Evening star., 1943-07-05
Nv IVAN DMITRI.

Some zero level exists for misery,
and below it flesh does not register.
have seen mechanic. for instance,
working frantically in the gray light
to warm up Liberator. unaware
that two solid white spots ON MS
frost bitten cheeks were slowly
widening.
1 carried three cameras. deep in
nv clothes near the skin. Two
would stay warm while I drew out a
third Just long enough to snap the
shutter, then put 1t back to have
its turn at animal heat. Even metal
and glass have limits of endurance.
At Americas air bases In the far
north our pioneers have had heart
rending time. This can be said now,
because already in a brief span
things have been greatly mended.
Remember, they started building
In the ice wilderness from scratch.
Every steel mat laid on the ice for
runways, every tank for gas, every
crumb to eat, had to be brought in
by ship and plane in summer, by
air alone in winter. For months,
In many places, there were no
hangers
Modern Conditions Today.
But flight crews still had to ar
rive and leave on schedule, through
lavender skies shot with the green
Of northern lights; the maintenance
and repair work on planes still had
to be done, the lost rescued, the gas
tanks sunk, the towers erected, the
paraphernalia of mechanical life set
up.
Today the boys have running
water and toilets in their barracks
barracks Steamily overheated, to
compensate for blizzards outside.
Imperative hangers have been nut
up in which planes can be warmed.
Linemen, working on high poles and
towers under protection OF canvas
bags. have now erected a good part
of the wires which will broadcast
weather reports to the navigators.
When YOU casually make the "Trip
yourself after the war-the route will
be your shortest to Northern Europe
and European Russia-you will do
1t In the lap of comfort.
Far North Frightens Many.
The far north still can be fright
ening because to most OF us 1t Is
still so strange. I remember huo-
ding in that Llberator express, mis-
cradle in a world of 40 degrees be-
low and wondering at the nom
chalance Of the crew. 1t was hop
of some 800 miles between bases,
scheduled for the brief hours of the
dim far northern day. There had
been no hangar from which to start
the cold motors Jagged, every mole
cule in the great machine seemed
to be shivering. But We slowly
gained altitude, leveled off in fog
with no visibility above nor below.
Sitting shivering in my sheep
lined boots. pants parka and helmet.
rooted to the belly of the plane, I
dozed to forget myself. I aWoke
suddenly bombarded by an ungodly
noise as If bearings were being
burned out of all four motors at
once. 1t was only ice shearing off
tn ewings.- to hammer the plane as
it passed. but it sounded like dooms-
day. Later I learned that the de-
icer works in this way: The ice is
allowed to accumulate, then is sud-
denly broken off For the moment,
I could only hold my breath.
Hand Almost Frozen.
The hand on which I had slept
was in agony; it was asleep and
almost frozen. AS I tried to bring
it to life, the air all around us be-
gan to flame I had often seen fire
trailing for foot or SO behind a
planes eXhauStS. But now flames
full feet long We're flowing from
every motor. And the huge Liberia
tor. leaping and diving among great
pockets between the winds. was for
all I knew, diving thousands of
feet straight down to death. I had
heard tales of men lost on the ice
for days-of still others lost and
never heard from again. I pulled
myself together, stumbled forward
to the crews quarters. found the
incompatible pilot, Chuck O'Con-
nor, and his men drinking coffee
completely unconcerned. All that
had frightened and discomforted
me was for them a daily routine.
They explained the huge fiameS-a
rich mixture of gas and full throttle
to escape icing conditions.
AirpOrts Hum Feyerishly.
We made an uneventful landing
on a flight strip of steel laid on
glacial moraine, passed the night in
quarters heated by little stoves dot
ting the central aisle between the
bunk pens.
1t is at night that these airports
hum feverishly. SundoWn comes at
3 in the afternoon. Plane crews
bound for Europe and America pass
here, swap stories and reports, get
their machines serviced.
If you are an early arrival your
self, you will be among those rush.
ing out to welcome newcomers.
There may be a binding snoWstorm.
And the winds can blow at a force
of 100 miles an hour. Still the
planes come in-f1rSt the droning
scream of motors in a sky your
ewes can't penetrate, then the planes
sudden appearance. The ground
crew and mechanics rush up from
nowhere. The mail truck driver has
already opened the door before the
crew can disembark, to seize the
precious letters.
Hairbreadth Escapes.
1t is sight to see great Llber-
ator come in with the. convoy OF
fighter planes it is shepherding
across the ocean in short hops, like
great mother bird with chicks.
The Liberator crew does all the nav
igating-the fighter pilots need only