Life was tough; we lived between the railroad tracks and Swan Creek in Toledo. Eventually we upgraded and moved to a one bedroom a stone’s throw away from the Willys Jeep plant. To make some extra income, we provided room and board to soldiers passing through who were going on to pilot training.
The relationship between the soldiers and my family developed to the point where they really took to our family. Throughout the War, I would get boxes from the Navy guys of balsa wood for my model airplane projects, which was a strategic material at that time. My sisters would get letters. We became a Gold Star house. That’s when I knew I wanted to fly the P-51 Mustang. Later on, it turned into a P-47 because Gabby Gabreski became my hero. He passed through Toledo, and I went to one of the war bond drives he was at. Little did I know I would not only meet him but fly with him as well. I went through Toledo Central Catholic High School, which at that time was a tech training school. They prepared you for an occupation as soon as you left. I went through the engineering curriculum, and I worked through my senior year for the Fairbanks Morse Pump Company doing their engineering drawings. The three nuns at the school took me under their wing because they knew I wanted to fly, and they coached me for the Annapolis entrance examination. I passed the examination and got the congressional appointment, but unfortunately, I failed the physical. I had no choice but to join the AirForce.
This story is from the July - August 2023 edition of Flight Journal.
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This story is from the July - August 2023 edition of Flight Journal.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Scourge of the Allied Fighters
IT HAD TO BE THE MOST HELPLESS FEELING in the world: you're at 25,000 feet over Europe knowing that your primary function is to drop bombs-or flying escort for the bombers while being a slow-moving target for some of the world's finest shooters. However, you have John Browning's marvelous .50 caliber invention to give some degree of protection. Unfortunately, you're absolutely helpless against flak. Piloting and gunnery skills play no role in a game where sheer chance makes life and death decisions. For that reason, the Krupp 88 mm Flak 18/36/37 AA cannon could be considered WW II's ultimate stealth fighter. You never saw it coming.
ZERO MYTH, MYSTERY, AND FACT
A test pilot compares the A6M5 Zero to U.S. fighters
Fw 190 STURMBÖCKE
The Luftwaffe's \"Battering Rams\" against the USAAF heavy bombers
American BEAUTY
\"Forgotten Fifteenth\" top-scoring Mustang ace John J. Voll
BANSHEE WAIL!
Flying Skulls over Burma
KILLER CORSAIR
Albert Wells, Death Rattlers Ace
BACKSTREET BRAWLER
A young man, his Hurricane and the Battle of Britain
Still Flying After All These Years
One of the oldest airworthy J-3 Cubs
NOORDUYN NORSEMAN
Canada's rugged, fabric-covered workhorse
A good landing is one you can walk away from
NO, THIS IS NOT A SCENE FROM A MOVIE where the hero staggers away from a \"good landing\" on Mindoro, Philippine Islands, after being shot down by a Japanese Zero.