May 2000
Greetings; we have had a very active six months since the last newsletter. The Internet has really been active and at last count we have over 200 on the e-mail list. As you know this really helps for the mail. In addition all of the MAJCOMs have been forwarding the Newsletter and other interest items to the troops. We have had several retirements announced and promotions. Steve Culbreth has retired from his position as Air Combat Command Life Support Requirements Functional Manager. It was in this last assignment where Chief Culbreth really hit his stride; helping achieve the first Life Support Program Element (PE) that gives the Air Force Life Support community its own funding line at Air Staff level. He was also instrumental in developing and more importantly getting approved the first ever umbrella Life Support Operational Requirements Document (ORD). This new in-place ORD will allow the Life Support community to evaluate new emerging equipment and technologies. It cuts out what has been a 2 to 3 year approval process to develop; coordinate, and get approved a specific ORD to look at a specific piece of equipment or technology. The good news is that Steves life support knowledge and talents will not be lost because he is currently working at HQ ACC as a contractor and will still be working life support issues! Good luck Steve. Steves replacement in the Requirement Position is Chief Randy Loving.
Chief Rob
Bentley also retired and I along with Al Loving, Bill Wood, and Tim Morrow had
the opportunity to attend. The AMC Staff did an exceptional job in setting up
and running the Retirement Ceremony. As
I have said before each of these retirements that I am privileged to attend
just gets better. The Special Flag Folding ceremony was outstanding. Bob McElwain has added it on the Life
Support Web page. Robs accomplishments
were many and I think he holds the record for being recognized over the years
as the Outstanding Life Support Technician, Superintendent and Command Manager. His time as a Military
Training Instructor was recognized by MSgt Bill Beckett in full Military
Instructor Uniform. In the words of MG
Williams, AMC Director of Operations the next generation of Air Force Leaders
will certainly profit from your strong, positive leadership. As with Steve we will be seeing Rob in
retirement as he is working for the Bellville Boot Company and will be at SAFE
and other life support meetings. Chief
Rich Robichaud now heads up AMC. Other
retirements announced are Chief Rob Darter and MSgt Rick Cox at Brooks. I hear that Al King will replace Rob Darter
and MSgt Jim Craft has replaced Rick Cox.
The new Senior Master Sergeants this year are David Brown at Fairchild,
Lee Hawkins at Nellis, Robert Manning at Davis Monthan, Richard Schneider at
McGuire, Steve Skaggs at Langley and Theodore Torrence at Elmendorf. Congratulations to all!
We now have two active duty troops at Wright Patterson working in the Labs. MSgt Brian Grattan is the Superintendent Biodynamics and Acceleration and MSgt Mike Sedillo is Superintendent of Test and Evaluation of Night Vision Systems.
We have also had some bad news in the loss of
two very important life supporters.
Chief Pat Burke was laid to rest with full military honors in Seymour
Indiana on Monday 7 February 2000. A 10
person Honor Flight provided military Honors from Wright Patterson AFB,
Ohio. Pat's father and brothers were
very appreciative of the military presence and appreciated all of the
condolences. Pat was a special son, a
special person and a super Life Supporter. In addition to retiring as the Chief
Enlisted Manager at MAC/AMC Pat also taught many years at the Life Support Officers
Course and his impact will be felt for many years. Family and friends will miss him. Life support family
members in attendance were, Greg and Jane Dean, Al Loving, Ray Blanchett, Tom
and Polly Tompkins and Mike Carroll.
Albert J. Young passed away 23 March 00. A.J. served in both the
US Navy and US Air Force and was retired from the US Government Civil
Service. The last eight years of his
civil service duty, A.J. served as the Chief of the Personnel Equipment and
Escape Systems Division within the San Antonio Air Logistics Center (SA-ALC),
Kelly AFB, Texas. During this time, he
was the catalyst of numerous USAF life support equipment and egress systems
improvement and modernization programs. After retirement A.J. remained active
in SAFE and represented several leading companies in the area of Life Support
Systems and Equipment. A.J. has always
been a strong proponent of aircrew life support systems, equipment and
safety. A.J. can be best eulogized as a
true gentleman and an exceptional friend to all who knew him.
As usual I have been extremely lucky to be in
a position to really keep in touch. The
letters have not been as many but the Internet has taken its place. Still time
for a few calls and or visits with Ed Chewning, Roger May, Dave Curran, Jimmy
Cartwright, Arlan Ed Rappe, Hal Stamp, Danny Keith, John Damron, Tim Morrow,
Durrell Bess, Al Loving, Bill Wood, Skip Clawson, Jerry Miknis, Paul Swindell,
Kenny Troup, John Patti, and even got to visit with Bob McElwain at NASA. If you ever get in the area be sure and give
him a call. The Life Support Shop there is a virtual history of Life Support
Equipment and he is very proud of the shop.
Also got an outstanding tour of the Life Sciences Lab at Brooks
conducted by Jim Hodges. Once again if
you are in that area its really interesting.
In closing we have several Life Supporters
who really would appreciate calls, e-mails, or letters. David Heitman is
recovering from an operation and can be reached at HEIT101@aol.com. Richard Traufield is home from a 7day stay in the hospital to
have a feeding tube put in and can be reached at baltra@bellsouth.net. Skip Clawson talked with Tom Lujan and he
is not doing real well. Any of the guys
who know him might want to drop him a few words to give him a little
encouragement. He told us he is
fighting cancer as well as other health problems. Skip noticed his spirits really picked up when he talked with him
about the guys at the last Exec and about times at Chanute. So maybe a card or call to let him know we
are thinking about him may be in order.
Tom is at Box 1217 3700 N. Capitol St. N.W. Washington DC 29317. Phone
202.723.7980.
So as you can see the life support career
field is in good shape. We have
operational types at Air Staff and at the Air Force Research Labs, and after
many years we have our own Program Element to defend for funding. And I finally got the first of, and I hope
many more Army Life Supporters interested.
Jerry Johnson is a retired Army Helicopter Pilot and Aircrew Life
Support Equipment (ALSE) Specialist
(What a combination!) and is very knowledgeable of all things Army. Jerry works out of the Fort Rucker area and
can be reached at jerryj@snowhill.com
In closing, Polly and I hope to see all of
you at the reunion or if not let me hear from you snail mail or electronically
so we can keep this newsletter and comradeship growing.
Cheers and keep in touch,
Tommy
CHILI SEZ
I hope everyone is healthy, happy and ready for reunion 2000. After a lot of thought it has been decided to have this years reunion at our usual place, Harrahs Hotel/Casino in Laughlin, NV from 18 - 21 September. All former, retired, active duty, guard, reserve, and civilian contractor personnel in the Aircrew Life Support business, and their families are invited to attend. To register you must send in the attached registration form to KB Kinchen by the date indicated. If this will be your first reunion remember the following:
- Laughlin is located 90 miles south of Las Vegas and is easily accessible via car or RV.
- Air travelers can fly directly into the Laughlin/Bullhead City Airport on many major airlines, commuter flights or private charters.
- Reservation cannot be made with hotel personnel (unless you are attending on official military orders). They must be made with KB!
- Confirmation of your reservation will not be mailed out unless asked for.
- Rooms will not be available for check-in until 3 PM, 18 Sep 00. Early check-in is allowed if your room is ready.
- A special area will be set-up in the hotel lobby from 2PM - 5PM for reunion attendees to sign-in.
- After checking in, dont forget to stop by our hospitality room after 5PM for some libations and snacks.
FROM OUR READERS
Thanks to everyone who sent in letters, post cards, historical information, e-mails, etc. Below are some of the e-mails that were received during the past 12 months.
I was just surfing the
web when I came across your web site for retired/ex PE folks. Though I did not retire, I found many names
of wonderful people that I had worked with in the years gone by. Sitting next to me is my brother-in-law who
is a retired MSgt and a career PE person (Walter Ortiz). His last assignment was as the
superintendent of the March AFB PE shop (SAC side). Thanks for a great web site.
Bob Moir
*
I had 105 days of
terminal leave to take when I retired. My wife and I drove our motorcycle from
Anchorage, Alaska to Las Vegas, NV. We
put on over 11,000 miles in six weeks before I returned to Anchorage. It was a blast! I cannot wait to do it again!
After retirement I worked for a company called CTG, Computer Task
Group. I was a Desktop Support Analyst
and was contracted out to Alyeska Pipeline Service Company to maintain their
desktop computers. It was an excellent
job. I traveled the entire length of
the pipeline from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez, Alaska. I was able to see a part of the state that I have never seen
before. Currently I am working for the
USAF as the Forman of the Survival Equipment shop at Elmendorf AFB. I really like the job. However, working on the maintenance side of
the house is a little different.
MSgt (Ret) Antonio (Tony) Sanchez
*
I retired from the
USAF in 1979. I then got a job with the
Corps of Engineers, in Washington State, working at a hydroelectric dam on the
Columbia River (Chief Joseph Dam) I plan on retiring next year and joining the
ranks of the triple dippers. For
those of you that hadnt heard, my wife, Marilyn died several years ago after a
5-year battle with cancer. I really
enjoyed the June 99 edition of the newsletter. I recognized the names of a few people I used to knowlike Al
Wenzleburger and John Wesson. I was
stationed at Bitburg AB, Germany with Wesson and fast Eddie Chewning. A note to Tom Tom Tompkins, Youre doing a
great job, keep up the good work. Im
on my way to buy another book of stamps.
Mike Saint
*
I served in the USAF
from 1983 to 1987. I was stationed at
Loring AFB from Feb '84 till my
discharge in Aug 87. The time I was in
service with the life support gang hold memories that I will never forget. I worked with some of the wildest, craziest,
and calmest people I have ever known.
But the one thing they all had in common is that they were good
people. I still miss each and every one
of them. Since I got out of service I
have had a very good and blessed life, thanks to the Lord. I have no regrets for leaving, but I miss my
people. I have been on line for about a
year now and have tried to find some of my friends with no luck. Just this past week I stumbled across your
web page and my heart skipped a beat. I
have already made contact with one of my friends and have noticed a few more on
your address list. I know this is
longwinded, but I need to preface this next statement to show its importance to
me. I just want to thank you for your
time, effort and the hard work that you have put into the web site. I am sure you know what this means to me
being that we have stood in the same shoes before. I have taken enough of your time so I will go now. I just wanted to express my gratitude to you
for creating this link to my past.
Jeff Hines
*
It is a great thing
what you guys are doing with the newsletter.
To include contractors is an honor for all of us who know and try to
help the progress of the Life Support community and in turn the
crewmember. I was introduced to the
Life Support community 14 years ago while trying to sell vacuum packed sleeping
bags to Timmy Morrow at Elmendorft AFB.
(Of course, he found the biggest guy he could to try it outwith boots
on.) We hired Rick Stewart and it was
downhill from there. With many trips to
Alaska, SAFE, Life Support conferences and other strange get togethers; I have
been lucky enough to meet some great individuals. Tommy, youre one, but havent had the chance to see you for a
few years. Ive seen Timmy Morrow
around. Ron Ziegler, a beautiful
person, good friend, and sorely missed, was kind enough to include me on the
mailing list. I cant stop by just
mentioning those few; others include John Shields, George Brau, Kenny Marks
(Still need that survival gear?), Dennis Struck (werent we going hunting?),
and Cal Crochet (thanks for the leads).
There are many others that I cant put faces with names anymore (I need
to go to the reunion). As long as we
have something good to sell, the life support troops want to see it. They have made the contractor very welcome
in their community. Again, thanks for
including the contractors on your lists.
Bob LaFrance, Pacific Scientific Energetic Materials Co.
OTHER LOST LIFE SUPPORTERS
In an e-mail from MSgt (Ret) Larry Garcia he stated, Retired TSgt Carl Shellinkhout died a few months ago.
Another life supporter that is no longer with us is SMSgt (Ret) Jack Paulson. He passed away on 13 April 00. Below are some words on Jack.
SMSgt Jack Paulson was the Eielson AFB Superintendent during the four
years while I was the PACAF Life Support Chief and there is no question that he
was one of PACAF's finest. He and his Life Support team always focused on
Priority One --"keeping his aircrews safe". As one of our
senior superintendents, he was always ready to help out. Our staff gladly
used him as an IG augmentee, JTFFA investigator, and mentor for our high
turnover base superintendents. We knew that he would do a great
job. During our PACAF workshops in Korea, Jack always supported our
efforts to build PACAF Life Support esprit d'corps. I trusted that he was
an extension of our PACAF Staff and a positive influence and helped us keep the
team safe especially during our green and brown bean tours. Jack loved
the outdoors and had as many fish stories (most true) as anyone I know.
We always enjoyed his fishing success, especially when he sent us a care
package of smoked salmon. I know that everyone that knew Jack Paulson
feels the same way as I do, he was a professional that helped lift up the life
support program to new levels, a trusted friend, and will be sorely missed by
our Community.
Chuck Hunnefeld
*
Jack was one of the NCOICs when I got to Alaska in 1985. He was outstanding in every respect. Even as a youngster (as Johnny Nevada would say) Jack often stepped up to the plate as the superintendent when Jim Price was out of pocket. He was a professional with a passion. He loved all that life support stood for.
Timmy Morrow
LIFE SUPPORT EQUIPMENT ACRONYMS
In closing I'd like to
challenge everyone attending this year's reunion to come prepared to answer the
following questions. A special prize
will be awarded to the person with the most correct answers. Here is the question. Everyone knows that the acronyms PLD, BA,
SA, LPU and LRU mean Personnel Lowering Device, Back Automatic, Seat Automatic,
Life Preserver Unit, and Life Raft Unit respectively, but what does the
following mean (if anything):
"AN/URC" as in radios?
"AN/PRC" as in radios?
"AN/URT" as in beacons?
"CNU" as in
survival kit?
CSU as in g-suit?
CWU as in exposure
suit/coveralls?
F as in 20 man raft?
HGU as in helmet?
"M" as in
survival rifle/fire starter?
MBU as in oxygen
mask?
"MA" as in
sun goggles/clothing?
"MB" as in
survival kit?
"MD" as in
survival kit?
"ML" as in
survival kit?
"MK" as in
flares/desalter kit/mirror?
"MC" as in
knife?
"PCU" as in
lowering device/torso harness?
"SRU" as in
minimum survival kit/survival vest/sleeping bag/survival tool?
Ill bet you thought
these were going to be easy, didnt you?
See you at the reunion.
Chili