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The Wingham Advance-Times, 1985-04-03, Page 17leisure, features and entertainment 4 Crossroads Wednesday, April 3, 1985 Serving over 20,000 homes in Ontario's heartland. A rri vin g with the Forces in Germany bMarion I. Duke r E,tsvet 9, OW9 (3 HOTEL ZUM LOWEN ON OBERTORSTR., LAHR,—is located just north of the Marktplatz, a marketplace clos- ed to vehicular traffic. Lahr, in southern Germany, is in the Black Forest area. Hours into thtrip,,l, am dealing with a reaction I didn't anticipate = didn't even think of. Aboard the Boeing 707, row upon row, the. entire length of the aircraft, it's pale green shirtsleeves and close - cropped hair. For the first time in my life I know what it feels like to be the outsider among my own countrymen. This isn't just any Boeing 707. It is one of five such aircraft operated by 437 Squadron, commonly called "Husky" Squadron, of the Canadian Forces. Civilians on this flight are a'distinct minority. As one civilian whose know • ledge of the military is limited to what I can recall from high school cadet train- ing back in the 1950s, to bits and pieces read in the daily press or viewed on television, and to infrequent obser- vations of military equipment move- ment along, local highways, I feel alien- ated. It is a feeling that never quite leaves me during the 10 daysof this tour of Canadian Fortes Europe, the NATO Airborne Early Warning Force, and Su- preme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) , which is the NATO military headquarters. So pervasive is this sense' of separ- ation between civilian and military life, the fact that I'm traveling in foreign countries becomes secondary in impor-: tame. The purpose of this trip is straight forward. We are to see something of the purpose of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the role of Canadian For- ces in Europe, and the community life of Canadian Forces personnel abroad. We are then to return to our respec- tive communities and report our find-, ings. The terms of the tour are equally straight forward. Transportation on Canadian Forces flights is free, and during the working days of the tour, Canadian Forces will supply transpor- tation and a military escort. However, we are responsible for°connecting flights and for our food and accommo- dation. Eight of us on this trip are represent- ing Canadian weekly newspapers, two from Alberta, one from Saskatchewan, four from Ontario. The ninth member is a radio news director from Nova Scotia. HUSKY SQUADRON Thanks to preparations by Capt. Richard Moore of Ottawa, getting ready to board Flight 761 at'Air Move- ments Unit, Trenton, is a breeze.' ._4 This is the first of a series of articles by Marion I. Duke, editor of The Listowel Banner, on a recent study tour of Canadian Forces Europe. Along with eight other representatives of the Cana- dian Community Newspaper Asso- ciation, Miss Duke visited Canadian Forces at bases in Lahr, Baden-Soellin- gen, and the NATO airbase at Geilen- kirchen, the Canadian embassy at Bonn, and NATO's 'military headquar- ters at Mons, Belgium. My vehicle has been parked and my key left with the Military Police. I now simply pick out tickets marked "Lahr", fasten them to my luggage, present my flight ticket and passport to the man at the counter, state I want non-smoking, and receive my boarding pass. However, there are strict regulations governing dress on Canadian Forces flights. Men and `women are to be properly attired — jackets, slacks, dresses, etc. In other words, jeans are out. We have been previously warned and so pass inspection. Traveling with me from Trenton are two other members of our group, Lorne Eedy of St. Marys and Richard James of Bowmanville. We are to meet the other six in Ottawa. The priority rating on Canadian For- ces flights runs from atop rating otlone, down to five. Members .of our group have been given a number two rating. Sitting in the terminal I notice a number of people waiting. In case of cancellations, standby passengers are taken, I assume on either a priority, or first come basis. When he learns he has gotten the last seat, a teenaged boy all but jumps up and down in joy. His mother looks just as happy. Shortly before flight time, Mr; Eedy, Mr. James and I are called and invited into the VIP lounge where we ar' given a cup of coffee — and the privilege of being the lastlo board. It's a nice touch, but I just .feel conspicuous. Aboard it is immediately obvious this is no luxury flight. The 707 has three seats on either side of the narrow aisle. and there's precious little leg room. Noting the size of most of the guys, I keep my elbows tucked in and just don't have the heart to put my seat back. After the safety instructions and a snack has been served, I pull out the brochure from the seat pocket on 437 Squadron. It's interesting reading. The primary purpose of the squadron is the movement of Canadian Forces personnel and materials and thesquad- ron takes pride in its motto, "OMNIA PASSIM" ("Anything, Anywhere") . ' In the course of its history, 437 - Squadron has delivered supplies to .desert areas, been involved in the search for a Russian satellite in the Arctic and just about everything . imaginable in between. The squadron's crest is the head of a husky dog, surrounded by maple leaves and topped with a crown. The crown represents the connection to Great Britain, the maple leaves re- present Canada; and the husky dog, according to the brochure, "represents the work horse of the north and symbo- lizes the squadron's sponsors, the Hud- son's Bay Company". The squadron was formed on Sept. 14, 1944 and during World War 2, using Dakotas, flew glider towing missions and transported equipment, ammu- nition, fuel and personnel to support ad- vanced airfields in Europe. The squadron was disbanded in June of 1946, but was reformed on Oct. 1, 1961 at RCAF Station Trenton. Its main role was the support for Canadian Forces in Europe and the squadron received 10 Yukons, built by Canadair. In 1970 the Yukons were replaced by four Boeing 707s and a fifth Boeing was added to the fleet in May 1971. • Besides the support of Canadian Forces, the fleet has carried lifesaving supplies to places like war-torn Pakis- tan and recently to Ethiopia. Two of the present 707s have been modified to carry out air-to-air refuel- ling, thus extending the range of the aircraft. The crew working this flight, as is the case on all military flights, constantly monitor the cabin, walking up and down the aisle, checking seat positions and cabin baggage. This passenger at least found the atti- tude of this flight crew more helpful and courteous than that of most commer- cial flights I've flown in recent years. ARRIVING It's been a short night. After the snack it seemed. T had no sooner dozed off than the lights have come on and breakfast is announced. We are a]sciad- vised to advance our watches yet another hour for a total of six hours in order to coincide with German time. The previous announcement for afive hour time advance to Greenwich Time has proven unnecessary. Heavy fog has prevented the flight from landing at Gatwick and so we set down at the flugplatz (airbase) at Lahr at 11:30 a.m. rather than the scheduled 12:40 hours. CPL. J. L. (LEO) LAN- DRY—of CFB Lahr was the driver for the CCNA study tour which lasted 10 days - .. . Continued on Page 2 THROUGHOUT EUROPE—the favourite game of children and adults alike is football. These children had a street off the Markplatz pretty much to themselves on a Saturday afternoon in Lahr. Stores in Germany close at noon on Satur- day with the exception of the first Saturday of the month, called the "long Saturday". CAPT. PHILIP ANIDO—of the DND Office of Informa- tion, Canadian Forces Europe, was the escort officer for the study tour by members of the Canadian Com- munity Newspapers Association to CFE and J IA TO's military headquarters.