Cuero Field

During World War II Cuero Field, located at Cuero Municipal Airport, two miles west of Cuero in DeWitt County, was a United States Army Air Forces training field. It was approved by the government as a primary training facility in January 1941 and established on February 6, 1941. Brayton Flying Service, headed by Clyde E. Brayton, was located at the airport and was awarded the government contract to manage the training operations. All instructors and mechanics were civilian, though the army rigidly supervised the training. The nine-week course included classes in meteorology, navigation, aircraft identification, and aircraft engines. Training included five hours on the Link simulation trainer and sixty-five hours' actual flying time. The capacity was 290 cadets. Thousands of pilots who graduated from Cuero Field went on to serve in World War II. The Brayton Flying Service School payroll brought about $145,000 a month into Cuero's economy. The commanding officers of Cuero Field, until the date of its deactivation on August 31, 1944, were Capt. James H. Price and majors Shepler W. Fitzgerald and Timothy F. O'Keefe. After the school closed, the government retained one hangar to repair and service army planes, and Brayton, an aviation pioneer, moved to Houston to become president of Red Arrow Freight Lines.