Pilot Henry Sanford “Sandy” McMurray is interviewed about his military and commercial flying careers. He discusses his service with the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II, including his flight training with the Civilian Pilot Training Program, his service with the 305th Bombardment Group in the European Theater, and his service with the Air Transport Command in the Pacific Theater. He then shares highlights from his time as a commercial pilot for ONAT (Orvis Nelson Air Transport) and United Airlines and as a test pilot for Boeing, where he rose to the position of head of Production Test Flight before his retirement in 1981.
McMurray’s son, Scott Sanford McMurray, also participates in the interview.
Introduction and personal background -- Flight training, part one -- Service in the European Theater, part one -- Flight training, part two -- Service in the European Theater, part two -- Service with the Air Transport Command, part one -- Story about an ill-fated takeoff in a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress -- Service with the Air Transport Command, part two -- Service in the Pacific Theater -- Father’s military service and death -- Marriage and career with United Airlines -- Career with Boeing -- Connections to The Museum of Flight -- Thoughts on different aircraft and a close call on the runway -- Ferrying a B-17 from Hawaii to California -- Memories of the Red Barn -- Additional stories from wartime service, part one -- More on the Red Barn and stories from flying career -- Additional stories from wartime service, part two -- More on his father’s career and service -- Bailing out of a Curtiss C-46 -- Closing thoughts
Henry Sanford “Sandy” McMurray was a retired Boeing Production Test Pilot with a career spanning 32 years, from 1949 until 1981.
McMurray was born on July 14, 1921 in San Leandro, California to Welborn and Harriett McMurray. He lived there with his parents and younger sister, Elizabeth, until joining the U.S. Army Air Forces in 1941.
McMurray went to McKinley Grade School and San Leandro High School, transferring to Hayward High School from which he graduated in 1939. While in high school he filled out a questionnaire about possible careers and indicated that he was going to be a pilot. Working toward that goal, mechanically-minded McMurray attended San Jose State College taking engineering classes. The Civilian Pilot Training Program had just started there and McMurray was one of the first 50 candidates selected. Earning his Private Pilot Certificate by the summer of 1941, he took his physical and was accepted into the U.S. Army Air Corps on November 7, 1941. Attending training at “Kelly-on-the-Hill,” he selected multi-engine training, knowing that would further a civilian career as a pilot.
On July 3, 1942 he was assigned to the 305th Bombardment Group, subsequently known as the “Can Do” group, at Muroc Field. Completing his B-17 training there, McMurray found himself and his crew in Chelveston, England by November. McMurray flew his first mission on December 12 to Rouen, France in the B-17 “Unmentionable Ten” and his 25th mission on July 26, 1943 striking Hanover, Germany. Returning to the United States, he was transferred to the Air Transport Command, where he earned his Instrument Rating while delivering bombers, fighters, and transports. Assigned to the 7th Ferry Command, he was based in Wilmington, Delaware on D-Day when he had the opportunity to fly in the Pacific Theater. McMurray’s father had disappeared in 1942 with the fall of the Philippines and he was eager to see what information he could find. He learned that his father had passed away at Cabanatuan on June 14, 1942 of cerebral malaria. McMurray spent the last year and a half of the war bringing wounded troops out of battle and flying in replacements.
Discharged from the U.S. Army Air Forces on January 3, 1946 at McClellan Field, California, McMurray quickly found work as a flight engineer for Orvis Nelson Air Transport (later Transocean Airlines). After three months with ONAT, he was hired by United Airlines, flying as copilot primarily on West Coast routes. On one of these flights, he met his wife, Marjorie, a United Airlines stewardess. They were married in San Francisco on December 6, 1947. About a year later, United furloughed 88 pilots, McMurray included.
McMurray was then hired on at the Boeing Company. When United Airlines asked him back in October 1949, he opted to stay with Boeing. For his first couple of years at Boeing, McMurray wrote pilot handbooks. He subsequently moved to a test pilot position. As a test pilot, he started out copiloting Stratocruisers, C-97s, B-50s, B-29s, and other variants of these airframes. He transitioned to jet-engined aircraft with the B-47 and also flew the KC-135 and B-52 as part of the team developing jet-engined refueling capabilities for the U.S. Moving to the civilian side of Boeing, he flew the 707, 727, 737, and 747 extensively in Production Test Flight. In 1966, McMurray’s manager, Clayton Scott, retired and McMurray was promoted into his position as head of Production Test Flight. He held this position until his retirement in 1981.
McMurray died in 2021 at 99 years of age.
Biographical information derived from interview and additional information provided by interviewee.
Museum of Flight trustee Michael R. “Mike” Hallman is interviewed about his life and experiences in the computer, aviation, and nonprofit fields. He discusses his career with International Business Machines (IBM) during the 1960s through the late 1980s and his subsequent careers with Boeing Computer Services and Microsoft. He also discusses his involvement with The Museum of Flight as a trustee, interim CEO, and (along with his wife, Mary Kay) co-founder of the Museum’s Oral History Program.
Mike Hallman worked in Sales and Marketing with IBM, as the Boeing Company’s Chief Information Officer and then Microsoft’s Chief Operating Officer, and is a longtime trustee of the Museum of Flight.
Michael Robert Hallman was born in San Bernardino, California on June 6, 1945, to Frank and Virginia Hallman. He was the oldest of three children. His father flew B-25s in the Pacific theater during World War II, returning home in 1944 and then serving as a bombing and navigation instructor at George Air Force Base in Victorville, California. Hallman grew up around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and spent his high school years in suburban Chicago, Illinois. He then earned his bachelor’s in business administration in 1966 and MBA in 1967, both from the University of Michigan. While in school he worked summers for the Greyhound Bus Company escorting tours to New York City. He also made a few trips to Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he met Mary Kay Johnson, whom he married in 1967.
After graduation Hallman joined International Business Machines (IBM) in the sales and marketing area. He started out in Chicago in 1968. Over his 20-year career at IBM he held several different positions, remaining primarily sales and marketing. He moved among several IBM locations in addition to Chicago including Detroit, Michigan; White Plains, New York; St. Louis, Missouri; and Atlanta, Georgia. By the end of his tenure with IBM he was Vice President of Field Operations with responsibility for half of the country’s sales and service support.
Recruited by Boeing Computer Services (BCS) in 1987, Hallman ran their computer operations for services provided to non-Boeing companies. These included the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Hanford Site, NASA Ground Communications, and the New York Police Department. Hallman was promoted to President of BCS just as Boeing was embarking on the 777 program, which was their first airplane designed entirely with computers. In his time at BCS, Hallman managed the transition from slide rules and drafting tables to the CATIA computer system.
In 1990 Microsoft recruited Hallman to become their President. Joining the company when they were early in the development of personal computers, he managed the company to $1 billion in sales while streamlining operations.
At about this same time Hallman joined the Museum of Flight’s Board of Trustees. In the more than three decades he has served with the Board, he has served as the Museum’s Chairman, Vice Chairman, and as the interim President and CEO during a time of transition. He has chaired the Exhibits Committee, the Communications and Marketing Committee, the Compensation Committee, several gala committees, and has served on virtually every standing committee of the board.
While serving as a Trustee, Hallman’s primary focus has centered on enhancing the Museum’s educational mission. With a vision to record and preserve important stories of people who worked, lived, and shaped aviation, he and his wife created the Mary Kay and Michael Hallman Oral History Program. He also helped establish the Michael and Mary Kay Hallman Spaceflight Academy exhibit. In 2020 Hallman was the fourth recipient of the Red Barn Heritage Award in recognition of his significant and exceptional commitment to The Museum of Flight. His relationship with the late William E. Boeing, Jr. and their mutual admiration for one another lead to his appointment as the only trustee representative of the Aldarra Foundation, the Boeing family’s foundation.
As of 2022, Hallman continues to live in the Seattle area and maintains his involvement with the Museum of Flight.
Biographical information derived from interview and additional information provided by interviewee.
In this two-part oral history, Paul L. Weaver is interviewed about his decade-spanning career as an aircraft mechanic and pilot. In part two, he continues to discuss his involvement in the Pacific Northwest aviation scene during the 1950s and beyond. Topics discussed include his aircraft restoration work; his experiences with homebuilt aircraft and the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA); his memories of other aviation enthusiasts and notable events and locations; and his work with the Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation (PNAHF) and its successor, The Museum of Flight.
Paul L. Weaver is a World War II veteran, aircraft mechanic, and pilot who worked for the Boeing Company for almost thirty years. He was born in 1922 in Roseville, Ohio to George and Hazel Weaver. As a young adult, he worked for the Ohio State Patrol as a radioman and at Wright-Patterson Field (Ohio) as a radio electrician for the Douglas B-18 Bolo.
Around 1940, Weaver joined the U.S. Merchant Marine as a radio operator. He soon after transferred to the U.S. Navy and received training at Naval Station Great Lakes (Illinois). Assignments from his service include serving aboard the USS Lexington (CV-16) as a radioman and plane captain and serving in a squadron support unit at Sand Point Naval Air Station and Naval Auxiliary Air Station Quillayute (Washington). He remained in the Navy Reserve after the end of World War II and later served as an ECM radarman aboard the USS Yorktown (CV-10).
After World War II, Weaver attended college under the GI Bill and received his certification as an A&P (Airframe and Powerplant) mechanic. In 1951, he was hired by the Boeing Company. Over the course of his career, he maintained, modified, and repaired a variety of Boeing aircraft, including the 367-80, 737, and 747. He retired from the company in 1980.
Outside of his professional work with Boeing, Weaver was also heavily involved in other aspects of the Pacific Northwest aviation scene. He built and flew homebuilt aircraft, participated in seaplane operations on Lake Union, and contributed to restoration efforts of vintage aircraft. He also was involved with the Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation (PNAHF), the predecessor of The Museum of Flight.
As of 2019, Weaver is an active Museum volunteer, participating in the Living History program.
Biographical information derived from interview and additional information provided by interviewee.
In this two-part oral history, Paul L. Weaver is interviewed about his decade-spanning career as an aircraft mechanic and pilot. In part one, he describes his military service with the U.S. Navy; his career with the Boeing Company during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s; and his involvement in the Pacific Northwest aviation scene. He also shares stories about other aviation enthusiasts and the early days of the Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation (PNAHF), the predecessor of The Museum of Flight. Topics discussed include his World War II service aboard the USS Lexington (CV-16); his flight demonstration and mechanic work at Boeing; and his experiences maintaining, restoring, and building aircraft.
Paul L. Weaver is a World War II veteran, aircraft mechanic, and pilot who worked for the Boeing Company for almost thirty years. He was born in 1922 in Roseville, Ohio to George and Hazel Weaver. As a young adult, he worked for the Ohio State Patrol as a radioman and at Wright-Patterson Field (Ohio) as a radio electrician for the Douglas B-18 Bolo.
Around 1940, Weaver joined the U.S. Merchant Marine as a radio operator. He soon after transferred to the U.S. Navy and received training at Naval Station Great Lakes (Illinois). Assignments from his service include serving aboard the USS Lexington (CV-16) as a radioman and plane captain and serving in a squadron support unit at Sand Point Naval Air Station and Naval Auxiliary Air Station Quillayute (Washington). He remained in the Navy Reserve after the end of World War II and later served as an ECM radarman aboard the USS Yorktown (CV-10).
After World War II, Weaver attended college under the GI Bill and received his certification as an A&P (Airframe and Powerplant) mechanic. In 1951, he was hired by the Boeing Company. Over the course of his career, he maintained, modified, and repaired a variety of Boeing aircraft, including the 367-80, 737, and 747. He retired from the company in 1980.
Outside of his professional work with Boeing, Weaver was also heavily involved in other aspects of the Pacific Northwest aviation scene. He built and flew homebuilt aircraft, participated in seaplane operations on Lake Union, and contributed to restoration efforts of vintage aircraft. He also was involved with the Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation (PNAHF), the predecessor of The Museum of Flight.
As of 2019, Weaver is an active Museum volunteer, participating in the Living History program.
Biographical information derived from interview and additional information provided by interviewee.
World War II veteran Donald Raleigh is interviewed about his wartime service with the United States Navy. He discusses his gunnery officer assignments aboard the USS Maryland (BB-46) and USS Wilkes-Barre (CL-103), circa 1941-1946. He particularly highlights his experiences during the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7, 1941. Standing watch aboard the Maryland that morning, he was a first-hand witness to the Japanese attack on Battleship Row. He also describes his later assignments in the Pacific Theater during the campaign against the Japanese home islands. Topics discussed include his personal background, his training and service history, the situation onboard the Maryland during the Pearl Harbor attack, his experiences aboard the Wilkes-Barre just prior to and after the Japanese surrender at Tokyo Bay, and his postwar education at the University of Washington School of Dentistry.
Donald Raleigh was a World War II veteran who served with the United States Navy in the Pacific Theater. He was born on June 15, 1918 in Tacoma, Washington to Percy Griffin Raleigh and Allison Longstreth Raleigh. As a young boy, Raleigh’s family temporarily relocated to Paso Robles, California, where his father worked in farming and construction. The family returned to Tacoma in the early 1930s.
During his teenage years, Raleigh attended Mason Middle School and Stadium High School. He graduated in 1936 and enrolled at the College of Puget Sound (later to become the University of Puget Sound). He received a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1940. While in college, Raleigh decided to join the Tacoma Naval Reserve, as he wanted to avoid being drafted into the Army should the United States enter World War II. He entered the V-7 program, an expedited naval officer training program, and embarked on a training cruise to New York onboard the USS Illinois (BB-7). He afterwards received orders to the USS Maryland (BB-46), then based in California, where he underwent gunnery training. In 1940, Raleigh deployed aboard the Maryland to Naval Station Pearl Harbor (Hawaii), its new base of operations.
On the morning of December 7, 1941, Raleigh was on watch on the Maryland’s quarterdeck and witnessed the first Japanese airplanes on their approach to Battleship Row. During the attack, Raleigh manned the ship’s antiaircraft guns while other servicemen helped rescue people from the capsized USS Oklahoma (BB-37), moored alongside the Maryland. The Maryland received comparatively minor damage compared to the rest of Battleship Row and, in late December, was able to put in to Puget Sound Navy Yard (Bremerton, Washington) for repairs.
In mid-1942, Raleigh deployed aboard the repaired Maryland for the Pacific Theater, where he participated in the Gilbert and Marshall Islands Campaign. In late 1942, he reported to Philadelphia Navy Yard (Pennsylvania) for preconditioning detail on the USS Wilkes-Barre (CL-103). He deployed to Trinidad for the ship’s shakedown cruise, then to California for additional exercises. From 1942 to 1946, Raleigh served aboard the Wilkes-Barre during its Pacific cruises. His assignments included providing escort for aircraft carriers and making carrier strikes on Japan. He was present in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945 and used a rangefinder to watch the formal surrender of Japan onboard the nearby USS Missouri (BB-63). Afterwards, Raleigh participated in early occupation actions, such as demilitarizing naval bases in Northern Honshu and disposing of submarines and explosives.
Raleigh left active duty in 1946 and returned to Washington State with his wife, Alison, whom he married in 1944. He enrolled in the newly established School of Dentistry at the University of Washington, graduating in the top-five of his class in 1950. He operated a dental practice for over forty years in the Seattle area and raised three children with Alison. Following her passing in 1991, he married his second wife, Alda. Raleigh passed away on September 9, 2019.
Biographical information derived from interview, from additional information provided by interviewee, and from online sources.