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[nwaredtail]

Here's some more weird DC-9 trivia. An Ozark Airlines DC-9 hit a snow plow in a blizard. The plane crashed but the fuslage was still usable. That fuslage was connected to the wings of an Canadian Airlines DC-9 that had diverted into CVG and burned. Several fatalities. This airplane was flying at NWA.

And man, did it fly crooked. If I remember right, it had an odd tail number and every time you had to fly it, it was like, "great..........."

 

[brainhurts]

The domestication of bananas took place in southeastern Asia. Many species of wild bananas still occur in New Guinea, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. Recent archaeological and palaeoenvironmental evidence at Kuk Swamp in the Western Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea suggests that banana cultivation there goes back to at least 5000 BCE, and possibly to 8000 BC. This would make the New Guinean highlands the place where bananas were first domesticated. It is likely that other species of wild bananas were later also domesticated elsewhere in southeastern Asia.



Actual and probable diffusion of bananas during Islamic times (700-1500 AD).


The banana may have been present in isolated locations of the Middle East on the eve of the rise of Islam. There is some textual evidence that the prophet Muhammad was familiar with it. The spread of Islam was followed by the far reaching diffusion of bananas. There are numerous references to it in Islamic texts (such as poems and hadiths) beginning in the ninth century. By the tenth century the banana appears in texts from Palestine and Egypt, from it diffused into north Africa and Muslim Spain. In fact, during the medieval ages, bananas from Granada were considered amongst the best in the Arab world.[9]
Some recent discoveries of banana phytoliths in Cameroon dating to the first millennium BCE [10] have triggered an as yet unresolved debate about the antiquity of banana cultivation in Africa. There is linguistic evidence that bananas were already known in Madagascar around that time. The earliest evidence of banana cultivation in Africa before these recent discoveries dates to no earlier than late 6th century AD. Muslim Arabs likely brought bananas from the east coast of Africa west to the Atlantic coast and further south to Madagascar.
The banana is mentioned for the first time in written history in Buddhist texts in 600 BCE. Alexander the Great discovered the taste of the banana in the valleys of India in 327 BCE. The existence of an organized banana plantation could be found in China in 200 CE. In 650, Islamic conquerors brought the banana to Palestine. The word banana is of West African origin, and passed into English via Spanish or Portuguese.[13]

Plantation cultivation

In 15th and 16th century, Portuguese colonists started banana plantations in the Atlantic Islands, Brazil, and western Africa. As late as the Victorian Era, bananas were not widely known in Europe, although they were available via merchant trade. Jules Verne references bananas with detailed descriptions so as not to confuse readers in his book Around the World in Eighty Days (1872).
In the early 20th cenntury, bananas began forming the basis of large commercial empires, exemplarized by the United Fruit Company, which created immense banana plantation especially in Central and South America. These were usually extremely commercially exploitative, and the term "Banana republic" was coined for states like Honduras and Guatemala, representing the fact that "servile dictatorships" were created and abetted by these companies and their political backers, for example in the USA

Many bananas were transported in DC-9 aircraft.

 

[fifinella]

Absolutely scintillating.....

Banana Farming in the Philippines

Banana is one of the most common and widely grown fruit crops in the Philippines. It is also one of the country's major dollar earners, and has consistently ranked next to coconut oil and prawns in terms of value earnings during the last five years.

In 1991, banana topped local production among the other major fruits such as pineapple and mango, thus eating up more than one-third of the production pie.

Banana has various uses. The ripe fruit is pureed, candied, and preserved in various forms when not eaten fresh. Its extract is used in the manufacture of catsup, vinegar, and wine. The unripe fruit is powdered and chipped.

In rural areas, the young leaves are pounded to suppress bleeding and treat wounds. The leaves are also widely used as packing materials for important fruits and vegetables in market centers. Banana fiber is manufactured into rope, sack, and mat. Sheets of paper and paper boards are also made from banana peel. Banana blossom is exported dried. Filipino housewives use it in special dishes.

VARIETY

Banana is native to Southeast Asia where the climate is warm and humid. Of the 57 banana cultivars, the following are the most common in the Philippines:

1. Saba
grows to as tall as 20 feet; fruit is angular; has thick peel that is green when unripe, yellow when ripe; flesh is white when ripe; gestation period is 15 to 16 months.

2. Lacatan
grows to a height of five to nine feet; fruit is round, seedless; has thick peel that has green when unripe, yellow-orange when ripe; gestation period is 14 to 15 months.

3. Latundan
grows from six to 10 feet tall; fruit is round; has thin peel that is green when unripe, yellow when ripe; flesh is white when ripe; gestation period is 12 months.

4. Bungulan
fruit is round, very sweet, seedless and easily rots; has thick peel that is green when unripe and remains green when ripe; flesh is white when ripe; gestation period is 12 months.

5. Cavendish
reaches five to 10 feet high; fruit is bigger than Bungulan; peel is green when unripe, yellow when ripe; flesh is yellow when ripe; export quality; gestation period is six to eight months.

Other varieties grown in the country include the Morado, Pitogo Los Banos, Senorita, Tindok, Gloria, Granda, and Tumok.

CLIMATE AND SOIL REQUIREMENTS

Banana is well adapted to well-drained, loamy, soil that is rich in organic matter. Areas with an average rainfall of 4000 millimeters (mm) a year are ideal sites for a banana plantation. A temperature between 27 to 30 degrees Celsius is most favorable to the crop.

Banana grows at sea level up to 1,800 meters altitude. It is susceptible to root rot when exposed to too much water. Typhoon belt do not make good plantation sites.


PROPAGATION

Banana can be propagated through its rhizomes and suckers. The latter, however, is the best recommended. Suckers must be parasites-free and have healthy roots. These are spaded out of the clumps when four-to-five feet tall.

LAND PREPARATION

The fields is plowed and harrowed thrice. All stumps and bushes must be removed. Knee-deep holes with 45-cm diameters are dug and 3each hole is fertilized with 10 grams of complete fertilizer and a few of granular nematode.

PLANTING

Suckers are set on field in vertical position, then covered with surface soil. Compost material added to the soil enhances the recovery and growth of the new plants. The soil is stumped around each base and watered regularly. During dry months, irrigation, if possible, is advised.Planting is the best at the start of the rainy season.

CULTIVATION AND MAINTENANCE

Cultivation should go beyond six inches from the base of the plant to avoid root injury. Intercrops or Glamoxine or Karmex sprays act as weed control. Plants must be propped with bamboo poles during fruiting for support against strong winds.

DESUCKERING OR PRUNING

Unnecessary suckers must be killed by cutting them off the mother plants. Only one or two suckers must be allowed per hill to reduce soil nutrients competition.

FERTILIZATION

For poor soils, fertilizers should contain N-P-K at a ratio of 3-1-6. the ratio is doubled when fertilizers are applied to young plants. The amount of fertilizer applied increases as the tree matures. At flowering and fruiting period, a tree needs five to six pounds of complete fertilizer.

PEST AND DISEASES

There are at least 27 insect pests that attack banana plants in the Philippines. However, there are only three pests known to cost significant damage over all types of banana.

The banana corm weevil feeds on suckers and destroys the corm tissues. It causes the suckers to die of bore attack. To control this pest, spray the soil with Furadan 5 G, 10 G. Sanitation and cutting of affected corms are also effective cultural controls, and are environment friendly.

Fruit-peel sarring beetle damages the fruit surfaces. The banana bunch is usually sprayed with Decis to control infestation. The banana floral thrips can be easily controlled by Diazinon 40/60 EC or Decis 2.5. 100 EC spray.

The three major diseases of banana are the sigatoka, pitting or wilting and the moko.

Sigatoka is a leaf spot disease caused by Mycosphaerella musicola. This causes the premature death of leaves. In severe cases, the size of bunches and fingers is reduced. The fruit is also ripens prematurely and develops abnormal flavor and smell. Plants are usually sprayed with Bordeaux mixture. Badly spotted leaves are removed to avoid contamination.

Pitting or Wilting disease is characterized by dry, reddish-brown or black, circular or oval, depressed spots. Sanitation is one way of preventing the disease which comes in season with the rainy days. All collapsed leaves should be removed.

Moko disease, on the other hand, transmitted from plat to plant by insects and infected tools. The impact ok moko to plants is similar to that of the sigatoka. Only, it does not emit unfavorable smell. Infected fruits also blacken inside. Infection is prevented by disinfecting tools with formaldehyde.

In view of environmental considerations, alternative controls to pests and diseases are being introduced under Integrated Pest Management. Infected plants and weeds must be uprooted to keep the area free of host plats for six to 12 months.

HARVESTING

Regardless of variety, the maturity of banana can be distinguished when the last leaf turns yellow. The angle formation of the fingers also determines ripeness. The rounder the angle of the fingers, the more mature the are.

Saba is harvest 15 to 16 months after planting; Lacatan, 4 to 15 months; Latundan, 12 months; Bungulan, 12 months; Cavendish, six to eight months.

Harvesting needs two people to serve as the cutter and the backer. It involves cutting deep into the middle of the trunk and letting the top fall gradually until the bunch is at the reach if the backer. The peduncle is cut long enough to facilitate handling.

Fruits for immediate shipping are harvested 5 to 10 days before ripening. Bananas for marketing are packed in crates as tightly as possible to lessen unnecessary vibrations during transport. Many of these bananas were transported in the venerable DC-9-15F series aircraft which was a 10 series with a factory cargo door so airlines could convert them and fly pax during the day and cargo at night.

 

[jetflier]

Here's some more weird DC-9 trivia. An Ozark Airlines DC-9 hit a snow plow in a blizard. The plane crashed but the fuslage was still usable. That fuslage was connected to the wings of an Canadian Airlines DC-9 that had diverted into CVG and burned. Several fatalities. This airplane was flying at NWA.

Big Mo,

I've flown that bird, its N number ended with a NxxxZ Ozark.

It always flew a little bit sideways no matter how you trimmed it up.

It's not with NWA anymore, so if you get a can of beer that seems to be leaning a little bit,.....

 

[Donsa320]

That was Overseas National in the early 70's. Tried to land Saint Maartin like you said, and then diverted to St Croix but couldn't make it. 20 or so pax drowned.

Yes it was ONA and they were operating as BWIA if I recall correctly, British West India Airways. The cockpit crew only gave the cabin crew a few miniutes warning that they were ditching. At night too as I recall. Its a wonder that anyone got out alive.

DC

 

[Donsa320]

Forgot the 15F, this was a 10 series with a factory cargo door so airlines could convert them and fly pax during the day and cargo at night. DAL did this for a while in the late 60's turned out to be a flop. A 15F has two over wing exits, the 10 only has one over wign exit. A bid of trivia from the cargo world.

The -10's and -15's were referred to as the 2 door and 4 door models respectively.

DC

 

[Firebird]

quote=BigMotorToter;1634132]TWA operated a DC-9-33F. Don't know who they bought it from but only two were ever made if I remember correctly. It's sister ship ditched down in the Caribbean somewhere after they ran out of gas shooting an NDB approach to a missed approach several times to some small island. Don't remember the who the operator was.[/quote




I Think that was Overseas National Airways at St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands

 

[CopilotDoug]

Yes it was ONA and they were operating as BWIA if I recall correctly, British West India Airways. The cockpit crew only gave the cabin crew a few miniutes warning that they were ditching. At night too as I recall. Its a wonder that anyone got out alive.

DC

Didn't this one float a little bit due to fuel exhaustion?

I'm trying to find pictures of it, but apparently, there were a few DC-9s fitted with JATO packs

 

[aa73]

Yes it was ONA and they were operating as BWIA if I recall correctly, British West India Airways. The cockpit crew only gave the cabin crew a few miniutes warning that they were ditching. At night too as I recall. Its a wonder that anyone got out alive.

DC

It was indeed ONA, but operating with a split crew - ONA pilots (CA, F/O and Navigator) and ALM (Antillean Airlines) F/As.

The flight was from JFK-SXM (St Maarten). WX deviations enroute. As they began their descent, SJU ATC informed them that WX at SXM was below minimums, so they initiated a divert to SJU. However a few minutes later, the wx at SXM came back up above mins, so they reestablished course to SXM. They arrived at SXM and attempted 3 NDB approaches. All unsuccessful due to WX, and well into their fuel reserves, they were given a clearance to St Thomas. They instead chose St Croix, which was closer. They ran out of fuel enroute to St Croix and ditched in the ocean.

The PA system was inop, so the CA chose to warn the F/As with several chimes just prior to impact - despite not having briefed this with the F/As. As a result, some of the F/As were still standing during impact.

The aircraft floated for awhile before sinking. 22 pax and 1 crewmember perished. 35 pax and 5 crewmembers survived.

 

[pilotyip]

Is this the where the raft was inflated inside the A/C?