HomeMy WebLinkAboutWilliam Douglas "Doug" Moore, Brazos Valley Heroes 9
T . v 3� ✓
N.
4 , '., p.,,z .0, li ,.. , 110444 „ . .. 4 . 4 —_,, 4 , .,
i
O ne m a s of tributes o members of The Greatest Gene ation" who s erves! outcount un W ortd War I!
F b
.„
,:e , .,,,....
...
.??,, i,,,,, ----------,:. - ------)•,-----,,,,',..
. - ,,,, ...., ,,,.., . , ,
... , . .., ..,..
M , _
A
, .,
d
" 'u
tor: s ,., k *'1,5. William Dou 1 Ias "Dou 1 'Moore ' 0,,e.
By Bill Youngkin closest town was Clewiston, Florida and our airfield
Special to The Eagle was Riddle Field. We immediately started flying with
I almost all of the flights 'under the hood' meaning we
I William Douglas, "Doug "MooreofCollegeStation were taking off, flying and landing blind, using only
is a tall man, standing 6 foot 4 inches. That height our instruments. Almost all of these flights took place
almost cost him on opportunity to serve his country at night. At night there would be no guidance except
as a pilot in the Army Air Corps during WWII. fire pots on the runway. We knew that this training
Life for Moore began in Nashville, Tennessee was for night activities and probably not on regular air
on April 14, 1922. At 88 years of age, he is just as fields.
tall as he was when he was a young pilot and with "The Brits were great to work with. It was also
just as much hair. According to Moore, "My parents the first time this Tennessee country boy had ever
moved to Northeastern Tennessee to Dresden when been called a'Yank' The Brits on their final flight had
I was two. We were 18 miles from Davy Crockett's to fly to New Orleans, land and take a picture, gas up
birthplace. My father started a building material and return on their own.
I business in Martin, Tennessee and we moved there. „
I graduated from high school in 1940 and entered When we graduated, the Brits left to conduct 1 those activities we had been trained for but we didn't
the junior e coll the state l i n started called UT-
Martin. go with them as we had expected. I was sent to ferry s
transport in Great Falls Montana. My height caught ;
"I learned to fly while at UT- Martin receiving up with me there as I couldn't fit in the cockpit of the
my pilot's license and a commercial license as well. P -39s and P -63s we were to deliver. ,r
I knew the war was coming, so I joined the Army y
Air Corps Reserve. I had no problem with the tests I eventually became part of the transport !
except for one, the physical. At that time there was command flying supplies to North Africa. We flew
a height limit on pilots which 1 think was around 6 from Miami to British Ghana to Belem, Brazil and
feet. The height measurement wouldn't go high then to Natal Brazil, the closest point to Africa. one
enough for ei to be measured so they had to use a of the planes we were flying could cross the Atlantic
tape measure. 1 scrunched down as much as 1 could so we flew to Ascension Island. The Navy had ships
and they measured me with the tape. That's how I Posted on our flight route to help us keep on course.
became 6 feet tall and acceptable into the flight If you missed Ascension Island, you would not
program. ° have enough fuel to reach Africa and the same was
"I enrolled at UT Knoxville but in November true coming back. Also Ascension Island had a short
runway with cliffs at either end and it was almost
1942, the campus was pretty much emptied of
all able bodied men by the draft or by volunteers always covered in clouds. It was always a dangerous
which were the most, carrying on the tradition of place to fly into and out.
Tennessee being the 'Volunteer State: I was sent "Some of the cargo was medical materials that
to Kessler, Mississippi for basics. Being the tallest needed to be flown in dry ice. We knew it was
made me the right guide or the guidon bearer for all desperately needed for the wounded. Near the end
marches and reviews. of the war and after the war in Europe ended, we
"I was sent to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania for were flying the wounded and high point guys as well
pre -flight at Gettysburg College. We were in class as senior officers back home.
for math, astrology and Morse Code. While there I "After the war I went back to school at UT
visited the Gettysburg Battleground and Cemetery. Knoxville and then to Wharton Business School, at
Gettysburg College was a pleasant place to be. Penn. I was hired as a professor at Texas Tech and
While there I had guard duty around a stone house then I went to work at Dallas Power and Light, now
in Gettysburg. I found out later the home belonged Texas Utilities. I had a great career there. I came to
to General and Mrs. Eisenhower. A &M when the Real Estate Research Center began
"After completion of pre-flight and and retired from that in 1984"
commissioning I was sent to Knoxville, Tennessee When askedabout his military experience, Moore
where we were submitted for other tests. I was responded, "The service taught me to persevere and
interviewed about my prior flight experience and to do my job to the best of my ability because others
was told I could 'volunteer' for another program at depend on me.
an undisclosed location and skip this phase of my William Douglas, "Doug" Moores name can be
training. 1 volunteered and that night 19 of us were found on the Brazos Valley Veteran's Memorial. For
i shipped by rail to a location in the middle of a large
cattle ranch in Central Florida. more information, to make a contribution, or if you
knowa WWIl orKorea War Veteran whosestory needs to
"There we were joined by 60 British Airmen. I be told, contact theBVVMatwww.veteransmemorial.
was now part of British Training Field number 5. The orgorBill Youngkin at (979)776.1325.
i
The Eagle i
AP