Chuck Craig earned his pilot rating in 1940 while a junior at Syracuse University and became a member , of the Syracuse Civil Air Patrol. After graduation in May 1941, he became a salesman in the Boston offices of IBM. He enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941 and became an Aviation Cadet soon there after. He was awarded his wings and Second Lieutenant Commission in January 1943. It was also in this year that he married his wife of 64 years, Fariss Craig.
During his Air Corps career, Chuck instructed Royal Air Force pilots
in the operation of single and twin engine airplanes before they returned to England. As an instructor, he logged over 3,000 hours of first pilot flight time in single, twin and 4 engine Army aircraft. He was promoted to Captain in 1944 and was discharged in December 1945 as a 4 engine pilot instructor, and became a member of the Army Air Corps Reserve. He and Fariss returned to Boston where he continued his 43 year career with IBM, at a number of IBM locations along the East coast, but always returning to Alexandria.