Certification standards.

Certification standards applicable to the airworthiness of an aircraft contain many requirements. Some of these requirements can only be met by specifying a maximum weight for the aircraft, and demonstrating that the aircraft can meet the requirement at all weights up to, and including, the specified maximum. These requirements include:  At the MTOW, all aircraft of a type and model must be capable of complying with all these certification requirements.

Multiple MTOW.

With several of the manufacturers of large aircraft, the same model of aircraft can have more than one MTOW. An operator can choose to have the aircraft certified for a reduced weight, often for a reduced cost with an option to later increase the MTOW for a fee and the cost of certification change. Some airlines which do not require a high MTOW choose to have a lower MTOW for that particular aircraft to reduce costs (Landing fees and air traffic control fees are MTOW based).  In other examples an increased MTOW option is achieved by reinforcement due to additional or stronger materials. For example, the Airbus A330 242 tonnes MTOW variant / A330neo uses Scandium–aluminium (scalmalloy) to avoid an empty weight increase.  Smaller aircraft like the Cessna 208 Caravan may have an option for a reinforced undercarriage to permit an increase in MTOW.

Maximum permissible takeoff weight or maximum allowed takeoff weight.

In many circumstances an aircraft may not be permitted to take off at its MTOW. In these circumstances the maximum weight permitted for takeoff will be determined taking account of the following:  The maximum weight at which a takeoff may be attempted, taking into account the above factors, is called the maximum permissible takeoff weight, maximum allowed takeoff weight or regulated takeoff weight.

The maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) or maximum gross takeoff weight (MGTOW) or maximum takeoff mass (MTOM) of an aircraft is the maximum weight at which the pilot is allowed to attempt to take off, due to structural or other limits. The analogous term for rockets is gross lift-off mass, or GLOW. MTOW is usually specified in units of kilograms or pounds.

V letectví je maximální vzletová hmotnost (angl. zkratka MTOW, též nepřesně "vzletová hmotnost") definována jako maximální hmotnost letadla, při které je schopno uskutečnit let. Obecně je tvořena součtem hmotností prázdného letadla včetně provozních náplní, posádky, nákladu a paliva. U letadel z počátků letectví byla tato hmotnost limitována pouze výkony letadla; v současné době je maximální vzletová hmotnost omezena leteckými předpisy jako maximální hmotnost, při které letadlo splňuje požadavky na bezpečný let definované předpisem pro určenou kategorii letadel.


Discovery and naming.

In 1870, workers at the Summertown Brick Pit, just north of Oxford, England, found the skeleton of a theropod. The remains were acquired by the local bookseller James Parker, who brought them to the attention of Oxford Professor John Phillips. Phillips described the bones in 1871, but did not name them. At the time, the remains represented the most complete skeleton of a large theropod ever found. "Eustreptospondylus" is still the most complete of any large Jurassic European theropod. In 1890, the skeleton was bought by Oxford University, and Arthur Smith Woodward examined it and referred it to "Megalosaurus bucklandi". In 1905 and 1906 Baron Franz Nopcsa reassigned the skeleton to the species, "Streptospondylus cuvieri", which had been first described by Sir Richard Owen in 1842, based on a now lost vertebra from the Bathonian stage of the Jurassic period. The reason for this assignment was that the type species "Streptospondylus altdorfensis" from France, was a clearly related form, and Nopcsa decided to subsume all British material of this nature under a single "Streptospondylus" species, for which then the name "S. cuvieri" could not be avoided. The assignment of a rather complete find to a species based on very poor remains was troublesome. This was compounded by German palaeontologist Friedrich von Huene, who sometime referred to the specimen as "Streptospondylus cuvieri" and at other times considered it a species of "Megalosaurus": "Megalosaurus cuvieri".  In 1964, Alick Donald Walker clarified matters by erecting a separate genus and species for the Oxford specimen: "Eustreptospondylus oxoniensis". The genus name "Eustreptospondylus", was intended to mean "true "Streptospondylus"". "Streptospondylus" means "turned vertebra", and is derived from the Greek words "streptos" (στρεπτος) meaning "reversed" and "spondylus" (σπονδυλος), a reference to the fact that its dorsal vertebrae were opisthocoelous, in contrast to the typical procoelous vertebrae of crocodiles. The specific name "oxoniensis", refers to its provenance from Oxford.  The holotype, OUM J13558, was recovered by W. Parker from claystone in a marine layer of the Stewartby Member of the Oxford Clay Formation, which dates to the Callovian stage of the Jurassic period, approximately 162 million years ago. It consists of a rather complete skeleton, with a skull which is missing elements including the nasal bones, the jugals, the rear ends of the lower jaws, the lower arms and the end of the tail. It represents a subadult individual. The only other specimen ever referred to "Eustreptospondylus oxoniensis" is OUMNH J.29775, a left ilium. The holotype was fully prepared and exhibited in 1924, in a rather erect position. In the early twenty-first century a new display changed this to a horizontal position of the body.  In 2000, Oliver Walter Mischa Rauhut found that only minor differences in the hip bones — a more upward extending fusion of the "feet" of the pubic bones — make "Eustreptospondylus" different from a previously known megalosaurid called "Magnosaurus", and in 2003 he proposed that they should be the same genus, which would make the full species name "Magnosaurus oxoniensis". In 2010, Gregory S. Paul considered the species identical to "Streptospondylus altdorfensis".  The first detailed description of the "Eustreptospondylus" material was in 1906 by Nopcsa. A modern description was published in 2008 by Rudyard Sadleir e.a. In 1964, Walker also named a second species of "Eustreptospondylus": "Eustreptospondylus divesensis", based on a French find. In 1977 this became the separate genus "Piveteausaurus".

Description.

The main specimen of "Eustreptospondylus" was not fully grown, and according to an estimate by Paul in 1988 was about long and weighed about. Various estimates suggest that "Eustreptospondylus" was an "average-sized" theropod, with a hypothetical adult length of around, and a mass of.  The skull of "Eustreptospondylus" has a rather pointed snout in side view, with a large horizontally oriented nostril. There is no lacrimal horn. The skull roof is relatively thick. Oblique grooves in the jaw joints caused the gape of the mouth to be widened when the lower jaws were opened. These jaws at the front are rather tall and wide. No teeth have been preserved in either the upper or lower jaws, but the size of its toothsockets proves that the third tooth of the lower jaw was enlarged. Though not keeled, the front dorsal vertebrae have paired hypapophyses at their undersides, just as with "Streptospondylus altdorfensis".

Distinguishing anatomical features.

Sadleir et al. (2008) established several traits that distinguish "Eustreptospondylus" from its direct relatives. In the corner of the lacrimal a shallow depression is present, which is pierced by a smaller foramen. The descending branch of the postorbital has a groove in its outer rear corner. The outer side of the squamosal has a well-developed drooping flange covering, in side view, the upper rear part of the lateral temporal fenestra. The tenth neck vertebra has a clear depression on its front underside. The neck and dorsal vertebrae are not keeled. In 2012 Matthew Carrano added to these traits. The peduncle of the ilium to which the pubic bone is attached, is as transversely wide as it is long from front to rear. With the rear blade of the ilium, the lower edge of the outer blade side is turned upwards to an almost horizontal position, creating and denuding over its total length a bone surface, the "brevis shelf", forming the internal face of the inner blade side — this shelf with dinosaurs functions as an attachment area for a tail muscle, the "Musculus caudofemoralis brevis".  Sadleir also found additional traits proving that "Eustreptospondylus" differed from "Magnosaurus nethercombensis" in more than a single detail. The interdental plates reinforcing the back of the teeth are longer from front to rear than they are tall; with "M. nethercombensis" the opposite is true. Seen from above, the pubic bone forms transversely a more narrow part of the lower rim of the hip joint. Seen from behind, the upper part of the inner side of the thighbone is straight. The cnemial crest of the upper shinbone has no ridge running to the front and below, on its outer side.

Classification.

In 1964, Walker assigned "Eustreptrospondylus" to the Megalosauridae, which was historically included in a paraphyletic "Carnosauria", though sometimes a separate Eustreptospondylidae was recognised. Today "Eustreptospondylus" is commonly considered a member of the Eustreptospondylinae, clade within the Megalosauridae.  A possible position of "Eustreptospondylus" in the evolutionary tree is given by this cladogram based on a cladistic analysis by Carrano "et.al.":

Paleobiology.

Diet.

"Eustreptospondylus", like many other theropods, fed on smaller dinosaurs and pterosaurs, or scavenged the carcasses of fishes, marine reptiles, and other dinosaurs. It might have foraged on shorelines for carcasses and marine life.

Swimming.

"Eustreptospondylus" is known from a fossil from on an island, at a time when Europe consisted mostly of archipelagos. This suggests that it might have been able to swim short distances. "Eustreptospondylus" has been considered a good swimmer, strong enough to swim from island to island like the modern day Komodo dragon. Not all palaeontologists agree with the swimming hypothesis. The opposing theories hold that the fossil of "Eustreptospondylus" was either swept out to sea during a flood after the animal died on the mainland, or it was carried to the ocean after it died in a river.

Insular dwarfism.

"Eustreptospondylus" has been portrayed as a genus that suffered from insular dwarfism. In 2000, David Martill and Darren Naish pointed out that the portrayal of the animal as an island-dwelling dwarf species was caused by not realizing that the holotype specimen represented a subadult.

Eustreptospondylus ( ; meaning "true "Streptospondylus"") is a genus of megalosaurid theropod dinosaur, from the Oxfordian stage of the Late Jurassic period (some time between 163 and 154 million years ago) in southern England, at a time when Europe was a series of scattered islands (due to tectonic movement at the time which raised the sea-bed and flooded the lowland).

Eustreptospondylus („pěkně klenutá žebra“) byl rod poměrně velkého teropodního dinosaura, žijícího na území západní Evropy přibližně před 165 miliony let (období střední jury). Formálně byl typový druh "E. oxoniensis" popsán v roce 1964.


Development history.

Before Windows 3.0, Microsoft had a partnership with IBM, where the latter had sold personal computers running on the former's MS-DOS since 1981. Microsoft had made previous attempts to develop a successful operating environment called Windows, and IBM declined to include the project in its computers. As MS-DOS was entering its fifth iteration, IBM demanded a version of DOS that could run in "protected mode", which would allow it to execute multiple programs at once. MS-DOS was originally designed to run in real mode and thus only one program at a time, due to the limited memory of the Intel 8088 microprocessor. Intel had later released the Intel 80286, which had enough memory to perform such multitasking. The two developed the next generation of DOS, OS/2. Software that was compatible with DOS was not with OS/2, giving IBM an advantage.  As the rest of the Microsoft team moved on to the OS/2 project, David Weise, a member of the Windows development team and a critic of IBM, believed that he could restart the Windows project. Microsoft needed a debugging program that could run in protected mode, so it hired Murray Sargent, a physics professor from the University of Arizona whose own debugging program could emulate applications in protected mode. Windows 3.0 originated in 1988 as an independent project by Weise and Sargent, who used the latter's debugger to find problems with Windows. They cobbled together a rough prototype that contained three applications: Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and PowerPoint. They then presented it to company executives, who were impressed enough to approve it as an official project. When IBM learned of Microsoft's upcoming project, their relationship was damaged, but Microsoft asserted that it would cancel Windows after its launch and that it would continue to develop OS/2.  Windows 3.0 was formally and officially announced on May 22, 1990, in the New York City Center Theater, where Microsoft released it worldwide. The event had 6,000 attendees, and it was broadcast live in the Microsoft social fairs of seven other North American cities and twelve major cities outside. It cost Microsoft US$3 million to host the festivities—something its founder, Bill Gates, referred to as the "most extravagant, extensive, and expensive software introduction ever." Microsoft decided not to offer free runtime licenses of the software to applications vendors, as runtime versions of Windows lacked the capacity to multitask. Instead, the company offered upgrades for both full and runtime previous versions of Windows at a cost of —considerably lower than the full license's suggested retail price of $149. The software could also be obtained by purchasing computers with it preinstalled from hardware manufacturers. The first of these manufacturers were Zenith Data Systems, Austin Computer Systems and CompuAdd, followed by more than 25 others; notably, IBM was not one of them.  Microsoft had intended to make Windows 3.0 appealing to the public in general. The company's "Entry Team", assigned to that task, was concerned that the public might perceive it to be no more than a tool for large enterprises, due to the software's high system requirements. Major game publishers did not see it as a potential game platform, instead sticking to DOS. Microsoft's product manager Bruce Ryan compiled games that the Windows team had designed in its spare time to create "Microsoft Entertainment Pack", which included "Tetris" and "Minesweeper". There was little budget put in the project, and none of that was spent on quality testing. Nevertheless, the "Entertainment Pack" was sold as a separate product, and it became so popular that it was followed by three other "Entertainment Packs".  On December 31, 2001, Microsoft dropped support for Windows 3.0, along with previous versions of Windows and Windows 95, Windows for Workgroups, and MS-DOS versions up to 6.22.

Features.

Windows 3.0 features a significantly revamped graphical user interface (GUI), which was described as having a three-dimensional look similar to the Presentation Manager, rather than the flat look of its predecessor, Windows 2.1x. It also includes technical improvements to the memory management to make better use of the capabilities of Intel's 80286 and 80386 processors. Dynamic Data Exchange is a multitasking protocol whereby multiple running applications dynamically exchange data with one another, i.e., when data in one application changes, so does the data in another. This feature had appeared in Windows previously, but until Windows 3.0, due to memory constraints, users were unable to use the protocol. These users instead had to exit to DOS to run one application, close it, and open another to exchange data. Due to its support for the 386 and later processors, Windows 3.0 can also use virtual memory, which is a portion of a hard disk drive that is substituted for memory by the processor in the event that its own memory is exhausted. Like its predecessors, Windows 3.0 is not an operating system "per se", but rather an operating environment that is designed for DOS and controls its functions.  The MS-DOS Executive file manager was replaced with Program Manager, the list-based File Manager, and Task List. Program Manager is a graphical shell composed of icons, each with an underlying title. They can be moved and arranged in any order, and the icons' titles can be renamed. When double-clicked on, these icons open corresponding applications or smaller windows within the Program Manager window called group windows. These group windows contain such icons and can be minimized to prevent cluttering of the Program Manager window's space. File Manager is another shell used to access or modify applications, but displays them as files contained in directories in a list format. Its purpose as an alternative to using DOS commands is to facilitate moving files and directories. Task List displays all running applications and may also be used to terminate them, select a different program, cascade or tile the windows, and arrange minimized desktop icons. The Control Panel, where users can change settings to customize Windows and hardware, was also redesigned as an icon-based window.  The drivers bundled with Windows 3.0 support up to 16 simultaneous colors from EGA or VGA palettes, as opposed to the previous maximum of eight colors, though the operating environment itself supports graphics adapters that offer resolutions and the number of colors greater than VGA. Windows 3.0 also introduced the Palette Manager, a set of functions that allow applications to change the lookup palette of graphics cards displaying up to 256 colors in order to use needed colors. When multiple displayed windows exceed the 256-color limit, Windows 3.0 prioritizes the active window to use that application's colors, without resorting to dithering and then filling in areas.  Windows 3.0 retains many of the simple applications from its predecessors, such as the text editor Notepad, the word processor Write, and the improved paint program Paintbrush. Calculator is expanded to include scientific calculations. Recorder is a new program that records macros, or sequences of keystrokes and mouse movements, which are then assigned to keys as shortcuts to perform complex functions quickly. Also, the earlier Reversi game was complemented with the card game Microsoft Solitaire, which would eventually be inducted into the World Video Game Hall of Fame in 2019. Another notable program is Help. Unlike DOS applications, which may have help functions as part of them, Windows Help is a separate and readily accessible application that accompanies all Windows programs that support it.

Updates.

There are two updates known to have been published for Windows 3.0. One of them is Windows 3.0a, released in December 1990. It modified Windows' DOS extender—a program that enables DOS applications to access extended memory—to prevent errors caused by software calling into real-mode code when Windows is loaded in standard mode. It also simplified the installation process and alleviated crashes associated with networking, printing, and low-memory conditions.

Windows 3.0 with Multimedia Extensions.

Windows 3.0 with Multimedia Extensions 1.0 (MME) was released to third-party manufacturers in October 1991. The application programming interface introduced Media Control Interface, designed for any media-related device such as graphics and audio cards, scanners, and videotape players. It also supported recording and playing digital audio, MIDI devices, screensavers and analog joysticks, as well as CD-ROM drives, which were then becoming increasingly available. Other features included additional applets such as an alarm clock and Media Player, used to run media files. MME supports stereo sound and 16-bit audio bit depth and sampling rates of up to 44.1 kHz.

System requirements.

The official system requirements for Windows 3.0 and its substantial update, Windows 3.0 with Multimedia Extensions:  The processor and memory minimum requirements for the original version are those needed to run Windows in real mode, the lowest of the three operating modes. This mode severely limits the multitasking capabilities of Windows, although it can still use expanded memory, which is memory that is added by installing expanded memory boards or memory managers. However, it also provides backward compatibility with as many hardware and software designed for DOS as possible, and it may be used to run DOS applications and older Windows applications not optimized for Windows 3.0 if running them in higher operating modes is not possible. Standard mode requires at least an 80286 processor, and although the memory required is unchanged, the mode does allow the processor to use extended memory for running applications. 386 enhanced mode requires at least an 80386 processor and two megabytes of memory. While the other modes can run DOS applications in full-screen only and must suspend DOS applications in order to run Windows programs and "vice versa", the DOS applications in 386 enhanced mode can be run windowed and concurrently with the Windows applications. Unlike the other modes, this one cannot be used to run DOS applications that use DOS extenders. Normally, Windows will start in the highest operating mode the computer can use, but the user may force it into lower modes by typing codice_1 or codice_2 at the DOS command prompt. If the user selects an operating mode that cannot be used due to lack of RAM or CPU support, Windows merely boots into the next lowest one.

Reception.

Windows 3.0 is considered to be the first version of Windows to receive critical acclaim. Users and critics universally lauded its icon-based interface and the ensuing ease of performing operations, as well as the improved multitasking and greater control over customizing their environments. "Computerworld" considered the software to share the same benefits as OS/2 and Unix. Garry Ray of "Lotus" considered this version of Windows the first of the environment to bear "serious long-term consideration." Bill Howard of "PC Magazine" found its user interface to be easy to use, though not quite as intuitive as Macintosh. The editor of "InfoWorld", Michael J. Miller, had faith that PC users would fully transition from the preceding text-only environment to the GUI with Windows 3.0 as their primary choice.  One critical aspect of Windows 3.0 is how it managed memory. Before its release, users of previous versions of Windows were burdened with trying to circumvent memory constraints to utilize those versions' touted capabilities. The Windows software occupied a large amount of memory, and users regularly experienced system slowdowns and often exceeded memory limits. Windows 3.0 also had relatively high memory requirements by 1990's standards, but with the three memory modes, it was praised for using memory more efficiently, removing the 640–kilobyte limit that had existed in computers running on Microsoft software since DOS, and supporting more powerful CPUs.  Ted Needleman of the computer magazine "Modern Electronics" called Windows 3.0's GUI "state-of-the-art" and compared Microsoft's previous attempts to produce such a GUI to Apple Lisa, Apple's early such attempt and the predecessor to its far more successful Macintosh. He cautioned about the seemingly cheap upgrade cost of US$50 when the system requirements and the need to upgrade any installed applications for compatibility are considered. He also cautioned that the software's advantages could be taken only by running Windows applications. However, in February 1991, "PC Magazine" noted a vast array of applications designed specifically for Windows 3.0, including many that had yet to be available for OS/2. It also cited two other factors leading to the operating environment's success: one of them was the inexpensive cost of the hardware needed to run it compared to the Macintosh, and the other was its focus on fully utilizing hardware components that were relatively powerful by its time's standards.  Amid the unprecedented success of Windows 3.0, Microsoft came under attack by critics as well as the United States Federal Trade Commission, who alleged that the company had attempted to dominate the applications market by luring its competitors into developing software for IBM's OS/2 while it was developing its own for Windows. At the time of Windows 3.0's release, Microsoft had only 10 and 15 percent of the market shares on spreadsheets and word processors, respectively, but those figures had risen to over 60 percent in 1995, overtaking previously dominant competitors such as Lotus Development Corporation and WordPerfect. Microsoft did indeed suggest developers to write applications for the OS/2, but it also intended Windows 3.0 to be a "low-end" alternative to the latter, with Gates referring to the OS/2 as the operating system of the 1990s. The Windows brand was also intended to be canceled after this version's release. The investigations into—and the eventual subsequent suing of—Microsoft led to a settlement on July 15, 1994, where Microsoft agreed not to bundle separate software packages with its operating products. It marked the first time that the company had ever been investigated for anticompetitive practices.

Sales.

Windows 3.0 is also considered the first Windows to see commercial success. At the time of release, of the 40 million personal computers installed, only five percent used either previous version of Windows, but within its first week of availability, it rose as the top-selling business software. After six months, two million licenses were sold. Its success was interdependent with the PC industry, exemplified by an explosion of demand for and subsequent production of Intel's more powerful microprocessor, the 80486. Windows became so widely used in businesses that Brian Livingston of "InfoWorld" wrote in October 1991 that "a company with no PCs that run Windows is almost like a company without a fax machine." Microsoft had spent a total of $10 million in its marketing campaign for the software, including the $3 million for its release. When its successor, Windows 3.1, was released, sales totaled about 10 million licenses, and a year later the Windows series would overtake DOS as the bestselling application of all time.  Windows 3.0 is regarded in retrospect as a turning point in the future of Microsoft, being attributed to its later dominance in the operating system market and to the company's improved applications market share. The company used to have close ties with IBM since the former's inception, but the unexpected success of its new product would lead to the two companies recasting their relationship, where they would continue to sell each other's operating products until 1993. After the fiscal year of 1990, Microsoft reported revenues of US$1.18 billion, with $337 million appearing in the fourth quarter. This annual statistic is up from $803.5 million in fiscal 1989, and it made Microsoft the first microcomputer software company to reach the $1 billion mark in one year. Microsoft officials attributed the results to the sales of Windows 3.0.

Windows 3.0 is the third major release of Microsoft Windows, launched in 1990. Like its predecessors, it is not an operating system, but rather a graphical operating environment that runs on top of DOS. It features a new graphical user interface (GUI) where applications are represented as clickable icons, as opposed to the list of file names seen in its predecessors. Later updates would expand the software's capabilities, one of which added multimedia support for sound recording and playback, as well as support for CD-ROMs.

Windows 3.0 je v informatice označení pro grafické uživatelské rozhraní firmy Microsoft vydané 22. května 1990. Jedná se o 16bitovou nadstavbu operačního systému DOS. Windows se v této verzi staly na IBM PC prvním reálným soupeřem pro počítače Macintoshe od Applu a Amiga od firmy Commodore International. Nástupcem byla série verzí Windows 3.1x.


Background.

Tensions within the band and its management resulted in an album that is highly eclectic in terms of its musical aesthetics, to the point that it has been rejected by the band's core audience as not being a Helloween album at all. This position is based on the notion that Helloween (arguably) created but, more importantly, had perfected the power metal sound.  Having failed to live up to the standard of "" and "" after "Pink Bubbles Go Ape" in commercial (and somewhat artistic) terms, "Chameleon" abandoned almost all elements of the power metal sound that the band had been instrumental in creating, and can be seen as an attempt to garner success in wider musical avenues like synthesizers, horns, acoustic guitars, the children's chorus of the Orchester Johann Sebastian Bach, violin, church organ, country music, grunge and swing, with participation of musicians like Stefan Pintev and Axel Bergstedt. The atmosphere of the album is closer to progressive rock, with some pop elements. While some of these elements may have always been a part of Helloween's sound, they were not in the forefront of their sound and were not the elements most celebrated by the bands core heavy metal audience. The song "Giants" has more power metal elements than any other song on the album. "Chameleon" was the only time these diverse influences would make it to the front of the band's sound. In terms of production, this is arguably the most accomplished album of the Michael Kiske era, well produced with an epic sound full of different stylistic influences. The name "Chameleon" is derived from the style change from song to song (as a chameleon changes color).  The album contains four singles: "Windmill", "When the Sinner", "Step Out of Hell", and "I Don't Wanna Cry No More".  The album was a failure both critically and commercially, and vocalist Michael Kiske and drummer Ingo Schwichtenberg were fired after the subsequent promotional tour. The band then recruited vocalist Andi Deris from Pink Cream 69 along with drummer Uli Kusch and continued in a direction more akin to their earlier works.

Personnel.

Guests.

It is an interesting footmark, that three of the children of the children's choir are Aminata, Jazz and Sophie from Black Buddafly, who had been 12 and 13 years old, when they sang for Chameleon.

Chameleon is the fifth studio album by German power metal band Helloween, released in 1993. It is their most musically adventurous release, but also their least commercially successful, and last studio album to feature singer Michael Kiske and original drummer Ingo Schwichtenberg.

Chameleon je páté studiové album německé speed/powermetalové kapely Helloween. Na albu se oproti předchozí nahrávce Pink Bubbles Go Ape objevil ještě větší odklon od původního žánru směrem k víceméně klasickému rocku a místy až popu, což následně vedlo k odchodu zpěváka Michaela Kiskeho. Zhoršující se stav bubeníka Inga Schwichtenberga závislého na drogách a alkoholu znamenal rovněž jeho odchod ze skupiny. Deska byla nahrána v roce 1992 ve studiu "Chateau de Paup" v Hamburku a zmixováno ve stejném roce "Scream Studios" v Los Angeles


Early life.

Komrsková was born on May 6, 1983, to father Jan Komrska, a gymnastics coach, and mother Zdena Komrsková (née Dorňáková), a 1972 Olympian. She started gymnastics at the age of four and was coached by her parents in Zlín. Her younger sister, Aneta, also competed in gymnastics, while her older sister, Lucie, was a leading Czech long jumper.

Gymnastics career.

At the age of 10, Komrsková became a member of the Czech national junior team, and in 1995, she participated in the European Junior Championships for the first time. Two years later, she won three titles in the senior national championships in 1997, including the all-around title, with particularly strong performances on the uneven bars and vault.

1999–2000.

At the 1999 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Tianjin, Komrsková qualified to the all-around final in ninth place, but major faults on beam sent her back to 33rd in the all-around final. The Czech team finished in 16th place, qualifying two gymnasts to the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.  In the Olympic year, Komrsková recorded her first success in a World Cup competition (second place on vault in Cottbus, behind Russia's Yelena Produnova) and finished ninth in the all-around at the 2000 European Championships.  She and Kateřina Marešová competed for the Czech Republic at the 2000 Summer Olympics. Komrsková qualified for the individual all-around final in 29th place despite an infection contracted through blisters on her forearm. Immediately after the final, she underwent minor surgery.  After the Games, Komrsková placed fourth on uneven bars and vault at the World Cup final in Glasgow.

2001–2004.

Following several podium finishes in World Cup events, Komrsková was one of the favorites for the vault title at the 2001 World Championships in Ghent. She advanced to the final and finished fourth behind Svetlana Khorkina, Oksana Chusovitina, and Andreea Răducan, losing the bronze medal to Răducan by 0.037 points.  Komrsková was the stand-by for the uneven bars final at the 2002 European Championships and the vault final at the 2003 World Championships, missing the former by 0.012. Her 11th-place finish in the all-around at the 2002 European Championships was her top result in those two years. At the 2003 Worlds in Anaheim, California, she clinched the only Czech berth for the 2004 Summer Olympics, but injured her elbow in the process. At the end of the year, she also broke bones in her foot. She missed the 2004 national and European championships but recovered in time for the Olympics in Athens.  At the Olympics, Komrsková finished 32nd in the all-around qualification and was the second alternate for the final. She said afterward: "When I was in the Olympic Games before, I was younger and I was a bit overwhelmed. Now, it's a normal competition for me. I still think the Olympics is the most important competition for an athlete, but now I am a lot more relaxed about it."

2005–2008.

After the 2004 Olympics, Komrsková decided to end her gymnastics career and try pole vaulting, following the example of Daniela Bártová, a former Czech gymnast who went on to set pole vaulting records. However, Komrsková was hindered by her elbow injury. She then tried to join her sister Lucie in long jumping, but ultimately decided to return to gymnastics.  Her parents had retired from coaching, so Komrsková began training with the Czech national team coach, Stanislav Vyzina, in Brno. She returned to national competitions in late 2005 and went on to win her first World Cup title: a gold medal on vault at the B-category World Cup in Maribor, Slovenia. In 2006, she performed well at several World Cup events, winning gold on vault and bronze on balance beam in Maribor, and silver on vault in Moscow and Lyon.  At the 2006 European Championships in Volos, Greece, Komrsková finished fourth in the vault final, only 0.075 off the podium. She also recorded the 11th best all-around total in qualifications, though no individual all-around final was held. At the Czech national championships, she won four of five possible titles.  Komrsková was the highest-scoring Czech gymnast at the 2006 World Championships and narrowly missed the all-around final: She finished 32nd in qualifications, making her the second alternate. She went on to win the vault titles at the 2006 World Cup final in Brazil and the 2007 European Championships in Amsterdam. At the 2007 World Championships in Stuttgart, she finished seventh on vault, with high execution marks but relatively low difficulty.  The Czech Republic earned one gymnastics berth for the 2008 Summer Olympics. As the only Czech gymnast to qualify to a final at the 2007 World Championships, Komrsková was a front-runner for the spot. However, she retired instead, saying that because she had been to the Olympics twice, it was time for another Czech gymnast to have the opportunity.

Jana Komrsková (born May 6, 1983, in Roudnice nad Labem) is an artistic gymnast from the Czech Republic who competed in the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics.

Jana Komrsková (* 6. května 1983, Roudnice nad Labem) je bývalá česká sportovní gymnastka. Zúčastnila se olympijských her v Sydney 2000 a Aténách 2004.


Railway.

Tapa owes its existence to the railroad. (The three long, white rectangles on Tapa's flag represent the three branches of the railway that meet there.) In the 1860s, there were only native meadows where Tapa sits today. Forests of fir trees were chopped down as railroad tracks were laid eastward from Paldiski (in northwestern Estonia) to St. Petersburg, Russia. The Baltic Railway Company opened the tracks on 24 October 1870. Construction of the Tapa–Tartu branch of the railway began in 1875, and the first train to Tartu passed through Tapa on 21 August 1876. From that day on, Tapa grew quickly as a railway town. Land was purchased from the Tapa Manor () to build a railway station and a depot for repairing and maintaining locomotives. The repair shop opened in 1876. The station was given the German name "Taps" from the manor, and the town got its name from the station.

Military bases.

Tapa has been known as both a railway and a military town throughout its history. On 1 August 1923, an armoured train regiment () was formed in Tapa with two armoured wagons: the "Kapten Irv", which served in the Estonian War of Independence, and the "Onu Tom". On 30 November 1934, a regiment in Valga (in southern Estonia) was moved to Tapa. The regiment's base, located on the southern edge of town around Tapa Manor's main building, played a considerable role in the town's life and contributed to the town's continued development.  In January 1941, however, the regiment was dissolved by Soviet forces. Seven months later, on 14 August 1941, Nazi German troops took over Tapa. During the German occupation, German military items were housed where the Estonian armoured train regiment's headquarters had been. In 1972, the engineering-technical education military unit no. 67665 of the Soviet army was on the site.  There has been an airfield on the southern edge of Tapa since 1932. The Tapa Aerial Union () held its first fly in on 30 September 1934. The Russians began building a military airfield on the site in the fall of 1939. The Soviets began extensive construction of a military airfield in the spring of 1952. MiG-17s were stationed at the base by the end of the same year. Later, Tapa Airfield was made home to the Soviet 656th Interceptor Aviation Regiment. In 1993, the Estonian Defence Ministry assumed control of the airfield. On 18 June 1993 the first civilian plane touched down on the cement runway. As the Soviet troops and their families left Tapa, the town's population dropped from 10,395 in 1989 to 6,800 in 2000. Tapa was left with a vacant, ransacked, poorly constructed military district. Yet, its life as a military town did not end. In January 2002, following changes in the structure of Estonian defence units, Tapa again became the home of a military base. The Northeast Defence District () in Tapa includes an army training center, an artillery battalion, an anti-aircraft battalion and an engineer battalion.  The base is also home to a British-led eFP battlegroup, as part of 1st Infantry Brigade.  Today, on the north wall of Tapa's railway station, there is a bronze plaque, originally dedicated on 9 January 1934 and re-dedicated on 20 February 1993, that commemorates the Estonian War of Independence. On the plaque is the symbol of Tapa's armoured train regiment. Called "Flying Death on the Railway", the symbol is a skull with a pair of angel wings and wagon train wheels behind it.

Religion and Culture.

Throughout Tapa's history, in between the depot and the military base, civic and religious institutions have flourished. At services on 2 December 2007, the first Sunday of Advent, the congregation of the St. Jacob's Lutheran Church, celebrated its 75th anniversary.  A temporary house of prayer was dedicated in Tapa on 19 June 1921 by the first bishop of the EELK Jaak Kukk. It was named after the apostle John. St. Jacob's was dedicated on 27 November 1932, the first Sunday of Advent. Either August Tauk or Anatoli Podchekayev is the architect of the neo-historical stone church. The altarpiece, called the "Joyous Christ" or "Come to me", was painted by Russian icon artist Olga Obolyaninova. The church was renovated from 1953–55 and from 1972–74.  On 10 June 2007, the Baptist church in Tapa celebrated its 75th anniversary. The church was established on 12 June 1932, and Philip Gildemann was its first pastor. In 1940, with Gottfried Palias as pastor (1933–45), services moved to Tapa's Methodist church building. In 1980, with Dimitri Lipping as pastor (1976–92), it acquired the building at Kooli street 1 for Sunday school and other youth programs. In November 2003, it changed its name to the Tapa Living Faith Church (). It holds Sunday services, with simultaneous translation into Russian, in Tapa's Methodist church at Kesk street 11. At 75, Tapa's Baptist church had 40 members: 58 percent were between the ages of 21 and 74 and 68 percent were female. There were 50 participants in its Sunday school and more than 100 youth in its summer camp. Its other pastors were Evald Aer (1945–56), Paldor Teekel (1956–60), Eduard Kaur (1961), Erich Sõmer (1962–67), Heino Kivisild and Arli Tammo (1968–1975), and Toomas Kivisild (from 1993). The church belongs to the Union of Free Evangelical and Baptist Churches of Estonia ().  On 17 March 2007, Tapa Music School () celebrated its 50th anniversary with a concert by its students and its graduates. Like many Estonian towns, Tapa has a music school that is second only to the local elementary and high school in educating children and preparing them for successful lives as teenagers and young adults. The music school opened in the fall of 1957. Peeter Kald was the school's director from 1979 until 2007, when his son Ilmar was named director.  The town is also the site of a sausage festival.

Estonian language.

On 30 May 1908, learned individuals from Tallinn and Tartu met in Tapa to agree on how the Estonian language should be written. By the beginning of the 19th century, two forms of Estonian had evolved: a Tallinn Estonian in the north and a Tartu Estonian in the south. So the Estonian Literary Society in Tartu and the Literature Department of the Folk Education Society of Estonia in Tallinn convened a conference. The first of four conferences that were held from 1908 to 1911 was in Tapa, because it was easily accessible by train from both Tallinn and Tartu. The meeting took place in the "Harmonie" room of what is today Tapa's music school.  What was so different about what Estonians in the north were writing and what their fellow countrymen just 240 km to the south were writing? The spelling of some words was different because the pronunciation of the words was different. For example, the word "pea" (head) in the south was "pää" in the north, "hea" (good) was "hää", and "seal" (there) was "sääl". Similarly, "õõ" (two vowels together; both are pronounced) at one end of the country was written "õe" at the other end, "õuu" was "õu", and the "-gi" ending was written "-ki". Also, in both the north and the south the "h" sound at the beginning of a word, like "hõbune" (horse) and "hoidma" (to hold), was clearly written but softly spoken. So the conference participants wanted to decide if the "h" should it be written if it is not pronounced?  On 30 May 2008, the 100th anniversary of this conference, Tapa organized another conference on the Estonian language with esteemed representatives from the Mother Tongue Society ("Emakeele Selts"), the Estonian Language Institute, the Language Inspectorate of the Estonian Ministry of Education ("Keeleinspektsioon"), the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research, Tartu University's Estonian and General Linguistics Institut, and the Estonian Writers' Union. The theme of the conference was "Language Grows from Me" ("Keel kasvab minust enesest"). The master of ceremonies was Marika Rajur of the Tapa Literary Club.  Before the conference began, a plaque to commemorate the very first conference was unveiled in front of the music school by Kuno Rooba, Tapa's mayor. The plaque reads "The first conference on written Estonian took place in Tapa" ("Tapal toimus esimene eesti kirjakeele konverents").

References/Footnotes.

Lääne Viru Maavalitsus, "2007 Lääne Virumaa Yearbook". Estonian: "Lääne Virumaa Aastaraamat". Rakvere, 2008.

Tapa is a town in Tapa Parish, Lääne-Viru County, Estonia. Located at the junction of the country's Tallinn–Narva (west–east) and Tallinn–Tartu–Valga (north–south) railway lines, it is an important centre of transit for freight (mainly Russian oil and timber) as well as rail passengers (mostly Estonian commuters). A home to soldiers since the 1930s, Tapa also plays an important role in training young men and women in the Estonian Defense Forces. The Valgejõgi River passes Tapa on its northeastern side.

Tapa (německy "Taps") je estonské město bez vlastní samosprávy, náležející do obce Tapa kraje Lääne-Virumaa. Je nejvýznamnějším estonským železničním uzlem.


Biography.

Born in Prague, at the age of six, he began playing the piano. He originally aspired to become an actor, until hearing the Beatles and their lively Mersey sound music and starting a band with his friends. This band was briefly named The Beatles, but soon renamed George and Beatovens. Their western style music was popular with the Czech youth and they quickly rose to popularity as one of the nations most popular bands. especially during the Prague Spring. Their success was short lived. Soon the allies of the Warsaw Pact invaded and the Warsaw Pact occupation began. Afterwards, he began a solo career and his fame continued to grow, despite strict government regulations.  The new, more conservative administration, who frowned upon Petr's western influenced music and his notorious hard partying and heavy drinking, encouraged venuesm local and national gigs not to hire Petr to perform. His career reached its peak c. 1975 with the release of his last truly successful album "Kráska a zvíře", and afterwards it led to a slow decline along with his growing alcohol problems brought his days as a popular and influential musician to a halt. His music suffered after longtime collaborator and lyricist Ivo Plicka fled the country in the late seventies, therefore the quality of his music, his voice, and his songs deteriorated. Although he continued until his death, his musical output never reached the critical success of his earlier work. In fact, many of the albums released in the 1980s proved to be both critical and commercial failures. There was renewed interest in his music after the Velvet Revolution, but he was too ill to re-establish himself in popular culture.  He died in 1997, with his death certificate stating "suspect poisoning by unidentifiable poison X-49".

Discography.

Albums  Singles

Petr Novák (6 September 1945 – 19 August 1997) was a Czech rock musician. He is best known for his romantic Beatles inspired pop songs with his bands George and Beatovens and Flamengo in the late 1960s.

Petr Novák (6. září 1945 Praha – 19. srpna 1997 Praha) byl český zpěvák a skladatel, který proslul řadou popových hitů, kde uplatňoval svůj charakteristický vysoko položený hlas a melancholicky romantický projev.


Design and development.

The B5N carrier torpedo-bomber's weaknesses had shown themselves early in the Second Sino-Japanese War and, as well as updating that aircraft, the Imperial Japanese Navy began seeking a faster longer-ranged replacement. In December 1939 it issued a specification to Nakajima for a Navy Experimental "14-Shi" Carrier Attack Aircraft capable of carrying the same external weapons load as the B5N. The new plane was to carry a crew of three (pilot, navigator/bombardier and radio operator/gunner) and be of low wing, cantilevered, all-metal construction (though control surfaces were fabric-covered). Further requirements included a top speed of, a cruising speed of and a range of with an bomb load or without external armament.  The Navy had requested installation of the proven Mitsubishi "Kasei" engine as the B6N's powerplant but Engineer Kenichi Matsumara insisted on using Nakajima's new "Mamori" 11 14-cylinder air-cooled radial due to its lower fuel consumption and greater adaptability. This became an unfortunate choice as the "Mamori" engine was plagued with mechanical defects and never achieved its expected power rating.  Constrained by the standard-sized aircraft elevators then in use on most Japanese carriers, designer Matsumara was obliged to use a wing similar in span and area as that of the B5N and to limit the aircraft's overall length to. This latter restriction accounted for the B6N's distinctive swept-forward tail fin and rudder. The outer wing panels folded upward hydraulically, reducing the B6N's overall span from to approximately for minimal carrier stowage. In order to lessen increased wingloading due to the heavier powerplant, Fowler flaps were installed which could be extended beyond the wing's trailing edge. These were normally lowered to an angle of 20 degrees during take-off and 38 degrees when landing. Despite the use of these flaps, however, the B6N had a much higher stall speed than its predecessor.  The prototype B6N1 made its maiden flight on 14 March 1941. Following continued testing, however, several problems became evident. In particular, the aircraft exhibited an alarming tendency to roll while in flight, the cause of which was traced to the extreme torque developed by the four-bladed propeller. To compensate, the aircraft's tail fin was thinned down and moved 2 degrees ten minutes to port. This modification greatly improved the plane's handling characteristics.  The B6N1's "Mamori" 11 engine was found prone to severe vibrations and overheating at certain speeds and was at first judged too unreliable (an important consideration given that the plane was expected to fly long distances over open water). Following a series of modifications, though, the engine's performance was finally deemed promising enough that carrier acceptance trials were begun at the end of 1942. Subsequent test flights conducted aboard the carriers "Ryuho" and "Zuikaku" indicated the need to strengthen the tail hook mounting on the plane's fuselage. Some attempts were also made to use RATOG (rocket-assisted take-off gear) units on several B6N1s in order to qualify the aircraft for use on smaller carriers but the results were unsatisfactory.  The B6N1 was officially approved for production status in early 1943 and given the designation Navy Carrier Attack Aircraft "Tenzan" Model 11. Modifications based on testing of the initial prototypes included: the addition of a flexible Type 92 machine gun in a ventral tunnel at the rear of the cockpit (in addition to the standard rear-firing Type 92), and a 7.7mm Type 97 machine-gun to the port wing (the latter was eventually deleted after the seventieth production aircraft); angling the torpedo mounting rack 2 degrees downward and adding torpedo stabilization plates to prevent the torpedo from bouncing during low-altitude release; strengthening of the main landing gear. A proposal by the designers to replace the B6N1's unprotected fuel tanks with self-sealing ones would have resulted in a 30% drop in fuel capacity, a loss in range the Navy decided was unacceptable.  After only 133 B6N1s had been produced by July 1943, the Japanese Ministry of Munitions ordered Nakajima to halt manufacture of the "Mamori" 11 engine in order that the Navy reduce the number of different engines then in use. Pending availability of the 18-cylinder Nakajima "Homare" engine, Nakajima was asked to substitute the Mitsubishi MK4T "Kasei" 25 engine on the B6N1 airframe, the very engine the Navy had originally requested them to use. As the "Mamori" 11 and "Kasei" 25 were similar in size, installation was relatively straightforward, requiring only that the nose be extended to maintain the aircraft's center of gravity and minor alterations to the oil cooler and air intakes on the engine cowling. A smaller diameter four-bladed propeller and shorter spinner were also installed at this time, resulting in a small weight-savings, and the retractable tailwheel was fixed permanently in the down position. Finally, the single exhaust stacks on either side of the engine cowling were replaced with multiple smaller stubs to reduce glare at night and to supply a minor amount of forward thrust. The resulting modification was designated Navy Carrier Attack Aircraft "Tenzan" Model 12 or B6N2.  Starting in the fall of 1943, one of every three B6N2s manufactured was equipped with 3-Shiki Type 3 air-to-surface radar for detecting enemy ships. Yagi antennas were installed along the wing leading edges and also protruded from the sides of the rear fuselage.  A final version of the aircraft, designated B6N3 Model 13, was planned for land-based use as, by this point in the war, all of Japan's large carriers had been sunk and those few smaller ones remaining lacked catapults for launching heavier carrier-borne aircraft like the B6N. Changes included installation of a "Kasei" Model 25c engine, a more streamlined engine cowling and crew canopy, strengthening of the main landing gear, a retractable tail wheel and removal of the tail hook. Two B6N3 prototypes were completed but Japan surrendered before this variant could be put into production.  By war's end in August 1945, Nakajima had completed a total of 1,268 B6Ns (almost all of them B6N2s) at its plants in Okawa in the Gumma district and at Aichi in the Handa district. Production never exceeded more than 90 planes per month.

Operational history.

The B6N "Tenzan" began reaching front-line units in August 1943 but only in small numbers. The intent was to gradually replace all of the older B5N "Kate" torpedo planes then operating aboard the carriers of the Third Fleet at Truk Atoll in the Caroline Islands. However, the B6Ns were prematurely committed to battle when increased Allied naval activity in the Solomon Islands indicated a likely invasion at Bougainville. In response to this threat, the IJN initiated Operation Ro. This involved reinforcing land-based air units at Rabaul with 173 carrier aircraft from First Carrier Division ("Zuikaku", "Shokaku" and "Zuiho"), including forty B6Ns. These aircraft were flown from Truk to Rabaul between 28 October and 1 November. On 5 November fourteen B6N1s, escorted by four Zero fighters, were sent to attack American shipping anchored off Bougainville. Four B6N1s were lost and no actual hits were scored, yet returning Japanese pilots claimed to have sunk one large and one medium carrier, two large cruisers and two other cruisers or large destroyers. This was considered an unusually auspicious debut for the new warplane.  Additional attacks mounted on 8 November and 11 November yielded less sanguine results and suffered heavy losses in return. Only 52 of the original 173 planes from First Carrier Division made it back to Truk on 13 November, among them just six B6N1 "Tenzan"'s out of the forty initially committed.  On 19 June 1944, the B6N made its carrier-borne combat debut at The Battle of the Philippine Sea, operating in an environment where the U.S. Navy had virtually complete air superiority. Subsequently, it failed to inflict any significant damage whatsoever whilst taking heavy losses from the U.S. Navy's new F6F Hellcat fighter.  By this point, small improvements in the B6N's performance were amongst the least of the Japanese Navy's problems. When the new model became available in mid-1944, Japan had already lost most of its large carriers, and was becoming desperately short of experienced pilots. The vast majority of B6N2 operations therefore took place from land bases and failed to achieve any major successes. The planes were extensively used in the Battle of Okinawa where they were also used for kamikaze missions for the first time.

Survivors.

Today only one B6N remains in existence and it is stored at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.. It consists of the fuselage and its engine/propeller (separate) and a vertical stabilizer. The location of the horizontal surfaces is unconfirmed; however, as the aircraft was intact at one time, it is possible that the wings are stored separately.

The Nakajima B6N "Tenzan" (Japanese: 中島 B6N 天山—"Heavenly Mountain", Allied reporting name: "Jill") was the Imperial Japanese Navy's standard carrier-borne torpedo bomber during the final years of World War II and the successor to the B5N "Kate". Due to its protracted development, a shortage of experienced pilots and the United States Navy's achievement of air superiority by the time of its introduction, the B6N was never able to fully demonstrate its combat potential.

Nakadžima B6N Tenzan (: 中島 B6N 天山, : "Božská hora") byl jednomotorový dolnoplošný torpédový bombardér japonského císařského námořního letectva užívaný ve druhé světové válce.


Club career.

Puyol was born in La Pobla de Segur, Province of Lleida, Catalonia. He started playing football for his hometown club as a goalkeeper, but after injury problems with his shoulder he switched to forward. He said that in his youth, "My parents were skeptical about me becoming a footballer and encouraged me to study." In 1995, he joined FC Barcelona's youth system at La Masia, switching positions again, to play as a defensive midfielder; two years later, he started playing for the club's B-team, occupying the position of right-back.  In 1998, Barcelona accepted an offer from Málaga CF to sell Puyol, who was behind Frank de Boer and Michael Reiziger in the pecking order. However, he refused to leave after seeing his best friend Xavi make his first-team debut.  Louis van Gaal promoted Puyol to the first team the following year, and he made his La Liga debut on 2 October 1999 in a 2–0 away win against Real Valladolid. After that he successfully made another conversion, now to central defender. During the 2003 off-season, as Barcelona was immersed in a financial crisis, Manchester United showed interest in acquiring Puyol's services, but no move ever materialised; two years later, the player extended his contract for a further five seasons.  Puyol was named club captain at the end of 2003–04, after the retirement of Luis Enrique. He continued to be a defensive cornerstone for "Barça", being awarded the "Best European right-back" award by UEFA in 2002 (amongst other individual accolades), and helping the Catalans win two consecutive league titles. In 2005–06 he appeared in a total of 52 official games, including 12 in that season's UEFA Champions League which ended in victory against Arsenal, the Spaniards second European Cup.  On 16 September 2008, Puyol made his 400th appearance in all competitions for Barcelona's first team in a Champions League group stage match against Sporting CP. In the league season, despite injury problems, he contributed to the team by appearing in 28 matches and helped them win another league title. His only goal came against Real Madrid in "El Clásico" at the Santiago Bernabéu on 2 May 2009 which finished with a resounding 6–2 away win, and he celebrated his goal by kissing his Catalan flag armband in front of the incensed Madrid fans; he was essential to the team also winning the 2009 Copa del Rey, the 2009 Champions League, the 2009 UEFA Super Cup and the 2009 FIFA Club World Cup to complete an unprecedented sextuple, appearing in nearly 100 official matches, and described the club as "the team who every Catalan child wants to play for... I am living the dream playing football for Barça and it is my dream to retire playing here."  On 13 November 2010, Puyol played his 500th game in all competitions for Barcelona's first team in a domestic league tie against Villarreal CF. He struggled again with injuries during the campaign, but still appeared in 28 competitive matches while again winning the league and the Champions League; he played six minutes in the final of the latter competition, a 3–1 victory over Manchester United.  Since the defeat to Inter Milan in the 2009–10 Champions League semi-final, Puyol went on to take part in 56 official matches for Barcelona without losing, a run that only ended on 11 January 2012 at CA Osasuna (2–3 loss). Additionally, he scored two goals in the season's Copa del Rey, against Real Madrid (2–1 away win, 4–3 on aggregate) and Valencia CF (1–1 away, 3–1 aggregate).  On 2 October 2012, in the late stages of a Champions League group stage encounter at S.L. Benfica, his first game upon recovering from a knee ligament injury suffered against Getafe CF, Puyol dislocated his elbow after landing awkwardly in a corner kick challenge. He was initially expected to be sidelined for two months but fully recovered in one. On 18 December Barcelona renewed his contract, extending it until 30 June 2016. In June of the following year he again underwent surgery on his right knee, his sixth operation as a professional, which led to thoughts of early retirement.  On 2 March 2014, Puyol surpassed Migueli to go second in Barça's all-time league appearances table, behind only Xavi, and scored the third goal in a 4–1 home win against UD Almería. Two days later, although he still had two more years in his contract, he announced that he would leave Barcelona at the end of the season. He said, "After my last two major operations, I find it is taking me a lot of effort to reach the level required here, even more than myself and the surgeons thought necessary. That's the reason I have reached this decision".  Barcelona bid farewell to Puyol on 15 May 2014, after a fifteen-year career in the first team (ten as captain) that brought him 21 titles. At a packed Auditori 1899, his teammates, ex-teammates, presidents and coaches paid tribute to him, and he said, "I’ve lived the dream of so many young kids, doing what I most enjoy in life, playing football and training". He announced his retirement shortly after at the age of 36 but stayed connected to his only club; he was immediately appointed director of football Andoni Zubizarreta's assistant. He resigned in January 2015, shortly after Zubizarreta was fired.  In September 2019, Puyol rejected an offer to become Barcelona's sporting director.

International career.

Puyol won his first cap for Spain on 15 November 2000 against the Netherlands, and remained a regular fixture in the following years. He played for his country at the 2000 Olympics, 2002 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2004, 2006 World Cup, Euro 2008, 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2010 World Cup.  During the 2002 World Cup, Puyol scored an own goal in the 3–1 win over Paraguay in the group stages. In the round of 16 tie against Ireland, he assisted Fernando Morientes; following a 1–1 deadlock after extra-time, his team prevailed following a 3–2 penalty shoot-out victory. Spain were eliminated in the quarter-finals of the competition by co-hosts South Korea, after a 5–3 shoot-out defeat.  Puyol started every game except one at Euro 2008, and Spain's defence only conceded two goals in his five games. They won the final against Germany, and he was named in the "Team of the Tournament" alongside his defensive partner, Carlos Marchena of Valencia. He started in three out of five matches at the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, and acted as captain when Iker Casillas was rested for the last group stage fixture; they finished third, and he was included in the "Team of the Tournament" with four of his teammates.  In the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Puyol started every match and played almost every minute (he was replaced by Marchena in the 84th minute of the quarter-final against Paraguay). He scored the only goal in the semi-final with Germany, a powerful header from a corner taken by Barcelona teammate Xavi, which sent the national team through to their first World Cup final. In the decisive match, he featured for the full 120 minutes as the side defeated the Netherlands 1–0. Spain only conceded two goal throughout the tournament – none of which came in the knock-out stages – also keeping five clean sheets, a record for a World Cup–winning team, shared with the 2006 Italy side and 1998's France. He also completed 88% os his passes, the third–highest completion rate of any player in the competition alongside his teammate Sergio Busquets, and was named to the team of the tournament for his performances.  On 1 August 2010, aged 32, Puyol announced that he would continue to represent the national team for at least another two years. He missed Euro 2012 due to a knee injury sustained in a league game against RCD Espanyol in early May, which required surgery and five to six weeks' recuperation. The following year, he was ruled out of the Confederations Cup, once again due to physical problems.  Puyol played his 100th and final international on 6 February 2013, captaining Spain to a 3–1 friendly win over Uruguay in Doha, Qatar.

Style of play.

Puyol was regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation. Mainly a central defender, he was a versatile player who could also feature on either flank, mostly as a right-back, in particular in the first part of his career. He also initially played as a defensive midfielder in his early career, and had previously even been deployed as goalkeeper and striker in his youth.  Described as a "no–nonsense" player, Puyol was known for his commanding presence in the air despite his modest stature, as well his ability to read the game, and his intense commitment and ruggedness as a defender, in particular when challenging for the ball. According to Barcelona's head doctor, he was "the strongest, who has the quickest reactions, and who has the most explosive strength." In 2006, Simon Talbot of "The Guardian" described Puyol as: "Barcelona's very own Captain Caveman, playing football with his heart on his sleeve and his hair in his eyes, throwing himself about the pitch and launching wholeheartedly into kamikaze tackles like a hyperactive, lunatic kid." Club fans referred to him as "The Wall".  Puyol was also known for his leadership and work ethic. He often continued training alone after the end of a team practice session or on days off. He said in 2010, "I don't have Romário's technique, [Marc] Overmars' pace or [Patrick] Kluivert's strength. But I work harder than the others. I'm like the student who is not as clever, but revises for his exams and does OK in the end." Although his positioning was initially cited as a weakness early on in his career, he worked to improve on this aspect of his game throughout his time with Barcelona. Indeed, Miguel Ángel Nadal, who played with him for a short period of time, later said, "Carles plays with maturity, has great positional sense, and above all, has pride in his shirt." A physical yet fair player, he was also known for his anticipation, strength, determination, discipline, intelligence, and concentration as a defender, as well as his man-marking skills and ability to organise his defence; he also excelled in one on one situations.  Fellow defender Gerard Piqué said: "He's someone who, even if you're winning 3–0 and there's a few seconds left in the game will shout at the top of his voice at you if he thinks your concentration is going." A former team-mate said, "Even four goals down he thinks we can still win", and another described him as "a pain in the arse" but added "that's exactly what we need".  Although Puyol was predominantly known his defensive skills, and albeit not being as talented or naturally gifted as other players who also came out of Barcelona's youth system, he possessed solid technique, and was also known for his composure on the ball as well as his passing ability, despite tending to favour safer or simpler passes rather than riskier ones when playing out from the back. As such, throughout his career, he was often deployed alongside a ball-playing centre-back such as Piqué; together, they formed an effective central-defensive partnership, both with Barcelona and Spain, with the former's physical defending complenting the latter's more elegant playing stye.  In his youth, Puyol was also known to be a quick and energetic right-sided defender, who had a penchant for getting forward as well as chasing down his opponents; however, he lost his explosive pace with age. This became particularly noticeable in his later career, when he was usually deployed in the centre, in part due to a series of recurring knee injuries, which limited his playing time and affected his physical condition, eventually forcing him to retire prematurely.

Personal life.

Puyol's long shaggy hair was a distinctive feature throughout his career. Barcelona manager Van Gaal suggested he get it cut when the player was 19, immediately after his first training session with the senior players: "What's your problem, can't you afford the money for a haircut?", Van Gaal asked him in his office. "I said nothing," Puyol remembered, "and to this day have kept my hair as it is.  In 2006, Puyol said that when not working, he leads "a very quiet life... I've not been to a nightclub in Barcelona for years either. When I go out, I stay in a restaurant with my friends."  Puyol's father, Josep, died in a farming accident in late 2006 while Carles was on his way to play a match against Deportivo de La Coruña. He was informed of the news by coach Frank Rijkaard upon landing. He said that this, combined with an injury led to a dark period, with Spanish national team physio Raúl Martínez eventually coming to Barcelona: in the player's words, "...[he] gave me a great telling off. He made me react, and I began to try to be more cheerful, and not overwhelmed by it all."  In March 2009, Puyol told Goal.com: "I do not like to go out much, although it is good to disconnect and I like to read." In September 2010, he started a relationship with model Malena Costa. In October of that year, he scored through a header in a 2–1 home win against Valencia CF and dedicated the goal to her by making a heart symbol with both hands. “I dedicate the goal to my girlfriend”, he said after the game.  In 2011, Puyol paid €30,000 for specialist private treatment for Miki Roqué, a footballer from his home province who was suffering from pelvic cancer. However, the latter died in 2012.  Puyol started a relationship with Vanessa Lorenzo in 2012. The couple had two daughters, Manuela (born 2014) and María (2016).  Puyol was invited by Iranian television channel IRIB TV3 to provide commentary on the World Cup match between Iran and Spain on 20 June 2018 in a programme hosted by Adel Ferdosipour, but was not allowed in the studio. According to news website Entekhab, the former player said that he had been told by the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting that he could not appear in the programme "because of his looks (long hair)"; the veteran channel director had been replaced by one closer to Iran's ultra-religious hardliners weeks before, and this incident ultimately led to some ridicule within Iran on Twitter.

Honours.

Barcelona  Spain U23  Spain  Individual  Decorations

Carles Puyol Saforcada (; born 13 April 1978) is a Spanish former professional footballer. Mainly a central defender, he could also play on either flank, mostly as a right-back, and was regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation.

Carles Puyol i Saforcada [čti Karles Pujol i Saforkada] (* 13. dubna 1978, La Pobla de Segur, Španělsko) je bývalý španělský fotbalista, který celou svou profesionální kariéru odehrál za FC Barcelona, kde byl kapitánem. Po skončení hráčské kariéry se stal asistentem sportovního ředitele FC Barcelona, tuto funkci vykonával do ledna 2015.


Design and development.

Background.

The PBY was originally designed to be a patrol bomber, an aircraft with a long operational range intended to locate and attack enemy transport ships at sea in order to disrupt enemy supply lines. With a mind to a potential conflict in the Pacific Ocean, where troops would require resupply over great distances, the U.S. Navy in the 1930s invested millions of dollars in developing long-range flying boats for this purpose. Flying boats had the advantage of not requiring runways, in effect having the entire ocean available.

Initial development.

As American dominance in the Pacific Ocean began to face competition from Japan in the 1930s, the U.S. Navy contracted Consolidated, Martin and Douglas in October 1933 to build competing prototypes for a patrol flying boat. Naval doctrine of the 1930s and 1940s used flying boats in a wide variety of roles that today are handled by multiple special-purpose aircraft. The U.S. Navy had adopted the Consolidated P2Y and Martin P3M models for this role in 1931, but both aircraft were underpowered and hampered by inadequate range and limited payloads.  Consolidated and Douglas both delivered single prototypes of their new designs, the XP3Y-1 and XP3D-1, respectively. Consolidated's XP3Y-1 was an evolution of the XPY-1 design that had originally competed unsuccessfully for the P3M contract two years earlier and of the XP2Y design that the Navy had authorized for a limited production run. Although the Douglas aircraft was a good design, the Navy opted for Consolidated's because the projected cost was only $90,000 per aircraft. Consolidated's XP3Y-1 design (company "Model 28") had a parasol wing with external bracing struts, mounted on a pylon over the fuselage. Wingtip stabilizing floats were retractable in flight to form streamlined wingtips and had been licensed from the Saunders-Roe company. The two-step hull design was similar to that of the P2Y, but the Model 28 had a cantilever cruciform tail unit instead of a strut-braced twin tail. Cleaner aerodynamics gave the Model 28 better performance than earlier designs. Construction is all-metal, stressed-skin, of aluminum sheet, except the ailerons and wing trailing edge, which are fabric covered.  The prototype was powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-1830-54 Twin Wasp radial engines mounted on the wing's leading edges. Armament comprised four Browning AN/M2 machine guns and up to of bombs.  The XP3Y-1 had its maiden flight on 28 March 1935, after which it was transferred to the U.S. Navy for service trials. The XP3Y-1 was a significant performance improvement over previous patrol flying boats. The Navy requested further development in order to bring the aircraft into the category of "patrol bomber", and in October 1935, the prototype was returned to Consolidated for further work, including installation of R-1830-64 engines. For the redesignated XPBY-1, Consolidated introduced redesigned vertical tail surfaces which resolved a problem with the tail becoming submerged on takeoff, which had made lift-off impossible under some conditions. The XPBY-1 had its maiden flight on 19 May 1936, during which a record non-stop distance flight of was achieved.  The XPBY-1 was delivered to VP-11F in October 1936. The second squadron to be equipped was VP-12, which received the first of its aircraft in early 1937. The second production order was placed on 25 July 1936. Over the next three years, the design was gradually developed further and successive models introduced.  The aircraft eventually bore the name Catalina after Santa Catalina Island, California; the name was coined in November 1941, as Great Britain ordered their first 30 aircraft.

PBN Nomad.

The Naval Aircraft Factory made significant modifications to the PBY design, many of which would have significantly interrupted deliveries had they been incorporated on the Consolidated production lines. The new aircraft, officially known as the PBN-1 Nomad, had several differences from the basic PBY. The most obvious upgrades were to the bow, which was sharpened and extended by two feet, and to the tail, which was enlarged and featured a new shape. Other improvements included larger fuel tanks, increasing range by 50%, and stronger wings permitting a 2,000 lb (908 kg) increase in gross takeoff weight. An auxiliary power unit was installed, along with an improved electrical system, and the weapons were upgraded with continuous-feed mechanisms.  138 of the 156 PBN-1s produced served with the Soviet Navy. The remaining 18 were assigned to training units at NAS Whidbey Island and the Naval Air Facility in Newport, Rhode Island. Later, improvements found in the PBN such as the larger tail were incorporated into the amphibious PBY-6A.

Naming.

The designation "PBY" was determined in accordance with the U.S. Navy aircraft designation system of 1922; "PB" representing "Patrol Bomber" and "Y" being the code assigned to Consolidated Aircraft as its manufacturer. Catalinas built by other manufacturers for the U.S. Navy were designated according to different manufacturer codes, thus Canadian Vickers-built examples were designated PBV, Boeing Canada examples PB2B (there already being a Boeing PBB) and Naval Aircraft Factory examples were designated PBN. In accordance with contemporary British naming practice of naming seaplanes after coastal port towns, Royal Canadian Air Force examples were named Canso, for the town of that name in Nova Scotia. The Royal Air Force used the name Catalina and the U.S. Navy adopted this name in 1942. The United States Army Air Forces and later the United States Air Force used the designation OA-10. U.S. Navy Catalinas used in the Pacific against the Japanese for night operations were painted black overall; as a result these aircraft were sometimes referred to locally as ""Black Cats"".

Operational history.

Roles in World War II.

The PBY was the most numerous aircraft of its kind, with around 3,300 aircraft were built.  During World War II, PBYs were used in anti-submarine warfare, patrol bombing, convoy escort, search and rescue missions (especially air-sea rescue), and cargo transport.  The type operated in nearly all operational theatres of World War II. The Catalina served with distinction and played a prominent and invaluable role in the war against the Japanese.  These patrol planes shared with land based patrol bombers the combat roles while the very long range Consolidated LB-30 and the Consolidated Coronado were pressed into service to increase the all important logistic strategic air lift capability in the vast Pacific theater. The pairings allowed the Catalina to take on the role of eyes of the fleets at longer ranges than the float plane scouts.  Several different flying boats were adopted by the Navy, but the PBY was the most widely used and produced. Although slow and ungainly, Catalinas distinguished themselves in World War II. Allied forces used them successfully in a wide variety of roles for which the aircraft was never intended. PBYs are remembered for their rescue role, in which they saved the lives of thousands of aircrew downed over water. Catalina airmen called their aircraft the "Cat" on combat missions and "Dumbo" in air-sea rescue service.

Anti-submarine warfare.

Catalinas were the most extensively used anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters of World War II, and were also used in the Indian Ocean, flying from the Seychelles and from Ceylon. Their duties included escorting convoys to Murmansk. By 1943, U-boats were well-armed with anti-aircraft guns and two Victoria Crosses were won by Catalina pilots pressing home their attacks on U-boats in the face of heavy fire: Flying Officer John Cruickshank of the RAF, in 1944, for sinking "U-347" (although the submarine is now known to have been "U-361") and in the same year Flight Lieutenant David Hornell of the Royal Canadian Air Force (posthumously) against "U-1225". Catalinas destroyed 40 U-boats, but not without losses of their own. A Brazilian Catalina attacked and sank "U-199" in Brazilian waters on 31 July 1943. Later, the aircraft was baptized as "Arará", in memory of the merchant ship of that name which was sunk by another U-boat.

Maritime patrol.

In their role as patrol aircraft, Catalinas participated in some of the most notable naval engagements of World War II. The aircraft's parasol wing and large waist blisters provided excellent visibility and combined with its long range and endurance, made it well suited for the task.  A RAF Coastal Command Catalina, piloted by Ensign Leonard B. Smith of the U.S. Navy and flying out of Castle Archdale Flying boat base, Lower Lough Erne, Northern Ireland, located on 26 May 1941, some northwest of Brest, the German battleship "Bismarck", which was attempting to evade Royal Navy forces as she sought to join other Kriegsmarine forces in Brest. This sighting eventually led to the destruction of the German battleship.  On 7 December 1941, before the Japanese amphibious landings on Kota Bharu, Malaya, their invasion force was approached by a Catalina flying boat of No. 205 Squadron RAF. The aircraft was shot down by five Nakajima Ki-27 fighters before it could radio its report to air headquarters in Singapore. Flying Officer Patrick Bedell, commanding the Catalina, and his seven crew members became the first Allied casualties in the war with Japan.  A flight of Catalinas spotted the Japanese fleet approaching Midway Island, beginning the Battle of Midway.  A Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Canso flown by Squadron Leader L.J. Birchall foiled Japanese plans to destroy the Royal Navy's Indian Ocean fleet on 4 April 1942 when it detected the Japanese carrier fleet approaching Ceylon (Sri Lanka).

Night attack and naval interdiction.

During the Battle of Midway four USN PBYs of Patrol Squadrons 24 and 51 made an attack on the occupation force of the Japanese fleet on the night of June 3–4, 1942.  The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) also operated Catalinas as night raiders, with four squadrons Nos. 11, 20, 42, and 43 laying mines from 23 April 1943 until July 1945 in the southwest Pacific deep in Japanese-held waters, bottling up ports and shipping routes and forcing ships into deeper waters to become targets for U.S. submarines; they tied up the major strategic ports such as Balikpapan which shipped 80% of Japanese oil supplies. In late 1944, their mining missions sometimes exceeded 20 hours in duration and were carried out from as low as in the dark. Operations included trapping the Japanese fleet in Manila Bay in assistance of General Douglas MacArthur's landing at Mindoro in the Philippines. Australian Catalinas also operated out of Jinamoc in the Leyte Gulf, and mined ports on the Chinese coast from Hong Kong to as far north as Wenchow. Both USN and RAAF Catalinas regularly mounted nuisance night bombing raids on Japanese bases, with the RAAF claiming the slogan "The First and the Furthest". Targets of these raids included a major base at Rabaul. RAAF aircrews, like their U.S. Navy counterparts, employed "terror bombs", ranging from scrap metal and rocks to empty beer bottles with razor blades inserted into the necks, to produce high pitched screams as they fell, keeping Japanese soldiers awake and scrambling for cover.

Search and rescue.

Catalinas were employed by every branch of the U.S. military as rescue aircraft. A PBY piloted by LCDR Adrian Marks (USN) rescued 56 sailors in high seas from the heavy cruiser after the ship was sunk during World War II. When there was no more room inside, the crew tied sailors to the wings. The aircraft could not fly in this state; instead it acted as a lifeboat, protecting the sailors from exposure and the risk of shark attack, until rescue ships arrived. Catalinas continued to function in the search-and-rescue role for decades after the end of the war.

Early commercial use.

Catalinas were also used for commercial air travel. For example, Qantas Empire Airways flew commercial passengers from Suva to Sydney, a journey of, which in 1949 took two days. The longest commercial flights (in terms of time aloft) ever made in aviation history were the Qantas flights flown weekly from 29 June 1943 through July 1945 over the Indian Ocean, dubbed the Double Sunrise. Qantas offered non-stop service between Perth and Colombo, a distance of. As the Catalina typically cruised at, this took from 28 to 32 hours and was called the "flight of the double sunrise", since the passengers saw two sunrises during their non-stop journey. The flight was made in radio silence because of the possibility of Japanese attack and had a maximum payload of or three passengers plus of military and diplomatic mail.

Post-World War II employment.

An Australian PBY named "Frigate Bird II", an ex RAAF aircraft, registered VH-ASA, made the first trans-Pacific flight across the South Pacific between Australia and Chile in 1951 by (Sir) Gordon Taylor, making numerous stops at islands along the way for refueling, meals, and overnight sleep of its crew, flown from Sydney to Quintero in Chile after making initial landfall at Valparaiso via Tahiti and Easter Island.  With the end of the war, all of the flying boat versions of the Catalina were quickly retired from the U.S. Navy, but the amphibious versions remained in service for some years. The last Catalina in U.S. service was a PBY-6A operating with a Naval Reserve squadron, which was retired from use on 3 January 1957. The Catalina subsequently equipped the world's smaller armed services into the late 1960s in fairly substantial numbers.  The U.S. Air Force's Strategic Air Command used Catalinas (designated OA-10s) in service as scout aircraft from 1946 through 1947.  The Brazilian Air Force flew Catalinas in naval air patrol missions against German submarines starting in 1943. The flying boats also carried out air mail deliveries. In 1948, a transport squadron was formed and equipped with PBY-5As converted to the role of amphibious transports. The 1st Air Transport Squadron (ETA-1) was based in the port city of Belem and flew Catalinas and C-47s until 1982. Catalinas were convenient for supplying military detachments scattered along the Amazon. They reached places that were otherwise accessible only by helicopters. The ETA-1 insignia was a winged turtle with the motto "Though slowly, I always get there". Today, the last Brazilian Catalina (a former RCAF one) is displayed at the Airspace Museum (MUSAL) in Rio de Janeiro.  Jacques-Yves Cousteau used a PBY-6A (N101CS) to support his diving expeditions. His second son, Philippe, was killed in an accident in this aircraft that occurred on the Tagus River near Lisbon. The Catalina nosed over during a high-speed taxi run undertaken to check the hull for leakage following a water landing. The aircraft turned upside down, causing the fuselage to break behind the cockpit. The wing separated from the fuselage and the left engine broke off, penetrating the captain's side of the cockpit.  Paul Mantz converted an unknown number of surplus Catalinas to flying yachts at his Orange County California hangar in the late 1940s and early 1950s.  Steward-Davis converted several Catalinas to their Super Catalina standard (later known as Super Cat), which replaced the usual Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp engines with Wright R-2600 Cyclone 14 engines of. A larger, squared-off rudder was installed to compensate for the increased yaw which the more powerful engines could generate. The Super Catalina also had extra cabin windows and other alterations.  Chilean Air Force (FACH) Captain Roberto Parragué, in his PBY Catalina FACH No. 405 called "Manu-Tara", which means Lucky Bird in the Rapanui language, undertook the first flight between Easter Island and the continent of South America (from Chile), as well as the first flight to Tahiti, making him a national hero of France as well as of Chile. The flight was authorized by the Chilean President in 1951, but a second flight he made in 1957 was not authorized, and he was dismissed from the Chilean Air Force.  Of the few dozen remaining airworthy Catalinas, the majority are in use as aerial firefighting aircraft. China Airlines, the official airline of the Republic of China (Taiwan) was founded with two Catalina amphibians.  Platforms are folded out and deployed from Catalinas for use in open ocean fishing and Mahi Mahi tracking in the Pacific Ocean.

Catalina affair.

The Catalina Affair is the name given to a Cold War incident in which a Swedish Air Force Catalina was shot down by Soviet fighters over the Baltic Sea in June 1952 while investigating the disappearance of a Swedish Douglas DC-3 (later found to have been shot down by a Soviet fighter while on a signals intelligence mission; it was found in 2003 and raised 2004–2005).

Variants.

An estimated 4,051 Catalinas, Cansos, and GSTs of all versions were produced between June 1937 and May 1945 for the U.S. Navy, the United States Army Air Forces, the United States Coast Guard, Allied nations, and civilian customers.

The Consolidated PBY Catalina, was produced as a flying boat and seaplane amphibian in the 1930s and 1940s. In Canadian service it was known as the Canso. It was one of the most widely used seaplanes of World War II. Catalinas served with every branch of the United States Armed Forces and in the air forces and navies of many other nations. The last military PBYs served until the 1980s. As of 2014, nearly 80 years after its first flight, the aircraft continues to fly as a waterbomber (or airtanker) in aerial firefighting operations in some parts of the world. None remain in military service.

Consolidated PBY Catalina byl americký létající člun a později, od verze PBY-5A, obojživelný letoun. Jde o jeden z nejznámějších a nejrozšířenějších hydroplánů druhé světové války, do služby se dostal vedle námořnictva Spojených států i do jiných zemí. Proslavil se zejména odhalením japonského loďstva, které směřovalo k atolu Midway, kde byla svedena jedna z rozhodujících bitev války v Tichomoří a také nalezením bitevní lodě "Bismarck" 26. května 1941 při jejím pronásledování Brity v Atlantiku.