Cadet Ernest Anders Erickson (on the far right) at Kelly Field in Texas when he was in flight training in late 1942.

After the Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, the need for pilots, bombardiers, and navigators resulted in the rapid expansion of the United States Army Air Corps and the Advanced Flying School at Kelly Airfield. Night flying was added to the school program and the amount of training time doubled.

Between January 1939 and March 1943, over 6,800 men graduated from Kelly’s Advanced Flying School and approximately 1,700 additional pilots graduated from various other courses in the Instructor's School. In order to house the rapidly growing pilot trainee population, a "tent city" sprang up as it had in World War I.

By the summer of 1942, there were four flying fields - Duncan, Kelly, Brooks and Stinson and flying became dangerous. Consequently, in March 1943, Kelly and Duncan were reunited under the name of Kelly Field.

Ernest graduated from Blackland Airfield in October of 1943 and received his wings and became a B-17 pilot. He left the states in January of 1944 and was stationed at Horham Airfield in England with the 95th Bomb Group (Heavy) till October of 1944. He flew thirty five missions over German occupied Europe with the 334th Squadron.