The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1928-05-03
CHAPTER XII

CHAPTER XI
/ arrived at Brooks Field on
March Is, 1924, but was not en-
listed as a flying cadet until March |
10. Ordinarily a cadet enllsts at
the nearest station to his home and
is given free transportation to his
most service and back to the enlist
ment point. after his discharge: by
enlisting at Brooks / was entitled
TO no transportation allowance, ex-
cept possibly, bus fare back from
Kelly, where j graduated a year
later. ;,
There were 104 of us in all,
representing nearly every State In
the Union. We filled the cadet
barracks to overlooking. There
were two cots to each window and
some of us were even quartered In
the recreation hall. We We're
carefree lot, looking forward to a
year of wonderful experiences be,
fore we were graduated as second
lieutenants and given our wings.
Nearly all of US were confident
that we would be there to grad
uate a year later. We had already
passed the rigid physical and men
tai entrance examinations in which
so many of the other applicants
had failed. We had no doubt of
our ability to fly, although most OF
us had never flown before and we
had yet to get our first taste OF
the life of a flying cadet.
By the time we had been in the
barracks a few hours stories began
circulating around which originat-
ed from conversations with the
last class of cadets who were wait
ing to be transferred to the ad-
vanced flying school at Kelly. :,
Rumors of "Benzine Boards.
and "wash-outs," academic work
and "eight-hour examinations, =
zone eighty's," and "check pilots, =
''walls with ears" and cadet ETH
uuette''- these and a hundred 9TH
er strange terms were condescend
ingly passed down to us by the ole
cadets of six months experience
Someone remarked that less thar
forty per cent of US could expec
to finish the primary training a
Brooks and that probably half O.
those would be washed out at kel
ly.
By bed check that night we ha,
already begun to feel the appre
hension which is part of f1yin'
cadets life from his first day a
Brooks until he has received his pl
lots wings at Kelly.
Our actual flying training wa
to begin on the first of April
Two weeks were required to be
come organized and learn the pre-
liminary duties of a cadet. Durin
these two weeks we were lnocula'
ed against typhoid and small-po
ait the hospital, taught the rud
ments of cadet, etiquette, given Il
tigue duty, required to police tn
grounds surrounding our barrock
inspected daily, and instructed an
given examinations in five subject
In our spare time we were above
to look around the post or tax
the bus to San Antonio, providtt
however, that we were back in be
not later than ten o'clock on SUI
day, Monday, Tuesday, Wedne
day, Thursday and Friday nights
At all other times we could sta
out as late as we desired.
When we did have a few spal
moments in the afternoon, the
were usually spent in trying
t'chizzle" a hop from one of tt
instructors on the line,
Early one morning we were a
lowed to take the training shil
out and push them to the line fl
the old cadets to fly. But when OF
of the planes nose over after elgl
husky rockies heaved up on tt
hundred and fifty pound tail, it WI
decided to put US to work movir
hydrogen cylinders for a balloe
ascension.
AS the first of April approache
we We're looking forward to Il
start of actual flying with gre
anticipation. Coupled with tn
was the anxiety of waiting for I'll
returns from our examination p
pers, the failure of any two
which would be sufficient cause f
their owner to be washed out fro
the courses.
The flying instruction was ca
ried on from two stages or diffe
ent sections of the field. l W;
assigned to B stage, which w
about a half-mile out in the file
from the cadet barracks. Each i
structor had about six cadets a
signed to him, and early in Il
morning on the first day of APP
our instruction commenced. / w
assigned to Sergeant Winsto
together with five other cadet
We pushed his instruction plad