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VOL. 15 NO. 37
KODIAK, ALASKA, NOVEMBER 12, 1955
pfttCE 16 mm
Local Nat’l Guard Unit
Receives Top Honors
Based upon camp attendance, ca
pabilities of the unit and upon unit
efficiency during the training at
encampment at Camp Denali, the
local unit, Company D, 207th Inf.
(NG) Battalion was rated at the
top of all Alaska National Guard
Units at the encampment.
Besides showing well during the
training, the athletic prowess of
the local unit was established. The
basketball team was undefeated,
in its games with other units par
ticipating, to gain the title ‘Camp
Champs/ Pvt. Reynold Morris who
represented the Company in a
small bore rifle match, took third
place, losing out by only a few
points.
Men of Kodiak’s Company D,
Alaska National Guard, marched
proudly by the reviewing stand in
downtown Anchorage last Friday
to tlie applause of reviewing digni
taricfs and others gathered for the
annual Veterans’ Day parade.
Company D was led by 1st Lt.
Edward Pagano, acting company
commander in the military parade
consisting of Units of the First
ScoUt Battalion, Company A of the
2Q7th Infantry Battalion and Ser
vice and Company C of the 208th
Infantry for Southeast Alaska. Al
aska. Air National Guard vehicles
and the 71st Infantry Band from
Fort Richardson also participated
in the parade.
The troops were reviewed by ci
vic and veterans organization dig
nitaries, Governor Frank Heintzle
man, Delegate E. L. Bartlett, Brig.
Gen. John R. Boyes, the Adjutant
General, Major General Edgar C.
Erickson, Chief of the National
Guard Bureau, and other visiting
dignitaries.
Company D and three other in
fantry companies have been under
going two weeks of intensive field
training these past two weeks with
emphasis on weapons firing and
small unit tactics. They returned
home by commercial airline from
their Camp Denali encampment.
The training, which during the
encampment, consisted mostly of
training for the individual soldier
and crews of crew-served weapons,
included familiarization firing for
the 81 mm Mortar crew and the
75 mm Recoiless Rifle crew,’and
record ‘firing for the Light MG
crews. ~
The training of the company was
supervised by Lt. Edward Pagano,
and each of the crews were trained
by Lt. R Berg and Sgt. Denato—
machine guns, SFC William Rob
ertson-81 mm mortars and SFC
Marion T. Howe, 75 mm recoilless
rifle. Training for the individual
soldier was supervised .ap$ given
by M|Sgt. Frank Pagano aha SgC
Caza, formerly of Kodiak.
Many of the local men earned
new “stripes” and their name!
be released as soon as the orders
promoting them are received at
this station.
Most of the personnel from Ko
diak found it quite a bit colder in
the Anchorage area, than here on
the island, but at the same time
were thankful for the sunshine
Jack Johnson Is New
Dock Superintendent
Jack V. Jackson was appointed
by the City Council to the position
of dock superintendent. He re
places Harry Spencer, who resign
ed earlier this month.
Johnson is 29 and is the father
of two children, a girl nine years
old and a boy of seven. He has re
sided in Kodiak since July, 1954.
He was employed by Alvine and
Gibson at the time of his appoint
ment. Prior to that he was a crew
member on the mailboat Expan
sion. He has had 12 years experi
ence in the maritime industry,
part of the time as a crew mem
ber, longshoreman, and in super
visory capacity. He holds a 3rd
class mate’s unlimited license.
Johnson is a.graduate of the. Edi
son Technical School in Seattle,
and the Ocean Navigation School
in San Pedro, California.
There were six applicants for
the position. Johnson assumed his
duties immediately.
E- T. Bunts Conducts
Prospectors Course
Mr. E. T. Barnes, Instructor,
University of Alaska School of
Alaska School of Mines Extension
CBourse, is now conducting a Pros
pectors Course here.
Classs in town are held in the
Science Room of the High School.
They begin promptly at 6:30 p. m.
and last until 8:30.
The course is also being given
in the Naval Station High School
from 9:00 p. m. until 11:00 p. m.
Sessions will be held Monday
through Friday, with the exception
of Thanksgiving Day, until Decem
ber 9th.
All those who are interested in
learning something of the miner
als found in Alaska, and the meth
ods of identification, are invited to
attend. There is no charge for the
course.
POLIO VICTIM DIES
Polio claimed its fourth victim
of the season at Ketchikan Thurs
day when Mrs. Donald J. Tandy,
mother of two children, died.
Mrs! Tandy was the wife of a
forest ranger. She entered the hos
pital two weeks ago with bulbar
polio.
- : ;fi ;> ■ j... -.'£ ifAiM- ■»
The.. Rural Administration an
nounced Thursday, a loan of
$175,000 to Homer Electric As
*sooiation.« i
most of the. time and the total Ijtek^
of mpd and slush on the ground!
Tfifis aided greatly in carrying dut
training.
Lt. Pagano and 1st Sgt. Frank
.Bueckers, announce the unit Has
been officially ordered to Fqrt
■ jL^ewis, Washington for training
there beginning on April 1956.
Those persons wishing to enlist
may contact Captain Walter Kraft,
Company Commander, at his store,
SFC Marion T. Howe at the Blank
enbefg Building, or by calling
0-9-933.
Base Defense Has
Aura of Reality
Blank cartridges, sentries chal
lenges, and the atmosphere of sud
den and unexpected attack lent an
aura of reality to the annual Base
Defense exercises completed at the
Kodiak Naval Station last week.
Full-scale anti-submarine war
fare and reconnaissance were fea
tured between the swift Neptune
Patrol Bombers of the Kodiak-bas
ed Patrol Squadron Two and the
“aggressor” submarine USS Perch
from San Diego during the open
ing phase of the exercises.
Evasive tactics of the submarine
almost won the first phase of the
operations for the “aggressor”
forces until the patrol planes spot
ted the submarine as she surfaced
to launch the Underwater Demoli
tian Team and the Marine Recon
naissance Platoon in rubber boats.
Though theoretically “destroy
ed,” the submarine continued
launching operations, and the Ma
rines “Beach Jumpers” landed well
outside the station’s boundaries
and successfully hiked through the
rugged Kodiak terrain to capture
their objective. ''
Other objectives for the "aggres
sor” forces were simulated atomic
and guided missile installations at
Kodiak.
The opening phase of the exer
cise was designed to test Kodiak’s
ground defense organization
against highly specialized amphi
bious assault as well as the effec
tiveness of the Patrol Squadron’s
anti-submarine techniques.
The closing phase of the exercise
pitted sailors and station Marines
guarding vital installations of the
station—that included docks and
fuel piers—against swift-striking
frogmen and recon units launched
well off-shore by submarines.
Frogmen of the Underwater De
molitian Team conducted under
water reconnaissance of the dock
facilities of the station for two
days and finally struck in the
early hours of the third day. Their
attack was aimed to simulate the
blowing up of piers and fuel stor
age facilities.
• The other unit of the “aggres
sor” forces comprised the Marine
Reconnaissance Platoon that struck
in well coordinated simultaneous
attacks at communications and
other vital station installations.
The entire closing phase of the
exercise was carried but in weath
er conditions that ranged froih fair
to extremely adverse. Rain, snow
and sleet were driven by high
winds and baldpered “aggressor”
and defending forces in what prov
ed to be an authentic test of per
sonnel, training and equipment.
■'
w-i* fehy‘ -■ ■
BEN KRAFT ON TRIP
PLANS TO VISIT WIFE
Ben Kraft left recently for the
States. He is on a combined busi
ness and pleasure trip.
His travels will take him south
to California where he will visit
his wife, Edna, who is recuperating
from a long illness. He will then
go to Arizona to visit with rela
tives, returning to be'with his wife
for the holidays.
(«tw Of A Day OH
Starta Controversy
Fairbanks. (AP)—The issue of a
day off, of all things, started a con
troversy in the chamber of the
Constitutional convention. Plans
were for the delegates to go on an
inspection tour of the Ladd Air
Force base. Some of the delegates
objected to taking the whole day
off to make the trip.
What looked like a small point,
grew into a topic of almost an
hour long debate during .the limit
ed afternoon plenary session
Thursday. Adjourning from Friday
evening until Monday morning,
just didn’t seem like a good idea
to some delegates.
After a long hassle, the delegates
finally decided to take Saturday
off and accept the Air Force invi
tation to inspect the base.
Eskimos Honored
For Airmen Rescue
Washington. (AP)—Two Eski
mos will receive honors from the
Navy for leading a rescue of ele
ven crewmembers of a patrol
plane which was shot down by the
Russian jets over the Bering Sea
June 22. They arrived here yester
day.
The two are Alaska National
Guard Scouts, MjSgt. Willis Wal
unga and Sgt. 1st class Clifford
Iknikinok. In civilian life they fish
traps for a living on St. Lawrence
Island, 30 miles from the Russian
border between Siberia and Alas
ka. The Navy ceremony is due to
be performed Monday.
The Kodiak based Navy twin-en
gined Neptune, flying about 40
miles southwest of St. Lawrence
Island, was fired on by two Rus
sian Migs. Three crewmembers of
the plane were wounded and three
more burned when the plane crash
landed on St. Lawrence Island and
exploded. The two Eskimos carri
ed first aid supplies to the downed
plane, removed the injured air
men to a settlement on the island
Coast Air Crash, Kills
Twenty-Seven Soldiers
Seattle. (AP)—A chartered air
liner crashed in the residential
area here early yesterday. Twenty
seven men were killed, all soldiers.
The plane, owned by Peninsular
Air Transport Co., of Miami
Springs, Florida, was chartered by
soldiers to take them home after
they arrived Thursday by ship
from the far east.
Forty-seven persons survived the
flaming crash. At least forty were
injured, five erotically.-'/.
The plane leveled one garage
and flaming gasoline set a house
afire. Five children asleep in the
house were uninjured.
Indications were that engine fail
ure may have, caused the crash.
November is the month the Ko
diak Chapter of the Business and
Professional Women’s Club is em
phasizing International Relations.
The Reverand Roman Sturmer will
be the guest speaker at the regu
lar dinner meeting held at the Is
land Fountain November 21.
Principles
Voted On
Fairbanks. (AP)—Alaska’s con
stitution shall be a document of
fundamental principles of basic
government and contain the frame
work for state government. This
resolution was offered by delegate
R. E. Robertson of Juneau arid
adopted at the plenary session of
the Alaska Constitutional conven
tion.
Thus, in the middle of the
second week, the delegates have
gone on record regarding the
hoped for proportions of the final
document. Roberton’s original re
solution proposed the constitution
define the fundamental principles
of basic law and contain only the
framework of state government,
with the details to be added at the
discretion of future legislatures.
This morning’s resolution is less
limiting but was acceptable to its
maker and his second, Maurice
Johnson of Fairbanks. The resolu
tion went to the committee on re
solutions and recommendations. *
Three more proposals were in
troduced, bringing the total to six
so far. They are: That the consti
tution set a limit on the amount of
debt which the state or any of its
taxing districts may incur or he
subjected to; establish a system of
free public education and such
other educational institutions for
special training as may be requir
ed; management and use of future
states natural resources.
The proposals were put into first
readin by title only. They were re
ferred to the various committees
for consideration.
Plan Navy Dance
At The Elks Club
The second Navy Elk’s party is
scheduled for; Saturday night, De
cember 3, and according to plans,
will be a full night of entertain
ment. The dance is for all Elks
and their servicemen guests, j
A Navy Elks party was held Inst
year. It was such a huge success, it
was decided to hold another one
this year. According to the pro
gram chairman, Bill Lavine, there
will be dancing, prizes, refresh
ments and a very talented floor
show.
Lavine stressed the fact that this
is not an open dance, but it is a
special night for servicemen,
whether Marine, Army, Navy, Air
Force of Coast Guard. They will
attend by invitation only of an Elk
member. The wives of servicemen
should also be included, according
to Lavine,
Proceeds from the dance will be
used to sVsrell the building fun<3()of
the local Elks lodge.
The Chamber of 'Commerce will
meet on Wednesday of next week
instead of Thursday, d u e . to*
Thanksgiving, according to Merrill
Coon, president of the Chamber.
The main business of the meet
ing will be a further discussion on
the sales tax proposal The Cham
ber and the City Council ire vork
ing together on the question.