Bernt Balchen

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Bernt Balchen, D.F.C., (23 October 1899 – 17 October 1973), was a Norwegian-American polar (and general) aviation pioneer. Born at the farm Myren in Tveit, just outside Kristiansand, Norway, Balchen, at his death, became one of the few Norwegian-born people buried at Arlington Cemetery.

During World War II, Balchen was responsible for setting up the pilot training camp/school for Norwegian exiled soldiers, "Little Norway", outside Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Later during the war, as a colonel in the U.S. Army Air Force, he oversaw the establishment of USAAF's polar base at Qaanaaq, Greenland, before moving on to the European Theatre to run Luleå-Kallax Air Base* in northern Sweden (set up for harassing and denying air superiority to Nazi Germany's Luftwaffe over Finland and occupied Norway). After the war, Balchen became a U.S. Air Force colonel.

He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, in Section 2, grave 4969; right next to Admiral Byrd.

(* Another Norwegian at Kallax during the same period, serving under Balchen, and getting to be a good friend of him, was marine biologist and explorer-to-be Thor Heyerdahl, later of Ra I and II and Kon-Tiki fame.)

[edit] Major merits

Among Bernt Balchen's merits:

• Taking part in Roald Amundsen's attempt at flying an airship over the North Pole in 1926, though in a last minute decision by Amundsen he was not chosen for the final flight. Later, in his 1958 autobiography, Balchen maintained that Amundsen's competitor, Richard E. Byrd, had been unsuccessful in his own attempt to fly by airplane to the Pole and back a few days earlier. Balchen based this assertion on calculations he made from Byrd's own speed/navigational data.
• Flying the first (experimental) USPS mail transport 'America' across the Atlantic, with Richard E. Byrd, in 1927. Bad weather and low visibility made landing impossible, despite repeated attempts. When the plane ran out of fuel, Balchen landed the wheeled airplane in the sea just off the coast of France, without injury to the crew.
• First person to fly over the South Pole, as pilot for Byrd's flight on 28–29 November 1929.
• In May 1949, while commanding the 10th Rescue Squadron in Alaska, he flew a C-54 Skymaster from Fairbanks, Alaska via the North Pole to Thule Air Base, Greenland—thus becoming the first person to have piloted aircraft over both poles.
• Harmon Trophy winner, as well as recipient of the following military decorations in addition to the U.S. D.F.C.: the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, and the Air Medal. His native Norway honoured Balchen with its highest decoration, the Knighthood of the Order of Saint Olav.
• Being a driving force in the establishment of Det Norske Luftfartsselskap (D.N.L.) ("The Norwegian Airline Company"), with which he pioneered commercial Europe↔US airline flights across the North Pole. D.N.L. later merged with Danish and Swedish airlines into the major carrier Scandinavian.

[edit] Bibliography

• Balchen, Bernt (ghostwritten) (1958). Come North with Me: An Autobiography. Dutton. 313 pp.
• Balchen, Bernt (1944). War below zero: The battle for Greenland. Houghton Mifflin Co.
• Balchen, Bernt; Bergaust, Erik (1975). The next fifty years of flight: As visualized by Bernt Balchen and told to Erik Bergaust. Xerox University Microfilms; Explorer books edition. 214 pp.

[edit] References

• Balchen, Bess (2004). Poles Apart. Oregon, USA: Elderberry Press. 250 pp. ISBN 1-932762-09-4.
• Isakson, Evelyn Moore (1972). Bernt Balchen: Colonel, United States Air Force, retired: a special report on the unique career of a great American patriot. Hollycrest Enterprises.
• Glines, Carroll V. (1999). Bernt Balchen: Polar Aviator. Smithsonian Books. 310 pp. ISBN 1-56098-906-8.
• New York Times; October 20, 1956; "Balchen will Retire. First Pilot to Fly Over South Pole to Leave Air Force."

[edit] External links

• Arlington Cemetery's biography of Balchen, including a photo of Balchen in his USAAF uniform.
• Balchen-related link list, from the website of the Metropolitan News Company, California, USA.
• National Aviation Hall of Fame