The Power of Testimony

RAY AND BETTY WHIPPS
myself as a pilot, I envisioned myself sitting eagle-​ like above
the battle, swooping down to pick off the enemy before
rising into the safety of the clouds. I hadn’t considered that
I’d have to get the thing out of the sky, let alone make it
land on a target as precise as a moving aircraft carrier.
As the briefing wrapped up, the officer invited us to
ask questions. This was all so different from what I’d
expected. I thought that there would be red-​faced drill
sergeants forcing us to crawl through the mud, but if this
meeting was any indication, that wouldn’t be the tone here.
We weren’t being treated as equals to the officers, but we
weren’t being shouted at like lowlifes either.
My first impressions turned out to be correct.
Throughout my time in the V-5 program, we were made
to work hard but we were treated much better than the
Army infantrymen, who were also being trained at Ohio
Wesleyan. We were given better rations, and we ate the
same meat and fish with fresh vegetables that the officers
ate. The enlisted infantrymen got beans and not much
more. And while they were crammed together in large
dormitories, we were housed in smaller rooms, with only
four or five men to a room. To my surprise, the infantrymen
even saluted us V-5 cadets. I’d never gone to college,
so I couldn’t say how life as a cadet compared, but between
the rigorous study and the atmosphere of camaraderie,
I felt sure this must be a pretty close match.
Best of all, though, were the planes. Even though we
had no time in the air at Ohio Wesleyan, just looking at
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