"The Technical Training Command" is a 1943 big band and jazz song performed and co-written by Glenn Miller. The instrumental version was a theme for I Sustain the Wings, the radio program broadcast on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

and

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

from 1943 to 1945.

Background

"The Technical Training Command" was a theme song written by Captain Glenn Miller, John Chummy MacGregor, and Private Sol Meyer for the

Army Air Forces Training Command The United States Army Air Forces during World War II had major subordinate Commands below the Air Staff level. These Commands were organized along functional missions. One such Command was the Flying Training Command (FTC). It began as Air Corp ...

or AAFTC Orchestra and used at the close of early I Sustain the Wings radio programs in 1943. The theme was discontinued after six weeks. The recordings of each performance were recorded. The song also contained lyrics. The opening line is: "Who keeps the planes on high/ Blazing across the sky/ Who checks 'em when they land/ The Technical Training Command." The royalty was split three ways: 1/3 for each composer. Glenn Miller donated all of his royalty receipts to the Air Forces Aid and to the Red Cross. The sheet music for the song was contained in the 1943 songbook Glenn Miller's Dance Folio published by the Mutual Music Society in New York. "I Sustain the Wings" was a radio program that was broadcast weekly on Saturday on NBC from September 18, 1943 to June 10, 1944 by the Army Air Force Band under the direction of Captain Glenn Miller. The radio show was initially on CBS from June to September, 1943. Glenn Miller was the host and conductor on the show, which also featured

Ray McKinley Ray McKinley (June 18, 1910 – May 7, 1995) was an American jazz drummer, singer, and bandleader. He played drums and later led the Major Glenn Miller Army Air Forces Orchestra in Europe. He also led the new Glenn Miller Orchestra in 1956. ...

Jerry Gray Jerry Don Gray (born December 16, 1962) is an American football coach and former player who is the defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). Gray played college footbal ...

Johnny Desmond Johnny Desmond (born Giovanni Alfredo De Simone; November 14, 1919 – September 6, 1985) was an American singer who was popular in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Biography Early years Desmond was born Giovanni de Simone in Detroit, Michigan, ...

, and the Crew Chiefs, until June 10, 1944 when

Harry Bluestone Harry Bluestone (30 September 1907 – 22 December 1992) was a composer and violinist who composed music for TV and film. He was prolific and worked mainly on composing with Emil Cadkin. Earlier on, he was a violinist and freelanced on rad ...

became the conductor. The Latin ''Sustineo Alas'', "I Sustain the Wings", or "Keep 'Em Flying", was the motto of the U.S. Army Air Forces Technical Training Command. The I Sustain the Wings radio series continued until November 17, 1945. The insignia of the USAAF Technical Training Command during World War II included a badge that featured the motto in Latin "Sustineo Alas", or "I Sustain the Wings". The badge was in use from July, 1942 until 1946. The badge was worn on the uniform tunic lapel or on the soft cap.I Sustain the Wings, Sustineo Alas in Latin, Keep 'Em Flying, USAAF Technical Training Command World War II Serviceman’s Badge (1942-1946).
/ref>

References

Sources

*Simon, George Thomas. Glenn Miller and His Orchestra. NY: Crowell, 1974. *Simon, George Thomas (1971). Simon Says. New York: Galahad. . *Flower, John. Moonlight Serenade: A Bio-discography of the Glenn Miller Civilian Band. New Rochelle, NY: Arlington House, 1972.

External links

I Sustain the Wings 1943 NBC radio program. archive.org.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Technical Training Command Glenn Miller songs 1943 songs Jazz compositions Instrumentals Songs with music by Chummy MacGregor 1943 compositions