Snider, Charles Robert

Item

Title
Snider, Charles Robert
Performer
Charles Robert Snider
Interviewer
Matthew Pinard
Description
Charles Snider enlisted in the Army in March of 1943 while attending the University of Michigan. He took his basic training in Ann Arbor. Because of his interest in foreign languages, after basic training, he began training in a meteorological program sponsored by the Army. Because of his meteorological training and his knowledge of Russian, he was given orders in the middle of the night to report to Great Falls, Montana. After being interviewed by a Russian speaking American officer, he was one of two people selected for a special program. Mr. Snider was given orders to report to Ladd Air Force Base in Alaska where he began conducting meteorological forecasts for the Lend-Lease Program that was sending planes to Russia from the United States. He commented on how he worked with Russian officers daily. He also noticed the Russians had political officers in Alaska to "monitor" the interaction between the Americans and the Russians. Snider noted in his journal that the Russians became very cold toward the Americans after the U.S. dropped the atomic bombs on Japan. Mr. Snider commented on how the best service pilots he ever saw during the Lend-Lease Program were female WASP's or Women's Army Service Pilots.
Date Span
1943-1946
Dates of Service
Subject
Enlisted; United States Army Air Forces/Corps; 16th Weather Squadron; World War, 1939-1945; United States; First Lieutenant
Collection Location
4/14
https://memory.loc.gov/diglib/vhp/bib/loc.natlib.afc2001001.62317
Spatial Coverage
United States