1948 Handwritten Flight Log of a Young, Female Lubbock, Texas Pilot Training at the LBB Municipal Airport

On offer is the manuscript student flight log of 22 year old adventure-seeking Frances Arline Stephens (nee Farmer) [SEE BIO NOTES AT END OF LISTING].

Begun March 19, 1948 and recording training flights until September 4, 1948, Arline’s log shows her progress toward becoming  a Private rated pilot. Her training was completed in Lubbock, Texas, at the LBB Municipal Airport Base. The Lubbock Municipal Airport played a significant role in the training of pilots during World War Two. The city of Lubbock leased the base to the US Government and it was the site of the South Plains Army Airfield. It took several years for Lubbock to regain control of their Municipal Airport. Arline would have been learning to fly just as this negotiation was concluding.

Arline keeps notes in an official flight log published by Air Associates Inc. On the second page of the book, there is a note about how students must keep their log. Arline follows these guidelines to a tee. In her log, Arline keeps meticulous notes of the date, aircraft she flew, engine used, location of flights and more. She signs the bottom of each page. An added bonus of this flight log are the notes and signatures of her flight instructors, some of whom are relevant figures in the field of aviation. For example, one of her instructors, Ralph L. Holcombe, was an advanced flight instructor and also the holder of several aviation-related patents, granted in the 1950s and 1960s. Other instructors who sign and/or make notes in her log include Vernon Ayers, James J. Vicks, J.C. Hulsey, C.M. Hill, and R.R. Lauria. 

This log would be a special addition to the collection of a young female pilot, or one who is interested in Lubbock, Texas or aviation history. We also hold a 1944 diary written by Frances Arline Stephens in our collection (Item #0012064).

BIO NOTES: Frances Arline Stephens (nee Farmer)  (b. Sept 18, 1926 - d. March 6, 2017) was born in Missouri to Claudia and Arlo John Farmer. She had two siblings, Sheila and Letha. Her family lived in Colorado and New Mexico, moving for Arlo’s job with the Civilian Conservation Corp, before settling in Lubbock, Texas. Immediately following her 1944 graduation from Lubbock High School, Arline married William (Bill) E. Stephens, and they had a baby, Frances Barbara Stephens. In 1946, Arline married her second husband, William T. Curlee. Arline worked as a PBx Operator and became a Private Pilot. She went on to work at Texas Tech University, where she met and married her third husband, Darrell Dawson (Buck) Rogers (1927-2002), a pilot of B-29s who flew 64 successful missions during the Korean War. Arline and Buck moved around for his job in the Air Force, before settling in Houston. As well as raising Frances Barbara together, Arline and Buck had three other children: Mark Deane, Keri Dawn, and Michael Jerome. Sadly, Michael died in infancy as the result of an accident. 

This log measures 7x4.5 inches. There are 24 pages of flight log notes, a page of biographical info and two intro pages of printed info about the flight log book itself. Aside from some expected age toning it is in Very Good condition. The handwriting is in ink and very legible.