PO Box 55446
St. Petersburg, Fl. 33732-5446

November 1, 2009

 

Re-Enlistments:   LLoyd Ledford

Donations:        LLoyd Ledford, Gary Espelin

New Members:     

Change of Address:  

SFC Richard Birmele       Dr. John Q. Belt
1919 SW Montgomery Pl     PO Box 211055
Portland, Or 97201-2445   Dallas, Tx. 75211

Peter Carroll
RR#2, Box 202A, Bush Road
Montrose, Pa. 18801-9030

Deceased:            Mrs. Florence King

Introduction:

Several members have emailed me and want their Emails available for Other members.  As of now the list is:
Name                       Email Address               Era
========================   ==========================  ==============
Jan Milles                 janmilles@hotmail.com       ‘Nam and Berlin
Charles Farrell            cturkfarrell@aol.com        Berlin ‘68-69
William Zirkel             ziirkel@earthlink.net       Berlin ‘57-59
James Porter               ms8x60s@yahoo.com           Vietnam ‘68-69
Gary Kirsten               garykirsten@snet.net        Berlin ‘53-55
John Frye                  JFrye13@tampabay.rr.com
CSM Stanley Thornburgh     Stanley39us@yahoo.com       Berlin
Charles McDonald           cmcd5052@sbcglobal.net      Berlin ‘67-69
CSM Mike Foreman           mandbforeman@aol.com
Thomas Lynn                lynn9493@bellsouth.net
Don Wilson                 donniew32@verizon.net       Berlin ‘53-55
James Sim                  Simj@Comcast.net            Berlin ‘62-63
Lawrence Simonson          vikingls36@yahoo.com        Berlin ‘57-60
Lt. Col. Todd Mercer       todd-mercer@us.army.mil     Germany 87-89
Peter Carroll              gmwh@epix.net

Veterans and survivors of deceased vets will be able to get a list of college
Scholarships from the Department of Veterans Affairs beginning June 1, 2010.
This was a part of HR 1172 passed by the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee.

Dues are due around January 1, $10.

  This will be the last newsletter for 2009.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving and a Merry Christmas.

Association President Jan Milles sent me an Email of a court of appeals decision involving a veteran’s claim.  It is a blockbuster and will be heading to the Supreme Court.  I can Email it to anyone who might want to read it.  My Email is
cturkfarrell@aol.com. if anyone would like a hardcopy of it, it is 14 pages, I’ll mail it out for $2 to cover the cost of postage and the envelope.  The court cited two cases.  In one, the VA doctored a veteran’s medical records.  In the other; it said a widow filing for dependency benefits had not received a response to her claim for 10 years.  Hopefully she will be receiving her benefits and back pay shortly. CSM Stanley Thornburgh forwarded me an EMail from Kevin Secor, VSO Liaison, Office of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.  “I have received many reports that Veterans are being contacted by ‘Patient Care Group’ representing that they are helping administer VA prescriptions and stating that the pharmacy billing procedures have been changed and they are therefore requesting Veteran credit numbers for prescription payments in advance of filling their prescriptions.  This is false.  VA does not call Veterans asking to disclose personal financial information over the phone.  VA has not changed its processes for dispensing prescription medicines.” If you receive such a call, contact Mr. Secor at 202-273-4836 or email him at Kevin.Secor@va.gov.

The Obama administration has petitioned the U. S. Supreme Court to protect Saudi Arabia and four of its princes from being held accountable for their alleged role in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States that killed 3,000 Americans.

A bill approved by the House of Representatives and referred to the Senate would prohibit federal employees of executive branch from being compelled to release any document unless a court makes a specified determination by a preponderance
of evidence - legislation at least one group suspects is designed to protect Barack Obama’s elusive birth certificate from release.

H. R. 2243, The Surviving Spouse’ Benefit Improvement Act of 2009, would ncrease
dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) by 12% and eliminate the offset between DIC and the Survivor Benefit Plan benefits.  The bill would increase DIC to 55% of the compensation paid to a totally disabled veteran.
S. 81, The Family Caregiver Program Act of 2009, would create a new VA support program for family caregivers or personal care attendants who enable severely injured veterans to reside in their communities and maintain their quality of life.
Disabled Vets now get $10,000 insurance from the VA for free.  They are raising the Veterans Group Life Insurance, for which you must pay, to $150,000.  They can be reached at 800-669-8477 for details.
The August issue of the Military Times Edge Magazine has a list of the top 50 schools used by active duty vets using military tuition assistance.  The best of those schools is probably the University of Maryland, which is at the top of that list.  More for active duty vets is the fact that there is a loophole in the new GI Bill.  If a veteran uses 36 months of entitlement under the Montgomery GI Bill and is eligible for the new GI Bill, he or she can take advantage of an additional 12 months of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.  This was mentioned in VFW Magazine.
Many thanks to the Marines in Anbar Province, Iraq for recovering the remains of Lt. Commander Michael Scott Speicher, who was shot down in the first Gulf War on the first day.
I received an EMail from LTC Eifler of 1/6 in Iraq.  He is now at Fort Benning and in command of the 75th Ranger Regiment and the 6th is no longer on active duty.  1/6 is now the 18th Infantry and is headed to Fort Bliss next year.  2/6 is now ¾ and the brigade is now the 170th Brigade and slated for deployment to Afghanistan.
Jefferson Barracks National Cemetary is being expanded and will be able to accept internments till about 2020.  Jefferson Barracks, in St. Louis, was the home of the Sixth Infantry dating prior to World War II.
As of July 18, the VA backlog of claims and appeals was more than 905,000, an increase of 15% over last year.
If you’re going to school on the Montgomery GI Bill (Chapter 30) but thinking about switching to the Post 9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33), make sure you are making the right choice.  Once you shift from Chapter 30 to Chapter 33, the change is irrevocable.  Talk to a good service officer.

The Berlin Airlift, Part III

On August 17, 1948, the first C-74 Globemaster landed at Gatow in the British Sector with 25 tons of flour.  On that day, 4,000 tons of supplies were de-livered to Berlin.  The blockade had entered a new era for the Allies.  In-itially the United States only had 164 aircraft available for the airlift and 110 of those were C-47s.  They only carried 2.5 tons of supplies.  In June, 1948, they could only deliver 2,000 of supplies a day.  The crews were flying 16 hours a day and maintenance crews were working around the clock to keep the planes in the air.  The government also chartered planes from Pan Am, Alaska Airlines, American Overseas Air, Seaboard, Western Air and Trans-Ocean Air.  By placing their 250 C-54s in the British Zone and adding the C-54s within the first nine weeks, the Allies were to increase their average daily delivery from 2,000 tons to 4,000 tons.  The city required 2,000 tons of coal and 1,400 tons of food a day.
While the United States received assistance from many private airlines, the RAF received assistance from British European Airways and many smaller air-lines.  On March 13, 1949, British European created a separate Civil Air Lift Division to assist the RAF.
Between June 26, 1948 and May 12, 1949 there were more than 200,000 flights to Berlin.  This monstrous effort by the Allied air forces also required a huge effort on the ground.  Military personnel devised off loading systems, worked as guards and checkers and supervised a German work force of thousands.  At Tempelhof, the Army engineers constructed a new runway in 49 days and it opened in September, 1948.  While the second runway opened, a third was under construc-tion.  The runway at Gatow was lengthened and a second was under construction.  On August 5, 1948, on the site of a former German training area, they constructed a new airfield, Tegel.  Within three months of the start of construction, airlift planes were landing at Tegel.  The construction of Tegel was a monument to the striving of the freedom of all mankind.  It was accomplished by working around the clock for 85 days.  More than 19,000 Berliners worked 3 eight hour shifts.About half of the workers were the so-called “rubble women” who cleared the city of the rubble that was Berlin after the war.  The 19,000 Berliners worked under the guidance of the U. S, Army Corps of Engineers.  This airport, which opened November 5, 1948, allowed the Allies to increase their daily tonnage to 5,000 tons a day when it was in full operation.
Tegel Airport created its own problems.  In the air corridor for the airport were two Russian radio transmitters; one 260 feet and the other 390 feet.  The Russians refused to dismantle them.  The French Commander, General Ganeval, solved the problem by blowing them up on December 16, 1948.  The action surprised the British, General Clay and the Russians, but the French had told the Russians that they had to be removed by the morning of the 16th.  The transmitters were a 20,000 watt station from which the Russians broadcast “Radio Berlin.”  They would replace it with a new 100,000 watt transmitter in East Germany.  The United States RIAS station was also at 20,000 watts and was quickly upgraded to 100,000 watts to meet the Russians in the propaganda war over the air waves.
While the Allies were winning this war of nerves, talks had begun to end it.  Initially the talks were between Generals in Berlin.  Then, the talks were between the State Department and Molotov in Moscow.  These ended without accomplishing anything.  The Russians would propose a Foreign Minister Meeting in Berlin, but the powers could not agree on the ground rules.  The Americans demanded that the blockade be ended, while the Russians wanted an end to the currency reform.
Perhaps the greatest public relations feat of the entire airlift was “Operation Little Vittles.”  Lieutenant Gail Halvorsen would drop “parachutes” of candy and chewing gum to the children of Berlin as he approached an airport in his C-54.
On average he would drop 20 “parachutes,” made of handkerchiefs, a day.Gradually
other pilots contributed their rations of candy and gum to increase his gift to
the children.  The city of Mobile, Alabama assisted Lieutenant Halvorsen, when he flew a C-54 to the States to be overhauled.  When he returned to Germany in another overhauled C-54, he brought 368 pounds of candy for the children of Berlin.
Other pilots joined in “Operation Little Vittles” and up to 1,500 “parachutes”
were dropped daily to the children of Berlin.  On January 24, 1949, Lieutenant
Halvorsen returned to the United States to thank Americans for contributing
candy for the children of Berlin.  He had flown 123 relief flights to Berlin.
In February, 1974, Colonel Halvorsen was awarded the West German Grand Cross of
Merit.
Perhaps the funniest story of the blockade and airlift, if anything could be
funny when one nation is seeking to starve to death the citizens of a city, was
the story of Sergeant Ralph Felling.  On October 8, 1948 he drove his new car
from West Germany to Berlin despite the blockade.  As he sat at the first Soviet
checkpoint, the Soviet soldiers admired his car and couldn’t imagine how a soldier could afford such a car.  They finally accepted his insurance policy and Class A Pass, which was written in four languages, as ample authorization to proceed through the Soviet Zone.  By the time he reached the Elbe, the ferries had stopped for the night and he had to wait till the following morning to proceed.  As he approached the Soviet checkpoint in Berlin, the gate was up.  Sergeant Felling simply waved to the two armed Soviet guards and drove into Berlin.
To increase productivity and reduce the possibility of an air disaster, on October
15, 1948 England and the United States formed a Combined Airlift Task Force,
commanded by Major General William H. Tunner with Air Commander W. F. Merer of the RAF as his deputy, headquartered in Wiesbaden.  The result was a plan that was classic.  Of the three corridors to Berlin, the southern corridor was reserved for the C-54 Skymasters.  On this route, planes would fly at 160MPH.  By spacing the planes at 8 mile intervals, it was possible to have 33 planes in the air flying to Berlin at all times.  The northern corridor was reserved for craft of different sizes and speeds.  The Combined Airlift Task Force even went so far as to use five altitudes to put more planes in the air.  The effort was such that if a plane failed to land on its approach, it had to return to West Germany and come back again.  There was no room to go around and try again.
By November, many C-54s were transferred to airfields in the British Zone.  Flying from Rhein-Main in Frankfurt to Berlin was about 270 miles and took about 213 minutes. Flying from the British Zone to Berlin was only 131 miles and took 145 minutes.  Whereas flying from Rhein-Main the crews could fly 3.5 trips a day, from the British Zone they could fly 5 trips a day.  This alone would enable them to increase the tonnage to 7,500 tons a day.  The extra flights could be flown as the planes now had three airports to use.  On November 6, 1948, General Clay announmced that the Allies could now deliver 4,000 tons a day, even in bad weather.

End of Part III

A study conducted by UCLA’s Department of Psychiatry has revealed that the kind of face a woman finds attractive on a man can differ depending on where she is in her menstrual cycle.  For example, if she is ovulating, she is attracted to men with rugged and masculine features.  However, if she is menstruating, she tends to be more attracted to a man with duct tape over his mouth and a spear lodged in his chest.  No further studies are expected.
Recently we received a warning about the use of the term ‘Towel Heads,’ so please note: We all need to be sensitive in our choice of words.  We have been informed that the Islamic terrorists, who hate our guts and want to kill us, do not like to be called ‘Towel Heads’ since the item they wear on their heads is not actually a towel, but in fact, a small folded sheet.  Therefore, from this point forward, please refer to them as “Little Sheet Heads.”  We thank you for your support and compliance on this very delicate matter.

Rules in Florida

You can’t say, ‘this is how we did it up north.’  If you think that way, then go
back.
When picking up a woman on South Beach (Miami), always look for an Adams apple.
Learn how to dress in layers.  It will be 95 degrees outside, but inside any restaurant or business it’s 65 degrees.
Flip flops, tank tops and baggy shorts are also known as business casual.

Sgt. John D. Hawk, Medal of Honor

Rank and organization: Sergeant, U. S. Army, Company E, 359th Infantry, 90th Infantry Division.  Place and Date: Near Chambois, France, 20 August 1944.  Entered service at: Bremerton, Wash.  Birth: San Francisco.  G. O. No. 55, 13 July 1945.  Citation: He manned a light machinegun on 20 August 1944 near Chambois, France, a key point in the encirclement which created the Falaise Pocket.  During an enemy counterattack, his position was menaced by a strong force of enemy tanks and infantry.  His fire forced the infantry to withdraw, but an artillery shell knocked out his gun and wounded him in the right thigh.  Securing a bazooka, he and another man stalked the tanks and forced them to retire to a wooded section.  In the lull which followed, Sgt. Hawk recognized two machinegun squads and, in the face of intense enemy fire, directed the assembly of 1 workable weapon from 2 damaged guns.  When another enemy assault developed, he was forced to pull back from the pressure of spearheading armor.  Two of our tank destroyers were brought up.  Their shots were ineffective be-cause of the terrain until Sgt. Hawk, despite his wound, boldly climbed to an exposed position on a knoll where, unmoved by fusillades from the enemy, he became a human aiming stake for the destroyers.  Realizing that his shouted fire directions could not be heard above the noise of battle, he ran back to the destroyers through a concentration of bullets and shrapnel to correct the range.  He returned to his exposed position, repeating this performance until 2 of the tanks were knocked out and a third driven off.  Still at great risk, he he continued to direct the destroyers’ fire into the germans’ wooded position until the enemy came out and surrendered.  Sgt. Hawk’s fearless initiative and heroic conduct, even while suffering from a painful wound, was in large measure responsible for crushing 2 desperate attempts of the enemy to escape from the Falaise Pocket and for taking more than 500 prisoners.

Staff Sergeant Jared C. Monti - Medal of Honor

Born September 20, 1975 in Raynham, Ma.  He enlisted in the Army in March, 1993.
Among his medals are the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, five Army Commendation
Medals, four Army Achievement Medals, three Good Conduct Medals and three National Defense Medals.  On June 22, 2006 he was posthumously promoted to Sergeant First Class.
Citation:  For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyong the call of duty: Staff Sergeant Jared C. Monti distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a team leader with Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 3rd Squadron, 71st Calvary Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, in con- nection with combat operations against an enemy in Nuristan Province, Afghanistan, on June 21st, 2006.  While Staff Sergeant Monti was leading a mission aimed at gathering intelligence and directing fire against the enemy, his 16-man patrol was attacked by as many as 50 enemy fighters.  On the verge of being overrun, Staff Sergeant Monti quickly directed his men to set up a defensive position behind a rock formation.  He then called for indirect fire support, accurately targeting the rounds upon the enemy who had closed to within 50 meters of his position.  While still directing fire, Staff Sergeant Monti personally engaged the enemy with his rifle and a grenade, successfully disrupting an attempt to flank his patrol.  Staff Sergeant Monti then realized that one of his soldiers was lying wounded in the open ground between the advancing enemy and the patrol’s position.  With complete disregard for his own safety, Staff Sergeant Monti twice attempted to move from behind the cover of the rocks into the face of relentless enemy fire to rescue his fallen comrade.  Determined not to leave his soldier, Staff Sergeant Monti made a third attempt to cross open terrain through intense enemy fire.  On this final attempt, he was mortally wounded,sacrificing his own life in an effort to save his fellow soldier.  Staff Sergeant Monti’s selfless acts of heroism inspired his patrol to fight off the larger enemy force.  Staff Sergeant Monti’s immeasurable courage and uncommon valor are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, Headquarters and Headquarters Troop3rd Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, and the United States Army.

 

 

 

Obituaries: