Instead of being sent to Marana Army Air Field in Tucson, Arizona, Tom and his classmates are sent to Lemoore Army Air Field outside Fresno, California for their Basic Flight Training.
Just a note to let you know that I am here at the Lemoore Army Air Base near Fresno, Calif. The Marana deal fell through for all of us and we all ended up here. It is really a nice base but it is all flying. Beside flying the regular BT’s while here we might get some time in the twin motored AT17’s.
Vultee BT-15Cessna AT-17 Bobcat
We arrived here at 6:00 AM today and have been on the go ever since. The living conditions are nice here. We live in barracks but they are divided into rooms, four men each.
I will have a box no. for my address later on but this will do till we get it. We move into our permanent squadrons tonight so will have to close. Will let you know all the dope as soon as I find it out.
With Love,
Tom
December 8, 1943, Lemoore, California, Monday Night
Tom is in the middle of his final exams for primary flight training. His instructor, John Harbin, has recommended Tom to be trained as an instructor because he liked his flying and the Lieutenant liked his coordination.
Just a short note to let you know that everything is OK. Dad, I am really glad that things are all lined up for the new job and it really sounds good. I am going to write and ask you more about it later but we are right in the middle of our final exams now and alittle studying wouldn’t hurt me any.
I really had several surprises today. Long John took me aside and told me that he liked my flying and the Lt. who I had had my army check rides with said he liked my coordination. Long John also told me he had recommended me for an instructor. It made me feel pretty good but I don’t know if I would like it or not. It doesn’t mean an awful lot now because you go right on through the training and alot can happen to change things. We went up for an hour today and just played aound. He would do some stunt and then I would try to do it. I then got in two other hours of solo. Three hours of acrobatics is really pretty tiring but alot of fun.
November 30, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Monday Night, Page 2
About noon I was called into headquarters and asked if I would like to go into light or heavy bombardment. When they explained things, it seems that I can go to Marana, basic flying school down near Tucson, Ariz.
It is really suppose to be a good deal and when they told me it was also training for P38 fighters I decided on it so I will be going to Marana in a few days. When I know my address I’ll let you know. A couple of my buddies are also going there.
Cleda, I received the box on Thanksgiving morning and believe me it really hit the spot. All of my favorite cookies were there and I am afraid I made a hog of myself. The whole works was certainly good and it really made things seem more like Thanksgiving Day even if it was just another 12 hr. day to us with a turkey dinner in the evening. Thanks again.
Tom writes approvingly of his Dad’s plans to close his Greenville medical practice and take a job in Chicago with the Kemper Insurance Company as a staff physician. Tom passed his final army check flight for Primary Training. He passed, although several others from his group need to try again. Tom enjoys telling all about his check flight.
Tues. night.
November 24, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 1
Dear Folks,
I have really been neglecting my letter writing but this finishing up business has kept us all morning. I’ll proceed to answer your letters: Dad I received your Chicago letter and I hope the business deal turned out OK. I really think that it is the wise thing to do because I really don’t see how you could keep up the pace there at home. From the sound of the set up it sounds like a pretty good deal. If you stayed at home you would just have to quit entirely and I don’t think you would or could do that. Let me know how things work out and just what the set up is. It looks like things are going along fine at Elaine’s and that Karen is really growing up. Say, thanks alot for the coupons and also thank Mr. McLain for me. I gave them to the Perkins and they really come in handy.
November 24, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 2
About having some pictures made. I was going to have some made but I wouldn’t have time to get them. I’ll try to get some made at basic but if we go to Pecos, Tex. they probably won’t even know what a camera is down there. We will be leaving probably the first week of Dec. and it isn’t certain that is where we are going. Say what is it you mean about small pictures for Bass + Taylors? I don’t think you explained that to me.
You asked if I really enjoyed flying as much as I thought I would. After you are up for about 2 hrs. straight it does get a little tiresome but if they would let you you would jump at the chance to stay up longer. It really seems like the more flying you do the more you want to do it seems to grow on you. Now that we are doing acrobatics it makes it all the more interesting because it really breakes the monotony to be able to do some loops, spins, snap rolls, slow rolls, etc. after working an hour on Chandelles and lazy eights. These Stearmans will do just about anything and you would really believe this if you could watch them for about 15 min. you would wonder just what kept the wings on. Oh yes – I passed my army check ride last Sat. I was going to send you a telegram but then I thought I would write and tell you about it.
https://youtu.be/jOB1Gkg2h18
Before you take off you have to go through a long check list and then the Lt. turned around and told me to take off, climb to 3500, do a chandelle to the left + right, a lazy eight to the left + right, a rudder exercise, a turning stall to the left, a snap roll, a slow roll, a two turn power on spin, and fly a cross road eight. He said all this in one breath and you half to do everything in order. I really gave him a good ride and the only thing I forgot was to check the time I took off and when we landed he really gave me hell for that. However, I think he was pretty well pleased + I think Long John was also because it was my first crack at the army check + I passed it and the other four in our group had taken it + failed. They will have rechecks this week. I am really just about through primary as soon as I get my time in because we only have to pass one army check. I have 53 hrs. now. I really never did think I would make it. I really think I owe Mr. Harbin a great deal because I don’t think anyone else but him could have taught me as much about flying in the time we have been here as he has. I don’t know where he lives in Phoenix but if you want to drop him a line just send it to
John B. Harbin
Thunderbird Field #2
Phoenix, Arizona.
c/o Hayward + Connelly
November 24, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 3
I am certain he will get it O.K.
Cleda, I received your letter today and I think I have answered some of your questions, as to how long I’ll be here, etc. Is Anne better? You asked about my name: Aviation Cadet Thomas Cartmell is alittle more proper than just Cadet ” “: It is so they won’t get mixed up with the West Point bunch. You have really got a problem as to what to do with Nick. The best thing to do would probably be leave him on the farm if you couldn’t take him along. Well I’m wishing I could be with you Thanksgiving but write me out another rain check.
Tom sends his family an unofficially released photograph of his flying group.
Dear Folks,
November 16, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Letter 2, Page 1
I am writing you a letter also tonight but thought I would send the picture seperate. This is the only picture I was able to get in fact this one wasn’t gotten on the up + up. I wish you would get some extra prints made from this and send me a few back, I’d like to send one to Elaine + Zoe. I hope the picture reaches you in good shape because it means a good deal to me.
Tom’s Flying Group
Reading from left to right they are: James Gist; Bob Cloos; Long John; Joe Gervais; yours truly; and “Red” Barratt. Back of the Stearman is the McDowell Mts. range.
Tom has quickly recovered from the flu and probably still has time to get in the remainder of his required flying hours. He received a box of food and was very pleased.He’s still trying to get a box of cigars for his dad.
Mon. night.
November 16, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 1
Dear Folks,
I really haven’t but just a few minutes before taps but did want to let you know that I am back on the job and OK. I had the shortest ccase of the flu I have ever heard of. As I told you they put me to be here at the post hospital Fri. morning with about 101° fever, aching bones and typical flu symptoms. I think the main trouble was that I was just worn out anyway I slept through Fri. and that night my temp was OK and I got out at noon Sat. Went out and flew 3 hrs. Sat. afternoon and then went into Phoenix. Apparently no bad effects and probably all the better for the rest. At least I am plenty thankful that I didn’t get held back a class.
The box of food was really swell and the cake was really super, I hadn’t had that for a long time, and Cleda, I don’t know what you put in it to keep it fresh but it certainly was good. It must have taken you ages or some friends help to get all the candy. I still have alittle of the candy left and I am saving it for my self. Also Dad the shoes arrived today and they really seem to be just the thing. It was just what I wanted and I can hardly wait till tomorrow to try them out. Thanks alot for everything.
November 16, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 2
Oh yes Dad, I tried to get you a box of cigars but the most you can get is six, however, Mr. Perkins thought he might be able to pick you up a box so if you can hold out for a while we will try to work something out.
I have 40 hrs. now and have to get to 65 by the 26th of the month. (which happens to be 3 hrs. every day.)
We’ll have to close for now this is mainly to thank you for the boxes and let you know that everything is OK and that I am back on the beam.
With Love,
Tom
Sent you a picture tonight.[1]Picture is enclosed in “Letter 2”
Tom is hospitalized with the flu, and is worried he’ll be held back if he doesn’t get back to the flight line quickly. He discusses his pay status.
Fri. night.
November 13, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 1
Dear Folks,
Well I guess just about everything has happened to me. Here I am in the hospital with a mild case of the flu. I went on sick call this morning and when I had some temp they put me to bed. I have been sleeping most of the day and I feel 100% better tonight. My fever is down and my only trouble now is to convince the doctor that I should get out of here in pretty short order. I would hate to get held over a class just because of this. Hope to get out at least by Mon. morning so I should be able to get caught up on my time. Such is life.
I received both of your letter the day before yesterday. It sounded like Dad really had a birthday celebration at the Eastern Star. The mail sargt. told me that the box you sent me was in the mail room. He said he would bring it over tomorrow. It couldn’t have arrived at a better time. It is bad enough to spend a weekend on the post let alone in the hospital. However, I am not complaining because we can get plenty of rest here and that is what we all need more than anything else.
November 13, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 2
Dad, I was glad to hear that your ankle is alot better. I hope by this time that it is entirely well. I’ll try to fix you up in the cigar line. I was going to get you some last weekend but all the kind I saw I never had seen back home before. So what ever I can get here’s hoping you can make use of them.
Up to date I have about 15 hrs. dual time and 20 hrs. of solo. I’ll probably only get about 10 more hours of dual and about 20 more solo. I have to get this in in the next two weeks so you can see why I can’t afford to waste too much time here in the hos.
We get paid regular at the first of every month. We clear about $75 a month. The army gives us about $130 and then we pay the civilian contractor for our board + room. There is alot of red tape to the whole thing but as long as we get out $75 everyone is happy.
As you can probably tell I am writing this in bed. Enough for tonight.
Tom took Zoe out to the field today so she could see his training site. 10 student pilots were washed out as discipline for buzzing the ground and flinging toilet paper rolls around the countryside. They were all about to graduate, and now their pilot careers are finished.
Sun. night.
November 1, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 1
Dear Folks,
Well here it is Nov. the 1st and if my memory serves me right Dad you will have a birthday in about 5 days. Many happy returns.
I think Zoe is leaving tomorrow morning. She is going to see you folks when she gets there. We drove out here to the field this afternoon so she will be able to give you a pretty good description of the place. By the way ten boys washed out out today. All of them were upper classmen who were flying today to finish up their time. All of them we caught buzzing and flying about 10 feet about the ground. They had taken up some rolls of toilet paper and had it strung all over the countryside. They were all caught by the inspector and everyone one was washed out in less than an hour. It should serve as a lesson. I have about 18 hrs. in now so I should have my 20 hrs. check the first of the week. We start on the upper classmen schedule tomorrow which is really rugged. Flight line from 7:30 A.M. till 1:00 P.M. and in the afternoon have two hrs. ground school, hour of drill + an hour of P.T. (Phys. training). We will have all the planes to our selves now and will be flying about 3 hrs. a day. From this schedule you can see why I am going to make this letter short.
November 1, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 2
Cleda, thanks alot for the letter and card I certainly wish I could have been with you in Chicago. I guess I’ll have to take a rain check on that too.
Tom’s flying is more often solo and less often with his instructor. Zoe came out for a weekend with Tom. Tom wants his Dad to mail out some rubber-soled shoes for flying. His issued shoes are too clunky for the foot controls of the airplane.
Mon. night.
October 26, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 1
Dear Folks,
I was going to write this letter last night but we had a GI party when we got back from pass at 7:30.
Really had a swell weekend. Zoe got in about 3:00 A.M. Sat. morning and my pass lasted from 4 PM. Sat. till 7:30 PM. Sun. Mrs. Perkins wanted us to eat breakfast Sun. morning with them. We really had a nice visit.
The weather here is really ideal now, the evenings and mornings are cool and the days haven’t been getting very warm. The worse thing is when we fly at 7:30 in the morning and when you get up to about 6,000′ it gets so cold you are numb all over. We haven’t been issued our flying jackets yet but should get them this week. We can turn in our canvas helmets for leather fur lined ones but I tried one the other day and I could hardly understand the instructor. I have got about 13 hrs. in now. About 3 of them are solo and from now on most of them will be solo.
October 26, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 2
Dad, I haven’t got Long John’s address yet but will send it to you when I get it. He wasn’t here today so I got in some more solo time. I think he just had a good hang over. I am glad Grandma enjoyed her self so much. I’ll give you the low down on coming out here for a visit. We have about six more weeks here and then go on to basic. The trouble with this here is we don’t know if we will get weekend passes till about 24 hrs. before we get them. If they have a thunderstorm or something that knocks mmmmm out of our flying we have to fly on Sun. to make up the time. This is all the information that I know, I imagine the time that you come out we will be in basic and I don’t know what the set up is. How is everything in Chicago? Has Karen grown much more?
The planes we fly here are the Stearman PT17’s. They are really a rugged little plane with a 220 horsepower engine which is plenty of power to start out on. We go to basic and advanced at different fields and we don’t have the least idea where we will go.
Boeing Stearman PT17October 26, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 3
Say, there is something I wish you would send me. These G.I. shoes are too clumsy and heavy to fly in and I have been wearing my tennis shoes which aren’t very good. I wish you would send me a pair of those old plain toed shoes. Those with the buckles + straps on them because those are the only kind we are allowed to wear. Don’t send those ones I sent to you because I won’t be able to wear them. If you can get shoe repairing done there have some rubber soles and heels put on them.
Those composition soles will be O.K. but don’t let them put on leather because they will slip off the rudder pedals. Also not too thick a soles because I have come to find that you can be just as sensitive with your toes as you can with your fingers. One more thing if you happen to have any A coupons for gas that you aren’t using send them to me don’t any Cs because I don’t think I could use them. If you haven’t any it is O.K. and don’t send any that you need.
October 26, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 4
I have some navigation and meterology to study tonight. Our classes are getting alittle tougher but aren’t too bad yet. I don’t know a thing about engines but I have come to the conclusion that I am going to have to learn something about them.
Asta La Viesta (or something.)
With Love,
Tom
If this letter sounds disjointed blame it on my buddies they kept interrupting me.
Tom has just had his first solo flight and is thrilled. He describes what led up to the solo. He also describes a classmate who bailed out of a plane during a spin and is appearing before the “washout board.”
Mon. night
October 19, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 1
Dear Folks,
We had a dust storm and then a thunder storm this afternoon and we were suppose to fly from 3:00 til 6:00 P.M. but we were grounded. It was the worse dust storm I have ever seen out here. We had all the windows and doors closed but even then it was even clouded with dust inside. Outside you couldn’t see three feet in front of you, everyone was going to dinner in gas masks which worked fine.
Dad, thanks alot for the air mail envelopes I received them this morning, also received your letter of the 12th & 13th and I certainly did enjoy them. Thanks also for sending the checks, I don’t know for certain yet if Zoe is coming this weekend or not, I imagine train room is alittle hard to find. It seems like I am always thanking you for sending me something.
Boeing Stearman PT17October 19, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 2
I sent you a telegram yesterday, I hope you received it O.K. I did want to let you know that I had soloed. It was really a thrill and something I’ll never forget. You don’t have a chance to be afraid until it is all over with. We went up about 7:30 A.M. Sat. and shot about 5 landings and I bounced every one. He was so mad at me I thought he was going to throw me out of the plane. After one landing he told me to taxi to the edge of the field. I though he was really going to give me hell but instead he climbed out and told me to take it around. I took it around three times and made three of the best landings I have ever made. Long John just said I had satisfied him so I guess it couldn’t have been too bad because he is the hardest person to please I have ever seen. Up to date I have 7 hrs. & 47 min. of dual time in and 33 min. of solo time. From now on the time will mount up alot faster because in a few days we will be flying 2 and 3 hrs. every day. Last Fri. one of the cadets in the upper class bailed out. [1]Jack H. Overman was flying a Boeing Stearman PT17, No. 41-7873, 8 miles north of Paradise Valley, Arizona. Following a stall, the he bailed out. The plane crashed and was wrecked.He was practicing spins and he went in to a reverse spin. He got rattled and jumped when there really wasn’t any need for it. These planes will come out of just about any maneuver by themselves if you will just get off the controls and relax. The boy is up before the washout board so it is hard to say what he will get. The worse trouble with these planes is that they ground loop without any reason at all.
October 19, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 3
I went into Phoenix and saw Mr. & Mrs. Perkins this weekend. Really had a very restful weekend which didn’t do me any harm at all. A boy went in with me by the name of Lenard Burgess. He is from Nevada and we had a swell weekend.
If you want me to send the newspaper clipping back let me know. It’s almost bedtime so I had better close. Goodnight –
Jack H. Overman was flying a Boeing Stearman PT17, No. 41-7873, 8 miles north of Paradise Valley, Arizona. Following a stall, the he bailed out. The plane crashed and was wrecked.
Tom’s flying skills are improving and he is getting ready to solo. He and his instructor are getting along better. He writes that about 30% of his starting class has “washed out” of pilot training, mostly for physical and medical reasons.
Wed. night.
October 14, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 1
Dear Folks,
Cleda, received your letter today with Dad’s and really enjoyed them all. My stomach is alot better but I haven’t been eating anything which is probably a good thing. Flying has been going better the last couple of days so I guess Long John and I are hitting it off alittle better. Three boys in our flight have washed already and one of the boys with Long John is about to wash. He got a pink slip today which means things aren’t going very well and that he has about one more chance.
To answer some of your questions: I think we will get passes this weekend so I’ll get to see the Perkins’s then. About the material I said I was going to send. I have decided to keep it for a while because I might need it for ground school here. All together while we were at Santa Ana I guess about 30% of our starting class washed but the greater bunch of these were on the physical. However, there were several others that were held over for low grades.
October 14, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 2
About putting something in the Advocate; there was a form letter that we sent to our home town paper a few days ago that they should have by now. You might ask and if they haven’t received it you can put my address in and say that I am in primary training at Thunderbird Field Phoenix. However, they should have received that form letter and it would make a good article in itself. I have about 5 hrs. in now so I should be soloing between now and when I get 12 hours. Today we shot some landings and he said he wanted to solo me before long. I imagine it will be next week sometime, personally I think I am ready now but Long John says I have to get my spins and stalls smoothed up alittle. I can get it in and out of a spin easy enough but its is alittle sloppy. You asked about the no. of cadets here. I guess it would be considered a mil. secret but it wouldn’t be a very hard one to find out. I guess there are around 500. They have 100 planes in the air most of the time but the way the boys have been tearing them up we will do good to have 10 in the air. Each instructor has 5 students so we don’t get our dual time in very fast, however, after we start putting in our solo time we will get in about 3 hrs. of time every day.
October 14, 1943, Phoenix, Arizona, Page 3
Cleda, thanks alot for getting Zoe a present. That 5th Ave. stuff sounds pretty good. From the sounds of things you really had a busy time in Chicago. I hope when you go up in a few weeks that you get to see a good game and get alittle rest. I wish I were going with you but you will have to tell me all about it. I hope Grandma enjoys her visit, give her my love when she comes.
Well goodnight – tomorrow morning we are going to shoot cross wind landing for about an hours. Asta La Viesta –
