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Description

Oral History interview of William Coles. Interview conducted by Edward Specht, Michael Glendinning at Westminster Towers, Orlando, FL.

Log

0:01 Introduction by interviewer; 0:40 Biographical information, birth certificate problem; 2:40 Highest level of education, entering the service; 4:15 Shipping out, basic training; 6:45 Squad leader, resolving problems within squad; 10:00 Serial number; 11:20 Electronics training, radar focused, assigned to fighter wing; 14:00 Specific radar usage, codes; 17:00 Fighter/bomber descriptions; 20:00 Deployment and base life in Japan; 25:15 Disabled landing procedures, water resources; 27:15 Adjusting radar equipment, solving problems with pilots; 31:30 Incident in Gulf of Mexico; 33:00 Commander's "cigar" story; 36:00 MacArthur discussion; 37:30 Korean war description, enlistment/discharge dates; 39:00 Post military schooling and work; 43:00 Becomes mechanical engineer, works on minutemen missiles; 47:15 Church history, helping out a Church; 49:30 Called to preach in a vision, goes to seminary, becomes minister; 52:45 Follow up story on life after discharge.

Date of Birth

1930-03-23

Place of Birth

Pittsburgh (Pa.)

Gender

Male

Race

Unknown

Home State

Pennsylvania

War or Conflict

Korean Conflict

Status

Veteran

Begin/End date of Service - 1st

1950-01-01

Type

Video; MovingImage

1954-01-01

Entrance into Service

Enlisted

Branch of Service

U.S. Air Force

Unit of Service

12th Armament & Electronics Maintenance Squadron (Strategic Air Command)

Location of Service

Bergstrom Air Force Base (Tex.); Keesler Air Force Base (Miss.); Lowry Air Force Base (Colo.); Misawa Air Force Base (Misawa, Japan); Japan

Highest Rank

Senior Airman; SrA

Prisoner of War

No

Service Related Injury

No

Battles

Unspecified

Medals

National Defense Service Medal; Good Conduct Medal

Achievements

Worked for Radar sighting system, Identification Friend or Foe Radar; Radar Gunnery and Bombing Technician.

Note

In bombing of North Korea and support for B29 Bombers bombing North Korea.

City of Birth

Pittsburgh

Country of Birth

United States

Interviewer

Specht, Edward; Glendinning, Michael

Interview Date

Fall 10-27-2015

Location of Interview

Westminster Towers, Orlando, FL

Subjects

Coles, William Thomas; Korean War, 1950-1953 -- Personal Narratives; United States. Air Force

Collection Description

Contains logs, audio and video recordings of interviews with Central Florida's veterans as part of a history class project for the students at the University of Central Florida (UCF). The UCF Community Veterans History Project(CVHP) started in fall 2010. It collects, preserves, and makes accessible to the public the experiences of Central Florida's veterans so that future generations will better understand the realities of conflict. It is a collaborative endeavor supported by multiple departments and offices at UCF. The veterans' histories are archived and made digitally available through the UCF library and selected materials are contributed to the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress.

Contributor Affiliation / Organization

RICHES; University of Central Florida

Contributors

Specht, Edward; Glendinning, Michael

Length of Interview

55 Minutes

Publisher

Department of History, University of Central Florida

Type

video

Rights

All rights are held by the respective holding institution. This material is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. For permission to reproduce and/or for copyright information contact Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida Libraries, (407) 823-2576. http://library.ucf.edu/about/departments/special-collections-university-archives/

Repository

University of Central Florida Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives

Contributing Project

UCF Community Veterans History Project

Document Type

Interview

Semester

Fall

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