Show M ODIS is MY n COPILOT CO PILOT col robert RELEASE the tory story thus thai fart far young robert scott vh whose 0 so great reat ambit ambition lon Is to fly BY makes makei 11 als IS own glider alder at macon ga pull PUBS off from a roof and crashes 67 7 leet feet to the ground A cherokee rose bush probably saved his life lie ile now BOW goes in fur for building scald ale model planes and wims a boy scout mut aviation merit badge at an auction tion ale al he buys his bli first pline plane for 75 lie ie roe goes to ft mcpherson and enlists in the regular army as ai a private winning a west point competitive exam he I 1 admitted and in the summer of 1932 after being graduated and commissioned as a second lieutenant of infantry he goes to V europe ur 0 pe which he be tours on a motorcycle lie ile finally arrives at randolph Randolf ih field texas this Is fa it CHAPTER III tough though I 1 had flown before in the prehistoric crates of the past this fa tact ct had nothing to do with whether or not I 1 would get through the course on the side against me was the fact that during my unsupervised flying I 1 had doubtless developed many faults that were not for the army pilot to be proud of in a case like mine some pilots think they know it all therefore there is nothing to learn others make such an effort to please their instructors that this very eagerness works against them as their own worst enemy the result of tenseness my case was more of this last order I 1 knew I 1 could fly the ship but I 1 tried to carry out my instructors orders even before he gave them I 1 listened almost spellbound through our oral communications system in that primary trainer that speaking tube which we called a gosport and which at best was hard to understand over the rattle of that wright whirlwind engine I 1 used to try to read his mind execute his every little whim I 1 even tried to outguess lieutenant landon and have the stick and rudder moving in the right direction before he be could get the orders out of his mouth now thereby hangs a tale I 1 was not only trying to look in his rear view mirror and actually read his lips when I 1 hear through the gosport but was diligently looking about chesky for other harebrained stu student defit pilots he must have realized my eagerness for or lie he gave me every break and for the many boners I 1 pulled I 1 needed lots of breaks one day at abare a bare tour four hundred feet altitude 1 I thought I 1 heard beard the instruct orsay okay scott put it in a dive I 1 peered around first and then at the nearby ground gro und for it looked very low to be going into a dive then like a flash I 1 thought I 1 understood why hes trying to see if im ground shy PU Ill show him im not with my teeth clenched and probably with my eyes closed I 1 pushed that PT 3 into a vertical dive at point blank altitude just as the cotton fields down below seemed about to come right into my lop lap I 1 felt ted landon grab the controls and saw him hastily point to his bis head with the sign that he was taking over we came out just over the mesquite trees and he roughly slipped the ship into a bumpy landing in a cotton field then while I 1 was trying to add things up and realizing already that I 1 had tied it up again I 1 saw ted very methodically raise his goggles and with great deliberation climb out of the front cockpit he glared at me but said sw sweetly betly enough scott what in the g d hell are you trying to do what was that maneuver I 1 said glide GLIDE G L ID E dont you at least know what a normal glide is in all this time weakly I 1 said sir I 1 thought you said a dive I 1 could sel see ted fight for control then he told me the next time I 1 had him at an altitude so fo low not to attempt to think but just try to keep the tha ship straight and level on another day after about two weeks of instruction we had been making only takeoffs take offs and landings and I 1 knew the time was approaching when I 1 would solo As usual that reali zayon zagan made me more and more tense as the end of the period neared on the takeoffs take offs id tense up and forget all about holding the nose straight and on the landings id jerk back on the stick instead of easing it slowly back into the approach to landing stall all I 1 could do was daydream day dream about here we are scott scotty just take over and prove to the world that we can do all of this by ourselves around the field in traffic I 1 hold the correct altitude and my instructor tor was cussing bussing a blue streak hed yell about my having graduated from west point and say that ha knew I 1 was supposed to have some brains but he been able to find them after each bumpy landing hed look around at me and hold his nose that was sy symbolic enough for me I 1 finally bounced into another landing that nearly jarred his teeth out then as usual he showed what a prince of a fellow he was and showed me that an instructor had to become accustomed to students making addge which stood me in good stead years later when I 1 became an in tor lieutenant landon got out of the front seat scat taking his parachute with him and I 1 knew the moment of mo ments had come As he leaned over my cockpit and reached inside the ship for the form one the time book always carried in army ships I 1 saw only his hand and thought he was offering to shake hands with me so I 1 grabbed the hand band and shook it he just grinned and growled with landings like those I 1 can do you very little good and ill be damned if 11 im going to let you kill me do you think you can take this thia thing around the field all by yourself and get it back down yes sir I 1 yelled then take it around and make a landing as close to me as you can I 1 had never felt so good taxiing out I 1 could see the world in a rosy light my head was really whirling pointing the ship into the tha wind I 1 over controlled into a normal student takeoff and was in the air honestly the living of this life was wonderful here I 1 was an actual army pilot with my own ship and up here tree free from the shackles of the earth I 1 envied no one circling in traffic id get my head in the clouds and gain or lose altitude but that matter I 1 was soloing then at the fourth leg ot of my traffic pattern I 1 began my glide in towards lieutenant landon by the gods he had said land as close to me as you can and I 1 was surely going to make that ship stop right by hirn him I 1 have my instructor tor being ashamed of his student even before I 1 got to the moment mo to level off I 1 could see S ee that I 1 would land right on top of him but I 1 gen 0 L chennault who was colonel scotts superior in burma and china the lieutenant was running throwing his parachute away just to get clear of a student who had really taken him literally anyway I 1 missed him and plunked flunked the ship into the ground after le velling off too high well I 1 held it straight and there was no ground loop As it stopped I 1 breathed again and I 1 could feel the smile that cracked my face A I 1 had landed the ship and it was actually in one piece looking back over my shoulder I 1 saw lieutenant landon he was just standing there about half a mile away thery then I 1 made another mistake lie he raised his hands and I 1 thought he waved me in ini I 1 know until the next day that he had been shaking his fist at me for trying t to land right on an him so I 1 taxied in never giving a thought to how my instructor was going to get in with his chute you see randolph is a big field and I 1 had left him more than a mile from our hangar I 1 had parked the plane and was in and beginning to dress when I 1 began to realize what I 1 had done looking out the window I 1 could see him trudging across the hot soil of texas in the sun with ships landing all around him my lord I 1 had tied it up agathal I 1 tried to get my feet back into my flying dying suit tripped and fell got up and ran out of the hangar door I 1 guess I 1 was going coln to take the ship and out and pick him up but I 1 had lost again toe the ship was being taken from the line by the next student I 1 just stood there with sinking heart as he be came up but he even look my way except to say its kinda hot out there 11 then he just glared and threw his chute in his bis locker well I 1 nearly worried myself to death that night I 1 knew hed more than likely tell me after the next days ride that I 1 was vas the damnedest student hed evee ever seen and that I 1 blant have a prayer of making a pilot but next day he say a word all day I 1 started to go over and tell him how sorry I 1 was but I 1 guess I 1 have the nerve during my flying training I 1 had girl trouble too you would no doubt cau call it trouble but I 1 knew it was the real thing I 1 had a chevrolet then and every weekend week end I 1 just had to see my girl even if she did live over thirteen hundred miles away in georgia to get to see her I 1 would drive that thirteen hundred odd miles to her college or her home in fort valley spend anywhere from ten minutes to two hours with her then jump back in the car and drive madly for texas and the monday morning flying period I 1 always had to delay my start until after saturday morning inspection that meant that I 1 had to average lust just about fifty four miles an hour even counting the time I 1 saw the girl in the forty seven hours that I 1 had from after inspection on saturday to flying time at eight monday mornings morning sl I 1 weekend week end after weekend week end I 1 drove madly across the south from the middle of texas to the middle of georgia on one of these cross coun try dashes I 1 weakened and was fool enough to ask the commandant of student officers it if I 1 could go to atlanta I 1 can still see and hear capt aubrey strickland say saying ing atlanta what and me meekly replying atlanta georgia sir he just said hell no and I 1 turned and walked from his office with the good intention of obeying the order but within the hour I 1 haa ha A weakened I 1 filled my rumble neat tank which held fifty fafty five gallons offiel of fuel and was off to see h lor for the short time available yc s she was and still Is some ial on the return trip I 1 burned out two bearings near patterson louisiana jimmy wedell one of the well known speed flyers helped me to get it fixed after I 1 explained the predicament I 1 was in but even with five of us working on the number one and number six bearings of the chevy I 1 was twelve hours late getting back to randolph field As I 1 walked into the bachelor officers quarters that I 1 shared with bob terrill I 1 expected any minute to hear the sad news but I 1 wa was 3 too afraid to ask for details so I 1 just waited tor for bob to say you are to report to the general tomorrow for court martial for AWOL in violation of specific instructions finally he put down his letter writ ing looked at me almost in disgust and broke out scott you are the damned luc luckiest k man that ever livell you get reported today nol no this Is the first time in the history of randolph field that its been too cold to fly and it only too cold to fly it was too cold to have ground school because the heating system had failed we haven I 1 flown today we been to ground school so they dont even know that youve been over there to see that girl in all of these trips to see my girl over in georgia I 1 drove miles I 1 wore out two car aarsand sand probably agree that her father had full right to say to her why dont you go on and marry him be far cheaper than hla his driving over here every weekend week end 1 when I 1 had finished primary and basic training at randolph I 1 almost let down my hair and wept though on the day that commandant of student officers called over and said that now I 1 could have permission to go to georgia to see my girl I 1 thanked him and went well when graduation came at kelly and I 1 had those wings pinned on my chest I 1 had the wonderful feeling that I 1 had gone a little way towards the I 1 wanted I 1 was at last an army pilot never did the tha world seem so good and then out of a clear sky came orders for me to go to duty in hawaii that was pretty bad because I 1 wanted to get married before I 1 went out of the country and as yet the girl gotten her degree from college probably if I 1 had gone to hawaii I 1 would have figured out cut some way to have flown a P 12 back over every week but I 1 have to do it after all the chief of the air co corps aps cams came down a few days later and I 1 waited until he had had lunch in the officers mess then I 1 walked over and said general can I 1 ask you a question sure sit down he ha said and I 1 told him the whole story and I 1 made it like this general I 1 know that im supposed to go where im sent because im in the tha army but ive got a girl over in n georgia and I 1 think I 1 can do a lot better job wherever you send me it if you can give me m time to talk her into marrying me he ap p pear to be very impressed at first arst but he took my name and serial number and two or three days later when he got back to washington I 1 was ordered to mitchel field N Y As I 1 drove my car towards my first tactical alignment I 1 kept reaching up to feel my silver wings on my chest I 1 wanted to prove that it a dream this was what I 1 had been working for since 1920 now I 1 was actually riding towards the glory of taCtIC tactical 81 army aviation I 1 recall that I 1 had pad just about comple completed jed the trip to long island when something happened that will keep me remembering the fall fail of 1933 r just before I 1 reached tin holland tunnel I 1 was suddenly forced to the curb by three cars OU all bristling with sawed oft off shotguns and tommy guns I 1 jumped out pretty mad but saw that many guns were covering me and that it was the police they looked at my papers but said anyone could have mimeographed orders they searched the car and me took down the texas license number and even copied the engine number all ali the time I 1 tried to talk with the flashlights in my eyes TO SE CONTINUED |