19 July

I had another good flight on the 18th. Zach managed to scare himself pretty good but sometimes that is the best way to learn. I doubt if very many people are going to use the HUD once we get into country (it’s just one more thing strapped to your head) but at least they will know what it can do for them and there are going to be missions where it will be very useful. We cancelled our flights tonight due to low visibility caused by dust. It wasn’t too bad but we decided not to push it – we have lots of time down here and the training is a bonus, not a requirement. We had our first maintenance accident tonight – a blade dampener was bent when power was applied without the bolts installed. It could have been a lot worse but it was still a pain since several others were down due to electrical problems. All but one should be back up tomorrow. The internet headache is starting again – we are at the point we need to make decisions on a number of systems and type of service but people come to me daily wanting to join. It will all be worth it but the process is a pain. I am a little worried because people seem to have unrealistic expectations about the internet speed – it’s hard to convince people that it won’t be like home. The personnel issues have pretty much calmed down – it helped to get it out in the open and now that we are flying people have other things to worry about.
Clear with dust H 111 L 80