The White Falcon - 01.10.1955, Síða 2

Page 2
THE WHITE FALCON
Saturday, October 1, 1955
THE WHITE FALCON
Volume 5 Number 19
HEADQUARTERS, ICELAND DEFENSE FORCE
Brig Gen John W. White, USAF
Joint Commander
The WHITE FALCON is an official Armed Forces newspaper
published bi-weekly at Keflavik Airport, Iceland, by and for the Army,
Navy and Air Force personnel of the Iceland Defense Force. The
WHITE FALCON receives AFPS material. AFPS material appear-
ing herein will not be reprinted without written permission of the
Armed Forces Press Service, Room 1425 Fisk Bldg., 250 West 57th st.,
New York 19, N. Y. Views and opinions expressed herein are not ne-
cessarily those of the Department of Defense.
Deadline for copy: 0900 hours Monday. Telephone number:
Ext. 20.
Supervising Officer................. Major Thomas E. Holt, USAF.
Staff
Editor..............................M/Sgt J. S. Coatsworth, USAF.
Associate Editor .......................... Pfc J. T. Lawrie, USA.
Staff Writer ............................. Sp3 Jerry Cohen, USA.
Art Editor...........................DMSN Harvey L. Peck, USN.
Staff Photographer...................... Sfc Earl Grathwohl, USA.
Up Sleeves Again—
Flu Shots Coming!
Washington (AFPS) — In-
fluenza shots again will be
mandatory this year for mili-
tary personnel stationed both
in the U.S. and overseas. The
shots also will be available
for military dependents.
Supplies of the influenza
vaccine are expected to be-
gin arriving at military in-
stallations sometime in Oc-
tober and shots will begin
immediately. The program is
scheduled to be completed by
the end of November.
A round-the-world flight ac-
complished by Army Air Service
officers in 1925 required 175 days
—including 363 hours in the air.
Away She Goes!
Here’s a bird’s eye view of the world’s largest warship—the aircraft
carrier Forrestal—leaving the dock at Newport News, Va., to begin
her first sea trials. Burned-out shaft bearings held up the carrier’s
full speed trials, but the minor mishap is not expected to delay her
delivery to the Navy Sept. 29. Full speed trials are expected to begin
<^about Sept. 19.
IgafoldarprentimlOJa h.f.
“That Others May Live"
Press Views On Survival School
Some of the Nation’s top reporters have now returned
from their visit to the Air Force Survival School at Stead
Air Force Base, Nevada, and virtually all of them tell the
same general story.
The school, they say, is doing a training job that
our experience in World War II and especially Korea
proved has to be done. They report that the training
is rugged, but not a “torture” school as a recent article
in one magazine had led many Americans to believe.
Posed photographs showing trainees during the inter-
rogation or “brainwashing” portion of the course caused
many newspaper and magazine readers to believe that the
training was unnecessarily realistic. But now it is clear
that only about 5% of the 30,000 men who have taken the
course in the past five years ever took part in these de-
monstrations. Those who did, the reporters learned, were
volunteers and instructors. The volunteers could quit “play-
ing the game” whenever they felt like it. But most of them
went through with the interrogation dramatization for its
usual duration—about a half-hour.
They were questioned under bright lights by men who
had experienced the real'thing at the hands of the Com-
munists. Some volunteers got a brief feel of Communist-
type punishment instruments such as the 10-foot hole and
the narrow box in which a man can neither stand nor sit.
The vast majority of the trainees only observed
these “brainwashing” demonstrations and took no
other part in them. Their purpose was to teach the
fact that, even under pressure, a person can make
proper decisions and can govern his conduct in the
best interest of his country, his Service, and his fellow
servicemen.
Not one of the 30,000 graduates has complained to the
Inspector General about the training. Many, however, have
been interviewed, and they sum up their opinion of the
course pretty much as one airman did: “I think we are
all better men because we know now what to expect”.
Actually, the reporters pointed out, demonstration
of interrogation techniques takes up only a compara-
tively small portion of the overall 17-day survival
course at Stead. Most of the emphasis and time—about
90%—is devoted to survival training. The rest of the
time is devoted to training that covers classified as-
pects of evasion and escape as well as recommended
behavior after capture.
Most of the reporters seem to agree with what Secre-
tary Quarles said on the CBS television program “Face The
Nation”, on September 11:
“We are not trying at Stead Air Force Base to prepare
people for life as prisoners of war. We are trying, instead,
first to teach them as much as we can about how to evade
capture and to escape if captured; and second how to be-
have if they are captured, not so much in their own in-
terest, but how to behave to protect the interests of the
Nation and their fellow soldiers who are still fighting be-
hind them.”
53d Keeps Vigilant Eye On North Atlantic
Flying in all kinds of weather, foul and fair, while on
call 24 hours a day, Keflavik Airport’s 53d Air Rescue
Squadron proudly lives up to its motto. “That Others May
Taken for a Ride
Tarboro, N. C. (AFPS) — A car
thief had only himself to blame
here recently when he got ar-
rested. He was hitchhiking for a
ride when a car stopped to pick
him up. The vehicle belonged to
police chief Otley Leary.
Many Blood Donors
Ft. Benning, Ga. (AFPS)—When
a Red Cross bloodmobile rolled in-
to this army base recently troops
of the Combat Training Command
really rolled up their sleeves. In
a single day, they donated 643'
pints, breaking the post record.
Live”.
Among the many “Mercy”
flights logged by the 53d during
their 400 flying hours monthly,
have been numerous missions to
evacuate sick military and Ice-
landic civilians to hospitals for
needed medical care; dropping of
supplies and other necessary
equipment to stranded exploration
parties trapped on glaciers and
ferrying necessary communication
equipment to a flood-trapped town.
Coupled with these emergency
missions are the regular “sup-
port” flights in which the squa-
dron’s sturdy amphibians drone
over the gray, Arctic swells west
of Iceland, keeping in constant
touch with Operation “Hi-
Flight’s” jet fighters streaking
across the North Atlantic on
their way to European bases.
During these missions, the SA-
16s patrol an area over which the
high altitude, short-range jets
must past. The pilots and crews
are ever alert to scoop a pilot of
one of these craft out of the icy
35 degree water should he have
to “ditch” his plane.
Besides “Hi-Flight” support, the
53d relieves some of the constant
threat of over-water flying for
SAC, TAC and Random (Canadian
Hi-Flight) craft that must use
Keflavik’s facilities as a stepping-
stone to Europe. Each “Albatross”
carries two 20-man life rafts
equipped with food, water and
protective clothing. These rafts
would aid a downed plane’s crew
to survive until they could be
picked up by a surface vessel.
Aid is always present for com-
mercial aircraft winging through
the North Atlantic air-lanes. The
Rescue Squadron has been called
on and successfully intercepted
and shepharded crippled pass-
enger planes onto Keflavik’s long
runways. Passengers and crews
have repeatedly expressed their
appreciation to the squadron for
their stand-by assistance in a
dangerous situation.
The 53d ARS, Commanded by
Lt Col Frederick L. Smith, is part
of the Ninth Air Rescue Group,
headquartered at Bushy Park,
England. Two “sister” squadrons
are also located in the United
Kingdom.
With their four SA-16 “Alba-
tross” and three H-19 helicopters,
the squadron is responsible for
rescue operations for a triangular
area reaching from 57 degrees
longitude on the south to a point
very near the North Pole.
Out of the 30 officers and 130
airmen composing the unit, four
SA-16 crews rotate on an alert,
standby, duty and day-off basis
every four days. The squadron
maintains its own aircraft and
have an intricate communications
network which enables its opera-
tions section to have constant
UHF and YHF audio contact
with its air-borne planes.
In cooperation with the Ice-
landic Lifesaving Association, the
helicopters of Col Smith’s com-
mand have a number of saves to
their credit. These oddly capable
craft are frequently called upon to
aid ill Icelandic citizens living in
areas far removed from medical
care. The “choppers” have fre-
quently carried a doctor along to
comfort a victim as he is whirled
back to a hospital.
In the near future, the familiar
stubby-hulled “Albatross” will
become a thing of the past on
the Keflavik flight-line for the
53d will have completely rede-
signed C-54 aircraft, which will
add more power and greater
range and speed to the squa-
dron’s operations.
The new planes will help the
53d to maintain their ever-vig-
ilant watch on the skyways around
Iceland, whatever the hour, what-
ever the day—“That Others May
Live”.
Navy Will
Use Draft
The Navy, for the first time
since the end of World War II,
will use the draft to keep up its
strength. Beginning in November
and until next June, 56,000 men
will be inducted for two-year
hitches.
The Navy said it was forced
to the move because of the un-
usually large number of enlist-
ments stemming from the first
year of the Korean war, which
will expire.
The Navy emphasized that the
regular four-year enlistment pro-
gram will continue to be stressed.
Two year voluntary enlistments
will not be authorized.
Ten thousand men a month
will be inducted into the Navy
in November, December, Febru-
ary, March and April. The May
quota is 6,000.
Inductees will be allocated bet-
ween the Army and Navy. They
will not be allowed to choose their
branch of the service.
i&tOivine
eruiced
Protestant Chaplains: Frank E. Wiley.
Catholic Chaplain: Father Robert J. Plocki.
PROTESTANT SERVICES
SUNDAY: 0900—Worship Service. 0945-—Sunday School (An-
nex). 1100—Worship Service. 1100—Christian Science Service (An-
nex). 1330—Church of Christ Service (Annex). Lutheran Communion
3rd Sunday each month—1500. 1800—Protestant Youth Fellowship
(Annex). 1900—Evening Service. Protestant Communion Service-
2000 (Annex).
THURSDAY: 1930—Choir Rehearsal.
JEWISH SERVICES
FRIDAY: 1930—Worship (Annex).
LDS (MORMON) SERVICES
SUNDAY: 1500—Services Annex).
MONDAY: 2000—Services (Annex).
WEDNESDAY: 1900—Services (Annex).
BAPTIST SERVICES
SUNDAY: 2000—Fellowship (Annex).
TUESDAY: 1930—Bible Discussion (Annex).
THURSDAY: 1930—Prayer Meeting (Annex).
CATHOLIC SERVICES
SUNDAY: Masses: 0800, 1000 and 1200.
WEEKDAY: Monday thru Friday 1715 Mass. Saturday 1215 Mass.
CONFESSIONS: Daily before Mass. Saturday 1830.
MONDAY: 1900—Novena.
FRIDAY: 2000—Choir Rehearsal.