Description

36 pages
Once upon a time, several thousand cadets ago, the Waco Army Air Field was a vast expanse of farmland, and the only living things that got off the ground were the boll weevils which snagged free hops on the cotton as it grew up. That was until September 2, 1941, when McLennan county tax-payers approved a bond issue of $150,000 to implement the county’s part of the deal which would build an army air field on that farmland. Major John T. Sprague, placed in charge of the project, soon shipped the boll weevils, they were earthbound anyway, and began work on the field. By May 4, 1942, the first routine training flight was made from the new runways, and the new airport was open for business, that of training cadets and crewmen for the Army Air Forces. The Commanding Officer’s gold oakleaf soon changed color and then grew into an eagle, and it was Colonel Sprague who directed the destinies of the Post through that progressive first year just ended. Post Operations, the heart of the air field; weather, clearances, base flight and transient aircraft. Things have moved pretty smoothly all the way, and the thousands of pilots and groundmen who have been stationed at the WAAF at one time or another during their army careers have been well pleased with the life here. That life is pictured by this graphic survey of the WAAF from landing to takeoff, arrival to shipment. In the ensuing pages you will find a series of pictures by Post photographers which in future years will serve as a valuable souvenir of the time you spent in service at the Waco Army Air Field.