Alameda was once the home of the second-biggest Navy base on the West Coast, and as a result we have a few examples of what some locals call "Planes On Sticks" in town. Several are Douglas A-4 Skyhawks; these were the aircraft equivalent of the runs-til-doomsday Slant Six Dodge Dart back in the day and thus were available in Dart-like quantities when the Navy felt like putting some planes on sticks. When The General slapped the Skyhawk name on a Malaise H-body, it seemed like a sort of cruel joke to associate Ed Heinemann's icon of reliability with... well, Malaise build quality. Now one Alameda Skyhawk has been blown off its stick, no doubt symbolizing the role of Malaise failures in GM's current troubles. [Alameda Sun]

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