 © Karen Seeman. | Whatever
possessed Ray Christensen to do an about-face on the life he had
planned, and enlist in World War II? He was 28 years old; had two and a
half years under his belt at the University of Minnesota, and was
working on an agricultural degree; he had a job selling insurance for
State Farm, and admittedly had a “pretty good setup” living rent free as
a grounds-keeper in a women’s boarding house (not bad for a
self-proclaimed “ladies’ man!”) Agriculture was in Ray's blood, and after high school he continued to help his father on the family farm, then traveled the midwest as a hired man. Autumn of 1938 finds him at the University of Minnesota to work on a degree in agriculture. I don’t know what his plans were – go back to farming? Extension work? Something else? But he worked hard to pay his tuition, and was the first in his family to go to college. |
And
then suddenly, between semesters, he enlisted. Did the attack on Pearl
Harbor 3 weeks prior have anything to do with it? I don’t know, but
before you can say, “What happened?” he’s at Scott Field in Illinois.
 Scott Field, 1942 | One of his first letters home says he’s learning code and electricity, and eventually will learn radios. He’ll have to “work like heck to make it,” but hopes to make the grade as a radio man on a bomber, or an instructor. His scores on the exams are high - sometimes the highest. Well, he did work like heck, and he was eventually a navigator on one of the most wild rides a soldier could get – an assignment to a night fighter squadron. |
 A typical radio class at Scott Field. | Ray seemed to enjoy his time at Scott field – good food, comfortable bed, and only four men to a room. The food was so good, in fact, that he complained about his uniforms getting “a bit snug.” The only problem is that passes were hard to come by, even on the weekends, and for a guy like Ray who loves who loved to dance, well, that part did not go over well. |
By June, Ray had completed
his coursework at Scott Field and has moved on to the AAFTTC Technical
School in Boca Raton, Florida, which had just officially opened for
business on June 1st.1
The
main mission of the Boca Raton AAF was radar training – a field that
was considered top secret at that time. The personnel attending this
school had to pass a “rigorous background investigation” and be among
the most highly ranked candidates academically.2 During
this time, Ray was also doing some instructing of some sort; his
letters don’t say much, but do frequently mention his students.
During
his time at Boca Raton, Ray passed the aerial gunnery board, and was
anticipating gunnery school before going “across.”
In
March of 1943, 7 months after arriving at Boca Raton, Ray is still
there, but anticipating being sent to Japan “any day now.” By the time
of his next letter in June, he has been sent to Kissimmee, Florida, and
would then go to the 417th Night Fighter Squadron by way of the British
Isles for additional training. The night fighter assignments were so
dangerous, men were considered on a volunteer basis only. I don't know
what might have prompted Ray to ask for this hazardous work - perhaps an
adventurous spirit, perhaps something else. From the British Isles, he
began his career as a night fighter navigator in the European Theater.
So much for going to Japan!
More on Ray's story in a future post~
SOURCES
Photo
of Scott Field and Radio class: “Scott Field, United States Army Air
Corps: A Pictorial and Historical Revies of Scott Field.” 1942
Various Letters from Ray Christensen to his sister, Lillian.
1Wikipedia, Boca Raton Army Airfield.
2Wikipedia, Boca Raton Army Airfield.
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