March 10, 2944

Ryan Field

Tucson, Ariz.

Mar. 10, 1944

Dear Mother:

I should have written long ago but besides being rather busy the last few days I guess I am rather lazy.  I don't write as often as I should but I like to relax and read a magazine once in a while.

I received your box the day before yesterday.  It was somewhat of a surprise.  Of course everyone was interested in what I had so it got pretty well spread around.  I like the bag of candy very much.  We don't get much candy here.  I will start using the eye drops right away.  Did I ask for some rags?  Well I have a lot of them now.  They will come in handy as shining cloths.  I guess I better use this writing paper up before I start on yours.  As for envelopes, I don't need any.  I have lots of them left over from all that have been sent or I have bought.  It sure is swell to receive a box once in a while.

We have completed our flying at Primary.  I got in 65 hours and 18 minutes and 5 hours and 45 min of link.  I wish it was not over because we have had so much fun learning.  I suppose you are glad to have me on the ground for a couple of weeks but I sure envy the underclassmen who are flying today.  They keep buzzing over the barracks and I wish I were up there.

I guess it is all right for me to tell you where I am going.  I am heading for California again.  I am going to a field near Lancaster, Calif. and it is about 30 miles by air from L.A. or about 60 by road.  I guess I will see L.A. again and see your cousins again.  I am going to a pretty good B.T. (Basic Trainer) school and it has a good record.  I don't know what I will fly there but we are pretty sure of getting A.T.s near the end of the program.  We haven't been sent to the fields of our choice but were sent according to a rating we received at classification at Santa Ana. 

I am still hoping to get my choice of planes.  I saw a plane, maybe I should say the plane I have been wanting to fly ever since I started my training.  It is of course the A20.  One landed here last night.  It took the whole diagonal runway of the field and he ended up with his brakes smoking like everything.  It sure is a wonderful plane to fly.  You see I have a chance to fly one because I am pretty big to fly a fighter but not too big for this one.  The pilot was a little bit shorter than I am but a lot beefier.  He was a big boy anyway.  The only trouble is that you have to be good to fly one and maybe I am not good enough.  Well I can do my best and see what happens.

Douglas A-20 Havoc

Today we graduate and tomorrow we ship.  I am going to get another overnight ride on the government.  I sure like to travel around this way.  Just think I am getting all these free rides where it will cost you quite a lot to come out here if and when I graduate.  All I have is about 4 or 5 more months and I may get my wings.

The governor of the state is going to be here to see us graduate.  In fact he is here right now and is going to have a chance to say his piece this afternoon. You see it is election year out here and the old boy has to have a little favorable publicity.  Just because of him we don't get any extra time off and don't get a few of the open parts that are scheduled.  That's what happens everywhere.  I sure would like to give that old boy a ride.  I guess I could make him wish he never saw a P.T. 22 when he got down.  I guess I could make any earth bound human wish he were down for a while anyway.  I sure would like to give Pop a ride.  I guess I won't be able to anyway because my rating will be above any plane available near home or near the money we could pay to rent a plane.  I would have to learn all over again.  That won't be hard to do.

Governor Sidney Preston Osborn of Arizona

I have some more I could write but I have 5 minutes till chow and I have some work to do.  I have a lot of stuff that I should get started your way but I hate to send it by mail since it costs so much.  Anyway I will send the most important stuff right away.

With love

Austin

March 8, 1944

Mar. 8, 1944

Dear Mother:

Well here comes another set of cards with a little story.  This card has nothing to do with the story but was picked out because it was rather nice looking and seemed to be a place I would like to see.  I have never seen any water like that but the rock formations are very familiar because on cross country I flew close to a mountain side and the side really looked about that close as I went by.

 That cactus is very familiar because they grow like trees and are just as hard when you hit.

This card shows a very familiar scene, one which we see every time we go to town.  The desert, mountains and the cactus are the most seen things out here.  When you get in the air they are now more distinguishable but on the ground that is all that can be seen.  I don't know much about them but I am sure that I would not like to run into any of them unexpectedly like one fellow did running the Burma Road.

A.P. was very interested in the architecture of many of the beautiful buildings here.  Well this card shows a typical farm and I might say a dormant form of habitant.  "Old Tucson" which is mentioned was originally a movie set built several years ago.  The film "Arizona" was filmed out there.  However the post office shown is a typical structure.  They are made out of mud bricks which stand up rather well under the beating they get.

As we got our first look at town each week it looks much like this.  There isn't much of a "skyline" but it looks pretty good to us.  The "A" Mt. is a dairy in the valley beneath the mt.  It has a huge "A" on the side and is a distinguishing feature.  The fields are kept green by irrigation and I might say that the green looked rather good.

Google Maps street view of Tucson today at 6th and Congress

You can see a few trees grow there and they also look good although they are rather dried up looking.

This picture is taken almost at the corner of 6th and Congress, the corner we get off.  The 2 theaters are the ones we go to often and the bus shown is just like our only means of transportation.  I guess you can get some idea of what the town is like now.  I guess I will be able to remember it better also.

Love

Austin

This is what A Mountain looked like back in the day.

Updated and patriafied

March 1, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Ariz.

Mar. 1, 1944

Dear A.P.

I have a chance to write a short letter because I want to get to bed early.  I have a check ride tomorrow which I can pass if I stay "on the ball" and it will be easier if I get a little extra sleep tonight.

Today I got a dual cross country ride of about 45 miles.  We had a little head wind so we made it in about 38 minutes and came home in a somewhat shorter time.  The plane wasn't too good and would only cruise at 85 miles an hour.  It also would not climb too well because we were about 11 miles from the main airport before we got to our altitude.  We went over some rather mountainous country and as I had a map I got a little used to picking out check points along the way.  As a whole the ride was rather uneventful.

We made a stop at a little airport and then came back over the same route.  on the way back we ran close to a pretty good size range of mountains.  We had a little fun watching them go by.  The air was pretty rough but not too much so.

I guess I kind of mislead you with this link trainer business.  All a Link Trainer is is a gadget to teach you instrument flying while still on the ground where you are still safe.  They can stimulate any kind of conditions in the plane that you can encounter in the actual flight.  You can do stimulated maneuvers of any kind in the ship but stay on the ground and move only around the axis of the plane. All the instruments are run by little .... and not by actual conditions.  They are called all kind of names and the name of "Infernal Gadget" really describes it.  It really is a series of gadgets and things can certainly go haywire if you don't know how to make the thing work for you.  I think I can find a picture of one if you want one but all you have to do is find a flying magazine around and you can find a picture.  They are not all you expect.

Well we are getting pretty well done here.  I have 10 more hours to go to finish the course and I could finish that in about 4 days easily or even less if they would let me.  As it is I guess I can't get my time in so fast now as I have been doing.  The instructor keeps talking about "when you get to Basic", so I guess I may get there yet.  We are scheduled to leave here the 11th or 12 of this month.  When we do go I can't say right now I am sorry.  The trouble is that the next place is likely to be much the same as this only a lot worse.  The only complaint is that most of these places are out in the desert and rather uncomfortable places weekends.

Pretty soon I am going to have to make a big decision, shall I go in for fighter or light bombardment training.  These are the only two choices we have.  If I go in for Fighter I may get assigned to P38s which is not too bad or I might get my choose of fighter planes.  I would kind of like that .  However if I go in for light bombardment I may get an A20 light bomber which would be just the thing but probably I would get a B17 or B 24 which are heavy bombers.  That is not so much to my liking.  You see twin engine fighters (P38) and multi-engine bombers are the only schools available out in the command area.  If I qualified for anything else I doubt if I could get it because they hate to train men out here and then lose them to other sections.  Right now I don't have a lot of choice to make anyway.

P38

B17 Bomber

B24 Bomber

It seems I am not too big to fly P38s or P47 and most of the modern fighters because they are really building big planes around the present motors.  I hate to think of driving a B24 or maybe a B29 because they handle like Mack Trucks even thought the training is the only training I can use after the war.  Very little in a commercial way has been done with single engine fighter training.  Well I won't be too disappointed which way it goes.  It isn't a choice of picking the least dangerous because none are safe.  I guess I have a lot to do before I get to fighter planes.  So I must get some sleep.

With love

Austin

February 25, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Ariz.

Feb 25, 1944

Dear Mother:

I am going to try to dash you off a letter in what remains of a half hour.  I am trying to write in bed before lights out so try to decipher it the best you can.

I have got a bad cold and in between barks I will see what I can do.  I don't dare go to the dispensary because once they get you in that door you have a heck of a time to get out.  I can't afford to lose any time now because I have closet to 50 hours and the check rides start agin.  Also if I lose any time right now I am pretty sure of being left here another month.  That can't happen because things are running along pretty smoothly now.

 By the way I am sure of staying for the rest of my training out here in the west.  You see I have a fair chance of getting all the way through now that is unless something comes up we don't anticipate.  Therefore start saving your money so you can see me get my wings if I get them.  I guess that I am looking quite a way ahead but today I feel pretty good about my flying.

No much exciting happens around here.  I guess I wrote about the Corsair that came in for last weekend.  The pilot was a Marine Captain and the brother of one of the cadets here.  That kid sure had a swell time strutting around with his brother.  We all had a good look at the plane and you can bet we were all thrilled to get so close to such a plane.  All the instructors seemed to have the look as if they wished they could be flying Corsairs instead of teaching dumb cadets the fundamentals.  I guess everyone wants to join the Navy and fly Corsairs now.

We have a few mishaps around here such as broken "props" etc. but nothing else happens.  The lower class is not yet soloed out and so things are quiet at that end of the field.  Some of our boys still ground loop.  But not many of them.  Cross wind landings is what kept me from soloing in 6 hours and I think I have now caught on to them that they will never screw me up again.  I have at least accomplished that.

My bunk mate is leaving tomorrow for the A.T.C.  He washed out because of dangerous flying and for other reasons we don't know.  I am sure going to miss him.  We have had a lot of fun together.  He is from Kentucky and isn't much of a hillbilly.  He had a tough break.  I must stop now.

With love

Austin

Have you received your box?

February 21, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Ariz.

Feb. 21, 1944

Dear Mother;

I will answer your questions first because the two sheets of paper here are all I have.  

Yes the Independent comes along very regularly and I don't believe I have ever missed a number since the days of classification.  If one comes a little late because of a new address I usually get two at a time. Right now it comes on Thursday or Friday or somewhere in there.  I don't know just what day it is but it is regular.  I get quite a kick out of it so keep it coming.

By the way my address is a little bit wrong but the difference really makes little difference.  Everyone always put 44 Group on the address and it really is 44G.  It means class 44G, Graduation in 1944 on G month (July).  They only have 2 groups here that's why the address mistake makes little or no difference.  Another thing tell A.P. to put my whole address on the letters because his last letter came through all stamped up for me to tell my correspondents my correct address.  It might save a day of time.

I will try to get a card to send to Miss Worthen.  I don't know just what I can say on a card but  Iwill think of something appropriate (the right thing).  By the way you better keep up the good work of being my private secretary.  I don't get time to remember all the people I should remember.  

I am glad to hear that Mary is having a lot of fun.  I guess if she gets the chance that she can have a lot of fun at the place she works.  Every once in a while I think of her when I look at the dials as they spin around in front of me.  Do any of the dials say Pioneer on them that she paints or what do they have on them to identify them?

I will say a little about my present flying.  We are doing acrobatics.  You start with a loop, then a snap roll, then a slow roll, then a half roll.  Then an Immelmann turn {See this original training video of a P-47 with thrilling music}.  We do lazy 8's and chandelles still but not as much as before .  I make myself sick up there alone.  I climb to 6600' indicated and do a loop, then a snap roll to the right then a snap roll to the left then a slow roll to the left and a slow roll to the right, then a half roll to the left and recover to the right then a half roll to the right and recover to the left, then an Immelmann turn.  After that I am airsick and have to fly straight and level for a while.  It's a lot of fun anyway. (no more paper)

With love

Austin

February 17, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Ariz.

Feb. 17, 1944

Dear A.P.

I vow right now to not write later than 2000 (8:00 p.m.) because I am very tired and need the extra hour of sleep.

I got your letter today and as I haven't written to you for some time I guess this one is due to you.  I got 4 different letters the day before yesterday but I can't answer them for a couple more days because I am again short of paper but have enough envelopes for the whole outfit.

A "Link trainer" isn't much of a plane.  It has all the instruments in it for cross country blind flying.  It has a two way radio although we only use it one way, instructor to student, no back talk.  They have 10 or 12 of these in a hanger and the instructors are non-coms who have had the training required to train others.

The instruments in the plane have identical sets upon the instructors table so that he can watch your altitude, air speed, rate of climb, etc while you watch them in the little plane.  You get a series of exercises on each lesson so that you get so that you can control your speed with the stick and not the throttle.  In the last lesson you get a chance to fly a course and to trace circles on a paper.  They are drawn by a machine that is synchronized to the trainer so that you can fly a course and have it traced for you to show your mistakes.

Link only lasts 5 hours so that every thing we learn is very elementary and little or no use in our present flying.

In our planes we have one way communication and it is of course from the instructor to student, again no back talk.  They use gas ports which is a rubber tube more or less that is attached to the helmet in such a way that the instructor can be heard very well.  The planes are equipped for electrical communication but we are not so we don't worry about it.

Today I had a check flight and it was not very much of a ride.  I gave him a pretty good ride and all he had to say afterwards that I had no dangerous characteristics and that my sight for a "forced landing" was not quite what he had picked out, my lazy 8s were appropriately what he wanted.  He didn't have any unfavorable comments however.

3 days ago I had a civilian check ride which was not quite so good.  He said that my torque correction in stalls was weak, my chandelles were not too good, my forced landing field was not too good but otherwise all right.  I also didn't try to gain enough altitude after a spin recovery.  I passed it all right. I don't have to sweat out any more check rides until I have completed 40 hours or more and that is not too long from now as I now have 36 hours to my credit.

From now on we will have to get 2 hours a day to finish on schedule.  I have 12 hours of solo now but must have 30 before the course is over so you see I have quite a way to go yet.  Everything is going according to schedule.  I have passed the 90 degree stage and the 180 degree as well and have only the 180 degree cross wind stage to go.

I got a letter from Aunt Emma the other day and she seemed to think that grandpa was coming along very well considering.

Well I must close now.  Tell Mother to write as soon as she gets her box and tell me what she thinks.

With love

Austin.

February 12, 1944

Tucson Ariz.

Feb. 12, 1944

Dear Mother:

I guess I never wrote from a U.S.O. before but while I wait for my friend form Kentucky I use the paper and ink provided for such occasions.  This is the second trip to the town and I hope I do not get as disgusted as I did before.  I guess I can have some fun if I look around for it.

I flew 2 hours today and got in an hour and 5 minutes of "Link" trainer so I am rather tired.  The "Link" is the harder of the two because it requires much close study and the little dials on the instrument panel are not too interesting.  Today I did precision turns maintaining air speed and altitude.  The turn is made with a gyrocompass because a magnetic compass is not too reliable.  If you can maintain a special type of turn called a "needle width turn" you can make a perfect circle.  However if you vary the turn the slightest it does not come out right, the way you like to have them.  The instructor in charge said I maintained my speed and altitude very well.

You know you get some very peculiar sensations while flying "blind".  When you have the cover down, as it is most of the time, you often feel that you are climbing when you are gliding and turning after you have stopped.  As you have no visual reference points pressure means a lot.  When you stop a  turn you feel like you are starting one the other way.  This must be rather boring to you because you don't know enough about the subject.

I have 28 hours of flying now but I am still a long way from being a "hot pilot".  Even so I am working up to the point where the time is beginning to count.  I have enough time for a solo pilots license and soon (at 35 hours) I can get a private pilots license.  After that you can carry passengers with you so maybe after I get home you all may get some free rides.

It is time for me to get a few check rides but each time I get cheated out of them some how or other.  I wish I could get them over because then I could start on something else.  It is getting bearably boring to go up and do stalls, spins, 'S' turns, figure 8's, and the like every day.  I have been doing them solo for the last 12 hours and although I don't have them down perfect I am coming along.  

Next I shall learn how to do chandelles, lazy 8's, pilon 8's, loops, snap rolls, slow rolls, etc.  These are acrobatics and will be a lot of fun.

You would be surprised at the caution they use around here.  I guess the Army wants all the pilots they can get but they want careful pilots rather than hap-hazard H.P.'s.  Before you can go up alone you must be able to recover from a spin or most any other position the instructor can put you in and they really know a lot of them.

I have got both of the boxes that were sent.  Esther's other came the 10th.  I opened them both when not too many were around and still have some cookies left.  I will finish them when I get back to the post.  Have my war bonds been coming through?  If not please write as soon as possible so that I can get the situation clarified on this end.  It seems they have had a lot of trouble in Chicago where they are shipped form and if I am behind too many I can get them sent home a lost at once.

I hope Grandpa is getting better.  He seems to have come through an awful lot in all his years.  He is such a grand person I could really enjoy coming home to see him.  As far as that goes who here in this U.S.O. would not love to come home.  This is rather a poor substitute for home.

I guess I am getting to write a book here but as long as my friend doesn't show up I guess I can continue to write.

As long as Esther is going to read this letter I can thank her for the candy.  What I got of it was really swell and I can guess just where you got it.  That doesn't detract form it's taste does it.  It sure is swell to get such things from home.  You can't guess how much they are appreciated.

Those cookies sure are good too.  They were somewhat of a surprise.  I expect a small box but that is a little on the larger size.  They are packed so close there are a lot of them in a small place. (as I look at what I have done I guess I have written a book)

If I can ever get around to it I will send home a box that ought to interest every body but you especially.  I won't tell you what it is but I will get it off as soon as possible.

I am going to get my name and serial number; and address engraved on my watch so that if anything happens to it I have a chance of getting it back.

Also if anything happens to me they will have some means of identification other than my "dog tags".  It's such a swell watch I would hate to have anything happen to it.  Do you think I ought o have it cleaned oftener than is prescribed because of the dust we have out here.  I can see traces inside already.

Well I will close now because my friend is here.  His name is Charles E Rowland.

With love

Austin

February 6, 1944

Ryan Field

Tucson Ariz.

Feb. 6, 1944

Dear Esther:

Esther's high school graduation picture

I forgot all about your birthday until about a week ago so I couldn't send anything home.  The civilian canteen here has no cards or anything so I guess this letter on your birthday will have to do.  I should keep a stock of cards and such on hand for occasions but I have to get around to it someday and that is the trouble.  I probably never will.

We got out last night for the first time on an overnight pass but strange as it may seem I did not stay out but came back at 12:00 on the last bus.  I came on the last bus because I wouldn't stand on an earlier one and not because I hated to leave the town.  Tucson is the worst city I have been in.  The town is too crowded with officers and enlisted men from other camps.  One big B24 base just a short way from the town must send all its men in town every week-end.  You can see that if these fellows get in town ahead of you, as they do, you don't have much of a chance of getting a place to sleep or anything.  Not only that but every other man in uniform is either a naval officer or a 2nd Lt. with pilots or bombardiers wings.  What chance has an aviation cadet have in a town like that?  

We get in town rather late and that means that about all you can see is lit by lights and even so you can see a heck of a lot.  Of course you can always stay in all day Sunday and look around but I was so disgusted with things last night I came home.  You can go in again but the bus leaves every 3 hours and you have to be awake to get on and as I have been sleeping most of the day I could hardly make the bus.  I am glad now because it is raining very hard now and there is nothing to do in town in such weather.  So I am sitting listening to the radio and helping the civilian morale.  I don't know but what there is something in it after all. 

Well "happy birthday" to you and all that.  I don't know how old you are and I suppose if I hazard a guess I might embarrass myself or maybe you.  Anyway I guess that doesn't matter much.

I guess everyone is remembering my birthday coming up soon and I am sorry I couldn't have remembered yours a little earlier.  The next time such a thing happens I hope I am a little ahead of whats next.

Well I must close now and listen to Jack Benny.  I can't concentrate with all his noise.

Video of Jack Benny and Groucho Marx

With love

Austin

{And just for fun, more pictures of Great-Aunt Esther through the years!}

Cute baby girl!

Cute as a button

A Single Working Woman

Always helping!

Her Wedding Day

All the siblings together!

Esther and Pat

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