Comments on: What is it? Game 106

By: Gambit

Gambit — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 06:07:46 +0000

well if that is a starfighter, then the ark of the covenant is probably hidden over in the shadows. area 51, anybody?

By: Charlie (Colorado)

Charlie (Colorado) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 19:59:45 +0000

Towed radar or sonar target.

By: Matt

Matt — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 17:33:30 +0000

It’s a post card from france. (See Coneheads on SNL)

By: JS

JS — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 17:27:16 +0000

It is a stopper to be placed in rocket engines, to protect the innards from the elements.

By: Christophe

Christophe — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 01:48:43 +0000

178th is for the 178th Fighter Wing training force in Ohio.

By: jose madriz

jose madriz — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 23:59:31 +0000

wind mill tail

By: vonskippy

vonskippy — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 23:15:55 +0000

Obviously it’s a trolley, used for moving stuff (like that thing sitting on it in the photo).

By: Staxeon

Staxeon — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 23:10:58 +0000

Project Super Dreidel reaches phase 178, a full-scale mockup.

By: slim22

slim22 — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 21:16:08 +0000

Believe it or not, it’s a super jumbo arrowhead used to decommission Decepticons.

By: Adragontattoo

Adragontattoo — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 20:41:03 +0000

Its a Jart.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawn_darts

Its one of the ones that were banned in the 80′s for being a bit too violent.

By: Thales

Thales — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 19:38:38 +0000

http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=404

More info is available on the AFMuseum page. I was wrong though. The 187th is based out of Alabama. The target in Dayton is from the 162nd.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/187th_Fighter_Wing

By: JamesM

JamesM — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 19:29:08 +0000

Until I read #10, I imagined this was a test payload. Like everyone keeps saying, a giant lawn dart… to be used for dropping mock bombs and seeing where they land for accuracy.

By: glen

glen — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 19:21:30 +0000

Anchor.

By: johnleemedia

johnleemedia — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 18:14:52 +0000

it is used in minesweeping, at the far end of a cable, dragged through the water by a minesweeper, the cable snags the mines

By: Mambo

Mambo — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:53:07 +0000

Conan’s OTHER club.

By: Jay in STL

Jay in STL — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:52:07 +0000

Biggest…..lawn dart……EVER!

By: Mouserz

Mouserz — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 16:32:35 +0000

ITS A TRAP! or a decoy.

By: George

George — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 16:21:46 +0000

Practice bomb!!!!

By: K!P

K!P — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 15:46:44 +0000

prob an arial target, or something to test radar on

By: gurnorg

gurnorg — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:55:12 +0000

Damn Thales,

That IS an accurate answer.

By: Jose Galaviz

Jose Galaviz — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:44:21 +0000

a third world country aerial warcraft?

By: Gauldar

Gauldar — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:16:02 +0000

Yoda’s X-Wing.

By: Kate

Kate — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:58:42 +0000

After the 187th try, rocket scientist decided that making a paper airplane out of steel is just not going to work.

By: Melphistopheles

Melphistopheles — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:30:11 +0000

#14 beat me to the punch!

Everything I ever needed to know, I learned from MST3K.
Although in “The Starfighters” it was never adequately explained why they called the sea rescue device a “Poopy Suit”. Hmmmm……

By: Scotty A

Scotty A — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:22:30 +0000

Hey, one of those was in The Starfighters! MST3K has taught me something useful!

By: jaxmickey

jaxmickey — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:17:24 +0000

this is an arial target that is towed behind an aircraft. Jared and Thales “hit” it!

By: Miss Cellania

Miss Cellania — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:16:33 +0000

It’s an instrument of torture, set on little tiny wheels to confuse us.

By: gurnorg

gurnorg — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:56:19 +0000

I was wondering where my Extra large LAWN DART went.

By: Thales

Thales — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:51:51 +0000

Yeah, this one is easy for military aviation geeks

It is a towed arial target for air to air gunnery practice. Specifically, it is at the Wright Patterson AF museum in Dayton Ohio. The holes in it are from 50cal bullets.

IIRC, this specific target was used by a reserve/national guard unit near Toledo before it was retired.

By: GavinC

GavinC — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:51:41 +0000

Target practice drone, or an anchor for a large ship.

By: Neal

Neal — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:42:13 +0000

I think #7 nailed it.

By: SWFLguy

SWFLguy — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:37:24 +0000

It has “178th” on it– a fighter wing–target !

By: peargynt

peargynt — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:32:10 +0000

some kind of large wood drill?

By: ike93292

ike93292 — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:29:52 +0000

sure looks like the head of a rocket to me.

By: Jared

Jared — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:19:25 +0000

God does shoot some mighty large arrows. :p

By: Briannana

Briannana — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:17:40 +0000

Well, it is very clearly the tip of a giant’s lawn dart, or the barbed arrowhead of God.

By: Jared

Jared — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:15:48 +0000

Looks from the holes to be some kind of target, probably towed behind a plane for other fighters to shoot at.

By: CLynch

CLynch — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:13:53 +0000

A very large sand anchor?