2001

In 2001 the band released GAU-8. It is named for the gun. It has five tracks. The liner notes include complete technical specifications of the GAU-8/A Avenger. They have been cross-referenced by an aircraft systems engineer in Tucson. They are accurate.

Marcus wrote the liner notes on weekends over four months. He wrote them in the same format he used for variance reports at work: specification, source, value, remarks. Dennis checked each value. When asked what he checked them against, Dennis said the document. He did not identify the document.

The fourth track is titled It Does Not Slow the Plane Down. The archive notes that the subject of the title has been debated by people who fly the aircraft and people who do not. The archive takes no position. The track is two hundred and thirty seconds long.

The release show was at The Runway Bar in May. The liner notes were printed separately and handed out at the door by Linda Vasquez. She counted them out. She counted the remainder at close. The numbers matched the attendance.

In January Dave Pruitt started as a dispatcher at a charter coach company in Tucson. He had driven commercially for eight years. He said dispatch was driving every bus at once. He kept a log.

In September the country was attacked. The base raised its security posture. Linda opened The Runway Bar an hour early on weekdays for airmen coming off shift. Elaine's Guard unit added drill periods. Brian Holt was away from Tucson for much of the fall. The band did not discuss any of this from the stage.

The band played its scheduled dates. Marcus delivered the briefing before each one. He did not add anything to it. Elaine has said that this was the correct decision, and that the room understood.

Tony Reyes added a third bay to the shop in March. Elaine remained a master sergeant and kept her studio open through the fall with the second instructor covering drill weekends.

The band played twenty-two shows in 2001. The November show at The Runway Bar drew fifty-six. Brian's seat at the back was empty that night. Dave sat in it. He said someone should.