During the years of 1948 & 49 the 55 th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing was in a metamorphic stage looking for a base to settle into. In the Philippines and Okinawa were some of the precursors of the Wing; the 338th Squadron being one of them. Mapping was in full swing.

After spending a few months flying out of Clark AFB in the Philippines I was transferred to Kadena AFB on Okinawa. The officers' quarters, for some of us, were makeshift. Lt. Jennings & I were quartered in a shack overlooking a creek. With the right weather conditions our building could easily have sailed away.

In relation to one of the "four-men-quarters" there were two events that I remember well. During a rainstorm - this particular night - the roof leaked. One of the fellows woke up, saw the water in a puddle between the bunks, drew his 45 pistol from the bedside table and shot holes in the floor to allow the water to drain out.

That didn't concern me as did the other problem. During my stay on Okinawa I was the supply officer for the outfit. For the first few months, of such duty, I had the dubious honor of supplying Okinawan girls, one to each officer. Maids, that is! Each girl was to wash cloths, iron uniforms and keep the billet clean & tidy.

But one Captain had an additional agenda for his assigned maid. Too much touchy-touchy was the complaint I heard from the girls as I replaced one after another. About the time he threw one into the shower fully clothed - with the shower on - I informed him that he would get his own after that.

Over the period of time that I was the supply officer some men learned the correct way to fraternize with the Okinawan women. Sheets! When I turned my account over to a replacement supply officer in December of 1949 the inventory conducted revealed that we were "Short-sheeted". Hundreds were missing. Since there were two typhoons that year – "Gloria" being one at 176 mph and the highest recorded to date at sea level – it was decided to write off the loss and charge it to the typhoons. Assuming that the future would be similar to the past, a couple of hundred extra sheets were added to the loss.

Shortly after leaving Okinawa many of the men – myself included – wound up at Barksdale AFB. Within the year we were in SAC and also the 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing.

Ed Parker, Author of - Invisible Force