Bull Benini
Alcides Benini | |
---|---|
Birth name | Alcide Sylvio Benini |
Nickname(s) | Bull |
Born | Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy | 15 October 1921
Died | 16 April 2015 Hampton, Virginia | (aged 93)
Allegiance | ![]() |
Service/ | United States Army (1940–1953) United States Air Force (1953–1970) |
Years of service | 1940–1970 |
Rank | Chief master sergeant |
Unit | 31st Infantry Regiment (1940–1945) 82nd Airborne Division Pathfinder Platoon (1945–1952) Special Forces Qualification Course (1952–1953) Combat Control Team (1953–1970) |
Battles/wars | World War II
|
Alcide Sylvio "Bull" Benini (15 October 1921 – 16 April 2015) was a
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Alcide_S_%22Bull%22Benini.jpg)
Early life
Born 15 October 1921 in Cologna-Gavazzo,
Military career
Early years and World War II
On 6 May 1940, Benini enlisted in the United States Army and, within six weeks was sent to the Philippines with the 31st Infantry Regiment as a rifleman and radio operator. While there, he fought against the Japanese until his capture in March 1942. Benini then spent three-and-a-half years in Japanese captivity; surviving the Bataan Death March and a Japanese hell ship, before internment in camps in Hong Kong, Formosa, and finally Japan.[4][5][6][3]
Post war
After the war, he went to
Special and humanitarian operations
For the next fifteen years, Benini led his teams to numerous hot spots such as the
: 8–9. 12–13, 22–24- Operation Road Grader-Kashmir
- In December 1960 at the request of the Pakistani Air Force, USAFE airlifted 600 tons of cement and 64 tons of heavy construction equipment from Peshawar Air Base and airdropped them over Chilas, Kashmir to assist a road-building project in Northern Pakistan. Six C-130s of the 322nd Air Division based at Évreux, France flew a total of 55 sorties during the project, known as Operation Road Grader. Four USAF Combat Controllers of the 5th Aerial Port Squadron, including Alcide S. "Bull" Benini were tasked to support the mission.[14]
Post service life
Benini retired on 31 July 1970 as a Chief Master Sergeant with thirty years of active duty service, three-and-a-half of which were spent as a
Alcide was survived by his children, Sylvia Benini, Michael and Christopher Benini, Jane Ables, Lisa and Lori Benini, grandchildren Adrianna Henricks, Brittany and Kaylee Ables, Daniel and Isabella Benini. He was preceded in death by his father Luigi, mother Elvira, sister Ancilla, and brother Adriano.[17]
References
- ^ "Nati in Trentino database". Retrieved 4 September 2021.
- ^ "Combat Control Memorial". Combat Control Memorial. Retrieved 24 August 2019.
- ^ a b "Another of the Unbroken". Suffolk News Herald. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
- ^ "Surviving the March Acosta man returned home following the Bataan Death March". Daily American. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
- ^ "Air Force Association News Letter" (PDF). Air Force Association. June 2015.
- ^ "WW2 POW Interviews: Chaplain Leslie Zimmerman, Alvin James Aubuchon, Alcide Silvio "Bull" Benini, Col. Robert C. Gaskill, Camp No 3, Sendai Area, Northern Honshu, Japan, 09/12/1945". United States Army. 12 September 1945. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
- ^ "Benini, Alcide S." Gathering of Eagles Foundation. Retrieved 24 Aug 2019.
- ^ "Alcides Benini". Combat Control School Heritage Foundation. Retrieved 25 August 2019.
- ^ "Bataan Honors WWII Veteran Alcide "Bull" Benini". The Flagship- Military News. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
- ^ "2015 GOE CMSgt(ret) Alcide "Bull" Benini (USAF) Interview 2of2". YouTube. Retrieved 27 August 2012.
- ^ "Brothers in Berets: The Evolution of Air Force Special Tactics 1953–2003" (PDF). U.S. Department of Defense. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
- ^ "Special Air Warfare and the Secret War in Laos" (PDF). Air University, USAF. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
- ISBN 9781477269978. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
- ^ "Combat Control supports 1960 USAFE Humanitarian "Operation Road Grader" in Kashmir". Sgtmacsbar. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
- ^ "Bataan Honors Death March Survivor". America's Navy Forged by the Sea. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
- ^ "In The Spotlight | 'He was a hero': Navy recognizes Bataan Death March survivor". The Tribune Democrat. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
- ^ "Alcide (Bull) Sylvio Benini ( POW )". Armory Funeral Home Inc. 16 April 2015. Retrieved 30 August 2019.