Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska

“Alaska is the most central place in the world for aircraft. I believe in the future, he who holds Alaska will hold the world, and I think it is the most strategic place in the world.” - Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell, 1935

By the late 1920s, it was clear that Alaska's geography, roughly halfway between the major cities of East Asia, Europe and North America, made it critical for air travel. While Alaska was prized in the 1920s for its ability to hold fueling stations, Mitchell points out that the pace of technology will change things further. "The vast leagues of the Pacific are shrinking continually under the magic of scientific aircraft development. The day is not far off when neither months, weeks nor days will be used in computing the trip (between the United States and Asia), but hours alone." Even if fueling is not necessary in Alaska, the shortest route still flies over that territory, Mitchell realized. He began promoting the idea that Alaska needed to have military air bases in order to serve effectively in the next war. In 1934, Col. Henry “Hap” Arnold led a flight of 10 B-10 bombers from Washington, D.C. to Fairbanks, Alaska, to help build the case for these airfields. This was the first time a flight to Alaska did not need to stop in Canada.  Following this successful flight, Rep. James Mark Wilcox, D-Florida, introduced a bill calling for airfield construction in Alaska. He introduced it soon after the start of the 74th Congress, and it was referred to committee. On Feb. 11, 1935, this was where Mitchell declared in support of the bill, "Alaska is the most central place in the world for aircraft, and that is true of Europe, Asia or North America. I believe, in the future, he who holds Alaska will hold the world, and I think it is the most strategic place in the world."

Wilcox's bill became law in August 1935, and construction of bases in Fairbanks, Anchorage and Kodiak followed. They were followed by others as war broke out in Europe, and by the time the United States entered the war, they were ready for operation. It's difficult to say whether Mitchell's testimony was critical to the passage of the bill, but it's easy to say that the bill itself was critical to American defense of Alaska. Without it, bases might not have been ready for use when war began.

What a journey the Air Force up to this point had been; up till the moment I left Grand Forks, North Dakota heading toward Alaska, I had been in the Air Force for 13 years, been promoted 5 times, gone on 4 deployments, been stationed at 3 bases, saw the birth of 2 children.  Alaska turned out to be a game changer in so many ways; I made mistakes; mistakes that I would have to live with for long into the future.  I would find myself being promoted yet again, and the addition of two more deployments!  Let’s dive in.

As stated, I in the last blog, I left Grand Forks on May 24^th, 2009 – just two days after Alec’s 11^th birthday; our little Danielle was almost a year old and would take her first steps on the journey north!  We crossed into Canada with a SUV pulling a camper at Sweet Grass, Montana and just took our time winding through Canada, taking 10 days to get to our base just outside of Fairbanks, Alaska.  Crossing into Canada that late May day we found ourselves driving through Banff National Park - Canada’s first national park and the flagship of the nation’s park system and through Calgary, mind you this entire trip using a great book called Milepost to guide us where to stay, where to get gas, what sights to see on the way.  If you have never made the trip up the ALCAN to Alaska, I would totally recommend it.  I made the trip north and back south 4 years later.  Throughout our travels we found ourselves going through Grand Prairie in the province of Alberta, crossing into the British Columbia province near Dawson Creek, passing through Fort St. John, Fort Nelson, and Watson Lake. At this point we transitioned into the Northwest Territories province at Watson Lake, pushing through Whitehorse, Haines Junction, Destruction Bay, and Beaver Creek before crossing back into the United States through Tok, Delta Junction, and finally up to Eielson Air Force Base, near North Pole in the interior of Alaska. 

One of the most amazing attractions on this drive is the Sign Post Forrest at Historic Mile 635 in Watson Lake.  Travelers from around the world have been bringing signposts from their hometowns to the Sign Post Forest since 1942 and continue to do so today.  The tradition began during the Alaska Highway Project in 1942, when U.S. soldier Carl K. Lindley spent time in Watson Lake recovering from an injury. A commanding officer asked him to repair and erect the directional signposts, and while completing the job, he added a sign that indicated the direction and mileage to his hometown of Danville, Illinois. Others followed suit, and the trend caught on. In 1990, a couple from Ohio added the 10,000th sign in the Signpost Forest. Today, there are over 77,000 signs in the Forest, and the number grows each year as visitors contribute signs and continue the tradition. The Town of Watson Lake maintains the site, adding more sign posts as they fill up. If you ever make this trip, make sure to bring along a sign to add to the forest or you can make one at the Yukon Visitor Information Center to officially leave your mark!

Of course, a trip of this magnitude should not be taken without the most seriousness of preparation.  During the winter months, most passes require chains on vehicles and many gas stations are closed.  Even in May, we ran into snowy mountain passes, lots of animals on the side of and in the middle of the road and two punctured tires; one on the SUV and one on the camper.  It was slow going in many places, over one lane bridges, areas of the road that was still unpaved – but an amazing trip none the less.  As I said, we took our time taking 10 days to travel north, but it can be done with long days in as little as 4 days or less with multiple drivers.  

After arriving to Eielson, we closed on our house that would be home for the next 4 years in North Pole – we lived about a mile north of “The Santa Clause House.”  My time here at Eielson would provide me with both happiness and pain; I learned a lot about myself both personally and professionally while stationed at this base in Alaska’s interior.  The summers were great, minus the forest fires that would make it very smoky from time to time; nearly 24 hours of daylight in near perfect weather.  The winter was another story completely.  Sometimes as little as 4 hours of twilight and temperatures as cold as 50 below zero, I believe I saw it as cold as -63; the winters are certainly brutal to man and machine if you are not prepared.  I would deploy two more times at this base and also be promoted to the rank of Master Sergeant, an E-7 in the Air Force.  My deployments while here in Alaska included six month trips to Iraq and Bahrain. 

Ali Air Base, Nasiriyah, Iraq

Known by many names, Ali, Talil, Camp Adder, this base near the Kuwaiti border has a lot of history.  First contact by the American military happened during the 1991 Gulf War when its fortified aircraft shelters were heavily damaged by coalition bombing missions.  The air base originally served as the home of an Iraqi unit of Soviet-built MiG fighter aircraft as well as several Mi-24D helicopter gunships. The aircraft could be serviced and stored in 36 fortified concrete aircraft hangars located at either end of the main runway. These aircraft shelters, sometimes referred to as "trapezoids" or "Yugos", were built by Yugoslavian contractors sometime prior to 1985. After the start of the Iraq War in 2003, Ali Air Base, was used by the U.S. Air Force’s 332d Air Expeditionary Wing before they moved to Balad Air Base in January 2004. The 407th Air Expeditionary Group, operating C-130 Hercules cargo airplanes, then utilized the base and trained more than 100 Iraqi Airmen on how to maintain and fly the C-130 type until February 2006. Ali Air Base was thereafter used primarily by U.S. forces, including elements of the U.S. Army, Air Force, the Navy, and the Marine Corps. The base was nearly vacated of all U.S. Forces on 16 December 2011. The closure of this were the final actions in Operation New Dawn, the successor mission to Operation Iraqi Freedom.

At the start of Iraqi Freedom, on March 23, 2003, a convoy, belonging to the 507th Maintenance Company was ambushed by Iraqi forces during the Battle of Nasiriyah. The subsequent recovery of Private First Class Jessica Lynch by U.S. Special Operations Forces on April 1, 2003 received considerable media coverage; it was the first successful rescue of an American prisoner of war since World War II and the first ever of a woman.  The convoy made a wrong turn and were ambushed near Nasiriyah, a major crossing point over the Euphrates.  The convoy was supposed to detour around the town and instead turned directly into it, eventually running into an ambush. The ambush was unlikely to have been set up in advance, because the Iraqis did not know which course the convoy would take. Although some vehicles had GPS receivers, military GPS systems, unlike civilian equivalents, provide only grid references and not turn-by-turn navigation. Maps of the area lack the detail required to properly navigate through tight city streets. Apparently, the convoy took more than one wrong turn. The convoy came under attack by enemy fire. Eleven other soldiers in the company were killed in the ambush. Five additional soldiers were captured and subsequently rescued 21 days later. Initial official reports on Lynch's capture and rescue in Iraq were incorrect. On April 24, 2007, she testified in front of Congress that she had never fired her weapon (her M16 rifle having jammed), and that she had been knocked unconscious when her vehicle crashed.  Lynch has been outspoken in her criticism of the original stories reported regarding her combat experience. When asked about her heroine status, she stated "That wasn't me. I'm not about to take credit for something I didn't do ... I'm just a survivor.”

Ur, Iraq's most famous archeological site, was perhaps the earliest city in the world. Ur flourished under the Sumerians between 3500 BC and 4000 BC. It is located within the confines of Ali Air Base; Ur has been identified as the birthplace of the biblical patriarch Abraham. In the early decades of the 20th century, excavations uncovered a royal cemetery in which members of the ruling elite were buried with their servants and beautifully-made possessions. Ur's dominant feature is the remains of a ramped ziggurat or temple tower, the best preserved in Iraq.

While I was at this desert base in 2010, a member of our base was killed when an improvised explosive device pierced his Mine Resistant-Ambush Protected vehicle.  Army Major Ronald Culver was killed May 24; I would read about his May 27 memorial service soon after.  Major Culver had given his watch to a young lieutenant who kept asking what time it was, afraid she would miss a meeting. He told her he had worn that watch without taking it off for a year during his last deployment here and he left without a scratch. He told her to never take it off and she'll go home fine. She was a public affairs officer and every night the watch alarm went off at six p.m. She called and asked him how to turn it off and he said he wouldn't tell her. Every evening when the alarm goes off, he explained, she will be reminded that she needs to write more stories about the Soldiers. When his seemingly routine mission began that day, the major asked some of the members of the squadron to fly a flag in honor of his wedding anniversary. He would send it back to his wife. They raised his flag in front of headquarters for him. That afternoon, after the attack, they lowered his flag to half-staff, in memory of him.

Towards the end of the memorial service for Major Culver, the room was called to attention. The first sergeant on stage called for roll call for Headquarters and Headquarters Troop.

He yelled, "Captain Lloyd!"

A booming voice yelled back, "Here, First Sergeant!"

He yelled, "Major Robinson!"

"Here First Sergeant."

He yelled, "Major Culver!"

There was silence.

He yelled, "Major Ronald Culver!"

Silence.

He yelled again, "Major Ronald W. Culver, Jr.!"

And a voice said, "He's not here first sergeant, for he's gone to Fiddler's Green."

Profound silence.

"Sergeant Major, strike Major Culver's name from the roll."

I was able to participate in many dignified transfer ceremonies while in Iraq; day or night, we posted on the flightline and saluted as fallen service members were transferred to military aircraft to go home as heroes, their coffins always draped in the American flag. These are moments that I won’t ever forget. 

Isa Air Base, Bahrain

Isa Air Base, formerly Shaikh Isa Air Base is located on the 240-square-mile island nation of Bahrain, situated off Saudia Arabia's eastern coast, south of the countries’ capitol, Manama. It hosts the Royal Bahraini Air Force Fighter Wing and the two squadrons that comprise it. In March 2009, the United States Air Force established a camp on Isa Air Base to support aerial port operations. The unit was designated a detachment of the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing of Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar. This detachment's purpose was to accelerate the delivery of mine-resistant ambush-protected all-terrain vehicles to U.S. forces in Afghanistan. It was built with American assistance starting in 1987. It is the base for the 1st Fighter Wing of the BAAF. After Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait on 2 August 1990, coalition forces poured into the region in the ensuing months under Operation Desert Shield. Sheik Isa was inundated with military aircraft. Close to 200 US aircraft filled the ramps F-4Gs, F-18s, AV-8Bs, A-6Es, EA-6Bs, KC-10s while the base transformed into a small city of 12,000 military personnel. USMC, US Navy and USAF units have continued to deploy to the base at regular intervals up until the present day. The period that I was there in 2012, there were Navy P-3C Orion aircraft stationed at this island base.  Myself and another USAF Master Sergeant (I was also a Master Sergeant at this time) would guide a flight of 13 Navy Fuels Aviation Boatswain's Mates, delivering fuel and maintaining a system compromised of older Air Force equipment, bladders, pumps, and fuel trucks transferred to the Navy.  I was one of less than 50 Air Force members on this Navy base.  An interesting deployment for sure!

I have always been interested in the historical value of all of the places I have been.  I was able to visit a local Bahrain landmark, located between Isa Air Base and Manama; a site called “The Tree of Life” or Bharain’s Loneliest Tree.  The Tree of Life in Bahrain is a 32 feet high Prosopis Cineraria tree that is over 400 years old. It is on a hill in a barren area of the Arabian Desert, a mile from Jebel Dukhan, the highest point in Bahrain, and 25 miles from Manama, the nearest city. The tree is abundantly covered in green leaves. Due to its age and the fact that it is the only major tree growing in the area, the tree is a local tourist attraction and is visited by approximately 65,000 people every year. The yellow resin is used to make candles, aromatics and gum; the beans are processed into meal, jam, and wine. It is not certain how the tree survives. Bahrain has little to no rain throughout the year. Its roots are 50 meters deep, which may be enough to reach the water source. Others say the tree has learned to extract moisture from grains of sand. Some assert that the tree is protected by Enki, a god of water in Babylonian and Sumerian religion. Still others claim that the tree is standing in what was once the Garden of Eden, and so has a more mystical source of water. In 2009, the tree was nominated to be on the New7Wonders of Nature list, but unfortunately did not finish on the list. In October 2010, archaeologists unearthed 500-year-old pottery and other artefacts in the vicinity of the tree. A soil and dendrochronology analysis conducted in the 1990s concluded that the tree was an Acacia planted in 1582. The tree was mentioned in the 1991 film L.A. Story, where Steve Martin calls it one of the most mystical places on earth.

Back at Eielson Air Force Base, in Alaska’s interior, it would share a designation with another base that I would find myself at 3 assignments into the future.  The home to RED FLAG-Alaska, a realistic, 10-day air combat United States Air Force training exercise held up to four times a year. It is held at Eielson Air Force Base and Elmendorf Air Force Base in the State of Alaska. RED FLAG-Alaska participants are organized into "Red" defensive forces and "Blue" offensive forces. "White" forces represent the neutral controlling agency. The offensive force includes the full spectrum of U.S. and allied tactical and support units. Because the defensive and offensive forces meet in a simulated hostile, non-cooperative training environment, the job of controlling the mock war and ensuring safety falls to the "White" neutral force. By providing generic scenarios using common worldwide threats and simulated combat conditions, RED FLAG-Alaska gives everyone an opportunity to make the tough calls combat often requires.

Eielson Air Force Base is located approximately 26 miles southeast of Fairbanks, Alaska and just southeast of Moose Creek, Alaska. It was established in 1943 as Mile 26 Satellite Field. Its host unit is the 354th Fighter Wing assigned to the Eleventh Air Force of the Pacific Air Forces. The 354 FW's primary mission is to support Red Flag. Eielson AFB was named in honor of polar pilot Carl Ben Eielson.  Eielson is projected to have fifty-four F-35's arriving in April 2020 and continuing through 2022. The planes will come with an estimated 3,500 personnel, to include Airmen and their families as well as civilian personnel. The F-35 program will increase the number of military personnel at Eielson by about 50 percent, which is a significant change for a base once on the brink of closure. Eielson Air Force Base has operated a multitude of aircraft:

• P-38 Lightning (1946–1953)
• P-51 Mustang (1946–47)
• C-47 Skytrain|VC/SC/C-47 Skytrain (1949–1969)
• B-29 Superfortress|B-29/RB-29/WB-29 (1949–1956)
• P-80 Shooting Star (1950–51)
• T-33 Shooting Star (1950–1981)
• F-86 Sabre (1954–55)
• de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver (1952–60)
• KC-97 Stratofreighter (1959–61)
• WB-47 Stratojet (1960–68)
• WB-50 Superfortress (1960–68)
• F-102 Delta Dagger (1960–69)
• Piasecki H-21|Piasecki CH/SH/HH-21 (1960–1980)
• Lockheed U-2|U-2 Dragon Lady (1962–1964)
• Boeing RC-135 (1962–1992)
• C-123 Provider (1965–66, 1969–71)
• F-106 Delta Dart (1965–69)
• KC-135 Stratotanker (1967–present)
• F-4 Phantom II Det DC (1970–82)
• HH-3E Jolly Green Giant (1970–90)
• [O-2 Skymaster (1971–89)
• A-10 Thunderbolt II (1981–2007)
• OV-10 Bronco (1986–89)
• F-16 Fighting Falcon (1991 – present)
• F-35 (2020 – FAR INTO THE FUTURE)

 

There’s a B-29 in a small lake that’s visible to all who want to see. While practicing touch-and-go landings, the front landing gear of a KB-29P buckled in April of 1956, sending the temporary duty aircraft careening across the Eielson runway into a snowbank. Towing operations damaged the aircraft even more, and base officials decided to condemn the aircraft and strip it of usable parts. Several years later, the story goes, the KB-29 was hauled to a gravel pit off Transmitter Road, where a lake formed around the dilapidated aircraft. It subsequently became known as "Lady of the Lake." It's a good tale, but alas, not the origin of the Lady of the Lake. The "Lady," it turns out, is just a worn out B-29 formerly belonging to Eielson's 58th WRS. It broke down in September 1954 and was declared a permanent loss due to wear and tear. It is likely that because of the impending phase-out of the B-29 in favor of the B-50, base officials decided not to repair the aircraft. Air Force records show it dropped from the inventory due to a ground accident in May 1955, although no available evidence suggests it was fixed or that it was ever in any accidents. When it was towed to its present location is unknown.

During my tour in Alaska, I worked for some amazing leaders and had some great co-workers as well.  One of them being SMSgt Adrian “Diesel” Garner.  I worked under him for a majority of the time that I was stationed at Eielson.  I worked in places such as Refueling Maintenance, Fuels Resource Control Center, and as both the FISC and Ops Section Chiefs at different times.  I remember Diesel would always call me “Lee Watros” and does to this day.  On one occasion, while working FISC, I gave him a large stack of folders for his signature as he was the fuels account responsible officer.  I have to mention that I put them on his desk on a Friday afternoon, as he was going to start his vacation.  I just wanted them off my desk!! I can never forget the look on his face as he states, “really Lee Watros, really?!”  I held that position of the responsible officer years later so I certainly know and realize his frustrations with me now!

 But honestly, off duty was the best part of living in Alaska; from driving around looking for moose on backroads at 2 in the morning, to four-wheeling through the many trails and mountains in the area, to finishing a horseshoe race (and getting lost in the dark for a bit) to an amazing fishing trip I took right after getting home from Iraq in 2010.  A group of us got on a float plane in Fairbanks and were dropped off on a river system about a half hours flight away.  We were directed to our cabin and the use of two boats and a see you tomorrow by the pilot.  We were on fish from the moment we got on the water until the moment the plane picked us up the next day.  I have never been so sore and ready to stop casting a line as I was after that 24 hour fishing trip.  What made it even more eventful was we had to push the plane out as the pilot had gotten one of the pontoons stuck on a sandbar!  To finally watching a race that I love to this day, the Yukon Quest, and a chance encounter on the river in North Pole with a musher heading to the final stop in Fairbanks on a cold 2011 night.  I pulled my flight’s challenge coin out of my pocket and handed it to Hank DeBruin, the Red Lantern that year.  A coin that has bonded us together in that race.  I’ll have to specifically write about that moment in a future post because it’s a good one – and the story continues to this day! Ahhhhhhh, Alaska! 

Airmen who are stationed on Eielson commonly refer to themselves as "Icemen" due to the frigid Alaskan weather. Their wing motto is: "Ready to go at fifty below!  This was one of my top 2 favorite bases that I was stationed at; the other being Aviano Air Base in Italy.  I would love to get back to Alaska at some point in my life.  Who knows what the future holds!  I found myself heading back to what Alaskans refer to as the “Lower 48” in 2103 after a quick 4 year stay.  During this stop in my career, I also found myself as a divorcee after being married to my high-school sweetheart, Misty, for 15 years.  Lots of lessons learned for sure. Next stop; back to where it all started, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro, North Carolina.  I initially thought Seymour would be where I would finish my career; to finish where I started was an awesome thought on paper.  It wasn’t meant to be though…..keep reading as the Journey Continues!