Photo By Marty Schaeffer | A B-29 Marker was dedicated during a memorial honoring the 13 Airmen who died in a...... read more read more
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Sixty-nine years to the day, members of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, along with Kirtland Air Force base personnel and others, gathered in remembrance of the tragedy that would go down in history as the first serious nuclear weapons accident in the continental United States.
On the night of April 11, 1950 a B-29 Superfortress bomber carrying a single MkIV atomic bomb took off in strong winds from Kirtland AFB. Three minutes after takeoff, an explosion was seen in the Manzano foothills. First responders were on-scene in minutes, but all 13 of the crew succumbed in the devastating accident.
As part of DTRA’s Defense Nuclear Weapons School’s
70th anniversary, a stone marker was unveiled at the crash site. The new memorial was revealed to family, friends and members of Team Kirtland to honor the fallen.
Delivering remarks at the event was Air Force Colonel Mark E. Bowen, the Commandant for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency's (DTRA) Defense Nuclear Weapons School, which trains more than 8000 students annually in more than 30 nuclear-related courses.
“Your presence is a visual reminder that our fellow airmen who gave their lives in service to this great nation are not forgotten,” said Bowen. “This 11 April 1950 crash is an important touchstone in our nuclear history and everyone that has had the privilege to work on this project has gained a new respect for the sacrifice the crew made.”
The 13 Airmen who perished aboard the plane that tragic day were: Staff Sgt. Walter C. Boedeker, Staff Sgt. James R. Chilton, Staff Sgt. Richard E. Cooper, Staff Sgt. James B. Karney, Staff Sgt. Gerald M. Powell, Staff Sgt. Eugene R. Thompson and Sgt. Virgil R. Tennyson. Also onboard were 1st Lt. Richard E. Coates, 1st Lt. Ralph E. Farmer, 1st Lt. Lewis B. Ranck, 1st Lt. Thomas J. Stultz Jr., Capt. David H. Faust and Capt. John R. Martin.
One of Capt. Martin’s daughters, Mrs. Judy Martin-Jackson was among the guests. Her father was 27 years-old at the time of the incident and she says she remembers as a five year-old, receiving the news of her father’s death.
“I’m the only one that has recollections of that night,” said Martin. “I was asleep in bed and heard a big commotion and saw my mother crying. It was so sad.”
Martin and her daughter Jennifer Horine said that the event has helped their family with acceptance and closure.
“I am appreciative that my grandfather and the other men who died, are not forgotten, said Horine “So many people have worked diligently, we are so grateful.”
“We’re honoring all of these men today for their service, including my father and I just could not miss this. I’ve learned so many wonderful things about my dad,” said Martin.
“We hope this marker helps future generations remember what happened here, and to remember those that gave their lives to secure the long peace that we have enjoyed for the past 70 plus years, and hope to enjoy for many, many years into the future.” Concluded Bowen.
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DTRA enables the Department of Defense, the U.S. Government, and international partners to counter and deter Weapons of Mass Destruction and Improvised Threat Networks.
| Date Taken: | 04.26.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 04.29.2019 14:27 |
| Story ID: | 319914 |
| Location: | NEW MEXICO, US |
| Web Views: | 403 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Marker dedication honors airmen who perished in B-29 crash in 1950, by Melissa Tune, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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