A prop drone cannot close that gap. Engines built at home mean no foreign supplier can turn off the tap. Moscow has to buy its engines. Ukraine is learning to make its own.

[Al M @AlYourPalster]

Must be NO KINGS thing

[Brian Heywood - That Damn Mormon @bkheywood]

So Ken Jennings, the taxman, and an unconstitutional income tax walk into a bar….

[Brandi Kruse @BrandiKruse]

Also worth noting that these white women were doing this to a black woman, @listen2tish. Proof that black people fall below trans people on the left’s woke hierarchy … and it’s not even close.

[Tymofiy Mylovanov @Mylovanov]

Ex-Estonian President Ilves: In 2014, our military chief was asked what Estonia would do if Russian little green men appeared.

He said: We shoot them.

We have a conscript army and trained reserves.

We can mobilize 75,000 men immediately, as many as the UK army today. 1/

[Joe, American Avgeek 🇺🇸 @AvwriterJoe]

@EngrUnlocked Tomahawk cruise missile...

[Edwin @EngrUnlocked]

A destroyer with 96 missile cells can fire a Tomahawk, an SM-6 or an ASROC out of the same launcher. From the plume alone, you can't tell which is which.

The Mk 41 is a hot launch: the missile lights its motor inside the cell. A plenum catches the exhaust and vents it straight up through an uptake, which is why the deck disappears in fire and smoke.

Hot launch is easy on the missile and harder on the ship. It needs robust exhaust and safety systems, which makes it more complex than a cold-launch design.

The number nobody quotes: 99%. The Navy says the Mk 41 has launched more than 4,200 missiles at roughly that success rate.

Can you tell what this one is?

[Joe, American Avgeek 🇺🇸 @AvwriterJoe]

@jerrysends69 @kirbywinfield The path I would prefer #waleg take...

[The Defence Blog @Defence_blog]

The U.S. Navy’s drone tanker is meant to refuel fighter jets off carrier decks, so Super Hornets don’t have to do it. Boeing now has a deal worth up to $80M to keep improving the MQ-25 Stingray through 2031.

https://t.co/v46JeEPzeY

[Joe, American Avgeek 🇺🇸 @AvwriterJoe]

@jerrysends69 @kirbywinfield The delay was only fair.
I will be voting YES as frankly this should have been negotiated and sent directly to Constitutional amendment.

[Joe, American Avgeek 🇺🇸 @AvwriterJoe]

@kirbywinfield I'm not happy how the PIID is being used in this case.

[Defense Tech for Ukraine @defensetech4Ukr]

DTU's October Newsletter has been published! It includes more project updates, upcoming speaker information, #OSINT news, and other important updates.

https://t.co/HETnL8lKY8 🔗

[🇺🇸𝗢𝗹𝗱 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗿⚓️ @USN_Submariner]

110 years ago today: USS Arizona (BB-39) was commissioned.
81 years to-the-day after her sinking (December 7, 2022) the keel was laid for the first Virginia-class guided missile submarine, Arizona (SSGN 803), named in honor of the 1,177 lost aboard BB-39 at Pearl Harbor. Arizona will be the first US submarine to deploy with hypersonic missiles.

[Fire Point @FirePointUA]

🔥 Over 200 Middle Strike missions.

From June 1 to September 7, 2026, the Defense Forces conducted nearly 200 successful strike missions using FP-2 drones to weaken Russian occupation forces' ability to conduct offensive and defensive operations.

What enemy targets were hit?

🛑~22% of strikes targeted infrastructure supporting occupation forces, including energy and gas facilities.

🛑>20% targeted personnel: housing, training, and concentration areas, inflicting casualties before troops reach the front lines.

🛑19% targeted military logistics: ammunition, fuel, and supply depots, disrupting resupply and weakening offensive capabilities.

🛑The remainder targeted command posts, UAV bases, air defense and EW systems, repair bases, military vehicles, and transport infrastructure.

[aniemyer @aniemyer]

We were told by the Old Salts that a when we launched in the Whale at Max Catapult Weight, 73,000#s, we hit 16 transverse G’s briefly. All I know is that it certainly got your attention. 😮

[KC-10 Driver ✈️ 👨‍✈️ B-737 Wrangler @MCCCANM]

There are a number of visual & spatial illusions you have to get over as a pilot.

The “Black Hole” effect is one. It’s visual & described below. A related effect is the “False Horizon”; sloping lights lead you to think you’re level but actually in a bank.

The Vestibular system is your inner ear; fluid inside moves around & affects balance. Acceleration of the jet moves the fluid & can have some nasty effects…

Rapidly going from a climb to level flight (pushing over) leaves a pilot feeling like they are tumbling backward. The instinctual reaction is to push the nose forward, putting you in a steep, fast dive.

In a bank, moving your head rapidly will cause the inner ear fluid to move & also create a tumbling sensation. This is a “Coriolis Illusion”.

Rapidly accelerating makes you feel like the jet is pitching up, which will make you want to push the nose down. To be fair, the jet will raise the nose is you rapidly accelerate, as it’s “trimmed” to maintain a constant speed, so you do have to adjust the pitch some. That’s a “Somatogravic Illusion”.

Finding a single point of light in the dark and staring at it too long produces “Autokinesis”, in which that point of light starts appearing to move. This is easy to do when staring at a single star. You’ll start thinking the jet must be moving…or it’s a UFO.

If you are in a prolonged bank, like flying in a circle, when you correct it you’ll often get “The Leans”. You feel like you are turning in the opposite direction, but you are actually level.

Kind of similar to the Leans, a prolonged turn can result in a “Graveyard Spiral” if exaggerated. The inner ear stops sensing the turn, you level out, think you are turning sharply the other way, so you go back into your original bank, except steeper. The jet starts losing altitude rapidly & you spiral all the way to the graveyard. This famously killed JFK Jr..

There are also forces you feel in your skin, muscles, etc., like “Gs”. We call this “Seat of the Pants Flying”, probably because the G’s either push you in the seat or pull you out of it. Flying Seat of the Pants is a terrible plan.

Anyway, even for very intelligent people who study this stuff, learning to fight these illusions is a challenge. You have to trust the instruments even when your body is screaming at you they are wrong. With time, you get pretty good at it. I rarely run into these anymore, but every once in a while one of them surprises me. I just look down & keep my eyes on the instruments for a little bit, then the world returns to normal.

At some airfields, before beginning the approach our briefing will include mention of things like the Black Hole & False Horizon effects. It’s a preparation for getting into these illusions, then reminding yourself “oh yeah, we knew this was going to happen”.

Anyway, as I said it’s not something that’s a significant threat at the airline level. On the low-time Cessna pilot level, though…it will kill you, and the airplane can be completely out of control in an astonishingly short period of time.

[Briley Lechner @BrileyLechner]

My dad and I filed a federal lawsuit this week, and I want to explain it in my own words.

Last September, my varsity team played a match without being told who we would be competing against, and our lawsuit says the adults in charge knew a day ahead of time and kept it from us and from our parents.

I believe girls deserve to know the truth before they step into the locker room, and not after.

Thank you to everyone who has supported our family, and to Thomas More Law Center for taking our case.