Oh, I remember those ready room chalk boards. I remember the early mornings of spotty overcasts and “launch the weather check” to check for sucker holes. 
In those days we were training Vietnamese kids, and there was an RVN trainee on watch in the tower. as a translator for the panicked Viet solo that was lost. Standard reply was to turn south until you saw the gulf shore, then turn left or right, ya got a 50-50 chance.

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On Fri, Nov 14, 2025 at 12:18 PM <mgbrattland@gerlecreek.com> wrote:

From: Bill Sears <billcsears@gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, November 14, 2025 11:50 AM
To: skytrainco@protonmail.com
Cc: mgbrattland@gerlecreek.com; HeloBubbas <helobubbas@helobubbas.com>
Subject: [Helobubbas] Re: VT-1 Solo Instructors-Summerdale, AL

 

No, sir. In 71 I was begging flight time on shore duty in Norfolk. 

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On Fri, Nov 14, 2025 at 11:26 AM skytrainco@protonmail.com <skytrainco@protonmail.com> wrote:

Bill,

Were you an instructor at VT-1 in the fall of '71 ?

 

CDR Lindsay Blanton, JR USN (RET)

Phone 406-471-7259

 

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On Friday, November 14th, 2025 at 2:08 PM, Bill Sears <billcsears@gmail.com> wrote:

You had to do well or your instructor had no ride back to Saufley..

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On Fri, Nov 14, 2025 at 10:48 AM <mgbrattland@gerlecreek.com> wrote:

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid02i6r7YvgviPNJGBd7JHcFTaD6A2oKU1EAGj68WeL3jBQ5ucdvRvjEeuNbWwyzGbZzl&id=100064070529204

This picture reminds me of Summerdale in Fall of 1971 where you did your solo flights in the “Tiny Winny.” The instructor would get out and sit in the shade adjacent to a small building like this in the center of the old airfield and keep track of their students in the pattern……..I suspect the picture if someplace more central to Pensacola, but the same principal…..waiting to fly or keeping track of your students…mgb

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Summerdale,+AL/@30.4828044,-87.7207961,13z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x889a129f7351c5f3:0x525940bf8f4ad623!8m2!3d30.4876954!4d-87.6997094!16zL20vMHBndzc?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MTExMS4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D

CDR Mike Brattland, USN (Ret.) mgbrattland@gerlecreek.com

mgbrattland@brattland.org

Admin/Moderator SanDiegoCarGuys List & Calendar of Events

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