Saturday, November 28, 1942
CLOUDBUSTER
Page Three
Messages From Former Pre-Flighters
Cadet, Officer Tell Of Naval Life
At Squantum And Peru Bases
Fourth Battalion
Cadet Relates
Flight Experiences
(The writer of the following article,
Aviation Cadet Hillary Waugh, was a
member of the Fourth Battalion at
Chapel Hill which left here in mid-
October for primary flight training.
—The Editor.)
By Cadet Hillary Waugh
NRAB, Squantum, Mass.
Life at Squantum resembles that at
Chapel Hill only in bedtime hours.
Even less time is free than at Pre-
Flight School, something I wouldn’t
have believed possible before coming
here.
Here’s a typical day:
Up at 0520, throw water at your
face on the way through the head,
dress, make your bed and report for
formation at 0545. (At Chapel Hill we
were made Supermen—here we’re
made Miracle Men for we’re always
having to do the impossible.
Next we walk a mile and a half to
breakfast which we inhale in three
minutes or so, hike back to clean up
the barracks and get to class by 0715.
Classes last all morning till 1115. Then
it’s a dash to lunch and out to the
flight line at 1215.
There we get our flight training and
while not flying, we take care of the
incoming and outgoing planes. This
sport is interrupted in the middle by
a reminder of Chapel Hill known as
“Happy Hour.” “Happy Hour” is our
athletic program and students are
lined up and marched off to where our
meager athletic facilities are located
and play touch football or volley ball
or row. Sometimes, instead, we wash
windows which makes it a not so happy
hour.
After we are relieved from the flight
line, we eat and return to the barracks,
(unless we’re scheduled to put the
plianes away) and prepare for study
from 1930 to 2100. This is not in the
barracks but in a classroom so we
don’t have the choice of studying or
going to bed. Here we study. From
2100-2130 we get ready to collapse in
our bunks and if we aren’t in bed by
then, we finish in the dark.
Our Flight, No. 95, arrived in Squan
tum at 0800 Oct. 22 and got its first
look lat the air base which is on the
harbor south of Boston proper. Its
position is excellent, having nice run
ways for land planes, the harbor for
seaplanes and swamps for the amphi
bians.
At noon, we climbed into a ship and
started our first plane engine. After
getting oriented for two days, we went
up for our first flight. My instructor
let me fly the thing part of the time
and assist him on the take offs.
On the third hop, the instructor told
me how to execute a spin and proceeded
to demonstrate. Suddenly I found my
self twisting and rushing toward the
earth. Looking out I only saw houses
going around so I looked back at ^ e
instrument panel to keep from getting
dizzy. Finally the pilot pulled out ot
it and said—“Now you try it!
Actually spins are quite easy but
one shouldn’t push the stick too far
forward in breaking it, I found out. I
did that once and the plane and I
would have separated if it weren’t for
the safety belt. As it was, I hung so
See SQUANTUM, page 6
RADIOS FOR RENT
BOOKS FOR SALE
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Main Street, 0pp. the Campus
Academic Instructor
Reports on Daily
Routine at NRAB
(Lieut. Wilbur B. Davis tvas for
merly a member of the Academic de-
pay'tment of the Chapel Hill Pre-Flight
School. He was transferred to the
Naval Reserve Aviation Base at Peru,
Ind., about two months ago. — The
Editor.)
By Lieut. Wilbur B. Davis
NRAB, Peru, Ind.
While fighting General Mud in the
center of Indiana, I can’t help but re
flect on the considerable natural beauty
and many living comforts of Chapel
Hill. Our situation was forcefully put
by one seaman who said this is the only
place in the world \^here you can stand
ankle deep in mud and have dust blow
in your face. I don’t want to give you
the wrong impression, however, for
I’m sure I speak for all the cadets as
well as myself when I say we like it
here. A great base is already in opera
tion and it is well on its way to being
even more impressive.
Our skipper is Comdr. Morton T.
Seligman who was Executive Officer
of the Lexington when she was so
tragically made the victim of repeated
air attacks by our enemy. Being a
flight instruction base it is as you
would expect a place abounding with
naval aviators. At Chapel Hill I was on
the outside of the “400,” since I was
not a famous coach, and here at Peru,
Ind., I’m not a member of the elite since
I don’t have golden wings.
The cadets arrive at this base in
drafts, which up to the group arriving
Nov. 5, have consisted of about 20
cadets each, but which are now steadily
increasing in size. One such draft ar
rives every two weeks.
Each incoming class is divided into
sections and assigned to a flight wing
for all activities including instruction,
drill and athletics. Cadet officers are
designated to take charge of all for
mations and to march the cadets to
and from the various activities.
Immediately after the issuance of
bedding, flight gear and green unifonn
(which I assure will make you look like
a naval aviator, if nothing else), navi
gation kits, et cetera, the cadets are
given instruction in regulations of the
base and the separate cadet regulations
(including an explanation of the de
merit disciplinary system governing
the cadets and how demerits are mark
ed off). They are also given an oppor
tunity to familiarize themselves with
the organization and physical set-up
of the base and their daily routine,
which begins with the second day
aboard.
The cadets “hit the deck” at 0530
followed at 0540 with fifteen minutes
of calisthenics. Breakfast is at 0615
and the daily personnel and quarters
inspection is at 0650.
The cadet regiment is divided into
two flight wings—one which gets its
flight training, athletics and a study
period in the morning and the other
which has these activities in the after
noon. The wing which flies in the morn
ing has ground school instruction and
military drill in the afternoon, and
for the other -wing it is vice versa. This
schedule for each wing is reversed each
week. Dinner for a cadet comes be
tween 1145 and 1215 or between 1230
and 1300, depending on when his wing
flies; if he is in the morning flight
wing, he gets his dinner at the later
time, eating earlier when he flies in
the afternoon.
Supper is at 1800. This meal like
all served on this base is by the Navy
and of the Navy. We get our fair pro
portion of beans for breakfast, strong
but good coffee and excellent baked
food. No longer is the cadet “built up”
with servings of honey and a pint of
milk each meal, but he is kept strong
and healthy with wholesome well cook
ed, hearty meals.
Evening study period comes between
1930 and 2100. Such study is compul
sory for all cadets except those who
during the previous week maintained
‘Most excellent military maneuver-
certainly save face^’
© ESQUIHB, INC.; iwa
Reprinted from the December issue of Esquire
with the permission of Esquire, Inc.
an average of 3.5 in all ground school
work. The courses taken in ground
school include radio and all visual sig
nals, theory of flight, dead reckoning
navigation, power plants, aerology and
ship and aircraft recognition. Each
course is given in four or six forty-
minute periods each week, with occar-
sional extra periods in all subjects and
in each subject in which a cadet is be
low passing, namely 2.5. Cadets ex
empt from study are given base liberty
during such study period, including
the chance to write to “that certain
someone.”
In the cadet barracks there is a
“Solo Room” where those who have
soloed may enjoy the luxury of leather
upholstered chairs. Taps for all cadets
is 2130.
Flight instruction is, of course, in
dividual, and naturally holds the most
interest for the cadets. Each cadet has
a fully qualified naval aviator assigned
to him as his instructor and with whom
he does all his dual time while on the
base and who also supervises his solo
training. This does not mean, how
ever, that a cadet has no other flight
instructor to satisfy as to his progress,
for he is checked at each stage of his
flight training by another naval aviator
other than his regular instructor.
See PERU NRAB, page 6
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