Hey Dudley, How did the T-Birds get started?

Hi Bob;

As you have correctly pointed out, the TB's were formed at Luke, and Dick
Catledge, the Patillo twins and Bob Kanaga were the initial team. Dick
pulled heavily on the experience of the Patillos with the old Sky Blazers.
Also, Bill Creech flew with the Blazers and came on board later. He ended up
Tac Commander.
I don't recall a T6 team being any official "forerunner" of the
Thunderbirds, but there were several in existence around 1953.
If you like, both the official Thunderbird historian Carol Knotts and Bob
Gore (ex TB) who just wrote the official history of the team "We Rode The
Thunder" are both good friends of mine. I will be happy to forward to them
any request for information you might have about your father.
Just format something with the information and background they would need to
track things down, mail it to me back channel, and I'll send it off for you.
My back channel email is
"dhenriques"...then you put in the usual sign for "at".......and then you
stick in the name "earthlink".....with the usual "dot".......then stick a
"net" at the end of it.
How's this for email munging??? :-)))
Dudley
"Bob Chilcoat" wrote in message
...
Dudley,

My father (http://geocities.com/viewptmd/Dad.html) was a member (squadron
leader?) of the west coast precision aerobatic team that was a (the?)
forerunner of the Air Force Thunderbirds (apparently there was also an
east coast team as well - see http://geocities.com/viewptmd/Dad5.html).
If you look up the history of the Thunderbirds, you find that they were
organized much later, with no mention of any wartime aerobatic teams.
Dad's long gone now, so I can't ask him. Any way to authenticate Dad's
claim? Just curious.

--
Bob (Chief Pilot, White Knuckle Airways)

Bob Chilcoat wrote:

My father (http://geocities.com/viewptmd/Dad.html) was a member (squadron
leader?) of the west coast precision aerobatic team that was a (the?)
forerunner of the Air Force Thunderbirds (apparently there was also an east
coast team as well - see http://geocities.com/viewptmd/Dad5.html).

Your dad's claim is likely. Immediately following WWII, the Navy set up several
squadrons with orders to barnstorm across the country and perform airshows. The
idea was to make money to pay for the return of all the Navy personnel who were
overseas at the end of the war. I would bet the USAAF did something similar for
the same reasons.

George Patterson
Give a person a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a person to
use the Internet and he won't bother you for weeks.