Cass Phillips was born in Pampa, Texas in April 1920. The doctor ran late to his delivery. The family moved off a farm and into town at Pampa when Phillips was about five years of age. Phillips loved living in the small, oil town of Pampa. His father lost his job with an oil company during the Depression [Annotator's Note: the Great Depression was a global economic depression that lasted from 1929 through 1939 in the United States]. Phillips’ parents did manage to maintain jobs, but it was not easy for them. The children did not realize the seriousness of the situation. In 1933, a job opportunity arose in Riverside, California. The Phillips family moved in response to the possibility of employment there at a dry-cleaning plant. Phillips was 13 years old. The trailer used to haul the family belongings almost caused an accident. Phillips’ father had a new tongue fabricated for the vehicle and resolved the problem. His father and mother had funds to subsidize the journey. Phillips joined the Navy in 1938 before the war broke out. In Riverside, he would visit Long Beach [Annotator’s Note: Long Beach, California] where he saw the Lexington and Saratoga [Annotator’s Note: aircraft carriers USS Lexington (CV-2) and USS Saratoga (CV-3)] and the USS California battleship [Annotator’s Note: USS California (BB-44)]. Phillips was greatly impressed with the ships and enjoyed visits aboard the California. The ship and crew were very clean and impressive. It looked like a good place to be. He enlisted in the Navy when he was 18 without regard to the wartime events occurring in the world. He did not give those circumstances a thought prior to his decision.

Cass Phillips did his Navy training in San Diego [Annotator’s Note: San Diego, California.]. He was given a test for advanced training and selected for radio school. He spent three to four months learning Morse code. Once he completed the training, he was assigned to the USS Argonne [Annotator’s Note: USS Argonne (AG-31)] which was used as a communications center for the fleet. All messages to various commands were transmitted through the Argonne. There were operators on the ship who were really good. The night before the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941], Phillips and his friend Bruce Smithy had taken out their girlfriends. On the way home, near Kaneohe [Annotator’s Note: Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii], they observed a group of Japanese having a huge party. After dropping off the ladies, the two sailors reached their base at Kaneohe [Annotator’s Note: Kaneohe Naval Air Station]. They decided to sleep in late that Sunday morning. On the way to breakfast, they saw a plane fly low and disappear behind a mountain. They thought it was a continuation of Army maneuvers making them even more realistic by painting the aircraft as if they were Japanese. When they reached the exchange [Annotator's Note: post exchange], the girls there were frightened to death. They pointed out the damaged hangars to the two sailors. Men were running toward the smoke. Phillips and his friend knew something serious was going on. He could not believe it was an attack. Rather, he thought perhaps it was a big fire. As he approached the scene, he could see the damaged and strafed American aircraft. Men were attempting to extract .50 caliber machine guns [Annotator's Note: Browning ANM2 .50 caliber machine gun] from the derelict planes to fire at the enemy. A chief gunner’s mate ran up to a sailor attempting to use a machine gun and took control of it. Mounting it on a suitable base for firing, the chief fired the weapon at the enemy planes. In the course of doing so, he received 22 wounds and earned the Congressional Medal of Honor [Annotator's Note: the Medal of Honor is the highest award a United States service member can receive who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor]. The man was John Finn [Annotator’s Note: John William Finn, a chief petty officer in the US Navy]. At the time of the interview, Phillips was preparing to go to the christening of the USS John Finn in Pascagoula [Annotator’s Note: USS John Finn (DDG-113) was christened in Pascagoula, Mississippi in May 2015]. Phillips was in the squadron with Finn and knew him. Finn survived his wounds that day. Between the first and second wave, Phillips helped the wounded and moved aircraft away from each other. He had no weapon to fight back with, so he tried to avoid the strafing. He was not frightened. He went into the hangar when the second attack began. A bomb penetrated it and exploded. A man at the entry of the building had a tiny piece of shrapnel cut into his heart. It killed him. It was difficult to get treatment for the wounded with the limited facilities at Kaneohe. Phillips talked with some of the wounded which he found difficult. A friend of his had his eye put out during the assault. That man continued his career in the Navy and retired after his service.

After the attack on 7 December [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941], Cass Phillips requested Navy flight school. Enlisted men were being trained to be pilots at the time. A friend from the Argonne [Annotator’s Note: USS Argonne (AG-31)] had gone to flight school so Phillips was enthused about the possibility. He and two others from the ship requested entry into flight school. When their ship arrived at Pearl Harbor’s 1010 dock [Annotator’s Note: 1010 or “Ten-Ten” dock at Pearl Harbor is the longest pier in the harbor now measuring greater than its original 1,010 feet in length], the men requested to go to Ford Island where squadrons were located. They were sidetracked when the non-commissioned officer there found out about their communications experience [Annotator’s Note: the three men had worked in communications operations aboard the Argonne]. He wanted them in the office. They were not excited about that prospect. After a few weeks, the same non-com [Annotator’s Note: non-commissioned officer] sent Phillips to a squadron because he was tired of seeing the dejected sailor mope around the office [Annotator’s Note: he chuckles]. Phillips was grateful the chief had made that decision. He was assigned to VP-11 [Annotator’s Note: Patrol Squadron 11 (VP-11)] based at Kaneohe [Annotator’s Note: Naval Air Station Kaneohe, Hawaii]. It was just what Phillips wanted. It was a great squadron. He enjoyed being with the PBY [Annotator’s Note: Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boat aircraft] squadron. He was a radioman onboard the aircraft. Phillips had expedited his entry into flight school by reminding his officer aboard the Argonne that he had already flown solo in Riverside [Annotator’s Note: Riverside, California prior to enlistment in the Navy]. After a brief stay with his folks back home in Berkley [Annotator’s Note: Berkley, California], he headed to Pensacola [Annotator’s Note: Pensacola, Florida] for six months of flight school starting in February 1942. He graduated the following July and was awarded his wings by Admiral Read who had flown the first large flying boat across the Atlantic [Annotator’s Note: in May 1919, Lieutenant Commander Albert Read piloted a Curtiss NC-4 flying boat on that flight]. Phillips’ previous training in communication help accelerate him through the flight training, surpassing his classmates who were still learning code [Annotator’s Note: Morse code]. He was radioman 1st class AP (aviation pilot). That was later changed to NAP, or Naval aviation pilot. He had wings on his chevrons because he was still an enlisted man. Following graduation, he was assigned to VP-61 which was still a seaplane squadron. He flew in the Aleutian Islands toward Kiska and Attu [Annotator’s Note: all in Alaska]. Someone had to stay on the plane even at night because of the storms that would break out in the region. On one patrol toward the Kamchatka Peninsula [Annotator’s Note: Kamchatka Peninsula in the far eastern Soviet Union], they had to land on Sand Island in the Aleutians. While sunbathing, the crew thought they would go swimming. When they did, the water was like liquid ice. They quickly exited the water. By then, the tide had gone out and the plane had to be towed to deeper water. The boat sent to assist them could not reach the plane to secure a tow. Phillips’ plane commander, Lieutenant Wainmeyer [Annotator’s Note: surname spelling uncertain, no given name provided] swam out to transfer the hook from the ship to the plane. He did that despite the freezing water conditions. The commander was a great pilot and true leader. Phillips greatly admired him. There were ten crewmen aboard the PBY, with Phillips being the third of three pilots assigned to the ship. There were two radiomen and two mechs [Annotator’s Note: mechanics], a gunner’s mate, and two seamen. They patrolled looking for hostile ships. They covered the landing at Massacre Bay [Annotator’s Note: landings on the island of Attu in May 1943]. The plane found a Japanese freighter trying to escape. The PBY dove steeply on the ship and dropped depth charges which forced the enemy vessel to stop. Other ships were called in to finish the job. While in the Aleutians, Phillips was commissioned as an ensign. That was a bit tough because he was relocated from the Quonset hut [Annotator's Note: prefabricated metal building] where his crew was billeted to move in with the officers. He found it difficult to fit in at first, and discovered that they were not living much better than the enlisted men. The squadron received new PBY-5A aircraft. The A designated amphibian aircraft. Metal mats [Annotator’s Note: perforated Marsden matting used to quickly lay down runways] were put on the ground allowing the planes to land on shore in lieu of the water. That made for a better situation. Landing on the water was not dangerous and not too different that landing on the shore. After that tour, Phillips returned to Alameda [Annotator’s Note: Alameda, California] were he transferred to VPB-20 [Annotator’s Note: Patrol Bombing Squadron 20 (VPB-20)]. The commanding officer was Micky Weaser [Annotator’s Note: surname spelling uncertain] who was an Academy officer [Annotator’s Note: graduate from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland]. He was all Navy and an officer and straight down the line. He treated his men fairly, but by the book. The crews learned to fly the PBM [Annotator’s Note: Martin PBM Mariner patrol bomber flying boat] and flew across the Pacific to Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands. One of the aircraft in the formation was not successful in making the destination. Philips had stayed with the endangered plane as long as he could but finally had to break off. The crew had to ditch, but was rescued. Phillips returned to Kaneohe [Annotator’s Note: Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii] in late 1943 or early 1944. He could see the damage from the attack [Annotator’s Note: he was at Kaneohe Naval Station when it was attacked by the Japanese on 7 December 1941 as part of the assault on Pearl Harbor and other military installations on the island of Oahu in Hawaii] which had not been repaired. There were few differences that he could see. Morale was high because he reported to good officers. He became a plane commander and pilot with a fine crew. His plane had a Wright engine which tended to take on too much fuel in the carburetor. Pilots found that to be problematic. It happened to Phillips one day. The PBM was a larger and heavier plane than the PBY and was not as easy to maneuver. A heavy wind drove him into the jetty and knocked a float off the wing. A crash boat complicated the situation by further damaging the wing. The aircraft was repaired and Phillips lost no status because everyone knew how the engines were. After training at Kaneohe, Phillips and his squadron headed into the Pacific toward the Philippines.

Cass Phillips flew toward New Guinea from Hawaii making several stops at small islands along the southwesterly route. Landing at Manus off New Guinea, he taxied up the ramp [Annotator’s Note: he was a pilot of a Martin PBM Mariner patrol bomber flying boat in Patrol Bombing Squadron 20 (VPB-20)]. He noticed all the planes were painted flat black so he knew he would be flying night missions. His squadron flew from New Guinea up to Zamboanga in the Philippines. As they flew their planes near there, a light would follow them in both directions. Neither party bothered the other. Progress was being made in the Pacific at this point. The squadron ended up in Leyte Gulf [Annotator’s Note: Leyte Gulf, the Philippines]. A typhoon would hit the town near their base. A Japanese plane managed to repeatedly fly through heavy antiaircraft fire and remain unscathed. Phillips and his squadron did not take part in the big battle for Leyte Gulf [Annotator’s Note: the Battle of Leyte Gulf, October 1944], but fought against a large Japanese task force. Two crews were lost in that engagement and the skipper called it off. It was too easy for the Japanese to shoot down the torpedo-armed PBMs. Phillips was duty officer that day and did not fly his plane in the action. Later, Phillips volunteered to fly his commander’s J2F [Annotator’s Note: Grumman J2F Duck single-engine amphibious biplane] over an airbase on a photographic reconnaissance mission. During the course of the mission, Phillips was accosted by a P-38 [Annotator's Note: Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter aircraft] and a Black Widow [Annotator’s Note: Northrop P-61 Black Widow twin-engine night fighter]. They both fired their weapons at him. That was the first time he was shot at in the war, but it was his own people [Annotator’s Note: he laughs]. Next, he covered Lingayen Gulf [Annotator’s Note: Lingayen Gulf on the island of Luzon in the Philippines]. After landing, he was shot at by Japanese on the beach. The plane made a hasty getaway to avoid hostile fire. They had to be careful to prevent an unsecured anchor from damaging the plane’s hull. The plane experienced heavy swells while taking off. Before the Battle of Okinawa [Annotator’s Note: the Battle of Okinawa, Japan commenced in April 1945], Phillips and his crew were relieved. After reaching home, he was told in the middle of the night that the war was over. The bombs had just been dropped [Annotator's Note: nuclear weapons dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, 6 and 9 August 1945] and Japan had surrendered. It was a relief. Phillips was tickled.

Cass Phillips got into a ferry squadron after he returned home. He flew all kinds of planes he never could before. He flew Corsairs [Annotator’s Note: Vought F4U Corsair fighter bomber] and F6Fs [Annotator’s Note: Grumman F6F Hellcat fighter], torpedo planes and basically anything that had a prop [Annotator’s Note: propeller]. He went to southern California and was assigned to fly a Corsair. He remarked to the Marine major that he had not been checked out to fly that aircraft. The major was brusque with him and told him to go back to San Pedro [Annotator’s Note: San Pedro, California] if he did not want to fly the plane. A Marine pilot offered Phillips an abbreviated lesson on the plane’s controls and characteristics and off Phillips flew. When he reached his destination in Midland, Texas, he landed hard and threw up a lot of dirt and sand residue from the islands. Next time, he knew the plane better. Phillips spent his career in the Navy. He liked the Navy even though situations sometimes were not to his liking. He retired as a lieutenant commander after 22 years in the Navy. He did have bad experiences. He located some people on wrecks near the Philippines. He was ordered to strafe them. His navigator objected. He fired on them, but was not satisfied doing so. Seeing the blood in the water, he knew sharks would soon arrive. Orders came to stand down, and he was relieved. In another incident, he picked up natives in his plane for interrogation. That individual had great stories to tell when he returned to his home. Phillips also put some Australians ashore in the Celebes Islands to obtain intelligence information. They were extracted by another crew. That ship was hit and some of the crew were injured. Phillips made it out all right. He was most afraid when people shot at him from the shore [Annotator’s Note: he chuckles]. [Annotator’s Note: interview concludes at 0:48:04:000]