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NEWS RELEASE June 27, 2006
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Case asking Air Force to name
facility in honor of Onizuka
An
existing tribute to the astronaut will disappear after
Onizuka Air Force Station is closed
Honolulu, Hawaii –
Congressman Ed Case (Hawaii, 2nd District) is urging the
Air Force to name one of its U.S. facilities, possibly
one in Hawaii, after Hawaii-born astronaut Lt. Col.
Ellison Onizuka because an air station in California
that now bears his name is scheduled to be closed as a
result of the Pentagon’s base relocation and closure
process.
In a letter to Secretary of the Air Force Michael W.
Wynne, Case asks Wynne to “direct the commencement of
action to continue our efforts to memorialize the life
and service of Lt. Col. Ellison Onizuka, an Air Force
officer and NASA astronaut who perished, along with six
fellow astronauts, aboard Space Shuttle Challenger on
January 28, 1986.”
Onizuka Air Force Station in Sunnyvale, California, with
remote tracking stations used to control military
satellites, was included on the final list of
installations to be closed as part of the 2005 Base
Closure and Realignment (BRAC) Commission process. The
BRAC Commission has directed that the backup node be
moved to Vandenberg Air Force Base and Onizuka Air Force
Station be closed on or before 2011. “It is fitting and
appropriate that, well prior to then, the Air Force
provide for continuity in remembrance of Lt. Col.
Onizuka by renaming another appropriate Air Force
facility after him,” said Case’s letter.
Built in 1960 on land near Moffett Field, the Air
Force’s Sunnyvale installation was originally known as
the Air Force Satellite Test Center. It was later
renamed the Air Force Satellite Control Facility, and
Sunnyvale Air Force Station. In 1986, the base was
renamed the Onizuka Air Force Station in honor of Lt.
Col. Ellison Onizuka.
“I fear that our country may lose a fitting tribute to
Lt. Col. Onizuka’s name and great deeds, and that our
Hawaii will lose a memorial to one of its greatest
sons,” said Case. “It is only right that we continue to
remember the dedication and perseverance of Colonel
Onizuka.”
Case’s June 29, 2006 request to the Air Force followed
what would have been Onizuka’s 60th birthday on June 24
and precedes a July 4th parade honoring him in Hawaii.
Onizuka’s wife, Lorna, will serve as Grand Marshall of
the Kailua-Kona Independence Day Parade next Tuesday.
She will be accompanied by one of her daughters, Darien,
who is working for Boeing on what is to become the next
generation of vehicles for human space transportation.
“He is remembered as a true hero to this day in his
native Hawaii, where his personal motto is timeless:
‘Make your life count and the world will be a better
place because you tried,’” said Case in his letter to
Secretary Wynne.
“I know that this action would be received warmly by
Mrs. Lorna Onizuka, widow of Lt. Col. Onizuka, with whom
my office communicated on this matter during the BRAC
process, as well as all who remember Lt. Col. Ellison
Onizuka. And I am equally sure that the people of Hawaii
would warmly welcome your consideration of an Air Force
facility in Hawaii for this high honor.”
The text of Case’s letter to Wynne follows:
June 29, 2006
The Honorable Michael W. Wynne
Secretary of the Air Force
1670 Air Force Pentagon
Washington, D.C. 20330-1670
Dear Secretary Wynne:
I am writing to request that you direct the commencement
of action to continue our efforts to memorialize the
life and service of Lt. Col. Ellison Onizuka, an Air
Force officer and NASA astronaut who perished, along
with six fellow astronauts, aboard Space Shuttle
Challenger on January 28, 1986.
In particular, under the now-final 2005 round of
military base closures, Onizuka Air Force Station in
Sunnyvale, California will close on or before 2011. It
is fitting and appropriate that, well prior to then, the
Air Force provide for continuity in remembrance of Lt.
Col. Onizuka by renaming another appropriate Air Force
facility after him.
By way of background, Ellison Onizuka was the oldest son
and second youngest child of the late Masamitsu and
Mitsue Onizuka of Keopu, Island of Hawaii in my Second
District. Growing up, Ellison was an active participant
in 4-H and the Boy Scouts, where he reached the level of
Eagle Scout.
He graduated from Konawaena High School in Kealakekua in
1964. He received a bachelor’s degree in aerospace
engineering in June 1969, and a master’s degree in that
field in December of the same year from the University
of Colorado. He participated in Air Force ROTC during
his time at Colorado.
In January 1970, Onizuka entered active duty with the
United States Air Force, where he served as a flight
test engineer and as a test pilot. At the Sacramento Air
Logistics Center at McClellan Air Force Base, he worked
in test flight programs and systems security engineering
for the F-84, F-100, F-105, F-111, EC-121T, T-33, T-39,
T-28, and A-1.
Onizuka was selected for NASA’s astronaut program in
January 1978, and completed one year of evaluation and
training in August 1979. Later, he worked in the
experimentation team, Orbiter test team, and launch
support crew at the Kennedy Space Center for the STS-1
and STS-2. At NASA, he worked on the Shuttle Avionics
Integration Laboratory (SAIL) test and revision software
team. He also collaborated on other technical projects,
such as astronaut crew team coordinator.
His first space mission took place on January 24, 1985,
with the Kennedy Space Center launch of mission STS 51-C
on Space Shuttle Discovery, the first space shuttle
mission for the Department of Defense. Onizuka was
accompanied by commander Ken Mattingly, pilot Loren
Shriver, fellow mission specialist James Buchli, and
payload specialist Gary E. Payton. During the mission,
Onizuka was responsible for the activities of the
primary payloads, which included the unfolding of the
Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) surface. After 48 orbits
around the earth, Discovery landed at the Kennedy Space
Center on January 27, 1985. Onizuka had completed a
total of 74 hours in space.
Onizuka was assigned to the mission STS 51-L on the
Space Shuttle Challenger that took off from Kennedy
Space Center at 11:38:00 AM EST on January 28, 1986. The
other Challenger crew members were commander Dick Scobee,
pilot Michael J. Smith, mission specialists Ronald
McNair and Judith Resnik, and
payload specialists Gregory Jarvis and Christa
McAuliffe. Challenger was destroyed by aerodynamic
stress when rupture of the fuel tank at 73 seconds after
launch turned the spacecraft out of proper position. All
seven crew members were killed.
The life of Lt. Col. Ellison Onizuka, as a NASA
astronaut, Air Force officer, and person, was exemplary,
inspirational, and outstanding. During his career, he
received the Air Force Commendation Medal, Air Force
Meritorious Service Medal, Air Force Outstanding Unit
Award, Air Force Organizational Excellence Award, and
National Defense Service Medal. He has also received the
Congressional Space Medal of Honor. He is remembered as
a true hero to this day in his native Hawaii, where his
personal motto is timeless: "Make your life count and
the world will be a better place because you tried."
Built in 1960 on land near Moffett Field, the Air
Force’s Sunnyvale installation was originally known as
the Air Force Satellite Test Center. It was later
renamed the Air Force Satellite Control Facility, and
Sunnyvale Air Force Station. In 1986, the base was
renamed the Onizuka Air Force Station in honor of Lt.
Col. Ellison Onizuka. It is now slated for closure.
I am sure you would agree that Lt. Col. Onizuka’s legacy
should continue after the closure of his current
namesake installation, and I ask that you commence
consideration of an appropriate replacement. I know that
this action would be received warmly by Mrs. Lorna
Onizuka, widow of Lt. Col. Onizuka, with whom my office
communicated on this matter during the BRAC process, as
well as all who remember Lt. Col. Ellison Onizuka. And I
am equally sure that the people of Hawaii would warmly
welcome your consideration of an Air Force facility in
Hawaii for this high honor.
Thank you very much, and I look forward to working with
you to find the appropriate venue to continue to
memorialize one of Hawaii’s and our country’s finest.
Please don’t hesitate to contact me or Christopher
Abbott on my staff as you consider my request.
With aloha,
ED CASE
United States Congressman
Hawaii, Second District
Contact:
Esther Kia‘aina 202-225-4906
(Washington, D.C.)
Randy Obata, 808-541-1986
(Honolulu)
Release
Number: 2006-25 |
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Last Updated:
07/18/2006
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