Thule Times Volume 1, Issue IX 1 September, 2001 Commanders Action Line Call 3400 if you have HOW DO YOU TOP OFF A THULE SUMMER...WITH AN questions or comments ARCTIC SUNRISE about Thule. By MSgt Ric Evans The Month of had hoped to add new members to their Greenland cause of returning Dundas It has been said that prior Madness – Well Done Village back to the Home Rule and the planning prevents poor performance and Team Thule limitation of the radar enhancements at Team Thule exemplified the good in that the BMEWS site that they refer to as the statement 100% with the recent events new “Star Wars.” Their visit at Qaanaaq A BIT OF HISTORY surrounding the visit of the Greenpeace was not a warm one and the support they flagship, the Arctic Sunrise. Members On Greenland had hoped to gain fell by the wayside. throughout the community were active in To add to their misery, and ours, the the coordination process with the Danish worst rains in recent history hit both and United States’ Embassies, Inside this issue: areas limiting their travel and recruitment. Headquarters, USAF, Space Command, Commanders Forum 2 st 21 Space Wing and the Danish Police th August 6 rolled around and so Headquarters in Copenhagen and Nuuk Cops Corner 3 did the Arctic Sunrise. Throughout their in preparation for the preannounced four-day stay, they attempted to gain arrival and protest of the international Heavy Rains 4 publicity and each time they were met by environmental group. The collective the Danish Police and stopped almost FLOOD UPDATE 5 efforts saw the employment of Danish immediately. They succeeded in placing and Greenlandic Police Officers to a banner on Dundas Mountain and got a Services/Recreation 6 protect the outlying areas of the bay and picture for their web site. Within minutes, BMEWS as well as support from the 21st the DPI formally demanded that the Personnel Tidbits 7 Space Wing JA and Public Affairs banner be removed and the bearers Offices. A BIT OF HISTORY 8-9 return to their boats… They complied as requested. Earlier in the week, three On Tuesday, 31 Jul, the Arctic STORM SEASON 10 members of the crew were placed ashore Sunrise entered North Star Bay and some 50 kilometers from Thule and were Sod Hut 11 made the presence of Greenpeace to make their way to Thule. They too known. Almost immediately, they were spotted, and in their case arrested 62nd Builds Bridge 14 dropped a small inflatable boat into the about two miles from Phase Shack 7. bay and “zoomed” about to see what we The three-man team was cold and tired Safety 17 would do. Within hours, they stowed the and offered no resistance. Their two-day small crafts and departed the bay and Thule Life 19 hike garnered them a night in the “poky” headed north for Qaanaaq. There, they and numerous interviews by the Danish Polar Bear Swim authorities. They also received a court date in the Nuuk Courts to answer their trespassing charges. th If you have something to sell, donate, offer or On the morning of August 9 are looking for something specific submit your classified add! they made one last attempt to contact the Thule Senior Leadership by bringing a Adds must include item description and con- tact information. letter to the tugboat pier for delivery. Once the document was handed to the The Thule Times reserves the right not to print adds not conforming to published crite- Danish Authorities, the protesters ria. This is a free service and the Thule Times shares no responsibility with the returned to the Arctic Sunrise. They lister, nor are any guarantees honored by the Banner on Dundas Mountain Thule Times. Continued on Page 12 PAGE 2 THULE TIMES VOLUME 1, ISSUE IX - Fire response to smoke in bldg 577 Commander’s Forum - Potential fuel spills (responded 4 times – Col Craig C. Whitehead no reportable spills) 12 SWS/CC - Closure of flight line operations “The Commander’s Action Line, x-3400, is your direct link to me. It - Emergency purge of two 16” and one 4” provides an avenue for you to voice your concerns over unsolved pipelines to prevent a 150,000 gallon fuel problems, share good ideas or provide some constructive criticism. As spill if bridge lines break a reminder, the Action Line is not a replacement for using your chain of command or raising concerns directly with the office or activity that is - Develop plan via gravity drain from tank the source of your concern. Commander’s Action Line questions and farm to 5,000 gallons trucks for over-the- comments can help make Thule Air base and the 12 SWS a better place road fuel supply to fighter cluster to support to live and work.” BOXTOP/Brilliant Ice operations QUESTION: I was under the impression the 5:30 opening - Emergency repair of BMEWS road to facilitate crew changeover & win- time for the Base Gym would be a 2 month trail period. This ter prep was to see if usage would justify permanent opening hours of - Emergency repair of Water/Comm lines to BMEWS/Det 3 5:30. I was told by staff that the usage in the morning was - Water contamination possible – boiling required (2 Times) great and that money is the problem not usage. The Base - Possible delay of BOXTOP and Brilliant Ice if 4” line not complete community was not given an explanation, only that the hours have gone back to normal 6:30. Is this a money problem or - Contractor stop-work order required by law--no ambulance/fire fighting usage? If this is about money, will the hours return when capability money becomes available. - Suspicious package found in dormitory ANSWER: We’re currently working out the details to allow active duty personnel to access the fitness center outside its - Chiefs of Defense (Denmark, Sweden, Germany) & Spouses request two-day visit normal operating hours. Keys will be available for people to sign out from the security forces’ law enforcement desk. The - PA announcements via TV, radio, newspapers in support of flood and test period was authorized for only two months due to a limi- Greenpeace activities tation of funds. I believe there should be no roadblocks to fitness and for the upcoming fiscal year we may consider - Greenpeace intrusion on two occasions to Thule Defense Area looking into permanently changing the opening hours if that is the best solution. In the meantime, we will implement the - Dam break at Lake Crescent (base water supply) key-sign-out procedures as soon as possible. - Rich US businessman attempts to use Thule AB for jet landing/docking of ship (Turmoil) w/o Pentagon approval The Month of Madness – Well Done - Six C-17s for deployment of Army bridge Team Thule - Greenwave arrives in port for annual resupply - Paul Buck & Mar tankers arrive in port to off load 382,000 barrels – delay We are probably all glad to see August 2001 behind us. I cost big $$$ have heard it referred to as the “Month of Madness.” And, it definitely earned the recognition. To commemorate the month, -C-17s providing Army bridge lift experience weather/break down delays the night shift of the Crisis Response Element put a certificate together that will be presented to everyone at Commander’s - Small compressor fire – fire response Call. In the future, when you look at the certificate I hope you - 130 IFE due to #4 engine failure remember some of challenges we faced and the outstanding way Team Thule met every challenge. Here is a list of some of - Billeting/Dining Support for 100+ BOXTOP Brilliant Ice teams the challenges as recorded in the Crisis Response Element log: - Open bay billeting and extended dining hours for 40+ army personnel at hospital - Disaster Flood Waters - Deployment/Redeployment of combined 40-person Danish/Greenlandic -Emergency request for commercial helicopter lift to conduct crew police force for Greenpeace billeting on main base and in BMEWS storm changeover for 15 military and civilian ops crews and workers at dorm to minimize response time BMEWS - Power arching on power line due to excessive rain, fire response - Flight line closed due to flooding and inspection - NAVAIDS inoperative - Potential unexploded ordnance (UXO) found – EOD support requested - Primary power outage at BMEWS and Det 3—seamless transfer to - Attempted suicide of SF TSgt – emergency ambulance response – backup capabilities resulted in no mission capability loss CISM activated - Loss of water line to main base – mission essential use and conser- - BOXTOP operations severely hampered due to weather/aircraft problems vation implemented 97 of 137 missions flown. Continued page 12 VOLUME 1, ISSUE IX THULE TIMES PAGE 3 Cops Corner Force Protection The Security Forces Flight is Tip: located in Bldg 363, across from the Recreation Center. TSgt Donald Harazak TSgt William B. Schaal 12 SWS/SFAC 12 SWS/SFA Awareness critical for package bomb Using your security container threats Store all classified in locked container unless someone is present in the Tips to look for when receiving packages: room that is authorized access. -- An unusual or unknown place of origin. -- No return address. • Fill out SF 702 (Security Container Check Sheet) each time you: -- An excessive amount of postage. ■ Open, -- Abnormal or unusual size. ■ Close, or -- Oily stains on the package. ■ Check the container. [SF 702 not required under NISPOM.] -- Wires or strings protruding from or attached to an item. -- Incorrect spelling on the package label. • Change your combination: -- Differing return address and postmark. ■ When you first put the container into use. -- Appearance of poorly legible handwriting.