Stone, Robert L. (1921-2009) to Jacob Stone and Beatrice Stone
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC09620.043 Author/Creator: Stone, Robert L. (1921-2009) Place Written: Childress, Texas Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 29 August 1943 Pagination: 2 p. : envelope ; 27.2 x 19.4 cm. Order a Copy PDF Download(s): Transcript of document
Addressed to "Dad and Bee." Thanks them both for the thermos as he is now "the envy of my flight," as he can drink something while on a mission. He's flown "double missions three days," with a four-hour navigation flight. This week five more "kids" washed out as their bombing missions were not great.
The people in charge have added a parade on Sunday afternoons, since they "have too much free time."
Post-Script: Gives his best to O'ma and apologizes for not being able to write back.
Letter is dated as "Sunday." "Letters in a Box" notes the date as August 29, 1943.
Robert "Bob" Stone was a Bombardier in World War II and served in the Pacific Front. These letters, were compiled by Bob's wife, Sheila M. Stone, and Ali Adair into a book named Letters in a Box. This book details Bob's service to his country, and his life after the war. Bob's letters were donated to the collection by his wife, Sheila M. Stone, in 2017. It contains a variety of letters, postcards, patches, pins, photographs, and scrapbooks that relate to Bob's training and combat missions.
[Draft Created by Crowdsourcing]
Sunday
Dear Dad and Bee -
Here it is Sunday again and I have a chance to bring you up to date on all the latest from Shangri-La.
The thermos bottle arrived this week and I can't thank you enough for it. I'm the envy of my flight because it's such a treat to have a swallow of something cold while on a long bombing or navigation mission. Many, many thanks! Also, thanks for sending me my class yearbook. It was fun reading it, but that all seems so long ago that it almost seems unreal. Things have changed so, since then.
Had a tough week on the line since I flew double missions three days. You see one mission goes out at 12:15 and returns at about 3:00 and then if you're on the operations board you go out again at 3:15 until 5:45. When you fly navigation, once a week, that's about a four hour mission in itself.
This week they took quite a toll on our class down on the line. Five kids were washed out on their check-rides. Their ground school grades were good and their bombing wasn't too bad and yet out they go. Nobody seems
[2]
to know why but they're sure cracking down. We seem to live from day to day down on the line and you're never sure of your status.
My bombing was O.K. this week but it only takes one bad mission to put you up for an elimination ride. There's no human element to this game - it's all cut and dried!
To make things more bearable for us they've scheduled a parade for this afternoon. It seems that we have too much free time on Sunday so that they're remedying that, by having a parade.
Can't think of any more now. Thanks for your letters. Keep 'em up.
Lots of love -
Bobby
P.S. [struck: Ki] Give my best to O'ma and explain that I haven't had time to write. She's written me several times.
[envelope]
A/C <text loss> 12120188
Class 43-15
Squadron 7 Flight D
Childress, Texas
Lt. Comdr. J. C. Stone
375 Park Avenue
New York City
N.Y.
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