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ALASKA History

Started by 907JenS, November 21, 2011, 02:39:19 AM

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907JenS

Alaska History PROJECT IN DEVELOPMENT:

Organizational meeting at LEGION LOG CABIN AT INCEPTION OF ALASKA CAP.

Jack Henry post of American Legion and Civic Leaders Bob Reeve, Jack Scavenius, Jack Carr, Virgil Stone and Robert Atwood obtained an Alaskan Charter...  the Territory of Alaska Wing received Charter No. 50001 in 1948.


History of Alaska Wing Commanders:


Lt. Col. Jack Scavenius       May 1948 - Sept. 1948 
Col. Jesse R. Carr               Sept. 1948 - July 1956   
Col. Harry E. Stiver             July 1956 - March 1959
Col. James E. Carter           March 1959 - Feb. 1973 
Col. James V. Brown, Jr.     Feb.1973 - Oct. 1975     
Col. Russell J. Anderson     Oct. 1975 - Oct. 1986     
Col. Troy G. Sullivan           Oct. 1986 - Oct. 1989     
Col. John H. Williams           Oct. 1989 - Dec. 1990     
Col. Larry F. Grinrod           Dec 1990 – Oct. 1992
Col. Michael Pannone         Oct. 1992 - Aug. 1996
Col. Skip Widtfelft               Aug. 1996 – Aug. 1997
Col. Robert LaBelle             Aug. 1997 – Sept. 1997
Col. Stephen Franklin          Sep.t 1997 – Sept. 2001
Col. Robert Brouillette         Sept. 2001 – Oct. 2005
Col. Carl Brown                   Oct. 2005 – April 2010
Col. Charles Palmer             April 2010 - Present


Any stories, friends, family available?

Jennifer Sherwin
Alaska Wing PAO

flyboy53

#1
Yeah,  Colonel Anderson is the reason why you have the fleet of Otters and Beavers. He went to the State and got the funding for them. At that time, the Wing was headquartered in an old radar building on the back of Elmendorf AFB.

Colonel Anderson was friendly and strictly no nonsense. He derived a lot of respect from his subordinates. I was attached to the Elmendorf Composite Squadron at the time. That unit's patch was copied from the Alaskan Air Command patch of the time.

Missions were staged out of Merrell Field where Polaris Group was headquartered. The unit had an AT-6 full cockpit flight simulator. We would fly to Sitka where there was a gravel strip for major operations....that's how I got four hours of observer time in a Beaver. You could load for observers in the back and there were two pilots up front. Coolest CAP aircraft I ever flew in.


907JenS

Quote from: flyboy1 on November 21, 2011, 04:57:43 PM

QuoteYeah,  Colonel Anderson is the reason why you have the fleet of Otters and Beavers. He went to the State and got the funding for them. At that time, the Wing was headquartered in an old radar building on the back of Elmendorf AFB.

I never had the pleasure to meet Colonel "Andy" Anderson.  His ashes are now flown west, in the Mt. Susitna area a.k.a. the "Sleeping Lady".  The current AKWG HQ, is still on the North side of Elmendorf Runways up on "Beacon Hill"- is that the same? bunch of "head-gear" metal on, and around the building.  

QuoteColonel Anderson was friendly and strictly no nonsense. He derived a lot of respect from his subordinates. I was attached to the Elmendorf Composite Squadron at the time. That unit's patch was copied from the Alaskan Air Command patch of the time.
Col. Peter Katinszky is current Arcturus Commander with Elmendorf unit (now called Joint Base Elmendorf/Richardson, JBER). He was over at RCC before he retired from there. GREAT GUY.

QuoteMissions were staged out of Merrell Field where Polaris Group was headquartered. The unit had an AT-6 full cockpit flight simulator. We would fly to Sitka where there was a gravel strip for major operations....that's how I got four hours of observer time in a Beaver. You could load for observers in the back and there were two pilots up front. Coolest CAP aircraft I ever flew in.

I wish I knew what became of the AT-6 Sim.  My home Sq. is Polaris at Merrill Field.  The Beavers are pretty amazing-that they fly! I have been priviledged to work ES as MO, MS, AP. Never want to be the pilot!  Have not been to Sitka, but Chitina is a heck of a spot for crew rest-long hike to outhouse.

Who else has some more AK stories - Message me?


flyboy53

#3
I was there in 78-80, so don't remember it being called Beacon Hill. I just remember it being a cool building with the wing staff meeting in one huge room. I'm pretty sure missions could be staged from there if necessary. The wing LO's office was in the same place.

Polaris was a group when I was there. Their patch was a red and blue star on a white circle.

The Elmendorf unit was commanded by a captain named Dale Balumer who was an A/D staff sergeant who worked in the CBPO and who was selected for OTS and UPT. By the time I left, the command went to a lieutenant named Tim DeFogi, another A/D airman. The Elmendorf Squadron was made up mostly of A/D types and cadets who were mostly military dependents. I don't remember the cadets doing anything ES-related, just academics, orientation flights and the like. There was an AFJROTC unit at one of the local high schools, so there were one or two who actually participated in both programs. There was a lot of competition between the two units. One kid had both model rocketry badges and looked impressive because he wore both sets of ribbons.

If I remember correctly, both Noel Wien and Bob Reeve had CAP connections. I was fortunate to be at the ceremony when Bob Reeve was made an honorary Air Force Colonel and presented a certificate and a flight jacket. He was in a wheel chair at the time and very frail.

The largest CAP search mission was the search for Hale Boggs, which prompted everything we now know of ELTs.

Col. Dale Hardy, former NH Wing Commander, was the senior officer in the RCC. He was a major when I first knew him. I don't remember if he was active in CAP then.

My favorite story was escorting a group of people into Alaska NORAD Region Control Center. At the time intercepts of Soviet aircraft and searches involving ARRC were quite common.

The major was attempting to show people why they needed to file flight plans in Alaska, which was poo-pooed by a lot of the younger pilots. He then flashed an active map on a huge screen that was absolutely red with unverified aircraft flight paths and told the group, "This is why you need to file a flight plan. When you don't, you make someone else work, because we don't know who you are."....meaning that an intercept with a fighter may be necessary. There were a lot of jaw-dropping pilots all of a sudden.


flyboy53

#4
I have some additional information for you, if you're interested.

Check the serial numbers of your wing's DeHavilland Beavers. Two of them are actually former Air Force U-6As that were last flown by the 21st Composite Wing at Elmendorf AFB. Numbers 52-6095 and 52-6105 were transferred to the Wing or Polaris Group on 1 Sept. 1970. Originally L-20 Beavers, these aircraft first belonged to the 5th Liaison Squadron, Alaskan Air Command, which was assigned to Alaska in April 1953. They were used to transport light cargo and passengers to radar sites.

I would be interested to know if these aircraft still exist.

sardak

It looks like both planes are still around. From the website "USAAS-USAAC-USAAF-USAF Aircraft Serial Numbers--1908 to Present"  http://www.joebaugher.com/usaf_serials/usafserials.html

52-6059 to 6161   DeHavilland L-20A Beaver - Redesignated U-6A in 1962.  These planes received a dual c/n system, a factory number and a number assigned to planes produced specificially for USAF/US Army procurements starting at 1000.

52-6095 (c/n 466/1257) to civil registry as N5143G (Civil Air Patrol)

52-6105 (c/n 481/1267) to civil registry as N5142G, current with Civil Air Patrol, Anchorage, AK

From the FAA registration database:

N5143G is registered to a DHC-2 Mk 1, serial number 466, built 1951, Department of the Interior, Alaska, with a certification date of 10/01/2008, expiraton 12/31/2012.

N5142G is registered to a DHC-2, serial number 481, built 1952, Civil Air Patrol, cert date of 10/20/1970, expiration 12/31/12.

Mike

flyboy53

#6
That's exciting for the historian in me.

Here's some other information I've been able to gather from my sources.

Those U-6A Beavers are two of ten transferred from the Alaskan Air Command beginning in 1960 to the Alaskan Wing. The first U-6s came from the 10th Air Rescue Group and were transferred with the deactivation of that unit. In 1960, the wing's inventory also included Navon L-17s and Piper Cubs.

Some other aircraft information of note is that shortly after the Alaska Wing was formed on 31 April 1948 (the first wing headquarters was a Pacific Theater quonset hut at Merrill Field), the AAC "loaned" the wing a C-45 Expediter and the 11 Stinson L-5s. Something else, the wing's charter members included Bob Reeve, Mason LaZella, John Manders, James Carter, Virgil D. Stone, George Weyer, and Col. Jesse R. Carr. Col. Jack Scavenins was the first wing commander. Colonel Carr replaced Col. Scavenins and Capt. J.D. Stone was the first Air Force and AAC Liaison officer.

By 1980, when Col. Anderson was in command, there were 33 aircraft in the wing -- the Beavers, Cessna 150s, 172s and 305s, a Piper Aztec, a Commander, Navajo and a glider. There were 1,299 senior members and 244 cadets in 18 squadrons.

This information is from "Top Cover for America," by AAC Command Historian John Haile Cloe and Maj. Michael Monaghan....an Air Force Association-sponsored book, if there are other copies still out there...goes to show just how close the Air Force and CAP relationship was/is.....