WWII Marine Enlisted Pilot

[Howard Burns]

Am looking for any info on Francis Arthur Miller Jr. who was a Marine enlisted pilot. Most likely in VMF 121 or VMF 214, as he said he had flown with Boyington and also Joe Foss during his tour. He was shot down and spent several years in Japanese POW camp.
Any info would be greatly appreciated. Or any other site I could go to for info ?

H.L. Burns

[MotivatorOfTheGuard]

This is obviously before my time, but this doesn't make any sense to me. I though that being a pilot was for officers only. The father of Marine Corps aviation was a Lt afterall. Anyone have any better insight on this subject?

[rsta]

There were enlisted pilots in the Marine Corps during WWII! I'm not sure when the last enlisted pilot exited the Corps, but when I was in during the late 60's there were still a few around that flew the C-47's and C-117's. I don't know if they were active or reservists during that time, but never the less, they were enlisted.

[MotivatorOfTheGuard]

Thats outstanding. I did not know that, thanks for the info Sgt. Well i officially have nothing to offer information wise. Good Luck & Keep us Posted!

[yanacek]

Enlisted pilots were called Naval Aviation Pilots (NAPs). I think the last one retired in 1981. As for Francis A. Miller, I don't see his name on the NAP roster: http://www.bluejacket.com/sea-service_nap_l-n.htm

Are you sure he was a NAP? If so, what is your source.

[Howard Burns]

Francis Miller Jr. is my uncle and as long as I knew him he never talked about his service in the Marine Corp. Although I know he suffered from what was called "Battle Fatigue" in the early 1950's. He passed away on 3/14/08.In speaking with my brother, he tells me that my uncle had spoken of flying F4F Corsairs and being shot down & spending the rest of the war in a Japanese POW camp which was liberated toward the end of the war. The last time I spoke with him, the only thing he related to me was that Joe Foss was a close friend from the war and he had flown with him. I'm not really sure what his rank was, as I never saw any pictures of him in uniform. Just assumed he was enlisted as he hadn't gone to college.






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[yanacek]

All of the WW-II Marine pilots I know were officers not NAPs. I'll bet that only 2% of the Marine Corps' pilots were NAPs.

With that said, it was possible to be a Naval Aviator (pilot who is an officer) without a college degree during WW-II. A few of the pilots I know who flew with the Marine Corps became Naval Aviators with as little as one year of college. It was also possible to become a Naval Aviator with no college if you had some civilian background in aviation, such as a private pilot's license. My bet is that your uncle was not a NAP but rather a Naval Avaitor.

Perhaps you should try to obtain his military records. As a family member you may be able to do so at: http://www.archives.gov/veterans/evetrecs/

I hope this helps.

[CHOPPER7199]

We Had An Enlisted Mstg That Flew A Piper Cub Off The Deck Of The Boxer Lph4 In 1959 Had The Pleasure Of Seeing It Happen On Training We Were Doing. He Flew Observation And Anything They Required Of Him.

[cball]

I was a aircraft mech./crewchief on C-119's back in the mid 50's at Cherry Pt.and we had a few enlisted pilots..I didn't remember their names so I emailed a buddy that kept his flight papers.Tsgt R .Stefanik and Msgt Nemeth were two he recalled..

[yanacek]

Those two Marines were NAPs without a doubt:

STEFANIK R STEPHEN USMC 1947
NEMETH JOHN J USMC 1943

[cball]

What I do remember about the enlisted pilots is they were all old guys.At least to us young bucks,18-to 24 year olds..Even the Officer pilots were young 25 to 35.. I know the enlisted plane Commanders all had a chest full of ribbons and medals..

[yanacek]

Many of the NAPs received temporary commissions in the latter part of WW-II. Following the war, most were reverted back to their former enlisted ranks.

[bucksgted]

They called themselves the "Flying Peons". I witnessed the last of the F8U Master Sergeants when he parked his plane at El Toro in Jan. 1960.

Actually, the last 4 were retired on the same day, Jan. 31, 1973. Two at El Toro and two at Cherry Point. They were MGySgt's Joseph A. Conroy and Robert M. Lurie at Cherry Point and Leslie T. Ericson and Patrick J. O'Neill at El Toro. Top O'Neill has the distinction of being the last Marine Naval Aviation Pilot on active duty. The last NAP on active duty was a sailor, Master Chief Air Traffic Controller Robert K. Jones. He retired Jan. 31, 1981.

Gunner James R. Casey, Deputy Executive Director, Marine Corps Aviation Association, is a great source of Marine Aviation History - - he lived it for over 30 years. Try him at www.flymcaa.org.

By the way, just so you know, I got all of the above from Gunner Casey back in Jan. 2004. You just had to know that I didn't have all that "stuff" stored away in my pea brain. ROTFLMFAO:banana:

[iamcloudlander]

I remember while in Danang Vietnam the squadron next to us which was photo recon the Stars and Stripes had an article about the SgtMaj and the Co. The SgtMaj had been an officer in Korea and had been his Co's commanding officer. I always believed it to be true as it was in the paper.

[Howard Burns]

Thanks for all the info mates, will continue to research and post if I find something !

[JITB]

WW2 Corsair fighter pilots Marines Art Miller and Nick Mainero, both holders of the Distinguished Flying Cross, will be at an open house this weekend in Stratford CT. The Connecticut Air & Space Center (CASC) is hosting a free, all access Open House “Celebrating Connecticut’s Aviation History” on Saturday, July 9th and Sunday July 10th, 2011 (9am -4pm both days), where for the first time in 5 years that the entire collection will be accessible to the general public. The event will be held in the large, open parking lot next to Museum, at the intersection of Main Street & Sniffens Lane, opposite the Atlantic Aviation Hangers at Sikorsky Memorial Airport. Parking is Free.

[PAO]

Good morning ladies and gentlemen, <br />
<br />
I'm an active duty Marine working for the Public Affairs Office aboard MCAS Cherry Point. Being the history buff of the office, I've been given charge of...

[jearold]

My husband enlisted int the Marines in WWII. After basic training, he was transferred to the Miami Air Station as a guard. From there, he was transferred to Fort Lauderdale Naval Air Station. His mother knew of his love of planes and had told him to keep his feet on the ground. In spite of this, he talked himself into the Marine Air Force. First he learned how to fly the TBF Torpedo Bomber. He did not like this plane because it was too big a plane for someone of his short stature. He could not see forward and had to look out the left or right window to make a landing. He trained on fighter planes and graduated as a Marine Flying Sergeant. While waiting for his transfer to the West Coast to go overseas, he flew Corsairs up and down the Florida East Coast on the lookout for submarines. Soon a notice came through that the Flying Sergeants were being disbanded. Those that had a college education could go on to Officers Training School in California. If you did not have a college education, you went back to line duty. John was sent to Camp Lejeune Marine Base in North Carolina for more training in all kinds of weapons. Eventually sent with 2nd Div. to the Asiatic Pacific theater for the invasion of Tarawa. He was wounded there and wound up in a hospital in Hawaii for several months. By the time he was released, the 2nd Div. had left Hawaii and he was attached to the 5th Div. and sent to Leyte and later to Guam. If anyone remembers John Jacob Arold (JJ) at any of these places, I would like to hear from you. (jearold@yahoo.com) His military records are all mixed up and I would like to get them straightened out.
Eleanor Arold (jearold)

[PaMarine]

I was fortunate to have served with two enlisted Marine pilots, MGySgt's Joseph A. Conroy and SgtMajor Roy Knapp. I currently have group (Old Bold Pilots) that meets once a week for breakfast and I enjoy the company of Ray Delacqua an enlisted pilot served in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. I crewed for awhile with Joe Conroy in 62 and I hitched a ride with him from ChuLai to Danang in 68 to catch the "freedom bird" home. I had the privilige of serving with SgtMajor Knapp at the Marine Detachment, S. Weymouth, Mass. 60-61. All these guys were great, I wish I had served with more of them.

[PaMarine]

Are you still in need of contacting an enlisted pilot? I currently have group (Old Bold Pilots) that meets once a week for breakfast and I enjoy the company of Ray Delacqua an enlisted pilot served in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. I could ask him if he would share his time with you. You can contact me back faster at Bronco-Rep@sbcglobal.net

[lovemyUSMCdad]

My father was an enlisted pilot in the USMC and flew the Corsair F4U. He was Master Sargent William S Canty.

[Ken Hendry]

My uncle enlisted on 8 July 1939. Was with Co &quot;E&quot; Marines Raider Bn. FMF Discharge 6 Oct. 1945 and went to flight school was called back in and was with VMGR-352, MWSG-37, 3dMAW,MCAS, El Toro...

[JML]

VMF 213 Working Roster, February 1, 1943 (Officers and Enlisted) at https://docs.google.com/a/nmb.gov/file/d/0B1QU1Pr_0Yy0aWRYRFFfSkhjS1E/preview
additional info at http://www.vmf-213.com
One of the NAPs Coffeen was MIA but returned: SSgt. William I. Coffeen's ordeal began with engine trouble during a mission on April 13, 1943, and ended with his return noted in the Flight Surgeon's log as being June 27.

[spoondad4]

this may be a little late, but. I was stationed in iwakuni japan with VMCJ-1. in 1975 we had 2 enlisted pilots. when the squadron was deactivated in 1975, the a/c and pilots rotated back to the states. both enlisted pilots flew second seat. i'm not sure if they flew in our rf4b's or the ea6a model. at this time I was told they were the last enlisted pilots in the marine corp. most of my stuff is packed away so i'm not sure if I still have pic's from those days. good luck and semper fi