| Description | Businessman. His experiences as a fighter pilot in the European Theater during World War II. Education; enlistment in the 7th Regiment, New York National Guard, 1941; federalization of the National Guard and the redesignation of his unit as the 207th Coast Artillery; enlistment in the Army Air Forces and acceptance as an Aviation Cadet, 1941; primary flight training, Corsicana, Texas, 1941-42; basic flight training, Randolph Field, San Antonio, Texas, 1942; advanced flight training, Foster Field, Victoria, Texas, 1942; assignment as a flight instructor, Perrin Field, Sherman, Texas, 1942-43; training Free French pilots, Selma, Alabama, and Richmond, Virginia, 1943-44; introduction to the P-47 Thunderbolt; assignment to Oscoda, Michigan, 1944; his marriage in October, 1944; assignment to the 526th Fighter Squadron in France, January, 1945; missions against railroad marshaling yards and airfields; encounters with German jet planes; ground-support missions; encounters against Panther and Tiger tanks; his assessment of the P-47; postwar occupation duty in Germany. |
