Eventually more recruiters spread out across the country, seeking volunteers with some aviation experience. Many possessed good flying skills but were a little too unruly for the Army Air Corps.
“Hap” Arnold, who was happy to supply a list of recent Air Corps washouts-the first targets of the recruiting efforts. Despite the unfavorable legal climate created by America’s Neutrality Acts, the Clayton Knight Committee was set up to recruit pretty much anyone who was interested in flying.Ĭlayton Knight was a World War I pilot veteran with connections, and along with Bishop and another WWI pilot, Homer Smith, he worked out a recruiting plan. Famed World War I Canadian ace Billy Bishop suggested that recruiters look to the United States for a promising source of new pilots and air crewmen. Adding to the excitement was the recent development of sleek new fighter aircraft such as the Supermarine Spitfire, capable of flying at well over 350 mph.Īs Britain’s Royal Air Force faced off against Germany’s Luftwaffe, the need for competent pilots became increasingly apparent. To young pilots and would-be airmen, the early tales of aerial battles lent a romantic allure to combat flying. Some Americans, not wanting to wait for an official declaration of war, sought to enlist wherever they could. Despite the United States’ official policy of neutrality, many realized it was just a matter of time before America was drawn into the conflict, especially after the invasion of France and the Low Countries in May 1940 made Nazi intentions clear. In September 1939, as war winds buffeted Europe, Americans watched warily while the German blitzkrieg swept across Poland.
Desperate for proficient pilots to combat the Nazi onslaught, Britain found willing recruits in neutral America.
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