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Oral History Interview with John G. Solis, March 31, 2009 transcript

Oral History Interview with John G. Solis, March 31, 2009

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with John G. Solis of Irving, Texas. He discusses enlisting in the U.S. Navy on September 17, 1942, and was sent to the Naval Air Station in Corpus Christi, Texas for bootcamp. In bootcamp Mr. Solis talks about learning to shoot rifles by shooting clay pigeons and presentations held to teach how to identify enemy aircraft. While learning to fly, Mr. Solis was assigned to Bombing Squadron 1. In 1944 Mr. Solis ended up with the Torpedo Squadron 100 flying torpedo planes in Oahu, Hawaii. His squadron never saw combat, but he did witness U.S. ships getting destroyed by Kamikaze planes during the Okinawa invasion. He helped in some Naval strikes in Japan from March to June of 1945 before returning to the states for leave. Mr. Solis was still at home on leave when the war officially ended, and he was discharged on September 14th of 1948 due to signing up for a 6-year contract instead of the normal 4-year one.
Date: March 31, 2009
Creator: Solis, John G.
Object Type: Sound
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with John G. Solis, March 31, 2009 (open access)

Oral History Interview with John G. Solis, March 31, 2009

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with John G. Solis of Irving, Texas. He discusses enlisting in the U.S. Navy on September 17, 1942, and was sent to the Naval Air Station in Corpus Christi, Texas for bootcamp. In bootcamp Mr. Solis talks about learning to shoot rifles by shooting clay pigeons and presentations held to teach how to identify enemy aircraft. While learning to fly, Mr. Solis was assigned to Bombing Squadron 1. In 1944 Mr. Solis ended up with the Torpedo Squadron 100 flying torpedo planes in Oahu, Hawaii. His squadron never saw combat, but he did witness U.S. ships getting destroyed by Kamikaze planes during the Okinawa invasion. He helped in some Naval strikes in Japan from March to June of 1945 before returning to the states for leave. Mr. Solis was still at home on leave when the war officially ended, and he was discharged on September 14th of 1948 due to signing up for a 6-year contract instead of the normal 4-year one.
Date: March 31, 2009
Creator: Solis, John G.
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History
[Clipping: WASP Memorial Fly-In] (open access)

[Clipping: WASP Memorial Fly-In]

Newspaper clipping giving information about the Patriot's Parade. A list of former WASP with portraits and short biographies is also included.
Date: May 28, 2005
Creator: unknown
Object Type: Clipping
System: The Portal to Texas History
[Clipping: WASP Memorial Fly-In] (open access)

[Clipping: WASP Memorial Fly-In]

Newspaper clipping giving information about the Patriot's Parade. A list of former WASP with portraits and short biographies is also included.
Date: May 28, 2005
Creator: unknown
Object Type: Clipping
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Robert Edward Sieker, August 3, 2000 (open access)

Oral History Interview with Robert Edward Sieker, August 3, 2000

Interview with Robert Edward Sieker, a pilot from Kerrville, Texas. Mr. Sieker discusses his grandfather's immigration from Germany. In addition to his stories from his extensive flying career, he also talks about his service in the military during World War II, his various occupations throughout the years, and his work against the screwworm infestation.
Date: August 3, 2000
Creator: Bethel, Ann; Snodgrass, Clarabelle & Sieker, Robert Edward
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History

Oral History Interview with Edward J. Drake, 2002

Access: Use of this item is restricted to the UNT Community
Interview with attorney and Army Air Forces veteran Edward J. Drake. The interview includes Drake's personal experiences about being a B-17 pilot in the European Theater during World War II, youth and education in Dallas, Texas, enlistment in the Aviation Cadet Program, various training programs, bombing transportation facilities during and after the Ardennes Offensive, crash-landing in Belgium after his plane was hit, and linking up with American troops. Additionally, Drake talks about his assignment to the 91st Bomb Group, the routine for a typical mission, formation flying, flying through enemy flak, rest and relaxation on-base and in London, recuperating from a collapsed lung, his return to combat for three more missions, and his return to the crash site of his plane 57 years later. The interview includes an appendix with "The Last Flight of 'Jezebel,'" written by Drake.
Date: October 16, 2002
Creator: Marcello, Ronald E. & Drake, Edward J.
Object Type: Book
System: The UNT Digital Library
Oral History Interview with Richard Bennett, November 15, 2001 transcript

Oral History Interview with Richard Bennett, November 15, 2001

Interview with Richard (Dick) Bennett, a pilot during World War II. He discusses his enlistment in the Army Air Corps, basic training and flight school. He then went to a base in South Carolina to learn to fly B-25s. At Fort Myers, Florida he flew B-26 bombers and trained to fly them off of aircraft carriers so they could drop torpedos on the Japanese fleet during naval battles. He traveled across the Pacific to Brisbane only to be told that they didn't have B-26s for the crews; the colonel there knew nothing about the plan to launch B-26s from aircraft carriers, so they were sent to New Guinea to fly B-17s and supplement the crews for those bombers. From there they made bombing runs or "Washing Machine Charlie"-type runs to keep people awake at night on various Japanese targets in the islands, particularly the base at Rabaul. In fall of 1943, the Army grounded the B-17s due to the damage they had incurred and replaced them with B-24s. The men received manuals and were given only a few days to familiarize themselves with the new planes. They were then sent on bombing runs. He finished his tour of duty at …
Date: November 15, 2001
Creator: Cox, Floyd & Bennett, Richard
Object Type: Sound
System: The Portal to Texas History