Phillips, Carthon 2004-02-05
Phillips talks about his life, education and career. He focuses mainly on his experiences in the U.S. Navy during World War II and about his career as a pilot
General Interview Information
Interviewee Name: Carthon Phillips
Additional Parties Recorded:
Date: February 05, 2004
Location: Austin, Texas
Interviewer: David Marshall
Length: 02:26:54
Abstract
Background, Born at Vera, Texas, Father was a farmer, Moved to Farwell, Texas, Air show, High School, Brother well unknown for his country music, Aviator Club, Childhood experiences, Two brothers died from sickness, Tried being a landlord for sometime, Irrigation, Father was pioneer farmer, Aspired to became a pilot since early age, First airplane ride, Getting into Air Force, Joined Texas Tech University to complete two years of education, Physical exams, Waiting list, Joined medial corps to became flight surgeon’s assistant, Became buck sergeant at Fort Douglas, Shipped out to Philippines, Second World War, Was at Pearl Harbor seven days before Japanese attack, Changed course to Fiji, Celebrated Christmas in Brisbane, Australia, Mission to Surabaya, Java, Plan was to build a B-17 base on an island in Philippines, Dutch base at Jakarta, Java, Change of route due to Japanese, Dutch presence, Japanese strategy and navy presence, Lost on average a crew per day, Medical staff at base, Back injury, Bad Dutch planes, Tactical error, Transferred from Java to Australia, Took injured soldiers with him, Train incident, Air raid, Chilachap base, Boat ride to Australia, Sitting ducks, Route taken, Japanese patrol bomber, Officers prepared weapons using 50 caliber guns from damaged B-17, Clash with the bomber, No damage to ship, Atmosphere of fear, Nothing happened till midnight, Torpedo attack, Diesel engine failure, Reached Perth, Australia, Shifted wounded soldier’s to navy hospital ship, Australian Training camp, Airplane Incident, Dodged the bullet again, Texas Tech friend, Met him at Jakarta, Java, Visited Grand hotel, Attack on his crew, Demise, Battle of Coral Sea, Strategy, Combat mission, Lost one ship, Replacement crew, Flying career, Came back to United States, Finished flight school, B-17 crew, Increase in range, Shifted to B-29 airplanes, Flying old B-17’s to junkyard, Maintenance issues, Incident of engine fire, Landing the plane, Description of his flight mate reaction, Flew 27 planes to junkyard, Jobs after retiring from navy, Braniff Corporation, Continued flying career with U.S. Army, Desk job in Washington, D.C., Bought a boat, Retired early to concentrate on family life, Fascinated with World War II planes, Received education while being in air force, Worked for state of Texas for 15 years, Worked for a solar heater company late, Life after retirement, Fishing trips, About Waggoner Carr, Waggoner’s interest in history, Travelling experiences with Waggoner, Waggoner’s profile, Closing Comments, Difficult to understand feelings from facts, World war experiences, About casual attitude of combat crew people, Appreciation of being recognized and telling his story, Incident with his boss in Australia, Medical training proved useful
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