AFEES Newsletter Archive

AFEES NEWSLETTERS ARE NOW SENT BY EMAIL: Most of our members now receive a digital AFEES Newsletter sent as an email attachment. If you do not have an email address please contact the Membership Secretary with your latest postal address so you can be sent a printed copy. See the Contacts page on this website for his or her email address.

Past AFEES newsletters and publications commemorating reunions can be found below as pdf files. Click on the links to view them. New issues are added following publication.  Earlier issues have been scanned by the webmaster and added to this page.  However, he would welcome help in locating missing issues in order to scan them as well.  See the list below for those that are missing.  During most years the pattern was for newsletters to be published three or four times per year, e.g.,  in March, June, September, and December.  By 2021 this had declined to one issue.  The webmaster, Bruce Bolinger, can be contacted by email at bcbolinger at comcast.net and his mailing address is 229 Success Mine Loop, Grass Valley, CA 95945, USA.

Special credit should go to the past and current editors of Communications for the hard work of assembling the issues:

  • Harry A. Dolph: January 1988 or earlier – June 1994 (see this issue for obituary) (see photo of Harry Dolph and Gil Millar compiling info on AFEES members and helpers at https://airforceescape.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/February-2007-2.pdf)
  • Larry Grauerholz: December 1994 – December 2012
  • Elizabeth  McDade and her editorial committee of Jerri Donohue and Richard Shandor: January 2013 to November 2017
  • Colin Daley: Beginning in 2021

Also credit should go to the late Mary Akins who gave the webmaster her collection of Communications from the 1990’s and Lynn David, Margaret Frick, Michael LeBlanc, and Richard Shandor who shared copies from their collections.  And to Dr. Mary Elizabeth Ruwell, Academy Archivist and Chief, Special Collections, McDermott Library, U.S. Air Force Academy, who provided copies of newsletters from the McDermott Library collection.  Credit is also due to Mary Shier for sharing her copies for scanning of the rare publications, “We shall never forget 1969” and “Shelburn U.S.A. 1976“, truly unique documents.  Thanks also to Margaret Fricke for her tremendous assistance in indexing.

Note that two of the entries, the 1967 Thank You Dinner and the 1974 Comète-AFEES event, are not newsletters as such but are included to show what AFEES was doing those years.

Two issues of the newsletter have what appear to be errors in page numbering.  These errors seem to have been the result of printing or assembling problems because they are as they appear in the copies scanned by the webmaster.  If anyone has his or her or own copy of one or more of these issues, the webmaster would like to know if the page numbering problems appear there as well.  The issues are as follows:

  • Summer 1993, pp. 3 and 4 are missing  (these pages are missing in one or more other copies of the issue as well and may never have been printed)
  • May 1999, the pages are wildly out of order but all present

The webmaster does not have the following issues and would like to borrow them in order to scan them.  A prompt return is guaranteed.  They are: Any issues for 1985 or earlier and Spring 1992 (if it ever existed).  Please contact the webmaster at bcbolinger at comcast.net.  Issues that have been scanned or are electronic copies are in red.

Indexing was finally completed on August 18, 2022.  An issue that has been indexed will have the notation “(INDEXED)” next to the link to the pdf file.  To connect to one or the other of the indexes, click here.  The  notation “(INDEXED)” will always refer to the indexing of the names of evaders, helpers, and “other subjects.”  Indexing of place names, includes only the 2010-2017 issues.

Some evaders and helpers will not appear in the indexes because they were not mentioned in any of the newsletters.  Researchers should also check the page entitled AFEES Membership Lists and the directories and lists that appear there.

–May, 1964–

Operation Bonaparte Reunion, May 15-16, 1964, Buffalo, New York (INDEXED)

–1967–

AFEES Thank You Dinner, Sept. 16 1967, Niagara Falls, NY (INDEXED)

–1969–

We shall never forget 1969 (INDEXED)

1974

Comete, AFEES, Oct. 7-14 1974, Birmingham, Michigan (includes Ford Motor Co. HQ, Pentagon, Arlington Cemetery, Empire State Bldg. (INDEXED)

–1976–

Shelburn USA 1976 Part 1 (INDEXED)

Shelburn USA 1976 Part 2 (INDEXED)

Shelburn USA 1976 Part 3 (INDEXED)

Shelburn USA 1976 Part 4 (INDEXED)

For more on the Shelburne Line, click here.

–1986–

Spring mockup 1986 (INDEXED)

August 1986 (INDEXED)

RAFES (Canadian Branch) Sept 1986 – part 1 (INDEXED)

RAFES (Canadian Branch) Sept 1986 – part 2 (INDEXED)

Circa December 1986 (INDEXED)

–1987–

San Antonio, TX. May 1987 (INDEXED)

Summer 1987 (INDEXED)

Winter 1987 (INDEXED)

–1988–

Spring 1988 (INDEXED)

Summer 1988 parts 1, 2, 3 (INDEXED)

Summer 1988 Communications  part 4 (INDEXED)

Summer 1988 Communications  part 5 (INDEXED)

 WINTER 1988 (with missing pages added) Communications  (INDEXED)

–1989–

Spring Communication 1989 part 1 (INDEXED)

Spring Communication 1989 part 2 (INDEXED)

Summer 1989 (INDEXED)

Winter 1989-1990 (INDEXED)

–1990–

Spring 1990 (INDEXED)

Summer 1990 (INDEXED)

Winter 1990 (INDEXED)

–1991–

Spring 1991 (INDEXED)

Summer 1991 (INDEXED)

Winter 1991 (with missing pages added) (INDEXED)

–1992–

Spring 1992 needed

Summer 1992 (INDEXED)

Missing pages 21-24, Summer 1992 (INDEXED)

Winter 1992 (INDEXED)

–1993–

Spring 1993 (INDEXED)

Summer 1993 (INDEXED)

Winter 1993 (INDEXED)

–1994–

Summer 1994 (INDEXED)

Winter (December) 1994 (INDEXED)

–1995–

March 1995 (INDEXED)

June 1995 (INDEXED)

September 1995 (INDEXED)

December 1995 (INDEXED)

–1996–

March 1996 (INDEXED)

June 1996 (INDEXED)

September 1996 (INDEXED)

December 1996 (INDEXED)

–1997–

March 1997 (INDEXED)

June 1997 (INDEXED)

September 1997 (INDEXED)

December 1997 (INDEXED)

–1998–

Spring  (March) 1998 (INDEXED)

June 1998 (INDEXED)

September 1998 (INDEXED)

December 1998 (INDEXED)

–1999–

February 1999 (INDEXED)

May 1999 (INDEXED)

August 1999 (INDEXED)

December 1999 (INDEXED)

–2000–

March 2000 (SPRING) (INDEXED)

June 2000 (SUMMER) (INDEXED)

September 2000 (FALL) (INDEXED)

December (WINTER) 2000 (INDEXED)

–2001–

March (Spring) 2001 (INDEXED)

July 2001 (INDEXED)

September 2001 (INDEXED)

December 2001 (INDEXED)

–2002–

March 2002 (INDEXED)

June 2002 (INDEXED)

August 2002 (INDEXED)

December 2002 (INDEXED)

–2003–

March 2003 (INDEXED)

June 2003 (INDEXED)

September 2003 (INDEXED)

December 2003 (WINTER 2003-2004) (INDEXED)

–2004–

Spring (March) 2004 (INDEXED)

June 2004 (INDEXED) 

September 2004 (INDEXED)

December 2004 (INDEXED)

–2005–

March 2005 (INDEXED)

June 2005 (INDEXED)

September 2005 (INDEXED)

December 2005 (INDEXED)

–2006–

March 2006 (INDEXED)

June 2006 (INDEXED)

AFEES membership list August 2006 (INDEXED)

September 2006 (INDEXED)

December 2006 (INDEXED)

–2007–

February 2007 (INDEXED)

June 2007 (INDEXED)

September 2007 (INDEXED)

December 2007 (INDEXED)

–2008–

March 2008 (INDEXED)

June 2008 (INDEXED)

September 2008 (INDEXED)

December 2008 (INDEXED)

–2009–

Spring (March) 2009 (INDEXED)

Summer (June) 2009 (INDEXED)

Sept. 2009  (INDEXED)

December 2009 (INDEXED)

–2010–

March 2010 (INDEXED)

June 2010 (INDEXED)

Sept. 2010  (INDEXED)

December 2010 (INDEXED)

–2011–

March 2011: 2011 3 March Spring issue (INDEXED)

June 2011: 2011 6 June Summer issue revised (INDEXED)

September 2011: 2011 9 Sept Fall issue (INDEXED)

December 2011: 2011 12 Dec. Winter Issue (INDEXED)

–2012–

March 20122012 3 March Spring Issue (INDEXED)

June 2012: 2012 6 June Summer issue (INDEXED)

September 2012: 2012 9 Sept Fall issue (INDEXED)

Winter 2012/2013: 2012-2013 Dec-Jan Winter Issue (INDEXED)

–2013–

March 2013: 2013 3 March Spring Issue (INDEXED)

July 2013: 2013 7 July Summer Issue (INDEXED)

December 2013: December 2013 (INDEXED)

–2014–

March 20142014 3 March Issue (INDEXED)

December 2014: 2014 12 Dec Issue (INDEXED)

–2015-

March 2015: 2015 3 March Issue (INDEXED)

(Only one issue was published in 2015)

–2016–

February  (Winter) 2016: Winter 2016-2 (Feb) Issue (INDEXED)

(Only one issue was published in 2016)

–2017–

November (Winter) 2017: NOV 2017 AFEES Newsletter_FINAL 01 FOR EMAIL (INDEXED)

(Only one issue was published in 2017)

–2018–

(No issue was published in 2018)

–2019–

(No issue was published in 2019)

–2020–

(No issue was published in 2020)

–2021–

2021 AFEES Reunion Registration Newsletter (INDEXED)

(The article, “Mission 13: A Downed Pilot’s Escape from France”, that appears in the 2021 issue, is now also available as a separate page on this website, where it is also indexed.  Click here to view it.)

6 thoughts on “AFEES Newsletter Archive

  1. Is there a confirmed number of evaders who escaped via All the Escape Lines (so a total figure)?

    Thanks

    1. I know of no confirmed number for all evaders who escaped via all the escape lines. This is not surprising considering the difficult conditions under which the lines had to operate and the repeated penetrations of the lines by double agents, requiring surviving members of the lines to regroup and start up new lines. Even if someone were to add up the best estimates for the better known lines, there are lesser known lines for which there is only skimpy information.

      Bruce Bolinger
      Webmaster

  2. There are two pages missing in the Winter 1988 Communications (pp 6 & 7). Are they missing in the original print? Thank you.

    1. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. Pages 6 and 7 are missing from the original printed version that I have. I suspect that the omitted page numbers were the result of a page numbering error, which has occurred in a few other issues. Since there is no article or other feature in pages 1-5 that is continued to a page 6 or 7, I can’t be sure. I have made a note of the missing pages in the introductory remarks on that part of the website.

      Bruce Bolinger, Webmaster

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *