Portal to AF past found at Frankfurt Airport

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Amanda Dick
  • Ramstein Public Affairs
FRANKFURT AIRPORT, Germany --  Almost 13 years ago, members of the 626th Air Mobility Support Squadron at Rhein-Main Air Base, Germany, left their mark when they created and buried a time capsule.

Fast forward to present day. Rhein-Main is closed and the Frankfurt Airport is undergoing construction for cargo buildings where the base's flightline was once located. The capsule was discovered by construction crews and made its way back into Air Force hands.

Previously considered the "Gateway to Europe," the base played a role in nearly every major conflict for the U.S. military since 1945. In the fall of 1996, the 626th AMSS superintendent, then-Master Sgt. William Farrar, decided to run with his idea of creating the capsule and filling it with various Air Force memorabilia and items of personal value to members who donated them.

According to Tech. Sgt. Kelsey Backes, 726th Air Mobility Squadron shift supervisor of aircraft services at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, there was always talk about whether or not Rhein-Main would be closed.

"I think Master Sergeant Farrar wanted there to be something permanent to remember Rhein-Main, something real left of it, if it ever closed," said Sergeant Backes, who was an airman in 1996 and assigned to the 626th as a passenger service agent.

Sergeant Farrar set out on a quest through the squadron, asking for items to put in the box. Members donated T-shirts, organizational caps, rank insignia, pictures, squadron patches, a Chicken Ala King meal ready to eat, and a temporary U.S. Army Europe driver's license, which was given by then-Airman Matthew Huffman, a passenger service agent with the 626th. Sergeant Farrar now works as a civilian at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, as a senior border control agent for U.S. Forces Customs Europe.

"I remember Sergeant Farrar going around asking for items," said Tech. Sgt. Matthew Huffman, who now works as a 721st Aerial Port Squadron transportation training manager at Ramstein. "I still had the temporary license in my wallet and said 'why don't you throw this in there?' I just thought it was a really neat idea, so I wanted to be a part of it."

Before closing up the capsule and placing it in the ground, Sergeant Farrar included a note for whoever would find the box.

"It is our hope that you will receive the contents of this box in good order and will realize that we are a United States Air Force organization that worked here in Germany for the good of all people on earth," he wrote.

As the seasons changed from year to year, the outside of the box rusted, but the contents remained unchanged until July 28, 2009, when it was discovered and taken to lost and found in the airport. Once there, the airport security division and airport fire security investigated the box, found Air Force memorabilia inside, and contacted the airport U.S. Forces Customs office for pick up.

"I went down there to see what all the fuss was about," said Army Sgt. Deon Washington, U.S. Forces Customs Europe senior customs agent. "I figured it was a time capsule because there were hats and T-shirts in there, a copy of a marriage certificate, six U.S. dollars and stuff people thought was important."

Sergeant Washington, who has worked in customs at the airport for a year and a half, took it back to his office and contacted Ramstein, who sent a team to collect the box and were able to locate several of the Airmen who put it together. 

Even though members of the squadron were hoping the box wouldn't be found for decades longer, they still feel lucky to be a part of it.

"Our vision was that it would get dug up when we were old, grey men or even long gone a hundred year's down the road, but it's still cool," Sergeant Huffman said. "I'm happy to be a part of this small part of a bigger piece of Air Force history.

For Sergeant Backes, the discovery of the capsule brought up memories of his first years in the Air Force.

"That was the first year, first base and first squadron in my career," he said. "Everything that made me who I am today started at the 626th AMSS. I'm really curious to see the names in the box and see what they are up to. The first real people I knew in the Air Force were at Rhein-Main."

When the base closed, Sergeant Backes and the squadron moved to a new home at Spangdahlem AB and became the 726th AMS.

The capsule will be displayed at the Ramstein Air Force Birthday Ball Sept. 26, and various items from the container will later be on display in the Heritage Hall in the 86th Airlift Wing Headquarters building.

Rhein-Main officially closed in late 2005. Throughout its tenure, the base was involved in various military events to include its use as a launching point for aircraft and crews during the Berlin Airlift.

Editor's note: Retired Master Sgt. William Farrar was not available to interview at the time this article was written as he was on vacation in the United States.