American Cold War Veterans
The American Cold War Veterans met on May 1, 2013 at the US Capitol (Room 122, Cannon House Office Building) and at 4 PM, held a memorial service at Section 34 of Arlington national Cemetery. Thanks to all who served.

SHOOTDOWN OF C-130 AIRCRAFT BY MIGS
OVER SOVIET ARMENIA, 2 SEPTEMBER, 1958


          

On September 2, 1958, a C-130 (60528) loaded with electronic eavesdropping equipment to gather information on Soviet Air Defenses, five flight crew and 12 ELINT communications technicians to gather signals and communications intelligence data for the National Security Agency. The flight crew relied on navigation beacons from sites in Turkey, but the Soviets operated stronger beacons from Yerevan in Soviet Armenia. The C-130 was lured across the border by this Yerevan beacon, where three MiG-17s waited to ambush it, one on each wingtip and one from behind and below. The attacking MiG-17 shot down the C-130 -- the entire attack took a total of 140 seconds. All 17 airmen aboard were killed, and are buried together in Section 34 of Arlington National Cemetery. The medal shown is an unauthorized creation of Foxfall Medals. Dr. Don Levesque, a crewman who was on leave from the C-130's parent unit, the 7406th Support Squadron commented, with some resentment, that the crewmen "would no have even qualified for the National Defense Service Medal at the time of the shoot down.

This was not the only incident of its kind in 1958. A USAF C-118 ws en route to Teheran in June of 1958, and was lured off course by the Yerevan beacon and shot down by MiGs, though most of the crew managed to bail out and the remaining crew managed to destroy the aircraft after its crash-landing, since it contained documents on the U-2 program.

The participants in the ceremony placed roses on the grave of the crew of the C-130 who perished in the September 1958 shoot down as well as on the graves of other heroes of the Cold War.


One of the more memorable highlights of the Washington, DC meeting was a visit to the US Navy's Cold War Wing of the Navy Museum, arranged by Dr. David Winkler of the Naval Historical Organization. This facility at the US Navy Yard features numerous exhibits from the Cold War, including the Korean and Vietnam War. Especially impressive were the interactive exhibits fro Operation Sea Lion (Tonkin Gulf 1972-73), submarine patrols, and nuclear missile and torpedoes. We look forward to future tours of military museums and contributions to the exhibits that illustrate the numerous facets of the Cold War.





Chairman’s Report
November 11, 2012
Frank M. Tims, Ph.D.

Item: Cold War Service Medal: Since our legislative efforts have not met with success in getting the Cold War Service Medal authorized, we have appealed to President Obama and his Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta for an Executive Order establishing the Cold War Service Medal (CWSM). On August 19, with the concurrence of the ACWV Board of Directors, I wrote a letter to President Obama asking him to issue an Executive Order, and sent courtesy copies to the Vice President, Secretary Panetta, and Secretary Clinton (a courtesy since her name was mentioned in the letter as a sponsor of previous legislation). The letter was sent to each of the four addressees by priority mail, and hard copy of the letter handled personally by a contact in Washington, DC.

Click to read more of the Chairman’s Report...



S.402 (COLD WAR SERVICE MEDAL ACT OF 2011) introduced in US Senate 
By Senator Olympia Snowe
Co-sponsors:
Senator Susan Collins (Armed Services Committee Member)
Senator Jim Webb (Armed Services Committee Member)

Senator Scott Brown (Armed Services Committee Member)
Senator John Kerry

Senator Tim Johnson

Sentor John Menendez

Senators Snowe, Collins, Webb and Kerry Introduce Legislation Honoring Cold War Veterans

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Jim Webb (D-Virginia) and John Kerry (D-Massachusetts) today introduced the Cold War Service Medal Act of 2011, legislation to authorize the design and award of a service medal to honor America’s Cold War veterans.  Such a medal does not currently exist.

 “The commitment, motivation and fortitude of our Cold War Veterans was second to none,” said Senator Snowe.  “The brave service members who served honorably during the Cold War should be recognized for their service, and this legislation is a long overdue step towards creating the service medal that they deserve.”

“This legislation will express our sincere gratitude to all Cold War veterans, including the thousands of those who served in Maine, for putting the comforts of civilian life aside to advance the cause of freedom,” said Senator Collins.

“The millions of Americans who served in uniform in the armed forces during the Cold War, spanning more than four decades, were the living embodiment of our nation’s strategy of deterrence,” said Senator Webb. “In their efforts to preserve peace, hundreds died during isolated armed confrontations when the Cold War flashed hot at remote locations around the world. This legislation will appropriately honor those who served in an effort that resulted in the largest single expansion in the number of democratically elected governments in world history.” 

“For almost a half century, more than 20 million soldiers stood on the front lines of our nation’s Cold War defenses,” Senator Kerry said.  “At a time when humanity itself hung in the balance, they were ready to spring into action if the Cold War became a shooting war, and they too were separated from their families and loved ones for long, difficult periods. They deserve full recognition for their service and sacrifice, and I look forward to working with my colleagues to enact this important legislation.”



         

Dutch Cold War
Commemoration 2010

 

DUTCH COLD
WAR MEDAL

Dutch Veteran Receives His Medal at Event Attended by Minister of Defense 2010



VFW NOVEMBER ISSUE FEATURES COLD WAR ARTICLES



Magazine@vfw.org

 

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American Cold War Veterans thank you for supporting the Cold War Service Medal for America's forgotten veterans of the Cold War who defended the United States for 46 years.

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“Many Americans died in operations that remain, even to this day, unacknowledged, entailing heroism and loss that have yet to be revealed to a grateful nation. We should remember and honor those whose sacrifices brought about a victorious conclusion to the Cold War, to the enormous betterment of the United States and the world. ”

- Dr. Donald C. Winter, (former) Secretary of Navy, October 21, 2006 -

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President Barack Obama endorsed Cold War Medal while a US Senator:

E-mail to ACWV member Frank Almquist:

Dear Frank:
I agree that the Cold War Victory medal would be an appropriate honor. The Cold War was a period that required both skilled diplomacy and military readiness. For veterans who had to be prepared to fight a war that most people agreed would be catastrophic, there certainly should be some recognition of service and willingness to defend and go to battle for the United States.
In each of the past two years, the Cold War Victory Medal has passed the House as part of its version of the annual defense authorization bill but has been stymied by influential members of the Senate Armed Services Committee. I certainly share your hope that this impasse can be broken soon.

Sincerely,
Barack Obama
United States Senator

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AMERICA LOSES a COLD WAR HERO: Lt. Col. Richard S. Heyser, a U-2 pilot who took the first photos of ballistic missile launch sites during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, passed away on October 6, 2008. Col. Heyser was among 11 Air Force U-2 pilots who took reconnaissance photos. Of these pilots, one was shot down another died when his plane crashed off Key West, and another pilot was killed in a crash while training for the Cuban mission.

______________________


POLITICAL MYTH: "We won the Cold War without a shot being fired."

FACT: While a Policy of Deterrence and Conflict Management Avoided a Nuclear Exchange, American Troops and Intelligence Personnel Went in Harm's Way During the Cold War, Resulting in Numerous Casualties to American Personnel.

 

Korea -- October, 1969: 4 GIs killed in ambush by North Koreans

-----------------------------------------------------------------
James Deane Jr Gregory Fronius Arthur Nicholson Jr.
LTJG James B. Deane, Jr.,
USN Killed in Action, East China Sea, flying P4M reconnaissance aircraft
August 22, 1956

SGT Gregory Fronius,
killed by hostile fire,
El Salvador
  March 31, 1987

MAJ Arthur D. Nicholson, Jr. Shot by Soviet Soldier in East Germany
March 24, 198
Rudolf Anderson Nick Rowe Jack Lively
MAJ Rudolf Anderson,
USAF Shot down by Soviets
over Cuba,
Oct. 27, 1962		 COL Nick Rowe,
Killed by terrorists
in Philippines,
April 21, 1989		 Jack D. Lively, killed in shoot down off US Navy P2V Aircraft by Soviet Planes near Vladivostok, USSR October 4, 1951
Francis Gray Powers Francis Slattery Walter Boyd
General James A. Van Fleet,
Led American Advisory and Planning Mission in Greek Civil War, Helped Greeks Defeat Communist Insurgency; Led Eighth US Army in Korean War 1951-53.		 Cmdr. Francis A. Slattery,
skipper of USS Scorpion (SSN-589) lost at sea in the Atlantic May 23, 1968, with crew of 99 men.		 PFC Walter Boyd,
USMC, KIA in Operation to rescue SS Mayaguez from Khmer Rouge
May 15. 1975

COLD WAR VETS - BERLIN AIRLIFT:

July 14, 2008 - At the Truman Presidential Library, Sean Eagan presented a certificate of appreciation on behalf of the Secretary of the Army and the Army Chief of Staff to COL Gail Halvorsen, "The Candy Bomber," who flew missions in the Berlin Airlift. COL Halvorsen was nominated for the award by the AMERICAN COLD WAR VETERANS organization, of which Sean Eagan is the Chairman.

C:\Documents and Settings\Frank Tims\My Documents\My Pictures\Eagan and Halvorsen Truman 1.jpg

 





ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY, WASHINGTON, DC

USS THRESHER MEMORIAL, PORTSMOUTH, NH

MEMORIAL TO USS THRESHER AND USS SCORPION

SEAL BEACH, CALIFORNIA


OUR THANKS TO ALL OUR PARTNERS IN THESE EVENTS

AND TO THE FACULTY AND CADETS FROM

THE CARSON LONG MILITARY INSTITUTE, WHICH PROVIDED COLOR GUARD AND BUGLER AT ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY

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OUR ANNUAL MEETING TOOK PLACE MAY 1, 2011– ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA!

COLD WAR VICTORY MEDAL-RECOGNITION
COLD WAR - UNDERSTANDING THE COLD WAR
SUPPORT OUR TROOPS WHO CONTINUE TO SERVE
COLD WAR HEROES DAY OF REMEMBRANCE - MAY 1st