February 14, 1943, Brigadier General Isaiah Davies, Commanding General, 34th Flying Training Wing, assisted by Mrs. John W. White, released a red, white and blue bomb from the radio control tower of Childress Army Air Field.

As the "Valentine of Steel" bomb, dedicated to Hitler and Hirohito, plunged to the ground, a new bombardier college, pulsating with the roar of twin-engine AT-11 bombing trainer planes, came to life in the presence of 16,000 Panhandle residents.

To Lieutenant Colonel John W. White, commanding officer, and Lieutenant Colonel L. H. Dalton, director of training, it was only the beginning. Even on that bleak February day, military uniforms were new to the Childress area. Army personnel consisted only of a few cadres of enlisted men who had arrived in January, and key officer personnel necessary for the activation of a new station.

All the loose ends of months of building and planning, coordinated for the purpose of training lethal-minded young men to blast the Axis, took concrete form during the week of February 14-20.

On February 20 at 1430 a troop train halted on the spur track inside the post. Class 43-7 unloaded. "The Valentine of Steel" class started training. The West Texas Bombardier Triangle--Midland, Big Spring and San Angelo--became the "West Texas Quadrangle," with Childress the fourth.

Actual construction of Childress Army Air Field was started in early summer of 1942 under the direction of Captain James E. West, area engineer.

Colonel J. M. Price, then Lieutenant Colonel, came to Childress in August as project officer. Until November, a small group of officers and enlisted men transacted essential duties of the skeleton field. The post was officially activated October 27, 1942.

November 16 at 12 noon Lieutenant Colonel John W. White transferred from Big Spring where he was director of training and assumed command of Childress Army Air Field. From that day on all activity of the growing post pointed toward actual start of Bombardier training in February.

In mid-December post headquarters was removed from temporary barracks to its permanent location.

Lieutenant Colonel L. H. Dalton, director of training, arriving December 24, was followed by key flying officers who organized training squadrons, ground school and rushed to completion the extensive bombing target ranges.

Although the newest school of the Army Air Forces Central Flying Training Command Bombardier layout, Childress, within a few short months, claimed several "firsts" in training activities.

Cadet combat maneuvers at a base on the Texas Caprock, developed by Colonel Dalton and Lieutenant Colonel James Isbell, then director of flying, proved so successful similar maneuvers were made a part of the Flying Training Command bombardier school training programs.

The first graduating class of Childress Army Air Field made the best record of any first class of older bombardier schools.

May 23, 1943. Childress was host to eight schools of the Army Air Forces Flying Training Command competing in the first All-America Precision Bombing Olympic. A side-feature of the program which received nation-wide attention was a skip-bombing demonstration with practice bombs. Childress pilots and bombardiers performed over Lake Childress, skipping bombs at a 20-foot float target which was completely wrecked by repeated bulls-eyes.

Class 43-12 reported to Childress Army Air Field as the first group of cadets to begin training as Bombardier-Navigators. The previous three months training program was increased to four and one-half months.

Flying day and night over 5,700 square miles of target ranges for bombardier training, and charting navigation flights in all directions of the compass, bombardier-navigator students of Childress Army Air Field will be the vanguard of a new and more efficient Axis Buster.