PILOT TRAINING 1941 - 1943 by Herbert T.

Kurz

During 1941 at which time I was 21, it became increasingly evident that we w uld eventually be int the war. The dra!t was n and incentives were given t enlist, s that it was bvi us that we w uld be inv lved in the war be! re l ng. "n #ugust 2$, while my %arents were vacati ning at "cean &ity, 'ew (ersey, I a%%lied ! r )lying &adet training. I always have been interested in aviati n t the e*tent ! ma+ing many !lying m dels and ! ll wing with great interest the e*%l its ! the aviat rs ! the day. I received a n tice !r m the )lying &adet ,*amining - ard t re% rt t 9. &hurch /treet, 'ew 0 r+ n /e%tember 21, 1941, t 2 my %hysical. #rriving at the address n time were 67 % tential candidates ! r !light training. )estivities started alm st immediately and %r ceeded thr ugh the m rning, s me being 8uite rig r us. (ust be! re n int n when we were let ut t g t lunch, dr %s were %ut ur eyes t dilate the %u%ils. 9e were t re% rt bac+ in 1 h ur ! r !inal eye chec+. m 311.., n t later than 456. a.m. ! r

#!ter the chec+ was made there remained nly 7 ! the riginal 67. -y this time my sight was blurry at best and I had yet t neg tiate the subway, bus and tr lley car t get h me. 9ith a little hel% !r m by:standers, t distinguish ne c in !r m an ther and t read bus and tr lley signs, I did !inally ma+e it h me. "n ' vember 1, 1941, I received a letter !r m the 9ar De%artment, "!!ice ! the &hie! ! #ir & r% that I had %assed the e*am and w uld be %ut n the eligible list ! r assignment t the !irst class in which I c uld be acc mm dated.

# !ew days a!ter ;earl Harb r, December $, I received a n tice t re% rt t <a*well )ield, < ntg mery, #labama n December 2., 1941, ! r %re:!light training. I was t re% rt t my inducti n stati n in 'ewar+, 'ew (ersey where I was given a train tic+et and = ined by thers g ing int service. #rriving at <a*well, we were lined u% al ng with ur luggage and addressed by a l ud and gru!! /ergeant wh %r ceeded d wn the line ! recruits standing at attenti n, addressing each ne with the !aults he ! und. & ming d wn n the train, I had been given a cigar that I had stuc+ in my c at =ac+et % c+et. This was evidently a >n :n ? ! r when he s% tted it I was addressed severely and in a l ud v ice that c uld be heard a bl c+ away. ?@et that thing ut ! here. 9hat d y u thin+ this is : : a c untry clubA? <y res% nse ! c urse was immediate and the cigar disa%%eared t my inside % c+et. He then went n t the ne*t recruit. <ilitary e*%erience was n t new t me a!ter having had tw years ! 2"T& at c llege. I was n t Maxwell Field & Training. m re min us and !inal. The !irst rder ! the day was the assignment ! barrac+s, a!ter which we were t ld where and h w t dis% se ! ur civilian cl thes and where t %ic+ u% ur military su%%lies and cl thing. #s the day %r gressed, al ng with all ! the sh ts, we were l +ing ! rward t getting int !lying. 2 h wever %re%ared ! r this military e*%erience that we were greeted with n arrival at <a*well. It was

&hristmas came and went and then n 'ew 0ears ,ve I was given the = b ! being ".D. B"!!icer ! the DayC n the base ! r all cadets. That meant that I w uld have t stay n the base and n t be able t g int < ntg mery al ng with the thers. It was m re ! a ! rmality than anything else e*ce%t that I had t carry a 47 caliber gun and n amm . I als had t wear a blac+ arm band with large white letters ".D. <y stati n w uld be in the regular building h using the !!ice ! the ".D. #s the night w re n, the cadets started c ming bac+ !r m t wn and m st were in g d sha%e, but there were !ar m re -ritish &adets than ur wn n the base and these were the %r blem ma+ers. The night suddenly became 8uite hectic but rder had t be +e%t and that was %art ! my = b. "n leaving <a*well, the cadets were s%lit u% and sent t several !ields s n (anuary $, 1942, s me ! us arrived at a small civilian !ield in -ennettsville, / uth &ar lina ! r ur %rimary training. The & mmandant ! &adets was a 1st DT and 1 cadets were assigned t civilian instruct r. "urs was 9alt < ran !r m 'ew (ersey. "ur %ay all the way thru training w uld be E$7... %er m nth u% until the time we graduated and became !!icers then it w uld g t E17.... %er m nth. The %lane we !lew here was the -T:1$ /tearman bi%lane having a 227 H; radial engine. a

9e had an instruct r chec+ ur %r gress at 6. h ur and 1. h urs. 9hen I had the 6. h ur test, the instruct r was a really big guy. His weight changed the characteristics ! the %lane and I !lun+ed the sna% r ll. I didnFt want t !ail the %r gram, s I really w r+ed t get that maneuver d wn %at. 9hen the time came ! r the 1. h ur chec+, I was assigned an instruct r nic+named >9ashing <achine &harlie? because ! his re%utati n ! r washing ut cadets. 9hen I achieved altitude, then he rdered me t d a sna%:r ll. I did it %er!ectly. I c uld tell it sur%rised him a bit, and he said, >D that again.? I did an ther %er!ect sna% r ll. Then he decided that he w uld %er! rm the same maneuver, and %r ceeded t d it % rly. He c mmented that he th ught he may have t w r+ n that maneuver himsel!. H wever, I was glad I %assed the test.

-y #%ril ! 1942 and a!ter 1. h urs ! !lying time we were ready t g n t basic training. /haw )ield, /umter, / uth &ar lina was ur ne*t st % where we learned t !ly -T:16Fs and -T:17Fs >Gultee? l w wing %lanes with 47. H; radial engines.

It was here that we learned ! rmati n, ta+e !! and landings as well as ! rmati n !lying. 9e als learned night !lying, al ng with gr und sch l each day. There were a !ew cr ss c untry !lights t shar%en ur navigati n s+ill. 9eather was als an ther im% rtant t %ic t be mastered. #!ter getting thru the rig rs ! basic training with ut getting washed ut, we were n w ready t %r gress n t #dvanced Training. 9e were sent n t /%ence )ield, < ultrie, @e rgia where we w uld !ly the #T:1Fs >Te*an? that had retractable landing gear, l w wing 1.. H; radial engine. It was a great %lane t !ly and t %er!ect ur recently ac8uired s+ills. T ward the end ! #dvanced I had an accident. "ne night n landing, a wheel l c+ed n ne side, causing the %lane t >gr und l %?, wi%ing ut the landing gear and c ming t rest n its belly. I was n t hurt and resumed !lying the ne*t day. @raduati n !r m #dvanced was n #ugust 7, 1942 when ur &lass ! 42:@ became 2nd DTs.

9e were given a ch ice ! !ive di!!erent ty%es ! !lying acc rding t ur %re!erence and I ch se tactical %ursuit, but evidently the % wers t be saw things di!!erently and I was given the heavy b mber assignment, my 7th and last ch ice. 9e ! und ut later than 7. b mber %il ts were needed in a hurry. "ur ne*t assignment was Hendric+s )ield, /ebring, )l rida where we w uld be !lying -:1$ !lying ! rtresses. This w uld be 8uite a transiti n ! ma+ing the =um% !r m 1.. H; %lanes t multi:engine 44.. H;. #gain ab ut 1 ! us were assigned t an instruct r named K + lus, a big @ree+ !r m the ;ennsylvania c al mines. He was a >n n nsense? s rt and %r ved it a number ! times. The transiti n h wever went sm thly and s n was chec+ed ut t ta+e the %lanes ut with ut the instruct r being al ng. I did n t realize it at the time but ! und ut l ng

B-17 B

a!ter the war that ! the %lanes we were !lying, we had =ust a !ew -:1$ -Fs ! which nly 69 were ever built. ' ne ! these ever went int c mbat. They had di!!erent !light characteristics than the -:1$ ,Fs ! which we had many m re.

Training %r ceeded sm

thly and we started t build u%

a crew t get ready ! r verseas. It was decided at the last minute t send us n t -:24 training because the 24Fs were n w c ming !! the %r ducti n lines at rec rd %ace. "n "ct ber 17, 1942, the entire graduating class B&lass /,:42:4:<C !r m Hendric+s was %ut ab ard a train and sent n t /alt Da+e &ity where we stayed ! r a !ew days be! re g ing n t Tucs n, #riz na. /ince we had a little e*tra time be! re re% rting in at Davis:< nthan )ield, a !ew ! us c ntinued n t D s #ngeles, arriving in the early #< we %ut u% at the -iltm re H tel n "ct ber 26 t get a bit ! rest be! re seeing the sights. / me ! the !!icers had their wives al ng and they were %articularly interested in g ing t H llyw g d. It was decided that we w uld get t gether right a!ter lunch and + in a sh w at the ;alladium and r amed ar und t wn, seeing ut via cabs. 9e t ur destinati n ! Kurz (back left) and other B-1 crew !e!ber" during training.

-ing &r sby sitting at a bar that was !! limits t us. He came ut, struc+ a % se and said HI brea+ m re cameras? and then went bac+ t the bar. "! c urse we were all e*cited. #ll g d things must c me t an endI h wever and the ne*t day we were n a train

headed ! r Tucs n. 9e arrived at Tucs n and still had time le!t be! re re% rting in s a !ew ! us %ut u% at a h tel in t wn staying ne night be! re g ing t the base the ne*t day. #!ter being assigned 8uarters and getting settled in, it ccurred t me that I sh uld chec+ with %erati ns and t my sur%rise saw my name n the b ard that I was

scheduled t !ly that very night. Tucs n was the !irst time that I had seen a -:24, let al ne !l wn in ne. &ame time t !ly, I was intr duced t my instruct r a y ung 2nd DT !r m 9est ; int. #s it turned ut, I had m re 4 engine time than he did : e*ce%t mine was in -:1$Fs. 9e went u% and sh t night landings with me in the c :%il tFs seat, still getting !amiliar with l cati n !

B-24D

instruments and such.

#ll went well and a!ter a !ew !lights I was all wed t ta+e it u% with ut the instruct r. #t that time at Davis:< nthan, mid "ct ber 1942 there were a number ! 0ug slavian %il ts n the !ield wh were learning t !ly the -:24. <any were very e*%erienced %il ts with th usands ! h urs in ther ty%es ! aircra!t. #!ter I was chec+ed ut, it was my l t t have a 0ug slavian ca%tain !ly with me. He !lew !r m the c :%il ts % siti n and was an e*cellent !lyer. He did n t s%ea+ a w rd ! ,nglish s % inting was ur means ! c mmunicati n. 9hen I wanted hal! !la%s I w uld % int t the indicat r, etc. /ince m st ! the !lights were at night I did n t get t see all ! the terrain that I w uld li+ed t have seen. #ny day !lights were c nsidered as a b nus. 9hen ur instruct r came al ng t see h w the !lying was %r gressing he w uld usually as+ me h w I !elt and i! I had %lenty ! rest. "! c urse I w uld let him +n w that I was "K and he then w uld disa%%ear in the rear ! the %lane and bun+ d wn n a blan+et t catch u% n slee% missed !r m t much %artying. 9e g t al ng =ust !ine.

)inally ur time at Davis:< nthan came t a cl se and we were t m ve n t the sec nd %hase training at #lam g rd , 'ew <e*ic by December 4. 4

< st ! the !lying here was at night with nly a !ew day !lights ! air t gr und gunnery and s me %ractice b mbing u% in the / uth Da+ ta badlands. I relished the day !lights because the scenery was s di!!erent than any I had %revi usly seen. )light training c nsisted ! building a crew that we w uld be ta+ing int c mbat. #lam g rd was a very rem te area settled in between tw m untain ranges t the east and west. 9e were there in the dead ! winter and it was n t all that c m! rtable in the barrac+s. There was a % t bellied w d st ve in each secti n that h used 4 !!icers and it was ur res% nsibility t start the !ire and +ee% it g ing i! we were t stay warm. -eing there ver &hristmas did n t e*actly %r m te >bundles ! = y?. I remember baby sitting the y ung daughter ! 1st DT (im H uchins and his wi!e while they went t the "!!icers &lub n &hristmas ,ve t have dinner and d a bit ! celebrating. It was this same (im H uchins wh later was sh t d wn and the entire crew l st n a missi n ver 9a+e Island, his 6.th and last missi n be! re g ing h me. I never did get !! the base while being there e*ce%t n !lights nly. T wn was nly a%%r *imately 17 miles away and the ne*t cl sest t wn was ,l ;as , Te*as s me $7 miles s uth. 9hen we !inished ur sec nd %hase ! training at the end ! 1942 we were assigned t !ly 12 %il ts u% t ;uebl & l rad t %ic+ u% si* %lanes ! r a trans!er ! stati n t T %e+a, Kansas where we w uld g thru the third %hase ! training and c m%lete the ma+e u% ! the crew. Ta+ing !! n the m rning ! (anuary 1, 1946, we had a %r % g vern r g ut and had +

t !eather the %r %. 9e managed t get u% t a !ew hundred !eet and circled bac+ t ma+e a landing n 6 engines. #!ter waiting ! r the %r blems t be !i*ed, we again t !! ! r ;uebl ab ut 2 h urs late and !inally made it t ur destinati n. 9hen the 12

%il ts le!t the %lane, we gassed u% and chec+ed with weather and %erati ns and !inally 9

+ !! ! r #lam g rd arriving ar und 256.:65.. a.m. n the m rning ! (anuary 2,

1946. "n landing we were immediately t ld that we were t clear the base which meant chec+ing in all ! the %r visi ns that had been su%%lied t us while at #lam g rd and getting the signature ! the res% nsible !!icer in charge in each case. This was in the dead ! winter and there was a l t ! wal+ing and hauling t be d ne be! re daylight. The = b was !inally c m%leted as it began t get light and we were assigned t !ly as %assengers in a -:24 (S# 41-23974) that had a l t ! s%ecial gear ab ard !r m the Jniversity ! #riz na. There w uld be 19 men ab ard c nsisting ! ur crew ! 4 %lus 4 !!icers and 2 enlisted men !r m an ther crew and a !erry crew ! 7. #ll but the !erry crew w uld have ab ard everything that they wned and it w uld be stac+ed high in the b mb:bay n each side ! the catwal+. "ur crew c nsisted ! the ! ll wing5 2nd DT. H. T. Kurz B;C 2nd DT. K.,. &lutter B&;C 2nd DT. H. #. Hunnewell B'C 2nd DT. ). (. 9ashburn B-C /ta!! /ergeant D./. D dge B,C /ergeant (. ,. Harm n B#,C /ergeant 9. ,. 2ichards B#2C /ergeant <. @. <c)arlane B#@C The %lane was t be %il ted by a 1st DT ( hn ;. Davis and c :%il t 2nd DT. (. /. ;reuss. The remaining !!icers and enlisted men as ! ll ws5 /ta!! /ergeant 2. H. )uller /ergeant T. (. 2ay 2nd DT. ,. (. Hachaba 1.

1st DT. (. -. Kendall 2nd DT. G. &. <iller 2nd DT. 9. (. -urt n Tech /ergeant D. Daguercia & r% ral H. &. Kribbs /ergeant #. <iller Having !l wn the day be! re and much ! the night, I was tired and when I g t ab ard I ! und a s% t ab ve the b mb:bay al ng with a l t ! radi gear where I c uld lie d wn and get s me slee%. The thers scattered ab ut the %lane trying t !ind s me %lace where they w uld be c m! rtable during the tri% t T %e+a. 9e !inally t + !! ar und mid:m rning (2 January 1943) and a!ter being in the air ! r a

while I !ell aslee%. / metime later I was awa+ened by an unusual n ise !r m the engines and it s unded li+e a %r % g vern r was ut. &limbing d wn !r m ver the b mb:bay I went ! rward t the !light dec+ t see what was g ing n. (ust as I g t there the %lane began t sha+e vi lently and s %lane. ,ach time the %r % w uld s%eed u% the %lane w uld >yaw? ab ut its center ! gravity. I st D d by l ng en ugh t see the !eathering %r cedure %er! rmed twice with n results. +ing ut at the engine it was evident that with the vibrati n set u% by the unbalanced n ! und ut that the le!t utb ard %r % had vers%eeded and had thr wn a chun+ ! ne ! the blades. Duc+ily it did n t hit the

%r %, the engine was being %ulled right !! its m unting. I stayed l ng en ugh t see the engine yan+ed ut and dr % ab ut 2.K.

11

The ne*t thing I saw was that sm +e was c ming !r m the number 6 engine and was n !ire, %r bably as a result ! the severe sha+ing an il line had ru%tured. That was en ugh ! r me s I headed bac+ thru the b mb:bay t !ind a chute. )inding a seat %ac+, I immediately %ut it n and t ld the !ell ws in the rear that we might have t get ut, then hel%ed several int chutes. 'e*t thing I hear the b mb:bay d rs %en

#iew of catwalk looking aft through bo!b ba$. and when I l +ed d wn I saw that s me ne had =um%ed !r m the !r nt secti n ! the %lane. ' alarm had been give t bail ut and I was very reluctant t ta+e acti n. I made a m ve t the rear ! the %lane and st the camera hatch d the large K:1$ camera when used w uld be m unted. The %lane by then a%%eared t be g ing int a stall s I t ld ur arm rer gunner H;ac+yH <c)arlane ><ac, it l +s li+e we have t get ut? and reaching d wn he li!ted the d r and said >"K, a!ter y u Dieutenant.? )acing the rear ! the %lane I straddled the %ening and gave a little =um%, %ulling my !eet t gether went d wn thru the %ening and tumbled int a rear s mersault as a result ! the air stream hitting the bac+ ! my legs !irst. I waited a sh rt time be! re %uling n the ri% c rd which I still have because we were t ld in training that i! ever we had t use the chute, h ld n t the c rd s that when it is re%ac+ed i! y u d n t have it, it will c st y u E2... ! r a new ne. d by

r. This was the % siti n where #iew aft to tail turret% ca!era hatch in foreground (larger than in B-&'()

12

9hen the chute !inally %ened which seemed li+e a li!e time I was =er+ed ar und t the vertical % siti n and the descent was sl wed a%%reciably. D +ing ar und I c uld n t see the gr und due t a heavy undercast but where I was it

was clear with a nice blue s+y. -e! re leaving the !light dec+ t g ! r my chute I n ticed that we had been !lying ar und 4,7.. !eet. I watched the %lane that a%%eared t be in a climb slide !! n its right wing starting t head bac+ in my directi n. The number 6 engine was n !ire trailing sm +e and then I saw s me ne c me ut ! the camera hatch but did n t !all. Dater I ! und ut that ur b mbardier )ran+ 9ashburn had started ut when the %lane lurched and the d %ened the d r slammed shut grabbing his chute. There he dangled bel w the %lane till <c)arlane r and released him. I remember seeing him !alling at a !aster rate than I was descending. )ran+ was heavier and what I didnFt realize was that his chute was t rn. I called ut when he was at my level t !ind ut wh it was but the distance was t great and I am sure he did n t hear me.

-y n w the %lane was in a very !lat s%in and b dies began e*iting !r m vari us %arts ! the %lane. I watched as the %lane c ntinued s%inning d wn and thru the undercast and disa%%eared. 9ithin m ments there was silence and then a dull red a%%eared in the cl uds under me that I had n t yet entered. The th ught struc+ me that I did n t +n w where I was. 9as I ver water r ver a city r %erha%s a % wer lineA #s I entered the cl ud layer there was an eerie silence and a!ter descending 8uite a bit m re began t see brea+s where I c uld see gr und. #s the brea+s became m re numer us I c uld see that I was c ming d wn in !airly %en c untry. I c uld see a !ire, 16

where the %lane hit, but n w ! m st c ncern was a high tensi n % wer line that a%%eared much t cl se ! r c m! rt. I tried %ulling n the shr ud lines and t my relie! ! und ut that the chute c uld be maneuvered 8uite well. #s the gr und a%%r ached it l +ed as th ugh I w uld hit in %en gr und but actually

c uld n t distinguish the %en gr und !r m a bramble thic+et that I hit. The surr undings were n m re than slight hills and valleys. #!ter hitting the gr und I r lled ver n my bac+ as we were taught and then g t u% t gather u% the chute. -y then there were %e %le n the scene wh assisted me and guided me u% t a r ad where a car was %ar+ed. These %e %le t civilians. 9hen we were all br ught t gether we were ta+en t /c tt )ield, Illin is where we were debrie!ed and 8uesti ned. During this time n given ! r us t leave the %lane. 9e ! und ut then that it was the %il t wh le!t the %lane !irst thru the b mb:bay, and the c :%il t held the c ntr ls s that m st c uld get ut be! re he le!t. It was then that we were able t get the !ull st ry ! what had ha%%ened. #!ter 9ashburn was !reed !r m dangling beneath the %lane, ther crew members had made a m ve t ward the rear but as the %lane went int a !lat s%in the centri!ugal ! rce ! s%inning was ma+ing them versh t the hatch %ening and as a result they were r ! the %iling u% against the rear turret. They actually had t crawl ! rward al ng the !l thru the b mb:bay and waist wind ws. There were n chutes in the !r nt c m%artment ! the %lane where the b mbardierFs % siti n w uld n rmally be. "ur navigat r, Hunnewell, %lus several thers were here s 14 ne menti ned that an alarm was never + me t a gathering % int where I was = ined by ther crew members as they were br ught in by ther

%lane and %ush themselves thru the hatch %ening. <any did get ut here as well as

that they w uld have had t c me bac+ thru the b mb:bay t get chutes. Jn! rtunately during this time they were unable t !ind r get !itted %r %erly with chutes and as a result DT. Hunnewell never did get ut and DT. Hadaba and /ergeant #. <iller g t ut t ! r their chutes t %en and as a result all three were +illed. l w

9ashburn wh hung bel w the %lane had his chute t rn and !ell !aster than n rmal s that when he hit the gr und he s%rained his an+le. DTFs ;reuss B&;C, Kendall and G. &. <iller were in=ured t s me degree, n ne seri us. The remainder ! us were sha+en but unin=ured in the rdeal. The %lane had c me d wn n a !arm =ust utside & llinsville, Illin is and had !allen with % wer still n when it hit the gr und. It hit hard en ugh t bury the engines in the gr und. 9e were !inally ta+en t the nearest rail stati n and %ut ab ard a train b und ! r T %e+a, Kansas. #ll ! ur bel ngings were l st in the crash s when we arrived at T %e+a #) -ase all that we had was what we w re. 9e were interr gated n ur %ers nal l sses and restituti n was made. <ilitary su%%lies where reissued be! re ur !lying began n (anuary 7, 1946. #s an interesting side n te we ! und ut that DT Davis, the %il t, had been inv lved in a %lane crash earlier while in the 9.th - mb @r u% BHC >The ( lly 2 gers? and in ta+ing !! in a -:24 !r m Hamilt n )ield, &ali! rnia t g verseas, had engine tr uble and had

17

crashed in /an )rancisc -ay +illing ne %ers n. #!ter this he was trans!erred t the training c mmand at #lam g rd as a &adre leader. /ee 2e!erence 9
B1C

+5 >Degacy ! the 9.th - mb @r u% L The ( lly 2 gers? by 9iley ds, (r., 1$16 &layt n Drive, &hattan ga, Tennessee

ds, (r.I Turner ;ublishing & m%any, ;aducah, Kentuc+y. B1C 0ear, 2..9, 9iley ". 9

6$421:6..4, ;h ne 426:477:9117 T %e+a was ur last %hase ! training be! re g ing verseas int c mbat. "ur crew was n w !airly c m%lete and we seemed t be w r+ing well t gether. -eing this was in winter (anuary and )ebruary 1946 we were e*%eriencing s me bad weather. #s a matter ! !act during the m nth ! (anuary we had t !ly in all s rts ! weather including sn w, hail and w rst ! all icing c nditi ns. #s a result we l st 71 men during ur stay at T %e+a attributed t weather c nditi ns. "n ne ccasi n we were scheduled t ta+e !! at midnight. There was a hal ar und the m n and weather re% rt did n t s und g d. 9e t + !! !lying u% t ' rth ;latte !!er. &alling in t the 'ebras+a and hit =ust ab ut everything that weather had t ha%%en. #!ter !lying all night including venturing d wn as !ar as "+lah ma &ity, we came bac+ t T %e+a at day brea+ and it was s c+ed in. I re8uested landing instructi ns !r m the t wer and was given all the necessary in! rmati n including altimeter setting and started a l ng a%%r ach letting d wn thru the cl uds. )lying the beam and letting d wn t where ur altimeter read 7. !eet, s me ne h llered >there g es a gas stati n?. (ust getting a glance ut ur right wind w and seeing the gr und and +new we w uld be unable t land s I called the t wer ! r an ther reading n the weather and was then in! rmed that the !ield was cl sed. I then in! rmed the t wer that I w uld be g ing d wn t "+lah ma &ity where I +new it was %en.

stati n at ' rth ;latte, my call was answered by a !emale v ice, !irst time I had had that

11

9e landed later that m rning and g t !

d and 8uarters t get s me rest.

#l ng ab ut 1 t $ %.m., I was awa+ened by an enlisted man and t ld that I was wanted n the %h ne. It was ur ;r visi nal @r u% & mmander bac+ at T %e+a. -y n w it had been sn wing hard at the !ield and it l +ed li+e we w uld be there ! r a while but & l nel Terrill B2 bert H. Terrill, see attached bi gra%hyC had ther ideas. In a rather !irm v ice I heard >get that %lane in the air?. 9hen I as+ed where we were t g he =ust re%eated the same thing. I chec+ed with %erati ns and weather and !iled a !light %lan ! r Tucs n where it w uld at least be warmer. 9eather h wever advised that we n t g since everything else was gr unded. "rders are rders h wever s when the & l nel said t g , we went, ta+ing !! near midnight in a blinding sn w st rm !r m 9ill 2 gers )ield "+lah ma &ity, "+lah ma. 9e climbed ab ve the weather where it was a nice clear night with the m n g ing d wn.

I %ic+ed u% the beam and !lew it t &arlsbad, 'ew <e*ic and then t ,l ;as , Te*as, c ntinuing n t ward Tucs n. The run !r m ,l ;as w uld n rmally be 1 h ur 47 minutes t 2 h urs !lying time. 9e were u% ar und 17,... !eet because as we !lew west, the undercast c ntinued t get higher. 9e +new ab ut the high %ea+s in the !light %ath and wanted t ma+e sure that we were well ab ve any. #!ter leaving ,l ;as and !lying ! r a !ew h urs the navigat r in! rmed me that we were n t hal! way t Tucs n yet and had been having a 127 <;H headwind. #l ng ab ut 656. a.m. a red ball a%%eared in !r nt ! us and well ahead. It grew larger at a ra%id %ace and seemed t be n a c llisi n c urse with us. I called in t the nearest gr und stati n t !ind ut i! any ther %lanes were t be u% here and the answer was that we were the nly ne. The ball grew larger and %assed directly bel w the %lane. / me minutes later s me ! the crew s% tted the ball t ur rear and ab ve and was a%%r aching !r m a 2 Fcl c+ % siti n. The c :%il t and I b th saw the b=ect %ass

1$

cl se t

ur right wing, traveling at a very high s%eed. 9e c uld n t tell anything ab ut

it e*ce%t its sha%e was r und and was bright red and n tail. I called in again ! r a gr und chec+ and again was t ld that we were the nly nes u% there. I was %retty well sha+en by then and rather than %ress n any !urther decided t turn bac+ t ,l ;as . ' w having the wind at ur tail it t + a l t less time t get bac+.

9e arrived =ust as it was beginning t get light. 9hen I called in t t wer I was in! rmed that the !ield was cl sed due t bl wing sand in a 77 <;H gr und wind and was advised t land u% at #lam g rd . I t ld the t wer that we w uld have t c me in because I was getting l w n gas. B#ctually we had en ugh but I did n t want t get stuc+ in that %lace again.C T wer said they w uld stand by with e8ui%ment in case ! tr uble. The !ield at ,l ;as is =ust n the east side ! a m untain range t the west. "ur landing w uld be made t the s uthwest heading in at an angle t the m untain range. 9e b unced ab ut as we made ur %attern and then headed ! r the landing leg and the let d wn. The runway was barely visible and became less s the !urther d wn we g t. )eeling ur way, we !inally t uched d wn and ta*ied u% t the ram% where mechanics were standing by with >tar%s? t c ver the engines t +ee% ut as much sand as % ssible. The %r %s were c m%letely stri%%ed ! %aint as were all leading edge sur!aces ! the %lane. #!ter having brea+!ast we were given tem% rary 8uarters where we c uld get s me slee%. #l ng ab ut 1.56. t 11 a.m., I was awa+ened and t ld that I was wanted n the %h ne. & l nel Terrill was n the %h ne again rdering us bac+ t T %e+a.

14

#!ter getting the crew t gether we t d wn.

+ !! heading ! r h me. 9hen we arrived there

was ab ut 2 !eet ! sn w n the gr und but the runways had been %l wed and we sat

T taling u% the time that we had %ut n the %lane !r m leaving T %e+a till we landed was 2$ h urs actual !light time. ' tt l ng a!ter, we were assigned

ur %lane that we w uld ta+e verseas. "urs was a -:24D < del /erial 342:4.1.1 built by & ns lidated. B/ee details in cha%ter n THE GREEN HORNET.C

)onte!*orar$ +iew of ,a!ilton Field in 1-'.% B-&'" lined u* on right. -y this time I was =ust 26 years ld when we le!t T %e+a n )ebruary 19 heading ! r Hamilt n )ield, &ali! rnia (San Rafael, west side of San Francisco ay) that w uld be ur de%arting base ! r verseas services. "rders dated )ebruary 17 had been issued ! r $ crews t %r ceed t Hamilt n )ield. 9hile at Hamilt n we had a 1,... mile ver water >sha+e d wn? !light %ri r t actually shi%%ing ut. The name >The @reen H rnet? was %ainted n the %lane. ,ickha! Field ()irca 1-'/).

19

#t midnight n <arch 1, 1946, we t until a!ter being airb rne.

+ !! weighing $.,... % unds and using alm st all

! 1.,... !eet ! runway, we were n ur way. 9e had sealed rders n t t be %ened

9e were the nly %lane g ing ver that night and being that the %lane was 2,... % unds verweight 2 crew members had t g #T&. "ur l ad c nsisted ! badly needed engine %arts and t with a little t s%are. #!ter using u% m st ! the !uel during the 17 h ur tri% we were indicating 147 <;H a%%r aching "ahu and Hic+am )ield. Dand sure l +ed g d a!ter ls s that we were nly able t maintain 147 <;H n reaching ur cruise altitude. "ur gas su%%ly was 6,17. gall ns en ugh t get us there

the l ng ver water !light. /h rtly a!ter landing and chec+ing int again t %erati ns we + !! ! r 9heeler

)ield, =ust a sh rt h % u% the island, where we were assigned t the 6.$th - mb @r u% BHC 6$1st - mb 0heeler Field (circa 1-'1). m re %ermanent assignment c uld be made. "! the $ crews sent ver n the )ebruary 17 rder I was the nly %il t t return. /8uadr n BHC L a h lding gr u% till a

2.