 Proudly we hail New York City where the American stage begins here is another program with a cast of outstanding players public service time has been made available by this station for your army and your Air Force to bring you this story as proudly we hail the United States Air Forces in Europe a presentation is entitled window in the curtain as proudly we hail second Lieutenant Donald McDavid of the 23rd fighter bomber squadron as one of many United States Air Force fighter bomber pilots in Western Germany flying patrol along the iron curtain he has a vantage point vital to the Western world a window in the curtain our first act will begin in just a moment but first young man there's a future in flight for you today's jet age offers unlimited opportunities for young men between the ages of 19 and 26 and a half who are high school graduates and otherwise qualified yes you can proudly wear the silver wings and fly the mighty aircraft of your United States Air Force when you've completed your training for full details visit your nearest Air Force base or your nearest United States Air Force recruiting station tomorrow and now your army and your Air Force present the proudly we hail production window in the curtain when you're 21 years old and a brand new qualified jet fighter pilot you keep telling yourself like they say it on the radio second Lieutenant Donald McDavid life can be beautiful especially when your first real-duty assignment after graduation is a real plum flying f-86 Sabre jets with a 23rd fighter bomber squadron in Bitburg Western Germany see where you are on the map mcdavid here Bitburg midway here between Luxembourg and Frankfurt that's your flight commander Captain John Craig World War two ace flown every fighter plane the Air Force has used since 1942 a good man this is what you've heard in a fighter squadron a flight is the basic fighting unit in the air this unit is made up of two elements of two planes each led by the flight commander he'll be the leader instructor father confessor shepherd commander of the flight to which you're assigned so you're glad of what you've heard about him now that you're checked into the squadron and starting your three-year tour he's giving you the word Bitburg headquarters of the 36th fighter bomber wing one of the fighter bomber units of the 12th Air Force now the 12th Air Force has got six wings scattered strategically here at Bitburg you're 150 miles to the Russian zone in Germany over here I didn't realize we were so close to the close just across the street from the Ruskies less than 25 minutes from here to the curtain that's why we're here to keep them 25 minutes away partly our primary mission of course is to act as part of a defensive force standing ready to retaliate in the event of an attack sounds like we have our hands full or whatever the f86 can do and that's plenty we'll be doing and that's the kind of training you'll be getting all during your three-year tour training that sounds like I'm still in cadets kid in this business you never stop learning in training you're a pilot McDavid the Air Force can't ever let you get rusty I read you now this will be different than cadets you've got those wings now you're one of the boys we're all in this together I sure hope so I had cadets now another thing you never know when you'll be up there training and then playing for keeps see what you mean the real McCoy's only 25 minutes away check now let's go meet the rest of the flight the boys you'll be flying with you pay attention when he introduces you to the boys he's not introductions to be forgotten when the party is over these are the guys you'll be flying with to the pilots no one is closer than the man who flies wing to wing with him this first lieutenant Jess Barker you'll be flying on Jess's wing most of the time he'll be leading the second element you got anything to tell Mac Jess oh just stay close on my wing and don't get lost and we'll get along fine I'll do my best sir don't mind Jess Mac sometimes it's hard for him to remember he was a new second Louis once you asked me so I told him well I was telling Mac what a good deal fighter bombers is now some of the interceptor boys in Korea flew their 100 missions and ever saw make is now right Jess I wouldn't know I put in 34 and managed to see a few Jess got two and a half Megs in Korea good man looks like I learned something we'll cut the mustard I just remember Barker's bark is worse than his bike you two will make a good team come on there's another man I'd like you to meet my wingman captain Ola Ola he's an MDAP type from the Norwegian Air Force how my first tour with you fellows are rather guys MDAP type mutual defense assistance program MDAP Nathan you know some of us Norwegian French and Belgium we have the opportunity to fly with you Americans to see how you do the aerial operations this is great I've heard about it I hoped I'd meet some of you guys over here don't meet many before you leave you'll spend some time on TDY temporary duty in their squadron this three year tour gets more interesting every minute Olaf was in the RAF in World War two if you're a nice guy maybe he'll introduce you to the madam was Ellen Perez who smuggled him back to England when he shot down Olaf captain have a cigarette take two maybe this can be arranged Mac and Captain Craig gives us the time off well before that my fine type says work ahead and plenty of it you'll get your first flight with us tomorrow morning and for the next two weeks Lieutenant McDavid went through an extensive ground and air checkout to acquaint him with the flying procedures and ground responsibilities an officer new to the Air Force establishment in Europe okay guys let's get the coffee cups out of the way and get down to business what's it today boss Schweinfurt gunnery range for glide bombing and strafing now for Lieutenant McDavid's benefit I'll explain that this flight like all others we fly here will accomplish much more than that however now to get to Schweinfurt will simulate a low-level penetration of enemy territory that'll give us low level navigation on the way we'll navigate to a simulated enemy command post at these map coordinates now mark these down on your flight cards x-ray yoke 136-284 after we've identified the command post we'll proceed to the gunnery range upon expending ordinance we'll go to altitude for simulated dogfighting and then return to base and make a ground-controlled approach instrument landing call sign of the flight will be Foxtrot red red three Jess you'll take over the flight after join up and lead us to the command post a few minutes later the four of you are in the air joined up in a glinting silvery four shift finger formation roaring at better than 500 miles an hour across the German landscape in a low-level dash and in your earphones you hear captain Craig calling your leader Jess Barker red three this is red one ready to take over lead of the flight over affirmative red one will hold this 80 degree course to map coordinates x-ray yoke 136-284 over okay red three you got it we'll position ourselves behind you don't get any closer to the deck than this Roger not red one high in the air with nothing to pair it to jet pilot has no feeling of speed but here on the deck skimming swiftly at treetop height your fantastic speed is the heaviest of wines in the most sobering the ground races blurringly under your nose like a speeded up conveyor belt the house is seen distant ahead sprouts larger than darts beneath you breathlessly and then as far behind red one this is red three command post below at nine o'clock nice navigating red three that's her ever see a force like that red four negative red one they don't grow them like that back home it shaped like a perfect arrowhead the aren't as big as back home but in Germany they sure keep them prettier and normally it's just one big forest okay red three take us over to Schweinfurt down the deck again and take a heading of zero eight five degrees zero eight five degrees Roger red one and out at the Schweinfurt gunnery range captain Craig resumes leading the flights taking you up to glide bombing altitude then single file behind him you all clobber the market tanks the north end of the rectangular range the bombs are gone he leads you in strafing runs on targets at the south end of the range and the ground below range attendance score each pilot after the firing is completed help prepare him for the day he fires for score another hour of jet time in your logbook you say to yourself with pride and this is overseas time the days and weeks go by and gradually you begin to realize you're really building something here on the ready 25 minutes from the iron curtain you take pride in the business of honing yourself down to raise a red sharpness as a jet fighter bomber pilots you take it all seriously night flying instruments navigation dive bombing rockets strafing but there's one thing missing air-to-air gunnery two and a half hour 1300 mile non-stop flight and within five hours the entire squadron officers and airmen is bivouacked in a huge Air Force density in the desert outside of Tripoli taking its scheduled turn at the gunnery range for an intensive two weeks of firing at 0 4 1 fire the next morning you're on Craig's wing several miles offshore over the blue Mediterranean below a 10,000 feet to your left and behind the beat 26 is towing a 30-foot by 6 foot piece of canvas object to make a downhill s turn and punch that bit of rag full of orange colored holes from the painted bullets that are in your guns and your guns alone remember that 15 degree cone behind the target red to watch how I make this pass to ship one is red one on pass a thing of beauty amassed a piece of maneuverability of graceful coordination the test of a fighter pilot simple a buck oh well I'll soon find out so one this is red to on pass several passes later you know it's not so simple but you are making progress trouble is red to you're making your past too far out end up chasing the flag can't seem to make the proper pass and wind up in firing range at the proper angle move your downwind leg in about five miles I'll force you to make a tighter pattern rods red one just can't seem to get on this beauty that's okay this is your first go out it don't feel bad you get the hang still out and shoot our Korean hot shot and a few flights later the fourth morning suddenly everything falls into place pattern sighting firing and you're ready to qualify the gunnery officer pulled your red card you go up and fire for qualifying score and when the rags are brought back after your four required consecutive missions you've qualified as an expert top rating with 63% hits in high altitude gunnery the whole procedure is repeated and this time your score like everyone's drops but not enough to prevent you from qualifying as expert again with 51% hits that makes you top man in the flight in score after captain Craig with Barker two points below you and Olaf close behind that kind of shooting boys I knew what would happen when we got back here to Bitburg and I was right we won the cup for high score and a five-day pass flight average of 44% top to mall Donald boons with wings that's us that looks like we see Paris Mac and the ma'am sale I told you about we can get a hop on the group courier playing the Paris in the morning how about it captain all the time we've been down and dribbling you think my wife would let me negative yes would you come with Mac and me huh oh sure just a little gay parry of a cost it isn't Tokyo but come see comes out well say I didn't think you you know I sort of promised some guys in Frankfurt I'd party with them if we got the pass I didn't know you well well I'll tell you what the let's go into town tonight even if I can't leap off with you raunchy characters tomorrow good deal I am hot to try tonight the mark eight club next stop parry you are listening to the proudly we hail production window in the curtain we will return in just a moment for the second act young man an interesting career lies ahead of you if you can qualify as an aircraft observer in your United States Air Force as a flying officer you'll be an important member of the fighting team on one of the great aircraft produced in this era of jet aviation the United States Air Force needs these technical specialists officer personnel skilled in navigation aircraft maintenance radar interception and other important skills there's a future for you as an aircraft observer in your country's Air Force can you qualify well if you're single between 19 and 26 and a half and a high school graduate visit your nearest Air Force base or your nearest United States Air Force recruiting station and find out you are listening to proudly we hail and now we present the second act of window in the curtain you've read about it heard about it seen it in the movies but it's like falling in love or flying only personal experience can tell you what it's really like you set out to do that with Olaf as your guide first you meet the girl who rescued him when he was shot down during the war where do you meet her we collect cafe de la paix in half an hour bonjour you see done but her sister how about her sister not done she's married with someone we have to how you say it scrounge around with my high school French but perhaps Colette can find a friend from the Sorbonne may we may we leave us blast off for the sidewall cafe on top here you can see all of our city over there Notre Dame and there the Arc de Triomphe and all around the same I see something much closer or he means the blonde girl by the railing oh but yes Paris is a sightseeing delight red too this is red for on pass every member Mac a correct pattern is necessary to approach target ma'am zele vous les voulues dit moi comment on all new song moon to know and leave the new song twice on me pardon a mwa ma'am zele may follow you on glaze in the eye of Possibly? What I mean is a lot better than either one of us be friends. Mondeju and American! Hey, Olaf, Collette, look what I found! They have pictures outdoors here. It is very clever. I don't understand someone. You mean that one there, with the motor car and the tennis racket in it? And it looks like a camera up there in the corner. Or is that the eagle? Oh, this is probably an abstract. You don't have to understand them. What's the title, say Mac? Fish or Women by Twilight. And suddenly the five days are gone and it's all over. Addresses exchanged, plans made for the next leave, a snapshot for your wallet. Then back to Bitburg to prepare for the biggest deal of the year. Operation attention, a NATO air-ground war exercise. All leaves are canceled. This is to be maximum effort for all squadrons. Just as it will be for all ground force units. Of all the participating countries, Britain, France, America. At squadron briefing, it's explained that the purpose of NATO exercises is to test the offensive and defensive capabilities of air and ground forces in Western Europe and the abilities of the staffs to function as one. Your squadron will operate off an auxiliary air strip in eastern France. Just as in the triply flyaway, the whole squadron will pick up and move to its temporary base. In a matter of hours, you're on a strange, single landing strip in France. The squadron blossoming around you as tents are pitched. And you're ready for operation attention. Early the next morning, your flight is in the briefing room. Outside in the dark, you can hear the sabers from another squadron taking off. And inside, you get briefed for the first day of the operation. As you know, the participating forces are divided. Half aggressor force, half defender. As defenders, our squadron's mission, as directed by Joint Operations Center of the Air Force, ground forces, will be armed reconnaissance of this rectangle. From Wurzburg to Fulda, to Kassel, to Fritzlar, and back to Wurzburg. We're to hit the road network, clobber any and all movement there. As you know, umpires will be on the ground and in the air, so we really have to do the job to be credited with a successful mission. Remember, no fooling around. This is under strict combat conditions. Let's go. Minutes later, your four-ship flight is over Wurzburg, heading for Fulda, combing the area below for any sign of life. Sign of aggressor force. We'll stay at 5,000, boys. Keep your eyes peeled. They're bound to be around here somewhere. Looks pretty peaceful right now, Dad. Maybe camouflage, Red 3. When the sun comes up, look for shadows. Hey, they sure got enough cover. They wanted to look at those trees. Remember those trees, and don't go below 1,000 just for a better look, or you'll be wearing branches on your chest. Fulda dead ahead, Red 1. Rise, Red 3. Turning now on the lake to Kassel. Look for tracks off those roads down there leading to cover. Red Leader, just passed over tracks angling off road into trees. We'll go back for a look. Turning now. They'll see him, Red 4. Affirmative. Nine o'clock, leading right to that big clump of trees. Oh, Grandma, what big eyes you have. Knock it off, Red 3. Roger on the trees, Red 4. Where are the tracks? To the left. Up that slope. Roger, Red 4. Have them in sight. We're going in for a look-see. I see him. Looks like tanks. Aggressor tanks and vehicles. Hit them, Red 3 and 4. We'll follow. Your leader shears off a screaming chandelier for altitude. Then breaks, and you follow him down in a vicious, slanting dive toward the trees and the tanks. And as you pull up in a sharp, banking climb, you can see your other two planes lacing down to the target. You repeat your runs again. Again. And then? Join up, Red Light. We seem to have expanded the film in our gun cameras. Yeah, where it did the most good, though. Yeah, expanded, but not wasted, fellas. We sure are clobbering them. They got a score as high on that deal. There's more down there that we can handle. Call our old friend, Blue Nose. He's the other controller in this area. Good deal. He can call the types for an on-call mission. Blue Nose, this is Foxtrot Red Leader. Over. Come in, Foxtrot Red Leader. I got a package for you over here. Tanks and vehicles and what else? They've expended ordnance and low on juice. Understand, Foxtrot Red. What are your coordinates? Queen Yoke 135-973. Have on-call flight in vicinity. Continue on pre-brief reconnaissance until you must return to base. Over and out. Roger and out. Back at Bitburg, the routine, if ever it could be called routine, goes on of continuing flights. Each one somehow different, challenging, exhilarating. His tour up Olaf returns to the Norwegian Air Force. An overnight navigation hop to a British base up north for you. And another flyaway to Tripoli. Captain Craig draws TDY, temporary duty at the RAF Air Ground School at Old Surram, England, and comes back a little changed. They should see that. What those RAF chats don't know about air ground. Jess Barker comes back from TDY with the Belgian Air Force and... And Pew, bit of trouble checking those types out in 86s, but after that, man, what tigers. Real types, my word. Then one weekend, you and Jess Barker go boar hunting at the invitation of a local German baron on his private estate. And while you're away, unknown to you, Blue Nose makes a report to radar group control. Gets a large inventory. And so you and the rest of the squadron are called back to the base fast. You and Jess draw alert. Sitting in your planes at the end of the runway, ready to be airborne two minutes after a red flare from the tower and a radio call tells you, scramble red flight. One comes. A minute later, you're aloft. Hanging on Jess's wing as he climbs for altitude and calls Blue Nose. Blue Nose, this is Red Leader. What are your instructions? Red Leader, this is Blue Nose. Your present position approximately 10 miles north of Kaiser's mountain. Take up a heading of 165. Bogey's present position 40 miles south-southeast of you, near town of Karlsruhe, at 12,000 feet on a heading of 120 degrees. Estimated speed of Bogey, 150 knots. Over to you. Roger, Blue Nose. Seem to be brakes and overcast at vicinity. We'll check when we break through. Red Leader, change your heading to 160 degrees. Bogey will then be at 12 o'clock approximately 12 miles. Roger, Blue Nose. Turning, Red 2. Keep your eyes open for that Bogey. Roger. Hey, Tally Ho, Red Leader. Bogey, 12 o'clock, low. Hanging back on heading of 330. Bogey identified as twin-engine transport aircraft commercial, markings red, green, and white on tail. Redly name on fuselage. Roger on type aircraft, Red Leader. You may return to pitching now. Over and out. Roger and out. Poor guy must have got blown off course and lost up his flight plan. This close to the curtain, he ought to watch his drift. Hey, hey, check that aircraft the other side of the curtain. Three o'clock, way off and high. Could be a MiG. And so could this one have been, buddy. And now you know what it all adds up to. Sitting up here on top of the sky in your saber jets, the iron curtain on one side, the allied countries on the other, you know suddenly and clearly why you're here. You're one of the few who can see far to the other side. Up here you're a defender of rights, guardian of peace. And should that peace take the wings of war, you'll be among the first to see it coming through your window in the curtain. Young man, there's a future in flight. Today's jet age offers unlimited opportunities for young men between the ages of 19 and 26 and a half who are high school graduates and otherwise qualified. Yes, you can proudly wear the silver wings and fly the mighty aircraft of your United States Air Force when you've completed your training. For full details, visit your nearest Air Force base or your nearest United States Air Force Recruiting Station today. Remember, the sooner you apply, the sooner you fly. This has been another program on Proudly We Hail, presented transcribed in cooperation with this station. Proudly We Hail is produced by the Recruiting Publicity Center for the United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Service. This is Mark Hamilton speaking, inviting you to tune in this same station next week for another interesting story on Proudly We Hail.