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I was born into a socially and politically prominent Boston family on December 17, 1931, the eldest of six children. Deaths and the Depression reduced our family to acute poverty. Apart from my earliest years, I grew up in the Boston slums. I left school at fourteen to work and escaped a crime- ridden environment one step ahead of the police, by enlisting in USAF on March 3, 1950. I had a fraudulent two years of underage service as an armorer with the Massachusetts Air National Guard, in a P-47 Thunderbolt-equipped unit prior to enlistment.
My basic training at Lackland AFB was followed by a yearlong airborne radar mechanics course at Keesler AFB. Subsequent assignments were to AC&W sites in Michigan and F-86 and F86D Fighter Squadrons at Selfridge AFB, Michigan, Sioux City, Iowa and RAF Bentwaters, in the UK. I completed high school through GED, as well as initial college courses in this period. I reenlisted in 1954, and was promoted to technical sergeant soon thereafter. I was selected for and joined USAF OCS Class 57C. Following graduation, I attended a lengthy Armament Systems Officer Course at Lowry AFB, Colorado, which combined avionics along with special and conventional weapons maintenance management. Upon completion, I was assigned to the 81st Tactical Fighter Wing (F84G's), RAF, Bentwaters, UK. This was one of the most challenging assignments of my career. I was told on arrival that I reported to a major who was due to rotate in sixty days, and whose replacement might be late. In six months, we (there was no one else) were to accomplish he following: 1. Form a 250-man squadron, made up of maintenance personnel gained from the wing's three fighter squadrons, two of which were remotely located. 2. Prepare for and assist in a move of the two remote squadrons to the single Bentwaters/Woodbridge complex without dropping any of the fifteen-minute alert commitments. 3. Strip all nuclear weapons capability from the wing's F-84G's and phase the transfer of those aircraft to the Germans with the firm stipulation that they go in first class condition. 4. Prepare to transition the wing from F-84G's to F-101 C 's, which were to fly from Bergstrom AFB, Texas in one big 76 ship gaggle across the Atlantic on a fixed date, six months hence -- again, without dropping any alert lines. 5. Cross-train all maintenance personnel with retainability onto the F-101C by sending them to FTD's and TDY back to Bergstrom. 6. Ensure the timely completion and readiness of F-101 related maintenance construction projects; e.g., avionics building, flight simulator building, new munitions storage facilities, etc. This was all done on time with a 76 ship'er landing in fours, every ten minutes one afternoon, six months later, with only one mishap . . . a blown main gear tire on touchdown, ran way off runway, but no fire and no injury. I can't remember having a full day off or more than six hours sleep a night for those six months! As a second lieutenant! My later assignments as maintenance officer in F-101B Air Defense units at Otis AFB, MA and good ole huntin’ & fishin’ K.I. Sawyer AFB, Michigan -- brrrrrrr! I continued to build on sandbag time in F-101B's that I had started in F-100F's at Wheelus AFB, Tripoli when TDY from Bentwaters, (I met Tom Brennan 57D, now deceased, several times when TDY at Wheelus ). I frequently augmented the 30th AD and ADC ORI teams. I was proud of the contribution I made at Otis, by flying with test pilots to investigate and fix problems associated with the F-101B Pitch Inhibitor System. The depot had wrongly set the trigger points for the horn and pusher, so we flew in near to the pitch-up area and reset them for all eighteen assigned aircraft. Who ever heard of a Regular Air Force first lieutenant being passed over for promotion to captain? I couldn't believe it, nor could my commander or anybody else I knew! But, it was true! Two bum OERs that I had never bothered to look at, written by a really sick and unprincipled man. There just wasn't anything derogatory in the truth that he could latch onto and bend to vent his dislike, so he made a bad mistake and told outright lies. But, it is not easy to get those things out of your record, I'll tell you! I’ll be forever indebted to people like Chappie James (God Rest Him), Ralph Maglione, and the many others who jumped up when they heard of it and had him (the rating officer) thrown out of the Air Force and the OER's torn-up. But, it still cost me a year's promotion list time.
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Back to Bentwaters again and another transition, this time from F-101's to F-4C's later D's. Hard work but in the best of company. I finally got my Master of Science in Management degree from the University of Arkansas. I then volunteered for reassignment to SEA, requesting the 4th TFW with Robin Olds and Chappie -- which was granted (helped by a friend at MPC - Dudley Foster). This was during the spring of 1968, but I was diverted enroute at Travis (going up the steps) by an old boss who was DM at 7th AF Hq. I went in as Chief of the Avionics Division, 7th AF Hq., and immediately began running around all over the country. Mainly, over ECM pods. I worked closely with a really good ops guy at 7th AF Hq., Bob Saye.
My Vietnam tour ended early, following discovery of a tumor in the back of my throat, and unsuccessful surgery while at Cam Rhan Bay, during which they nearly lost me. I was sedated and medevaced on a litter back to Wilford Hall to the big boys. (An old friend, Col. Pete Stuyvessant, F-4 Wing Commander at Cam Rhan Bay, came down to see me loaded onto the C-141). Major surgery at Wilford Hall (60/40 against), convalescence and a return to Bentwaters (where I'd left the family) as a Maintenance Squadron Commander, then later as Maintenance Control Officer and latterly as Deputy Chief of Maintenance. Recurrence of the tumor in early 1973 resulted in my return to Wilford Hall for more major surgery (70/30 against this time) and, much against my will, forced medical retirement, thus ending my Air Force career. I was certain of being on the below -the-zone L/C list at the time the decision was made but, of course, was removed.
I got back on the tracks and embarked on a successful second career in management training, working for a quasi UK government organization, the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board. Provided a management development consultancy service to large engineering construction companies, many of which (such as Bechtel, Brown & Root, Foster Wheeler, Fluor Daniel,etc.) were US owned. Designed and introduced an internationally pace-setting M.Sc. Degree program in Project Management for the industry at a prestigious UK university (Cranfield). I retired on December 31, 1996 at age 65. I had remarried in 1981 to Sarah, a marvelous girl, much younger than myself. We were blessed with a son, James Jeremiah, now just turned sixteen. Six foot four inches tall, doing well at school, excelling at Rugby and basketball, and turning into a fine young man. He is presently off trekking with a school party in the Himalayan foothills. No doubt whatsoever that apart from my family, the richest part of my life has been the camaraderie experienced in the USAF. The courage and achievements of my comrades will forever humble me. I am proud to have served with them. The reason for such a strong bond between OCS classmates remains a mystery to me. Clearly it exists, but why? Maybe in part because of the common experience of such a rigorous program, the high motivation amongst us to obtain our commissions, the knowledge that none of us could have succeeded without help - each individual will I suppose have his own reasons. Unquestionably, it inculcated in all of us a lasting sense of duty, high integrity, and loyalty. Even today after all these years I feel honored to have been one of you. May God bless you and yours! Leo Bayles Reilly
(Editor’s Note: Leo died of cancer at a Hospice facility in England, in February 2001. He was interred in his native New England.)
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