Oral History Interview with Tom Anderson, February 3, 2004 (open access)

Oral History Interview with Tom Anderson, February 3, 2004

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Tom Anderson. Anderson dropped out of college in 1941 and hitchhiked from Texas to San Diego. There he worked for Consolidated Aircraft, drafting plans for the B-32, B-36, and C-99. He then transferred to the Fort Worth plant, where he stayed until 1944, when he enlisted in the Navy. He was selected for radar technician training, and after boot camp he studied electronics in Chicago, followed by airborne radar training in Corpus Christi. He had a lifelong interest in flying and looked forward to his first duty assignment. But when the war ended in Japan, his radar conning class was cancelled and he was reassigned to the radar shop of CASU-5 at the Naval Air Station in San Diego. Anderson was discharged into the Armed Guard in March 1946, taking up work at the Fiscal and Disbursement Office of the Adjutant General at Camp Mabry. In 1950 he returned to school and joined the Army Reserves, retiring in 1966 as a lieutenant colonel.
Date: February 3, 2004
Creator: Anderson, Tom
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Tom Anderson, February 3, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Tom Anderson, February 3, 2004

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Tom Anderson. Anderson dropped out of college in 1941 and hitchhiked from Texas to San Diego. There he worked for Consolidated Aircraft, drafting plans for the B-32, B-36, and C-99. He then transferred to the Fort Worth plant, where he stayed until 1944, when he enlisted in the Navy. He was selected for radar technician training, and after boot camp he studied electronics in Chicago, followed by airborne radar training in Corpus Christi. He had a lifelong interest in flying and looked forward to his first duty assignment. But when the war ended in Japan, his radar conning class was cancelled and he was reassigned to the radar shop of CASU-5 at the Naval Air Station in San Diego. Anderson was discharged into the Armed Guard in March 1946, taking up work at the Fiscal and Disbursement Office of the Adjutant General at Camp Mabry. In 1950 he returned to school and joined the Army Reserves, retiring in 1966 as a lieutenant colonel.
Date: February 3, 2004
Creator: Anderson, Tom
Object Type: Sound
System: The Portal to Texas History