It was late in the summer of 1942 that a group of engineers arrived in Pratt to begin construction on a field designed to train British units. But Uncle Sam's keen plane designers came up with the B-29 plans, and Pratt was elected to put'em into operation.
Activated officially in March of '43, Pratt, commanded first by Lt Col John F Nelson, housed its first B-29's and began training the 40th Bomb Group, the first of its kind, for service in the Pacific.
Function Secret
The Kansas skies were rent by the roar of the mightiest engines yet constructed, and, though the function of the field was a military secret to the nation, Pratt and neighboring Kansas towns saw their first Superforts winging on their daily training missions.
There were bugs at first, as occur to any new airplane and any new field, but PAAF was in motion by then, and the obstacles were met and overcome, despite the departures of base personnel for overseas and the often tough-to-take weather.
Time passed... Col Nelson gave way to Col James Hammond, who in turn yielded the commander's mantle to Col George E Lovell. The 29th moved overseas and into operation, and the 497th moved into Paafville for training. The war in the Pacific was progressing, aided by the bombs of the 40th Group's Pratt-trained crews.
With the shipment of the 497th to the wars came the height of the Pratt-nurtured revenge on the Japs. The Group made the first Superfort raid on Tokyo, led in over the target by Lt Col Robert Morgan, famed 8th Air Force pilot of the Memphis Belle. The capital was left in flames, and Pratt Base Units reveled in the part they had had in its success.
No Let Up
But there was no let up back in Kansas. The field had begun on the training program for the 29th Group, and it moved swiftly to completion. Once again a troop train moved out of PAAF, bearing the men who would soon be wreaking Americam vengeance on the Nip homeland. The patch of farmland in the nation's breadbasket was producing a more vitamin-like product than was its habit, and the news of its successes was far more nourishing to American appetites.
29th Moves Too
The 29th moved over to join its predecessors in the Pacific and the pace in Kansas increased even more. The changing pattern of Base Commanders continued, Col Lovell being replaced by Col Emile T Kennedy. Personnel of the Base Unit changed more frequently, but the spirit which dominated the field enfolded newcomers and old-timers alike.
The 346th Bomb Group was next in line for training, and with its Service Group housed in the hutment area, took over the limelight for its stay here. Training by now was old stuff to PAAF's well-experienced departments, and the Group's planes were in the air 'round the clock until they too, took the long ride in the middle of the summer of 1945.
Records Speak
To sum up the operation and the effectiveness of PAAF requires no flowery words or elaboration on actual facts. The records speak for themselves. Pratt trained the first B-29 Group to see active service overseas, the first Group to raid Tokyo, the first Group to make a fire-raid on the Jap capital and more firsts too numerous even to mention.
Its Groups were the first into aggressive B-29 action against the Japs, and the count tolled against the enemy is still being tabulated. In an even larger sense, the field pioneered the B-29 program of the Army Air Forces, being the number one installation exclusively dedicated to training crews on the AAF's pride.
Era Ends
With PAAF's demise the era of “training-for-war” in Kansas comes to a close, the foremost producer passing out of existence. The field brought much to Kansas and to Pratt itself, but no more than was given it in return by the people of the state and the town.