• Royal Canadian, U.S. air forces create integrated top cover

    During the Cold War, the Soviet threat lay not far to the west of Alaska. The state's nearest neighbor shared more than 1,500 miles of border and the mission to protect North America.They still do.Several members of the Royal Canadian Air Force are assigned to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson's 962nd

  • Engineers among last units to leave Afghanistan

    December 1950. The Korean War. Following the breakout of the Chosin Reservoir, Marines and Soldiers of the X Corps had avoided destruction by Chinese Communist forces and maneuvered south to the port of Hungnam. If they couldn't evacuate to United Nations lines, the battered unit would risk being

  • Cleaning hazardous waste under Arctic conditions

    Hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst, members of the 611th Civil Engineer Squadron, along with five other state and federal agencies, practiced techniques to deal with an oil or hazardous waste spill under cold weather conditions during an exercise here Feb. 3 through 5.As the lone CES

  • Guardian Angel recounts battle which earned him Silver Star

    (This is the first part of a two-part series about Air Force Master Sgt. Roger Sparks, a pararescueman with the 212th Rescue Squadron.)The air erupted with the percussive sound of machine-gun fire. Master Sgt. Roger Sparks jumped out of an HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter and began the 40-foot hoist down

  • Retired brigadier general nears second retirement after 46 years

    In 1969, Richard Nixon became president of the United States. Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin became the first humans to set foot on the moon.And the U.S. continued a draft lottery during the Vietnam War when men of draft age had to register with the Selective Service System in case they were

  • In Raptor we trust - all others we intercept

    The phrase "Top Cover for America" was born of black-and-white newsreel footage of leather-jacketed men clambering into fighter jets to stop the Soviet menace. That vision, of pilots in goggles and ear muffs, sprinting across runways and up ladders, is dated.What the modern imagination should

  • Camaraderie, faith and football

    Twenty seconds...Twenty seconds of exhilaration. There is a clear shift in atmosphere around the Airmen and Soldiers.Twenty seconds of anticipation.A chaplain in the group leans forward, anticipating the hike of the football. With twenty seconds left on the clock, the New England Patriots hold a

  • Spreading the word about dental hygiene

    February is National Children's Dental Health month, and the 673d Dental Squadron will visit Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson's elementary schools and child development centers to educate children in dental hygiene throughout this observance.Tech. Sgt. Catherine Ramiso, 673d Dental Squadron