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Wait, was your dad a P-51 pilot, or a B-17 navigator? Quite different roles. I know the AAC moved people around at whim, but this seems unusual.
by greedo 7y ago
Wait, was your dad a P-51 pilot, or a B-17 navigator? Quite different roles. I know the AAC moved people around at whim, but this seems unusual.
- WalterBright 7y agoHe was a B-17 navigator during WW2 for 32 missions. After the war, he left the military and went to college. After that he rejoined to become a fighter pilot (what he wanted originally anyway). He flew P-51s, and later transitioned to jet fighters. Flew combat in the Korean War, mostly ground attack missions. I would have joined the Air Force too, but with my thick glasses the AF told me no way I would be a pilot. So I wound up as a compiler nerd instead :-)
- greedo 7y agoThat's amazing. My grandfather flew for Pan Am during the war, and his flight career spanned biplanes to the 707. I'm in awe of that generation. Your dad sounds like he had a similar adventure!
- WalterBright 7y agoYup, he learned to fly in stringbag biplanes. An era that will never come again. My father had a long and very full life. Sounds like your grandfather did, too!