-Caveat Lector- WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War! 0059. CENTAF commander visits Southwest Asia by Staff Sgt. Cindy Maier 363rd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- During his recent two-week visit to Southwest Asia, Lt. Gen. Chuck Wald, 9th Air Force and U.S. Central Command Air Forces commander, said he does not see American forces leaving this area in the near future. However, with the new presidential administration just days away from taking office, Wald said he expects a policy review to evaluate what will happen in the future for this region. "The heart of (the review) will be, 'Are we going to stay?' or 'Are we going to leave?'" he said. "The spectrum of what could happen is that we could maybe get more aggressive than what we are being, all the way back to we would leave. But, leaving is not very likely, in my opinion." Ward said he thinks the new administration sees the importance of the mission in the theater. "I think there will be a policy review; I think there should be because of, first of all, the mission," he said. "The bottom line is that the mission has gone very well. I think the policy, even as critical as people have been about it, is very good." The policy began nearly 10 years ago, after the end of Operation Desert Storm. "We've been doing this since August 1991, and Saddam has not really threatened anyone in the region, per se, since this has started," Wald said. "We've cleaned out a significant portion of his integrated air defense system in the southern part of the (area of responsibility), particularly in the last couple of years since the (rules of engagement have) changed and where we have better capability to respond." Though the general thinks the mission is going along very well, he believes the review will be critical to the future of American presence in this region. "Because of the critical nature of what the policy has been for eight years, there has to be a review," Wald said. "During that review, I think they'll (ask) 'Is there anything else we can do?' When it's all said and done, we'll probably have something pretty close to what we've got." There is one thing about the presence here that needs to be clarified, Wald said. "Brig. Gen. (Allen G.) Peck, (363d Air Expeditionary Wing commander), and his folks, as well as all the rest of the folks at Operation Southern Watch aren't directly related to the sanctions (against Iraq). Sanctions are things like restricting commercial flights into Iraq," Wald said. "We are here to prevent Iraq from attacking Iraqi people in the southern part of the country. Additionally, we are here for regional stability. But, we don't have a mission for sanctions." Considering American presence in the region will not lighten, Ward said the current way of deploying Air Force people to this area, by way of the Air Expeditionary Force, is the right way to go. The current AEF system has helped the Air Force in a lot of areas, Ward said. "The (operations tempo) issue that we were living with two or three years ago seems to be gone. We don't hear people complaining about the fact that they're gone from home all the time," he said. Ward said the AEF has "improved morale and predictability, gotten the total force more involved, and helped us focus on what we need as an Air Force for equipment, as well helping us see where we ought to place our emphasis and organize ourselves better." There is room for improvement, he said. "We've got a little ways to go on some Air Force-wide manpower tracking issues and things like that, but, I think it's been a significant success." 0064. WWII vet gets long-awaited recognition by Staff Sgt. Brian Jones 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. (AFPN) -- In early November 1944 the crew of the B-17 Flying Fortress "Take it Easy" gathered at an English air base for their morning brief. When the maps were pulled down to reveal the day's target, the crew let out a collective sigh. The 10 airmen of the "Take it Easy" were to bomb a heavily protected petroleum plant in Misburg, Germany, a target the co-pilot hated more than any other. The mission would prove to be one the surviving members of the B-17 would not soon forget, and for one crewmember a mission that would take 56 years to garner proper recognition. Retired Maj. Charles H. Bonner, the co-pilot on "Take it Easy," was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross recently for his role during that World War II flight. During the day's events, Bonner recounted -- as if it were yesterday -- the mission that would end in the death of six of the B-17's crew. "The Germans had about 400 anti-aircraft guns they could put on you any way you approached Misburg," Bonner said. "Before we hit the initial point for our bomb run we were hit by a couple of hundred of these guns." Bonner was to split time with the pilot in 20-minute shifts, but on this particular day, the lieutenant found himself at the controls for the entire mission. "(The pilot) had lost three of his good friends and that really affected him," Bonner said. "He had a lot of tough missions and when he looked out of the window that day, and saw all the flak from the anti-aircraft guns, he just froze." During the B-17's first pass, the Germans hit the plane's tail, waist and ball turret gunners. The bomber's control cables were shattered and 20 mm shells exploded in the B-17's interior. The vertical stabilizer was almost gone and the wings had gaping holes. "After about 10 minutes I knew we couldn't stay with the bombing run any longer and we took off on our own," Bonner said. "Because a single ship would have been an easy target to pick off, we dropped about 25,000 feet into the overcast and flew there for about two hours. I wasn't going to walk back from Germany and wasn't going to swim the North Sea. I was going to get it back." Eventually, Bonner took the hobbled B-17 down to about 1,700 feet over the North Sea. "At that point I notified air and sea rescue so they didn't think we were a German crew in a bootleg fortress heading to bomb England," he said. Shortly after the radio call, the "Take it Easy" was greeted by an American P-51 that circled the wounded aircraft and signaled a V for victory. That's when Bonner knew they'd make it back to England. Back on the ground, the crew began to realize just how lucky they were. "When I got back to the base and went to climb out I noticed that right in the center of my seat back there was a bubble in the armor plating," Bonner said. Further review of the aircraft found a German shell had entered the B-17 through the tail and exited out the nose and an unexploded incendiary shell had come to rest in one of the plane's fuel tanks. "I'm alive today because of the slave labor in the German munitions plant," Bonner said. "When they were producing the shells, every fifth one was marked for incendiary, but they didn't put (the incendiary material) in all the shells (they were supposed to). Luckily enough, one of those shells went into our gas tank. It was marked incendiary, but was just armor piercing." Bonner was originally considered for the Distinguished Flying Cross shortly after "Take it Easy" limped back to England. "I was first submitted by my operations officer in 1945 and what happened to that package God only knows," Bonner said. "It was a bad time. Bases were closing and people were returning to the states. We weren't thinking about medals or anything. We were just happy to be alive." It wasn't until many years later that Bonner reopened the case of the "Take it Easy." "You forget about things. I closed the book on it," he said. "Then I got in touch with some of the crewmembers who survived that day and it started me thinking, 'What did happen?'" In 1998, Bonner submitted a package, only to have it turned down because he needed an eyewitness to vouch for his story. Finally he tracked down the plane's navigator who backed-up his account of the mission and the stage was set. "I was honored when I got the notification that the 20th Fighter Wing would have the opportunity to pay recognition to a combat veteran and World War II hero that was long overdue," said Col. Dana Atkins, 26th Fighter Wing commander. Bonner was accompanied at the ceremony by his daughter and granddaughter . "It's a very proud day and a great privilege," said Katherine Miller, Bonner's granddaughter. "It makes me happy to have had the chance to see the ceremony. If he had gotten it earlier I wouldn't have been around to experience it." For Bonner, the recognition was less about his individual accomplishments and more about those who didn't return. "(The recognition) makes me think of all those who came before, those who didn't survive their missions and how necessary it is to remember them," Bonner said. "When you consider all of those buried in the many cemeteries around the world you realize that we pay a price for the freedom and safety of this country -- there are no free rides." (Courtesy of Air Combat Command News Service) 0063. Life is anything but 'flat' for Stanley by Staff Sgt. Jim Verchio Operation Northern Watch Public Affairs INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey (AFPN) -- He's traveled to the White House, Graceland and the Eiffel Tower. He's even orbited the Earth 217 times in the Space Shuttle Discovery. But, he is not an average boy -- quite the contrary. Weighing in at less than one ounce and towering over no one at 4 inches tall, he is just a world traveler, and now he has made history with the men and women of Operation Northern Watch. Flat Stanley, as children throughout the world know him, is a fictional literary character from the book of the same name. In the book, Stanley is squished by a bulletin board. Once he is squished he has a great advantage -- he can be mailed to friends around the world. The premise of the book is to motivate children to keep in touch with friends and loved ones. Since 1995, Flat Stanleys from around the United States have been mailed worldwide. When Stanley arrives at his destination, participants journal his experiences and forward Stanley to another friend, or send him back to his original destination. Master Sgt. Dee Spidel, deployed from Grand Forks Air Force Base, N.D., received a Flat Stanley and a request from her niece Marian Marr, who attends Crowders Creek School in Clover, S.C. The child's request was to have her aunt take Flat Stanley with her to Turkey so he could experience Operation Northern Watch first hand. Since his arrival, Stanley has flown in an F-16 Fighting Falcon with Brig. Gen. Bob DuLaney, co-commander of the Combined Task Force, he's flown in an F-15C Eagle from Elemendorf AFB, Alaska, and he's jammed with country western recording artist Brad Austin at the Hodja Village Pub. For DuLaney, flying with Flat Stanley was a one-of-a-kind experience. "I felt very comfortable having an extra pair of eyes checking my six while flying over hostile airspace," DuLaney said. "Also, knowing that Stanley's experiences would help the kids from Crowders Creek School learn more about our mission made the flight extra special." DuLaney said it is important to educate the children of America on how the members of ONW are making it better every day. "It's important for those of us in uniform to take interest and help out where we can because it's great kids like these that someday will be leading and defending our country," DuLaney said. With his orders in hand, Flat Stanley will soon be placed back in his transport portal called an envelope on his way back home to South Carolina, but his time here was one that made an indelible impression on those who came into contact with him. "I just want to thank Marian for the opportunity to fly with Stanley," DuLaney said. "It was truly an honor to fly with the little guy." *COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for nonprofit research and educational purposes only.[Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ] Want to be on our lists? 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