The White Falcon - 11.03.1961, Blaðsíða 4

4
WHITE FALCON
Saturday, March 11, 1961
Daring ’Copter Pilot Rescues Wounded Men in Korea
By Al Dougherty
Historian, 1405 ABW,
Scott AFB, 111.
Sgt. First Class Russell D.
Shriever could have saved his skin
easily enough if he had continued
to retreat with the remnants of
his battalion in the darkness. But
he heard someone call him and
went back.
It was a man he knew. He was
wounded and bleeding badly.
Shriever grabbed a sock out of
his coat and tied a tourniquet
around the man’s leg. The bleed-
ing stopped.
Then the shooting started.
Shriver blasted at the flashes, but
was quickly surrounded.
The Communists threw a gren-
ade that exploded at his feet and
knocked him down. He tried to
get up but couldn’t stand; his
leg was shattered.
The Communists came. They
walked slowly, killing the Ameri-
cans who were lying wounded
around Shriver. He turned his
face into the snow and feigned
death. They shot around him and
continued on their way.
Sometime during that day he
and his wounded buddy found a
cave and crawled into it. It was
warmer in the cave and there
was no danger of frost-bite.
They had a sleeping bag.
Wounded in opposite legs, they
could keep their wounded legs
fairly warm in the sleeping bag.
They had no food or water, but
they did have cigarettes which
they smoked until their matches
ran out the next day.
Time was an eternity. They had
plenty of time to think.
Shriver thought of his arrival
in Korea; of “Operation Killer,”
when he, a member of the 24th
Division, 19th Infantry, had mov-
ed up to the front lines. Around
the first of February 1951, the
division, the battalion, the whole
Eight Army had been ordered to
advance.
Sgt. Shriever’s division was lo-
cated north of Suwan, by the
Signs Agreement
The Military Air Transport
Service has signed agreements
with Pan-American World Air-
ways and Trans-World Airlines
to provide transportation for in-
dividual military passengers in
both the Atlantic and Pacific
areas. This brings to four the
number of carriers now moving
military traffic on an individual
basis.
MATS purchases spaces for
military passengers aboard the
airlines’ regularly scheduled in-
ternational flights. Passengers re-
ceive economy-class service, with
a baggage allowance of 66 pounds.
—
Sports
Quiz
By AFPS
1. Babe Ruth appeared in 10
World Series. In how many All-
Star games did the Hall-of-Famer
play?
2. In what year did Bobby
Avila win the American League
batting crown?
3. In tennis, what does the term
“love” mean?
4. In football, what is the pen-
alty for a personal foul?
5. If a professional boxer
weighs 133 pounds in what classi-
fication does he fight?
Han river. They took two hills
without meeting any opposition.
Snow and cold and mountain
crags surrounded them. They
cursed the snow and the winter.
Then came the massive enemy
onslaught, the depleted ranks,
and, finally, the word to retreat.
He did not regret his desperate
delaying action; he would have
done the same thing over again.
So there they were holed up in
a cave like a pair of wounded
foxes.
After that all Shriver could
think of was that a helicopter
might come for them. They wait-
ed and hoped.
Capt. Daniel J. Miller had been
flying helicopters for the MATS
3rd Air Rescue Squadron in Korea
since October 1950. Once he had
been a jet pilot, and before that
a navigator, but now he was pil-
oting helicopters because helicopt-
ers pilots were needed. His job
was to pick up downed pilots and
if he could save any others.
The Commander at 3rd Air
Rescue Service in Suwan told
Capt. Miller that there were
some wounded men lying on a
Girl Scout Week
To Be Observed
Beginning Monday
Keflavik Airport Girl Scouts—
all 83 of them-—will be joined by
their parents and other well-wish-
ers in the celebration of Girl
Scout Week, March 12-18.
Tomorrow is the 49th birthday
of the Girl Scouts in the U.S.A.
The 100th anniversary of the
birth of their founder, Juliette
Low, was celebrated last Oct. 31.
Girl Scouts are asked by their
chairman, Mrs. R. J. Stevenson,
to start the week off right by at-
tending church services—Protest-
ant at 11 a.m. or Catholic at
12:15.
The Keflavik Airport Girl
Scouts are assisted in their ser-
vice to the community by 20
adults, including 10 leaders.
Globemasters
Are Engaged
In Food Lift
MATS C-124 Globemasters
from Dover AFB, Del. are en-
gaged in a humanitarian airlift
in the Congolese providence of
South Kasai, according to a re-
port from the Congo.
President John F. Kennedy
ordered the program during his
initial news conference in Jan-
uary.
More than 2,000,000 pounds of
food were flown into Kamina Air-
base near the South Kasai famine
area in a four day period.
The Dover based aircraft flew
the “Food lift” under operational
control of USAFE’s 322nd Air
Division. More than 35 planes of
the division funneled into Kamina
from Europe and Africa with
foodstuffs from governments and
charities on three continents.
During the initial stages of the
food lift, eight Globemasters flew
to Portuguese Angola to pick up
300 tons of dried fish—the stable
diet of Baluba families deep in
the African bush—enough to keep
the 50,000 tribesmen from starv-
ing to death for another day.
The airlift was originally re-
quested by the U. N. Relief Co-
ordinator in the Congo.
ridge the other side of the Han.
They were surrounded by the ene-
my, but Capt. Miller might be
able to get them out.
“Look it over. There may be
some way .... ” And so the cap-
tain went. He took a medic with
him in his helicopter. Another
‘copter accompanied him.
Capt. Miller found the little
ridge. He could see some GI’s
there but he couldn’t tell if they
were dead or alive. The ridge was
just as small as they had said,
and just beyond there was a cliff
which was no help at all. It would
be tough to land on a spot 12
by 20 feet, but it was worth a
try. •
Four F-80’s, a T-6, and a L-5
were cruising above to cover the
two helicopters.
Capt. Miller started down to
see if he could land on a 12 by
20 foot ridge near a cliff.
At first Shriver, hazy with
fever, thought the leaves swirling
up at the mouth of the cave were
a mirage. Then a leaf hit him.
“Helicopter!” he shouted.
He dragged himself out to the
front of the cave. A helicopter
was standing there with the mot-
ors turning and stirring up leav-
es, but it was empty. He hauled
himself inside.
Capt. Miller was shooting at
the hidden enemy (who had start-
ed shooting at him) to show the
planes above where they were.
Immediately the F-80’s began to
strafe the Communists.
Shriver’s buddy crawled aboard.
Capt. Miller came back with a
wounded man. He yelled to two
others to hide in the brush until
he could come back for them.
The helicopter took off. The
USAF planes were zooming down
on the enemy and Capt. Miller
didn’t have much trouble getting
off the ground.
At the first aid station, Shriver
ate three bowls of chicken noodle
soup and stated emphatically that
nothing had ever tasted better.
Capt. Miller went back to the
ridge.
He landed again, got two more
men, the other ‘copter got two,
and he went back for another
trip, so that in all, eight wounded
men were taken off the ridge. It
(Answers to Quiz)
1. Only two. The All-Star Games
didn’t start until 1933.
2. 1954.
3. No score, zero.
4. 15 yards.
5. Lightweight.
had been a good afternoon’s work.
For this feat Capt. Daniel J.
Miller was awarded the 1952 Cha-
ney Award for “outstanding valor
in aerial flight.”
Another high mark and tradi-
tion had been nailed down for
the MATS Air Rescue Service.
During the Korean war, H-5
and H-19 helicopters and SA-16
amphibians were used by the 3rd
Air Rescue Group to rescue near-
ly 10,000 United Nations person-
nel from combat areas. Of these
996 were picked up from behind
enemy lines. — (MNS)
VP Wins
Its Tenth
Contest
VP-10 seems to be invincible in
the intramural volleyball league
as the Navy team has won 10
straight games without losing a
single tilt.
Their latest victory was at the
expense of Supply and they beat
this contingent 15-5 and 15-7 in
two straight sets, after beating
Transportation earlier 15-8, and
15-5.
Hanging on in second place is
another Navy representative,
Naval Air Facility, with 9 wins
and 2 losses.
Air Base Squadron is next with
a 7-2 record, followed by AACS,
6-3; Transportation 6-4; Supply
6-5; AFI 5-4; Rockville 5-5; Den-
tal Clinic 3-6; Hospital 3-7; Civil
Engineers 2-7; and CAMRON
1-8.
In games played NAF beat
A ACS 17-15, 13-15, 15-4; Air
Base Squadron downed Supply
15-12, 5-15, 15-10; Hospital took
CAMRON in two straight 15-8,
15-8; Dental Clinic won out over
Engineers 15-8, 4-15, 15-8; Sup-
ply popped Transportation 15-13,
15-12; NAF won their, second of
the week beating AFI 15-10, 7-15,
15-10; Air Base Squadron took
Hospital 15-7, 11-14, 15-2; Engin-
eers drubbed CAMRON 15-0, 15-0
AACS edged Dental Clinic 15-10,
15-12; NAF got to Rockville 15-
10, 15-5; and Transportation end-
ed it 15-6, 9-15, 15-11 over Hosp-
ital.
Sun Goes East
For B-70 Crew
To crew-members of the pro-
posed B-70 bomber, the sun in
their eyes will set in the East,
Lt. Gen. William F. KcKee re-
cently told a group of stock brok-
ers in Pittsburgh, Pa.
The General explained. Heading
west after an early morning
(7:30 a.m.) take off the crew will
see the sun first at 20 degrees
above the horizon. As the bomber
climbs to its high cruising alti-
tude, the sun appears to climb
rapidly to the zenith. It’s here
that a strange thing happens;
the sun appears to stand still as
the B-70 surpasses the speed of
the sun. Eventually the plane
simply outruns the sun into the
dark, predawn part of the world,
and behind it the sun is slowly
setting in the East.
For the mathematical minded,
the answer is simple. A B-70
would be designed to make it
from London to California in four
hours.
@cun4up
* By AFPS '
Pete Dawkins, former All-America gridster during his West Point
days and now at Oxford U. on a Rhodes scholarship, scored three
goals and assisted two others for Oxford’s first ice hockey win over
Cambridge in four years. For his efforts, Dawkins received a stand-
ing ovation... .John Fagan has been elected captain of the Naval
Academy’s 1961 soccer team....Two Philadelphia Eagles gridsters
of the NFL, halfbacks Bobby Jackson and Tim Brown, are on six-
months active duty at Ft. Knox, Ky.Former Marine pilot Ted
Williams is assisting with coaching chores at the Boston Red Sox
training camp... .Leslie Norris of Ft. Carson, Colo., 1960 All-Army
runner-up and Inter-Service lightweight fistic champion, will be
battling for honors in the All-Army matches at Ft. Campbell, Ky.,
March 20 to April 7... .Chuck Cottier, 1960 Milwaukee Braves second
baseman, taking Reserve training at Edwards AFB, Calif.Lt.
Col. Burton C. Boatright has been named match executive of the
First Annual International Shooting Competition to be held at Ft.
Benning, Ga., March 26 to April 2.
BACKWARD GLANCES—Service athletes during WWII days in-
cluded Pvt. Enos Slaughter , who exchanged the uniform of the
Chicago Cardinals nine for Army khaki.... Fred Apostoli, pre-war
middleweight champion, headed a Navy gun crew aboard a battleship
....SSgt. Joe DiMaggio, former Yankee slugger, was swatting the
white sphere at Santa Ana, Calif., AAB.... Big Johnny Mize, one-
time first sacker with the N.Y Giants, was on the receiving end of
double-plays at NTC Great Lakes, Ill.During the 1944 season,
West Point had such a powerhouse of a football machine that they
cut the quarters short in four games to hold down the score. In those
days Felix Blanchard and Glenn Davis were lugging the pigskin for
the Army eleven.... Brig. Gen. Gar Davidson, onetime Army football
coach who later became the Academy’s Superintendent, received the
Army’s Distinguished Service Medal for reconstructing the ports of
Palermo and Marseille.... Elmer Yalo, former Athletics outfielder,
served as an Army Medical officer.... Frank Leahy, ex-Notre Dame
grid coach, as a Navy Lieutenant, was a physical training instructor
.... Bobby Jones, alltime golf great, was serving as an Army G-2
major in the Eighth Air Force in London.
QUICK LOOK—Ernie Jorge, former line coach of the Oakland
Raiders of the American Football League, has been named offensive
line coach of the Naval Academy eleven by Capt. Asbury Coward,
Annapolis director of athletics.... Lt. Col. John W. Russell, OIC of
the U.S. Modern Pentathlon Team at Ft. Sam Houston, Tex., retired
from the Army Feb. 28... . John Cox, sports information director at
the Naval Academy, has been re-elected to the NCAA Public Relation
Committee.. . .West Point cagers this season compiled their greatest
number of victories in 17 years... .Verle Wright, 1958 individual
rifle world’s champion, now with the Army in Korea.... Two former
Tyndall AFB, Fla., diamond players, infielder Rich McKray and
pitcher Jim Parker, are now members of the Baltimore Orioles’ nest
. .. .Bob Solomon, 1960 U.S. Army, European bantam champion, cur-
rently with the boxing team of Ft. Carson, Colo.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK—Jimmy Dykes, the Cleveland manager
who starts his 45th year in organized baseball, says, “I’ll never forget
Mr. Connie Mack’s advice: ‘Never second guess yourself. There will
be millions who’ll do that for you.’ ”