Storming Heaven

Acknowledgments

As a full-time Guard unit, and with one of the largest flying squadrons in the U.S. military, the men and women of the 114th Fighter Squadron (Oregon Air National Guard), Kingsley Field, Klamath Falls, Oregon, are in a class by themselves, and I relied on them for much of the information on air defense fighter procedures and for a vital orientation in the F-16A Fighting Falcon ADF (Air Defense Fighter), which was a real thrill for this ex-bomber crew dog. Thanks to Colonel Donald “Scott” Powell, commander; Captain Sandra Kaufman, Chief of Public Affairs; Captain Ken Muller; and to all the other instructors and pilots I met with, for your generous support and assistance.

Interestingly, my old friends of the 119th Fighter Group, 178th Fighter Squadron “Happy Hooligans,” North Dakota Air National Guard (whom I wrote about in many other stories as the fighter unit that gets jumped by one of my high-tech bomber “battleships”), pull alert at Kingsley Field, and I had many opportunities to speak with them and learn firsthand about fighter intercept procedures. Thanks to Lieutenant Colonel Tom Tolman, commander of Det One, and his pilots and crews for a tour of their facility and their help in understanding the air interceptor game.

Thanks to the pilots of the 194th Fighter Squadron, California Air National Guard, at March AFB, Riverside, California, for their help in learning firsthand about life as an air defense pilot. Also at March Air Force Base is the Southwest Air Defense Sector Operations Command Center (SOCC), commanded by Colonel Russ Everts and Colonel Pat Madden, SOCC Director, and I thank them and their staff for the time they invested in me to tell me about air defense sector operations.

For information on ground-based air defense operations, I relied on the U.S. Army Air Defense Artillery School, Fort Bliss, Texas, commanded by Brigadier General J. M. Garner. Thanks to First Lieutenant David Reardon and Sergeant First Class Rich Glynn, of base Public Affairs, for putting together a terrific research itinerary for my visit. Thanks also to the men and women of the 6th Air Defense Artillery Brigades, especially LTC Larry Johnson, commander of 3-6th ADA (Patriot), U.S. Marine Corps Captain Brian Yeager, Hawk systems instructor; Mr. James Pool, Patriot systems instructor; First Sergeant Lanham and Sergeant Hayes, Stinger and Avenger instructors, and Sergeant First Class Kilgore and Sergeant Brown, Stinger simulator instructors. Thanks also to 11 th ADA Brigade at Fort Bliss, especially LTC Ben Hobson, commander of 343rd ADA (Patriot), and Captain Valerie J. Meadows, commander, 2LT Staggs, Sergeant Ken Macchus, Sergeant Ray Gorman, Sergeant Talbot, and Sergeant Rory Reed of F Battery, 3-43rd ADA.

For information on airborne surveillance operations in the E-3 Sentry AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) radar plane, thanks to the men and women of the 552nd Air Control Wing, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma City, OK, especially the commander, Brigadier General David J. Oakes; Captain Mike Halbig, First Lieutenant Tim White, and Staff Sergeant Chris Haug, Public Affairs; Captain Jerry Krueger, 964th AWACS; and Major Steve Lisi, First Lieutenant Mike Ruszkowski, and Staff Sergeant Mike Savage, 963rd AWACS, who showed me a bit of what integrated air defense is like during Tinker’s CORONET SENTRY 94-1 air supremacy exercise.

For information on the Federal Aviation Administration and air traffic control center procedures, thanks to Tony Longo, Assistant Manager for Training, Federal Aviation Administration, and Glenn W. Coon, Jr., Training Instructor, for a great tour of Oakland Air Route Traffic Control Center and for explaining the intricacies of domestic air traffic control, emergency procedures, and terrorism issues. Thanks also to Barry Maxwell, Debbie Yarborough, and David Jolly for a great tour of the air traffic control tower and FAA facilities at Memphis International Airport.

Thanks to Lieutenant Diane Ramsey, Sacramento Police Department, and Dr. Jim Poland, Ph.D., criminal justice professor and terrorism expert, California State University-Sacramento, for their help in understanding the organization of the U.S. government’s antiterrorist forces.

Special thanks to flight instructor, aircraft broker, and good friend Bob Watts, Jr., president of Capitol Sky Park, Sacramento, California, for helpful information on civil aircraft purchasing, licensing, and transport operations, and for all his long hours accompanying me to all the military bases we visited as he checked me out in the Piper Aerostar 602P. It was a first-class way to travel thanks to this first- class gentleman. Thanks also to Chip Manor, Media Relations Director, Martin Marietta Corporation; and my good friend and fellow AirLifeLine pilot Jim Rahe, and his wife, Lin, Houston, Texas, for their suggestions and assistance with this story.

Finally, very special thanks to my hardworking and very patient executive assistant, researcher, and friend Dennis T. Hall, for helping me develop this story, for ideas and research on stock-option investment strategies used in this story, and for all-around maintaining a pretty good sense of humor while dealing with all my typical harried author’s nonsense. Few authors work in a vacuum, and I’m lucky to have Dennis’s help and advice.