Top of page

Howard Bernstein at time of interview [2003]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Navy
  • Unit of Service: Squadron VPB-135
  • Location of Service: Attu Island (Aleutian Islands)
  • Highest Rank: Lieutenant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/16713

View full service history

"When I got up in the air, and the instructor was trying to tell me what to do, I wasn't paying attention—I wanted to look around!" (Video interview, 29:02)

Like so many pilots during World War II, Navy Lieutenant Howard Bernstein began flying planes without ever having set foot in one as a civilian. Enlisting on December 7, 1942, he fought hard to fly: initially failing the eye examination for new pilots, he ate carrots and drank milk for a month, in order to improve his eyesight and pass the test on the second go. Arriving in the Aleutians, he flew bombing missions from Attu to the Kuril Islands situated northwest of Japan; at around 750 miles, these were considered extremely long flights. In his interview, he stresses the importance of remembering the casualties of World War II as well as the victories.

Interview / Recording

About this Item

Title

  • Howard Bernstein Collection

Names

  • Arends, Don
  • Bernstein, Howard
  • Thompson, Dave
  • Palm Springs Air Museum

Home State

  • Illinois

Headings

  • -  Bernstein, Howard
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Navy.

Form

  • DVD

Extent

  • 1 item

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Navy
    • Unit of Service: Squadron VPB-135
    • Location of Service: Attu Island (Aleutian Islands)
    • Highest Rank: Lieutenant
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1946
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2003; 1999-12-31)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/16713

Cite as

  • Howard Bernstein Collection (AFC/2001/001/16713), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

Wars & Conflicts

Service Branch

Location of Service

Service Unit

Highest Rank

Discharge Status

Gender

Home State

Interviewee

Interviewer

Organization/Affiliation

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Arends, Don, Howard Bernstein, Dave Thompson, and Palm Springs Air Museum. Howard Bernstein Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.16713/.

APA citation style:

Arends, D., Bernstein, H., Thompson, D. & Palm Springs Air Museum. (1942) Howard Bernstein Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.16713/.

MLA citation style:

Arends, Don, et al. Howard Bernstein Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.16713/>.