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Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Friend

Honored by:

I worked for EDO Aircraft Corp. in College Point, Queens from 1939 through 1944 and then enlisted. I was sent to Camp Upton, Long Island. I was in the U.S. Army. I got a furlough and train ticket to Keesler Field for basic training.
Then I was shipped to Normoyle, Texas, then to Stinson Field, Texas to train servicing B25s in the field. Sent to Bowman Field to repair C46s. Sent back to Stinson Field and to Camp Ansa to train on debarking on rope ladders. Then to Los Angeles, CA and shipped out to Tasmania, Australia. Then to Bombay, India to Jorhat; then to Calcutta, India. On Calcutta, the outfit was the 599th Air Engineering Squadron 383rd Air Service Group.
Joined the 20th Air Force, and I was a sergeant, aircraft sheet metal specialist assigned to the shop. Then the 20th Air Force shipped out to Tinian Island. Then the Master Sergeant Alexander told me that my occupational specialty became obsolete, and I had one of three choices to pick. I chose base fireman and shortly afterward, I was asked to report to my base engineering officer.
He asked me to accept the title of Base Fire Chief as I had the highest rank (Buck Sergeant). I finally accepted and was told that papers were sent to Washington, D.C. upping me in rank to Master Sergeant after I was in the job many months. I never got the promotion and left the service many months later as a 3-stripe Sergeant.
In civilian life I went back to EDO Aircraft Corp., and worked a few years and then quit. Then I worked 10 years for the Transit Authority of the City of New York. Then I quit and worked as an Engineering Aide for the State of New York. I stayed about 3 years then went to work for Grumman Aerospace Corp. I was a Test Technician and became Head of Test Lab in Plant #5. I went to State University, Agricultural and Technical College at night. I retired when I turned 65 years of age and took early retirement.
Then we moved to Port Richey, Florida after 23 years with Grumman Aerospace Corp. I worked on both wings of Space Shuttle Discovery.