MEMORIAL DAY 2007

It was raining “cats and dogs” and I was late for physical training. Traffic was backed up at Fort Campbell, Ky., and was moving way too slowly. I was probably going to be late and I was growing more and more impatient.

The pace slowed almost to a standstill as I passed Memorial Grove, the site built to honor the soldiers who died in the Gander airplane crash, the worst redeployment accident in the history of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault).

Because it was close to Memorial Day, a small American flag had been placed in the ground next to each soldier’s memorial plaque.

My concern at the time, however, was getting past the bottleneck, getting out of the rain and getting to PT on time. continue reading

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IDOL DISAPPEARS OVER ENGLISH CHANNEL Paris, December 24, 1944

Americans have apparently lost one of their most beloved music-makers, the band leader Glenn Miller, who left civilian life to play with the Air Force Band.

December 15, 1944, a cold, wet and foggy afternoon, Glenn Miller departed RAF-Base, England in a Norseman C-64 aircraft. The flight was to take Glenn Miller and other passengers to Paris. However, the flight never made it. It is believed the aircraft encountered icing conditions over the English Channel and crashed.

No traces of the aircraft have been found.

Hopes that he might yet turn up were dimmed today when the 40-year old Miller was officially listed as missing and presumed dead. continue reading

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