Military Letters, WWII

As found in old newsletters.
Transcribed by barbara stallman-speck

Lyle Peterson                                           Shepard Field, Texas          May 5, 1943

Letter to Advocate Leader,       

     Just a line to let you know I am now in the 314 TSS. This has been one of the busiest squadrons on
the field so I find very little time for writing letters. After going to school for seven hours then having
a three-hour period out on the drill field out in the good old Texas dust, I am ready for bed. But the
captain usually finds something else for us to do so we postpone it for a couple of hours.

   This squadron goes on the midnight shift at school this week so we will have to get what little sleep we can in the heat of the day. On the midnight shift we eat breakfast at  10:30 at night. It’s a crazy time to be having breakfast, but we have dinner around 4 A.M.

   They operate the field on a 24-hour basis and change shifts every 15 days. We get every seventh day off. That is, we don’t have to go to school. This squadron has a “bull” gang consisting of two flights every day to do duty in the squadron area. That means that two flights miss out on two holidays a month.

   So far, since I entered the army in November, I have met but one boy from Lyman County, Milton Whitney. I have seen him but twice since he has been home on furlough.

   This is the third camp I have been in since I left South Dakota I will be here about two and a half months longer, This is one of the three largest Technical Command Training Schools in the Air Force, at the present time. As far as the country is concerned, I don’t like it too well. Too much sand to suit me.

   It’s time for “lights out” so I better check the bulleting board and go to bed for a few hours. Please change the address on my paper.

Sincerely, Lyle