Allies in Wartime The Alaska-Siberia Airway During World War II Whereas the Governments of the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics declare that they are engaged in a cooperative undertaking, together with every other nation or people of like mind, to the end of laying the bases of a just and enduring world peace securing order under law to themselves and all nations… — Washington, D.C., June 11, 1942 Edited by Alexander B. Dolitsky Published by Alaska-Siberia Research Center P.O. Box 34871 Juneau, Alaska 99803 Publication No. 13 www.aksrc.org ©AKSRC 2007 Allies in Wartime Copyright © 2007 by the Alaska-Siberia Research Center (AKSRC) All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, e-mail, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright holder. First Edition Front Cover: WWII Alaska-Siberia Lend-Lease Memorial, Fairbanks, Alaska, © AKSRC 2006. Project of the Alaska-Siberia Research Center; www.aksrc.org; 907-789-3854. Project Manager: Alexander B. Dolitsky. Photo by Richard T. Wallen, Sculptor. Back Cover: Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) Shirley Slade on the cover of Life magazine, July 19, 1943. Life® used by permission of Life, Inc. The war poster, “Do the job he left behind,” courtesy of the University of Minnesota Libraries, Manuscripts Division. Printed and bound by Amica, Inc., Kent, WA, U.S.A. Printed in China General Editor and Production Manager: Alexander B. Dolitsky General Copy Editor: Liz Dodd, IDTC Copy Editor: Kathy Kolkhorst Ruddy Consultants/Historians: Ilya Grinberg, Blake Smith, William Ruddy, Robert Price Cartographer: Brad Slama, Slama Design, Inc. Book designer: Matt Knutson, InterDesign ©Alaska-Siberia Research Center (AKSRC) 2007 Hardback edition ISBN 978-0-9653891-6-7 Keywords: Alaska, Siberia, Alaska-Siberia Airway, Allies, World War II, WASP The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council on Library Resources. The Alaska-Siberia Airway During World War II THE STRUCTURE OF WORLD PEACE CANNOT BE THE WORK OF ONE MAN, OR ONE PARTY, OR ONE NATION…IT MUST BE A PEACE WHICH RESTS ON THE COOPERATIVE EFFORT OF THE WHOLE WORLD. — Franklin Delano Roosevelt, March 1, 1945 Address to Congress on the Yalta Conference Allies in Wartime Table of Contents Transliteration Table .......................................................................i The Contributors ......................................................................... ii Acknowledgments ........................................................................iii Preface I by Alexander B. Dolitsky..........................................................iv Preface II by Wallace M. Olson ............................................................. v Foreword by Robert Huber ................................................................vi Introduction by Jeffrey W. Hahn ...........................................................viii The Alaska-Siberia Airway: From the Home Front to the Front Lines Alexander B. Dolitsky ............................................................ 1 The Alaska-Siberia Lend-Lease Program During World War II Blake W. Smith ................................................................. 23 The Northwest Route to Alaska Ivan E. Negenblya .............................................................. 43 Alaska-Siberia —the Route of Courage and Friendship Miriam J. Lancaster ............................................................. 69 Women Aviators During World War II and on the Alaska-Siberia Airway Celebrating the Home Front in Fairbanks Alexander B. Dolitsky and William G. Ruddy....................................... 85 The World War II Alaska-Siberia Lend-Lease Memorial Frank H. Murkowski ............................................................ 91 Executive Proclamation Alexander B. Dolitsky ........................................................... 93 Do the People Want a War? Karen Matthias ................................................................. 95 Canada’s Role in the Alaska-Siberia Airway Yuri V. Ushakov . 97 The World War II Lend-Lease Memorial Is a Tribute to “The Greatest Generation” The Alaska-Siberia Airway During World War II Alexander B. Dolitsky ........................................................... 99 We Flew in the Same Sky Loren Leman .................................................................. 101 Alaska’s Role in World Peace Gary Wilken .................................................................. 103 History of the Alaska-Siberia Lend-Lease Airway Ted Stevens ................................................................... 105 The ALSIB Memorial Honors “The Greatest Generation” of World War II Rick Findley . 107 The ALSIB Agreement Is Testament to the Cooperation and Unity of Our Nations Peter Broom................................................................... 109 “Give us the tools and we will finish the job” Frederic Desagneaux . .111 Allied Solidarity Was Instrumental in Changing the Outcome of the War, and the Course of History Sergei B. Ivanov ................................................................113 The ALSIB Airway Experience of Cooperation Is the Most Vivid Lesson for Defenders of Peace, Freedom, and Independence Donald H. Rumsfeld . 117 Clarity, Unity, Resolve, and Courage Is the Answer to the New Dangers John Binkley .................................................................. 121 In Memory of “The Greatest Generation” Selected Bibliography.................................................................... 125 Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations ....................................................... 129 Appendix ............................................................................. 133 Index ................................................................................ 141 Allies in Wartime Transliteration Table he system of transliteration adopted in this work is that of the United States Board of Geographic TNames, with slight modifications for technical reasons. Instead of е, we use ye at the beginning of names, after vowels and after the soft sign (ь), or yo (ё) where е is accented as ё. The soft sign (ь) and hard sign (ъ) have no sound value but they soften or harden the sound of the letter in front of them. A hard sign (ъ) is transliterated when in the middle of a word and disregarded when final. Russian Letters Transliteration А а a (as in star, car, Arkansas) Б б b (as in boots, Bill, Britain) В в v (as in voice, Virginia) Г г g (as in go, good, Michigan) Д д d (as in do, road, Dakota) Е е ye (as in met, yes) Ё ё yo (as in yonder, York) Ж ж zh (as in pleasure) З з z (as in zoo, is, Kansas) И и i (as in meet, seat) Й й y (as in may, boy) К к k (as in cat, kind, Kentucky) Л л l (as in belt, lion, Florida) М м m (as in amuse, mother, Mexico) Н н n (as in now, noose, Nebraska) О о o (as in port, comb, Oklahoma) П п p (as in pure, poor, Portland) Р р r (as in river, trilled, Arizona) С с s (as in swim, SOS, South) Т т t (as in stool, tiger, Texas) У у u (as in lunar, tune) Ф ф f (as in food, funny, California) Х х kh (as in Loch Ness) Ц ц ts (as in its, quartz, waltz) Ч ч ch (as in cheap, chain, cheese) Ш ш sh (as in fish, sheep, shrimp) Щ щ shch (as in borsch) Ъ ъ “ (hard sign; no equivalent) Ы ы y (as in rip, flip) Ь ь ‘ (soft sign; no equivalent) Э э e (as in best, chest, effort) Ю ю yu (as in you, Yukon) Я я ya (as in yard, yahoo) i The Alaska-Siberia Airway During World War II The Contributors John Binkley is a former Alaska State Senator from Fairbanks, Alaska, U.S.A. Peter Broom is the United Kingdom Deputy Consul General, San Francisco, California. U.K. Frederic Desagneaux is the French Consul General, San Francisco, California. France. Alexander B. Dolitsky is the Chairman/Project Manager of the Alaska-Siberia Research Center, Juneau, Alaska, U.S.A. Sergei B. Ivanov is the Russian Minister of Defense and Deputy of the Russian Government, Moscow, Russia. Rick Findley is the Lieutenant General, Deputy Commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, Canada. Jeffrey W. Hahn is a Professor of Political Science, Villanova University, Villanova, Pennsylvania, U.S.A. Robert Huber is the President of the National Council for Eurasian and East European Research, Seattle, Washington, U.S.A. Miriam J. Lancaster is a Captain (Ret.) of the United States Public Health Service, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Alaska-Siberia Research Center, Stanwood, Washington, U.S.A. Loren Leman is the Lieutenant Governor of the State of Alaska, U.S.A. Karen Matthias is the Canadian Consul, Anchorage, Alaska. Canada. Frank H. Murkowski is a former United States Senator and the Governor of Alaska, U.S.A. Ivan E. Negenblya is a Civil Aviation Engineer, author, and historian, Yakutsk, Sacha Republic, Russia. Wallace M. Olson (1932-2013) was a Professor of Anthropology (Emeritus), University of Alaska Southeast, Juneau, Alaska, U.S.A. William G. Ruddy is an attorney and President of the Alaska-Siberia Research Center, Juneau, Alaska, U.S.A. Donald H. Rumsfeld is the U.S. Secretary of Defense, Washington, D.C., U.S.A. Blake W. Smith is a recreational pilot, author, and historian, Surrey, British Columbia, Canada. Ted Stevens is a United States Senator for Alaska, U.S.A. Yuri V. Ushakov is the Russian Ambassador