Oral interview, JAX 4-07-88

 

All right, this is Ken Horn. At the prompting of Lou Ives, I’m to give my [name, rank, and] horsepower, which is about a-half. Ah … from Carmel … … retired to Carmel … retired, retired. My wife’s still working. What else ya want to say, Lou? About me?

[Lou Ives commenting: “I’m going to leave you alone … you know, where did you go to preflight? Where did you get your wings?”]

Oh … Preflight. Preflight--Ottumwa, Iowa. Got my wings in June of ’48. Went to … .

[‘What preflight class were you in?’]

I went to preflight …

[“Just … just your whole history, so we can put it in your … your squadrons, where you got … “]

Some of these things, Lou, I’ve never owned up to, and you’re asking me to put it down … ?

[“Then give a different name.”]

All right.

O.K., there’s this fictitious guy, who’s ah … ah … then left flight training and went to Port Layaute, French Morocco, in a VP-26 squadron. And, after a tour there, went to the University of Michigan, and ah … got a chance to start flying Corsairs up there, and flew some F8Fs at ah, Memphis, and from there to the Red Rippers [VF-43] in Jacksonville—made out like I was a fighter pilot, and did a tour there.

And then an Air Force exchange tour, then another Banshee [F2H] tour, then a tour at Chance Vought, and from there to a Crusader [F8U] squadron for a couple of tours. Got my command tour there.

From there to the Bonnie Dick as Ops Officer. Then to Automatic Air Landing System in Washington—which is a great deal of fun—flying F4s, A7s, F8s, T39s, A4s, a couple of other cats and dogs. Then from there to Post-Graduate School on the staff.

From there to Alameda on the [NavC garbled], which is a logistics type of a job, scheduling C9s, and getting to fly the T39. So I was very fortunate throughout the 33 years in the Navy of being able to fly something all the time.

I think that’s about as much as I need to say about me. ‘Bye.

Class: 
Ottumwa, Iowa, Preflight Class 13-46