US Air Force Military Training - Yearbook (Lackland, TX)

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Type of plane, such as a P-38, is Tound ideal Tor phoTo- graphic missions, whereupon machine guns are removed Trom a cerTain secTion oT The plane and cameras are in- sTalled in Their place. Thanks To These rnodiTicaTions, The enemy TrequenTly is caughT oTT guard. While The daring deeds oT our Tliers have been Told over The radio and in The press, very liTTle is known ouT- side The Air Service Command's own ranks oT The long hours of Toil and hardship puT in by The men on The ground in order ThaT The men in The air may carry ouT Their mission in Top-condiTioned planes. IT is The job oT The Personnel and Training Division To supply and Train The men and women who operaTe The Supply and MainTenance Divisions and The oTher acTiviTies of The Air Service Command. The enlisTed men and oTTicers consTiTuTing The miliTary personnel oT ASC are Turnished Through SelecTive Service and The War DeparTmenT. ConsequenTly, supplying ThaT parT oT ASC's personnel presenTs no diTTiculTy. Air Service Command's Training program Talls inTo Two broad classes-Tor iTs civilian and iTs miliTary personnel. Civilians are Trained Tor work in This counTry: The miliTary Tor work in combaT zones. The Two groups are Trained separaTely, and Their Training is diTTerenT. The soldier-mechanic in a combaT zone isn'T likely To be working in a large concreTe or sTeel repair shop where supplies and equipmenT are abundanT, where The plane To be worked on is broughT righT To The worker, and where The worker has only his single special iob To per- Torm. As likely as noT, The overseas soldier-mechanic may have To help locaTe a plane ThaT crashed noT Tar behind The enemy line. When he Tinds iT he musT be careTul ThaT booby Traps have noT been planTed in iT. He musT geT The plane aboard a wrecker and hauled To where iT can be worked on, aT The same Time he keeps on The alerT Tor snipers and enemy acTion. l-le may have To make repairs in a Truck hidden under a Tree. IT no Trees can be Tound, he may have To help puT up camouflage To proTecT The plane, Truck and squadron during repairs. Our Army operaTes on The very sound premise ThaT if a man cannoT do his iob in Training, he cerTainly will noT be able To do iT in combaT. To prepare personnel Tor Their baTTle Tasks, Then, soldiers oT ASC undergo a rigorous six-monTh Training program. Only Then are They ready Tor The obiecTive Toward which all miliTary acTiviTy is aimed-direcT operaTions againsT The enemy. There are Two periods oT This Training: The acTivaTion and uniT Training period and The combined Training period. During The TirsT period a cadre oT experienced oT- Ticers and men is assembled aT a base uniT oT The ASC. IT received special Training in how To build The new organizaTion aT The Air Service Command school, WRASC, Warner Robins, Ga., aTTer which IT proceeds g.. W! A To The Tield where The new uniT will be acTivaTed. Here The organizaTion is broughT To Tull sTrengTh in accordance wiTh The appropriaTe Table oT organizaTion, by The addiTion oT personnel processed Through ASC ReplacemenT DepoTs. To supplemenT basic miliTary Training received upon enTrance inTo The Army, The en- lisTed men undergo brush-up courses. There is in- sTrucTion in how To live in The open, how To build a laTrine, how To proTecT oneselT againsT gas aTTack, how To use small arms, and many relaTed subiecTs. Men compleTe necessary medical and denTal TreaTmenT. Those disqualiTied Tor duTy overseas are weeded ouT and replaced. Courses oT insTrucTion, begun in various Technical schools in such subiecTs as mechanics, para- chuTe repair, welding, and oTher subiecTs, are conTinued. AT The conclusion oT This period, The uniT will have suTTicienT Training so ThaT iT can be selT-suTTicienT and is able To conducT iTs primary mission as a well- inTegraTed organizaTion. During The combined Training period, The uniT works wiTh a combaT organizaTion and learns precisely whaT iT musT do To service This ouTTiT. This is done under simulaTed baTTle condiTions, wiTh emphasis on camou- Tlage, dispersion, concealmenT, bivouac, and movemenT. The organizaTion is molded inTo a compacT, Thoroughly schooled ouTTiT, rarin' To go. Thus, our mechanics, when The Time comes, know precisely how To geT Their planes in Tip-Top shape Tor combaT missions, wheTher bombing Torays or TighTer escorT duTy or low sTraTing aTTacks on enemy Troops. To Teach officers how To seT up shop in TheaTers of operaTions overseas The Air Service Command conducTs a posTgraduaTe course aT The Warner Robins depoT, Macon, Georgia. A large sand Table shows The layouT of a compleTe ASC seT-up in a TheaTer of operaTions. When The shove oTT order acTualIy comes, each uniT commander knows how To handle The Thousand and one Things necessary To move men, supplies and equipmenT To a disTanT posT.

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Twenfy-Tour hours a day There is a sTeacly flow of Traffic in and ouT of repair hangars as ships of all Types are serv- iced by skilled mechanics of The Air Service Com- mancl. Puddle- iumpers, Trainers, cargo ships and bombers receive equal and care- ful aTTenTion from The home TronT soldiers in over- alls who Keep 'Em Flying, l-lere, in summary, is whaT The Air Service Command does: l. IT Turnishes supplies Tor all Army Air Force airplanes ThrOughOuT The world. 2. lT repairs, Overhauls or rebuilds These same planes. here and Overseas. 3. lT Trains The personnel required Tor The supply and mainTenance iobs. 4. IT processes lprepares Tor shipmenTl all American and Lend-Lease planes Tor shipmenT Overseas. 5. lT gives Tinal inspecTiOn To and makes any needed changes or repairs On all American planes Tlown overseas. 6. IT makes Tinal inspecTion OT Lend-Lease planes con- signed To SouTh and CenTral American counTries and Turnishes supplies, rouTes and OTher assisTance Tor The TlighT Trom This cOunTry TO each plane's desTinaTiOn. The hearT OT The Air Service Command is iTs supply sysTem Through which our Tliers and planes all Over The world geT The supplies They need. BolTs and bombers, bulleTs and bombs, Tuel and lubricanTs, Tlying suiTs and jungle kiTs, radio seTs and medical supplies-all are made available by Air Service Command To Our Air Force combaT uniTs wherever They are Tound. The minuTe an Air Force plane leaves The TacTory iT belongs TO The Air Service Command-ThaT is, Trom Then on iT is The iob OT ASC To keep iT in Tuel, bulleTs and bombs, and repair. The TuncTiOn OT The lvlainTenance Division is TO keep planes in combaT cOndiTiOn. The lives OT our Tliers and The eTTecTiveness OT Our planes depend in large measure on how well The lvlainTenance Division OT The Air Service Command does iTs job. We are The garage mechanics OT The Army Air Forces, said Major General ClemenTs lvlclvlullen, ChieT OT The Division. WiThouT The services OT our men and machinery, a plane could OperaTe only so long as noThing serious wenT wrong wiTh iT. ln combaT, ThaT wOuldn'T be very long. Air Service Command mechanics nOT only resTOre damaged planes To Their original cOndiTiOnp They also make improvemenTs on Them. This is called mOdiTicaTiOn, and consisTs OT alTering a plane as a resulT OT combaT experience. lvlodiTicaTiOns are inTended TO Till The gap beTween The Time The Army Air Force decides On an alTeraTion and The Time The TacTOry can puT The change inTO eTTecT. Perhaps a secTion OT plane is Tound To be Too vulnerable To enemy Tire: ThaT is cOrrecTed by in- sTalling guns in a cerTain spoT. Or The armamenT al- ready There may be OT insuTTicienT sTriking power so The machine gun is replaced by a cannon. Again a cerTain use l

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Repairing The damaged wing of a B-I7 bomber in Middle EasT. They know how To lOcaTe a downed plane, and, eiTher salvage every usable scrap Trom iT Or geT iT back TO a base where iT can be reTurned TO TighTing Trim. They know how TO remove and replace a TaulTy engine, paTch up a Tlak hole in a wing wiTh a Tin can, sTraighTen OuT a benT propeller blade so ThaT iT can be used again. AT The end OT The six-mOnTh -period, The OrganizaTiOn is ready Tor acTiOn. Then iT's OTT TO The sTaging area and Overseas, There's plenTy OT acTiOn aTTer ThaT. An air depOT group corresponds TO a main depOT in This cOunTry. IT is more or less a permanenT insTallaTiOn and is locaTed Trom 400 TO I,200 miles behind The lines. IT is The supply base Tor The Army Air Forces Tor an enTire Theafer OT operaTiOns. Repair shops are equipped TO do maior overhaul iobs. AbouT midway beTween The depOT group and The enemy line are The service groups, which correspond TO sub-depOTs in This counTry. A service group serves as a supply base Tor The mobile uniTs or squadrons which Tan OuT Trom iT, and iTs camOuTlaged repair OuTTiT is equipped To handle all buT maior Overhauls. The mobile uniTs Or squadrons OperaTe only a Tew miles behind The line and are inTended TO Turnish emergency service TO Air Corps planes and Tliers. Each mobile uniT consisTs OT Trom I2 To 20 men, each a specialisT in his Tield. Some are welders, some sheeTmeTal workers, some machinisTs, some aircraTT mechanics, and so On. The uniT is Trained To work as a Team, The same as a bomber crew. Army Air Forces and Lend-Lease planes Trom This counTry are Tlown overseas Or shipped sTripped down Or craTed. The Air Service Command has a hand in all Three meThOds. Bombers are Tlown Trom TacTOry TO a iumping-OTT place in This counTry where They are reTueled and given a Tinal check-up by ASC mechanics. View of an assembly area of a SouTh Pacific base where P-38 and P-39 fighfer planes are puT TogeTl-ier. Some TighTers have been Tlown across, buT because OT The limiTed gasoline capaciTy OT a TighTer and The sTrain On The pilOT TO Tly and navigaTe wiThouT The aid OT a crew, This has been done only in an emergency Or TO gain experience. Fuel requiremenTs can be meT by TasTening an auxiliary Tank lbelly Tankl TO The under side OT The Tuselage which is released when The Tank has been drained. As a rule TighTers are shipped across. Some are craTed aT The TacTOry and addressed and puT aboard ship aT The porT OT embarkaTion by The Air Service Command. MOST TighTers are sTripped down aT an ASC embarkaTion d'epOT and Then puT aboard ship. Air Force commanders over- seas preTer TO receive The planes sTripped clown because They can be made ready Tor combaT in less Time Than planes ThaT have been craTed. The Air Service Command overseas porTs nOT only process all TighTer planes senT overseas, buT also handle all plane parTs and Army Air Forces supplies and equip- menT shipped overseas. NOT all OT our Lend-Lease planes leave The WesTern Hemisphere. Many OT Them go TO The oTher American republics. MOsT OT These planes are Trainers. There are also some combaT planes. They are Tlown by Air Trans- pOrT Command Trom The TacTory TO San AnTOniO, Texas. where Air Service Command Takes Them over. ASC workers painT on The planes The insignia OT The counTry To which They are going, give The planes a Tinal check-up and make necessary changes, and Then Turn Them over TO The accrediTed represenTaTives OT The coun- Try OT desTinaTiOn who arrange Tor The personnel To Tly Them away. Air Service Command Turnishes The Tliers wiTh spare parTs They may need along The way.