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.