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Vic Rizzo and the Air Section
balloon cable right where the wing meets the fuselage. Being light, it did not break apart,
but spiralled around and around the cable until the landing gear touched the ground and
the pilot could stagger out, dizzy but unhurt.
Before we get into combat, perhaps I should say something about how these
planes were used. They had two seats, one behind the other, and a radio behind the back
seat. The pilot could control the plane from either seat: when flying alone he might
occupy either seat, but the front one afforded a broader view. When he had a passenger,
usually an observer, the pilot took the front seat. Since the weight of the occupants, the
radio, and any weighty supplies could affect the balance of the craft, a centered crank
within reach of either seat could be cranked to adjust the balance, or root. Both pilot and
passenger wore earphones and had available microphones for the radio.
Both occupants wore seat belts. A seat-pack parachute with a shoulder harness
was also available, but most of the time it was used only as a seat, since pilots and
observers had to squirm to get a better look at the land for potential targets and the sky
for enemy aircraft. Most regular flyers felt that if the plane was badly damaged or the
pilot badly wounded, they were goners on the moment. Otherwise, they might bring
themselves in safely or oscillate to a landing. The Cub could do that without a finger on
the stick or a foot on the rudders.
Whenever I stepped up and into the rear seat of a plane, I became aware of what
large feet I had. I had to be careful to keep my size 121/2s off the rudders and my shins
away from the empty socket for the rear-seat joystick.
The interior of the plane was enclosed in canvas and plexiglass, which kept the
wind out of one's eyes, except when the pilot opened the left-hand door clear down to
floor level to get a better view of what was directly below us. This did not happen often,
but the open door always gave me a sickening fear of height, even though I knew that my
seat belt wouldn't let me fall out and that, even when closed, the door was too flimsy to
check my fall if I did.
The plane and its occupants spent most of its time in the air cruising back and
forth parallel with the front line and well behind it, hopefully out of range of enemy anti-
aircraft fire. Their job was to try and spot enemy troops, equipment, or installations. If
they saw something within range, they would request fire on it, and direct the fire until it
was effective. If it was out of range, they would report it as useful information.
If the observer wanted a better look at something suspicious, the pilot could fly
higher or lower, but not forward past the front line, where they would be sitting ducks for
enemy anti-aircraft fire. There was no point in their flying over the enemy anyhow. The
little planes were harmless themselves, they carried no bomb racks, no machine guns.
However, they could be devastating by calling for artillery fire. Sometimes when our own
fighter-bombers were operating near the front line, they would request that our little Cubs
be in the air at the same time, for enemy anti-aircraft artillery was loath to fire and give
their positions away to anyone who could call down artillery fire on them.
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