[Vision2020] Airport Named for WWII Ace Pappy Boyington

[Tom Hansen]

>From the Army Times -

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Airport named for WWII ace Pappy Boyington

Marine Major Gregory "Pappy" Boyington
http://tinyurl.com/2pnon5

COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho - After more than a year of debate, the local airport
has been renamed to honor the late Gregory H. "Pappy" Boyington, one of the
most decorated U.S. military pilots in World War II.

Marines Corps veterans shouted "hoo-ah" in joy and thanks after Kootenai
County commissioners voted 2-0 to approve the name Coeur d'Alene
Airport-Pappy Boyington Field.

Area Marine Corps veterans pushed for the renaming, calling the Medal of
Honor recipient a "hero's hero" whose name on the north Idaho airport could
draw more attention to history and military veterans.

"He's a reason why we're not speaking Japanese or German today,"
Commissioner Rich Piazza said.

Commission Chairman Rick Currie said the Airport Advisory Board, which
consists of pilots and business representatives, unanimously opposed the
change because they believed it could cause confusion and raise safety
concerns with pilots.

When a Federal Aviation Administration official was asked about accidents at
other airports that have a name other than the location, "he knew of none,"
Tondee countered. "There are tons of [such airports[ all over the U.S."

The Marine Corps League Pappy Boyington Detachment 966 has agreed to pay the
cost, perhaps $1,000, to replace airport signs and maybe add a memorial to
Boyington.

The previous county commission never acted on an initial request to honor
Boyington, infuriating many veterans and attracting some national attention,
including from the Distinguished Flying Cross Society and news pundit Oliver
North. Many believe the inaction may have had to do with Boyington's postwar
years of fighting and drinking.

The proposal gained momentum after Piazza and another commissioner were
elected and took office in January.

Boyington grew up in Coeur d'Alene, St. Maries and Tacoma, Wash., before
becoming one of the nation's most decorated military fliers. He was credited
with shooting down 26 planes in the Pacific theater during World War II and
was commanding officer of the famed Black Sheep Squadron.

Boyington was shot down on his last combat mission and spent 20 months as a
prisoner of war in Japan. After the war ended, he joined his mother and
stepfather in Okanogan, Wash., then moved to California and became an
executive at a brewery and later at an aerospace parts manufacturer. He died
in 1988 at age 75 in Fresno, Calif.

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Seeya round town, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"Patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion but the tranquil
and steady dedication of a lifetime." 

--Adlai E. Stevenson, Jr.