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On the occasion of the 40th Anniversary of the tragic crash of U.S. Air Force B-52C Aircraft #53-0406 January 24, 1963 on Elephant Mountain near Greenville, Maine. WHEREAS Captain Adler was part of a nine-member crew aboard Air Force Aircraft B-52C, Serial Number 53-0406, call sign FROSH 10, assigned to 99th Bomb Wing, SAC was scheduled for a low-level Advanced Capability Radar (ACR) Mission of 5 hours and 30 minutes on the 24th of January 1963, and; WHEREAS weather conditions that day altered the flight of this mission to use the northern “POKER DECK route”, which brought the B-52C into the Moosehead Lake region and over Elephant Mountain, and; WHEREAS the purpose of the mission of the B-52C flight was to train pilots and crew on the use low-altitude maneuvers necessary for strategic defense of our nation, and; WHEREAS “extreme turbulence” over Elephant Mountain combined with metal fatigue on the aircraft resulted in the tragic crash of this flight, killing all by two of its crew members, and; WHEREAS Navigator, Capt. Gerald J. Adler and Pilot, Lt. Col. Dante E. Bulli were the only two survivors of the crash, and; WHEREAS Captain Adler endured a parachute-less ejection from the aircraft and a shelterless night in the Maine Woods in temperatures dipping 30 degrees below zero; THEREFORE, BE IT KNOWN THAT the municipal officers for the Town of Greenville, Maine Hereby recognize Gerald J. Adler, esq., for his heroism in his service to our country as a Captain in the USAF, and for his personal commitment to the Greenville community through many returns to our region and the sharing of details of his tragic mission. We hope each return to Greenville proves warmer and more pleasant than your first. _____________________________ _________________________ _____________________________ __________________________ ____________________________ __________________________ |