VOLUME 9 NO. 3 JUNE 11 – JUNE 24, 2020 SUBMIT STORIES TO: [email protected] STRIPESKOREA.COM FACEBOOK.COM/STRIPESPACIFIC FREE Share your piece of paradise with us MAISAN MOUNTAIN Hit the trails for fresh air, beautiful views Pages 12-14 Stars and Stripes is asking readers to write about their own piece of paradise. Yes, that means you! Our annual Destination Paradise magazine highlights must-see travel spots across the Pacific — and your bit of paradise could be included in our 2020-21 edition that hits the streets on Pacific bases in September. Submit your story and photos to [email protected] by July 19. We’ll make you famous! Check out our previous Destination Paradise mags Enjoy a blast from the past Pages 8-11 Daegu 2 STRIPES KOREA A STARS AND STRIPES COMMUNITY PUBLICATION 75 YEARS IN THE PACIFIC JUNE 11 − JUNE 24, 2020 Mapo Bridge crosses the Han River in Seoul. Photo by Alexey Komarov, Wikimedia Commons Max D. Lederer Jr. Publisher Lt. Col. Richard E. McClintic Commander Joshua M Lashbrook Chief of Staff Chris Verigan Engagement Director Marie Woods Publishing and Media Design Director Chris Carlson Publishing and Media Design Manager USFK worker helps thwart Eric Lee Advertising and Circulation Manager Enrique “Rick” W. Villanueva Jr. Korea Area Manager suicide attempts on bridge Jinsun Song Operations Manager BY KIM GAMEL, “I just rambled, but at least I got by and waved at crews that responded Kentaro Shimura STARS AND STRIPES their attention for a little bit.” the closed-circuit to a call at 5:48 a.m. Production Manager Published: May 27, 2020 Rie Miyoshi The city installed 8.5-foot- TV cameras on the May 21 found two Engagement Manager high, curved barriers along the bridge to try to get South Korean men SEOUL — Andres Torres was Denisse Rauda bridge in 2016 to keep people somebody’s atten- on the bridge barrier, Publishing and Media Design Editor out for an early morning bike from trying to jump as it had tion. then turned them over Publishing and Media Design Writers ride when he spotted two South ChiHon Kim become a popular spot for sui- A rescue dive boat to police. He couldn’t Shoji Kudaka Korean men perched danger- Takahiro Takiguchi cide attempts. But the men had eventually appeared provide more details. ously on the tall barriers lining Layout Designers managed to climb on top. on the Han River be- The episode took Mamoru Inoue the Mapo Bridge in Seoul. Torres, 34, of Mount Pleas- low. about 15 minutes, Tor- Yukiyo Oda Torres, who works for the Yuko Okazaki ant, S.C., said he also showed “Then finally I res said. Kayoko Shimoda Defense Intelligence Agency Torres them a photo of his daughter noticed that the traf- “It happened in a Multimedia Consultants on Yongsan Garrison, couldn’t Max Genao Doug Johnson that he has on his phone as a fic stopped on the bridge com- blink of an eye, but I felt like I Brian Jones Jason Lee remember the local emergency way of showing them “there’s a ing my direction, then the fire was up there forever,” he said. Hans Simpson Chae Pang Yi number (119) and doesn’t speak Gianni Youn Robert Zuckerman lot more to live for.” trucks came out and stopped. “They could have come down of Graphic Designers much Korean but felt he had to One of the men took notice They rushed to him and grabbed their own accord. They might Kenichi Ogasawara Yosuke Tsuji do something to keep and climbed down, him. They got him off the top,” Sales Support not have understood me, but it Kazumi Hasegawa Hiromi Isa them from jumping. EXCLUSIVE NEWS FROM: stumbling and hit- Torres said. felt good to try to help some- Ichiro Katayanagi Yoko Noro “I was just telling ting his head, but Torres said one of the fire- Yusuke Sato Saori Tamanaha one.” Toshie Yoshimizu Un Chong Yu them, ‘This is not a the second man re- fighters thanked him in English. Stars and Stripes reporter good idea. You don’t For feedback and inquiries, mained on the fence, He snapped a photo of the scene Yoo Kyong Chang contributed to contact [email protected] want to do this. It’s a he said. before riding vaway. this report. To place an ad, call DSN 755-2255 beautiful day outside,’” he said, Torres tried to flag down an An officer at the Young- [email protected] stripeskorea.com/contact describing the May 21 incident. emergency vehicle that drove deungpo fire station said rescue Twitter: @kimgamel JUNE 11 − JUNE 24, 2020 A STARS AND STRIPES COMMUNITY PUBLICATION 75 YEARS IN THE PACIFIC STRIPES KOREA 3 4 STRIPES KOREA A STARS AND STRIPES COMMUNITY PUBLICATION 75 YEARS IN THE PACIFIC JUNE 11 − JUNE 24, 2020 ‘Weather drives what you can accomplish’ STORY AND PHOTO BY takeoff for pilots. These forecasts Jorgensen, 8th OSS weather STAFF SGT. ANTHONY HETLAGE, are normally briefed in person forecaster. “We also field phone 8TH FIGHTER WING PUBLIC AFFAIRS by a weather flight Airman em- calls from agencies across the bedded in each fighter squadron. base. We are a tool for anyone to nclement weather can rain “We brief over the phone right use if they require weather infor- on anyone’s parade, includ- now due to COVID-19 to limit our mation.” ing flying operations, physi- I footprint but once things return Agencies such as the 8th Force cal training and more. The 8th to normal operations, we’ll em- Support Squadron fitness assess- Operations Support Squadron bed once again,” said Mathews. ment center requires weather weather flight monitors the sky “Having embedded Airmen al- updates to conduct physical to keep the Wolf Pack looking lows pilots to bring any questions training tests while the 8th Civil on the bright side at Kunsan Air or concerns directly to us, face- Engineer Squadron explosive Base. to-face at a moment’s notice.” ordnance disposal flight must un- Senior Airman Houston Jorgensen hard at work. The 8th OSS weather flight Pilots depend on accurate and derstand certain weather param- consists of 11 personnel across detailed weather forecasts to eters to conduct controlled deto- field offers a lot of different op- that it changes from base to base two sections to support rough- complete their flying operations. nations. The 8th OSS air traffic portunities and different direc- and region to region. ly 2,500 Wolf Pack members. “Our mission forecast is control tower is also provided tions we can take.” “Weather can be affected by The weather operations section tailored to the pilots,” said with weather updates constantly Weather flight Airmen go the terrain, so each location has works directly with the 35th and Mathews. “We have to be a lot so they can communicate mo- through one of the longest tech- its own localized effects, experi- 80th Fighter Squadrons, provid- more specific than your regular ment-to-moment updates with nical trainings in the Air Force. ence is key in pattern recogni- ing weather updates for flying news weatherman. Pilots need pilots as they take off and land. The training is conducted over tion and writing forecasts,” said operations. The airfield opera- to know the exact level of turbu- “Weather drives what you 146 duty days at Keesler Air Jorgensen. “My biggest chal- tions section provides weather lence, level of cloud heights for can accomplish,” said Mathews. Force Base, Mississippi. While lenge was learning how weather updates for the rest of the base takeoff and landing, and more.” “Sun Tzu had a famous quote, there, they will learn how to at Kunsan is vastly different and and fields phone calls from vari- write forecasts, the different lay- He added, “Weather can ‘know the enemy, know yourself; doesn’t look anything like the ous base agencies. change the types of tools or mu- your victory will never be endan- ers in the atmosphere and even weather in Texas.” “Our primary mission is to nitions needed to complete a gered. Know the ground, know the sun and solar storms. Even with experience and pat- support the flying mission first mission. If the aircraft are car- the weather; your victory will “During technical training, tern recognition, weather fore- and foremost,” said Tech. Sgt. rying the wrong weapon for the then be total.’ I think that sums they are basically cramming in Phillip Mathews, 8th OSS weath- wrong weather, they are not go- up our career field.” a four-year meteorology degree casting is not an exact science. er operations NCO in charge. “In ing to be as successful.” Their career field also extends minus the advanced math,” said “Weather is not black and the weather operations section, The airfield operations part of to supporting Army personnel. Mathews. “I’ve been doing this white. ‘A’ plus ‘B’ doesn’t always we provide pilots a weather brief the flight provides a more gener- “There are no Army forecast- for 11 years and I’m still learn- equal ‘C’ for us,” said Mathews. before each mission and contin- alized forecast for the rest of the ers,” said Mathews. “We have ing, seeing things I’ve never seen “I like to think we are correct 90 ue to monitor and give updates if Wolf Pack. some Airmen who came from before. You don’t ever master percent of the time, but we are needed.” “We issue any weather watch- Army assignments and others forecasting weather because it’s occasionally going to be wrong In addition, mission forecasts es, warnings or advisories,” who are going on to Army as- so fluid.” no matter what and that’s frus- are prepared hours prior to said Senior Airman Houston signments from here.