[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 103 (Thursday, July 25, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1396]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         COMMEMORATE A UNIQUE AND MAGNIFICANT GROUP OF AVIATORS

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                             HON. RON PAUL

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 25, 2002

  Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased to commemorate a unique and 
magnificent group of old aviators who have received very little 
publicity in the civilian sector. They will celebrate their 90th and 
60th anniversaries in conjunction with the Commemorative Air Force 
(CAF) ``Wings Over Houston'' Air Show from October 23-26, 2002, in 
Houston, Texas.
  The first Enlisted Pilot, Vernon L. Burge, earned his wings in the 
old Signal Corps in 1912. Prior to World War 11, 282 enlisted pilots 
served in the Signal Corps, then in the Army Air Service and later in 
the Army Air Corps as rated pilots. Many flew the Air Mail during the 
early 1930s of the Roosevelt Administration.
  With the approach of WWII, aircraft manufacturers were producing 
aircraft faster than the Air Corps could fill with pilots. To qualify 
for Flight Training, a cadet was required to have two years of college. 
To fill this shortage of pilots, Congress enacted legislation in 1941 
authorizing enlisted men to participate in aerial flight.
  To qualify for Pilot Training, the enlisted men had to meet several 
stringent requirements. They had to be enlisted in the regular Army, 
not drafted, possess a high-school diploma, pass a rigid physical exam, 
and sign a contract with the Army avowing that upon completion of 
Flight Training, they would continue serving in the Army Air Corps as 
Staff Sergeant Pilots for three years, as Technical Sergeant Pilots for 
three years, as Master Sergeants for three years, and end the contract 
as Warrant Officer Pilots.
  The Enlisted Pilots (aviation students) attended the same ground 
schools, same flying schools, had the same flight instructors, same 
training airplanes, and successfully completed the same curriculum as 
the Aviation Cadets.
  Almost 2,500 enlisted men graduated as Enlisted Pilots from 
Ellington, Kelly, Luke, Mather, Columbus, Dothan, Lubbock, Moody, 
Roswell, Spencer, Turner, Victorville, Williams, Craig and Stockton Air 
Bases in Classes 42-C through 42-J, the last class of Enlisted Pilots.
  Upon graduation, and ordered to participate in Aerial Flight by 
General ``Hap'' Arnold, Chief of the Army Air Corps, these pilots flew 
Douglas A-20s, Curtis P-36s and P-40s, Lockheed P-38s, North American 
P-64s, Douglas C-47s, C-48s, C-49s, C-53s. They flew many of these 
aircraft in combat as Staff Sergeant Pilots. Later, as officers, they 
flew all of the aircraft in the Air Force inventory during and after 
WWII.
  The Flight Training of Aviation Students Program was discontinued in 
November 1942, with enlisted men graduating as Flight Officers in 
following classes.
  Charles ``Chuck'' Yeager, the first pilot to exceed the speed of 
sound, completed his flight training as an enlisted man but graduated 
as a Flight Officer in December 1942. Bob Hoover, the world renowned 
military and civilian acrobatic pilot was an Enlisted Pilot. Walter H. 
Beech served as an Enlisted Pilot in 1919 and later founded the Beech 
Aircraft Company in Wichita, Kansas.
  The Air Force honors the third Enlisted Pilot, William C. Ocker, for 
pioneering instrument flying by naming the Instrument Flight Center at 
Randolph AFB in his memory.
  Captain Claire Chennault organized a flight demonstration team at 
Maxwell Air Field in 1932, called the ``Men on the Flying Trapeze'' 
(the forerunner of the Thunderbirds), which at one time included two 
Enlisted Pilots, Sergeant William C. McDonald and Sergeant John H. 
Williamson. Staff Sergeant Ray Clinton flew solo stunt and backup for 
the team.
  The Enlisted Pilots' accomplishments are many and their legend is a 
long one of dedication and patriotism. Seventeen became Fighter Pilot 
Aces and thirteen became General Officers. They pioneered many air 
routes throughout the world. After release from active duty, they 
became airline pilots, airline union heads, corporate executives, bank 
presidents, teachers, doctors, manufacturers of racing cars, corporate 
aviation department heads, and much, much more.
  Of the almost 3,000 American Enlisted Pilots from 1912 through 1942, 
approximately 600 remain. They are a terminal organization--most of 
them are in their early eighties.
  According to retired USAF General Edwin F. Wenglar, chairman of the 
Grand Muster Reunion, 75 to 100 of these grand Airmen will be able to 
attend their reunion, which could very well be the last gathering of 
the finest and most magnificent aviators in the annals of aviation 
history.

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