Reprinted from Naval History magazine, July/August 1997

 ”Corsairs from Heaven” by Captain Diane Diekman, U.S. Navy

Corporal Berry Rhoden, U.S. Army, crossed his arms over his head in a futile attempt to soften blows from the North Korean rifle butts that knocked him to the ground.  One of his captors kicked him in the stomach, reopening the bloody wound he had sustained from a firing squad two days before. The enemy soldiers wanted him to walk, but the bullet had damaged the nerves in his legs so severely that he could barely crawl. (more…)

Originally printed in the Clear Lake Courier — May 31, 1995

It was Saturday evening, December 6, 1941. Most of the sailors at Naval Station Pearl Harbor were on liberty. The Bloch Recreation Center was filled to capacity for what was expected to be the first annual “Battle of Music.”

Three 21-piece bands had made it to the finals after several months of elimination concerts. Tonight would determine whether USS ARGONNE (AG 41), USS PENNSYLVANIA (BB 38), or USS TENNESSEE (BB 43) had the best band in the Navy’s Pacific Fleet. (more…)

Originally published in the Clear Lake Courier — May 20, 1998

On my way to visit USS Belleau Wood near Australia, I spent a night in Cairns, Queensland. Well-known as an entrance to the Great Barrier Reef, the town seemed to exist only for tourism and diving.

A Marine Corps helicopter came to the Cairns airport to exchange passengers and pick up cargo. Australia’s extremely strict environmental laws required the crew to spray two cans of bug spray inside the helicopter before opening any doors, and then hand the empty cans to the agricultural inspectors on the ground–even though the CH-46E is open in the rear and on the upper sides. (more…)

Originally published in the Clear Lake Courier — 26 November 1997

My one day to spend sightseeing in Hong Kong was hindered by a heavy overcast and steady drizzle. Although I rode the tram up Victoria Peak, the zero visibility at the top permitted no photographs. I was supposed to be able to see a spectacular view of Victoria Harbor and the South China Sea. All I saw was fog.

USS Nimitz (CVN 68), one of the Navy’s nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, brought me to Hong Kong. I walked aboard in Yokosuka, Japan, and stayed with the ship during its five-day transit past Okinawa and Taiwan. (more…)

Originally printed in the Clear Lake Courier – August 13, 1997

Naval Air Facility Atsugi competed with a typhoon while presenting its 42nd annual air show the last weekend in June. Wings ‘97 was NAF Atsugi’s “Friendship Day,” one of the events held by American military bases in Japan during the summer to socialize with our Japanese hosts. Eighty aircraft were on display and 125 booths sold food and souvenirs.

Because of Typhoon Peter threatening us Saturday night, the crowd this year was only half of last year’s 300,000. Saturday’s military air show performance was canceled due to overcast skies; the civilian stunt planes performed low-level acrobatics. All airplanes were placed in hangars and all booths dismantled just before the rain began falling. A few spurts of rain and gusts of wind throughout the night were all we got of a typhoon.  Sunday’s clear blue sky and hot sunshine provided perfect air show weather. (more…)

Originally printed in the Clear Lake Courier — July 16, 1997

From USS Boxer (LHD 4), a new ship on its first deployment, I went to USS Independence (CV 62), the oldest ship in the Navy. Too large to tie up at the pier the Boxer had used a week earlier, it anchored several miles off the coast of downtown Singapore.

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Originally printed in the Clear Lake Courier – June 4, 1997

I never in my life thought I’d get to Singapore and Thailand, but the opportunity presented itself when we scheduled a trip to meet USS Boxer. Three of us flew seven hours from Yokota Air Force Base to Singapore on a DC-8 contracted by the Air Force to carry cargo and passengers.

From the air the Singapore coastline appeared as a carpet of green trees and shrubs, with occasional bare spots of red earth showing through. Meandering streams contained brown/green water. We flew over a downtown with clusters of multi-story buildings, an industrial section with more red dirt, and large patches of scraped red earth being turned into housing developments.

Singapore Island, 80 miles north of the Equator, is located off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. Its average daily high temperature is ninety degrees and average low seventy degrees. (more…)

Originally printed in the Clear Lake Courier — 10 December 1997

With the arrival of October, it was time for an annual conference in Spain. Unlike last year when I flew over the United States twice, this time I went entirely around the world. On the way, I stopped in Washington D.C. for four days.

Timing was perfect to attend the dedication of the Women in Military Service for America (WIMSA) Memorial. The $24.5 million memorial was carved out of the hillside behind the 65-year-old retaining wall at the entrance to Arlington National Cemetery. (more…)

Originally published in the Clear Lake Courier — January 31, 1996

Fifty-two years ago, two young South Dakota women joined the Navy WAVES (Women Accepted For Volunteer Emergency Service). They became acquainted when they moved into the same cubicle in the WAVES barracks at Naval Air Station, Hutchinson, Kansas. Lorraine Lee was from Lake Norden and Mildred Hanson was from Altamont. Without knowing each other, they had gone through basic training at Hunter College in Brooklyn, New York. They probably traveled to Hutchinson on the same train. (more…)

Originally published in the Clear Lake Courier — August 30, 1995

The groundbreaking ceremony for the Women in Military Service for America Memorial was held June 22 at the main entrance to Arlington National Cemetery outside Washington D.C. I was one of 5500 there to listen to President Clinton and 15 other speakers. This was the largest single gathering of military women in our nation’s history.

The short, interesting and well-presented speeches kept the 90-minute ceremony moving rapidly. The speaker who seemed to be enjoyed the most was 94-year-old Anne Pedersen Freeman, a World War I veteran. She joined the Navy when she graduated from high school in 1918, and was assigned to the Brooklyn Navy Yard. She stated, “I don’t remember exactly what we did but we typed, typed, and typed and made six copies of everything.” She is pleased to see the opportunities grow for women to serve their country: “When I served, women didn’t have the right to vote.” (more…)