Stardust Four Zero, Editor's Introduction

It gives me special pleasure to add this book-length story to our growing web site, whose mission it is to find, record, publish and preserve stories from WW II, the Korean War and the early Cold War. The author of this story, Bill Baumer, has lived a most remarkable collection of experiences stemming from his service as Operations Officer and Aircrew Member of the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, flying out of Yokota Air Base, Japan. To me, his story reflects the underlying connections that the Korean War had with the early evolution of the Cold War as the Soviet Union began to cloak their plans for world domination through the spread of Communism in ever-growing secrecy and deception.

In January of 1953, Bill had orders in his pocket to return to the States after completing his assignment with the 91st SRS. He agreed to fly one last mission to help out his squadron at a time when their regular recon crews were over-scheduled with important missions. His duty was to give a check flight to an experienced B-29 crew that had recently been placed on TDY duty with the squadron to reduce the mission load on the individual 91st SRS crews. Little did he know that he would not get to use those orders that would take him back home. The Chinese Communists had other plans that would delay his return until August 1955.

Many months ago, when I first learned of Bill Baumer's experiences, published in a limited-edition book entitled “The Extended Mission of Stardust Four Zero,” I established a listing of his work in the Contributed Stories Section of our Index of stories and articles. As described in that section, he has also published a related novel entitled “Far East Mosaic”. For me, this was one of the most compelling books I have ever encountered in my entire life. If, sooner or later, you want to learn how and where to obtain either or both of these publications, you can just click here to access that information with an easy return with your “back” button.

As you become familiar with Bill's story, you will learn why this document of personal experiences provides an intimate, comprehensive window to the dawning of the Cold War. I commend this story to teachers and students, of all ages, who are striving to sort out the history and relationships of the Korean War and the early Cold War which shaped our nation's focus and efforts for decades to come.

Enjoy!

RB-29.net Web Site Developer, Chuck Stone


			The Extended Mission of Stardust Four Zero
		Editor's Introduction It gives me special pleasure to add this book-length story to our growing web site, whose mission it is to find, record, publish and preserve stories from WW II, the Korean War and the early Cold War. The author of this story, Bill Baumer, has lived a most remarkable collection of experiences stemming from his service as Operations Officer and Aircrew Member of the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, flying out of Yokota Air Base, Japan. To me, his story reflects the underlying connections that the Korean War had with the early evolution of the Cold War as the Soviet Union began to cloak their plans for world domination through the spread of Communism in ever-growing secrecy and deception. In January of 1953, Bill had orders in his pocket to return to the States after completing his assignment with the 91st SRS. He agreed to fly one last mission to help out his squadron at a time when their regular recon crews were over-scheduled with important missions. His duty was to give a check flight to an experienced B-29 crew that had recently been placed on TDY duty with the squadron to reduce the mission load on the individual 91st SRS crews. Little did he know that he would not get to use those orders that would take him back home. The Chinese Communists had other plans that would delay his return until August 1955. Many months ago, when I first learned of Bill Baumer's experiences, published in a limited-edition book entitled “The Extended Mission of Stardust Four Zero,” I established a listing of his work in the Contributed Stories Section of our Index of stories and articles. As described in that section, he has also published a related novel entitled “Far East Mosaic”. For me, this was one of the most compelling books I have ever encountered in my entire life. If, sooner or later, you want to learn how and where to obtain either or both of these publications, you can just click here to access that information with an easy return with your “back” button. As you become familiar with Bill's story, you will learn why this document of personal experiences provides an intimate, comprehensive window to the dawning of the Cold War. I commend this story to teachers and students, of all ages, who are striving to sort out the history and relationships of the Korean War and the early Cold War which shaped our nation's focus and efforts for decades to come. Enjoy! RB-29.net Web Site Developer, Chuck Stone End of Editor's Introduction — Go to Dedication/Prologue Cover Page — Editor's Introduction — Dedication/Prologue Table of Contents — Mission Maps Chapters — 01 — 02 — 03 — 04 — 05 — 06 — 07 08 — 09 — 10 — 11 — 12 — 13 — 14 — 15 — 16 — 17 Epilogue — Milton Evening Standard News Story Go to Home Page