SESSION Il

53

WARREN:

LANGHAM:

Yes.

Under remote control these B-17s had been flown

through the bomb cloud. They were not destroyed but were s'ightly
radioactive. The colonel wanted to take the remote control cquipment
out and use the 1-17s to fly his crew back to Honolulu. He asked
Staff to send a man over to clear the planes as radiologically safe.
Staff sent over two people and before the monitor would get back,
this man would be on the radio again asking Staff for a decision, Dr,
Warren finally came tc me and said, "I don't know what's happening
with that guy. I sent two men over and he's still bothering me. Will
you go over and find out what's bothering him and get this thing
straightened cut?"
I went, and as I came down the ramp at Eniwetok, standing at the
bottom of the stairs was the young colone!} who looked about 25 years
old; he wasn't as old as [by 10 years or so, When I came down the
stairs, these were his words,

“Are you that radiological man’ "

When I said I was, he pointed to the B-17s and continued with, "Well,
sonny, they're there, Don't give me any of this “rap about milliroentgens, Do fly them home, or do I push them in the ocean?"
The highest readings were in the cockpit where there were several
radium diais and on the engine intake and exhaust manifolds. I came
back to the colonel and,

in my most efficient manner, announced,

"Fly them home." With that he said, "Come with me, We're closing
out the club."' I stayed there four days and wasn't sober a minute!

[Laughter] It never cost me a dime!

Here is a specialist, good at his job. So you've got a psycnological
conflict right here that, I'm sure, stems back to the ego and the fact
that the man doing the job satisfiee that ego by filling it well.
FREMONT-SMITH:

the club!

[Li-ughter]

LANGHAM:
WARREN:

long gone!

And you satisfy yours and therefore went to

That's right.
After 20 years I've got an «xplanation why he was so

[Laughter] This is why [ made such a tremendous effort

to save the Independence. The Navy had towed her to Mare Island.
She was seriously contaminated by the underwater blast, The Navy

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