In Frank's last letter home, dated June 11th, he expressed fear about his course work. No matter how hard he studied, he was failing tests. He wrote: "I can't write letters or eat right now because...it's a constant threat to my existence." In World War II, the fear of "washing out" from the Air Corps, a common occurrence, and being sent to the infantry, plagued every young cadet.
World War II's "Rosie the Riveter" comes alive in this letter to Frank from a gal back in Chicago. She's working on a "beauty of a carburetor" for bombers. I doubt many girls before the war even knew what a carburetor was. The World War II woman became versed in previously male-only arcane knowledge. Another sign of the World War II years: no boys to date. Read on.
Seventy years ago today, June 6, 1944, the largest seaborne invasion in history took place: D-Day. About 6:30 a.m., 24,000 British, US, and Canadian airborne troops landed on the beaches of Normandy. Thousands of young men lost their lives there, and their sacrifice eventually helped the Allies win the war.
Hondo students learn navigation 1944 (Maybe my uncle knew these guys!) Frank answers both my parents' letters from a few days earlier. His concerns about his coursework are increasing: he's now flunked two exams. Instead of "I'll be [...]
Ticks and chiggers combine with a flunked test to make this twenty-year-old Air Corps Navigation student pretty miserable. I suffered from scores of chigger bites when visiting San Antonio when I was about Frank's age. I could not stop scratching for days and sleep was impossible from the itching madness. I totally empathize with what my uncle went through.