In They Flew Proud, author Jane Birch crisply details the national Civilian Pilot Training Program of the WWII era, through the experiences of Army Air Corps Cadets at Grove City (PA) College and the old Grove City Airport. Flight instructors (including her father Gardner Birch), in one of the largest federally funded vocational education programs in history, scrambled to train pilots for two world fronts. Across the U.S., more than 435,000 men and women were taught under the seldom heralded CPTP. Many went forward to serve and fight for their nation’s freedom in various branches of service. “A few will become notable, but most remain anonymous, yet everyone’s contributions were important” Birch writes.
In Part 2 instructor Gardner Birch refocused the airport to teach civilians to fly after the CPTP is abruptly cancelled. His story comes to light after the discovery of five boards he created to record his 127 students and their solo dates (’44-’48). Narratives from these men and women retell of learning basic flying skills through many wonderful and humorous aviation stories. Those lessons learned in aviation’s early days prepared them for a smoother flight through life and created lasting friendships and passions for flying and airplanes.
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