Collection Guide
Collection Title:
Collection Number:
Get Items:
Parunak (Capt. Aram Yervant Dick) Personal Papers
SDASM.SC.10110
View entire collection guide
Search this collection
Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
San Diego Air and Space Museum Library and Archives
Title: Capt. Aram Yervant (Dick) Parunak USN Personal Papers
Identifier/Call Number: SDASM.SC.10110
Physical Description:
0.21 Cubic Feet
1 box 15”x2.5”x10.
Date (inclusive): 1910-2007
Abstract: Capt. Aram Y. (Dick) Parunak, USN (1910–2007) was a U.S. Navy pilot during World War II, who became the first pilot to land
and takeoff on Greenland’s ice cap during the rescue of the crew of a crashed B-17. In just over a month, Parunak was pilot
for four such rescues.
The collection is open to researchers by appointment.
Some copyright may be reserved. Consult with the library director for more information.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The materials in this Collection were donated to the San Diego Air and Space Museum.
[Item], [Filing Unit], [Series Title], [Subgroups], [Record Group Title and Number], [Repository “San Diego Air & Space Museum
Library & Archives”]
Parunak was born in Freehold, New Jersey, July 10, 1910. He attended Ursinus College in Collegeville, Pennsylvania, graduating
in 1933 with a B.S. degree in math and physics.
Parunak joined the US Navy Aviation Cadet program in 1935 and received his wings in December 1936. He was assigned to the
fleet in Coco Solo, Canal Zone, Panama as a P2Y-2 pilot.
From 1939 until June 1941, Parunak was a pilot/instructor at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. Next, he was reassigned
to VP-93 at Naval Air Station Norfolk, Virginia. After Pearl Harbor he was assigned to PBY-5s and moved to Naval Air Station
Argentia, Newfoundland for convoy escort and anti-submarine warfare.
In 1942 Parunak, then a lieutenant was named head of a three-plane unit of PBY-5As at Bluie West 8, a base in northwestern
Greenland above the Arctic Circle. He was under the command of U.S. Army Air Corps Lt.Col. Bernt Balchen, the noted polar
aviator and explorer. These bases were established to allow the U.S. Army to route supplies to England over Greenland to reduce
contact with German U-Boats. The area made for difficult flying conditions. Parunak frequently flew Balchen and his rescue
team to crash sites. Between June 10 and July 18, 1942 they rescued the crews of three B-17s and one AT-6.
Parunak earned recognition as the first pilot to land and take off from the Greenland ice cap, during the rescue of the crew
of the US Army Air Corps. B-17-E 9032 My Gal Sal, which crashed June 27, 1942. His efforts in this rescue earned Parunak the
Distinguished Flying Cross. The B-17, recovered and restored, is now on display in the National World War II Museum in New
Orleans.
From 1942–45 Parunak was assigned to various squadrons including commands of anti-submarine patrols in the North Atlantic
and Mediterranean. Near the end of the war, Parunak married Orianna Van Dyke.
After the war, he stayed in the navy and in 1955 was promoted to the rank of captain. Parunak took command of the U.S. Naval
Air Station at Atsugi, Japan in 1958. For his contributions in re-building American-Japanese relations, Emperor Hirohito ordered
Captain Parunak decorated with the Third Order of the Sacred Treasure.
Parunak retired from the Navy in 1961 then worked for General Electric Space Research in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania for ten
years as manager of facilities and maintenance.
This collection consists of 1 box 15”x2.5”x10. The focus of this collection is Parunak’s duties in Greenland. This collection
was housed in a non-archival quality notebook. It was unclear if the organization was determined by the donor, or by a previous
archivist. The collection has been kept close to that order. Everything in the collection is a photocopy, there are no originals.
Some of the copies have handwritten notes that may be from Parunak.
Bernt Balchen Special Collection
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sdasmarchives/sets/72157634381238098/
Related Research Institutions:
Secondary Sources:
Balchen, Bernt . Come North With Me: An Autobiography: (New York, E.P Dutton & Co., INC, 1958)
Glines, Carroll V. Bernt Balchen: (Washington & London, Smithsonian Press, 1999)
Arlington National Cemetery website: http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/ayparunak.htm
National Naval Aviation Museum: http://www.navalaviationmuseum.org/get-involved/charter-memoriam/charter-memoriam-entry/?id=7200
National Museum of the U.S. Air Force: http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=1245
The National WWII Museum New Orleans: http://www.nationalww2museum.org/us-freedom-pavilion-the-boeing-center/boeing-b-17-flying-fortress.html
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress Family
Consolidated B-24 Liberator Family
Consolidated PBY-5 Catalina
United States. Army. Air Corps
Greenland
Patrol Squadron 5 (VP-5)
Patrol Squadron 112 (VP-112, VPB-112)
Parunak, Capt. Aram (Dick)
Balchen, Bernt