AFROTC Cadets
This information was provided by a former ECU professor and students regarding the image to the right. This and other articles may be found in the University Archives.We thank everyone for taking time to respond and help us with photograph identification and adding to our knowledge of East Carolina's rich history.
Dear Sirs:
My daughter received the Fall 2003 edition of East and passed it on to me thinking I might be interested in the photo of an AT-6G on the back cover of the magazine. I was the Professor of Air Science from 1954 through 1957 and one of our programs was to fly our Advanced AFROTC students for short flights on Friday afternoons. During the 54-55 school year I had one other pilot on my staff, Capt Jean Crane. We would give our cadets the choice of three flights, formation, aerobatics or a flight over their home if they lived within a reasonable radius of Greenville. The photo appears to have been taken on a formation flight by Capt Crane with me as pilot of the aircraft in the picture. I can't be 100% sure but with the date under the picture, the type of aircraft we flew from the Primary Flying School at Kinston and my own plus my wife's identification of the pilot, I can very sure that this was the case.
I reviewed my log book for my flights during the Fall of 1954 and found entries for September 18th, October 9th and December 4th of 1954 for flights in the AT-6G from Kinston. These flights show multiple landings which would indicate local flights and coincide with changing passengers frequently as we did when flying our cadets. Unfortunately Col Crane (then Capt) died a few years ago so his help in the identification of the aircraft and crew is not available. Unfortunately there is no way I could identify the cadet in the rear seat.
If I can be of any more assistance, don't hesitate to ask.
Sincerely,
Col Lewis J. Partridge USAF (Ret)
E-mail received from Col. Lewis Partridge's daughter Sarah, Class of 1972:My father recently received the latest copy of "East" and they had a picture of an OLD airplane circa 1954 from the ROTC program. They asked if any one knew who the people were in the airplane to identify them. That was my father in the
pilot's seat who was the head ROTC instructor at that time. His name is Lewis J. Partridge. He is 87 years old now and still going strong.
We traveled and lived in many places and many countries during his career but my entire family remembers Greenville fondly because we lived in the community and not on an Air Force Base. When I graduated from high school in Hampton, VA (Langley Air Force Base), my father recommended that I apply to East Carolina. I applied to other schools (and was accepted - William & Mary and UNC among others) but chose East Carolina
because it was one of my "homes." Greenville will always be a "home" to me.
Alumni Tom Blizzard of Kinston, North Carolina remembers that the AFRTOC program flew out of Stallings Field in Kinston. He believes that he is the cadet in the back of the plane and that the pilot is Lewis Partridge. Mr. Blizzard stated that he remembers flying over to Greensboro and back.
Tom Blizzard served in the US Air Force for three years after graduating from East Carolina College in 1956.
The photo above appeared in the 1956 Buccaneer on page 127.
Bill Rowland, Class of 1954 from Kinston called and thought the photo might be of Paul Cameron at Stallings Air Field. Rowland said that in some cases the Air Force hired private flight instructors.
Steve Davenport of the Class of 1958 remembers flying out of Stallings Field in Kinston as well. He was an Army veteran when he came to East Carolina College. After going through the AFROTC program he considered going into the Air Force but didn't because of color blindness.
Davenport recalls that several students went on to serve with distinction in Vietnam.
