The Greatest Class

It has been said that I belong to the ‘The Greatest Generation’. After recently reading some of the News Letters issued by the Army Air Corp Pilot Class 43-D, I find myself feeling a bit of additional pride. I think that as a member of Class 43-D that I might have claim on the right to say that I also belong to ‘The Greatest Pilot Class’ in U.S. history.

Statistics show that 9,896 of us entered pre-flight schools in August 1942. Only 5,275 of us survived the ground school courses and the ‘check-rides’ to graduate in April 1943. But we still were the ‘largest class’ ever (before or since) to receive the coveted SILVER WINGS as Army Air Force Pilots.

We may not have had our silver wings in time to be the early birds in WWII. But we 19 and 20 year old guys started our training at the beginning of the war and received our wings in time to get into the conflict at the most critical point – when the out-come was still very much in doubt. Most of the greatest air battles and bombing raids, in Europe and the Pacific, were still to be flown. Some of us got there just in time to fly supplies and troops to the CBI theater; keeping the ‘Japs’ from taking all of China and the major bases in the South Pacific, Others dropped the paratroopers where needed and kept them supplied during the invasions of Europe and the Pacific Islands, etc. etc. etc. In other words, we were the guys to jump right into the thick of things and saw WWII to a victorious end.

According to the latest data, there are less than 700 of us old farts that graduated with Class 43-D that are still living. I’m hoping our story can be kept alive...