[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 144 (Thursday, October 21, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2156-E2157]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       A TRIBUTE TO BERNT BALCHEN

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MARTIN OLAV SABO

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 21, 1999

  Mr. SABO. Mr. Speaker, October 23, 1999 marks the 100th anniversary 
of the birth of the late great Norwegian-American pilot, military 
leader, and Arctic and Antarctic explorer, Colonel Bernt Balchen.
  Bernt Balchen was born in Tveit, Norway, on October 23, 1899, the son 
of a physician with an ancestry of military leaders and sea captains. 
His love of nature and wildlife, his artistic talents, and his 
sensitive, discerning eye were revealed in his sketch books begun at an 
early age.
  His love of outdoor life and sports was coupled with a keen spirit of 
adventure and discovery which was kindled when he met the great 
explorer Roald Amundsen, shortly after his successful expedition to the 
South Pole in 1913. This meeting fired young Balchen's imagination and 
determination to explore the mysteries of the Polar regions.
  After completing his education in Forestry Engineering at Harnosand, 
Sweden, interspersed with practical work in Norway's lumber camps, 
Bernt Balchen underwent training in the Norwegian Army. At 18, he 
volunteered for service with the White Army in Finland, serving first 
in ski patrols and then in the cavalry. A Russian bayonet almost cost 
him his life. He confounded doctors who predicted he would be 
permanently incapacitated by later becoming a member of Norway's 
Olympic boxing team, then setting records in cross-country skiing and 
bicycling. He built a strong physique, great endurance, keen 
perceptions and the quick reflexes which were to serve him, and others, 
so well in the rugged life ahead.
  Bernt Balchen's eyes turned skyward. He entered the Royal Norwegian 
Naval Air Force, graduating at the head of his class and receiving his 
wings in 1921. He became an instructor in navigation and participated 
in the planning of some of the first Arctic serial expeditions from 
Norway. While working on preparations for Amundsen's first flight 
across the North Pole in the dirigible Norge based at Spitsbergen, 
Balchen was directed by Amundsen to assist Commander Richard E. Byrd in 
equipping his plane with skis of Balchen's design. This plane was to be 
flown by Floyd Bennett, with Byrd as a navigator, in an attempt to 
reach the North Pole.
  Impressed with Balchen's many skills, Commander Richard Byrd asked 
that Balchen be given leave from the Norwegian Naval Air Force and join 
his party on its return to the U.S. Balchen then became chief test 
pilot for the famous aircraft designer, Tony Fokker, joining the Fokker 
Aircraft Corporation at Teterboro, New Jersey. In 1927, Balchen was 
assigned to Western Canada Airways at Hudson, Ontario, to teach 
Canadian pilots how to handle ski-equipped planes--the beginning of 
``bush flying''--then to transport men, equipment and supplies from 
Cache Lake, Manitoba, the northern terminus of the Hudson Bay railway, 
to Fort Churchill, Manitoba, within a prescribed period of time. As one 
of the two pilots selected for the job, he flew an open cockpit plane 
during six weeks of savage weather, with temperatures hitting 65 
degrees below zero. In paying tribute to the importance of this 
operation, which was an important factor in changing the economy of 
Canada, the government of Canada stated, ``There has been no more 
brilliant operation in the history of commercial aviation.''
  After the crash-landing of the plane America on a test flight in 
which the pilot Floyd Bennett was badly injured, Balchen became 
involved in preparations for Byrd's Trans-Atlantic flight in 1927. He 
was chosen to be a co-pilot, along with Bert Acosta. As harsh weather 
conditions developed on that flight, Balchen took over the piloting of 
the plane for 40 hours, and finally saved the lives of all aboard by 
making an emergency landing off the coast of France. Balchen 
subsequently became the third person to successfully fly across the 
Atlantic Ocean.
  In 1928, Balchen piloted one of the relief planes flying to the crash 
site of the German aircraft Bremen on Greenly Island, off Labrador. The 
next year he piloted now-Admiral Byrd across the South Pole in the 
Floyd Bennett-- the first flight over the South Pole. In addition to 
his work as pilot for the Byrd Antarctic Expedition I, Balchen played a 
major role in designing equipment and working out problems in 
logistics, constructing snow hangars and other equipment. The following 
year, back in the U.S., he instructed Amelia Earhart and redesigned her 
aircraft for her successful flight across the Atlantic.
  In 1931, through a special act of Congress, Colonel Balchen became a 
U.S. citizen.
  Balchen served as chief pilot for the Lincoln Ellsworth Trans-
Antarctic Expeditions (1933-1935). Upon completing this association, he 
returned to Norway to work in aviation and the development of the 
Norwegian Airlines, and the laying of the foundation for a united 
Scandinavian airlines system.
  With the invasion of Norway by Germany, Bernt Balchen became 
associated with the British Royal Air Force in ferrying planes over the 
North Atlantic and in transport flights from San Diego to Singapore. He 
carried out the first flight from San Diego to Singapore.

  In 1941, as the U.S. began to ferry bombers to England, Balchen was 
requested by General ``Hap'' Arnold to join the U.S. Army Air Force and 
to build a secret base in Greenland--code-named Bluie West 9 (8W-8). 
From this base, Balchen and his men carried out spectacular rescues of 
downed American bomber crews by dogsled and plane, one of which 
involved a belly-landing of a PBY by Bernt Balchen on the ice--a feat 
never before attempted. In 1943, he led successful bombing missions 
against German installations on the east coast of Greenland; later, in 
Iceland.
  In 1944, Balchen became the commander of the Allied Air Transport 
Command for Scandinavia and the USSR, with a secret base in Leuchars, 
Scotland. This became part of the Carpetbagger Operation (OSS), 
involving the organization of an air route to Sweden using civilian 
plan markings and unmarked, black aircraft used for flights into Norway 
to supply underground forces and to carry out bombing missions. Close 
to 4,000 Norwegians were safely transported through the Sweden air 
route to England. His command supported Norwegian forces and helped in 
the evacuation of 70,000 Russians from slave labor camps in northern 
Norway, as well as participating in the destruction of the German 
``heavy water'' development center. The Distinguished Flying Cross, the 
Legion of Merit, the

[[Page E2157]]

Soldiers Medal and the Air Medal with Oak Leaf Clusters were among the 
many honors awarded to Bernt Balchen by the U.S. for his wartime 
service, in addition to high honors from Norway and Denmark.
  Returning to civilian life in 1946, Balchen resumed work in the 
development of the Scandinavian airlines system, while working for DNL 
in Norway. Recalled to the U.S. Air Force in 1948, he took command of 
the 10th Rescue Squadron in Alaska. In 1949, he piloted the first 
flight from Alaska across the North Pole, landing in Norway--thus 
becoming the first pilot to fly over both the North and the South 
Poles. He served as a special assistant to the Secretary of the U.S. 
Air Force on Arctic Affairs, developing search and rescue techniques 
and equipment, defense concepts, and navigational systems for the 
transpolar route which was soon to be adopted by commercial airlines. 
He pioneered the building of the anti-missile base at Thule, Greenland, 
hailed for its strategic importance.
  Through all the rugged years, Balchen's sketch pad and watercolor 
paints were close at hand. In 1948, however, inspired by the grandeur 
of the scenery and wildlife in Alaska, he began a serious study of 
watercolor painting techniques, acquiring a large collection of the 
best books on the subject. In 1953, he held his first one-man show in 
New York, in which 73 of his paintings won critical acclaim from 
critics because of their brilliant colors and thrilling scenes of the 
High North. This was followed later by one-man showings in other areas 
of New York, as well as other states and abroad.
  Upon his retirement from the Air Force in 1956, Colonel Balchen was 
honored with the Distinguished Service Medal with a citation for ``his 
understanding of the intricate Arctic conditions and for his firm 
leadership, extensive background and selfless devotion to duty.'' He 
was the holder of many other honors, including the Harmon International 
Trophy, awarded to him by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1954, and the 
National Pilots' Association Award. He held honorary Doctorate of 
Science degrees from Tufts College (1953) and from the University of 
Alaska (1954). His writings included ``The Next 50 Years of Flight,'' 
his autobiography ``Come North With Me'' (Dutton 1958), and a cookbook 
published in Norway.
  Until his death on October 17, 1973, Bernt Balchen served as a 
consultant to the U.S. Air Force and to leading corporations, including 
General Precision and General Dynamics, on Polar and Arctic matters, on 
energy problems and defense considerations.
  In addition to Bernt Balchen's being honored by the 70,000 members of 
the Sons of Norway, Alaska's Governor, Tony Knowles, proclaimed October 
23, 1999 as ``Polar Flight Day.'' Furthermore, the Alaska Legislature 
as well as the Municipality of Anchorage, Alaska proclaimed October 23, 
1999 as ``Bernt Balchen Day,'' a fitting tribute to this outstanding 
Norwegian-American on the anniversary of his 100th birthday.
  Bernt Balchen is buried in Arlington Cemetery alongside Admiral Byrd. 
During the interment services, a red-tipped C-54 from his former 
Alaskan Command flew over Arlington Cemetery in a touching farewell.
  Balchen's headstone at Arlington Cemetery reads: ``Today goes fast 
and tomorrow is almost here. Maybe I have helped a little in the 
change. So I go on to the next adventure, looking to the future but 
always thinking back to the past, remembering my teammates and the 
lonely places I have seen that no man ever saw before.''
  Mr. Speaker, on October 23, 1999, I ask that my colleagues pause to 
remember Colonel Bernt Balchen, a true hero who made significant 
contributions to the security of both Norway and the United States.

                          ____________________