Cadet Training School Tales

There were many criteria established to determine if an aviation cadet was qualified to begin or continue training. In the initial testing which I took at Lackland AFB in 1942 1 was sitting at a table which had a 2 ft X 2 ft metal table (it was vertical) and there was a 1/4 inch hole in the middle of it I was handed an ice pick (look alike) with an electric cord attached. My instruction was to hold the pick in the hole for as long as possible without touching the side of the hole. An electric spark would mark any deviation. I don't remember how long I held the pick steady without touching the sides. But I was later told that I would not be going to pilot training; I was being sent to Bombardier school because of my steady nerves! In addition, they said they had too many pilots!! Some consolation.

As an instructor at Carlsbad I was never given any choice when students were assigned. I had all kinds of young men come to me. They mostly were very young (as was I). By no means did they have mechanical ability. That was a minus from the start. Most had finished high school and some had college backgrounds. Most were just kids from home, doing their duty. And they were all anxious about flying, about being good at dropping bombs and making the grade in this special school. One time, a young man about my age, I recognized as being from my home town In Oklahoma. I approached him and called his name. He immediately stood at attention while I addressed him. From the look on his face I could see that he did recognize me, but he dared not say anything , not anything! I inquired about his family and how long he had been in the service. He could barely say a word! He was scared, really scared! Finally, I told him to contact me if he had any problems at the school. I told him he could come by the director of training office anytime to see me. He never did, ever. I don't know if he graduated from CAAF school! I have not seen him since.

When the cadets made their first flight in the AT-11 they were issued a quart size carton to carry with them wherever they went in the plane. They also had a chest pack parachute. The carton was to nullify the action to follow instinct when the motion of the plane brought on air sickness. This was a common happening for new students. They could really make a mess! Most of the time they would immediately remove one of the slip-off caps on the carton. Just to be ready when they got sick Most of the time that was effective. One time it wasn't.

This young man was working on the bomb sight, rate knob course knob, checking the gyro level and looking at the PDI (pilot direction indicator). Sometimes they would even look to the right of the instructor and smile, confidently. This time the cadet got suddenly sick He picked up the carton, saw the cap was still on the carton and he quickly took it off and vomited into the carton! When the vomit landed in the eyepiece of the bombsight (it went right inside) he moaned aloud, very loud. The bomb run was over rapidly. I handed him a cloth to wipe his face and then told the pilot it was time to go home! Back at the briefing room this kid was now really sick! I told the director of training what had happened He said take the cadet to the airplane, remove the bomb sight, clean the nose compartment and bring the sight to the classroom. We did this and at the classroom I directed the student to get the tools and the sight and begin taking it apart, just as he had done in class previously. That was messy and it had to be meticulous. For instance, the gyro in the bombsight was specially weighted; all the screws to be seen on the gyro were numbered to keep the gyro in balance. They had to be removed and replaced properly.

The next day he had the job completed and was back on flying status. A lesson well learned! Once a cadet was on the sight and had begun his run, the instructor had little to do until the bomb was away. Usually he sat on the step which led to the nose compartment The nose compartment was not large and both student and instructor could not comfortably sit side by side. Usually the instructor's feet were on an aluminum bar which ran from left to right in front of the instructor. This was protection for the door beneath the bar; commonly called an escape hatch. It had a hand - activator knob to lock it in place. One day an instructor (not 1) - had -plated his chest pack parachute behind him on the floor (no co-pilot rode on these missions). And while the cadet was working he got up and moved to the rear of the plane to use the relief tube (!).

While in the rear of the plane he heard an unusual noise up front. Moving rapidly forward he noticed that the escape hatch was open and the air noise was terrific! He also noticed his parachute was missing! He reached down and closed the escape hatch and looked at the cadet. He appeared to be scared out of his wits!! Questioned, he said he had looked up and saw the escape hatch was open and he saw that the instructor was gone! So in trying to be helpful to the instructor, whom he had thought had fallen out of the escape hatch, he threw the parachute out after him!! For the instructor, this was a revolting development! He called to the pilot and said we were going home. The mission was over. At the briefing room the report was given to the director of training and his words were carefully phrased. He ordered a driver and jeep immediately. He told the driver and cadet to go out to the target and find the parachute! It took them the better part of the afternoon to make the trip. But they did and they found the chute.

Many thanks to Fred for some humorous side to war!

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