Glider Pilot wings were awarded to soldiers who completed training as pilots of
military gliders (MOS 1026). The wings were issued initially during the Second World War. The final class of Glider Pilots ever to be trained received their wings in January 1945 at
South Plains Army Airfield, near
Lubbock, Texas. These wings should not be confused with the
Glider Badge which was created in 1944 to recognize glider-borne ground troops (mostly
Infantry, but also various
supporting arms) of U.S. Airborne Divisions, who rode into combat as passengers. The success of German glider-borne forces early in World War II catapulted the Army Air Forces into a glider program in February 1941. In December 1941, plans called for training 1,000 AAF glider pilots, but eventually about 5,500 received their wings. Most Glider Pilots came from the enlisted ranks — all were volunteers. Junior enlisted personnel trained in the pay grade of
Sergeant during training, while
NCOs and above trained in-grade. Upon graduation, Sergeants and below would be promoted to
Staff Sergeant, whereas those already in the grade of Staff Sergeant or higher retained their current grade. After Nov. 21, 1942, all enlisted graduates were appointed as
Flight Officers — equal to the then existing rank of
Warrant Officer Junior Grade (WO 1) — upon completing Advanced Glider Training. • Age 18 to 35 years • Pass AAF Class I or II flying medical examination • Score at least 110 on the Army AGCT Test, or at least 65 on the Aviation Cadet Mental Screening Test • Have prior flying experience meeting one or more of the following criteria: • Hold a currently effective civilian airman certificate in the grade of
private pilot or higher, or • Held a lapsed airman certificate, provided that such certificate did not lapse prior to 1 January 1941, or • Completed 200 or more previous glider flights, or • Previously eliminated from military or naval pilot training, provided at least 50 hours had been logged as principal pilot (solo or performing duties of first-pilot under supervision)and/or as student pilot on military or naval aircraft. Effective 12 June 1942, individuals with no previous flying experience were also accepted into glider training. Individuals meeting the experience criteria listed above were classified as
Class A Students, and all others as
Class B Students. Several critical changes were introduced into the training program during 1942-43 (as described in the next two paragraphs), however ground training included practical instruction in basic
infantry skills in addition to the normal aviation ground school subjects throughout.
Glider Pilot Training April 1941 to June 1942 The USAAF's Glider Pilot Training Program was in its embryonic stage. Several experimental courses were conducted during this period, using two-place
sailplanes acquired commercially. Extensive use was made of civilian instructors, and of facilities and aircraft at civilian soaring clubs and flight schools. The sailplanes used were optimized for long-duration, unpowered
soaring flight however, and did not adequately simulate the flight characteristics of the cargo gliders under development. This resulted in several significant changes to the training program effective 15 June 1942.
15 June 1942 to 13 September 1942 Glider Pilot Training was divided into two principal stages:
Preliminary and a combined
Elementary-Advanced stage. For Class A students, Preliminary lasted four weeks and included 30 hours of dual and solo training on liaison (L-series) aircraft (e.g.:
Piper Cub, various
Taylorcraft and
Stinson types), with particular emphasis on steep gliding descents, approaches and precision landings without power ("dead-stick" landings). Class B students underwent a somewhat longer Preliminary phase, itself divided into two further phases: Phase I, of five weeks' duration and consisting of 40 hours dual and solo flying on primary trainer (PT-series) or liaison (L-series) aircraft, emphasizing basic aircraft handling, and Phase II, a further two weeks and 15 hours of flight time emphasizing "dead-stick" landings. Training for Class A and Class B students merged at the beginning of the Elementary-Advanced stage, consisting of one week and eight flight hours on two- or three-place training gliders — typically Aeronca
TG-5 and similar aircraft — followed by another week and a further eight hours on
Waco CG-4 cargo gliders. Total training time was typically 46 flight hours (six weeks) for Class A students and 71 flight hours (nine weeks) for Class B students. Commissioned officers holding the Glider Pilot rating were eligible to command flying units equipped with gliders only. Effective 4 February 1943, rated Glider Pilots were authorized to pilot liaison aircraft of 180 horsepower or less and to perform the same duties as Liaison Pilots. Assistant Operations Officer for Glider Ground Operations,
1st Air Commando Group ==Liaison Pilot==