Airshow heritage flight

Sun ‘n Fun 51 Airshow Hotter than Ever

April 2, 2025Posted inAviation, Entertainment
F-35 roars past the crown during this high-speed past. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN

Lakeland, FL – April 1, 2025 – The skies above Lakeland Linder International Airport roared to life today as the 51st Annual Sun ‘n Fun Aerospace Expo kicked off, marking the start of “Aviation’s Season Opener.” Running from April 1 to April 6, this week-long celebration of flight promises a thrilling lineup of airshow performers, a bustling vendor scene, and a host of family-friendly activities—all under the blazing Florida sun. With temperatures expected to climb into the high 80s and low 90s, attendees are gearing up for both high-flying action and the challenge of staying cool and safe.

Elon's DOGE

Editorial: Elon’s Edge: Demanding Like Kelly, Delivering Like Ford 

March 31, 2025Posted inEditorials and Opinions

Elon Musk, the Department of Government Efficiency’s relentless taskmaster, gets flak for his brash, unemphatic biting style—yet delivers results that dwarf the whining of his critics. Sound familiar? The SR-71 Blackbird soared to once impossible heights and speeds due to innovators like Kelly Johnson, whose demanding approach and boundless thinking crushed notions of impossibility. Henry Ford churned out Model Ts while steamrolling naysayers who thought no one needs to go 40mphs. Tesla didn’t just invent—he illuminated the future, and we’re finally seeing it. 

A Blues Odyssey: My Journey to Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea X 

A Blues Odyssey: My Journey to Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea X 

March 28, 2025Posted inCruise Ships, Entertainment, Florida Music, Things to Do and See in Florida, Travel
Muireann Bradley from Ballybofey in County Down singing Candy Man Blues. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN

Florida is full of things to do, and no doubt cruising is one of the most popular. FMN’s Richard Gallagher recently spent a week pursuing hidden gems in one of his passions: the Blues. Read Richard’s account of what he discovered on the Norwegian Gem during a “Blues Cruise” from Miami last week.

Torched Teslas

Editorial: Torched Teslas: The Dumbest Rebellion Since Flat Earth

March 24, 2025Posted inEditorials and Opinions
Credit: Screenshot from video uploaded by Las Vegas Review-Journal.

“Hey, Geniuses: Vandalizing Teslas Is as Dumb as a Bag of Hammers”

Oh, you brave eco-warriors, you absolute paragons of logic! You’ve gone from hugging trees and praising Elon Musk as the messiah of green tech—remember when his electric cars, solar shingles, and charging stations were going to save the planet?—to smashing windows and chucking Molotov cocktails at Tesla dealerships.

Joe Bonamassa Closes Spring Tour with a Triumph at King Center

Joe Bonamassa Closes Spring Tour with a Triumph at King Center

March 20, 2025Posted inEntertainment, Florida Music
Credit: King Center.com

Melbourne, FL – March 19, 2025

Last night, the King Center for the Performing Arts in Melbourne became a sanctuary for blues-rock aficionados as Joe Bonamassa delivered a sold-out performance that capped his US Spring Tour 2025 with electrifying finesse. The three-time Grammy-nominated guitarist, backed by a stellar ensemble of veteran musicians, reaffirmed his status as a titan of the genre, blending fresh tracks from his latest album Time Clocks with timeless favorites that spanned his prolific career.

SpaceX's Gigafactory

Mini-Starship or Bust? Experts Clash Over SpaceX’s Future

March 19, 2025Posted inNASA, SpaceX, Starship
SpaceX's Gigafactory in the foreground of its three high bays at Starbase in Texas. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN
SpaceX’s Gigafactory in the foreground of its three high bays at Starbase in Texas. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN

March 19, 2025 – SpaceX’s Starship program, critical to NASA’s lunar goals and Elon Musk’s Martian dreams, is at a crossroads, with experts offering starkly contrasting visions. While one leading engineer champions a smaller “Mini-Starship” to expedite human landings on the Moon and Mars, critics slam Starship for its repeated failures as evidence of a doomed design. 

President Trump

Editorial: To Trump or Not to Trump—Tariffs Are the Question

March 17, 2025Posted inEditorials and Opinions

Oh, the horror! The pearl-clutching elites and free-trade fanatics are at it again, wailing about President Trump’s tariff policies like they’re the end of civilization. “Higher prices!” they shriek. “Trade wars!” they moan. Well, grab your shovels, snowflakes, because I’m here to tell you why Trump’s tariffs are the glorious, red-white-and-blue gut punch the world deserves—and needs.

Crew 10 Rises To Orbit, On Its Way To ISS

Crew 10 Rises To Orbit, On Its Way To ISS

March 14, 2025Posted inAviation and Space News, ISS, NASA, Space News, SpaceX, Starlink

It was a good day to have a good day here in Florida, and that’s exactly what NASA, SpaceX and Crew-10 had today at Kennedy Space Center. Falcon 9 lifted off carrying three astronauts and one cosmonaut towards orbit and the International Space Station just as the sun was starting to set in the west. Some seven and a half minutes later, SpaceX booster B1090 completed its duty for the day by landing at LZ-1 in Cape Canaveral, 8.8 miles south of LC-39A.

Liftoff of Crew 10 by Jim Siegel
Liftoff of Crew 10 by Jim Siegel / FMN
SS United States

A Farewell to the SS United States, from a Three Time Passenger

March 11, 2025Posted inHistory, Off The Beaten Path
SS United States moored in Mobile Alabama. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN

March 11, 2025

I met George last week in front of the SS United States, that grand old dame of the seas. It had just completed its last voyage, being towed out of its longtime berth at Pier 82 on 2201 South Christopher Columbus Boulevard, in the South Philadelphia. I found George at the end of Charleston Street in Mobile, Alabama.