Page 12 - Luke AFB Thunderbolt, March 2022

12 March 2022 news http://www.luke.af.mil Thunderbolt Facebook.com/LukeThunderbolt 13
Thunderbolt
March 2022
http://www.luke.af.mil
www.aerotechnews.com/lukeafb
THE VETErAnS AMOnG uS

Kermit Halden ... golfing your age

By fighters suddenly left and in December and medium length practice missions until
J.D. hARRiS 1943, he was vetted for a high-level secu- Aug. 5, 1945. Then there was unusual ac-
rity clearance. tivity, with a B-29 pulled over to a loading
There is a group that gets together There were 10-15 bombers built as Sil- pit at about noon. At about 4 p.m., the
most Tuesday mornings at Falcon Dunes verplate B-29s, but Kerm only saw nine. aircraft was painted to put “Enola Gay”
Golf Course, Luke Air Force Base, Ari- These Silverplate Bombers had specially on the fuselage. Formerly Capt. Lewis’
zona. We play a round of golf and then modified bomb bays and were stripped aircraft, this was now Col. Paul Tibbets’
enjoy the results over a soda or beer and of all armament except for the tail gun. aircraft. The main flight briefing occurred
lunch. The group is known as the Ghezzi There were also different power sources around 11 p.m. on the Aug. 5, and takeoff
Gaggle, a group of U.S. and Canadian and several avionic modifications to these was after midnight on the Aug. 6.
Veterans. The spots to play are limited, bombers. The next day, Capt. Deke Parsons, the
but available to all. One of the regulars Kerm and his buddy, Earl, were given lead scientist, and others received an an-
is Kermit Halden, who goes by “Kerm.” 10 days of leave. When they came back, nouncement from the engineering officer.
He is an impressive golfer and one of there were new gates, beefed up security, There was an incoming message from Col.
the few remaining team members of the and they were no longer able to leave the Tibbets, requesting a gathering after the
509th Bomb Group, of Enola Gay fame. base. At this time, there were half a dozen planes came back. Col. Tibbets came to the
This is part of his story. bombers stationed at Wendover Field. The party and thanked the team.
Born in 1924, Kerm regularly shoots unit had their own military police unit and The actual mission to Hiroshima lasted
under his age when golfing. In April, he every airplane was individually guarded, 12 ½ hours from take-off to land. The mis-
posted a 93 at Falcon Dunes Golf Course, in addition to the higher-than-normal base sion used three aircraft on the strike, with
which is great for a 97-year-old! So, who security. Tibbets leading the mission and flying the
is Kermit Halden and how did he get to Kermit had clearance to enter the Enola Gay, Marquardt piloting Necessary
where he is now? bombers to perform his work, but not Evil, the photo aircraft, and Sweeney pi-
Kermit enlisted in U.S. Navy in 1942 high enough clearance to actually touch loting the instrument aircraft, The Great
as a high school graduate at 17 years old. the weapons. The aircraft were put at Artiste, that provided wind information
He was later drafted into the Army Air the end of the long runway, and most of at the appropriate flight levels for an ac-
Corps in January 1943, before he could the construction was done at night. He curate weapon delivery. After release, the
start active service in the Navy. A fam- was called in from his quarters one night Enola Gay performed a 60-degree banked
ily friend encouraged him to be a fighter to fix a small electrical problem on one of escape maneuver to the right. Necessary
pilot, so he took and passed the initial the B-29s. It had a dummy “Nagasaki” Evil was offset to the left and 15 miles
physical. He went to basic training at Jef- weapon (Fat Man, a plutonium implosion behind the Enola Gay and witnessed the
Courtesy photo
ferson Barracks in Missouri. After initial device) that he thought was just a big high- explosion directly on its nose. This plane Friends, Conrad Lamourex (left), and
training, Kermit was selected for the Army explosive bomb, equivalent to “lots of TNT.” circled the rising cloud three times, then Kermit “Kerm” Halden (right), stand
Specialized Training, engineering college At this time, only the aircrew were aware returned to Tinian.
in Brenner Iowa. He was 18 years old at of what they actually were. They practiced The mission went nearly as planned; a together for a photo between drives dur-
the time. Sadly, the school closed after just missions from Wendover Field to Cuba, text book execution. ing a round of golf at Falcon Dunes Golf
one semester of college. a similar distance from Tinian to Tokyo. Col. Tibbets sent a message as he re- Course, Glendale, Arizona.
Early in his life, Kermit was inspired by The navigators on the missions performed turned from the mission, announcing a
Albert Einstein and was a voracious reader amazingly and were adept for accurate party on the 509th Ball Diamond at 2 p.m., ingenuity. They worked during the day,
of scientific and engineering books, articles over-water navigation. Aug. 6, 1945. Free beer, rationed at four and made the tools they needed at night.
and papers. In April 1945, the unit received orders per person, lemonade for those who did Everything was solvable. They made wind-
Kerm came from a military family. His to move overseas, and most of the unit, in- not care for beer, food galore, an all-star driven washing machines and used napalm
older brother, by 3 and a half years, en- cluding Kerm, moved via ships on a 27-day softball game, a jitter bug contest, and a to boil off the waste when cleaning latrines.
listed in the Navy. During his first enlist- voyage. High ranking members of the unit special movie titled “It’s A Pleasure” with Everyone did their fair share.
ment, his brother contracted rheumatic flew via C-54s from Wendover, to Hickam, Sonja Henie and Michael O’Shea. It was After his service, Kermit continued to
fever, becoming very ill. He survived and Hawaii, to Kwajalein, to Tinian. There quite a party, and this was the first time work as an electrician for the majority of
returned home, but died not long after. were four bomb wings already stationed many in the bomb group learned about the his life. Today, he lives comfortably in the
Kerm’s younger brother, by 9 years, was on the island, but they were fenced off atomic portion of the bomb group mission. Phoenix area and regularly golfs with the
a Chief Master Sergeant when he retired from this special group. With 700 bomb- Three days later, the Nagasaki mission Tuesday morning golfers. All of this is to
from the Air Force. ers on the island, these four wings were was a bit different. Because of weather and say, he looks like an average man, but to
His dad was an engineer in food process- devastating Japanese cities with incendi- a lot of verbal orders (instead of written those of us who have had the pleasure of
ing and Kermit went to three different high ary bombs, destroying roughly 67, mostly communication), the strike aircraft was watching him golf his age, we can’t help but
schools, so Kerm had few good connections wooden, cities. The new arrival, the 509th not able to link up with the photo chase be in awe of him and his past. A quiet and
and felt lost as a teenager. During his ini- Composite Group, was segregated on one aircraft and clouds obscured Kokura, the humble man, he has a great story to tell.
tial military training, he was picked out of end of the North Field, at Area 12. Its few primary target. Nagasaki, the alternate Ask him what his secret is and he will
a crowd by military trainers for his keen B-29s separated from the other 400 bomb- target was also covered by considerable tell you to keep reading (50 books a year)
aptitude. By mid-1943 he was shipped ers on the North Field. clouds. The aircrew of Bockscar, piloted to keep your brain functioning normally,
back for requalification training and at- There was an internment camp at the by Sweeney, were able to visually identify and stay physically active. See you on the
tended tech school in Amarillo, Texas, for center of Tinian with 4 to 5 thousand labor- the Nagasaki aim point and released the course, Kermit.
air frames and engineers. ers, separating the North and West Fields. second atomic weapon that would help end
Upon completion, Kerm was sent to Cha- They worked the sugar plantations that the war. Because of the weather delays Retired Lt. Gen. J.D. Harris previously
nute Field, Illinois, and saw his first B-29. were on the island. The service members, and some trapped fuel issues, Bockscar flew F-16s, commanded the 56th Fighter
Kermit completed additional electrician in their off time, participated in intramural diverted to Okinawa and landed with very Wing from 2010-2012, and went on to be
tech training on bombers, and was sent baseball and softball leagues. The best little usable fuel. When the team arrived the Deputy Chief of Staff for Programs and
to Wendover Army Air Field, Utah, where teams competed for the island champions, at Tinian a day later, there was no gather- Plans at the Pentagon. Now he enjoys golf-
they only had P-47s. Bombers had not yet between Saipan, Tinian and Guam units. ing or party. ing with the Ghezzi Gaggle at Falcon Dunes
arrived. However, just six weeks later, the The 509th got into a routine with short Kermit is proud of his team and their on Tuesdays.