rpttrm10

What a pleasure it is to report that my time in Moscow from November 14th through 20th was much more enjoyable than last July. The atmosphere seems to be more relaxed - perhaps because of the overwhelming mandate of the US electorate. Could even the Soviet hard-liners recognize the increased danger of an extended four-year stand-off? Perhaps.

My first contact in Moscow was with my friends at the US Embassy. They had been informed by TELEX of my arrival, and my hope to clear approval for TEN ROMEO's flight into Moscow next summer.

It was suggested that contact with Vladimir Kourkov, a leader in Soviet civil air matters, might be helpful since he was recently published in the Soviet Press. As director of the Europe/America International Relations Department of the Moscow Civil Air Board, I understood he was suggesting increased East/West civil air arrangements.

The meeting with my friend, Mikhail Lyubimov, of the MCA, was warm and cordial. Director Kourkov was with Mikhail. My questions, and their answers, were simple and direct:

Question	Answer
"Does the Soviet Air Force object to TEN ROMEO flying Soviet Airways?"	"No."
"Does Aeroflot have any objections to TEN ROMEO flying into Moscow?"	"No."
"Does the MCA (Moscow Civil Air Board) have any objections to TEN ROMEO flying into Moscow?"	"No."
"Do you gentlemen have a date to suggest for my arrival next year?"	"No. It is your flight, you suggest the date."
"Would June 18th, 1985, be an acceptable arrival date?"	"Yes."
"Would a direct flight from Helsinki to SVO (Moscow) be acceptable for entry along airway Red-1?"	"Yes."
"Would the reverse of such a flight be approved for exit?"	"Yes."
"Please indicate the technical requirements my aircraft must meet to be approved for a June 18th flight from Helsinki to Moscow."	"You will have no technical problems regarding TEN ROMEO's approval for flight in Soviet airspace. Our planning session of last May 10th has acquainted us with your aircraft's capabilities, and they are most adequate."
"What is required for TEN ROMEO to receive approval for a June 18th, 1985, flight into Moscow?"	"A timely request must be made through diplomatic channels from your Embassy to our Ministry of Foreign Affairs asking for our assistance in making your flight possible."
"Is that not what happened in my protocol package filed prior to my July 4th flight?"	"Perhaps, but there may not have been time for proper clearance."
"Under those circumstances, would it be appropriate for me to file for the June 18th flight before I leave Moscow?"	"Yes."

Once again, I left the MCA feeling that Director Lyubimov and his colleagues were friends doing what they could to assist TEN ROMEO in an SVO flight.

My next meeting was with members of the Federatsia Aviatsionnogo Sporta SSSR, or the Soviet Aerosport Club. General Titov, the president, was out of town, but I met with Secretary General Yuri Postnikov, and his interpreter (also a club member) Vladimir Korenev. I offered warm greetings from General von Kann, President of our NAA, and Col. Brown. The ease with which this meeting was arranged is a tribute to the administrative skill of our own NAA. General von Kann had sent a TELEX to General Titov alerting him to my expected arrival in Moscow on July 4th, and thus my name was known to my fellow Soviet sport pilots.

Again, my meeting with these two Soviets was warm and friendly. There seemed to be a genuine interest in me, my aircraft, and my desire to fly into Moscow. We had a delightful time with our "hangar-flying" and spoke of my aircraft, the aircraft they fly, and up-coming sport flying events. There was general agreement that contact between an American sport pilot, and the Soviet Aerosport Club was a positive step toward closer, warmer relationships between our two countries, and Secretary General Postnikov suggested the Soviet Aerosport Club would be pleased to serve as sponsor for my June 18th flight to Moscow. With that, Yuri presented me with an official club pen, and I became an honorary member of the Federatsia Aviatsionnogo Sporta SSSR. Both Yuri and Vladimir asked that I bring their warmest regards to General von Kann and Col. Brown, and they indicated they were looking forward to seeing them in February at the FAI meeting.

A return to the US Embassy allowed me to place in motion the filing procedure for the protocol documents for the June 18th flight. It was also possible to do a little research. Within the last 12 months, no more than 6 US general aviation flights were approved for use of Soviet airspace. The transmittal letter that accompanied my protocol package to the Soviet Foreign Ministry was exactly the same as the one which accompanied Brooke Knapp's request, as well as all the others. My request was sent 33 days before my flight; Brooke's went over 31 days before her flight. (As a matter of fact, Brooke, I was not surprised that you had no Soviet sponsor for your flight - a personal note from Dr. Hammer is worth ten sponsors!)

And so, this recent planning trip to Moscow has completed the next step in my continuing effort to fly TEN ROMEO to Moscow. In the months ahead my time will be spent looking for sponsors. As for the condition of TEN ROMEO, there is little more required for the trip. I do intend to do further research on an internal supplemental fuel supply. The steel tanks used last summer are mighty heavy, and I don't expect to carry much extra fuel. There will be no "extraordinary" flight configurations designed for records. Shorter legs and cruise settings will be the order of the day. (How's that, Glen?) Also, I expect to design a gravity fuel system (with your help, Jack) which will drain cabin fuel into the left wing tank and thus avoid the internal switching process.

As for the next excitement with TEN ROMEO, I'm planning to strike for another world speed record on December 16th and 17th. This will be a rather short run from Albany, New York, to Kitty Hawk, NC, for the 81st anniversary of the Wright Brothers First Flight. And, believe it or not, I have decided to take on the added risk of a very attractive cockpit distraction for this trip. I've asked my beautiful wife, Ruth, to fly navigator on this one, and she has accepted.

It has been my expectation that this report will bring to a close the exciting communication network established with 150 friends and family members scattered across the country - and, as a matter of fact, around the world. When I locate sponsorship for the June 18th flight, I'll start another report sequence with a new name. But - it is important for all of you to know how much I have appreciated your "looking over my shoulder" as progress was reported in recent months. Your comments and suggestions were certainly appreciated - in fact, treasured, and made my flying much safer than it might have been without your input.

However, the TEN ROMEO TO MOSCOW reports have been pretty single facetted, dealing primarily with flight matters. Some of you know that I really fell in love with Soviet children in the school I studied 26 years ago. Then, a year ago in my educational UPDATE travels through the USSR, I was again impressed how similar Soviet children are to American children. Once again last year, I was struck with the warmth and friendliness of Soviet teachers and administrators who had become my friends. "How great it would be", I thought, "if some of my Soviet friends and American colleagues could just sit down over a cup of coffee. They would soon discover how much we have in common!"

Bringing a handful of Soviet friends to the United States for ten days is no small task! Such a project would probably be beyond the capability of a single private American citizen. And so - the project, TEN ROMEO TO MOSCOW was dreamed up. Obstacles to the use of Soviet airspace by a single-engine private American aircraft might be more formidable than even a small exchange project. Furthermore, if successful, it might provide the experience and contact with Soviet Officials that would be helpful in establishing the basis for success of a small "people-to-people" contact project which would be beneficial in this complicated world of ours.

Thus - before closing this report off, let me share with you progress in two other directions which I find exciting.

As a "Questing Christian", I have found the Baptist movement in the USSR very interesting. Every trip to Moscow, I have visited the Moscow Baptist Church, and my first visit was in 1958. The four visits to Moscow in the past 12 months have resulted in a growing friendship with a number of Moscow Baptists. Rev. Alexei Bichkov, General Secretary of the Soviet Baptist Union, has become a warm friend, as has Rev. Anatoly Sokolov. It was Anatoly who introduced me to Lidia Bruchkay, the interpreter who has been so helpful on all of my trips to Moscow. (Lidia is fine, and asked that I thank everyone who has kept her on their prayer list!)

My wife and I spend considerable time on Block Island, a beautiful little 3 mile by 7 mile island off the shore of Rhode Island, and are adjunct members of the Baptist Block Island Harbor Church. Last November, just a year ago, I brought a picture of Rev. Tony Pappas and his family, the minister of the B.I. church, to the Moscow Baptist church and gave it to Rev. Anatoly. (After all, if one has a long range hope of bringing these two men of the cloth together, the more they know of one another, the better it will be.)

Sandwiched in between my Embassy, MCA, and Aerosport Club meetings, I did find my way to the Baptist church in Moscow. It was a pleasure to visit with Rev. Anatoly, and I had been directed to transmit to him an official invitation for three members of the Moscow Baptist Church to be the guests of the Baptist Block Island Harbor Church in April, 1985. This invitation had been the result of a unanimous vote of the B.I. church leadership on November 7th, 1984.

It was felt that the three guests should be fluent in English, and it was also suggested that one of the guests be a woman. I expressed the hope that Rev. Bichkov, Rev. Sokolov, and Ms. Bruchkay might be our guests, but also recognized the fact that the final decision as to guests would of necessity be left with the Moscow Baptist Church leadership.

Rev. Sokolov seemed pleased with the invitation, and indicated that the possibility of such an exciting project was manageable. A meeting was immediately arranged with Rev. Bichkov, and the details were worked out. More than one church should be on the visitation schedule to provide sufficient exposure for the trip to be approved by the Soviet Government. The contact point in Washington, DC, was identified for the official transmittal of the invitation, and it was determined that the group would arrive in Montreal on a Thursday via Aeroflot, with a return on the second Monday. Commercial tickets from Montreal to Albany and return would be provided by us as hosts, and there would be no expenses to our guests while they were in the States with us. It is my understanding that there will be no personal expenses for our guests from Moscow to Montreal and return, since these cost will be carried by the Soviet Government. In a like way, when our B.I. group returns the visit to Moscow, there will be no costs while within the Soviet Union, but our people will have to cover their travel to Moscow.

The Soviet Government, in allowing and supporting the visitation of our three Moscow Baptists, is counting upon their presenting world events from a Kremlin perspective before as many Americans as possible. The other side of that coin is the opportunity we will have of sharing with our guests our view of current world events. It is my hope and expectation that we will find common ground to build upon.

As the details of the April visit were discussed, it was recognized by both sides that sizable obstacles must be overcome for the trip to take place, but my Soviet friends felt the opportunity was possible.

As Alexei, Anatoly and I sat in the International Room of the church going over details of the opportunity before us, a warm sense of fellowship seemed to settle upon us, and the direction of our discussion. The unusual generosity and warm Christian Fellowship of that little B.I. Church, as represented by their invitation, was mentioned. It was then suggested that the excitement and warmth of the invitation might be compounded if it was offered from the pulpit of the Moscow Baptist Church.

As a certified Methodist Lay Speaker for nearly 40 years, I enjoy pulpit opportunities, and indicated it should take no more than five minutes to present from their pulpit the "DECLARATION OF INTENT" from the little Harbor Church in Rhode Island. Plans were made for the pulpit invitation.

I arrived at the church early for the service I was to take part in. As the appointed time approached, I moved to the pastor's study with other members of the pulpit entourage. The assistant minister who would introduce me moved to my side and said,

The events which had led to this moment raced through my mind. Indeed, the warm, friendly linkage of these two congregations we had planned for April was without question a minor miracle.

And thus, my five minutes for the invitation grew to a full-fledged 25-minute sermon based upon miracles, past and present.

My welcome to the congregation was in my very limited Russian, but a warm, immediate response came from the lips of the 1,000 within that church. I indicated what a privilege it was to preach from the same pulpit that had just recently been used by Billy Graham, mentioned the fact that warm, Christian fellowship has a way of transcending political boundaries, and then moved to the consideration of "MIRACLES", both past and present.

I quoted President Reagan's comments of last spring, when he said, "If only Ivan and Anna, could sit down over a cup of coffee with Jim and Sally, they would find that Russians and Americans have much more in common than most of us realize!" It was indicated that the visitation presently planned was a small miracle in the direction of bringing to life that first step of understanding suggested by my president. I mentioned that I had visited schools all across their great nation, and that the primary question to me, from Soviet school children was, "Will our nation and your nation become involved in a war?" I shared with the Moscow congregation my response to this question which was raised in every Soviet school I had visited.

In the prayer of supplication, the request was simple. "May the leaders of this great nation, and the leaders of my great nation, modify past positions to a point of new insight and accommodation leading to a summit meeting, and the safer world such a meeting has the potential of generating.'"

The pulpit experience in Moscow was certainly a "Mountain-top" event for me. The warmth of the congregation, the genuine ''expectation of the church linkage, as well as the bright hope for the future, all contributed to a warm glow for all of us that evening. My summation was brief, and the words of my interpreter, whose voice even carried the similar emphases of my words into the Russian language, contributed significantly to the feeling of "Koinonia" within that beautiful Moscow church.

I left the Moscow Baptist Church that evening with a warm feeling of PEACE and contentment, in spite of the cold, clear Moscow air. Within six hours I would be on my way home for Thanksgiving with my family.

This report will close with reference to a third objective that this most recent trip to Moscow was to accomplish.

In an earlier report you may recall that School # 29, in Moscow, is my favorite Soviet Educational Facility. The children are adorable, English is the school specialty, and the Director and Head English Teacher have become my close friends. It was at this school, last May, that the Director, Inna Teplova, said to me, "Dr. Harmon, please feel free to drop in and visit at any time. There is no need for you to clear your visit through the Ministry of Education. You are our friend, and we would be happy to see you whenever you are in Moscow!"

Upon my return from Moscow last May, I contacted a number of colleagues who are administering New York State public school systems. "Would a Soviet principal and her head English teacher be welcome guests within your schools for a day or so if it could be arranged?" In every instance, the response was an unequivocal, "YES.'"

Last week I also visited School # 29, and offered a personal invitation to Inna and her head English teacher, Yanina Krokova, to be my guests for ten days in the spring. It was decided that contact with Director Arbatov's office might be most helpful in arranging such a visit. Dr. George Arbatov is a prime mover within the Soviet as Director of the Canada/US Institute, and I had visited his office on two earlier trips. It was suggested that such a visitation might be arranged through the USSR/USA Friendship Society. A visit to the Society revealed that yes, such a trip would be possible, but the Society was a private operation and Inna and Yanina would have to pay 2,000 rubles each to make the trip.

I knew such a heavy cost would be impossible for my friends, so I returned to the school, explained what I had discovered, and suggested that we delay their plans for a US visit for a while. In early 1985 a new treaty will be signed between the Soviet and US Governments, and there may be ways for Soviet educators to visit New York Schools under the umbrella of the new treaty.

And so - this brings to a close Report #10, and the chance to share with you my progress toward three important objectives. Objective number one, the chance to move ahead toward a June 18 flight to Moscow seems to be on track. Objective number two, the church linkage, seems to be manageable and on track. The most important, and longest range objective - to arrange for Soviet educators and young students to visit their American counterparts - is more complicated, but not impossible over the long haul.

Since little progress is visible regarding HARMON RESEARCH ASSOCIATES moving toward non-tax status, I will be investigating an academic linkage which may enhance the long-range progress of objective number three. Wish me luck.

In the meantime, this final TEN ROMEO TO MOSCOW report brings with it my warmest, Christmas Greetings to friends all over this country, Singapore, Switzerland, the Virgin Islands, and Moscow. And to you, Mikhail, and your MCA colleagues, I send warmest seasons greetings, and the hope that 1985 will bring you happiness and success.