Telstar Logistics

Vintage Illustration from "The Big Book of Real Trucks"

At San Francisco's Alemany flea market, we recently picked up a clean copy of "The Big Book of Real Trucks," a children's book published in 1950, with superb illustrations by George J. Zaffo. We didn't have this book when we were kids -- the pictures seemed familiar, but we're a '67 model, so this would have been a few years before our time. Nevertheless, Zaffo's illustration work is timeless, both as a fine example of his craft, and as a window on midcentury industrial design.

We've scanned the whole book for your viewing pleasure.

LINK:
The Big Book of Real Trucks (1950)

PREVIOUSLY:
"Flight thru Instruments" and the Fine Art of Instructional Illustration

The Intimate Industrial Illustrations of Frank Soltesz

Anatomy of a Presidential Motorcade

Our friend Eddie Codel is in Washington DC this week to watch the Obama inauguration festivities that will begin on January 20. But as a preview, he happened to catch a presidential motorcade yesterday as it was streaming through town. 

What's the composition of a presidential motorcade?  It entails dozens of vehicles, in a very specific configuration. The Wikipedia sayeth:

A police presence precedes the beginning of the presidential motorcade. These cars and motorcycles usually drive ahead to clear the way and block traffic.

The motorcade for the president is made up of two parts, the first being the "secure package." In the event of an emergency, the secure package breaks off from the rest of the group. It includes two limousines, is heavily guarded by local law enforcement and Secret Service, and all cars are driven by professional drivers.

The second part is made up of vans that transport White House staff members and selected members of the press. In the rear is a communications van that records the president's movements, an ambulance, and additional police vehicles.

To see how all those disparate elements come together, take a look at this tidy video of the presidential motorcade that Eddie shot from his curbside vantage point:

PREVIOUSLY:
Is This Obama's New Presidential Limo?

(Image, top, Chris Christner via Wikipedia)

Japanese Electric Car has Eight Wheels, Big Ambitions

Okay, this may be the best-looking car we've seen since Lady Penelope's six-wheeled FAB-1 Rolls-Royce in the Thunderbirds. The Eliica is an electric-powered vehicle developed by a team at Japan's Keio University in 2004. Apart from being fun to look at, the Eliica is also fast, having already hit a top speed of 230 mph, with 250 mph  in the crosshairs. The Wikipedia explaineth:

The Eliica weighs in at 2,400 kg (5,300 lb) and seats the driver and three passengers. The body was tested in a wind tunnel. The front doors open forward and the rear doors open upward like wings. The car's platform contains 4 tracks of 80 batteries, which make up one third of the vehicle's cost. They currently require about 10 hours of recharging from empty to full charge, and can be easily charged off a residential power grid.

The car has eight wheels enabling it to be closer to the ground for better traction. Each of the wheels has a 60 kW (80 hp) electric motor, giving a 480 kW (640 hp) eight wheel drive which can tackle all kinds of road surfaces. The four front wheels steer. The electric motors mean that the Eliica can deliver a smooth acceleration free from gear shifts of about 0.8 g. Each wheel contains a disc brake and employs a regenerative brake system to recover energy. 

There are currently (as of 2005) two versions of the Eliica: a Speed model and an Acceleration model. The Speed model is made to challenge gasoline-based records and has a top speed of 370 km/h (230 mph) with a range of 200 km (120 mi). The Acceleration model is made for the street and has a top speed of 190 km/h (120 mph) with a range of 320 km (200 mi).

The Internets have been abuzz with rumors that renewed interest in the Eliica project on the part of the Japanese government may lead to a limited production run. It's not clear exactly if that's true -- we haven't found any confirmation of that chatter. But after watching this propaganda video, we sure hope so:

(Tip of the hat to Allen over at Mission Mission)

LINKS:
Eliica (Official website, Japanese only)

Eliica (Wikipedia page)

PREVIOUSLY:

Crash Test: Smart Minicar vs. Concrete Wall

Photos from a Somali Pirate Attack

Our maritime friends over at gCaptain recently spotted a vivid collection of photos detailing the November hijacking of the tanker M/V Biscaglia by Somali pirates. The images, of provenance unknown, were published in the British tabloid The Mirror. The pirates approached the Biscaglia in this high-powered skiff:

The Biscaglia was reasonably well prepared. Following a long string of pirate attacks in the waters off Somalia, the ship had been equipped with water cannon, acoustic deterrents, and a small detachment of British security guards. Here are the water cannons, hard at work:

None of these defenses proved effective, however, and the Biscaglia was quickly seized. The British security guards -- ex-military, one and all -- retreated to the roof of the ship. Outgunned and outnumbered, they eventually jumped into the sea, where they were rescued by a French navy helicopter. In breathless tabloid prose, the Mirror tells the tale:

The Biscaglia and 18 other cargo vessels at first sailed with a French frigate for protection. But two days out of Oman, 300 miles off the Somali coast,  it fell behind. [Former British paratrooper Mike Kelly], from Dublin, said: “We noticed a skiff about three miles off our port side – and knew it was pirates.”

The Biscaglia sent a distress signal to the frigate as the skiff circled the tanker staying well out of range of water cannons.

Mike said: “We used our makeshift bazooka but it was wildly inaccurate and the pirates started firing rocket-propelled grenades.”

While two pirates stayed in the skiff, six scrambled on board, firing AK-47s at the bridge where the three men were masterminding the defence.

[ex-Royal Marine Carl “Rocky” Mason], from Poole, said: “They started shooting at me and I ran with them coming after me. They were only about 18, skinny and looked high on the local drug, called khat. They were spraying bullets everywhere.”

The men decided to use the sonic weapon, called an L-RAD.

Mike said: “We thought it would make the pirates back off, but they just laughed. It was a total waste of time.”

 

The trio locked all the hatches and doors and retreated to the roof of the bridge. Half an hour after the attack had begun, a helicopter from the French warship appeared.

Although it was armed, it is against maritime laws in the area to board a vessel by force after it has been taken by pirates. So the helicopter crew were forced to hover and photograph events from above.

LINKS:

Heroic Brit Trio Take on Somali Pirates Before Escaping into Sea (UK Mirror article)

Pirate Attack Photos (gCaptain blog post)

PREVIOUSLY:

Aaarrrr! The US Navy Battles Modern Pirates to Save North Koreans off the Coast of Africa

(Images from www.mirror.co.uk)