COMMANDER’S CORNER: DURING FOOTBALL SEASON IT’S EVERYONE’S ALMA MATER - PAGE 2
Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado
Thursday, September 21, 2017 Vol. 61 No. 38
A fallen Warhawk, remembered By Senior Master Sgt. Timothy Bahr 4th Space Control Squadron operations superintendent
CRIPPLE CREEK, Colo. — Staff Sgt. Austin Bieren, 4th Space Control Squadron Physical Security non-commissioned officer in charge was remembered at a ceremony officiated by retired Maj. Gen. Dale Merryrose, former Director of Command and Control Colorado based Systems, at Mount Pisgah Cemetery in Cripple Creek, Colorado, August 20, 2017. The ceremony honored five service members from both the 21st Space Wing and the 10th Special Forces Brigade, who lost their lives in the line of duty, by adding their names onto a memorial wall located at the cemetery. “The citizens of Cripple Creek built this Memorial Park as a place to reflect on what has been required through the years of the men and women of our Armed Forces,” said Merryrose.
The five Front Range Airmen and Soldiers added to the memorial include Bieren, Maj. Andrew Byers, Staff Sgt. Christopher Wilbur, Staff Sgt. Adam Thomas and Specialist 1st Class Ryan Gloyer. Col. Kathleen Flarity, Office of the Surgeon General, provided closing comments and conducted The Laying of the Wreath. The Laying of the Wreath is a formal ceremony that most frequently occurs at Arlington National Cemetery. The High Frontier Honor Guard performed a rifle salute with the shots fired representing the sacrifice made by the service members. The ceremony concluded with the playing of Taps in their honor. The Memorial Wall with 385 names engraved on it offers a place to reflect on the sacrifices made by service members and was dedicated in 2007. Rachel Bieren, wife of the late Bieren, was in attendance as well as representatives from Bieren’s leadership.
CRIPPLE CREEK, Colo. — Rachel Bieren, wife of the late Staff Sgt. Austin Bieren, 4th Space Control Squadron Physical Security non-commissioned officer in charge, participates in a ceremony honoring her husband and four service members from the 21st Space Wing and the 10th Special Forces Brigade, who lost their lives in the line of duty. The event was held at Mount Pisgah Cemetery in Cripple Creek, Colorado, August 20, 2017.
(Courtesy photo)
82,468 SERVICE MEMBERS:
You are not forgotten
Services available for families who gave all By Dave Smith
By Staff Sgt. Tiffany Lundberg
21st Space Wing Public Affairs staff writer
21st Space Wing Public Affairs
(U.S. Air Force photo by Craig Denton)
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. — Retired Master Sgt. Edwin Beck, World War II POW, salutes the American Flag during the National Anthem at the 2017 POW/ MIA Remembrance Ceremony, Sept. 15, at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. The Remembrance Ceremony concluded a week of activities dedicated to remembering POW/MIA service members.
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. — Dating back to World War II through the Korean War, Vietnam War, Cold War, Iraq and other conflicts, there are approximately 82,468 service members still missing in action according to the Defense Prisoners of War, Missing in Action Accounting Agency. The 82,468 POW/MIA were remembered during the Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, annual 2017 POW/MIA Remembrance Week, Sept. 11-15. The week encompassed a Flag Raising Ceremony, 24-hour run, and concluded with a Remembrance and Retreat Ceremony. “These moments for us to pause and consider the sacrifice of the families and the sacrifice of the warriors who have gone be-
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. — On Thanksgiving Day, 1971, Capt. James Steadman and 1st Lt. Bob Buetel of the 497th Tactical Fighter Squadron took off on a mission from Royal Ubon Air Force Base, Thailand in their F-4 Phantom fighter. Steadman was the pilot and Beutel rode in back as weapons system operator. They used the call sign Owl 8. Around 3 a.m. they made radio contact with their task force radar flight advising they were switching to their assigned tactical frequency, according to Internet accounts of the event. That was the last time anyone ever heard from the two aviators. The two aviators were declared missing in action. Rescue efforts were discontinued in December of that year. Steadman was declared killed in action in February of 1975. Records show it was Steadman’s 317th mission and Beutel’s 88th. “I remember when they came to the door to tell
See Remembered page 12
See Services page 14
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Kids experience deployment process Page 3
AFOSI recruiting for special agent duty Page 5
Fostering positive change Page 8