THE NAVY V-5 AVIATION CADET PILOT TRAINING PROGRAM: A TIMELY CREATION THAT SERVED WELL

The V-5 Cadet Program was conceived in 1935 by the U.S. Navy and the Congress as a temporary measure designed to provide needed pilots for naval aviation. It was believed that, within a few years time, sufficient graduates of the Naval Academy choosing aviation would become adequate to the future need. However, during the following decade, the rising demands of defense and war caused the V-5 Cadet Program to be a more permanent means by which the Navy procured the bulk of its aviators. More importantly, the program gave the nation the necessary naval pilots to turn the tide in the Pacific War.