press releases of, 318
and rescue missions, 187
Sixth Army Group, 209
Arnold, Henry Harley “Hap,” 118, 231, 318
Atlantic Fleet, and rescue missions, 187
aurora borealis, 185, 278
B-17 PN9E bomber crew, 33, 34
calendar devised by, 104–5
communications from, 1–2, 37, 57, 61–62, 111–12, 114, 115, 120, 127, 129, 135
crash of, xi, 1, 53–57, 129, 153
crash site of, 3, 57, 64, 66, 70, 119–20, 193
and damage to plane, 54–55, 57, 60, 73, 109, 111, 112, 119, 172
Duck rescue missions of, xi, 3–4, 6, 91, 129, 145–47, 149
duration of ordeal, 297
flying in milk, 37–39, 48, 50–51, 56
food and supplies for, 62–63, 113, 114–15, 120–22, 135, 173–74, 186, 210–16, 259, 261
and frostbite, 63, 74–76
and landings and takeoffs on ice cap, 136–40, 288–89
Legion of Merit awarded to, 320
locating, 119–20
“The Long Wait,” xii
media stories about, 317–21
and Norden Bombsight, 142, 266
and Northland, see Northland
official records of crash, 194, 195, 277, 316
prayers of, 65, 74, 106, 175, 230, 260–61
and radio transmitters, 57, 61–62, 65, 109–13, 121, 122, 216, 236
rescue missions for, 119–23, 125–30, 136–42, 152, 174, 182, 186–88, 204–6, 231–35, 261, 264–66, 289–97, 315
and search for C-53, 34–36, 65
search for their downed plane, 64–65, 84, 90–91
self-rescue attempt by, 174–80
and Short Snorters, 107–8, 115, 142
Spencer’s fall in crevasse, 68–73, 70, 90
and survival, 1, 3, 56–64, 65–67, 73–77, 104–7, 110, 114–15, 122, 143–45, 168–80, 186, 188, 216, 229–31, 235–40
weather preventing supply drops to, 104–5, 187–88, 213, 237
B-17s:
B-17F, 31–33, 31
Bombardier’s Code of Honor, 32
crashes of, 17
emergency radios in, 26
Lost Squadron, see Lost Squadron
My Gal Sal, 118, 207, 215
Norden Bombsights on, 32, 142, 265–6
PN9E, see B-17 PN9E bomber crew
search missions of, 22, 23, 65
in World War II, 30–32
B-25 Mitchell bombers, 22
Baker, Joan, 162
Balchen, Bernt, 115–23, 116, 124, 263, 337
and Byrd, 116–17
death of, 330
Distinguished Flying Cross awarded to, 329
and dogsled trek, 291, 293
and Duck location (map), 153, 154, 159, 191–92, 192, 194, 249–50, 276, 282
early years of, 116–18
as “The Last Viking,” 115
in later years, 329–30
and PN9E cargo drops, 120–22, 135, 136, 138
and PN9E communication, 121, 122
and PN9E location, 119–20, 129, 136, 176
and PN9E rescue plans, 206–10, 214–17, 231–35, 261, 287–92, 294, 295
and rescue missions, 117, 118, 186, 209, 261, 289–96
Soldier’s Medal awarded to, 118
Barkley-Grow T8P-1 ski-plane, 204, 205
Battle of the Atlantic, 208
Beach Head Station, 183
Demorest as commander of, 122
dogsled mission from, 206
dogsled trek to, 291, 293
Fuller and crew remaining in, 182–83
and McDowell’s C-53, 23
and PN9E crash site, 123, 127
and PN9E rescue mission, 122, 124
supply drops to, 211–12
Beechcraft AT-7, 210, 295
Behar, Alberto, 224, 300, 335, 341
and equipment, 244, 254, 268, 269, 270, 272, 273, 308, 312
Bennet, Aaron, 190–91, 199, 341
Bertil, Prince (Sweden), 108
Best, Alfred “Clint,” 170, 170, 171, 337
and crash, 53–54
death of, 326
and depression, 240–41, 257–60
in later years, 297–98, 325–26
at Motorsled Camp, 285, 287
and rescue, 139, 148, 239, 264–66, 284–85, 289–90, 297
safe arrival of, 297
and search for C-53, 35–36
and survival, 59, 155, 168, 176, 180, 186, 211, 229–31, 235–40, 257–60, 297–98
Blow, James “Jim,” 200, 335, 341–42
Coast Guard career of, 200–201
commitment to Duck Hunt, xii, 46–47, 158–59, 189, 196–97, 199–202, 228
and demobilization, 300, 301, 313–14
and discovery, 317
on Duck Hunt mission, 227, 227, 242, 246, 249–50, 254, 255, 267, 269, 275–77, 282, 304
and funding, 161, 201–2
future plans of, 334
and Hotsy move, 305, 306, 308, 310
and melting at BW-1, 312, 313
“Operation Duck Hunt 2012” report by, 201
and radar, 243–44
and research, 98, 202
Bluie East Two, 17, 84
rescue missions from, 232, 235, 261, 287–96
safe arrival at, 297
supply drops from, 211–12
Turner and crew relocated to, 184, 210–11
Wade and Moe returned to, 205
Bluie West Eight, 17, 23, 115
Balchen as commander of, 118
radio contact with PN9E, 122
rescue missions from, 118, 136, 186–88
Bluie West One, 17, 19, 21, 56
and BW-1 report, 277
communications from PN9E to, 112–13, 180
search planes from, 51, 64–65
weather preventing missions from, 105, 114, 187–88, 213
Bombardier’s Code of Honor, 32
Bottoms, Benjamin A., 8, 134, 337
death officially declared, 155
and Demorest’s fall in crevasse, 148, 149
Distinguished Flying Cross awarded to, 155–56
and Douglas Dolphin, 134
and Duck crash, 150–53
as Duck radioman, 3, 133, 134, 135
memorials to, 327, 333
missing in action, 46, 96, 151, 153, 175, 178, 182, 198, 220, 283, 297, 322
next of kin, 164–66
and PN9E rescue mission, 3–4, 6–8, 129, 135–41, 142, 145–46, 156, 315
and recovery, 317, 334
Bottoms, Olga Rogers, 133, 165
Boy Scouts of America, 321, 323
Bradley, John, 223, 252, 335, 342
and GPS, 251, 269, 278
and nighttime glacier hike, 277–78
and points of interest, 268, 273, 278–79, 282, 301, 311
roles of, 224, 251, 308
Bratton, Nicholas “Nick,” 223, 335, 342
and Duck Hunt, 224, 226, 241, 268, 270, 273, 311
and Hotsy move, 305, 308
Brehme, Carl, 210, 288
Brinsko, Michelle, 300, 301, 335, 342
and base camp, 247
and nighttime glacier hike, 277–78
roles of, 223, 224, 306, 308
Britain:
U.S. Air Force in, 17
and World War II, 14, 16, 17
Byrd, Richard E., 100, 116–17, 262, 330
C-47 Skytrains, search missions of, 23, 65
C-53s, search missions of, 22, 23
C-53 Skytrooper, 19–24, 20
communications from, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 57, 105
crash of, xi, 21, 22, 35, 153
crew members of, 21, 28, 297
and hypothermia, 28
loss of, 28–29, 114, 144, 154–55, 182
Lou’s permit to search for, 197
Lou’s quest to search for, 43–44, 94, 335
as modified DC-3, 20
official declarat
ion of deaths, 155
PN9E’s search for, 33–37, 65
search abandoned for, 122, 123
search missions for, 22–23, 25–28, 33–35, 48, 56, 58, 64–65, 84, 90–91, 105, 122, 123
takeoff and flight plan, 19–20
C-54 Skymaster, and Balchen’s rescue mission, 119–23, 135
C-130 Hercules transport plane, 46, 93, 190, 196–97, 199, 218, 227, 228, 244, 246, 303
Canada, Little Norway in, 117
Canadian bomber, 79–90, 129
bombsight destroyed, 82
crash landing of, 78, 80, 153
crew of, 79, 142
ferrying mission of, 79
and hypothermia, 88–89
and Lost in the Arctic, 89
and Northland, 85–90, 86, 124
rescue of crew, 83–90, 89, 91, 114, 127, 142
survival of crew, 80–85, 89–90
travel with dinghy, 82–86
Capa, Cornell, 99
Carlson, William S., 25
Christian, Patrick, 45
Churchill, Winston, 108, 145
Coast Guard, U.S.:
and Arlington National Cemetery, 96
Aviation Memorial, 333
budget of, 93, 201–2
and competition among military branches, 84, 209
contract with North South Polar, 199, 202, 277
creed of, 127, 129
and demobilization order, 299, 314
and Duck crash, 152–53
and Duck Hunt, 46–47, 92–93, 102–3, 158, 189–90, 195, 196–97, 198, 199, 201–2, 225, 277
Duck Hunt team members, 227–28
and Duck search (1975), 97
and Eagle, 95
Greenland Patrol of, 16, 23, 66
and International Ice Patrol, 16
and Ivigtut mine, 15, 16
missing personnel of, 46, 93, 96, 103, 154, 164
and Northland, 2, 84, 90–91, 333
Office of Aviation Forces, 46, 227
ownership of downed planes and shipwrecks, 160
radar data collected by, 194, 242–43
and recovery plans, 334
rescue work of, 2–4, 8, 46, 90–91, 127, 183
roles of, 93
“Semper Paratus,” 46
souvenirs on eBay, 96, 97
travel to base camp, 246–49
World War II history by, 15
and World War II jurisdiction, 93
Coast Guard Aviation Association, 95
Coleman, Ralph, 211
Collins, Thomas, 96
Columbus, Christopher, 10
Comanche Bay:
and Duck crash site, 192
and Duck Hunt, 249, 250
Northland in, 2, 123–24, 125–30, 135, 140, 150, 151, 181, 188
and PN9E crash site, 3, 123
Congress, U.S., and Title 10/Missing Persons Act, 162
Consolidated Aircraft Corporation, 207
Crea, Vivien, 98
CReSIS (Center for Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets), 194
CRREL (Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory), U.S. Army, 201, 202, 242, 243, 251
cryolite, 14–16
Deer, Joe, 98, 342
Defense Department, U.S.:
budget of, 93, 161
and Coast Guard, 93
congressional mandate to, 162
Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office, see DPMO
recovery of personnel and equipment, 93, 161–62
Demorest, Max, 24–27, 24, 337
and Beach Head Station, 122
death officially declared, 155
fall in crevasse, 147–50, 151, 152, 168, 178, 315
missing in action, 175, 297, 322
and motorsled rescue mission, 123–24, 127, 136, 138, 141, 143–45, 146–47
and PN9E rescue mission, 122
search for McDowell’s C-53, 25–27
tributes to, 330–31
Demorest, Rebecca, 330
Denmark:
government-in-exile, 16
and Greenland, 13–14
and World War II, 14–15, 16
Devers, Jacob, 209
Disco, Jetta, 227, 246, 274, 305, 335, 342
dogsled teams, 123, 183, 186–88
at Motorsled Camp, 286–87
and PBY rescue missions, 215, 261, 264, 265, 284–86, 292
trek to the coast, 291, 293
Dolleman, Hendrik “Dutch,” 215, 261, 263, 288, 337–38
background of, 262
and dogsled trek to the coast, 291, 293
and rescue mission, 265, 285, 286–87, 289, 291
Dorian, Charles, 87, 338
Douglas A-20, see Canadian bomber
DPMO:
congressional mandate to, 162
and Duck Hunt, 43–45, 160
and JPAC, 102, 277
meetings with Lou, 41–47, 92–95, 158–63
mission of, 41, 45, 94, 162, 164
more than 83,000 lost military personnel on record, 44, 46
ratio of cost to recovery, 45, 161
ten servicemen lost in Greenland, 44
Drisko, Donald, 182
Duck Hunt:
author’s plans to go to Greenland, 195–96
base camp (2012), 246–49, 248, 267–69
Coast Guard support of, see Coast Guard, U.S.
costs of, 45, 94, 201–2
demobilization order, 299–306, 313–14
discovery, 315–17
and Duck location, 191–95, 192, 193, 199
equipment gathered for, 218–20, 220, 225, 244, 303
Essex One, 244, 251, 252, 255, 268, 270, 276
Essex Three, 244, 250, 276
Essex Two, 244, 251, 252, 255, 268, 270, 276
funding sought for, 45–46, 95, 160–63, 190–91, 195, 197, 199
and Hotsy, 221–22, 224, 255, 273–75, 280, 302–11, 309, 312, 314, 316
and King, 96–98
and Lou, see Sapienza, Lou
meetings with military brass to authorize, 41–47, 92–95, 158–63
mission plan for, xii, 160, 198, 244–45
“Mule Team” effort, 310–11
plans moving forward, 196–99, 218–28
Point BW-1, 277, 278–82, 281, 299, 303–4, 310, 311–14, 312
Point JPAC, 277, 278, 282
Point K, 244, 251, 252, 268, 276
Points A and B, 244, 251, 268, 270, 272, 273, 275, 276
Points N and O, 245, 268, 270, 273, 276, 277, 278, 282
“points of interest” (POIs), 199, 202, 244–45, 251–56, 267–73, 275–77, 278–82
research for, 94, 194–95, 202, 242, 243
and safety issues, 270–71, 310–11
and Shackleton’s whiskey, 202–3, 283
team members, 221–24, 226, 227–28, 335
Dumbo, see PBY
Dunlop, Bernard “Barney,” 288, 338
death of, 328
Distinguished Flying Cross awarded to, 328
and PBY rescue missions, 215, 216, 232–35, 261, 263–64, 284, 289–96
Dutch New Guinea, rescue mission in, 187
Eagle (three-masted cutter), 95
Earhart, Amelia, 117
Egede, Hans, 13
Eisenhower, Dwight D., 108
Ellsworth, Lincoln, 117, 207
Emerson, Mike, 98
Encounters with Wildlife in Greenland, 197–98
Erickson, Frank, 96
Eriksson, Leif, 10
Erik the Red, 9–10, 13, 17
Eskimos, see Inuit people
Essex overflight (2008), 243
Everett, William, 21, 28, 29, 155, 178, 338
Fallen American Veterans Foundation, 43, 94, 197
Fennie, Joan, 66
Finnish Air Force, 117
Flying Fortress, see B-17
frostbite, 63, 74–76, 144
Fuller, Richard, 338
at Beach Head Station, 182–83
and Canadian airmen rescu
e, 89
Navy and Marine Corps Medal awarded to, 183
Gandhi, Mohandas K. (Mahatma), 81
gangrene:
dry vs. wet, 76
and loss of limbs, 142
and O’Hara, 76, 122, 127, 135, 144, 169
Garr, Bruno, 211
Geological Society of America, 25
George I (navy plane), 94, 101–2
Germany, and World War II, 14–16
Gibson, Charles, 61
“Gibson Girl” transmitter/kite, 61–62, 65, 66, 109–11
Glacier Girl, 18, 101, 102, 160, 221, 274
“Glacier Worms,” 173
Goodlet, David, 338
and crash landing, 80
on Northland, 124
as pilot, 79–80
rescue of, 83–90, 89, 114, 127
and survival, 80–84, 89–90
traveling with dinghy, 82–86
Green, Harold, 182
Greenland, 9–15
air crashes in, 17–18, 40, 51, 118, 153–55, 318
beauty of, 34
climate of, 12–13, 45, 63, 124, 187–88, 211, 231, 237
coastline of, 12
as code “Bluie,” 16, 112
cold in, 63
crash sites (map), xv
crevasses in, 57, 67, 69, 70, 73, 111, 127, 147, 285
December solstice in, 105
and Denmark, 13–14
Encounters with Wildlife, 197–98
fjords of, 35
flying in milk over, 37–39, 48, 50–52, 56, 150, 302
foehn (warm wind), 82–83
glaciers on, 11–12, 94, 193, 253, 253
hypothermia in, 28, 88–89, 101, 139, 185
Ivigtut mine, 14–16, 15
landing and takeoffs on ice cap, 129, 136–40, 206–7, 232–35, 289–93
Lou’s 2010 survey in, 194, 225
map, xiv
melting ice cap of, 97–98
military investigations in, 206
military rescues in, 21, 187
military secrets in, 188, 318
permits to search in, 45, 97, 197
pilot challenges in, 119
population of, 11
sastrugi (snow waves) in, 57, 127
settlement of, 9–10, 13, 17
size of, 11
snow buildup in, 94–95, 193, 316
Spencer’s return to, 322, 323
survival in, 57, 124
trade with Europe, 10, 13
U.S. air bases in, 16–17, 112, 114, 118
weather stations for, 14
in World War II, 14–18, 40
Greenland Cooperative Salvage Company, 118
Greenland Patrol, 2, 16, 23, 66, 123, 126, 130, 151, 332
Grumman Duck, 2, 4–6, 5, 128, 135
all aboard officially declared dead, 155, 178
and Canadian airmen, 84, 86
characteristics of, 4–5
conflicting historical records of, 194–95
crash of, 150–53, 156, 165, 182, 249, 316
discovery of, 315–17, 334
Essex overflight (2008), 243
as “flying boat,” 3
flying in milk, 150
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