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Last updated on Monday, January 1, 2018
(UNDATED) - September saw an EA-6B Prowler Aircraft dedicated as a permanent display at Crane; West Boggs Park announces they will build a new playground, zipline near the beach and Bloomington High School South officials retired Jill Behrman’s volleyball jersey.
EA-6B Prowler Aircraft Dedicated as a Permanent Display at Crane
NSWC Crane Commanding Officer Capt. Mark Oesterreich provided remarks during the EA-6B Prowler dedication ceremony held at Crane Sept. 14 2017.
NSWC Crane has provided more than 40 years of support to the Prowler and the Electronic Warfare mission.
The plane is now a permanent memorial display and symbolizes Crane's Electronic Warfare (EW) roots dating back to 1971.
"The EA-6B Prowler had a distinguished history in the Navy and Marine Corps as the premier EW platform," said NSWC Crane's Commanding Officer Capt. Mark Oesterreich. "This aircraft has seen action in almost every theater and, over the last decade, it is impossible to count the number of lives saved by the EA-6B during operations in Iraq and Afghanistan."
NSWC Crane employees have provided more than 46 years of technical support to the Prowler's ALQ-99 Tactical Jamming System (TJS). The ALQ-99 TJS provides offensive electronic attack capabilities that enable the Prowler to shut down enemy air defenses and communications systems by jamming signals within the Radio Frequency (RF) electromagnetic spectrum.
NSWC Crane has the highest concentration of EW experts within the Department of Defense (DoD) and is responsible for research, development, engineering and maintenance of EW weapons systems.
Prowlers have been a part of every military conflict involving U.S. and coalition aircrafts since 1971. The EA-18G Growler is the Navy's replacement for the Prowler and will be the mainstay of the DoD Airborne Electronic Attack (AEA) capability into the 2030s, with NSWC Crane responsible for keeping the aircraft's AEA systems effective and available.
West Boggs Park To Add New Playground, Zipline Near Beach
West Boggs Park is looking to add a new playground and zipline near the beach by next Spring.
As part of the park's new five-year master plan, park officials are partnering with Burke Playground.
Officials say the playground is geared for children ages 2-12 year-old. Mulch surfacing surrounded by a border will provide a safety measure for those playing on the new playground. A new 75-foot zipline will also be installed.
Jill Behrman's Volleyball Jersey Retired
Officials at Bloomington High School South retired Jill Behrman's volleyball jersey.
The jersey was hung permanently at Jill's House, an assisted living and memory care facility in Bloomington named after Behrman.
Behrman graduated from South in 1999. She was a member of the 1996 sectional title Panther volleyball team. This is the last sectional title the Panthers have won.
Behrman's jersey was too worn to be framed, but a number 6 jersey representative of the number she wore was framed and given to her parents.
The Bloomington South coach, Eugene Kim, came upon the jersey when they were cleaning out the uniform closet, and decided it was time for the jersey to be retired.
Behrman was 19, and a freshman at Indiana University when she disappeared during a bike ride in May 2000. Her remains were found in Morgan County three years later. She had been shot in the head.
A jury deliberated for less than an hour before finding John Myers II of Ellettsville guilty of murder. Prosecutors argued that Myers was upset at a girlfriend who had ended their relationship and took out his rage by killing Behrman, whose remains were found in 2003 in a wooded area near Paragon, about 15 miles north of Bloomington.
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