Charles E. Cushing was certified to fly all the planes featured on this page.

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A chronological list of these documents, with links to the images, along with other the items, is currently being created.
 

Checklists & Info for Officers Returning to the U.S.
 

Wichita Beechcraft AT-10 Photo from Wikipedia
 

Between 1941 and 1943, Beech built 1,771 AT-10s and Globe Aircraft Corp. (which became Temco after World War II) built 600 in Dallas, Texas. The museum placed this AT-10 on display in June 1997.

TECHNICAL NOTES:
Engine: Two Lycoming R-680-9 radials of 295 hp each, Maximum speed: 190 mph, Range: 660 miles, Ceiling: 20,000 ft., Span: 44 ft., Length: 34 ft. 4 in.  Height: 10 ft. 4 in. , Weight: 6,465 lbs.

Information from National Museum of the U.S. Air Force

Vultee BT-13 Valiant photo by Mark Neumann from 2015 Air Force Commemorative Calendar

Beechcraft C-45 Expiditer photo and information from National Museum of the U.S. Air Force

The C-45 was the World War II military version of the popular Beechcraft Model 18 commercial light transport. Beech built a total of 4,526 of these aircraft for the Army Air Forces between 1939 and 1945 in four versions, the AT-7 Navigator navigation trainer, the AT-11 Kansan bombing-gunnery trainer, the C-45 Expeditor utility transport and the F-2 for aerial photography and mapping. The AT-7 and AT-11 versions were well-known to WWII navigators and bombardiers, for most of these men received their training in these aircraft. Thousands of AAF pilot cadets also were given advanced training in twin-engine Beech airplanes.

During the early 1950s, Beech completely rebuilt 900 C-45s for the Air Force. They received new serial numbers and were designated C-45Gs and C-45Hs, remaining in service until 1963 for administrative and light cargo duties.

SPECIFICATIONS: Span: 47 ft. 8 in. , Length: 34 ft. 2 in. , Height: 9 ft. 2 in. , Weight: 9,300 lbs. maximum , Armament: None , Engines: Two Pratt & Whitney R-985s of 450 hp each , Cost: $57,838

PERFORMANCE: Maximum speed: 219 mph , Cruising speed: 150 mph, Range: 1,140 miles , Service ceiling: 18,200 ft.

See more photos of the Link Trainer at Flight Simulators of Yesteryear

Movement of the trainer is accomplished by vacuum operated bellows, controlled by valves connected to the control wheel (or stick) and rudder pedals. An instructor sat at the desk and transmitted radio messages which the student in the Link heard through his earphones. Inside the "cockpit," the student relied on his instruments to "fly" the Link through various maneuvers while his navigational "course" was traced on a map on the desk by the three-wheeled "crab." Slip stream simulators gave the controls the feeling of air passing over control surfaces and a rough air generator added additional realism during the "flight." The trainers were realistic enough that a humorous but unlikely story circulated that one student, told by his instructor that he had run out of fuel on a night flight, broke his ankle when he leaped from the trainer as though parachuting to safety.

National Museum of the U.S. Air Force - Fact Sheet: Link Trainer
 

The B-17 Flying Fortress
In response for the Army's request for a large, multi-engine bomber, the B-17 (Model 299) prototype, financed entirely by Boeing, went from design board to flight test in less than 12 months. The B-17 was a low-wing monoplane that combined aerodynamic features of the XB-15 giant bomber, still in the design stage, and the Model 247 transport. The B-17 was the first Boeing military aircraft with a flight deck instead of an open cockpit and was armed with bombs and five .30-caliber machine guns mounted in clear "blisters."

Each new version was more heavily armed.  The engines were upgraded to more powerful versions several times, and similarly, the gun stations were altered on numerous occasions to enhance their effectiveness.

The first B-17s saw combat in 1941, when the British Royal Air Force took delivery of several B-17s for high-altitude missions. As World War II intensified, the bombers needed additional armament and armor.

As the production line developed, Boeing engineers continued to improve upon the basic design. To enhance performance at slower speeds, the B-17B was altered to include larger rudder and flaps. The B-17C changed from gun blisters to flush, oval-shaped windows. 

The B-17E version was the most significantly changed version.  It was the first mass-produced model Flying Fortress, with the fuselage extended by 10 feet.  It was the first Boeing airplane with the distinctive -- and enormous -- tail for improved control and stability during high-altitude bombing.  A gunner's position in the tail and an improved nose were added.  It was several tons heavier than the prototypes and bristled with armament.  It carried nine machine guns and a 4,000-pound bomb load.

B-17 G Flying Fortress courtesy of Battle-Fleet.com

By the time the definitive B-17 G appeared, the number of guns had been increased from seven to 13, the designs of the gun stations were finalized, and other adjustments were complete. The B-17 G was the final version of the B-17, incorporating all changes made to its predecessor, the B-17 F, and in total 8,680 were built, the last one on 9 April 1945.  Many B-17 Gs were converted for other missions such as cargo hauling, engine testing and reconnaissance.  Initially designated SB-17G, a number of B-17Gs were also converted for search-and-rescue duties, later to be redesignated B-17H.

The Fortresses were also legendary for their ability to stay in the air after taking brutal poundings. They sometimes limped back to their bases with large chunks of the fuselage shot off.

Boeing plants built a total of 6,981 B-17s in various models, and another 5,745 were built under a nationwide collaborative effort by Douglas and Lockheed (Vega). Only a few B-17s survive today; most were scrapped at the end of the war. Some of the last Flying Fortresses met their end as target drones in the 1960s -- destroyed by Boeing Bomarc missiles. 

(From Boeing.com and Batttle-Fleet.com) 

B-17G Flying Fortress photo by Kevin Hong from 2015 Commemorative Air Force Calendar

See this TampaPix feature, B-17 Flying Fortress Crashes in West Tampa,, May 19, 1944

Individual Flight Records June 1944 through January 1945
Pilot Log Book

Operational Sortie Record, Pilot, 2nd Lt. Charles E. Cushing
 

Sortie Record Verification

Taxiing Instructions, Thurleigh, ENG.

The North American B-25 Mitchell, a twin-engine bomber that became standard equipment for the Allied Air Forces in World War II, was perhaps the most versatile aircraft of the war. It became the most heavily armed airplane in the world, was used for high- and low-level bombing, strafing, photoreconnaissance, submarine patrol and even as a fighter, and was distinguished as the aircraft that completed the historic raid over Tokyo in 1942. It required 8,500 original drawings and 195,000 engineering man-hours to produce the first one, but nearly 10,000 were produced from late 1939, when the contract was awarded to North American Aviation, through 1945. Basically, it was a twin-tail, mid-wing land monoplane powered by two 1,700-hp Wright Cyclone engines. Normal bomb capacity was 5,000 pounds. Some versions carried 75 mm cannon, machine guns and added firepower of 13 .50-caliber guns in the conventional bombardier's compartment. One version carried eight .50-caliber guns in the nose in an arrangement that provided 14 forward-firing guns.  Information from Boeing  Photo from Wikipedia

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Avon Park Orientation, Rules & Regulations, Dec. 1943

On Dec. 5, 1943, 2nd Lt. Cushing was transferred from Stuttgart to the 3rd AF, 88th Bomb Group at Avon Park Army Air Field, Fla.   None of Charles' Pilot Logs or Individual Flight Records show flight time at Avon Park.  Further evidence that he didn't have any flight time there was that his total to-date hours at Stuttgart are carried over to his initial to-date hours at MacDill.  His assignment at Avon Park  terminated on Jan. 4, 1944, at which time he was transferred to MacDill Air Field in Tampa.

This document doesn't refer anywhere to Avon Park, but a section on rules for swimming in Lake Arbuckle confirms this as an Avon Park document. 

Established in early 1942 as a B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombardment group, Avon Park was assigned to II Bomber Command as a heavy bomber Operational Training Unit (OTU)for air-to-ground bombing and antisubmarine patrol.   The group was assigned primarily to airfields in the Pacific Northwest under II BC; performing training of new units, then becoming a Replacement Training Unit (RTU). Reassigned to III Bomber Command in November 1943 when Second Air Force began to exclusively train B-29 Superfortress aircrews. It continued as a B-17 RTU until the end of heavy bomber training of replacement aircrews in May 1944 when it was inactivated.

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"The German soldier who carries this safe conduct is using it as a sign of his genuine wish to give himself up. He is to be disarmed, to be well looked after, to receive food and medical attention as required and to be removed from the danger zone as soon as possible."

Paul M.A. Linebarger mentions the theory in Psychological Warfare, Infantry Journal Press, Washington D.C., 1948. He says:

Germans liked things done in an official and formal manner, even in the midst of chaos, catastrophe and defeat. The Allied obliged, and gave the Germans various forms of very official looking ‘surrender passes.’ One is printed in red and has banknote-type engraving which makes it resemble a soap-premium coupon.

Before the United States entered World War II in December 1941, several different styles of surrender leaflets had been printed and dropped by the British, French and Russians on the  German Army, with no overall supervision or uniformity. The leaflets were of various colors, sizes, fonts, and differing surrender instructions.   When American troops arrived in the United Kingdom, things changed.

ZG61 was dropped from September 1944 to March 1945. The Allies printed 67,345,800 and dropped 65,750,000. This leaflet bears the name and signature of General Eisenhower. It was printed in both red and green.