One minute you are training to be a pilot . . .
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The Navy did something similar, and in early 1944, the services had begun cutting back flight training efforts as losses hadn't reached their projections which had brought selection numbers as high as they were. The Civil Pilot Training program had been renamed the War Training Service at the start of the war, and those schools were for the most part closed down, though at least the instructors there were given the opportunity to join the Air Transport Command. Unfortunately losses did climb a bit towards the end of 1944, but sadly many aviation dreams were dashed at that point.
A former colleague of mine in my last occupation had something similar happen to him during Navy Primary training in 1970-71. When the RIF was in full force, half his flight school class was told to go home. He was one of the lucky ones who got to stay. This included even some individuals just days from winging....they were told to go home. The Navy and Marines had enough pilots, according to the bean counters. Ironically, after these cuts things heated up in Vietnam again with Linebacker I and II, and losses climbed to the point where there was a bit of a pilot shortage at the tip of the spear.
A former colleague of mine in my last occupation had something similar happen to him during Navy Primary training in 1970-71. When the RIF was in full force, half his flight school class was told to go home. He was one of the lucky ones who got to stay. This included even some individuals just days from winging....they were told to go home. The Navy and Marines had enough pilots, according to the bean counters. Ironically, after these cuts things heated up in Vietnam again with Linebacker I and II, and losses climbed to the point where there was a bit of a pilot shortage at the tip of the spear.
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Something similar happened to my father also. He finished pilot training to be a fighter pilot in P-38's near the end of summer in 1943. He was then sent home and told to wait until he received orders. His orders didn't come until shortly before D-Day. He was sent to Europe and assigned as a B-26 pilot with out ever flying one. So much for becoming a "Hot Shot" fighter pilot.
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My dad's cousin Jerry had just started his AAF fighter pilot's training when the Battle of the Bulge broke out. They pulled him and a lot of fellow cadets out and rushed them through infantry school. That's how bad Hitler's offensive had on Washington.
By the time he was rushed through, the battle of the Bulge was over.
He spent the last months of the war fighting the Japanese on Luzon, the Philippines.
By the time he was rushed through, the battle of the Bulge was over.
He spent the last months of the war fighting the Japanese on Luzon, the Philippines.
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Very interesting document. The invasion of Europe was about to happen, and I'm sure causing a focus on Ground Forces needs. I have been impressed with how the training and manpower needs were managed and met during this time. With reference to the P38 pilots being assigned to a bomber is interesting. At some point in 1943 pilots who received their wings in the bomber track were all sent to Salt Lake City in a sort of holding pattern where they were all sorted out and sent to B17 or B24 training. I know that pilots that had been trained in the P38 were diverted there to be reassigned to bombers, so at that time there must have been a demand for bomber crews. Morale was not the best there as no flying was done and they were living in tents set up at some fairgrounds, they were given some generic 4 engine bomber material to study.
Medical Corps Driver
My Dad ended up driving for the Commanding Officer of the 66th Field Hospital a precursor to the M.A.S.H. Concept deployed in Korea. He also drove ambulances when the LTC didn't need him. He wrote my Mom that he drove 2,500 miles in four days after crossing the Rhine in April 1945. The 66th was one of the first medical units into Dachau after it was liberated.
Civil Pilot Training Materials in my Dad's papers.
To your point there were two introductory unbound civil flight training manuals in with my Dad's stuff. He certainly did a lot of traveling with nothing much to show for it. Aviation Cadet basic training was in Miami Beach! He had a class photo complete with palm trees from there that had me really confused for a while. I was asking myself "when did the o'l man wind up in the Pacific?" After Florida he went to Galesburg, IL for flight school.
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For those unfamiliar with Miami Beach during WWII, it is interesting to learn that the military took over a significant portion of the tourist facilities and used them for both training and recreation. My parents went there for R&R after my father returned from a tour in Europe with the 8th AF.
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Makes sense with the losses suffered by 8th Bomber Command, especially after Schweinfurt and Regensburg. Still would have really sucked to be a fighter jock assigned to heavy bombers. Assigning a P-38 Driver to a B-26 makes some degree of sense, especially for the earlier short winged versions.
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Ha.... My dad was 6 months post Flt training grad and had flown 3 Bombing missions when the "cutback" in Pilots were reported...he just made it, Co-pilot B17G. By May 1945 they were just flying mail and supplies around , he stayed in till Feb 1946...tried to get on at UAL SFO but was 10 months late as they had a pile of pilots begging to get hired. He hired on as a Maintenance Tech. When the Koran War started pilots were drawn back to service by 1952.My dads Draft Line number was never called so he started flying UAL DC3's while his Buds were over seas... built up time and stayed on till retirement. Fate is a odd bird.
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