Smart Talk: Protecting WW II POWs from an ally; Oil trains in populated areas

What to look for on Smart Talk Thursday, April 9, 2015:

Captain Robert Trimble of Camp Hill was recognized as a hero for piloting 35 bombing missions over Germany near the end of World War II in Europe.  That’s what Captain Trimble’s family and the public knew.

What they didn’t learn until years after the war was the secret mission Trimble undertook that saved hundreds of American, French, and British prisoners-of-war from another ally — the Soviet Union.

Even though Soviet leader Joseph Stalin had agreed to assist and treat allied POWs humanely, the Soviets viewed them as potential spies or even enemies.

While stationed right under the noses of the Soviet military, Captain Trimble was able to get POWs out of Eastern Europe and back to their homes.

Captain Trimble’s son Lee Trimble is telling this little known story in a book he co-wrote called Beyond the Call: The True Story of One World War II Pilot’s Covert Mission to Rescue POWs on the Eastern Front.

Lee Trimble appears on Thursday’s Smart Talk.

Also, Harrisburg City Councilman Brad Koplinski is urging the federal government to approve new regulations on trains that carry oil.  There have been several derailments in recent years — some that have had devestating effects.  Council Koplinski appears on Thursday’s Smart Talk to explain what he’s looking for.

Thursday marks the 150th anniversary of the Confederate surrender at Appomattox Court House in effect ending the Civil War.  Bells will ring across the nation, including in Gettysburg at 3:15 p.m. 

Peter Carmichael, the Robert C. Fluhrer Professor of Civil War Studies at Gettysburg College and Director of the Civil War Institute joins us to discuss the Bells Across the Land program.