#flying clipper ships

[stone-cold-groove]

America’s outposts of security and defense...

[ltwilliammowett]

The Flying Dutchman ....

Not really, this is the Royal Clipper, and what we see here is a mirage - she can't fly.

[cameronmccoy9161994]

The Phantom Ship Changing Portrait

Inspired by the Flying Dutchman painting from the Disney Theme Park Attraction, "The Haunted Mansion", which is applied on "Clipper Ship: Three Brothers", painted by Currier and Ives. This painting can be shown on this website, "Haunted Portraits".

[alanhunt]

The postcard I found in a 1950 flying saucer book that I talked about in my last post: people boarding a 32 passenger Pan American Flying Clipper Ship departing from Miami, destination: South America

[oolongteaboba]

# ◞ ˚ ─ RED LACE (OR LACK THEREOF)

info. rocket raccoon/f!reader smut. est. 3.2k words.

you and rocket share the same bunk, so you've been wearing nothing but a shirt to get his attention. and who knows? he might like you back.

a/n. hi hello first actual post on here! quick comment for the fingering part, just pretend rocket stole peter's nail clippers LMAO, i forgot to clarify that while writing whoops. also, you can alternatively read the fic here on ao3.

In the past year you’ve spent with the guardians and living on the Milano, you began to appreciate each of them unconditionally; you were family, and they were yours.  Peter, a Terran like you, was a great conversationist, and you bonded over things you missed from Earth.  Gamora’s intimidating sometimes, but she acts like the sister you never had and has your best interests in mind.  You haven’t known Mantis for long, but she’s kind and gentle; plus, she’s starting to warm up to you.  Drax is some fun company, although most of your jokes fly over his head.  Groot clings onto you like a puppy, and the sprout insists on sitting between you and Rocket during dinnertime.  And well, Rocket is… Rocket.

Aboard the Milano, you shared a small bunk with Rocket and Groot.  Tonight, Groot was in Gamora’s bunk since she had Groot-bedtime-story-duty tonight, so you and Rocket had the already cramped bunk to yourselves.  Sharing a room with the two of them wasn’t entirely terrible, but you do have to deal with Rocket’s tech stuff being scattered all over the floor.

His bed wasn’t too far from yours, with the space between you only about two feet.  He’s working on a new set of blasters; you’re laying in bed on your back with your right leg over the left.  After being engrossed with his equipment for who knows how long, Rocket looks up from his machinery to glance at you.

“Christ, does it hurt to put on some pants for once?”  Rocket interjects, and you turn your head toward him.

“We share a room together.  You’ve seen me change before, and that never fazed you.  Besides, Groot isn’t even here.  It’s just us.”  He only replies with a huff and an eye roll.  “Besides, why do you care so much?”

Rocket scoffs, crossing his arms and furrowing his brows.  “I’m not the one walking around in a loose shirt and fuckin’ red lacy underwear.”

You avert your eyes from his as your cheeks grow hot, and you pull the hem of your shirt down mid-thigh to preserve your already damaged dignity.

“It’s all that was clean,” you mutter below your breath, just loud enough for him to hear, although from the look on his face, he doesn’t believe you.  “Plus, it’s hot in here, Rocket.  The air conditioning isn’t working correctly, we’re in space, and you haven’t fixed it yet,” you reply, uncrossing your legs.  He inhales sharply, returning to his blaster.

“I told you already, I don’t have the right parts yet,” he snaps at you.  “Go fix it yourself if you’re gonna be a bitch about it.”

“So the oh-so-great Rocket Raccoon can build bombs from scrap material but can’t fix the AC unit?”

“I ain’t a raccoon,” he snarls, and it takes every fiber in your body to resist the urge not to continue teasing him.  “And I told you this shit already: we don’t have the needed parts.”

“Y’know, maybe I’ll start walking around with pants on if the air conditioning is fixed.”

Rocket exhales and lets out a small pfft that almost sounds like a quiet laugh.  “You’re bein’ whinier than Quill right now, know that?”

“You’re so sweet to me, Rocket.  Have I mentioned you’re the kindest person on this ship?” You smile, albeit sarcastically, and the corners of his mouth instinctively curl up in response.  You catch his brief smile for a fleeting moment and make eye contact, but he promptly looks away in embarrassment.

(You might tease him about it later, though.  He’s smiling because of you.)

“Go to sleep, doll.”  Rocket absentmindedly shoves the machinery onto his makeshift nightstand with a slight grin still etched on his features.  His disposition has improved in the past year; he smiles a lot more, though he tries to hide it, and the guardians have noticed.  Not that he’d ever admit it, of course.

“What about you?  Aren’t you going to sleep?”  His eyes look into yours, albeit briefly, and they’re warm, brown, and pretty, and you internally berate yourself for not noticing them sooner.

“Nah.  You Terrans need more sleep than I do.  And you look terrible, by the way.”  You fail at attempting to stifle a giggle at his sudden change in demeanor, which Rocket barely notices.  

“Aw, thank you, Rocket.  Love you too.”  Your eyelids flutter, and you pull a blanket over your body.  “You might not be Terran, but you should sleep too, y’know.  You’re always reprimanding Groot for staying up late, you hypocrite.”

Rocket’s features soften; he shoots you a toothy grin, although there’s a thought nagging at you, telling you there’s more than just sarcasm in his eyes.  “Yeah, yeah.  G’night, doll.”

You shoot Rocket a smile that’s brighter than the damn sun before shutting your eyes.  Unfortunately, you’re asleep before you can say ‘good night’ back.

-

Three nights later, tonight is Drax’s turn for Groot-bedtime-story-duty.

The temperature in the Milano isn’t as nearly inhabitable as last time, all because of you and Quill’s endless pleas for the AC to be fixed.  Thankfully, Peter hates absurdly hot weather just as much as you do.  Either that or hatred of heat is a Terran thing.  Somehow, the broken air conditioning didn’t affect the other non-Terran guardians on the ship as much.

Al Green’s Let’s Stay Together plays faintly in the background; you’re lounging on your bunk, back against the mattress, as you read one of Quill’s childhood comic books when the door opens, and Rocket enters your shared bunk.

As soon as he walks in, Rocket scoffs and rolls his eyes.  “For the love of god, I fixed the AC as you asked.  Put some goddamn pants on.”

“Hello to you too, Rocket,” you give him a smile before continuing reading, too focused on Quill’s comic book to notice Rocket’s blatant gawking at your exposed legs.  Your leg props up on the other, leaving almost nothing to the imagination.  “And I said maybe I’ll wear pants.”

He jumps in bed, setting Quill’s helmet at the foot of his bunk.  After a job that included killing Abilisks, Peter reluctantly handed it over to Rocket for some significantly postponed repairs and upgrades.

“You’re lucky, know that?  You’re the only person on this ship besides Groot whose shit I tolerate.”

“I love you too, Rocket.  Although, I’m pretty sure you’d shoot Quill if he started walking around the Milano with no pants on,” you answer, eyes still glued to the comic book.

“The only difference is that Quill isn’t the one walking around in his underwear.”

“Rocket, I honestly can’t see why it’s a big deal.  It’s been days since you won’t shut up about it,” you reply, setting Quill’s comic on top of your nightstand.

Rocket looks at you before sighing defeatedly, with some feeling that you can’t put your finger on captured in his eye.  You swallow your spit, and Rocket returns to his bold, unapologetic self.

“Fine.  Fuckin’ hell, we get it, it’s your bunk, and you can do whatever the hell you want-”

He pauses.  Rocket’s eyes trail down from your face to your body, taking in every inch of your revealed skin.

However, it’s too late for you to realize what exactly Rocket’s ogling at.

“Are you… not wearing anything under that shirt?”

You blink, promptly closing your legs (undoubtedly knowing it won’t do or change anything).  The already small space between your bunk and Rocket’s seems even smaller.  Your heartbeat picks up in your chest; Rocket is still rendered speechless.  You’ll never hear the end of it, you swear.  His gaze meets yours, but you don’t answer.  What feels like an eternity passes before Rocket speaks up, breaking the silence.

“You dirty fuckin’ girl,” he swears, his tone both degrading and impressed.  Rocket steps down from his bunk and closer to yours, his eyes drinking you in.  From the look on his face, he looks as if he’s about to devour you whole.

“Rocket.”

Hesitantly, Rocket steps back, giving you space.  “Shit, sweetheart.  I’m sorry.  Tell me to leave, and I will.”  He’s reluctant, although the tent in his pants slowly grows, and he isn’t hiding it well.  “We can forget about this.”

“Wait,” you immediately protest before rationale can stop you, grabbing his wrist before he can pull away and leave.  “You can stay.”

From the look on his face, it doesn’t take him much convincing.  He knows what you’re thinking of (and knows what you want).  Rocket tenses; a few moments pass before he speaks up, unsure of what to do next.

“Can I touch you?”

You groan in response, both desperately and unashamedly.  Both your voice and body are tempting, practically inviting Rocket in.  He’s thought of you like this: both in daydreams and dreams, but he never would’ve imagined the moment (or you) to be more perfect.  “Please, Rocket.  I need you so damn badly.”

(Rocket’s definitely gonna bring this up later.  However, anything but him is entirely off your mind.)

He gladly complies, and his hands go underneath your shirt to meet your chest before massaging your breasts.  The sensation of his paws is foreign but welcome, one hand playing with your nipple as his tongue swirls around the other, gently nipping at your flesh.  He continues sucking, maintaining eye contact while your face burns from the intimacy.

The sound of Rocket’s mouth leaving your tits makes an explicit and wet pop sound, and drool pools in the corner of his mouth.

“Fuck, doll, I’ve been thinkin’ of doing this forever.  Couldn’t stop thinking about you since I got a look at that pair of that red, lacy underwear of yours and could barely keep my fuckin’ hands off.”

Rocket continues his ministrations on your chest, with one hand traveling down to your thigh, close to your puffy clit.  You elicit a formerly suppressed moan from your lips, much to Rocket’s inflated ego.  His pace is slow and teasing as if he’s waiting for you to break and beg for him to quicken his pace.

“Shit, you’re so pretty like this, all for me,” Rocket whispers in an intonation you can barely hear, almost impressed by how receptive and eager you are for his touch.  The ache between your thighs gradually amplifies from his praises, and you weaken at his attention.  Your breath quickens as his fingers trail up your thigh and languidly circles around your needy clit.  All words are stripped from your tongue, leaving you unable to speak.  Rocket’s fur almost tickles your skin as he marks love bites on you, hard enough to bruise.

“Fuh- fuck, Rocket, you feel so damn good,” you pant, air seemingly wrung out of your lungs.  “I need-”

You’re cut off by Rocket giving your cunt a firm spank, drawing out an embarrassingly vocal moan.  “Need what, dollface?”  He grins with a look of pride planted on his face as he gives your breasts and cunt much-needed attention, albeit slowly.

“I need you inside me,” you mewl, your cheeks feeling hot from the humiliation.  You know Rocket knows what you want; he’s eager to give it but wants to hear you beg for it first.

Somehow, his grin grows even more.  His slow circling on your clit stops, and you audibly groan, wordlessly begging for him to continue.  “I’ve barely touched ya, and you already want my cock inside?”

“Fuck you, Rocket,” you huff, heat building inside your lower abdomen and goosebumps growing on your skin.  “Please, I need you.”

He slips a paw inside your dripping cunt, and it takes a few seconds to get used to the new feeling.  “Gotta be patient, sweetheart.  You’re so pretty when you’re like that, know that?”

You nod, relishing the feeling of his fingers finding your G-spot, then slowly curling upwards.  Though his hands lack girth, he makes up for it with agility.

“Was this 'no panties' stunt all for me, dollface?”

“Yes. All for you, Rocket,” you answer absentmindedly, too focused on how good his fingers feel inside you.  Rocket’s fingers develop a languid rhythm, scissoring and stretching your walls to fit his cock.  You bite your lip to keep back a whimper but fail.  With every movement from Rocket, you feel yourself melting into the blankets and mattress, reduced to putty in Rocket’s hands.

“Keep going,” you mutter, surprised at your current capability to form words.  Rocket’s fingers gently press against your G-spot, eliciting a moan.  “G-go faster, Rocket.”

Instead of speeding up as you hoped, he completely stops, leaving you to writhe underneath him.  You tense up, missing the blissful sensation of his paws working inside you.  “What happened to you saying ‘please,’ huh?  You can do better than that, dollface.”

You tighten around his fingers, and you can practically feel the grin on his face as he waits for your pleas.  “God, fuck, Rocket, you know damn well what you’re doing to me,” you groan, heavy breaths interrupting almost every word.

“Try again, sweetheart,” he retorts, savoring the desperation all over your face.  Eager to feel more of him, you steadily move your hips, fucking yourself onto his fingers in response to his refusal.  “Beg me for it, and I’ll fuck you, just like you wanted.”

“Please, Rocket?  I need you to fuck me, please; I want your cock inside me so goddamn badly- please just fuck me already-”

Rocket, convinced by your pleas, complies and interrupts you by undoing his clothing and unzipping his pants while you whimper at the sudden removal of his now-soaked fingers.

He lines his hips up with yours, the look on his face ravenous; he finally pushes into you slowly.  You’re left to grip tightly on his shoulders, watching as his cock disappears into you.  He’s smaller than an average male human but relatively girthy, and you feel his tip brush against your G-spot.  You whimper from his entrance, feeling full as he completely bottoms you out, massaging your inner walls.

Rocket’s breath hitches as he slowly starts to work you open, his hands spreading your thighs apart for better access.  He groans, setting a languid pace as he ruts into your warm and inviting cunt.  You raise your hips a little higher in response, aching to feel more of him.  His current tempo is sloppier than before, now being guided by his pleasure instead of yours alone.  The wet sound of Rocket’s hips rolling into yours is pornographic and explicit; you can hear him fucking in and out of your cunt.  You’re sure that your wetness has gotten all over Rocket’s fur by now, but at the moment, he doesn’t mind.

One of his hands leaves your thigh to offer attention to your swollen clit, gently circling around it, while the other hand grips you harshly.  Rocket becomes noticeably more vocal as his pace quickens, albeit opting for low grunts and moans.  The pleasure builds up in your lower stomach, and your lower lip trembles as you grip the bunk’s bedsheets.

“Shit, Rocket, you feel so good,” you mewl, stumbling over your words while he erratically thrusts into you.  Rocket’s greedy for every moan that leaves your lips, hoping to wring every one of them out your mouth.  He grunts, pace unfaltering as your walls flutter around his cock, tightening around him like you don’t want him to let go.

“You’re doin’ so well for me, sweetheart,” Rocket huffs, his almost soft voice contradicting his frenzied rhythm.  You whimper and whine with each thrust, enjoying how Rocket fills you up with his cock, and how the curve hits your G-spot.  “Such a good fuckin’ girl for me.”

Tension builds in your stomach, and your toes curl from the sheer pleasure.  Despite Rocket’s unrelenting tempo, the feel of his hands and the look on his face is strangely soft and tender.  His fingers circle around your clit more quickly, and you feel heat spread under your skin.

“Rocket, I’m getting close,” you murmur, the burning coil within your abdomen intensifying with each second he pumps inside you.  With a moan, you let out a shaky breath as he rocks his hips into yours, feeling dangerously close to your climax.  From watching him loudly groan and how he haphazardly ruts into you, he’s also close to orgasm.

“Fuck, doll, you’re so beautiful like this,” Rocket praises, inhaling sharply as his cock twitches inside you.  “C’mon, sweetheart.  Cum on my cock.”

Without a second thought, you nod, succumbing to pleasure as Rocket pounds himself into you, his hand rubbing at your clit.  Tiny beads of sweat pool on your forehead as you begin to finish, and Rocket rolls a thumb over your nipple, almost encouraging you to cum.  Your walls spasm around his cock, begging him to do the same.  The feeling of him inside you, combined with the constant attention your clit receives, is overstimulating, and you’re barely able to hold back from coming.

“Inside me, Rocket,” you beg, trembling from sensitivity and euphoria.  “Please, cum inside me.”

Rocket only grins, a smug look forming on his face.  The white coil only amplifies, reducing you to a wordless, desperate mess underneath him until it finally snaps, and you come undone on his cock.  Eyes rolling back from the increased pleasure, you see stars in your blurred vision; you spasm around him, and with a few last strokes, Rocket cums inside you, emptying himself inside you.  His pace slows as you convulse around him, attempting to milk every drop of his cum, and your heartbeat slows from its high.

His last strokes are sloppy and frantic; Rocket huffs as he finally drains every bit of himself inside you.  Your muscles tense from aftershocks, and you hear Rocket silently swear.  With an embarrassingly wet squelch sound, Rocket pulls out his cock, leaving some of his cum to drip from your cunt, and onto your thighs.  Trying to regain your strength, you momentarily remain silent, basking in the afterglow, and he does the same.

Your breathing is labored, still coming down from your high.  “Sorry I got your fur wet,” you beam, your knees still weak from copulation, and Rocket lets out a low laugh.  You shift your body over to the far side of the bunk, offering Rocket space to sit next to you.  Without a word, he complies, his back laid against your front, and he sighs in contentment.

“I’ll shower in the mornin,’ doll,” he replies, fixing his messy hair, attempting to freshen up.  Rocket’s head rests on your neck; hesitantly, you put your arm around him, but he doesn’t mind it, although it takes him a second to adjust to the newfound affection.  You contentedly sigh, languidly running your fingers through his soft fur, and Rocket practically melts at the touch of your fingers.

“Y'know, I really like you, Rocket,” you quietly whisper, although just loud enough for him to hear.  Rocket doesn’t respond for a few seconds, leaving you in empty silence and a tiny bit of nervousness. 'Love' is a strong word; the word 'like' is weaker. However, right now, both don't fit right coming out of your mouth. It's too late to retract saying 'I really like you,' but before you can conjure a second thought, Rocket gathers his voice.

“Yeah.  I like you a whole lot too." Your face softens, and you wrap your arms around him, surprisingly being met with no protest from Rocket.  You softly kiss his forehead and doze off into slumber, Rocket huddled in your arms. Tomorrow morning, you’re certain Star-Lord would barge into your bunk to wake you up for the next contract, but for now, you’re happy to lay in bed and worry about it later.

[colleybri]

I must go down to the seas again,

To the lonely sea and the sky.

And all I ask is a tall ship

And a star to steer her by.

From ‘Sea Fever’ by John Masefield

Probably my favourite of my photos from Royal Clipper on my trip of a lifetime transatlantic sailing last year. Only an iPhone on night mode. What a stunning ship she is.

On a broader level, the poem is also about living a life of freedom – or the dream of that.

Full poem:

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,

And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;

And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking,

And a grey mist on the sea’s face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide

Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;

And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,

And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,

To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like a whetted knife;

And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,

And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over.

[nitewrighter]

For the WIP ask titles I’m very curious about “the Silver Clipper”

Ahh that one's going to be part of a series of fics I'm planning that are inspired by the Superman radio serial! The Silver Clipper is actually one of the earliest episodes, but I'm going to be updating it so that it's not only plugging into the greater DC universe, but it's also going to be "Please let the continental United States have sustainable long-distance high-speed rail oh my god" propaganda.

The main characterization point is going to be exploring Lois as she kind of realizes that she's starting to be perceived and recognized for her apparent connection to Superman. It's partially inspired by and a response to Darwyn Cook's writing of Lois Lane in Superman: Kryptonite and Jeph Loeb's A Superman for All Seasons. Basically what I found fascinating about those stories is this perception of Lois as like... this intensely and almost universally desirable woman, and as also kind of a representative of the love and attention of humanity at large. Like in Kryptonite, Clark is at peak Superman, flying her off to the top of the Eiffel Tower to woo her, but he's still like "Damn, eventually she's going to figure out that she's way out of my league. " In A Superman For All Seasons, Lois kind of takes on this position as a sort of... personification of the attention and favor of Metropolis itself, which is what makes the Lex Luthor POV in that story so interesting because Lex is like, "This is a love story, not between a man and a woman, but between a man and a city."

I don't really want to jump the gun on Lex's characterization, because I want to wait and see what MAWS does with it, so in this fic, a significant amount of the dialogue is going to be between Lois and Maxwell Lord. I love putting Lois in the room with characters who are being perfectly reasonable with her, but whose whole presence in the DC universe at large make you want to yell, "STAY AWAY FROM HER. GET A JOB."

“Clipper, huh?” Lois looked out the window at the scenery rapidly rolling past, “Basketball fan, then?” “There’s no need to be facetious with me, Miss Lane,” said Maxwell, lazily rattling a cocktail shaker, “Clippers were a type of ship. Beautiful things. Big white sails. The last of their kind before the world got swallowed by steel and coal. The name is supposed to evoke both speed and romance, and rising to meet the challenges of an expanding world.” He rounded around the bar and offered her a cocktail glass, “The world could use some romance again, don’t you think?”  Lois gave a side-eye to the pale green cocktail. “And is this your definition of romance?”  “No, no, no, this is just something that you, as a journalist, are going to have anyway: The Last Word.” Lois met Maxwell Lord’s eyes with unimpressed blankness. “…the last word, that’s the name of a cocktail—it’s kind of a pun—” Lord caught himself, “You’re good at this, aren’t you? The whole… saucy, salt-of-the-earth bit. Forcing people to explain themselves so they come off as pretentious asses.”  “Firstly, please don’t ever call me ‘saucy’ again,” said Lois, “Secondly, I find I don’t have to try very hard at all to get pretentious asses to out themselves as pretentious asses.” “God I knew you were the right journalist to bring in here,” said Lord, holding his glass out to her. She skeptically clinked her glass against his and both took a sip.

[kokorodachidanii]

What your Wander over Yonder OTP says about you

Sylander: You don’t believe in platonic love

Skeleton Dance: You don’t watch WOY

Black Eye: You think “enemies to lovers” could not be rated highly enough

Death Glare: You think “enemies to lovers” could not be overrated enough

Zboneak: You watched The Date way, way, WAY too many times in a row 😅

Dom ’n Hater: “Canon be damned” is your life motto

Death Star: Fondling over Yonder is your life support, you sassy man/woman 😏

Sylava: It’s a Girls’ Night is your favorite song from the whole show

Astigmagmatism: Th… This is a real ship? Have fun then

Awesome/Sourdough: You took that one scene from The Fancy Party at face value

Tumblesquid: You didn’t know who else to ship Wander with

Conquering Boyfriends: You didn’t know who else to ship Hater with

Eyesome: You either want Peepers to suffer or just didn’t know who else to ship him with

Wandering Eye: You want Peepers to suffer

Seahorse: You want Sylvia to suffer

Sharkboy and Lavagirl: You want Awesome to suffer

Domurra: You want Draykor to suffer

Brainsome (Awesome/Brainz): You want Brainz to suffer

Trash Talk (Harvax/Stok): You wanted Sylander but ✨GAY✨

General Hunter (General Outrage/Ripov): Either you desperately wanted more of the Insurgents than we got, or you have a WOY/Sly Cooper AU in which Outrage portrays Sly and Ripov portrays Carmelita Fox (???)

Running with Scissors (Clipper/Wild Card): Either you desperately wanted more of the Insurgents than we got, or B.A./Murdock is you A-Team OTP

When Pigs Fly (Harvax/Rongruffle): You and I are automatically friends 😻😻😻

Dominator/Stok: You are a firm believer in the inherent eroticism of an Oscar the Grouch origin story

[scotianostra]

On 22nd November 1869 the clipper “Cutty Sark” was launched at Dumbarton on the River Clyde.

Built on the River Leven that  flows out of Loch Lomond and joins the Clyde at Dumbarton at a cost of £16,150.  Many people will tell you it was a Clyde built ship, but that’s not entirely true

The Cutty Sark was commissioned by John Willis, a Scots born businessman, in the late 1860s. Scott and Linton  were contracted to build the Cutty Sark for a price of £17 per ton, a very low price even in those days. 

1869 Scott and Linton were bankrupted due to the low contract price but not before they had completed and launched the hull and named it Cutty Sark.

The hull was towed across the river Leven to William Denny and Brothers on the Clyde for fitting out; she was rigged ready to sail in only 12 weeks. Cutty Sark set sail from London on her maiden voyage to Shanghai on the 16th February 1870 under the command of Captain George Moodie. 

It had a dedicated service to the tea and wool trades, until being sold to a Portuguese cargo company in 1895, whereupon it was renamed the Ferreira.

These extremely fast clippers were able to cover long distances without the need of getting to port to reload coal. However, the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 shortened trade routes and made them lose their advantage over steam ships.

The ship’s name comes from Nannie, the witch in the Robert Burns poem Tam O’Shanter, who was dressed in only a “cutty sark” – an old Scottish term for a short nightie. The ship's figurehead, the original of which has been attributed to carver Fredrick Hellyer of Blackwall, is a stark white carving of a bare-breasted Nannie Dee with long hair holding a grey horse's tail in her han

In 1922, retired captain Wilfred Dowman bought the clipper for his personal use before, in 1938, his widow donated it to the training academy at Greenhithe, Kent to be used as a school ship by young cadets. At Greenhithe Cutty Sark acted as an auxiliary vessel to HMS Worcester for sail training drill, but by 1950 she had become surplus to requirements.

In 1953 Cutty Sark was given to the Cutty Sark Preservation Society and in 1954 she was moved to a custom-built dry dock at Greenwich.  Cutty Sark was preserved as a museum ship, and has since become a popular tourist attraction.

In 2007 a devastating fire broke out aboard the Cutty Sark, and it appeared that the ship might be completely destroyed. Thankfully total disaster was avoided, but the subsequent restoration lasted until 2012.  On 19th October 2014 she was damaged in a smaller fire.

Cutty Sark whisky derives its name from the ship. An image of the clipper appears on the label, and the maker formerly sponsored the Cutty Sark Tall Ships Race. The ship also inspired the name of the Saunders Roe Cutty Sark flying boat.

[ruiniel]

Ok so gotta write about the most vivid first person shooter type post-apocalyptic dream I've had *glares at sertraline*

It all began with an ill little girl on a beach at night (???). Someone or something with Big plans had injected her with a solution that made humans inured to death.

But catastrophic side effects: the person developing this used resources from another dimension which caused permanent, sporadically reversible yet uncontrollable transformations.

The little girl (she had long dark hair with bangs, I see her so clearly) began to expand like lava until half of her was a formless, blue and orange-red apparition with the likes of wings sprouting from her back. The other half was steadily absorbed, and reached out for the one who injected her.

Switch scene to a sort of cultural historical re enactment event. It was all very colorful, by the seashore. Fireworks, decked ships, people wearing period specific clothing.

When the flying morph appears at first they think it's a part of the show, until it grabs someone and by mere touch transmits the side-effects. More turn, it's all happening too fast.

I'm there. I run home, lock the door and sit in the dark, wondering if I'd hallucinated when I hear a voice outside booming through a megaphone.

All citizens are to stay indoors. Preparations are being made for evacuation.

I run to my parents' house (no timeline in this dream as you imagine) tell them.

Then I find myself in a friend's apartment fretting about where they are. It's closer to the outskirts and there are fewer infected. We're running, myself and others, to escape one here and there. When I see my parents, great relief.

"We'll run somewhere. We'll ... We'll fly to Finland, where none of this reached there yet, then we'll see," says my mom.

I'm fretting. I run up the hill behind the houses on a foggy day, picking up metal tools from an abandoned stand a merchant must've fled. All I see are fire pokers, I grab two, then run over to my place then parents' place which is empty, thinking to get some essentials.

I scramble: pick up my only sturdy bag, a black leather one, and throw in a spare pair of seeing glasses, my wallet containing my entire identity. I throw in a pair of spare jeans, another jacket since I had nothing but a hoodie and the fog was freezing, deodorant and a nail clipper apparently (hey, it's a dream), a big ol knife, but forget about my meds as a sudden rapping is at my door.

Carefully I approach, hear odd growls. I wait for them to pass, then rush over to my parents', but I forget the door open and some guy with a rifle comes in, tells me he won't hurt me if I just let him scavenge so I comply, I want to get those essentials asap and be away.

I rush to grab my family's stuff, all my mom's stack of essential thyroid pills and others, and rush out. I then remember I forgot the cancer treatment pills but it's too late to turn back, I search for my folk through the fog and somehow find them. Relief.

The megaphone outside now assigns families by name to different, faraway locations. It's in alphabetical order, and we're pretty down the list so we wait.

Then we're in their old car they had when I was 13, a Dacia 1310, on one of those suspension bridges and they tell us the place: Selegren (???)

My mom, in the driver's seat: "Selegren it is." And hits it.

Anyway, what a headride.

[barbarian15]

A flying boat aircraft passing over a clipper ship on the Spanish coast, 1938

[papermoonloveslucy]

THE WILD BLUE YONDER!

Lucy & Aviation

Thanks to Orville and Wilbur Wright, the world became a smaller place and travel by air become as commonplace as train or car travel. Lucille Ball and her many characters had lots of reasons to take to the ‘friendly skies’ - here are just a few. 

Orville and Wilbur Wright were inventors and pioneers of aviation. In 1903 the Wright brothers achieved the first powered, sustained and controlled airplane flight; they surpassed their own milestone two years later when they built and flew the first fully practical airplane. The Wrights were mentioned several times in the Lucyverse:

Olin Howland (Mr. Skinner in “First Stop” 1955) ~ As a young man he learned flying from the Wright Brothers.

“Speech for a Civic Organization” (1949) ~ Liz intends to speak about the Wright Brothers, despite her favorite husband’s objections.

“The Good Years” (1962) ~ Orville and Wilbur were mentioned in the special starring Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda.

“Swing Out Sweet Land” (1970) ~ Rowan and Martin played the Wright Brothers and Lucy voiced the Statue of Liberty in John Wayne’s TV special celebrating American history.  

As a busy radio, film and television star, Lucille Ball was constantly photographed boarding and disembarking from aircraft. 

1930′s ~ Young model Lucille Ball holds a model airplane for a photo shoot. 

May 1938 ~ Publicists created fascinating and completely untrue backgrounds for Hollywood stars. In this article, Monroe Lathrop claims that Lucille Ball was a skilled aviatrix who shot crocodiles while flying over a jungle river. 

“On a visit to Colombia, Lucille, avid for new adventure, went with friends Into the jungle, meeting a flood that had swollen the streams and overrun the banks with huge crocodiles. Instead of heeding the natives' warning, Lucille went to wireless station, ordered an airplane and rifles, and spent a day pumping lead into the big green saurians. Natives rewarded her with a generous helping of crocodile steak later.”

Five Came Back (1939) ~ Nine passengers from all walks of life and a crew of three take off from Los Angeles, bound for Panama City, but a sudden storm blows them off course and causes the plane to crash in the Amazon jungle. Lucille Ball played passenger Peggy Nolan. The B film helped Ball launch an A list career.

1940s ~ Lucille Ball posing in a biplane cockpit.

June 1943 - Newspapers reported that Jimmy Cagney had christened a B-17 bomber named The Lucille Ball. After it was scrapped due to battle damage, a second bomber was christened The Lucille Ball in 1944. 

A Woman of Distinction (1950) ~ Lucille Ball appears in a cameo as herself, a jet-setting film star, in this Rosalind Russell / Ray Milland film. 

“Return Home From Europe” (1956) ~ To get back to New York in time to play the Roxy, the Ricardos and Mertzes fly home from Europe, rather than go by ship. Unable to whittle down her luggage allowance, Lucy is intent on smuggling a cheese aboard, disguising it as a baby. 

There are establishing shots of Pan American World Airways (PAA) President Clipper Service. The Clipper in the insert shot is named Bald Eagle. There are two insert shots of Pan Am aircraft: one taking off, and one in mid-flight. The DC-7C (nicknamed “seven seas”) first entered service for Pan Am in December 1955 and was dubbed “the zenith of piston-engine technology.” Pan Am had 27 DC-7Cs flying during 1956. By 1958, jet travel began to overtake propeller airplanes.

The interior of the aircraft was recreated on the Desilu soundstage. The PAA logo is visible on blankets and tote bags, items provided by Pan Am for the use of their name and images of their aircraft as well as possible other promotional consideration. 

“The Ricardos Visit Cuba” (1956) ~ While in Miami, the gang flies to Havana to visit Ricky’s family. 

The gang once again flies Pan American Airways, the same carrier they took home from Europe.  The airline folded in 1991.  

As with their previous flight, there is an establishing shot of the plane in the air and the interior was recreated on the Desilu soundstage. The set is basically the same one used in “Return Home from Europe”.  It also features PAA branded promotional items. 

“Lucy Goes To Alaska” (1959) ~ The Ricardos and Merztes fly to the brand new state of Alaska, where Ricky and Fred have bought some land and Ricky is doing a TV show with Red Skelton.  Although the action is set in and around Nome, the second unit footage was filmed in Lake Arrowhead, California, about 100 miles from Hollywood. The exteriors were done with doubles and none of the regular cast left their newly-purchased Desilu (formerly RKO) Studio. 

To get from Westport CT to Nome AK, the gang first flies United Airlines, then transfers to Alaska Airlines. There is establishing footage of both planes in mid-flight.

The set features a couple of travel posters for Alaska Airlines, enticing viewers to visit the 49th state for tourism. In the second half of the hour, a small propeller plane is introduced to rescue Red and Lucy from a blizzard.  

RED: “What’s that blue stuff?” ESKIMO PILOT: “Sky.” LUCY (To Red): “You act as though you’ve never seen sky before.” RED: “I haven’t. I live in Los Angeles.”

The plane is buried in a snowbank. Lucy pays an eskimo pilot $100 to fly her and Red to safety. 

While the plane in the snowbank was filmed in the Hollywood studio, the safe landing was done at Lake Arrowhead using actor doubles. 

“The Ricardos Go To Japan” (1959) ~ The final time we see the gang airborne is on a trip to Japan. Although there is a poster for Japan Airlines (JAL)  in the airport...

 According to the establishing footage of the jet in mid-air, the foursome travels  on United Airlines.

The Facts of Life (1960) ~ The film about two marrieds flirting with infidelity has Kitty Weaver (Lucille Ball) waiting at the airport where a United Airlines jet can be seen on the tarmac in the background. 

“Mr. & Mrs.” aka “The Lucille Ball Comedy Hour” (1964) ~ A comedy special in which Lucille Ball plays the head of a studio trying to track down Bob Hope to star in a show about husband and wife television stars. The first half concerns Lucy's tracking the elusive Hope all around the world. In San Francisco, there is establishing footage of a jet landing which was supplied courtesy of TWA, a carrier that went out of business in 2001.  

“The Victor Borge Comedy Theatre” (1962) & “Lucy Flies To London” (1966) ~ The unaired pilot for an unsold comedy anthology series hosted by Borge featured a sketch starring Gale Gordon and Lucille Ball as two strangers on a plan. 

It was filmed before “The Lucy Show” paired the two as a comedy duo. In the pilot, the characters were strangers. Gordon played a businessman and Ball a neurotic first-time flyer. 

When it came time for Lucy Carmichael to fly to London for the special “Lucy in London”, the writers realized they could recycle the script from the un-aired pilot for “The Lucy Show” episode. The dialogue is nearly identical, now with the added context that Mr. Mooney and Lucy are boss and secretary.

“Lucy in London” (1966) ~ An hour-long special set in England and filmed on location. The sequence involving Lucy de-planing from the Pan Am clipper jet had to be accomplished in between flights already on the tarmac at Heathrow. No planes were available to be grounded for a day of shooting. Coincidentally (or perhaps not) Pan Am was also the carrier when Lucy Ricardo flew home from Europe and from Miami to Havana on “I Love Lucy.”  

“Viv Visits Lucy” (1967) ~ To greet her old friend, Lucy meets her at the airport, where a backdrop shows jets on the tarmac. Lucy looks up and sees Viv’s flight approaching. 

LUCY: “Oh, look! Someone’s hanging out of the plane. It look like Viv!” PILOT: “That’s the landing gear.” LUCY: “Oh.” 

“Little Old Lucy” (1967) ~ When the 90 year-old president of the bank (Dennis Day) is in town and needs an escort to the bank’s banquet, Lucy is volunteered.  Lucy and Mr. Mooney meet him at the airport, where jets can be seen in the background. 

“Lucy and Carol Burnett: Part 1 & 2″ (1967) ~ Lucy and Carol Tilford (Carol Burnett) sign up to be flight attendants, then put on a variety show celebrating aviation. They are employed by the fictional Globe World Airlines. 

Instead of asking bachlor GWA VP Mr. Brenner if he would like coffee, tea or milk, Lucy says “coffee, tea or me”!  Earlier in 1967, the book Coffee Tea or Me? was published. It was the alleged memoirs of two stewardess and their romantic and sexual escapades in the air. The popularity of this book may be the reason for this episode.

Frustrated by Lucy and Carol's bungling, Mr. Brenner (Rhodes Reason) says “Is this any way to run an airline?”  The line gets a huge reaction from the studio audience. In 1963 a National Airlines TV commercial featured a flight attendant asking “Is this any way to run an airline? You bet it is!”  In 1966, singer Tom Paxton wrote and recorded a song with the same title.

In Part Two, their musical salute to aviation features Buddy Rogers and Richard Arlen, stars of the very first Academy-Award winning motion picture Wings (1929), a movie about flight. Coincidentally, on the same day this airline-themed episode premiered, the supersonic Concorde was unveiled in France. Also on this date, newspapers announced the crash of a twin-engine plane in Madison, Wisconsin that killed recording star Otis Redding and six others.   

The revue ends with “The Army Air Corps Song” with flight attendants and college boys perched on the wings of a bi-plane. 

“Lucy and the Great Airport Chase” (1969) ~ Filmed entirely on location at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Lucy and Harry get caught up in chasing down spies. Part of the chase takes them onto the tarmac with the jets. 

A Douglas DC-8-52 of United Airlines is on the right and Douglas DC-8-54AF Jet Trader of United Airlines Jet Freighter is in the background.

“The Carol Burnett Show” (1969) ~ In a sketch, Lucy and Carol play flight attendnts and Harvey Korman plays a mysterious passenger with a Fidel Castro-like beard, cigars tucked in his breast pocket, and a Spanish accent. When this episode was aired, hijackings were in the news. 

“Lucy, the Sky Diver” (1970) ~ Trying to show her kids how dangerous their hobbies are, Lucy jumps from a plane!  Although there is second unit location footage of the plane and Lucy floating down on her parachute, Lucille Ball remained at the studio with a recreation of the aircraft and a simulated parachute. 

“Lucy, the Part-Time Wife” (1970) ~ Lucy and Harry go to the airport to meet an old flame of his (Carole Cook). The airport background shows jets on the tarmac. 

“Lucy Helps David Frost Go Night-Night” (1971) ~ Lucy takes an assignment accompanying David Frost on a transatlantic flight so that he can get some rest. Thanks to Lucy, his flight is anything but restful!  The first class section of a 747 was recreated for the episode. 

The jet seen in the stock footage of the airport is a Pan Am Boeing 747 with an upper deck first class lounge.

David Frost reckons that he has taken 346 air trips or traveled 1,853,000 miles!

Mame (1974) ~ At the end of the film, Auntie Mame waves goodbye to Patrick, has she flies off to her next adventure. 

“Lucy Gets Lucky” (1975) ~ Although Lucy Collins took the bus to Las Vegas to see her favorite star Dean Martin, at the end of the special she flies off into the sunset with him on his private jet. Dreams come true! 

[ltwilliammowett]

Four mast barque Pamir (1905) which sank in a hurricane on 21 September 1957

[cameronmccoy9161994]

Disney's The Haunted Mansion | The Flying Dutchman Changing Portrait

Also known as the Ghost Ship. The portrait appears in every version of the ride (except for Mystic Manor), where the portrait appears in Portrait Corridor alongside the other changing portraits, where a clipper ship transforms into a ghost ship with tattered sails on a stormy sea. Originally in six phases, where that portrait would have also depicted ghosts flying out of the ship.

[crossoverquest]

Location: Sinistra HQ

Sickly Sour: Senator, you better have a look at this radar.

Senator Skull: What is it, son?

Sickly Sour: I don't know, sir, but it looks like a giant...

Location: The Upper Deck of Captain Carpal’s Clipper Ship

Tatiana: Dick. Dick, take a look out of starboard.

Dick: Oh my God, it looks like a huge...

Location: Somewhere in Ocala National Forest

Big Star: Pecker.

Sugary Sweet: [raising binoculars] Ooh, Where?

Big Star: Wait, it's not a woodpecker, it looks like someone's...

Location: The Good Guild’s HQ in Sillicon City, where Breaker is briefing his men

Breaker: Privates, we have reports of an unidentified flying object. It has a long, smooth shaft, complete with...

Location: Brandon High School’s Baseball Field

Ena: Two balls.

Face-Off Phil: What is that?

Evelyn: It looks just like an enormous...

Location: Wang’s House - China

Marinette: Wang, pay attention to your cooking.

Wang: I was distracted by that giant flying...

Location: Sinistra HQ

Senator Skull: Johnson.

Mugsy: Pardon, sir?

Senator Skull: Get on the horn to the Black Rose Mob and let them know about this.

[spacenutspod]

NASA and SpaceX’s launch of the Crew-9 mission will be center stage this week. The launch of two new International Space Station crew members is currently scheduled for Thursday from the recently crew-certified Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS). Meanwhile, in California,  another Falcon 9 will lift the only scheduled Starlink mission for this week from Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) on Wednesday. In Asia, an H-IIA rocket is set to launch a government reconnaissance satellite from Japan, while China is preparing to launch three missions this week. The frequency of SpaceX’s Starlink launches will be slightly curtailed for a few weeks. Both of SpaceX’s Florida launch pads are currently occupied by high-priority missions, with Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) being configured for Falcon Heavy’s forthcoming launch of Europa Clipper in October, and Crew-9 is being prepared at SLC-40. CASC Jielong-3 | Multiple Payloads Expected to launch on Tuesday, Sep. 24, at 02:30 UTC aboard the sea launch vessel Dongfang Htangtiangang in Chinese coastal waters in the Yellow Sea, a Jielong-3 rocket will launch multiple Chinese payloads into Earth orbit. Jielong-3 is a medium-sized, four-stage, solid-fueled rocket developed by the China Aerospace and Technology Corporation (CASC). The rocket features a large fairing 3.35 m in diameter at a total height of 31.9 m. This mission will be the fourth sea-launched Jielong-3. Previous Chinese sea launch. (Credit:CASC) The rocket will carry multiple payloads including Ganzhou-1, a C-band radar sensing satellite, to cover the northwest region of China. Massing at 285 kg, Ganzhou-1 will fly in a Sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 500 km. This is the first of an expected constellation of six satellites, which will provide global availability for imaging within 10 to 12 hours. A second payload featured on this mission is the Jilin University No. 1 — an optical sensing satellite carrying newly developed meter-level sensing instruments developed by the University. CASC Lijian-1 | Multiple Payloads This mission, carrying five Chinese satellites, will launch from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on Tuesday, September 24, at 23:35 UTC. It will be flown by the Lijian-1, also known as Kinetica-1, a four-stage solid-fuelled rocket. This mission will serve as the fourth flight of this rocket. Amongst the payloads are remote sensing satellites, including AIRSAT-01 and 02 — the first satellites of the AIRSAT constellation being built and operated by China Science and Technology Satellite Group Co., Ltd. The main payload featured on these two satellites is a Ku-band synthetic aperture radar, with an imaging resolution better than one meter, which is mainly used for all-day and all-weather high-resolution microwave remote sensing imaging of Earth. The mission claims that the flat-panel SAR satellite system aboard uses the unfolded cylindrical parabolic SAR antenna for the first time on any satellite, with onboard imaging processing capabilities. SpaceX Falcon 9 | Starlink Group 9-8 With Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at VSFB being the only pad open for Starlink launches this week, SpaceX is targeting Tuesday, Sep. 24, at 8:59 PM PDT (Wednesday, Sep. 25, at 03:59 UTC) to launch the Starlink Group 9-8 mission. The precise number of Starlink satellites being launched is not yet known. Falcon 9 is expected to fly on the regular southeasterly trajectory used by Starlink missions, and its currently unannounced booster will land approximately 600 km downrange on the drone ship Of Course I Still Love You. An H-IIA 202 rocket lifts off from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan. (Credit: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. / JAXA) MHI H-IIA 202 | IGS-Radar 8 A Mitsubishi Heavy Industries H-IIA rocket will launch IGS-Radar 8, a Japanese government radar reconnaissance satellite, from pad LA-Y1 at the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan. Delayed by unsuitable weather earlier in the month, the mission is now scheduled to liftoff on Thursday, Sep. 26, at 05:24 UTC. IGS-Radar 8 will fly to a Sun-synchronous orbit and will operate for both national defense and civil natural disaster monitoring purposes for Japan. H-IIA is a two-stage rocket with two strap-on solid rocket motors. This mission will serve as the rocket’s 49th flight, with 42 consecutive successes to date. This will be the second H-IIA flight this year. SpaceX Falcon 9 | Crew-9 Delayed from the original mid-August launch date while NASA waited for the outcome of Boeing’s Starliner issues, Crew-9 is now scheduled to launch on Thursday, Sept. 26, at 2:05 PM EDT (18:05 UTC). Falcon 9 booster B1085 will fly on its second flight during this mission, having previously flown Starlink Group 10-5. Dragon arrives at pad 40 in Florida ahead of next week's @NASA Crew-9 launch to the @Space_Station pic.twitter.com/YEJwWPPnmp — SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 20, 2024 Launching from SLC-40 at CCSFS, Crew-9 will be the first use of SLC-40 for a crewed flight. SpaceX built the crew access arm and tower at the pad throughout 2023. The first use of the access arm was to late-load cargo aboard the CRS-30 Cargo Dragon in March, but the certification for its use for crewed launches was only recently completed. Crew-9 will utilize Crew Dragon C212 Freedom, which will be flying on its fourth flight. Previous missions were Crew-4, Axiom Mission 2, and Axiom Mission 3. Freedom and its trunk — the service module, which is disposed of after each flight — arrived at the integration hanger at the pad on the Saturday before launch. The booster will perform a return-to-launch-site (RTLS) landing following launch —this booster’s first— and land at Landing Zone-1, a few miles south of the launch pad at the Cape. Dragon recovery vessel Megan left Port Canaveral on Saturday, heading for the Gulf of Mexico for abort recovery duties if required. This mission will have only two crew members aboard, instead of the original four, to leave seats for the Starliner Crewed Flight Test (CFT) crew— Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams — who will return home with Crew-9 next February. The Starliner crew remained aboard ISS following the decision to return their spacecraft uncrewed following safety concerns related to Starliner’s thrusters and helium leaks in its propulsion system. Falcon 9 B1085-2 for the Crew 9 mission is rolling at KSC ahead of launching two humans to the ISS. It will be launching from SLC-40, as SpaceX utilizes that pad's upgrades for Crew Dragon.https://t.co/tANS0dWyIH pic.twitter.com/zzapNARtAd — Chris Bergin – NSF (@NASASpaceflight) September 16, 2024 Crew-9 is commanded by Tyler “Nick” Hague from NASA. Hague will be accompanied by mission specialist Aleksandr Gorbunov from Roscosmos, who will be flying on his first mission. Hague has logged 203 days in space from two missions aboard the ISS, as well as three spacewalks. The Crew-9 crew will become members of the Expedition 72 crew aboard the Station. They will join NASA astronauts Wilmore, Williams, and Don Pettit, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner in conducting scientific research and maintenance activities on ISS. The two remaining Crew-9 astronauts — Zena Cardman and Stephanie Wilson — will be reassigned to a mission at a later date according to a NASA statement. This launch will be the 180th orbital launch attempt this year. CASC Chang Zheng 2D | Unknown Payload A Chang Zheng (Long March) 2D is expected to launch from Site 9401 (SLS-2) at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China, on Friday, Sep.27, at 10:35 UTC carrying an unknown payload. There is very little information available regarding this mission at present. The 2D variation of the booster is a two-stage vehicle used to launch payloads to low-Earth orbit or Sun synchronous orbit. (Lead Image: A previous launch of a Falcon 9 Starlink mission from Vandenberg. Credit: Pauline Acalin for NSF) The post Launch Roundup: NASA Crew-9 to fly half-empty, Starlink and Chinese launches continue appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com.