Sunday, January 02, 2022

Rockwell B-1 Lancer bomber, with it's landing gear stowed, didn't destroy itself when running out of altitude in Diego Garcia.


I only know of Diego Garcia's existence because of it's US military connection, in which the USA made a military base on the coral atoll, for aircraft to refuel. I knew a guy that was stationed there in the Vietnam war, building the runway, while he was in the Seabees. 



The Portuguese were the first Europeans to find it, it had no indigenous population, and it was then settled by the French in the 1790s.  It was ceded, along with the rest of the Chagos Archipelago, to the United Kingdom in the Treaty of Paris (1814) at the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars.

The island is the largest continuous dryland rim of all atolls in the world. 

In 1966, the United States and the UK executed an agreement through an Exchange of Notes which permitted the United States to use the atoll for defense purposes for 50 years until December 2016, followed by a 20-year extension (to 2036) as long as neither party gave notice of termination.

 No monetary payment was made from the United States to the UK, rather, the United Kingdom received a $14-million discount from the United States on the acquisition of submarine-launched Polaris missiles

Between 1971 and 2001, the only residents on Diego Garcia were UK and US military personnel and civilian employees of those countries. These included contract employees from the Philippines and Mauritius.


During combat operations from the atoll against Afghanistan (2001–2006) and Iraq (2003–2006), a number of allied militaries were based on the island including Australian, Japanese, and the Republic of Korea.
 
According to David Vine, "Today, at any given time, 3,000 to 5,000 US troops and civilian support staff live on the island." The inhabitants today do not rely on the island and the surrounding waters for sustenance. Although some recreational fishing for consumption is permitted, all other food is shipped in by sea or air.

 In 2004, US Navy recruitment literature described Diego Garcia as being one of the world's best-kept secrets, boasting great recreational facilities, exquisite natural beauty, and outstanding living conditions.

What no one mentions, is the prostitution ring of wives of the military in the 1980s, who were bored as hell before the internet was invented. I shit you not.  If you google, you'll find that Ft Hood and Tinker AFB have done the same. This world is no angels choir

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