Category: Odd Facts
Swamp Rescue – The Daring Mission to Extract a Bomber Crew Shot Down Over New Guinea in WW2
“Since Barnett had landed far from a major river for a Catalina flying boat to carry out an extraction, an overland rescue was planned instead.” By Bas Kreuger EARLY ON THE morning of July 27,…
Flight F-BELV – The Mystery of the Only Lost Plane Never Recovered from the Vietnam War
“Why did it take the authorities three decades to renew its interest in the incident?” The 1954 Geneva Accords partitioned Vietnam into two countries: the communist North and the western-aligned South. International Commission for Supervision…
The Great Game – How Errors and Miscalculation Drove Britain and Russia’s 19th Century ‘Cold War’ in Asia
“An examination of historical records reveals that the assumptions that were being made in both London and St. Petersburg about the intentions of the other side were frequently wrong, sometimes with tragic consequences.” By Riaz…
The Forgotten Casualties of Pearl Harbor – Inside the Accidental Bombardment of Honolulu on Dec. 7, 1941
“Eighty years later, it is perhaps time to be open and honest about what happened on that dreadful day.” By Simon Webb THE JAPANESE ATTACK on Pearl Harbor famously killed more than 2,300 Americans and…
The Invisible Hand of Conquest – How Smallpox Defeated Armies, Toppled Empires & Changed History
“Its presence shaped the fate of North America fully as much as any bullets, blades or bayonets.” By John Danielski THE CORONA VIRUS is not the first contagion to cause disruption. Throughout history, disease has…
Corps Competency – Inside the PR Campaign That Cast the U.S. Marines as America’s Finest Warriors
“In seeking to save their institution, Marines of all ranks turned to the burgeoning field of public relations to ensure their branch’s continued existence.” By Heather Venable AT THE START of the 20th century, the United…
