Bob Wilson At-A-Glance By Bob Bennett-Manor 2312

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Bob Wilson At-A-Glance By Bob Bennett-Manor 2312 Military Glance: Six months after his 18 th birthday, Robert Bob Howard Wilson of Manor 2278 was accepted into the USAAF Aviation Cadet program.

Texas. He completed Primary and Basic flight training at Goodfellow Field, Texas, flying the Pt-17 Stearman and the AT-6 Texan.

Here he learned to fly the P-40 War Hawk and the P-47 Thunderbolt, earning his wings and commission as 2 nd Lieutenant.

1 Bob Wilson At-A-Glance By Bob Bennett-Manor 2312 Military Glance: Six months after his 18 th birthday, Robert Bob Howard Wilson of Manor 2278 was accepted into the USAAF Aviation Cadet program. Inducted in December, 1943, at Fort Sheridan, Illinois, Bob completed his Basic Military Training at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, and then went on to Pre-Aviation Cadet training in San Antonio, Texas. He completed Primary and Basic flight training at Goodfellow Field, Texas, flying the Pt-17 Stearman and the AT-6 Texan. His Advanced Flight Training was at Aloe Field, Texas, followed by Fighter Training at Foster Field, also in Texas. Here he learned to fly the P-40 War Hawk and the P-47 Thunderbolt, earning his wings and commission as 2 nd Lieutenant. Bob was first assigned to Brooks AFB where he became a member of Satan s Angels Flight Demonstration Team, flying in a formation of sixteen AT-6 s at various ceremonial events in Texas. By June, 1943, WW II was winding down and it looked like Bob s group would probably be assigned to replace the pilots returning from overseas. Instead, they received orders to go to Ellington Field, Texas for release from active duty. While going through the administrative formalities for separation, Bob was asked if he was interested in membership in the Air Reserve and he accepted. In October, 1945, the Colonel assembled his men at the Base Theater, thanked them for their service, wished them well, and told them that the war to end all wars was over. Time has shown otherwise. Now 20 years old, Bob returned home to Wisconsin and enrolled with the GI Bill at Carroll College, majoring in science and math. During these four years Bob was a Chemistry teaching assistant and also flying as a member of the USAF reserve at Mitchell Field. Upon graduation, Bob was hired by the University of Wisconsin for a part-time position as a Chemistry teaching assistant. He also joined the Wisconsin Air National Guard at Truax AFB, flying F-51 Mustangs while working on a master s degree. While Bob was completing his studies, his father hired a young lady by the name of Margaret Betty Elizabeth Pritchard as his secretary. Bob took a liking to this cute red-head and married her on October 1, Betty worked at the Madison Public Library to supplement the GI bill benefit while Bob attended the University of Wisconsin. In February, 1951, the Korean War summoned the Wisconsin Air National Guard into active duty. Bob went to Truax Field and was flight trained in F-51 s for combat assignment. At the same time, he was also part time Adjutant of the Medical Group because the Wisconsin ANG Wing was not up to full strength in personnel. This combination of circumstance would lead to

Bob s assignment to an experimental program developed to release flight surgeons that had been giving the aviation high-altitude and high-speed training to pilots.

To accomplish this, pilots from all over the country were gathered to the School of Aviation Medicine at Gunter Field, Alabama.

They worked with partial-pressure suits (a prelude to space travel), ejection seats, centrifuge, g-suits, cold chamber, night vision, altitude chamber, vertigo and explosive decompression situations.

2 Bob s assignment to an experimental program developed to release flight surgeons that had been giving the aviation high-altitude and high-speed training to pilots. Bob was the only pilot in the Medical Group who met their unusual requirements. The basic premise was to teach aviation medicine to pilots who would then train other pilots. To accomplish this, pilots from all over the country were gathered to the School of Aviation Medicine at Gunter Field, Alabama. Along with about twenty other pilots, Bob spent months in a crash course in aviation medicine. They worked with partial-pressure suits (a prelude to space travel), ejection seats, centrifuge, g-suits, cold chamber, night vision, altitude chamber, vertigo and explosive decompression situations. When his training was complete, Bob was re-assigned to the Eastern Air Defense Command at Stewart Field, New York, and then sent on detached duty to Mitchell Field because they had an altitude chamber that was needed in the annual recurrent training program for the pilots and aircrew members stationed in the Northeast area of the U.S. While at Mitchell Field, Bob continued to fly a variety of small multi-engine airplanes such as the C-45, T-7, T-11, and the C-47. He did mostly crosscountry flying and also trained pilots to survive the physiological medical problems they are now encountering with modern jet military airplanes. When this tour of duty was complete, Bob and Betty decided it was time to return to civilian life. Professional Glance: It turned out that American Airlines was hiring at the time and thus began another phase of Bob s aviation career. First it was Copilot School at LaGuardia Field, then assignment to Midway and on to O Hare Airport until retirement. Bob spent more than 32 years flying the Convair 240, Douglas DC-6, DC-7, Lockheed Electra, Convair 990, Boeing B-707, B-727 and the Douglas DC-10 on trips all over the USA, Canada, Mexico, and Hawaii. He retired flying international trips to Europe. And yet Bob never forgot his military roots and remained active in the Wisconsin Air National Guard, eventually transferring to the USAF Reserve. Finally, after 23 years of active and reserve military service, he retired from the military and hung up his helmet and goggles. This ended a career that began as an aviation student flying an open cockpit biwing PT-17 and ending up with his wings as a fighter pilot and the rank of Major. He had completed courses from the Air University: Squadron Officer and Command & Staff School. The Air Force had provided the experience that would serve him well with American Airlines, and for that Bob is grateful. He accrued 2,000 hours of military and 22,000 hours of commercial flying experience. This represents more than two years in the air. But the FAA s mandatory retirement age of 60 finally caught up with Bob and on June 12, 1985, he flew his last American Airlines flight. He remembers well the flight to Frankfurt, Germany, and then back to Chicago, with Betty in the cockpit for the landings. That was

3 his last flight before hanging up his hat and uniform for the last time, ending a very gratifying career. When Bob turned 50 he became eligible to join the American Airlines Grey Eagle s. He became Area Director at Chicago and after retirement became Grey Eagle president. In 1989, with Betty s help, they hosted the annual convention in Raleigh, North Carolina. Bob invited and dedicated the convention to his hero, American Airlines founding president (and Major General of Air Transport Command during WW II) Cyrus R. Smith. "C.R." Smith was held in esteem by all, signed contracts with a handshake, and he was also respected throughout the airline industry. Just prior to the convention he became sick and passed away several months later. It was necessary to substitute Bob Crandall, the current president to take his place. Life would be dull without what Bob calls his dumb dodo moments. There was one event that sticks in Bob s memory. On a routine flight to fill his flight time requirements in the Air Force, he was expecting to fly a T-7 or T-11. He was instead offered the opportunity to fly a C-45. This was a fancy version of the T-11. It was like expecting a jeep and being given a Cadillac. No bucket seats, but instead leather upholstered seats, spinners on the propellers, an autopilot that worked, and fancy navigation equipment. The weather was good most of the way with only scattered showers. But over Pennsylvania he ran into heavy showers and discovered to his dismay that this fancy plane was a leaker. He and his friend Corky used maps as blankets to protect them from the drips until the rain subsided and they landed at Wright-Patterson AFB for fuel, and then on to Chanute AFB, Illinois. When he landed, he found that it was a warm day and Bob propped open the door to keep cool. At this point he found that there were some GI s who needed a ride and Bob agreed to take five of them. Since there were no bucket seats Bob took great pains to tell them they would only have a body harness to wear and that their parachutes were fastened to the seat in front of them. But basically they were only concerned about grabbing some sleep during the flight. Finally the plane was fueled and off they went. Bob was told that all fuel tanks, including the one in the nose, had been filled with fuel and he was to use the nose tank first. Bob commented to Corky that they needed to keep their eye on the fuel level of the nose tank. Soon into the flight, they discovered unwanted passenger flies! Apparently they had entered the cockpit while Bob had the door open on the ground. With ingenuity they quickly cracked the cockpit windows and drove the pests out, but suddenly both engines quit. While they were swatting flies, the nose tank had run dry! Bob quickly switched to the main fuel tanks and started the wobble pump to expedite the fuel flow to the dead engines. As the engines sputtered to life, Bob could hear his napping passengers strapping on their parachutes, preparing for the worst. He explained what had happened and that everything was now okay. This is how Bob learned the important lesson: never feed all your engines on one fuel tank! A second event came on an American Airlines flight from Chicago to Seattle. It was a turn around flight with only 1 ½ hours on the ground in Seattle, just under the eighthour maximum pilots can fly. With the same aircraft and crew and excellent weather, it should have been a routine flight. It was near Thanksgiving and the flight was full. The plane had no sooner taken off than the First Flight Attendant came into the cockpit to announce that there was a young lady in coach that was 7 months pregnant and was experiencing mild labor pains. She had also

4 told the flight attendant that she had previously had several miscarriages in the same time frame before. That got Bob s attention and he quickly asked if there were any 1 st class seats open. There were, and the pregnant passenger was quickly moved while the flight attendant checked the manifest for doctors. Bob meanwhile mentally surveyed his options. They were an hour out of Chicago and three hours out from Seattle. They would be overweight for a landing at Minneapolis/St. Paul or Des Moines and would have to dump fuel. The complication of the eight-hour flight rule could not be overlooked, particularly in light of the heavy passenger load and what it would do to American Airlines tight flight schedule. Meanwhile, the pregnant passenger was seated in first class, covered with blankets, and prepared to disrobe (if necessary) to deliver the baby. It was determined from the manifest that there was no doctor on board. She told the crew what to do in the event of a mis-carry based on her previous experiences. As the plane passed Omaha and approached Denver, it was announced that things had settled down. At that point it seemed likely that they would reach Seattle without incident. Unfortunately, as they passed Denver the lady again began experiencing labor pains. Bob pushed the throttles and began a race with the stork. Finally, they were close enough to Seattle that all other landing options were off the table. The plane landed without further incident and was soon on its way back to Chicago. Shortly after take-off, the First Flight Attendant came into the cockpit and asked who do you think we have on board? It was the same lady from the first flight. She had simply flown to Seattle to pick up her children and was now taking them home. As it turned out she did not have any labor pains on this leg of the flight, and much to Bob s relief they landed in Chicago without further incident. Childhood Glance: Bob was born on June 15, 1925, in Sparta, Wisconsin. His father, Howard Wilson, was a teacher, farm manager and administrator. His mother, Ruby, was a teacher until they started to raise their two daughters and son Bob. Bob was about a year younger than almost all of his playmates and when they started elementary school, he was left behind. So halfway through the school year Bob s parents convinced the school to allow him to start first grade at Alice Grade School. When the depression came in the early thirties, the Quaker Oats Farm where Bob s father worked was closed. In the years that followed Howard took various jobs in Louisiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. Starting school early in Wisconsin and having only seven grades in the Louisiana schools now had Bob about two years younger than his classmates. By the time Bob graduated from Downers Grove, Illinois High School in May 1940, he was only 15 and now two years younger than most of his classmates. After graduation, Bob s parents enrolled him in several postgraduate vocational courses. When WWII began, he was too young to enlist so he attended Northern Illinois State Teachers College and worked at several different part time jobs. Family Glance: During the American Airline years, Bob and Betty lived in the Chicago suburb of Elmhurst, Illinois. Their two daughters, Sandra and Linda, were born and raised there. When they went away to college, they met their mates and married. With the girls gone to begin their married lives, Bob and Betty decided to spend their retirement years in Arizona. Both girls eventually found their way to Arizona as well, driven by transfers and job changes. They blessed their parents with five grandchildren:

Sandy with two boys (Mitchell and Nathan, and Linda with twin boys (Eric and Andrew) and one girl (Nicole).

Inside Glance: From the time he was a boy, building model airplanes, Bob s passion has been flying.

sound, Mach 1 (700 mph). He enjoys spectator sports and plays golf twice a week. Bob is not much of a TV watcher, enjoys fruit, and shopping at Home Depot.

5 Sandy with two boys (Mitchell and Nathan, and Linda with twin boys (Eric and Andrew) and one girl (Nicole). The Wilsons consider themselves fortunate to have their family close by and they enjoy being invited to their activities. Inside Glance: From the time he was a boy, building model airplanes, Bob s passion has been flying. He has thoroughly enjoyed his career in aviation, from the open cockpit two-seater bi-wing puddle jumper to the 250-seat DC-10 passenger jet flying at altitudes of 45,000 feet just under the speed of sound, Mach 1 (700 mph). He enjoys spectator sports and plays golf twice a week. Bob is not much of a TV watcher, enjoys fruit, and shopping at Home Depot. Having already seen half the world, he is content to sit back, relax, and milk his retirement for all its worth. Leisure World Glance: The Wilsons moved to Leisure World on a part-time basis in They became full-time residents in They have remained active in one way or another with the Illinois Club, Road Runners, Century Club, Aerospace Club, Moonlight Serenade, Lions Club, water exercises, Christmas decorations at Rec 2, and the golf clubs. Bob and Betty believe their future Golden Years lie ahead.

Texas Great Migration urban World War 1 African- woman license parachutist Crossword Clues: ACROSS DOWN

Texas Great Migration urban World War 1 African- woman license parachutist Crossword Clues: ACROSS DOWN Bessie Coleman essie Coleman was born in 1896 in Texas, the daughter of sharecroppers. Around 1916, her family moved to Chicago. Her family came during the Great Migration of African Americans moving from