31 Jan Sequoia Field
As a “Dodo” at Sequoia Field
Sequoia Field is in Visalia, California, a city located about 230 miles south of San Francisco and 190 miles north of LA. It was a small town back then, less than 8000 residents. The Visalia-Dinuba School of Aeronautics was actually a civilian owned training school used by the Army Air Corps (later the Air Force.) Civilian owned because the Army Air Corps just didn’t have the capacity to train the numbers of pilots that would be needed to be sent overseas. Between 1941 and 1945, Sequoia Field and nearby Rankin Field turned out a combined number of over 18,000 pilots. Nationwide a quarter of a million pilots were trained at civilian owned schools and at their height the schools were turning out pilots faster than aircraft could be produced for them to fly!
This is where Herman was sent for flight training in order to become a pilot, on or about September of 1942. Sequoia was called “the Country Club” by the cadets. The living quarters here were improved – ten cadets to a room in bunk beds with actual innerspring mattresses. Everything had to be kept in inspection order, glistening and spotless! There was more physical training … calisthenics, running, military drills. The new cadets were called “dodo’s” and the upperclassmen ordered them around unmercifully, all preparatory self-discipline for becoming officers and pilots.
While half the school was flying, the other half was in “Ground School” … flight-related courses such as meteorology, navigation, engines, etc. Herman also completed a course in chemical warfare while he was there.
Herman told us that he just “didn’t make the grade … When they asked me what I wanted to do I said I would still like to be a bombardier. The Board that I went before pulled out my file and said, ‘OK, Herman … you’re going to Victorville!’ “
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