Once a Jock...Always a Jock! ! : Recollections of the Flying Midshipmen

Description

Overview: A pilot or astronaut, an abbreviation of jockey as in throttle jockey or jet jockey. "Once a Jock . . . Always a Jock" is a compilation of three hundred stories written by the first postwar generation of Naval Aviators who began their training in late 1945 as teenagers fresh out of high school. A 16 week Pre-Flight school started the clock running on a two year contract where each future Navy pilot held the rank of Aviation Midshipman, USN. The clock was still running when they earned their gold wings and were assigned to fleet squadrons. These Flying Midshipmen flew every aircraft in the Navy’s arsenal. Eventually they were sworn in as commissioned officers and went on to participate in every major aviation event from the Berlin Airlift, the Korean War, and the Cold War to the conflict in Vietnam. Readers of these stories will discover what motivated 3,000 high school kids to fly for the Navy. They will learn what it was like to be a Flying Midshipman at the bottom of the pecking order aboard ship or as a pilot in an aircraft squadron. Today’s young pilots will gain some useful knowledge about training mishaps and accidents that could have been avoided. They will be thrilled by accounts of My First Corsair Flight or My First Jet Flight or My First Cat Shot. They might reflect on the sobering story of Jesse Brown, the African American who broke the color barrier in Naval Aviation the same year that Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in major league baseball. Those who have flown as civilian or military pilots will find themselves in the narrow escapes and the humor in the aftermath of bad judgment, and above all, in their great love of flying.