Welcome Eddie

In KTB #115 last month, we promised that we would announce our new ADVISORY BOARD Members in this issue. Since SHARKHUNTERS has grown so rapidly - far beyond all expectations and with no stopping in sight; we have decided to have not one but two BOARD Members for each year instead of one as initially planned. Further, we decided to have the BOARD Member’s term be for ten years rather than five as originally planned.

And so we welcome EDDIE PHILLIPS (220-A-1986) to a position on the SHARKHUNTERS ADVISORY BOARD to run until the year 2003. EDDIE has always been a very active and very strong, supportive Member of SHARKHUNTERS.

Welcome Herbert

As already mentioned, there will be two new Members appointed to the Advisory Board to replace DR. WARREN BROWN (265-A-1987), to serve until the year 2003.

The second Member for this term is OBLT. HERBERT WERNER (18-C-1983).

Anyone knowledgeable in the history of the U-Bootwaffe knows this name. HERBERT was a U-Boat Skipper most of the war but he is most famous for his book ‘IRON COFFINS’, an outstanding book. HERBERT is a CHARTER MEMBER of SHARKHUNTERS and has been strongly supportive and helpful for our entire 13 (almost 14) years.

Welcome Wayne

As already announced, we are adding two additional Members to our SHARKHUNTERS BOARD of ADVISORS whose terms will extend through the year 2004. The first of these two is WAYNE PICKELS (768-1988). As we see by his Membership Number, WAYNE has been on board for quite some time and he has always been supportive and helpful.

WAYNE was one of the fortunate guys who got to visit U-505 early on - and he didn’t even have to stand in line or pay the usual five bucks admission. WAYNE visited U-505 the morning of 4 June, 1944 when he and a few other American sailors swarmed aboard the still moving U-505 and tumbled down the hatch, gun in hand, ready to shoot it out with any U-Boaters still aboard. The entire German crew was already off the boat and in the water so there was no one for WAYNE to shoot - and fortunately, no one to shoot WAYNE!

And so it is with pride and pleasure that we welcome WAYNE to his position on our SHARKHUNTERS ADVISORY BOARD.

Admiral Kelso

To round out our new Members on the SHARKHUNTERS BOARD OF ADVISORS, we are proud to announce the appointment of ADMIRAL FRANK KELSO (2919-1993), who will serve in this capacity until the year 2004.

ADMIRAL KELSO has enjoyed a long & proud career of service with the United States Navy, culminating with this post as Chief of Naval Operations. We welcome him to his new post on our BOARD OF ADVISORS.

Membership Contest

The LEADER BOARD had changed, but just a little, since KTB #115 last month. One or two have changed position and a few more have entered the race. By the time KTB #117 is in your hands, the Membership Contest will be finished. Good luck!

GUDMUNDER HELGASSON (3566-1994)........................... 10

JOE BURGES (605-A/LIFE-1988)........................................... 8

RADM EUGENE FLUCKEY (2169-C-1992).......................... 6

CDR. JIM CHEATHAM (1231-1989)...................................... 5

JACK GOODIER (127-1990)................................................... 3
CAPT. DAVID HINKLE (2593-LIFE-1992)
ALAN HEIDE (3995-1994)

MARC COHEN (166-A/LIFE-1986)........................................ 2
JAY FIONDELLA (1072-1989)
CDR LOU HOUSE (2243-A/LIFE-1992)

OBLT HERBERT WERNER (18-1983).................................. 1
PROF. ZEL EATON (55-LIFE-1984)
JOHN RUCKS (338-1987)
V.E. BAUER-TAPIA (408-1987)
TOM MARKER (472-1991)
DAVID BAILEY (647-1988)
VIRGINIA BADER (801-1988)
OBLT E. von KETELHODT (854-1988)
NEIL SELMER (658-1988)
LtCol ROBERT GEORGE (877-1988)
H. KEITH THOMPSON (947-1989)
KEN HENRY (1468-1990)
HANS SCHMIDT (1721-1990)
MIKE MAFFIA (1803-1991)
STEVE AMES (2331-1992)
ADOLF ZEISENISS (2428-1992)
MYLES YANCEY (2774-1993)
RICK SAVEL (3422-1994)
HAROLD FLAGG (3665-1994)
MIKE deCOLIGNEY (3732-1994)
JON SOBEL (3993-1994)
DALE SIMPSON (4036-1994)
RICHARD MAGAR (4068-1994)
TODD WEBER (4113-1995)
BOB TARKINGTON (4115-1995)
MARK NIFFENEGER (4352-1995)

GRAND PRIZE: The Member who recruits the MOST new Members in 1995 (minimum of 30) will win ANYTHING they want from our new SHARKHUNTERS/EAGLEHUNTERS catalog- ANYTHING!

DYNAMITE and the President’s Corner

In case you were wondering about the text of the President’s Corner on page two this month, it is because someone has bought a major part of Kelstein mountain - the part on which Hitler, Göring, Bormann and Speer had retreat homes. The home of Hitler had been blown up by the US Army sometime in the 1950’s; the homes of Göring and Bormann had been standing in ruins; and relatives of Speer were living in his former home.

Recently, someone (or some group) bought this land and planted more dynamite in the remains of the garage & basement of Hitler’s former home - that’s all that had been left after the 1950’s blast; & they just blew that up as well as some of the bunker system below.

Really, this kind of ‘memory reorganization’ went out with the Pharaohs and the Romans when it was common practice for the victorious army to smash the noses off the statues in the vanquished people’s land. Fortunately, TASK FORCE ALPHA consisting of BUD DANA (245-A/LIFE-1987); STELLA DANA (245 1/2-A/LIFE-1987) and JIM KLINE (300-A/LIFE-1987) undertook extensive exploration around this complex and in these bunkers, and they put it all on videotape.

Much of this can be seen on TAPE H-12 (TUNNELS of the THIRD REICH) which may be ordered from SHARKHUNTERS at only $30 (plus $5 postage) but - here is the good news - TASK FORCE ALPHA has a LOT more tape of these bunkers on video and will soon make them available. Places that do not exist any longer will still be preserved on tape. We will make announce their availability as soon as we get the green light from them.

DUD Torpedoes

Means HARRY made a mistake - and this was a BIG one. In KTB #115 on page 35 (col 2) under ‘JODL’s Last Resting Place’ it was incorrectly reported in the second paragraph: “...shows that General Albert Jodl for certain was not cremated.”

That statement is absolutely wrong, and we regret the error. General Jodl was indeed cremated. The statement should have read: “...shows that the remains of General Albert Jodl were not scattered in all directions.”

As an update to this story, we have been informed by one of our S.E.I.G. Agents that, three days after the visit by our S.E.I.G. Agents LBe 199, Be 529 and Vm 1572 to the last resting place of these men, an additional SECURITY lock was added to the already formidable locks and on-site security.

You know, it almost seems like they don’t want anyone there.

Our SHARKHUNTERS Network

Just before departing for our SHARKHUNTERS “Patrol in Germany” this past September, we got a letter & a phone call from K.K. REINHARD HARDEGEN (102-LIFE-1985). CAPTAIN HARDEGEN wanted me to buy a copy of the book ‘U-BOAT WAR IN THE CARIBBEAN’ and bring it to him in Germany, since the book is difficult if not impossible, to find in Germany.

I said we would certainly do this favor for him - but then I had an idea - that happens occasionally. The author of this fine book is LCDR GAYLORD KELSHALL (2968-1993), so I called him on his little Caribbean island and asked if he would autograph and personalize a copy of the book for CAPTAIN HARDEGEN. He said he would be happy to do this, but I had to get a copy to him immediately or we’d have no time before my leaving for Germany.

The book is published by another SHARKHUNTERS Member, the US NAVAL INSTITUTE (1008-1989) so I quickly called them for some help. They sent the book by overnight mail to our SHARKHUNTERS HQ and we had it the next day.

But how to get it to GAYLORD on his Caribbean island and back in a hurry - the mail there and back is not always swift or sure. I called him and he solved the problem. Here is what happened.

I sent the book by overnight mail to a Caribbean-based airline in Miami, marked for Gwenevere Kelshall; GAYLORD’s daughter is a flight attendant. She got the book, carried it back to her father who inscribed a nice message to CAPTAIN HARDEGEN, gave the book back to his daughter who brought it back to Miami and she mailed it, again by overnight mail, back here. It rode with me to Germany where I handed it to CAPTAIN HARDEGEN.

Our sincere thanks go to all involved and it shows just how well our SHARKHUNTERS Family gets things for each other.

The German Jimmy Carter?

Perhaps that is a stretch, but MANFRED ROEDER (1517-1990) leads a group of volunteers who build homes for Germans in the former East Germany and in the former portion of Germany that is still under Russian control - namely Pommerania and Prussia.

MANFRED - I think you have it backwards. You’re supposed to be the President FIRST; then a carpenter later. OOPS, it doesn’t make any sense that way - perhaps Jimmy got it backwards.

LANGTON, not Lavgston

In our ‘MEETING NEW MEMBERS’ section in a recent issue, we spelled the name JOHN LANGTON (3786-1994) incorrectly. We apologize to JOHN for this oversight, and make it right here; and we thank JOHN for pointing this out. We try very hard to get it all right before the KTB Magazine goes to press, but sometimes something slips through the cracks and it is only through the watchful eyes of our Members that we can make the corrections.