European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 25, 1977, Darmstadt, Hesse                                April 1977 the stars and stripes Page 9 Abrams i dont like the word dependent Story and photo by de Reavis staff writer Frankfurt Julia widow of Creighton arrived Here for ceremonies in which the Frankfurt association of the United states army Ausa chapter is to be renamed the Abrams who once served As com Mander of v was named army chief of staff in 1972 by president Rich Ard he was called one of our authentic National heroes by then defense Secretary James Schlesinger and an american hero in the Best tradition a courageous Leader who won the admiration and respect of enemies As Well As allies and by former president Gerald who led the Relief column to Bastogne in the Battle of the bulge of 1944 and organized the end of the Amer ican troop involvement in died in just 11 Days before his 60th speaking of her life As a military she said i dont like the word de pendent these women have to be very particularly when their men arc asked if she thought the Many posthumous honors for her husband constituted a canonization of the brains i see nothing wrong in naming a building or a Chap Ter of an organization after if the name Abrams is More meaningful to the people using i think its a Good mentioning that this is her fourth time in Abrams said that she has Good German friends m Frankfurt whom she would visit in addition to two of her sons who arc presently serving with the army in Gellhausen and in Neu asked if her education at Vassar pre pared her Tor the life of a military she not we married Young and grew we both developed and matured Abrams advice to the wives of military men gel involved in the its your and As difficult As separations at the moment at the men Are Only out on exercises and will you dont have that certainty in time of Abrams said she fills her time working on the National Board of the girl scouts and is commissioner for the troops on foreign she also works with the army distaff organization in aiding widows of Mili tary who has six three adults and three said her trip would be Brief because she still has a 16yearold son at Home in North pm Julia Abrams right meets with her John 12 Safe planes struck in 26hour period phantom crewmen recall lightning strike Story and photo Harriot to by Floyd Harrington Katar Lautem Bureau chief Germany twelve air Force aircraft were struck by lightning during a 26hour period recently while flying missions Over Accord ing to a Safe there were no injuries to hardest hit was a rf4c phantom from the 26th tac recon Wing at Zweir Ilcken damage was estimated to be under the phantom was on a Low level night Mission Over the Black Forest and had just dropped Down to an Altitude of 300 feet when the Bolt the 1st Mike described the Inci Dent we were in and out of bad weather Pilot 1st Mike Woulf left and Allan Hunt Check lightning damage to us nose Cone of their rf4c Jet after they made a Safe return to their Home base at and i noticed Over the canopy came Saint elmos fire an electrical discharge phenomenon it was very unique deep Blue and like Candle 1 informed Allan the aircraft weapons systems oper Ator about and about 20 seconds later we were struck by lightning on the left Side of the it looked about the Width of a Telephone pole and enveloped the whole i went Blind i had a burning Sensa Tion in my eyes and in my body i Felt to Sec if my visor and mask were be cause i had a feeling that possibly the Windshield had shattered and came but the visor was unbroken and the canopy Woulf estimated he was blinded for Only a few but his vision was Sci cry distorted for More than a Hunts vision was also distorted even though he had been looking into the radar at the time and didst Sec the actual after the Woulf said he immediately made a climbing right As he climbed he saw that several of his instr vital to the operation of the air were not he also noticed that with any amount of rudder pedal movement the plane became very unstable very in the Hunt had called Lahr approach told them of the and asked for permission to climb above the bad weath As the damaged aircraft approached 000 another of the wings arc cd by Dean Failor and 1st John heard Hunts emergency they offered their Lahr controllers guided the two aircraft together by radar and they headed Back to during the Failor visually checked Woulf a aircraft for he told us our formation lights were out and he could see that our vertical stabilize the top had been shattered and pans Cru said Over Zwic Brucken the two aircraft found a Hole in the Woulf and Hunt decided to make a full flaps land ing and followed Failor to within two and a half Miles of at that Lime we had the runway in sight and landed with no said on the ground Woulf and Hunt checked the plane for besides the blown off Section of the he lightning had punched a Hole and torn a strip from around the planes nose ii had also welded shut iwo probes on the outside of the aircraft which had caused the instruments to quil the pair also found that pin holes had been burned through the right Side of the just Forward of the Woulf credits the Safe Landing to help from the Lahr controllers and the Crew of the other Lahr control provided us with All the assistance we there wonderful he said and it would have been extremely if not impossible to have done All this without the assistance of a Wing before the flight a weather briefing had warned the pilots of a 60 per cent possibility of lightning activity along their before taking Woulf and Hunt had discussed what they would do in Case of a lightning in Europe the Peak season for lightning activity begins in goes through april and then gradually tapers off during the next five usually the strikes on aircraft occur below feel when the temperature is 2641 degrees fahren according to Robert Bachman of the 2d weather Wing at Kapaun Kai he also said there is less than a one per cent Chance of an aircraft being hit by lightning even under those Condi weds 21 year old bavarian Germany up Mela a 66yearold Beer Hall owner and was married Here to 21year old Bank employee Harald Hofmann in a civil Many residents of this Eastern bavarian town of souls were milling near City where the registrars office is to blocking traffic for