[The letters of this exchange between Major Robert W. Casey and Lt. Col. James M. Thomas referencing the 1959 William Tell Weapons Meet have thumbtack holes in the corners so I suspect I came into possession of these either by pinching them off the bulletin board or salvaging them from the trash can after we lost. GCW]
United States Air Force
APO 942, Seattle, Washington
28 August 1959
Commander
482nd Fighter-Interceptor Squadron
Seymour-Johnson Air Force Base
North Carolina
Dear Colonel Thomas,
I noticed in recent correspondence from the William Tell II Project Officer that your unit is scheduled to participate in the Category II phase of the Weapons Meet. This appears to be a waste of the taxpayers money, since thousands will be spent in training and deploying the team only to be beaten by 317th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron. Therefore, I would like to propose that you withdraw from the competition and send us half the money saved, returning the other half to the taxpayers.
If you persist in competing, I feel obligated to bet you one fifth of VO that the 317th beats the 482nd, said wager to be paid at Tyndall on 23 October 1959.
Sincerely,
ROBERT W. CASEY SR.
Major, USAF
Commander
United States Air Force
Seymour Johnson Air Force Base
North Carolina
3 September 1959
Commander
317th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron
APO 942, Seattle, Washington
Dear Major Casey,
Your recent letter was graciously received by all the members of my squadron. I had to take them off their raw meat for nearly a week until they became manageable again.
I detect a note of insecurity from your writing. Admittedly the 482nd is the squadron to beat in the William Tell II and I am sorry to inform you that our withdrawal from the competition is out of the question; furthermore I accept your wager of one fifth of VO that my outfit will beat the 317th all weather run-up squadron in competition during the William Tell II.
As for wasting the tax payers money, the minute I heard the 317th was selected to compete in William Tell II, I sent my entire team on a 30 day leave and pickled our aircraft. We figure the meet competition is just a formality we will have to go through before accepting the trophy.
We would like a small favor from you. When you leave Alaska; please load your missile bays with that good Alaskan glacial ice and bring it to Tyndall, this will make our drinks much more enjoyable during our stay here. All ice left over can be used to keep your team from rotting when you ship them back to Alaska.
Sincerely,
JAMES M. THOMAS
Lt. Col., USAF
Commander