Interview conducted by Carol McLaughlin on March 2, 2004
Final transcript
The interview describes Warren Struven’s career with Pan American Airways as part of the Naval Air Transport Service as a radio operator from about 1942 until about 1946. He discusses his decision to work for Pan Am as well as his hiring and training. He describes how he became a flight officer. He discusses radio communications and equipment during the 1940s, Pan Am’s Pacific system, and equipment maintenance on the islands. He relates his experiences on the flights from San Francisco to Honolulu and then down to Australia and New Zealand, and the Consolidated PB2Y-3 Coronado and Martin PBM Mariner aircraft he flew on. He describes his work and experiences at the station at Espriritu Santo. He relates his wartime experiences with enemy radio signals and aircraft, including a bombing at Canton Island. He discusses the last flight of the Philippine Clipper and the last-minute flight change that kept him from that flight. He describes his choice to leave Pan Am after the war and his career after that time.
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