The 29th Flying Training Wing was a wing of the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

. It was last assigned to the

Western Flying Training Command The Army Air Forces Western Flying Training Command (WFTC) was a command of the United States Army Air Forces. It was assigned to the Army Air Forces Training Command, stationed at Santa Ana Army Air Base, California. It was inactivated on 1 No ...

, and was disbanded on 16 June 1946 at

Napier Field Napier Field is a town in Dale County, Alabama. At the 2020 census, the population was 409. It is part of the Ozark micropolitan statistical area. The town was originally constructed as a military air base during the Second World War. It is cu ...

, Alabama. The wing controlled

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Phase One primary flying training units of the

Army Air Forces Training Command The United States Army Air Forces during World War II had major subordinate Commands below the Air Staff level. These Commands were organized along functional missions. One such Command was the Flying Training Command (FTC). It began as Air Cor ...

. Headquartered at

Moody Field Moody may refer to: Places * Moody, Alabama, U.S. * Moody, Missouri, U.S. * Moody, Texas, U.S. * Moody County, South Dakota, U.S. * Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada * Hundred of Moody, a cadastral division in South Australia ** Moody, ...

, Georgia for most of its operational service, it controlled contract civilian-operated pilot schools primarily in the Southeastern United States. There is no lineage connection between the 29th Flying Training Wing, established on 22 December 1939 as the 29th Bombardment Group (Heavy) at

Langley Field Langley may refer to: People * Langley (surname), a common English surname, including a list of notable people with the name * Dawn Langley Simmons (1922–2000), English author and biographer * Langley Wakeman Collyer (1885–1947), one ...

, Virginia, and this organization.

History

Until 1939, the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...

provided all flying training with military instructor pilots. Beginning in 1939, it contracted with nine civilian flying schools to provide primary flight training. Primary training consisted of a three-month course of 65 hours of flying instruction. As the United States prepared to enter World War II by expanding its number of flying squadrons, the number of contract primary schools increased.Manning, Thomas A. (2005), ''History of Air Education and Training Command, 1942–2002''. Office of History and Research, Headquarters, AETC, Randolph AFB, Texas According to the contract, the government supplied students with training aircraft, flying clothes, textbooks, and equipment. The Air Corps also put a detachment at each school to supervise training. The schools furnished instructors, training sites and facilities, aircraft maintenance, quarters, and mess halls. From the Air Corps, schools received a flat fee of $1,170 for each graduate and $18 per flying hour for students eliminated from training. Following the

fall of France The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembourg and the Net ...

in 1940, the Air Corps upped its pilot production goal to 7,000 per year. To meet that goal, the Air Corps increased the capacity of its schools and added more contract primary schools. The vast majority of contract primary pilot training ended in the spring of 1944 as part of the rundown of Army pilot training. The ones remaining open ended their operations in October, 1945.

Lineage

* Established as 29th Flying Training Wing on 17 December 1942 : Activated on 26 December 1942 : Disbanded on 16 June 1946.29th Flying Training Wing, lineage and history document Air Force Historical Agency, Maxwell AFB, Alabama

Assignments

* Army Air Forces Southeast Flying Training (later, AAF Eastern Flying) Command, 26 December 1942 * Western Flying Training Command, 15 December 1945 – 16 June 1946

Stations

, Georgia, 26 December 1942 *

, Alabama, 1 April 1945 – 16 June 1946

Training aircraft

CPS Primary Trainers were primarily

PT-17 Stearman The Stearman (Boeing) Model 75 is an American biplane formerly used as a military Trainer (aircraft), trainer aircraft, of which at least 10,626 were built in the United States during the 1930s and 1940s. Stearman Aircraft became a subsidiary o ...

biplanes and

Fairchild PT-19 The Fairchild PT-19 (company designation Fairchild M62) is an American monoplane primary trainer aircraft that served with the United States Army Air Forces, Royal Air Force, RAF and Royal Canadian Air Force, RCAF during World War II. Design ...

s monoplanes, although a wide variety of other types could be found at the airfields. The Fairchild PT-19 aircraft also could have the student pilot covered with a hood for "Blind" instrument flying training. Glider pilot schools used Aeronca TG-5As,

Taylorcraft TG-6A The Taylorcraft L-2 Grasshopper is an American observation and liaison aircraft built by Taylorcraft Aircraft, Taylorcraft for the United States Army Air Forces in World War II. Design and development In 1941 the United States Army Air For ...

s, and Piper TG-8As unpowered glider conversions of powered light observation aircraft which had similar characteristics to the military gliders under development.

Contract Pilot Schools

;

Albany Army Airfield Southwest Georgia Regional Airport is an airport four miles southwest of Albany, Georgia, Albany, in Dougherty County, Georgia, in the United States. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 FAA airport categories, catego ...

, Albany Georgia : 52d Flying Training Detachment29th Flying Training Wing, lineage and history document Air Force Historical Agency, Maxwell AFB, Alabama : Operated by: Darr Aero-Tech Primary Flying School : Opened: October 1940, Closed: November 1944 (PT-17) : Controlled four auxiliary airfields ; Augustine Field, Madison, Mississippi : 62d Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Mississippi Institute of Aeronautics : Opened: 1941, Closed: June 1944 (PT-17, PT-19) : Was a sub-base to

Jackson Army Airbase Hawkins Field is a joint civil-military public airport in Jackson, Mississippi. It is owned by the City of Jackson and operated by the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 call ...

, CFS controlled three auxiliary airfields ;

Avon Park Municipal Airport Avon Park Executive Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located two nautical miles (3.7 km) west of the central business district of Avon Park, a city in Highlands County, Florida, United States. Overview According to the FAA's ...

, Avon Park, Florida : 61st Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Lodwick Aviation Military Academy : Opened: October 1941, Closed: June 1944 (PT-17) : Controlled four auxiliary airfields ;

Carlstrom Field Carlstrom Field is a former military airfield, located southeast of Arcadia, Florida. The airfield was List of airfields of the Training Section of the United States Army Air Service, one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established in ...

, Arcadia, Florida : 53d Flying Training Detachment : 2148th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Contract Pilot School, Primary), April 1944 : Operated by: Embry-Riddle Company : Opened: June 1941, Closed: June 1945 (PT-17) : Controlled four auxiliary airfields (Joint with Dorr Field) ; Chester Field, McBride, Missouri : 74th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Anderson Air Activities : Opened: June 1943, Closed: March 1944 (PT-17) ;

Decatur Airport Decatur Airport is a public airport five miles east of Decatur, in Macon County, Illinois, United States. The airport is owned by the Decatur Park District. Airline service is subsidized by the federal government's Essential Air Service progr ...

, Decatur, Alabama : 65th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Southern Regional Airways, Inc : Opened: October 1941, Closed: September 1945 (PT-17, PT-19)Shaw, Frederick J. (2004), ''Locating Air Force Base Sites, History’s Legacy'', Air Force History and Museums Program, United States Air Force, Washington DC. : Controlled five auxiliary airfields ; Douglas Airport, Douglas, Georgia : 63d Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: South Georgia College : Opened: May 1941, Closed: December 1944 (PT-17) : Controlled four auxiliary airfields ;

Dorr Field Dorr Field is a former military airfield, located east of Arcadia, Florida. The airfield was List of airfields of the Training Section of the United States Army Air Service, one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established in 1917 afte ...

, Arcadia, Florida : 54th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Embry-Riddle Company : Opened: October 1941, Closed: October 1944 (PT-17, PT-19) : Controlled four auxiliary airfields (Joint with Carlstrom Field) ;

Fletcher Field Fletcher Field is a public use airport in Coahoma County, Mississippi, United States. It is owned by the Coahoma County Airport Board and located seven nautical miles (13 km) northeast of the central business district of Clarksdale ...

, Clarksdale, Mississippi : 69th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Clarksdale School of Aviation : Opened: August 1942, Closed: August 1944 (PT-17, PT-19, PT-23) : Controlled two auxiliary airfields ;

Harrell Field Harrell Field (Camden Regional Airport, or Camden Municipal Airport) is five miles northeast of Camden, in Ouachita County, Arkansas, United States. The FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2009–2013 categorizes it as a ' ...

, Camden, Arkansas : 59th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Wiggings-Marden Aero Corp : Opened: August 1942, Closed: April 1944 (PT-17, PT-19) : Controlled two auxiliary airfields ;

Harris Army Airfield Cape Girardeau Regional Airport is a city owned public use airport in Scott County, Missouri, United States. It is located five nautical miles (6 mi, 9 km) southwest of the central business district of Cape Girardeau, a cit ...

, Cape Giardeau, Missouri : 73d Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Cape Institute of Aeronautics, Inc : Opened: January 1943, Closed: March 1944 (PT-18, PT-19, PT-23) : Controlled three auxiliary airfields ; Hawthorne School of Aeronautics, Orangeburg, South Carolina : 58th Flying Training Detachment : 2162d Army Air Forces Base Unit (Contract Pilot School, Primary), April 1944 : Operated by: Hawthorne School of Aeronautics : Opened: October 1941, Closed: November 1945 (PT-18, PT-19, PT-23) : Also conducted Free French Air Force pilot training : Controlled three auxiliary airfields ;

Lodwick Field Lodwick Field is a former airport located north-northeast of Lakeland, Florida. It was closed about 1960, with all flight operations being moved to the larger Lakeland Linder International Airport. History Lodwick Field was built in the mid-1 ...

, Lakeland, Florida : 61st Flying Training Detachment : 2160th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Contract Pilot School, Primary), April 1944 : Operated by: Lodwick School of Aeronautics : Opened: September 1940, Closed: August 1945 (PT-17) : Controlled seven auxiliary airfields ; Lafayette Airport, Lafayette, Louisiana : 70th Flying Training Detachment : Lafayette School of Aeronautics : Opened: September 1941, Closed: April 1944 (PT-17, PT-19) : Controlled four auxiliary airfields ; McKellar Field, Jackson, Tennessee : 68th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Georgia Air Services, Incorporated : Opened: July 1942, Closed: October 1944 (PT-17, PT-19, PT-23, PT-27) ;

Moton Field Moton may refer to: People Given name * Moton Hopkins (born 1986), American professional gridiron football player Surname * LeVelle Moton (born 1974), American college basketball coach * Robert Russa Moton (1867–1940), African American educator a ...

, Tuskegee, Alabama : 66th Flying Training Detachment : 2564th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Contract Pilot School, Primary) (Colored), April 1944 : Operated by: Tuskegee Institute : Opened: June 1941, Closed: October 1945 (PT-13, PT-14, PT-17) : Controlled two auxiliary airfields ;

Palmer Field Palmer Field is a multi-use baseball, soccer, and American football, football stadium located in Middletown, Connecticut. In 1993 and 1994, the first two editions of the Ivy League Baseball Championship Series were held at the field, with Yale ...

, Bennettsville, South Carolina : 53d Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Georgia Air Service, Incorporated and Southeastern Air Service, Incorporated : Opened: October 1941, Closed: October 1944 (PT-17) ;

Souther Field Souther Field is a former military airfield, located Northeast of Americus, Georgia. It was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the United States entry into World War I in April 1917. After World War II, the proper ...

, Americus, Georgia : 56th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Graham Aviation Co. : Opened: February 1941, Closed: October 1944 (PT-17) ; Taylor Field, Ocala, Florida : 57th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Greenville Aviation School : Opened: December 1941, Closed: September 1944 (PT-17) ; Thompson-Robbins Field, Helena, Arkansas : 59th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Helena Aerotech : Opened: October 1941, Closed: August 1944 (PT-17, PT-19, PT-23) : Controlled five auxiliary airfields ; Van de Graaff Field, Tuscaloosa, Alabama : 51st Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Alabama Institute of Aeronautics, Inc : Opened: September 1939, Closed: August 1944 (PT-11, PT-17, PT-19) : Also conducted Free French Air Force pilot training Free French Pilot Training in the United States
/ref> : Controlled five auxiliary airfields ; Embry Riddle Aeronautical Institute, Union City, Tennessee : 67th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Riddle-McKay Company of Tennessee and Riddle Aeronautical Institute : Opened: August 1943, Closed: April 1944 (PT-17, PT-19, PT-23, PT-27) : Controlled three auxiliary airfields ; Woodward Field, Camden, South Carolina : 64th Flying Training Detachment : Operated by: Southern Aviation School : Opened: April 1941, Closed: August 1944 (PT-17) : Controlled two auxiliary airfields

Contract Glider Pilot Schools

; Antigo Airport, Antigo, Wisconsin : 14th Glider Training Detachment : Pre-Glider/Primary Training School WW2 US Army Air Force CG-4A Combat Glider History Report
/ref> (TG-8A) : Operated by: Anderson Air Activities ; Bates Field, Mobile Alabama : 18th Glider Training Detachment : Basic Glider Training School (TG-2, TG-4A, TG-5, TG-8A) : Operated by: Mobile Area Soaring Corp. ; Greenville Municipal Airport, Greenville, South Carolina : 48th Glider Training Detachment : Basic/Advanced Glider Training School (TG-8A, CG-4A) : Operated by: Southern Airways, Inc. ; Grand Forks Airport, Grand Forks, North Dakota : 24th Glider Training Detachment (TG-8A) : Pre-Glider/Primary Training School : Operated by: Jolly Flying Service ; Kirkwood Field, Crookston, Minnesota : 33D Glider Training Detachment : Pre-Glider/Primary Training School (TG-8A) : Operated by: L. Millar-Wittig ; Lobb Field, Rochester, Minnesota : 32d Glider Training Detachment : Pre-Glider/Primary Training School (TG-6A) : Operated by: Fontana School of Aeronautics ; Stillwater Airport, Stillwater, Minnesota : 34th Glider Training Detachment : Pre-Glider/Primary Training School (TG-6A) : Operated by: North Aviation Company ; Monticello Field, Monticello, Minnesota : 35th Glider Training Detachment : Pre-Glider/Primary Training School (TG-6A) : Operated by: Hinck Flying Service, Inc.

References

{{USAAF Training Bases World War II Training wings of the United States Army Air Forces Military units and formations established in 1942 1942 establishments in the United States Military units and formations disestablished in 1946 1942 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) 1946 disestablishments in Alabama