Honoring��the��Service of��51������’ Families

Joy and Ted Minnick — in love for 58 years.

Joy and Ted Minnick — in love for 58 years.

Ted Minnick holds his daughter Kim��the day before��his departure to Vietnam.

Upon Ted’s departure, Joy made a point of telling lots of “Daddy stories” to their infant daughter, Kim.

I saw Ted, but he walked right past me — I had lost weight since the baby and he didn’t recognize me. I reached out and grabbed him.

It was a great reunion until��the��next morning when we were awakened by��the��pounding of a jack hammer at a construction site nearby. As soon as it started, Ted grabbed me and we hit��the��floor. It was a while before we could breathe again.

Other than that,��the��week was like a fairy tale. Memories we will hold forever.
Then, back to reality. Six more months of watchful waiting, viewing horrific news reports. Good Morning America received several letters from me asking why they only reported��the��terrible events. I’m not sure what I thought they��should��report, but��the��letters made me feel better.

Kim had her first birthday without her Daddy, but he sent her a letter in a card and made one of the “OVER” phone calls. Somehow, we both survived those 365 days, 8,760 hours, 525,600 minutes. We loved, we wrote, we talked, we cried, we laughed, and we survived. That was one year out of our now 58 years together.

The��Minnicks have served their country for more than half a century.

Top Photo: A happy family reunion: after a year’s separation, Ted, Joy, and Kim are reunited.

Editor’s Note:��the��following essay was written by Joy Minnick, wife of Vietnam War��veteran Lt. Col. Ted Minnick, USA, Retired.

Ed Cottrell ,Lt. Col. (Ret.), Honorary Board Member of the museum, and Gary Rodbell, Cpl. IDF Special Forces Golani Brigade, museum volunteer extraordinaire, at The Cliffs.

Ed Cottrell captivated his audience, old and young alike, and answered questions from the large attentive crowd.��

Gary Rodbell and his wife, Colette listening to Ed Cottrell’s presentation

On behalf of the entire Walnut Cove Team we presented Ret. LT Col. Ed Cottrell with a parting gift as a token of our sincere appreciation for sharing his time and insights with our members and staff. We are honored ot have had the opportunity to hear his story. We extend our deepest gratitude for his contributions to our country and our community.

Article by by Gary Rodbell

Lieutenant Colonel Mary Nordgulen, 2014
908th Airlift Wing, Montgomery, Alabama

Nordgulen on left, training at Camp Virginia in Kuwait in preparation for travel to Iraq

Lunch with the locals employed on base in Mosul.�� The goat yoghurt was wonderful!

A local national’s store in Mosul

Illustrations on the side of a building in Mosul depicting weapons

One of the first Combat Support Hospitals in Mosul

Inside a Stryker tank in Mosul, Iraq

On Independence Day, we are grateful for those who risked or lost their lives for American Independence and the freedoms we enjoy today.

A family visits the museum . . .��

��. . . and comes away with stories and lessons

Christy Giusti and her son and three daughters, from Traveler’s Rest, S.C., recently visited Brevard and discovered the 51������. After their visit, Ms. Giusti shared these comments and answers to our questions, along with photos of the girls trying on real uniforms from the museum’s collection.

“We were visiting Brevard and happened to pass your sign after leaving the Visitors Center, so my daughter suggested we check it out. My daughters are 11, 9, 7 and I have a 3-year-old son. Any time we can interact with history we try to take that opportunity because it makes it come alive!”

 

Q. What were your children’s reactions to what they saw in the museum?
A. They were amazed! They remarked how the beds [in the Sea Services exhibit] were hard, the uniforms were uncomfortable and at times heavy to carry, which were things they had never thought about before. We regularly heard “Wow look at that!” or “Come Mom, look at this!”

Q. Did you notice certain exhibits which interested them the most?
A. They really enjoyed getting to try on the real uniforms, and then seeing them displayed in each room. It was really neat to see the video of the Army Jeep being hauled in and restored, then seeing the finished product.

My daughter said, “It was so cool that some older men put the jeep back together!” Honestly, their favorite parts of any visit are the stories that we can gain while we’re there, and there were many stories to tell at this museum! From the videos, the printed literature, and the wonderful veteran volunteers themselves.

The kids continued to talk about the WWII veteran on the video who was 101 and his story of survival. This museum is particularly well-done because it takes you through each era so you can see the chronological evolution of war. One child said she really enjoyed seeing the antique weapons displays with the swords and scabbards and guns, because they were so old and interesting.

Q. Are there other similar activities you like to have your children experience?
A. We like attending any other “living history” events. Recently we also visited the Western NC Air Museum [Hendersonville] to see the wonderful planes, many of them from the wars which we learned more about at the 51������ History Museum in Brevard. We also enjoy visiting Hagood Mill Historic Site [Pickens, S.C.] on their monthly event days.

Q. What do you want your children to know about our country’s military history, or about individual veterans?
A. They are learning that there is a great cost to war, that many people pay that cost when it is necessary, so it’s important to learn how to be cautious to avoid it if possible, and to be thankful for the veterans and citizens who have paid the cost to ensure our comfort and freedom.

On Tuesday, June 25, at 2:00 p.m., the 51������ will host a Korean War Remembrance Ceremony in Brevard to commemorate June 25, 1950, the 74th anniversary of the start of the Korean War. The ceremony is intended as a tribute to America’s military veterans who fought and died to preserve the existence of the Republic of [South] Korea. It will also be a tribute to the resilient and industrious people of South Korea, who suffered a brutal attack but persevered and prevailed, going on to build one of the world’s most vibrant economies and democratic societies.

The ceremony will feature:

Fan Dance

The Cold War, Setting the Stage

1949-1970

Truth be told, the authors of this article are no historians but we did live through the years of the Cold War. Duke from 1955-1985 and Art from 1970-1995. Both of us flew the Strategic Air Command’s refueling tanker, the KC-135 and Duke also the U-2. These thoughts are ours. They adequately portray a time when the world may have actually teetered on the edge of nuclear annihilation. Unsettlingly,��a 1959 movie,��On The Beach, depicted the aftermath of a nuclear war.��In the words of Paul Nitze, present from the war’s start to its finish, wrote, “One of the most dangerous forms of human error is forgetting what one is trying to achieve.” Let’s see if we complied with that advice. It was a time of testing the water. Here’s how this play began.

The Great Powers Competing

After World War II, the Great Powers (the United States and Russia) began to compete—for property, people, and predominance. And when Western Europe and the United States formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, 1949) in fear of Russian expansion—and perhaps partly in fear of Germany rising militaristically again–the stage was set for a “war” that would last 42 years. As a counterbalance to NATO, Russia, in 1955, formed the Warsaw Pact and Europe was truly divided by an Iron Curtain. Who were these then who swept us into an era the likes of which we had never seen?��Of proxy wars and the threat of annihilation and mutual assured destruction.

The Actors

NATO: United States, Great Britain, France, Italy,��Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Portugal. Greece and Turkey were added in 1952, West Germany in 1955, and Spain in 1982.

The Warsaw Pact: United Soviet Socialist Republic, Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), Hungary, Poland and Romania.

These lineups remained constant until the end of the Cold War.

The Scenes

Treaties and Agreements:��When the Soviets developed a nuclear device in 1949, we welcomed in the Nuclear Age weaponry and round after round of alphabet negotiation. SALT I, II; SDI; ABM; MLBM; IRBM; ICBM; SLBM; MIRV; GLCM; START; among others which extended throughout the period.

These were the “big boy atomic toys” that each side wanted to regulate—ballistic missiles that could be launched from air, land or sea. Throughout the years of the Cold War these weapons got the most attention, testing and development.

Cloak and Dagger

And another age emerged. The “Age of 3-Letter Agencies” to investigate, monitor, spy, or foment at times, unrest in various places around the world—including the U.S.��A war of cloak and dagger. The Red Scare of Joe McCarthy gave rise to J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI. In 1948, President Truman authorized the creation of the CIA which subsequently gave rise to American “meddling” in the modern world. Welcome to the War of Cloak and Dagger—and the growth of modern terrorism. We saw the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood, Palestine Liberation Organization, Red Brigades, Provisional Irish Republican Army, Weather Underground and others the world over.

The Shooting Wars

And just off the Main Stage (left and right), shooting wars in Korea and Vietnam were placed among other skirmishes and crises around the globe. It was a time of the “Cultural” Revolution in China. The Suez Crises, the Congo, Yom Kippur, Bay of Pigs, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Francis Gary Powers U-2 shoot-down over Russia. The Berlin Wall dividing Germany, the invasion of Czechoslovakia, and many more places and events you probably never heard of. It kept our heads spinning as to what would happen next.

NOTE: Duke was on 24-hour alert during the Cuban Missile Crisis. His KC-135 accompanied nuclear loaded B-52’s. His unit launched 22 tanker sorties a day offloading fuel to their matched bomber. The bombers were airborne 24 hours at a time. He notes it was like an implausible but frightening movie for the aircrews and their families.

And it was a period of continual negotiation aside from the madness of the supporting players. But bluff and bluster gave rise to American superiority and security as we shall see in Part II.

Art Cole (Colonel, USAF, Ret.) served for 25 years from 1970-1995. A Command Pilot who held Squadron, Base, and Wing commands, he also held senior level positions in Headquarters/Strategic Air Command and the office of the Secretary of Defense. Operationally, he flew the EC-47, T-39, KC-135, and B-52. After retirement he flew 16 years with the Federal Express Corporation. He volunteers at the 51������.

Richard G. “Duke” Woodhull, Jr. (Colonel USAF, Ret.) is a Command Pilot with 6500 hours of military flying. From 1955-1985, he held multiple command, staff and diplomatic positions.��
His Cold War and Vietnam War operational flying qualifications include the U-2 high altitude reconnaissance aircraft and KC-135 tankers, among others. He volunteers at the 51������.

Article by Art Cole and Richard (Duke) Woodhull

The Age of Presidents and the Holy Grail 1971-1991

1971-1991

These were the years when the United States, the Soviets and now China made efforts to improve relations. Finding the “arms race” particularly expensive, they entered into a period of give and take. And in the spirit of giving, when Nixon made a historic visit to China, the US dropped our objection to China’s presence in the UN, and China appeared on the world stage.

SALT Agreement & Helsinki Accords

Also in 1972, SALT I (Strategic Arms Limitation Talks) was signed by Nixon and the Soviet leader, Leonid Brezhnev. The agreement restricted the number of ICBMs (Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles) of both sides. This was followed closely by the Helsinki Accords (a non-binding agreement) which was signed by 35 countries including the USA and the USSR. This recognized the European borders established after World War Two and gave tacit approval to Soviet control over Eastern Europe. Thus a bi-polar balance of power was created which dominated all actions related to future foreign policy.

However, when the Soviets began to update their nuclear arsenal in Eastern Europe in the late 70s, the West responded in kind. But when SALT II was negotiated it gave serious disadvantages to the West in the areas of missiles and heavy bombers—it even counted 230 “mothballed” aircraft to be included under the ceiling. By its overwhelming weight given to the Soviets, the treaty never emerged from Congressional committee. And while Carter said we should live under the intent of the treaty-that-wasn’t, the Soviets made no such commitment.

The Carter Doctrine

When the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979, President Carter outwardly supported the Mujahideen and his CIA clandestinely supported them with weapons and funding. He put forth the Carter Doctrine pledging to use force to stop incursions into the oil rich Middle East states. He also imposed economic sanctions on the Soviets.

Reagan and Star Wars

In 1980, Ronald Reagan came to town. It began the period of “King Arthur and the Black Knight.” After assuming office, Reagan announced an increase in defense spending at the same time the Soviet economy was struggling. So when Reagan approved the Strategic Defense Initiative (Star Wars) in 1983, the Soviets were out of airspeed and ideas. The Black Knight was defeated. And the Grail might be within reach.

Gorbachev Replaces Brezhnev

In Russia a change had also occurred. Brezhnev was out and Gorbachev was in. And to the delight of the West, he was someone with whom even Margret Thatcher (Great Britain’s Prime Minister—the Iron Lady) thought she could negotiate. He brought in an economy based on competition and incentives to produce, reversing decades-old Marxist policies.

However, it was still no match for those in the West so he began cutting spending on nuclear weapons. This led to further negotiations: the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks put a limit on warheads and missiles and the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces talks limited the levels of intermediate range nuclear forces in Europe and Asia. (The INF was finally signed in December 1987 after more than half a decade of negotiations.)

Militaristically the Cold War was about to end. Thus in 1989, the increased Soviet “laxity” in social and economic programs allowed Eastern Europe to also change. Communist parties in a few vassal states were dropped. Leaders were democratically elected. Borders were open to the West. Former Republics declared their independence.

The Berlin Wall tumbled down.

And the greatest result? The USSR was dissolved and in 1991 Russia became a Republic. Also in September 1991, nuclear-equipped bombers and their associated tankers President Kennedy had on 15-minute ground alert since 1961, were ordered to stand down.

The Cold War had ended.

NOTE: From 1991-1993, Art was assigned to the Office of the Secretary of Defense/Office of Economic Adjustment working to help communities whose bases were selected to close begin the economic development process. In 1992, the office was approached by former Eastern European communities, asking for an appraisal of the facilities the Russians had left.

Long story short, there was no attempt at environmental cleanup. The electrical grid, the water/sewer system, work areas, living quarters, etc., were primarily 1950s technology. No wonder communism failed.

So in the beginning and in the end, what was the Holy Grail?��“… [It was] not only to create a tolerable structure of political and economic order, but also to help defend it while under construction from those who still believed that a better world for them could only be obtained through further widespread tearing down.”��(Paul Nitze)

We believe that the Grail was achieved. But there is still much to do. Still those out there who would destroy rather than build. But that’s a game of a different nature. Wish us luck.

ENDNOTE:��Again, this is an abbreviated look at 42 years. We have keyed on the points we considered important; you may have others just as significant. But from where we sat, from the cockpits of 15-minute alert, to the headquarters of the Strategic Air Command, to making inputs to 1980s NATO war plans, to flying the early models of the U-2, it was quite a ride.

Art Cole served 25 years from 1970-1995. He is a Command Pilot who held Squadron, Base, and Wing command positions. He held senior level positions in Headquarters/Strategic Air Command and the office of the Secretary of Defense. Operationally, he flew the EC-47, T-39, KC-135, and B-52. After retirement he flew 16 years with the Federal Express Corporation. He gets by in English.

Duke Woodhull, after ending his thirty-year Air Force career which began in 1955 and ended in 1985, worked twelve years more with The Boeing Company. He settled with his wife in the idyllic mountains of Western North Carolina. A former U-2 pilot, he also flew the KC-135, C-54 and various other aircraft in his DOD assignments. Duke has held senior Command and Staff assignments and is fluent in two foreign languages.

Article by Art Cole and Richard (Duke) Woodhull

Cuban Missile Crisis

It is certainly no exaggeration to say that��the in October, 1962 was��the most dangerous incident occurring during the decades-long Cold��War between the Free World and the Union of��Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). In this article��I tell my personal story of that period as a Crew Commander in the Strategic Air Command KC-135 jet��aerial refueling tanker force at Westover Air Force��Base, Massachusetts.

During the Cold War, the Strategic Air Command (SAC) B-52 bomber and KC-135 tanker forces were constantly “on alert” at multiple bases, 24 hours of every day. Known as the “SAC Alert Force”, every one��of those airplanes��and crews had a specific, pre-planned��mission involving a retaliatory attack against specific targets in the USSR or a Communist��satellite country.

On Alert

Being “on alert” meant that the bombers��and tankers were continuously guarded and parked in special areas near the runways. The flight crews resided in special buildings near the airplanes on the flight��line, maintaining the capability to quickly respond by running to the airplanes,��starting the engines, and taking off.����The reason��for haste was the threat of Russian missiles being fired from��Soviet submarines off the US coast with the capability of attacking and crippling the US��strategic bomber and tanker forces in just a few minutes.

Practice alerts were constantly conducted, to ensure that the crews could always get to their airplanes and take off in minimal time. �� One can imagine the tremendous time, effort and expense – for many years��–of maintaining the huge SAC bomber and Tanker Alert Force as described above.��The reason was very simple: a firm belief by US��leaders in the willingness��and ability of the USSR to attack our strategic forces. To deter��such an attack on our strategic forces by the USSR, maintenance of a credible and invulnerable capability to��respond to any attack from the USSR was essential.

An Act of War

When the missile launch facilities��under construction in Cuba were discovered by U-2��aerial photography, the US viewed it as an��aggressive activity, virtually an act of war. Intermediate range��missiles��launched from only 90 miles away from the US would be able to��hit American cities and bases in a matter of minutes—an intolerable danger to the US homeland.

B-52 Bombers Aloft and Armed

It was then that the entire SAC force – many hundreds of bombers��and tankers — was put on increased alert. A continuous “parade” of flying B-52��bombers armed with nuclear weapons was kept aloft��24 hours each day. Their various routes took them across the Atlantic��Ocean and into the approaches of the USSR where they could be seen on��Russian radar.

Flights Lasting Nearly 24 Hours

Every B-52 flew missions that lasted nearly a full 24 hours, involving multiple refuelings from tankers based both in the US and in Europe. When the bomber and tanker crews were not airborne on missions, they were living aboard the airplanes on the ground, monitoring the radios, ready to launch at a moment’s notice.

During the most intense days of the crisis, my tanker unit sent out twenty-two (22) sorties��each day having a duration of three hours and fifteen minutes,��each sortie offloading 113,000 pounds to a single B-52 in about twenty��minutes of��contact. The effort to prepare that many airplanes��every day and transfer that much fuel, involved Herculean efforts and��great expense.

Like a Scary Movie

During that period, the atmosphere on the base was like an implausible,��frightening movie. All crewmembers wore firearms believing that they were very close to��actual hostilities. We were worried about our families, who were��alone in the housing area, out of contact. Many dependents moved��to the North, out of the state, certain that��if World War III started, our base would be one of the first hit.

One of the strange occurrences during the crisis was the��broadcasting of Communist propaganda messages on the International Time��Clock Station, WWV. That station broadcasts a simple time signal��on��High Frequency (HF), continuously giving precise time reports for use in��celestial navigation. All crewmembers are accustomed to getting “time hacks”��on WWV and it was a genuine shock to hear a loud voice��break into the��transmission with threats and accusations about how “President Kennedy is��going to cause World War III”….in English, with a strange accent.

A U-2 Shot Down Over Cuba

Saturday, 27 October 62, a U-2 flown by Major Rudy Anderson was shot down over Cuba. On the same��day, also not known to the public at the time, another��U-2 flying near��Alaska had severe navigational problems that caused an overflight of��the eastern Soviet Union. ��Although thought by the Soviets to be deliberate at the time, it was later��learned that the inadvertent overflight was caused��by a mistake the��pilot had made in performing “grid navigation”, a method necessary in the��Arctic regions.

President Kennedy and Soviet Premier��Krushchev

During the crisis, behind the scenes and unknown to the public, diplomatic��contacts were underway and President Kennedy and Soviet Premier��Krushchev exchanged two formal letters. The crisis was finally��resolved by��Krushchev’s making a commitment to remove the missiles from Cuba.

After the crisis,��the SAC Alert Force returned to its pre-crisis��posture, continuing in��that posture for several more years. Today, the round-the-clock, 24/7 SAC��Alert Force of bombers and tankers no longer exists.

Col. Woodhull’s story and many more veterans’ stories can viewed on our “Living Histories” page.

Telling their stories is one way we honor veterans at the museum. Currently closed for the creation of new exhibits and annual winter inventory, the museum will re-open for 2024 on March 1. Please come back if you have visited before to see the exciting new exhibits. Open hours will be 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM Tuesday-Friday, beginning March 1.

Article written by Richard G. “Duke” Woodhull, Jr., Colonel, USAF-Ret.

Top photo: Far left, Captain Woodhull with his KC-135 tanker crew in 1962 (KC-135 in the background)��

Left photo: Woodhull at a U-2 Pilots’ Reunion, October 2022