75 years ago....

[Big Muddy]

As I've mentioned here, previously, my Dad was a USAF flight instructor....during WW2, he could fly and instruct flight cadets to fly, nearly any aircraft the military deployed at that time....I asked him once, if he remembered exactly where he was, when he heard about the bombing of Pearl Harbor....he said he knew exactly where he was.

He and 3 other flight instructors had been called off cadet training duty at Moody Field in Valdosta, GA, and they were to deliver four brand new P-38 Fork Tail Devils to the west coast....he said they were crossing the Grand Canyon, when their radios blared the news, and they were to land at the nearest air field, and remain grounded, until further notice.

He said they finally located a small air field out in the middle of the boondocks, and spent the night in their planes, waiting on further orders....the next morning, they were ordered to return the planes to Moody Field....the war had begun.

""Here's to you, Dad, and how you loved those Fork Tail Devils, your favorite of all.""

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[LJ3]

Very cool! Those were one of my favorite models to build when I was a kid. Had a few of them suspended from my ceiling with fishing line.

[Chicken Dinner]

That is a great story. My own father wasn't born until two months later and I can't imagine how my grandparents felt having a baby on the way.

[Thumper]

Back when I used to build and fly model airplanes, the P-38 was always one of my favorites. I remember I always had one sporting two .049's and a larger one with a couple of 25's. That little thing would HONK!

Oh yeah, I also still have my P-38 from the military. ;)


http://ustacticalsupply.com/images/products/detail/USP38x.jpg

[Captain]

Very cool story.

[Big Muddy]

Yep, Thump, I got about bazillion of THOSE kind of P-38's around the house and shop....and, from time to time, just for the heck of it, I'll use the one on my key chain, which means the most to me....I wish I knew how many C-rations I opened with that one. ;)

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[Thumper]

Yep Muddy, I don't wear 'em these days, but mine is still on the chain with my dog tags.

[Big Muddy]

You prolly already know this, but the P-38 supposedly got it's moniker from the "lightening" speed that a can could be opened with it(yeah, right), as compared to the P-38 Lightening aircraft....another unlikely story is because it's exactly 38 mm long....either way, it's a great little make-shift screwdriver, too. ;)

I'll admit that I really liked the C-rats, with the peanut butter and crackers....most of my buddies hated 'em, and I'd trade my rat meat for 'em. ;)

[Thumper]

I ate a ton of WWII surplus K-rats as a kid. I'd take 'em camping and my buddy and I had a pile of 'em in our tree fort. When I was in the military, we had c-rats, but I rarely ate them. It was mostly in Basic, on bivouac or a few jungle missions. As for trading, I could get most anything I wanted since I didn't smoke and I could "name my price" for what I'd get for cigs. ;)

For the most part, I ate VERY well in the military. In Intel, we had our own cooks and mess crew (believe it or not), plus we were served much higher quality food than the regular troops. Real eggs vs. powdered ... carved, roast turkey vs. turkey loaf ... ham butt/shank instead of potted ham or SPAM ... that sort of thing. But I lived in the villages with the locals for the majority of the time and had a cute little Thai gal doing all my cooking. ;)

If you want some GOOD military chow, you should see what the crews get on nuclear subs! I'm talking prime rib, lobster, etc!