The Passing of Eric Carlson

I received news from James Carlson that his father Eric Carlson passed on Aug 8, 2021 at the age of 84. Most of the readers that frequent this site are aware that Capt Carlson was the crew commander at Echo Flight during the all-flight missile shutdown event on 16 March 1967.  I'll not rehash the details, but those interested can use the blog's search system to find the various posts listing Eric Carlson.

James was kind enough to provide a summary of his father's career. "As his military career went, he started out enlisted and worked his way up to officer eventually CAPT. as a missileer. During the latter part of his military career, he served in Okinawa with the 498 TMG, then Thailand and S. Korea. I'm not positive what commands he served at in Thailand and S. Korea, as we were living in Louisiana at the time -- they were unaccompanied tours..."

Of historical note, Capt Carlson was a crew member assigned to the 10th Strategic Missile Squadron, the first operational Minuteman ICBM missile squadron.  The 10th's Alpha Flight was JFK's "Ace in the Hole" during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, thus earning the squadron moniker, "The First Ace in the Hole."

James further added, "Upon retiring, he went back to school to get his degree, and became a psychologist.  He eventually worked as a counselor for violent men, later retiring from his second career."

I want to again, extend my heartfelt condolences to James and his family.

Note to reader:  James Carlson provided photo of his father.