Aviation Education in Wartime and Peacetime: Recruiting American Pilots 1942-1946
United States: 1942-1946. Two (2) items from WWII-era America, published to promote careers in aviation and military service. The first item, published in 1942, was published by the U.S. Department of Commerce and U.S. Office of Education, and calls on teachers to "air-condition" the youth of America: "A boy who is enthusiastic about aviation may be air-minded, but he is not air-conditioned until he can do something more than become excited about the thought of being a pilot" (p. 4). The publication goes on to demand the public work towards a saturated field of pilots ready to face the demands of the war, and states that "President Roosevelt's announced goals of 60,000 planes in 1942 and 125,000 in 1943 can be and will be achieved" (pp. 17-18). It is fascinating, then, to compare it to the second item offered here, published in 1946 just after the war. Published by an organization called "Air-Age Education Research", its focus has shifted from a need for wartime pilots to an increased need for commercial pilots. One of the feature articles focuses on the "Airport Problem in New York City", and discusses a proposed airport in Manhattan between West 24th and 71st streets to alleviate new demand for air travel. Together, the two items offer a window into the nation's shift from wartime emergency to peacetime economic boom, and how the aviation industry was poised to grow exponentially at the end of the conflict.
"Air-Conditioning Young America". Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Commerce and U.S. Office of Education, 1942. Single vol. (10" by 7.5"), pp. 32, photo illus., in original illus. wrps with photo of plane on front.
"Air Education News Vol. III, No. 4". New York: Air Education Research, 1946. Single vol. (10.5" by 8.25"), pp. 24, photo illus., in original self wrps with illus. of plane on front. Very good. The occasional nick or short tear.
Price: $175.00
Item #25009284