The April edition of the American Legion magazine had a couple of news articles worthy of passing along. In Air Force news, 72 Lockheed Martin F-35A fighters will be delivered to Hill Air Force base in Utah. The first National Guard unit to fly them is out of Burlington International Airport in Vermont and will receive 18. There are three versions of the F-35 Lightning II. The conventional F-35A is a takeoff and landing model, with the F-35B being a short take-off and vertical-landing variant. The F-35C is carrier-based. The "Lightning" namesake is the dual engine Lockheed P-38 introduced in 1941 and retired in 1965, primarily used in the Pacific Theater during World War II. It was the primary fighter until appearance of the P-51 Mustang toward the end of the war. P-38's twin Allison V-1710 engines propelled the craft to 443 mph. It was the only American fighter to be produced during America's involvement in the war from Pearl Harbor to Victory over Japan. The stealth F-35 is powered by the Pratt & Whitney 135 for a max speed of 1199 mph, and is the smaller sibling of the twin-engine F-22 Raptor.

The Coast Guard is being upgraded to meet its top priorities for the cutter fleet and development of an Arctic strategy. Traffic in the Bering Strait grew 118 percent between 2008 and 2012, and a robust Coast Guard presence in these waters

is of vital interest to the United States. The new National Security cutter fleet has plans for 418-foot vessels to replace the 378-foot "high endurance" cutters in service since the 1960s. The larger ships will have a smaller crew due to the advanced technology and automated weapons systems. Eight "Legend" class National Security Cutters are scheduled for production, with four now in service, and the fifth will enter service in 2017. With 60 to 90 day patrol cycles and a 12,000 mile range, the ships will spend more time at sea and less time in port with the newly invoked multi-crew system. However, the expected lifespan of the cruiser is reduced from 30 years to 20 years. The new cutters are part of the Coast Guard's "Integrated Deepwater System Program." The $24 billion, 25-year program is designed to replace and upgrade much of the existing equipment, including aircraft, ships, and logistics and command and control systems.

Our great Navy has been busy too. The high speed USNS Millinocket is scheduled sometime in 2016 to be fitted with the Navy's latest weapon... the futuristic railgun. With the advancement of technology in the 21st century, scientists were able to reverse engineer the gun that harnesses electromagnetic energy to launch a projectile between two rails. According to unnamed sources, the technology was gleaned from a vessel held at Area 51, known as XU-001-A. The energy that powers the stars is now in the hands of the United States Navy! Just kidding. The gun uses a form of electromagnetic energy known as the Lorentz Force (please consult your local physicist to explain this) to send an 18 inch, 23 pound projectile to a range of over 100 miles at seven times the speed of sound (over 5,000 mph). When it hits its target, it does damage (the transfer of massive amounts of heat and kinetic energy) with its sheer speed and does not have an explosive warhead. A ship can carry hundreds of these inert rounds without the dangerous burden of gun powder and costs 1/100 the cost of conventional missiles. The Navy initiated the program in 2005.

Speaking of futuristic, the XM25 25mm rifle being developed by our Army can shoot around corners. Sort of. Being the length of a collapsed M4 and weighing the same as an M16 with a 203 grenade launcher, it fires the Alliant Teksystems air burst round to a specified distance then explodes above the enemy's position. The round is programmed by a laser range finder and infrared illuminator with a fire control system that wirelessly transmits the exact range to the target into the round's fuse before firing. The rifle costs about $25,000 and each round costs about $25. So, insurgents, or as we called them in Korea "infiltrators," you can run but you can't hide!

Jack Evensizer is a resident of Dalton Gardens.