Operations Castle and Teapot
US Atomic Veterans
Eugene F. Modert
Eugene F. Modert sent email about his duty at Operation Castle and Teapot.
From: horselover2@peoplepc.com
To: pdxavets@aracnet.com
Subject: Eugene F. Modert
Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2003
I am Susan McLain the niece of Eugene F. Modert. Eugene passed away quite suddenly on Feb. 8, 2003 a few weeks ago. We are very sad at the loss of such a kind, humble man. Susan
From: dawngene@webtv.net (Dawn Fleming)
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001
To: pdxavets@aracnet.com
Subject: Air Force
I was one of the Air Force along with our aircraft that the Bairoko
ferried over and back. We were the sampling squadron operating out of the
main island. Our pilots flew directly through the blast cloud and one of
them got the max dosage in one flight. That plane had to be left at the
decon area for a few days before it could be washed down.
Of course we
all wore radiation badges.We would go on a forklift platform to get the
pilot out so that we wouldn't touch the aircraft. We used a long pole to
touch the button that opened the cockpit canopy. The air coming into the
aircraft during flight of course had to be filtered. The sampling filters
were in the forward or nose of the fuel tanks at the end of the wings
and were retrieved with 10' poles and put into lead 'pigs' and hauled
off to the lab after returning from a cloud sampling.
I was at the Nevada
tests also. We were at one time with our backs to a blast and had our
hands over our eyes, but could still see light and felt the heat. Our
squadron commander (Major Waterhouse) was known for flying a plane through
a hanger (of course the doors were open).
Eugene F. Modert
Email: dawngene@webtv.net
From: dawngene@webtv.net (Dawn Fleming)
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001
To: pdxavets@aracnet.com (Keith)
Subject: Re: Air Force
Castle, yes, 54 and Eniwetok for the hydrogen tests. I was one of the crew
chiefs (A1/C) on one of the F-84 sampler aircraft. We never lost an
aircraft during Eniwetok or Nevada operations. It was close during the
last mission when the foggy, rainy season started to come in at
Eniwetok. Two planes were coming in on GCA and 2 miles out the GCA went
off. The pilots stayed on the course and we saw them come in right on
target through the heavy clouds at the end of the runway.
In Nevada we
also had a B-57, twin jet, that started the engines by the use of
pre-packaged propellants and emitted a smoke cloud as a by-product. Of
course the fire department didn't know what was going on and so they
rushed over with there vehicles to put out a fire until someone let them
know the situation was a-ok.
Eugene F. Modert
Email: dawngene@webtv.net
From: dawngene@webtv.net (Dawn Fleming)
Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001
To: pdxavets@aracnet.com (Keith)
Subject: Re: Air Force
I was in Castle and Teapot. If you look at the flight group in
Upshot-Knothole you will see 3 F-80s,one unmanned and guided by 2
following a/c. In Teapot we had the same thing only there were no animals
in the unguided one--it was to be guided imto the blast area. It went
past us to the target, but the first a/c lost control of it and the
second went to take up the control position, but still it also could not
make the unmanned a/c respond. We watched it slowly head towards the
mountains and decline ever so slightly untill the next thing we saw was a
large orange fireball as it went into the base of the mountain.
At
Eniwetok when the Hydrogen blast went off we experienced the shock waves
from it and counted 13 as they passed through us.
I vagely remember him (Capt. Jimmy Robinson).We took care of the A/C and got them ready for the
pilots.We had to check the A/C,including starting them up and make sure
they were flight-worthy, but we didn't get that close.
We did go up once
and a while when we had the T-33s in New Mexico. There was a pilot from
Texas that just got out of flight school that went up in my plane one
day at Nevada and he was shaking in his boots. The big thing in Nevada
was, who could get to the ready-shack first after breakfast.There was a
pot-belly stove and we would get a chair and put our feet up on the
stove to warm them, the weather was quite cold in the morning in
Nevada. The bus would go into LasVegas and I would take only $5 just to
be sure and not overdo it. One of the guys knew Peter Lyn Hayes mother
who had a casino on the western part of the strip and she had invited us
over. Back then we used the actual silver dollars in the
machines. Previously I had mentioned our CO was a Major Waterhouse,I
think he was a Colonel.
We used to play volleyball against the Marshall Islanders when they would come
over to the main island where we were.They were all about 5' tall, but we
could never beat them.They were good! And to listen to the men and women
sing their island songs is an experience which would bring me to
tears, so much beauty. If I could see them again it would please me to no
end. I have so much love for them. They also put on an educational event one
evening on the way the Islanders survive with the basic foods available
such as coconuts and fish.They make many different and beautiful dishes
from these basic components.
Mentioning our planes, we had to quite often
use Jato bottles to get the planes off of the runways at Eniwetok and
Nevada.These are solid rocket canasters that were mounted to the
fuselage and jetisoned after takeoff.The pilots would see how close they
could come to officers club located near the end of the runway at
Eniwetok when they jetisoned them.Well,one day a jetisoned canaster went
through the roof of the club and that ended that game.
Gene Modert
Email: dawngene@webtv.net or
Email:Susan McLain
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