January 30, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Ariz.

Jan. 30, 1944

Gee Bill,

I guess I haven't written you in some time so I will tell you a little about life out here.

We are having a whale of a time because we all have the same objective in mind and are beginning to get somewhere.  I am in with a bunch of fellows who like to have a good time and you can bet we really make life worth while.  I have just finished a steam bath and a water fight.  We go in, turn on all the hot water in the shower except for 2 and we stand under them so we won't melt.  With six showers giving off steam you can guess how hot it gets.  When we have had enough steam in our lungs we turn off all the water except a few and then we squirt these at each other.  We have quite a time.  We are sure running the Army's water bill up.

Friday afternoon I soloed as everyone has all ready been told.  It was quite an experience.  I made 3 landings all of which may have been good if you were looking at them from a far off but one was sure lousy.  I was coming in over a plane that was revving up its engine so just before I had it stalled out about 5 ft. off the ground I hit the slip stream and at the same time a cross wind picked up the right wing until I thought I would roll up in a ball.  However I brought the plane in pretty well and except for a few gray hairs I guess I came out all right.

A lot of fellows ground loop around here and they really get the "bird".  You have to know how to fly to go up so unless a cross wind comes all of a sudden there seems no excuse for it.  Of course when you stall these ships in for a good 3 point landing a left wing is very likely to drop if you don't watch out for it.  To correct you kick the opposite rudder to bring it up, no aeolian is used.  When you land then you don't land straight and have to do a lot of rudder work.  But still you shouldn't do it very often.

Video of a wingover in a crosswind

Video of Ground Looping

These little ships are really "hot".  They come in and take off a lot faster than most of the ships we will fly in the future.  I don't mean they fly top speed faster but that the landing and take off speed is a lot faster.  An A.T. is the only ship that lands faster.  If we get so we can land these you can bet we can land a B.T. because they are a lot slower.  You see we have flaps but still.  You come in about 80 m.p.h.  Many fighters don't even land that fast.

Today we had to go on gas truck detail.  We pumped gas for the planes for the fellows who have to fly to get their time in so they can leave this next week.  We pumped gas in the planes, on the planes, and over the planes; I pumped gas on myself and into the knee pocket of my flying suit.  We had a heck of a time.  We pumped about 600 gals in 4 hours.  I guess we pumped more than that because that was for only 3 of the 4 fillings.  We had a swell time.

While we were working we saw something you will never see back home.  We saw a mirage.  It was no beautiful gal or some oasis out in the middle of this desert but a series of mts. where there are none.  We were told that those mts. could be about 70 miles more away.  They did not stay just mts. but became little hills and then plateaus and then peaks again.  They were quite something to see.

Well how is civilian life?  I guess it is getting rather rough on all you poor people who try to keep up the home front.  We get good food and everything.  I suppose the old rationing is getting everyone all balled up.  How does the gas hold out?  I guess you don't get the car very often.

Say!  Give Dot my love.  By the way how is Dot these days?  From what I heard last you two were getting alone O.K.

So.

Until Later

Austin.

January 29, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson, Ariz.

Jan 29, 1944

Dear Mother:

I guess it is about time for your letter so here it is.  I received about 2 of your letters for every one I write so I guess that the oftener I write the better.  This is Saturday night and the mumps still are supposed to be around so we are again confined to the post.

I guess you all got the day letter I sent yesterday.  I sent it from town.  We had been in to a Y.M.C.A. where we had the run of the place for nothing.  We swam in the pool for a while then went into the game room and played with the pool tables.  You see we were all given special passes good from 18:30 to 21:30. After coming out of the "Y" I figured it would be a good time to send the message.

Yes I soloed yesterday.  You may think that sounds wonderful but in reality it was no different from the first time I drove the car alone.  I had been making pretty good landings most of the day so he let me go alone.  The trouble with my landings up till then were that I was getting tense when he wanted me relaxed.  You see a plane does not glide right and you have to keep several things on your mind at one time which you cannot do and remain glued to the controls the way I was.  So all the way around he harped on the point of relaxing.  Then he said that I would do the next one alone.  Well that was quite a shock and when he got out and that long nose tuck up in front of me I wondered just what I was getting into.  Well as you see I wasn't killed or even damaged in fact made 3 pretty fair landings. Boy was I happy!!!!

Then I came back to the barracks and there I found a note from the mail orderly that I had a package at the post office.  Of course I knew what it was and ran helter skelter for the mail room.  It's too bad you were afraid it wouldn't suit me because it is just what I would have picked out.  It really is a beauty.  When you wrote that you didn't know if I would like it that night I dreamt of something grotesque that I would be afraid to show off.  When I really saw it I was all smiles.  That should be explanation enough.

Then the 3 hour pass came through and that was the touch off of a perfect day.  We really saw a lot of Tucson and did a lot in a short time.  You can't imagine how happy I was.  Just a change of scenery was all we needed and you can bet we made the most of it.  Well this is Saturday and we don't get out till next Saturday again.

I never answer your questions but one come to mind now.  I really need a sewing kit.  My G.I. outfit is slowly losing buttons and the Air Corp patches are loosing up so if you get a kit remember this; get thread that suits Air Corp colors.  Blue and white are the colors used most often but have plenty of brown (you know khaki) and sun-tan.  I have some black and some white so be sure you get the shades of brown.  I have needles and pins but send more along if you want and can sore them; however I don't really need them.

I never told you who I run around with .  My bunk mate is a fellow from Kentucky and we have a swell time arguing the Civil War all over again.  All the fellows are Southern except one who is from Lawrence, Mass.  He came from the G.I. Army and has been in some time longer than most of us.  This fellow is rather easy going and is rather mild like I am so we get a long very well.  He and I are going to have a lot of fun when we get out.  Right now his mind is occupied with girl-friends at home troubles.  Seems some 2nd Lt. is trying to steal his girl and has written some rather bad things to her about him.

Well I will have to close now and go take a steam bath, have a water fight, shave and then go to bed.

With love.

Austin

Am still happiest Cadet.

January 27, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson, Ariz.

Jan 27, 1944

This is that Christmas seal you sent in my Christmas packages.

Dear A.P.

I am writing this letter in a little spare time I have before supper.  I haven't written for some time so I guess it's about time.

Flying isn't going too hot right now.  I don't know just what is the matter other than I haven't caught on to landings well enough to solo.  Several days I could have done it but the good weather has broken and cross wind landings here are messing up the works.  I now have 10:32 hours and that is 1:32 hours more than I have to have.  I have 56 landings and that is a lot more than the minimum.  On a whole I am very disgusted with myself.  Something is wrong and I should be able to take care of it. 3 of the fellows have soloed all ready.  I should have by this time but I guess I will just have to see what happens tomorrow.

We have a pretty tough schedule out here but it is not monotonous.  Each week we either fly first and go to school first and the next week we will do the opposite as last week.  This week we have classes in the morning along with P.T. and Drill.  We fall out for drill at 6:50 and drill till 7:30.  Then we have P.T. until 9:00 or later usually later so that we get in the barracks at 9:30.  Our classes start at 9:50 and last till 11:15.  We then have dinner and report to the flight line at 1300.  Between 1300 and 1700 we get an hour or more of flying and in between time we walk wing times and amuse ourselves in any way possible.  Sometimes they have classes and flying skills and such things as flight patterns, order of maneuver in flights.  They are usually very interesting and very helpful in flying if you can remember all that is said.

The field doesn't have mile long runways but they are pretty near as long.  It is somewhat longer than 3 miles around the field so it would make the diagonal about a mile long.  We have plenty of room to come down and have a long taxi at the end.  You see we use flaps and this cuts down the landing space as well as the speed.  Flaps increase lift a lot more than decrease speed.  You see we use only 10 degrees of flaps and the maximum is 30 degrees.  There are 3 auxiliary fields placed about 5 or 10 miles from the main field and it is here that we do our landing and later do stages.

Ryan Airfield

The whole set up is ringed by mountains that rise anywhere from 1000' to 6000' above the floor of the valley.  These mts form the boundaries.  These mountains are not so bad as you might think because they are very visible and as long as no flying is done in foggy weather there is not danger of running into one.  Of course your engine might fail when you are over that way but you should have enough altitude to stay out of them.  In fact they suggest that you fly over the valley rather than over near the mountains.

Taken from here.

We are going to be let out for 2 hours tomorrow night to go to town.  I will get a little chance to see what the world is like again.

Well I have to get about my business so until later.

With love

Austin.

Hope I get the watch soon!!!

January 23, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Ariz.

Jan 23, 1944

Dear Mother:

Here is it Sunday so I guess I can find time to write again as we are confined to the post, or should I say quarantined because of the mumps.  They are trying to make it pleasant for us, having movies and refreshments, but we all wish we could have gotten off the Post for a change.  The movies wasn't bad but rather old.  Today we are going to see the movie "The Amazing Mrs. Holliday".  This picture isn't quite so old and should be interesting.

I got your last letter of the 19th and the box of cake and candy at the same time.  The letter took only 3 days to get here which is pretty good time.  I got Mary's letter the same day and it took 5 days.  This is cutting about 2 days off from the regular time required before.  I was overjoyed to hear that you had finally got a watch and a good one at that.  Do not worry about its being satisfactory because I am sure most any style will please me. You see I really need the watch to calculate my flying time.  You see Mr. Powell my instructor is about to kick his fledgling out of its nest and then flying time will have to be calculated by myself.  Probably by the time you get this letter I will have had my first solo flight.  I am rather looking forward to it.

I would have written yesterday only I was J.O.D. which means Junior Officer of the Day.  It seems at first to be a good job and if anything a rather important one but in reality it is just a punk detail.  All day long you run errands and do odd jobs that no one else wants to do.  You make beds, feed a goat, deliver telegrams, clean offices, and ride a bike all over the post hunting up cadets and officers and everyone in general.  What really makes it tough is that the bike runs harder than anything imaginable.

However you do get around to hear and see things.  I got into the Link trainer room.  You know what a Link trainer is, it's a plane you can step out of at 10,000' without a parachute and not get killed.  You can also land it 50' under the ground and not get hurt.  Really it is an instructional trainer.  Every cadet gets 5 hours in one of these before he leaves the post so I will get to see the inside of one of these.  You fly a course in one and it is plotted on a table that is electrically attached to it.  One fellow was flying a rectangular course each leg of which about 20 miles long.  He was up 2800' and flying 160 mpg.  He was doing all right considering he hadn't had too much time in the thing. (I am making mistakes all over the place because I am trying to hear a radio program and write at the same time.)  I also heard a fellow getting nailed for flying above the altitude limits around here.  He was caught at at 13000' just flying around doing nothing.  I suppose you wonder who could have caught him.  Well in the field they have several Basic Trainers and officers go up to patrol the boundaries.  Well this one happened to be up to 18000' on oxygen and saw this fellow come up through the overcast.  This fellow got into a lot of trouble partly because he was disobeying orders and partly because he was doing something that was medically wrong.  Army regulations state that you cannot fly above 1000' without oxygen.  This fellow may be washed out for this foolishness.

I was rather disappointed to hear that Carl Evenson was eliminated from the Navy flight training.  It don't seem to me that a fellow can be washed out by flunking a test.  It must have been more than that.  The Navy as a rule is rather lenient in such matters as is the Army.  You can hardly quit even if you want to if they can determine why you want to leave. He seemed to be rather wild and he could have been eliminated for breaking regulations.  Well I hope he can find something that he will like as well.

I am glad you found a good place to eat in Boston.  From what you wrote it must have been a very good place.  When I was in Boston that summer I used to look in that doorway just to see what I could see.  However I never ate in there.  It looked like a good place to me.

A.A.F.F.T.D. means Army Air Force Flying Training Detachment.

I will close now and see who else I can write to before I have noon chow.

With love
Austin.

January 19, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Ariz.

Jan. 19, 1944

Dear Mother:

I got your letter yesterday and was very pleased as usual.  It only takes 4 days for mail to come along now instead of the regular 5 to Calif.  Yes we are a little nearer home but there still seems to be a lot of desert between me and home.

Letters never meant too much to me before I got to Santa Ana because I still felt that I was near home but when the mail took so long in coming it began to mean  a lot.  Yesterday, although I didn't fly, around noon time I was tired and felt worn out.  I felt as if something was on my mind but I couldn't find out what it was.  When I got the letter at noon mail call I lost a lot of the tired feeling and began to feel good again.  It seems rather strange what a letter will do but it is no exaggeration to say that the longer you are away the more important the mail becomes.  It has a lot to do with morale.  When you are under tension the way we are to put out our best for only one hour a day the moments we can get away from it all help a lot lot to cure the tired feeling.

Now as for the interestingness of my letters I am sure I could not say as I only write them and get too little time to read them.  Therefore you must find many many mistakes in spelling, punctuation, and general silly errors.  {Graciously edited out by the transcriber.} Anyway they may convey some of  the ideas that come into my head and some of the things I see along the way.  

My training is coming along on schedule as far as I know.  We have progressed far enough so that I am now learning to land.  Today I made 4 landings and take offs.  None were any too hot but I guess the instructor hasn't given up hope for me.  We had a very strong wind at 300' and diminished until the ground wind was practically nil.  This required a number of changes in the flying altitude. (We just got some "good" news.  We are going to be restricted to the past for 2 more weeks.  That means that I won't see any of Arizona for another 2 whole lousy (such language) week ends.)  Oh Well!  Tomorrow we will do landings again I guess and they would be done under better circumstances if we can help it.

I have learned the procedure for many of the elementary maneuvers but have 2 more to go before I have a 20 hour check flight.  I have only 0509 hours put in all ready so I don't think a check flight after that time will offer any great obstacles.

I should tell you something about my instructor.  He is about 5'4" tall and is really a shrimp beside me and the other tall fellows who fly with me.  I don't know whether his teaching us is an accident or a design of the high ups.  You would think that the big fellows would be taught by someone somewhere their size.  However he makes up for his size in his flying because he can really make a plane perform for him.  He must have infinite patience to teach a new bunch of "dodo's" each 2 mos.  Of course he loses patience once in a while and he bangs the controls around a little but if you don't take everything he says to heart you can learn from his impatient moments.  They always say a lot of things they don't really mean and try to impress you with others because in the future your life will depend upon what you retain from all you are told.  They are really trying to get you "on the ball" and I might say they really know the right methods.  If not they would not have the important job they hold.  If anyone learns to fly safely he can figure that his life will later be saved by what has been told and taught him by the very unglorified "Primary Instructors".

Some one has brought the "mumps" with them from Santa Ana and that is why we will be restricted to the post for 2 more weeks.  I guess I can save some money again.  I have about $50 that is burning a hole in my pocket and I guess that before the next restrict is up that you will get the money to put in the bank for me.  In 2 weeks we will get paid again so I won't need the 50.  I rather wish I could spend the money because I get so little enjoyment out of it if I just send it home.  It's going to be a long war yet so even though I should save more I don't have to save it all.

I wrote to Mary the other day so I hope she enjoys her new job, I guess I didn't know if she really had it or not.  I hope she can have some fun this winter.

I wrote to Mabel (a card) the other day and told her not to get too mad at me.  So she thinks I have changed by getting to fly.  Well my change may be apparent when I get home but right here I don't see much difference.  I may be browner and a lot heavier but aside from that I can see little difference.  I may not be so peace loving as I used to be and I might be getting a little wild but I guess I haven't changed so much that you won't recognize me.

With love

Austin    (Mr. Hyde?)

P.S. Did I forget to write anything.

January 17, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Ariz.

Jan. 17, 1944

Dear Mary,

Yes I guess it is about time I wrote to you after the letters you have sent and the little newspaper each week.  So I am taking a little time off from the "Sack" (the bed to you).

I really get quite a kick out of that "little" newspaper and everyone who sees it is interested in what I have and make some comment on the side.  Even though the news is rather old and may be past history I like to see the funnies, the Dahl cartoons, and just run through in general.  ( Just came back from Retreat)  I don't know just what I was thinking about 15 min. ago so maybe I will seem incoherent.  I don't know how you get the little newspapers so maybe you won't be able to get them on your new job.

Just a taste of Francis Dahl's handiwork.

I was glad to hear that you were about to take a job that was really beginning to pay.  It only seems sensible to me that the more money you can make now the better off you will be later.  Even the amount you will make will not be too much because you must have carfare, lunches and maybe board to pay.  However I guess you can save some and go to school later on.

That little animal I sent you is getting vague in my mind and all I remember is that it looked like a squirrel and was mad of Redwood.  I guess you could call it most anything you like.  If you like things like that I could look around and maybe send a few home.  You see I am scheduled to see Tucson next Sat. and Sun. so I can find a few things to send home.  Of course Mother will get her card and I will try to find something for you.  Such things are not very expensive and they are a lot of fun.

We are having a swell time out here on the desert.  It is really a pretty good even life and a very healthy one at that.  We get our 8 hours of sleep, hour of flying, and hour of P.T.  The rest fits in to the schedule but is not very interesting.

We get up at 0500 and stand reveille at 0515, eat chow (breakfast) at 0600 and report to flight line at 0700, five men are assigned to an instructor and 4 of us fly each day for an hour or more, (I got 0101 hours today),  at 1300 you eat dinner and you can bet we are all hungry.  Then 1/2 hour of drill, 1 hour of P.T. and 2 hours of classes are sandwiched in the next 4 hours.  we stand retreat at 1830 and eat supper at 1855.  At 1945 we study for an hour and to bed at 2100.  You get 15 min to shave and take a shower before bed.  The schedule is really full.  We get about 15 to dress and clean up in the morning.  10 min to get ready for P.T. and 20 min. at P.T. to shower and get cloths on again.  Only after classes and after supper do we get any real time to do anything.  Even then we should be studying because the crosses are all rather tough.

Every once in a while we see a few cracked up planes and the odd part about it is that no one ever gets seriously hurt.  One fellow flew out of the limits of his area and plowed into a canyon wall.  The plane was wrecked but he only got a broken leg and a headache for a couples of hours.  He was court-marshalled of course.  Another plane was landed too high and really got smashed up.  The wheels and shock absorbers folded up, the plane doubled up in the middle, the wings folded up and the plane really looked ruined.  Nothing happened to him and he got 2 gigs for landing against a traffic T.  Every day they ground loop a plane and every once in a while they stand one up on its nose by putting the brakes on too suddenly.  Not much really happens.  You see I really know because the junk heap is right out behind our barracks.

The instructor does a little acrobatics each day to keep his hand in and also, I imagine, to entertain me.  He does chandelles, lazy 8s, loops, snap rolls, and slow rolls.  The slow roll is the oddest because you have time to think about what's going on and as the motion is not rapid gravity work on you.  When you are half way around in the roll your head points rearward and you are attached to the plane only by a safety belt.  So you hang by the safety belt looking at the ground 3600 away.  It is really an odd sensation.  I may show you someday.  In a snap roll the same things happen but so fast you hardly know what happens.  I guess a roller coaster will be very tame the next time I ride.

Well lights are out in 5 minutes.  A lot has happened since I started this.  There has been a lapse of about 2 or more hours in between maybe you can tell by the difference in writing.  Part was written on a table and the rest on top of my bed and it is really bouncing around.  This kid from Kentucky below me is a heavy weight and every time he moves I bounce.

Well keep up the letters even though I can't answer them all and keep up the little papers if you can.

With love.

Austin

January 13, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Arizona

Jan. 13, 19434

Dear A.P.

I just got the letter you sent on Jan 2 and I noticed that it took quite a while to get here but some of that was in a re-route to me here.  I guess mail will take the same time here as any where out in this direction.

I hope you have got the card I sent back in that direction so you know a little about what goes on here.  Those little planes have a lot of pep and are something to fly properly.  Right now I can't fly worth a darn and even though I had time at C.T.D. I am having to learn all over again.  I thought I would be a hot pilot when I got here but the opposite seems to be the case.  I do everything wrong or seemingly so.  Even though I can do turns and climbs and banks and everything I can't do them well.  I don't know if that is normal or not.  I guess that 1 hour and  46 minutes is not too much on a ship like this.  They certainly are a lot different from one of those Cabs we flew at C.T.D.  When you do a maneuver in a PT22 it takes a lot of skill and smooth handling.  However it is really a lot of fun and I guess I am coming along pretty well.

We are pretty well taken care of here in the way of reading matter.  I used to get a look at "Time" when ever I went to Los Angeles, on that long stretch between Santa Ana and the "big town" but no I don't know if I will have time except in the weekends and then we will be getting open post and may not then.  We are required in a way to keep up on world affairs although we never get a test or anything on it.  Once every 2 weeks we have to go to the barber and to get there we have to go through a "War Room" where all the latest maps and military information is available.  As you go through something is bound to draw your attention and from then on one thing just leads to another.

Some one had better get busy on the watch because I will need it in several weeks when I do some solo work.  After we have 9 or 10 hours we are supposed to solo.  We have to keep our own time and there is no time piece available in the rear cockpit of a trainer.  The Swiss watches seem all right to me.  Some of the fellows have them and they seem to stand up O.K.  In fact they seem better than some of these American made.  Well see what can be domes and let me know what the results are.

We don't have code any more.  It doesn't make a heck of a lot of difference to me if I take it or not while on this post.  We will get it later on and I know that I can learn all over quickly all I forget here.

I don't know how much time you spent in this state but I guess you couldn't have experienced a worse dust storm than we had last week.  It was Texas dust they say but to me it made no difference.  It came in everywhere and got on everything.  It came so thick you couldn't see 100 ft and how it blew. The wind must have been 40 m.p.h. or more and you can bet we walked around half blind while we were out.  Inside although it didn't blow it looked like cigarette smoke.  You can bet we spent some real rough days trying to sweep it up and have it fly instead of sweep.  There was no flying of course. What would Mother say if some day she should come home and find 1/2 an inch of red dirt on everything?

Tucson Dust Storm 

I have got to get studying now so I can pass a weather exam tomorrow.  By the way we are having classes in Engines and Weather for awhile.  I will write my schedule in the next letter if I remember.

With love

Austin

January 8, 1944 Postcard

Jan 8

Dear Mother:

I expect you didn't know what I meant by a Ryan PT22 so I am sending a picture of one just in case you can't find one yourself.  They are really swell little planes and look like a lot of fun as well as work.

Love
Austin

January 8, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Ariz.

Jan. 8, 1944

Dear Mother:

I sent a card last night to let you know I arrived at my new "home" safe and sound.  We had a wonderful trip overnight on a Pullman with a diner and all.  We ate in the dining car of course and didn't have to stop for anything.  It was a regular troop train with about 20 cars full of cadets going to primary fields throughout Ariz.  Some of the cars were the new so called Army Pullman cars.  They were built primarily for troop transport and although they are not the quietest sort of a car and even though they do bounce and bump more than the regular cars, they are very comfortable and look like the hardships of such a car would not be too great. Even so, the Army is not afraid of losing its customers.

Buy the poster!

I have written some about Southern Calif so I guess I won't tell you much about it accept that we saw some very beautiful mountains.  They were snow capped and of course multicolored because of the differences in soil.  We didn't go through any very high mts. although we did go up to an altitude of about 6000'.  It was very cold up there.  Things were somewhat greener than when we first came through because it rains once in a while now.

This field is just outside of Tucson (about 20 mi.) in the middle of a deserted plain about 25 or 30 miles across.  Most of the flying is done in the area.  It is bordered by a series of mts. that would in normal country shut out out the wind but not out here.  The wind blows something terrific, and it is not hot wind but very cold.  Yesterday noon it did warm up some but a long as the wind blew it was cold.  There are no trees so there is no shade to get in if it really does get hot.  All there is is cactus plants in all varieties.  Some are large and some are small.  The small ones have the long needles and the tall ones have small needles.  Some have sharp points and others have points that are barbed and stick in you.  I will send a few along one of these days.

Saguaro National Park, Tucson AZ

Out here all the planes are PT22's, a fast little primary trainer.  Maybe William has a picture of one.  They have 160 H.P. motors and a cruising speed of 128 m.p.h.  They are all metal and very sleek looking.  They look like very safe flying planes.

Now the all important question, when do we start flying?  Monday we draw our fly clothes and Tuesday we get our first ride.  We have waited a long time for this and everyone is ready to go.  The flying clothes are fur lined and you really need the fur.  We get a helmet and goggles and a white scarf. You see we are flying in tandem open cockpit planes and it gets pretty cold at 5000' around here.  Just the same everyone is looking forward to it.

And the meals, they are what we have been missing all along.  You can get all you can eat and more.  My eyes are bigger than my stomach because I really have to eat to get it all down.  If they keep it up I will be too heavy to fly pretty soon and that is some load.

Everything around here is a perfect set up and the ideal place to spend the first flying days.  You can get plenty of sleep, plenty to eat, plenty of exercise, not too much spare time, the discipline is not too tough, you can get to town even if you do have tours and they are hard to get, you fly a swell little ship, it is hard to get washed out if you stay on the ball, everything is wonderful.

My writing is shaky because the barracks is so cold.  The wind blows through this place like a sieve.

Now about that watch.  Please do what you think is best.  The money is at home and that should be no trouble.  I can not get a watch here or any other place unless I have a better excuse than just needing one.  They used to issue watches at graduation but that is a long ways away and they may not be doing it now.  I suppose I have come along so far without it so that 4 or 5 more months shouldn't be too long. Even so I really should have had one a long time ago and the need is becoming more urgent at the time.  I probably won't have someone with one with me all the time.

I am wearing Esther's sweater all the time now because it is much too cold to fool around without one.  I don't think anyone has one like it or as heavy as it.  Some of the fellows have heavy sweaters but they were either bought or they are not as heavy as this one.  I guess my folks at home are taking good care of me.

In your last letter you said that Mary was trying out for a new job with pretty good pay.  I hope she makes it and by now she probably has or hasn't by this time.  I wish Mary could get in with a gang that is doing something once in a while because you can have such a good time when a gang goes out and does something.  I wish I could go come and see the old gang and have a good bang up party.

Tell me how I can send some stuff home the best way.  I am undecided which is better, parcel post or the Railway Express.  You see I haven't sent those books and odds and ends yet and parcel post looks rather expensive. Even so the money don't look like too much to me.

Well I will have to close now because soon we will have to get moving.

With love

Austin.

January 7, 1944

Jan 7, 1944

Dear Mother:

Just a card to let you know that I have arrived at my destination safely after a very pleasant trip.  You can get my new address from the front of the card.  It is a little more complicated.  We start flying next Tuesday.  P.T. 22 a low wing plane.  It is a good deal here.  Will write later.

With love

Austin

Model airplanes still exist and the story behind this one is pretty neat.

January 3, 1944

Good News!

Jan 3, 1944

Hellow Everybody:!

Good News!  I am shipping this Thursday for Tucson, Arizona.  What a break for me.  I am getting into some real flying country but will be in the middle of the desert.  Send the addresses of the nearest relatives!

The only trouble is that only a few of us are going consequently many of my friends will be left behind.  That is the hardest part of this moving around but I am seeing the country.  Well barring unforeseen events I will be moving when you get this letter.

Love

Austin.

January 2, 1944

Santa Ana Army Air Base

Jan. 2, 1944

Dear Mother:

Well I have been sitting around eating nuts and other people's fruit cake and in general making a pig of myself.  But that was getting me no where so I decided to catch up on the correspondence.  So to the music of the Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra coming over a nearby radio I will tell you about a very uneventful weekend.  We couldn't get out too early so I decided not to go to Cousin Emma's.  I really should have but I didn't think I had the time.  As it was I had more than enough time.  I got as far as Los Angeles and went to several movies.  I went to the Cadet Service Center and the Officer and Cadet Club.  Both places really make you comfortable and glad that such organizations are around.

California is the most expensive state I have been in.  The Servicemen gets none of the privileges extended to him as in other cities.  I don't mean that there are not organizations interested in our welfare such as the Officer and Cadet Club, the U.S.O. or the C.S.O. but that they have to pay full price for everything.  For example in the P.X. you pay considerable more for ice cream and fountain service than we did in Missouri.  The jewelry and that fellows always like to send home always cost more than in other P.W.'s.  Outside of camp you get no consideration.  In Chicago you get free transportation and half price on theater tickets and in general they make a trip to town very inexpensive.  In St. Louis we could get free meals but not here.  Oh well we do get pretty good pay don't we so money shouldn't bother us.

We got paid the other day.  I get $105 a month now you know but minus deductions I have about $42.98, some drop.  When I was a hick private I used to get $50 a month and still have $40 when deductions were taken out.  Oh well, that's a $3 raise.  But then to be an aviation cadet is an honor.  I'm not kicking because I have more than enough money to do me.

We are sure of being shipped this week but keep on writing because all my mail will be forwarded.  We are going to stay here in Calif. or go to Arizona.  I have little telling in the matter.  It would be swell to stay where I can come and see Cousin Emma but if we leave the coast we will be sure to fly. (My bunkmate just came back with $47 he had just won playing cards.)  It will be another state that I have been in.

If you are having trouble reading this letter it is because I am writing it on bed and on my stomach.  I keep putting down mistakes and writing up and down hill.  This seems a hard way to write letter but it is really comfortable even though the results aren't readable.

I think I will need some more of those eye drops.  I think I am beginning to have trouble again.  They are not very bad but the drops can't do any harm. I will send the old box along if you can't get the prescription filled some way.

By the way does anyone have an extra shoe ration coupon.  If you have one that you are sure no one will use please send it because it will help my morale.  It would be swell to get a pair of military low cut shoes even though I don't really need them.  We can't get the coupons here on the base.

How I would like to get home.  I suppose if I should get home I would have to shovel snow but just the same I would enjoy it.  But I am so far from home.  I am now beginning to realize how far it is.  When you tell about Lt. Sewards' 10 day leave it looks like I will spend my leave on the railroads.

With love

Austin.