Written by Todd DePastino All he did was give candy to children. But in doing so, Lieutenant Gail Halvorsen inadvertently launched one of the greatest diplomatic missions of the Cold War. A Douglas C-54 Skymaster dropping candy over Berlin (Museum of USAF) In November 2020, we welcomed the 100-year-old Berlin Airlift hero
By Todd DePastino Kristian Clayton on VBC Happy Hour in August 2022 Quick action and old Air Force training made youth football coach Kristian Clayton a genuine hero last August, after he saved a baby choking on a plastic soda cap. Coach Clayton had just given his players a break from drills
Written by Jim McStay A B-52 flies over the beach at U-Tapao, ca. 1973 (Jim McStay) Navy P-3 Orion pilot Jim McStay recalls a long day in the air from Diego Garcia with special cargo in a cooler and a badly hurt SeaBee on a litter awaiting emergency surgery. Back when I
Written by Irene Harrell Irene Harrell with her grandfather, retired Air Force Col. Ron Standerfer Irene Harrell is a young writer who has attended our VBC events in-person and online to meet veterans and hear their stories. She’s interested in interviewing Vietnam veterans especially to research a novel she’s working on about
Written by Jim McStay An aerial view of Diego Garcia island, 2013 (USN) In 1973, Navy SeaBees on the tiny island of Diego Garcia faced a crisis. They were hot, dry, and thirsty. One Navy P-3 Orion pilot, Jim McStay, came to their rescue. In 1973, I was a Navy pilot who
Written by Shaun HallBetween Enlisted and regular Officers sits a strange thing called a "Warrant Officer." Warrant Officers get saluted and are called "sir," but they have their own pay grades and do not receive their rank by commission . . . unless they're "Commissioned Warrant Officers." Shaun Hall breaks it all down below.What Military
