Tues. night

Dear Dad,

After receiving such a swell letter from you today I thought that the studies could come second tonight. Thanks alot for the check but you really didn’t need to do it, we don’t need very much money here, that is while we have to remain on the post. I am glad you like the A/C better than the A/S, personally I do too.^[1]A/C is Aviation Cadet and A/S is Aviation Student. You spoke of this soldier named Richardson, there was a fellow by that name in the squadron I was in in classification (#16). I think he washed out because he didn’t come here with us. Virgil Ethridge is here in Squadron 31 that is the wash out sqd. and is leaving in a couple of days but I don’t believe I will be able to see him. We are quarantined for 5 days and maybe more. One fellow in our sqd. got scarlet fever and they quarantine us for 5 days during which time a Dr. comes over every morning and checks us and if any more cases break out we will be in for another 5 days, etc. We still go on with our regular schedule but on any free time we are not allowed to leave the squadron area and no body else can come into it. We are suppose to get 25 hr. passes in about 3 weeks and if I can’t get in to the photo shop over here I will go to one in Los Angeles. Will see Aunt Mollie then.

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I am all rested up from the bivouac and even though it was alittle touch I think we all learned a few things that might come in handy someday. We haver wonderful food and good quarters here but they keep the pressure on us about 24 hrs. a day. I heard that there is one officer for every three cadets and I believe it. They are all around the place and ready to hop on you every chance they get. The main thing to remember is to take it all with a grain of salt and not to forget how to laugh. We still live in barracks but I think we get rooms in primary. The barracks aren’t very crowded and they are really pretty nice, two story affairs and everything is in a dull green war paint out here which didn’t make things look very cheerful at first.

We don’t have to worry about personal expenses because they take care of everything, they take out deductions from our pay check for laundry, grass seed and other things that make you wonder what’s going on but you don’t ask many questions. I think I told you the classes we had but in case I didn’t they are Code, Gunnery, Chemical Warfare, math, Naval craft and aircraft identification. We had one of our three tests in math yesterday and we got our grades today, I got a 100 on it, but it was pretty simple. Chemical Warfare ends this week and we start Aerial Photography Math ends in two weeks and we start Physics so you can see that the courses are really condensed. We are through studying and field stripping the 50 cal. machine gun and are starting on the Thompson sub. We will go on the range with all of them in a few weeks. With 8 of these 50 cal. in the wings of a plane you can see why the Zero’s are being stopped. It is really…

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…having my most trouble in learning to identify all of the ships in our navy. We don’t fly any while here in pre-flight but start that in primary, where we go through the washing machine again. They say about 30% wash out there. The changes in our everyday uniform is that we wear wings and U.S.’s on our collars and wings on our caps. We ha en’t received our dress caps with the regular cadet insignia but turned in our head size today. They are regular officer hats with propeller and wings instead of the spread eagle. We really have fancy gig tags now, they are specially made with our name, air corps insignia and our pictures on them.

This is the longest letter I have written in ages and I have to shave and study alittle yet tonight. The package you sent is here in the post office but I can’t get it till tomorrow, thanks alot for sending it. Now it is time to sign off.

With love,

Tom