Air Crew Training Program (1943-1944)

During the Second World War, Dickinson College became the site of an army air corps training program.  Beginning on March 1, 1943, a large segment of the campus was used by the Thirty-Second College Training (Air-Crew) Detachment.  The College provided a five month course for the "Preparation of Air Crew Students, both mentally and physically, for intensive ground training in the Preflight Schools." This program concentrated on the three distinct areas of academic preparation, military training, and physical training.  In exchange for hosting the air crew students, the College received compensation from the U. S. government. The program was terminated on January 29, 1944, due to diminishing need for such programs in the northeastern United States.  From its inception to its termination, 2260 cadets passed through the program at the College, providing a welcome federal income in the reduced circumstances of the conflict.

For more information please follow the links below:

Mark Fifer, '00, "The Thirty-Second College Training Detachment (Air Crew) At Dickinson College, 1943 -1944"

Laura Dettloff and Regan Winn "The Hartigan Project" (1999)

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