Saturday, February 11, 2012
Saturday, February 4, 2012
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TELEGRAM TO EMIL
Becky sends telegram wishing Emil a happy birthday...Double click image of telegram for a better read.
Just a few lines (that's all I have) of a letter from Emil to Rebecca (Becky)
September 25, 1942
Hi dearest,
Just came back from the flight line after flying 1 hr & 5 minutes of formations....the instructor pt me in unusual positions while under the hood and then I had to recover to level flight. He put me in snap roll-vertical spin.
Then yesterday afternoon instead of going to classes our squadron went to a court martial hearing. This was damn interesting to me because I sort of like this law business. The court is conducted similar to a civil court except the court is composed of high ranking officers of the post.
A cadet from class of 42-J who was charged with drunkenness and disorderly conduct. I think the fellow will get off easy since being drunk he wasn't normal.
Loving you always and forever,
Emil
September 25, 1942
Hi dearest,
Just came back from the flight line after flying 1 hr & 5 minutes of formations....the instructor pt me in unusual positions while under the hood and then I had to recover to level flight. He put me in snap roll-vertical spin.
Then yesterday afternoon instead of going to classes our squadron went to a court martial hearing. This was damn interesting to me because I sort of like this law business. The court is conducted similar to a civil court except the court is composed of high ranking officers of the post.
A cadet from class of 42-J who was charged with drunkenness and disorderly conduct. I think the fellow will get off easy since being drunk he wasn't normal.
Loving you always and forever,
Emil
From:
Box 56
Chester S.C.
To:
A/C's E. E. Narick
T.O. Munson
Barracks 97, A.C.D.
Shaw Field, Sumter, SC
September 2, 1942
Dear "Gyros",
How's the business? Hope both of you are doing ok with the flying and I know you are. Guess this damn weather has hampered your flying a good bit in the last few days. Thought I would freeze to death up here last week...not it has warmed up a bit but has been raining all day.
Sorry I had to miss out a class on you all but this life is the stuff. I hope you don't mind I'm trying to make you all homesick because I'm not, but this relaxation is doing me a lot of good. Have been getting about an average of 14 hours sleep a day. Got up today at 1:30. Thought it was about 9 o'clock and it turned out to be in the afternoon.
Think I'm about to get this cold straightened out. Have been working on it since getting here and taking in just a minimum amount of night life. However, I'm ready to break loose now and enjoy myself for a while. That is if the weather clears up a bit.
I'm ready to fly the fool out of the B.T. now. There have been quite a B.T.'s flying over Chester the last few days (except yesterday and today). Most of them have been our squadron and Rip's. These came over a few days ago, in formation, diving on Chester in low pitch. They really sounded good too.
Took me a dose of medicine last night...that really worked me over. Castor oil, of all things but I think it did me a lot of good. Thought I would just move my sleeping apparatus in the bathroom and stay there, from all indications there for a while. I was about as weak as a dog who has had about 10 pups when I did get up today.
Drank a few beers for you'all the other night. It was really good to pile a few of them on the table. These civilian clothes are fine too. It's really good to forget the army for a while, even if it does cost me four weeks.
How's the night life going down that way? Ted, have you struck gold yet? If not you should pretty soon. Hope Gyro's ONE AND ONLY (for the readers of this blog the one and only is Rebecca) got to make the trip down. If she did get to come I know he has been walking on air for the past few days.
Ted, if you'all haven't exchanged ear phones yet, how about changing mine for me too. They are in my foot locker, in case you'all move before I get there Sunday nite. I'll look you up when I get there and see how the business is operating. Should get there about 10 o'clock or a little after.
There really is not news yet, but I'll probably have some experiences to tell you one of these days. Hold them down and "keep em flying".
Always...(letter was torn here and a tiny piece missing so I don't have the name of the man that wrote this letter to Emil and Ted.)
Note to my readers. BT that is mentioned above is a Basic Trainer (airplane)
In 1938 the US Army Air Corps was evaluating a new basic combat trainer, designated the Vultee V-54, it was considered operationally ideal as a trainer but was regarded as being unnecessarily complicated and overpowered.
Vultee then developed the V-74 trainer to meet this requirement having a cantilever low-wing with fixed landing gear, dual controls and flight instruments as standard equipment. The initial version was designated BT-13 by the US Army Air Corps and nicknamed the Valiant. Satisfactory testing brought in an order of 300 aircraft in September 1939, at that time the largest order placed by the US Army for basic trainers. The first of these aircraft were accepted by the USAAC in June of 1940.
From September 1939 to the Summer of 1944 a total of 11,537 Vultees were built to meet the needs of the US Army Air Corps and the US Navy, making the plane one of the most important American trainer aircraft of World War II. The BT-13 production run outnumbered all other Basic Trainer (BT) types produced.
BT-13 at Minter Field, California, March 1943
The Navy quickly recognized the ruggedness of the BT-13 and selected it to fulfill the same training roles. A total of 1,350 BT-13A and 650 BT-13B aircraft were transferred to the US Navy which designated them SNV-1 and SNV-2B respectively.
Almost every U.S. pilot and many of the allied pilots who were trained in the U.S. learned their basic flying skills in the BT-13. The demand for BT-13's out-paced Pratt & Whitneys ability to deliver the R-985 engines, Vultee began to equip the BT-13 airframes with the 450 HP Wright R-975-11 Whirlwind radial engine. This final variant was designated as the BT-15 (1,693 built).
Under the designation XBT-16B, one BT-13A was rebuilt with a plastic fuselage for evaluation. As soon as World War II ended all versions in service were retired from the USAAF and US Navy. After 1948 a handful of BT-13's receive the revised designation T-13.
The Valiant was also known as the "Vultee Vibrator", nicknamed from its pilots.
Less than 50 of these aircraft are airworthy and have become very popular with warbird collectors and can often be seen at airshows around the country.
Box 56
Chester S.C.
To:
A/C's E. E. Narick
T.O. Munson
Barracks 97, A.C.D.
Shaw Field, Sumter, SC
September 2, 1942
Dear "Gyros",
How's the business? Hope both of you are doing ok with the flying and I know you are. Guess this damn weather has hampered your flying a good bit in the last few days. Thought I would freeze to death up here last week...not it has warmed up a bit but has been raining all day.
Sorry I had to miss out a class on you all but this life is the stuff. I hope you don't mind I'm trying to make you all homesick because I'm not, but this relaxation is doing me a lot of good. Have been getting about an average of 14 hours sleep a day. Got up today at 1:30. Thought it was about 9 o'clock and it turned out to be in the afternoon.
Think I'm about to get this cold straightened out. Have been working on it since getting here and taking in just a minimum amount of night life. However, I'm ready to break loose now and enjoy myself for a while. That is if the weather clears up a bit.
I'm ready to fly the fool out of the B.T. now. There have been quite a B.T.'s flying over Chester the last few days (except yesterday and today). Most of them have been our squadron and Rip's. These came over a few days ago, in formation, diving on Chester in low pitch. They really sounded good too.
Took me a dose of medicine last night...that really worked me over. Castor oil, of all things but I think it did me a lot of good. Thought I would just move my sleeping apparatus in the bathroom and stay there, from all indications there for a while. I was about as weak as a dog who has had about 10 pups when I did get up today.
Drank a few beers for you'all the other night. It was really good to pile a few of them on the table. These civilian clothes are fine too. It's really good to forget the army for a while, even if it does cost me four weeks.
How's the night life going down that way? Ted, have you struck gold yet? If not you should pretty soon. Hope Gyro's ONE AND ONLY (for the readers of this blog the one and only is Rebecca) got to make the trip down. If she did get to come I know he has been walking on air for the past few days.
Ted, if you'all haven't exchanged ear phones yet, how about changing mine for me too. They are in my foot locker, in case you'all move before I get there Sunday nite. I'll look you up when I get there and see how the business is operating. Should get there about 10 o'clock or a little after.
There really is not news yet, but I'll probably have some experiences to tell you one of these days. Hold them down and "keep em flying".
Always...(letter was torn here and a tiny piece missing so I don't have the name of the man that wrote this letter to Emil and Ted.)
Note to my readers. BT that is mentioned above is a Basic Trainer (airplane)
In 1938 the US Army Air Corps was evaluating a new basic combat trainer, designated the Vultee V-54, it was considered operationally ideal as a trainer but was regarded as being unnecessarily complicated and overpowered.
Vultee then developed the V-74 trainer to meet this requirement having a cantilever low-wing with fixed landing gear, dual controls and flight instruments as standard equipment. The initial version was designated BT-13 by the US Army Air Corps and nicknamed the Valiant. Satisfactory testing brought in an order of 300 aircraft in September 1939, at that time the largest order placed by the US Army for basic trainers. The first of these aircraft were accepted by the USAAC in June of 1940.
From September 1939 to the Summer of 1944 a total of 11,537 Vultees were built to meet the needs of the US Army Air Corps and the US Navy, making the plane one of the most important American trainer aircraft of World War II. The BT-13 production run outnumbered all other Basic Trainer (BT) types produced.
BT-13 at Minter Field, California, March 1943
The Navy quickly recognized the ruggedness of the BT-13 and selected it to fulfill the same training roles. A total of 1,350 BT-13A and 650 BT-13B aircraft were transferred to the US Navy which designated them SNV-1 and SNV-2B respectively.
Almost every U.S. pilot and many of the allied pilots who were trained in the U.S. learned their basic flying skills in the BT-13. The demand for BT-13's out-paced Pratt & Whitneys ability to deliver the R-985 engines, Vultee began to equip the BT-13 airframes with the 450 HP Wright R-975-11 Whirlwind radial engine. This final variant was designated as the BT-15 (1,693 built).
Under the designation XBT-16B, one BT-13A was rebuilt with a plastic fuselage for evaluation. As soon as World War II ended all versions in service were retired from the USAAF and US Navy. After 1948 a handful of BT-13's receive the revised designation T-13.
The Valiant was also known as the "Vultee Vibrator", nicknamed from its pilots.
Less than 50 of these aircraft are airworthy and have become very popular with warbird collectors and can often be seen at airshows around the country.
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