Funny Thing Happened on the Way Home

[AlwynTurner]

Given the way knife crime is going in this country, it could be very relevant in the present day....................

Alwyn

[MichaelC]

Carl if you drove on the proper side of the road you would have got a much better picture
Do you have any idea where it was going or indeed where it had come from?
Back in the days of my youth I saw John Glenns "Friendship 7" Mercury Space Capsule on its way from a USAF base to the London Science Museum complete with re-entry scorch marks,
That took me by surprise

Shaun, aren't they building an addition to that Aircraft Museum to house the Littlefield collection? That's supposed to be in New England, correct?

Max you are right I think the bulk of the Littlefield collection is going to Mass........ I have to check out the auction book again to see if they have these two vehicles on the lot back then.

[Ragnar]

As for driving on the wrong side of the road, my American friends are always surprised when I explain to them exactly why Brits drive on the left side. It started with the Romans. If you're walking down a road and a stranger is coming toward you, if you are on the left hand side of the road, it places your sword arm towards the stranger.

Not if yer lefthanded

[Max-U52]

Not if yer lefthanded

Quite true, but it's a case of majority rule.

Google says 10% of people are left handed. I would've thought more. One more thing I've learned as a direct result of being an RC Tanker. Ain't the internet just wonderful? When I was young it would've taken a trip to the library to gain that info, now it, and everything else I ever wanted to know (and a lot of things I didn't) are right at my fingertips. If I live to be a thousand that will still blow my mind.

[Max-U52]

Max you are right I think the bulk of the Littlefield collection is going to Mass........ I have to check out the auction book again to see if they have these two vehicles on the lot back then.

I saw a TV show about the auction (Strange Inheritance was the show) and I don't recall seeing a Marder, but that doesn't mean they didn't have one. Or maybe these two came from the same place as the Elephant that recently went back across the pond? Fort Lee, Virginia, maybe?

And the TV show didn't say what happened to the Panther that was almost finished at the time of his passing. The last footage I saw of that tank it was more than 90% restored to original condition, and made me green with envy. If that makes it to the museum it will be worth the drive all by itself.

[c.rainford73]

Max you are right I think the bulk of the Littlefield collection is going to Mass........ I have to check out the auction book again to see if they have these two vehicles on the lot back then.

I saw a TV show about the auction (Strange Inheritance was the show) and I don't recall seeing a Marder, but that doesn't mean they didn't have one. Or maybe these two came from the same place as the Elephant that recently went back across the pond? Fort Lee, Virginia, maybe?

And the TV show didn't say what happened to the Panther that was almost finished at the time of his passing. The last footage I saw of that tank it was more than 90% restored to original condition, and made me green with envy. If that makes it to the museum it will be worth the drive all by itself.

I believe the panther will be there as far as I've read about it, and will be a centerpiece of the exhibit (rendering picture below)

I remember researching the panther and it's in Massachusetts now, and can be viewed by groups that pay to see it privately and are members of the foundation.

[MichaelC]

I actually have a copy of the auction book with all the lots so I will go thru it when get back in town tomorrow and see if there was a Marder. Pretty sure there was that tracked troop carrier.

[silversurfer1947]

As for driving on the wrong side of the road, my American friends are always surprised when I explain to them exactly why Brits drive on the left side. It started with the Romans. If you're walking down a road and a stranger is coming toward you, if you are on the left hand side of the road, it places your sword arm towards the stranger.

Being a fan of Westerns, it always struck me that the drivers of the stagecoaches always sat on the right hand side. When did the Americans decide to change?

[Max-U52]

I never noticed the stagecoach guys, but I know U.S. military helicopters are the same way, the pilot is on the right and the co-pilot on the left.

[jarndice]

What I find interesting about the location of Helicopter pilots vis a vie Fixed wing pilots is that in modern helicopters there is no good reason why the pilot of a helicopter does not sit on the left,
The reason is totally historic,
Indeed Soviet and now Russian Federation Helicopter Pilots have always sat on the left Whereas American, British and all Nato Helicopter pilots all sit on the right,
Many modern twin seat helicopters both military and civilian have dual controls so that either seat is available to the Captain of the Aircraft, it really is a matter of convention.
If you are left handed sitting on the left would make life easier as most of the controls are on or near the Cyclic (Control Column)in front of the Pilot whereas the collective (Lift and Throttle) is on the floor between the seats.