Talk:Bernt Balchen

POV?

Removed the following:

(Balchen never brought the North Pole fraud up in public before his autobiography was published in 1958, upon which the Byrd family promptly had the pertinent part of the book censored.†)

    († Ever since the days of the expedition, The Byrds sabotaged any attempt by Balchen and others to make known these findings, which they stated were groundless allegations. Byrd intimidated Balchen on several occasions, and stopped his promotion to General of the U.S. Air Force.)

Without substantiation, this sounds like conspiracy theory. I've tried to make the remaining language more neutral. JHCC (talk) 17:55, 14 December 2005 (UTC)

This is all (both the fight to keep the Byrd flight issues from becoming public, as well as the interference in his military career) described in some detail in the recent biography of Balchen, "Bernt Balchen: Polar Aviator", by Carroll Glines. It's published by the Smithsonian Instituion, and extensively source-noted, so it's likely fairly reliable. If I get a chance, I'll add some referenced text covering these issued. Noel (talk) 03:38, 27 January 2012 (UTC)

Photo

Even here at 150 pixels it is showing aliasing on the sleeve. --Richard Arthur Norton (1958- ) (talk) 17:24, 11 January 2008 (UTC)

Is there a reason you keep switching to the lowest resolution image, with the aliasing effect? --Richard Arthur Norton (1958- ) (talk) 19:27, 20 January 2008 (UTC)

Some editor bent on removing the other image has left no recourse, and since the original image had no copyright issues, it was substituted for the time being. See if you can get the better image documented, it certainly is a better looking photograph. FWIW Bzuk (talk) 19:35, 20 January 2008 (UTC).

Balchen served as a cavalryman in the Finnish Army against the Russians in World War I

Finland was a Russian grand duchy. There was no Finnish Army. Did Balchen fight on the White side in the Finnish Civil War? Luke 193.11.50.23 (talk) 15:21, 19 March 2010 (UTC)

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)

• (1)Kangerlussuaq|Kallax Kangerlussuaq is not Kallax.
• (2) Kallax Air Base was a regular Royal Swedish Airforce Base, nothing else.
• (3) Balchen and his AAAF air transport organization flew Norwegian Police Troops from Sweden to northern Norway to establish Norwegian sovereignty before the advancing Red Army. 193.11.50.23 (talk) 15:31, 19 March 2010 (UTC)

somebody fix these:

Col. Balchen commanded Sondrestrom Air Base, code name Bluie West 8, now known as Kangerlussuaq. Qaanaaq is a village created in 1953 north of Thule, 600 miles north of BW-8. The German meteorological observatory bombed by Balchen in 1943 continued in operation from another site and was then repatriated for the season. It is not likely that the raid had any significant effect on German met data. Another German met station was set up in the fall as planned. It does not make sense to say that Kallax was set up to deny Luftwaffe air superiority. Sweden was neutral. Balchen's missions were transport and clandestine ops. It stretches credulity to assert that Balchen was prime mover in the establishment of Thule AB, although his help was appreciated. The section on DNL (Det Norske Luftfartselskab) is misleading. This company merged with the Danish and Swedish counterparts right after the war to form SAS. The best source for Balchen is Carroll Glines' biography of him. The list of books should also mention "War below Zero" written with La Farge. 75.164.40.206 (talk) 03:45, 15 June 2010 (UTC)

somebody fix these:

Col. Balchen commanded Sondrestrom Air Base, code name Bluie West 8, now known as Kangerlussuaq. Qaanaaq is a village created in 1953 north of Thule, 600 miles north of BW-8. The German meteorological observatory bombed by Balchen in 1943 continued in operation from another site and was then repatriated for the season. It is not likely that the raid had any significant effect on German met data. Another German met station was set up in the fall as planned. It does not make sense to say that Kallax was set up to deny Luftwaffe air superiority. Sweden was neutral. Balchen's missions were transport and clandestine ops. It stretches credulity to assert that Balchen was prime mover in the establishment of Thule AB, although his help was appreciated. The section on DNL (Det Norske Luftfartselskab) is misleading. This company merged with the Danish and Swedish counterparts right after the war to form SAS. The best source for Balchen is Carroll Glines' biography of him. The list of books should also mention "War below Zero" written with La Farge. 75.164.40.206 (talk) 03:47, 15 June 2010 (UTC)

Little Norway, and more...lots to do here

• Balchen was not responsible for setting up Little Norway. He may have been helpful with contacts, seems like he had lots of those, but not responsible. The reference leads to a web page with no mention of him being responsible for that, in fact no mention of Balchen at all. Right now I can't find anything at all suggesting he was at all instrumental in starting up Little Norway.
• He didn't run the Kallax base (a colonel named von Porat did that). He was put in charge of Operation Where and When, based at Kallax. Using ten C-47s, the operation ferried police troops (Norwegian refugees trained in Sweden) from Sweden to Finnmark, as well as ammo and life necessities like balls of hay and fodder for live stock to areas in the north of Sweden and Norway, once even paradropping a hospital complete with a doc and a nurse. The leading Norwegian WWII ace Sven Heglund was acting military attaché and served with Balchen and talks about this in his book Høk over høk.
• Operation Balder was the operation using six B-24s manned with OSS crews, ferrying some 2000 Norwegians, a number of downed US airmen and other refugees out of Sweden, as well as dropping equipment to the resistance. Same source.
• The Norwegian/British programme, Stockholmsruten (The Stockholm Route), using Lodestars posing as BOAC machines, couldn't get enough refugees moved, so Balder (or "Ve do it", as it was sometimes called, as a friendly rib of Balchen's English prononciation) was put into effect in 1943. Same source.
• Heyerdahl didn't serve under Balchen. Heyerdahl was a radio officer with the police troops being transported by Where and When. Paaln (talk) 23:55, 9 September 2010 (UTC)

Good points, please feel free to change the article. FWiW Bzuk (talk) 01:25, 10 September 2010 (UTC) However, even a cursory check of sources reveals that Balchen was involved in the set-up of Little Norway, see National Aviation Hall of Fame citation. Bzuk (talk) 01:34, 10 September 2010 (UTC)

Yet, while reading books that deals with the conception and opening of the camp in great detail, one is hard pushed to find details about what he actually did. "Responsible for" is taking a lot away from people like Øen, Riiser-Larsen, Bull, Motzfeldt, Hertzberg and others (Reistad of course was important too, but not mentioned because he came later, when it was somewhat up and running...). “Involved with”, ok, "helping with", fine, but "responsible" is such a big word. So I stick to my belief that he helped alot just being Balchen, with all his contacts in high places to get things done when they needed be done. Heck, I'm Norwegian, I'm as proud of the guy as the next Olav, but sometimes I wonder if some Chuck Norris-jokes would have been Bernt Balchen-jokes if he had been around now (Bernt Balchen can set ants on fire with a magnifying glass. At night.)... Paaln (talk) 16:24, 10 September 2010 (UTC)

Perfectly reasonable points, and the statement is altered to reflect his involvement rather than an embellishment of his role. However, I am puzzled by the last comments above. As far as I can make out, Balchen was an exemplary leader, expert flyer and well-respected in his lifetime and beyond. Am I wrong? FWiW, his book on the Greenland mission does not come across as self-serving. Bzuk (talk) 17:30, 10 September 2010 (UTC).

Sorry, I guess you are right, it was just me being silly, and I may have misunderstood those "Chuck Norris facts" jokes. I just got this feeling from reading through the article a couple of times, Was there anything this guy couldn't do?... Paaln (talk) 19:52, 10 September 2010 (UTC)

After reading Glines' very authoritative biography on Balchen, I have revised the section on "Little Norway" as his unique combination of dual citizenship and military background led to a specific mission to set up the training base. Balchen negotiated directly with Canadian officials to obtain permission to build the training base. After work had started, other Norwegian military staff took over with Col. Oscar Klingenberg chosen to head the training schools and Georg Unger Vetlesen and Thor Solberg able to deal with US aircraft manufacturers handling the procurement orders for military equipment. FWiW Bzuk (talk) 13:20, 14 September 2010 (UTC).

Lead

After the war, Balchen continued to be an influential leader with the U.S. Air Force, as well as a highly-regarded private consultant in aviation. does not seem to be supported by text in the main body of the article, looks like opinion. MilborneOne (talk) 19:10, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

What about this statement(s): "After retiring from the U.S. Air Force in 1956, Col. Balchen continued to serve the (U.S.) Air Force on special assignments and aviation and energy industries as a consultant. In his native Norway, Balchen was a driving force in the establishment of Det Norske Luftfartselskap (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 Airlines.

Balchen continued to work in consultancy until his death in 1973 at Mount Kisco, New York."

Balchen joined General Precision Laboratories as a consultant in 1959, as well as working with a host of other companies including Hughes Aircraft, General Dynamics, Canadair and the Electric Boat Company. In 1962, he also worked with the USAf presenting a proposal on the Apogee Intercept Defense System (AIDS) in 1962. Glines 1999. pp. 268–270. FWiW Bzuk (talk) 21:06, 14 September 2010 (UTC).

It was not the fact he was a consultant or in the USAF it was the influential leader and highly-regarded private consultant that does not appear to be supported. MilborneOne (talk) 21:24, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

His contributions in the field of research included Doppler-radar triggered fuses, an electronic system for trail marking, as well as advocating for mining in the Arctic, an initiative picked up by the Canadian government. He worked for Canadian, Norwegian and American firms, heading up significant aviation projects, such as introducing the F-104 into the Norwegian Air Force. Balchen was also re-appointed as a consultant by the USAF in 1970, charged with visiting Alaskan and Arctic bases. He continued this work until his death. FWiW Bzuk (talk) 21:34, 14 September 2010 (UTC).

I dont disagree what you say but still dont see any reference to influential leader or highly regarded private consultant. MilborneOne (talk) 21:42, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Okay, here's an exact quote: "...Although out of uniform, strong ties to the military remained, as he was appointed a special consultant to the air force Chief of Staff on Arctic affairs." Glines 1999, p. 268. He gave lectures, chaired and sat on the faculties of engineering and survival schools, and his influence was such that it was his work behind the strategic defense of the Arctic led directly to "Project Iceman", a proposed line of intermediate range ballistic missiles stationed in Greenland. Glines 1999, p. 269. He was sought out as the world's foremost Arctic expert by numerous companies and government agencies including Canada and Norway. Other aviation and aerospace interests hired him directly, working for Canadair in 1966, then General Dynamics, the parent company from 1966–1971 with authority over projects as diverse as ice-breakers, tankers, new epoxy materials for submarine construction, seagoing electronic weather systems and over-snow vehicles. Balchen also was very cognizant of energy concerns and was hired by Hercules Oil, then Phillips Petroleum and Moran Towing on plans to extract oil from the Arctic using pipelines. Glines 1999, p. 270. FWiW, Bzuk (talk) 22:06, 14 September 2010 (UTC). I should mention that the USAF hired him twice as an Arctic consultant, 1956–1961 and 1970–1973. Bzuk (talk) 22:09, 14 September 2010 (UTC).

OK thanks happy with the influential, but it needs to be added to the main body. Still think "highly regarded" is a bit flowery. MilborneOne (talk) 22:12, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Marriage

Do we need to mention he was married three times and had two sons ? MilborneOne (talk) 22:12, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

Thanks, there was a problem with the template originally. FWiW Bzuk (talk) 23:32, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

WWI

"but he graduated too late to see action in World War I." Well, Norway was neutral in WWI, hence this sentence is confused. 84.23.155.84 (talk) 21:00, 5 June 2013 (UTC)

Right. I edited it out. Regards, Iselilja (talk) 21:18, 5 June 2013 (UTC)

He was fighting for the French, and was part of the French Foreign Legion, with his unit assigned to the Verdun front. He was called back to Norway as the war ended. FWiW Bzuk (talk) 21:49, 5 June 2013 (UTC)

Lead section

The lead section needs expanding. Otr500 (talk) 03:56, 13 June 2016 (UTC)

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