"In November 1940, 44 young military cadets graduated from the first Army Air Corps

"In November 1940, 44 young military cadets graduated from the first Army Air Corps Navigational Class at Miami University in Coral Gables, Florida. 

A few farsighted men in the Army Air Corps saw the essential requirement for trained celestial navigators in our military aircraft. The instructor for this navigational class was 34-year-old high school dropout, Pan American World Airways' employee and navigation instructor, Mr. Charles J. Lunn.

The cadets came from all parts of the United States-from the urban areas of the East Coast, westward to the Appalachian Mountains, to the Midwest and prairie states, to the Rocky Mountains, and the West Coast. These young men came from the inner cities, the farmlands, the mountains, and coastal regions, and they were all volunteers. Most were college-educated and in the prime of life. World War II was raging in Europe and it was becoming increasingly difficult for the United States to remain neutral."