[sci.military] WWII Pilot Training

lanham@aristotle.ils.nwu.edu (Ryan Lanham) (08/10/90)

From: Ryan Lanham <lanham@aristotle.ils.nwu.edu>

The movie "The Battle of Britain" was on recently and much of the movie
centered around the lack of British pilots for her fighers.  I don't think
I've ever seen any good data of how long and on what platforms most 
WWII fighter pilots trained.  In this movie, a seasoned flight leader
rolls his eyes when two young pilots show up with 9 and 12 hours of 
time on a Spit.  What this truly unusual?  Under such dire circumstances
I would think twelve hours would indicate a well trained pilot.

Ryan Lanham
Northwestern Univeristy