Smithsonian
  • Navigating
    at Sea
    • Challenges of Sea Navigation
    • Navigating Without a Clock
    • The Longitude Problem
    • The U.S. Goes to Sea
    • Navigate at Sea! Activity
  • Navigating
    in the Air
    • Challenges of Air Navigation
    • Early Air Navigators
    • Navigation at War
    • Navigate the Skies! Activity
  • Navigating
    in Space
    • Challenges of Space Navigation
    • Reaching for the Moon
    • Navigating in Deep Space
    • Navigate in Space! Activity
  • Satellite Navigation
    • Challenges of Satellite Navigation
    • Reliable Global Navigation
    • Global Positioning System (GPS)
    • Who Uses Satellite Navigation
  • Navigation
    for Everyone
    • Meet a Professional Navigator
    • Personal Navigation Stories
  • Timeline of Innovation
  • Artifacts
  • Learning Resources
  • Multimedia Gallery
  • Research
  • Visit the Exhibition

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Time and Navigation
The untold story of getting from here to there.
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  • Navigating at Sea
  • Navigating in the Air
  • Navigating in Space
  • Satellite Navigation
  • Navigation for Everyone
  • Timeline of Innovation
  • Artifacts
  • Learning Resources
  • Multimedia Gallery
  • Research Journal
  • Visit the Exhibition
  • Challenges of Air Navigation
    • Flying Boats Cross the Seas
    • Overcoming the Challenges
      • Celestial Navigation
      • Radio Navigation
      • Dead Reckoning
    • Navigate the Skies! Activity
  • Early Air Navigators
    • Dying to Set Records
    • Charles Lindbergh's Calculated Risk
    • The Business of Air Navigation
      • The Teacher: P. V. H. Weems
      • The Air Navigation Community
      • Radio Time for Aviation
    • Lindbergh's New Tools
    • Two Men in a Hurry
      • The Winnie Mae
      • Meet the Navigator: Harold Gatty
    • Navigation Gone Wrong: Amelia Earhart
  • Navigation at War
    • The Wartime Navigator
      • Harry Crosby
      • Tools of the Trade
    • Naval Aviation
      • Meet the Navigators: WAVES
    • A New Era in Time and Navigation
      • Hyperbolic Systems
      • LORAN
      • Meet the Clockmaker: Alfred Loomis
  • Navigate the Skies! Activity

Explore More

Alfred Lee Loomis »
Captain Leonello Leone, Italy »
"Kingsford Smith Luck Holds" [Run Time 1:40] »
"The Return of the Italian Air Armada" [Run Time 1:25] »
Lt. Harry H. Crosby »

The Wartime Navigator

The U.S. Army Air Forces trained tens of thousands of inexperienced young men to do what only a handful of skilled air navigators a decade earlier could do.

During World War II, air navigators served in all the military services and in all theaters of operation. This was a new concept for the military. The Army Air Corps had only adopted the idea of the air navigator as a specialized crew member in 1939. Suddenly, tens of thousands were needed.

Most navigators in the Army Air Forces started as pilot cadets who "washed out" of pilot training, often in PT-17s. Good math skills were considered essential for those who made the transition to navigator.

  • Harry Crosby »

    Learn about the remarkable experiences of a wartime navigator.

  • Tools of the Trade »

    Army Air Forces navigators in World War II benefitted from a wide range of tools and equipment.

crosby_photo.jpg

Harry H. Crosby's Wrecked B-17 Just a-Snappin
On October 8, 1943, the 100th Bomb Group targeted the heavily defended German industrial city of Bremen. The amazing tale of survival of Crosby and his crew drew media attention. Here, he inspects the remnants of his navigator’s compartment after his B-17
Credit: Rebecca Crosby Hutchinson

crosby1945.jpg

Harry H. Crosby as 100th Bomb Group Navigator
After the harrowing losses of 1943, Crosby and his fellow crew members found less opposition in 1944 and 1945. However, navigational challenges increased as missions moved deeper into central Europe.
Credit: Rebecca Crosby Hutchinson

b-17_wreck.jpg

Harry H. Crosby's Wrecked B-17 Just a-Snappin (Ill.)
On October 8, 1943, the 100th Bomb Group targeted the heavily defended German industrial city of Bremen. The amazing tale of survival of Crosby and his crew drew media attention.
Credit: Rebecca Crosby Hutchinson
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  • Navigating at Sea
    • Challenges of Sea Navigation
    • Navigating Without a Clock
    • The Longitude Problem
    • The U.S. Goes to Sea
    • Navigate at Sea! Activity
  • Navigating in the Air
    • Challenges of Air Navigation
    • Early Air Navigators
    • Navigation at War
      • The Wartime Navigator
        • Harry Crosby
        • Tools of the Trade
      • Naval Aviation
      • A New Era in Time and Navigation
    • Navigate the Skies! Activity
  • Navigating in Space
    • Challenges of Space Navigation
    • Reaching for the Moon
    • Navigating in Deep Space
    • Navigate in Space! Activity
  • Satellite Navigation
    • Challenges of Satellite Navigation
    • Reliable Global Navigation
    • Global Positioning System (GPS)
    • Who Uses Satellite Navigation
  • Navigation for Everyone
    • Meet a Professional Navigator
    • Personal Navigation Stories
  • Timeline of Innovation
  • Artifacts
  • Learning Resources
  • Multimedia Gallery
  • Research
  • Visit the Exhibition
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  • Privacy
  • Contact
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  • Press
  • Donate
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