Military Officer - November 2006 - (Page 100)

encore Sticky Situation During a day of sightseeing in Germany, a tour-bus-full of Air Force personnel have an unexpected adventure while visiting a castle near Heidelberg. I n 1979 the commander in chief and the senior enlisted advisor of the U.S. air forces Europe (USAFE) held a joint commanders and senior enlisted advisors (SEAs)/ﬁrst sergeant command conference at Ramstein AFB, Germany. The commanders and SEAs of the three numbered USAFE (major generals and chief master sergeants) and the commanders and ﬁrst sergeants of the 17 wings (colonels and senior NCOs) attended. Also in attendance were their wives. I was the USAFE protocol ofﬁcer assigned to the conference. I enlisted the help of 2nd Lt. Margie Ross of our protocol ofﬁce to arrange a special day for the visitors — a vineyard tour and lunch at a well-known castle near Heidelberg. A 48-passenger Air Force military blue bus was detailed to take the group and Herr Schmitt (the protocol ofﬁcer escort) on their excursion. The castle was in a beautiful setting, surrounded by a very high, formidable wall. The entrance to the courtyard parking area was via a driveway that led through an arch in the wall. The restaurant was inside the castle, accessible only from the courtyard parking lot. It was about noon when the Air Force blue bus arrived at the castle. The restaurant was busy, the courtyard parking lot full of automobiles. The bus began to pass through the arch and got stuck. Really stuck. The driver could not move forward or backward. The bus was ﬁrmly wedged in the arch. All the spouses, gen100 MILITARY OFFICER NOVEMBER 2006 erals, colonels, and the SEAs were trapped also, the door stuck fast against the arch wall. No one could get off the bus. And no one inside the castle restaurant could leave, nor could any new customers enter. What a mess! Schmitt told the restaurant to call Ramstein, and Ross got word of the disaster. Jumping into action, she called the Army in Heidelberg. Their motor pool dispatched an Army brown bus and a tow truck used for pulling tanks, as well as a mechanic. About two hours after the Air Force bus got stuck, the Army arrived on the scene. The mechanic let most of the air out of the tires, and the tow truck pulled it free. After a long day, everyone was transferred to the Army bus and taken home. The Air Force blue bus went to Heidelberg, where mechanics made sure it could make the return trip to Ramstein, and the trapped restaurant customers ﬁnally were able to leave the castle. The visitors didn’t get lunch that day, but they left Ramstein with a good story about their adventure in the castle wall. And the Army went one up on us. MO — Philip G. Eisel is a retired Air Force captain. He lives in Oklahoma City. For submission information, see page 18. ILLUSTRATION: ELWOOD SMITH

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From the Editor From the President Your Views MOAA Directory Rapid Fire Washington Scene Financial Forum Ask the Doctor Chapter Activities Cover Story: Financial Guidebook Got (the right) Insurance? A Penny Saved, a Degree Earned The “Y” MOAA Scholarship Recipients Pages of History Information Exchange Member Books MOAA Scholarship Donors MOAA Member Services Advertising Index MOAA Calendar Sounding Taps Encore

Military Officer - November 2006

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