Tom Chappell
Born: England on June 26, 1920.

I enlisted in RAF in February, 1937 at 16 years old. I signed on for 11 years. I spent one year training as an armaments technician and then was promoted to Sergeant Senior Armaments Instructor in 1941. I was then sent to Riddle Field in September, 1942 as a Ground School Instructor. Most of the ground school instructors were Embry-Riddle employees but they could not teach this military specialty. I taught bombing methodology, air firing technique, all weaponry found on fighter and bomber airplanes, and I also taught aircraft recognition so the cadets would not shoot down the allied airplanes.I married Mary Julia Chappell, a Belle Glade High School graduate (age 17) in June, 1943.

In December 1943, I was transferred to the R.C.A.F. in Ontario, and then to Quebec to be trained as a Bombardier. I graduated from training as a Pilot Officer (2nd Lieutenant) and was shipped back to England to an operational training unit.

I flew over Germany twice on training missions. I never saw action as the war was winding down. My wife and baby arrived in England before the war ended, but she returned to the U.S. after about 18 months. I followed one year later and have lived in Palm Beach County ever since. We had four boys and one girl. Two of the boys served in the U.S. Forces in the Vietnam Era. One in the U.S.M.C. and the other in the Navy. Our younger son, Brian, served as a West Palm Beach Police Officer and was killed in the line of duty in 1988, while making a “routine” traffic stop on a scumbag who turned out to be an escaped felon. We are still going through the interminable appeals process.

I am mostly retired, at age 81, and my wife and I now live with our daughter and her husband, and two grandchildren (we have seven) in Jupiter.