Pilot joins US Army Air Corps. How?

(I'm new to the forum. If I'm posting this in the wrong place, please let me know!)

I'm writing a book set in WWII. David, a main character, is a licensed(?) pilot before the war but he isn't in the military.
When Pearl Harbor is bombed and war breaks out, he enlists to serve his country. Would he be made an Army Air Corps pilot? What would his rank be?

Any information would be appreciated!
Thanks so much.
~Fireflygirl

 

Moved to Information Requests.

 

Thanks.

 

Thank you. Many specialists got direct commissions commensurate with their specialty. Depending on their age, many became instructors, but my best guess would be a 2nd Lieutenant or Flight Officer.

 

He would not be made a pilot without going through military flight training. After successfully completing flight training he would be commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant.

 

Wouldn't begin to attempt to comment on USAAC pilot procurement or training, not my field of study, but these guys seem to have alot of contemporaneous commentary

Go here
http://www.afhra.af.mil/studies/numberedusafhistoricalstudies.asp
see Study No 2, Initial Selection of Candidates for Pilot, Bombardier, and Navigator Training, by Robert L. Thompson (1943).

Then, a little farther down, see Study No 21 The Aviation Cadet Ground Duty Program: Policy, Procurement, and Assignment, by Merrill Jensen (1944).

And near the bottom of the page, see Study No 48, Preflight Training in the AAF, 1939-1944, by Thomas H. Greer (1946) and Study No 49, Preflight Training in the AAF, 1939-1944, by Thomas H. Greer (1946)

Now click where it says 51-100 and you’ll get to
http://www.afhra.af.mil/studies/numberedusafhistoricalstudies51-100.asp
See Study No 61, Combat Crew and Unit Training in the AAF, 1939-1945, by Jerry White (1949).
There’s always the down side, see Study No 79, Policies and Procedures Governing Elimination from AAF Schools, 1939-1945, by C.L. Grant (1952)
And Study No 99, The Development and Functions of AAF OCS [Officer Candidate School] and OTS [Officer Training School], 1942-1951, by C.L. Grant (1953).

Now click where it says 101-150 and you find yourself at
http://www.afhra.af.mil/studies/numberedusafhistoricalstudies101-150.asp
And amongst that long list of studies and documents there is Study No 123, History of the Air Force Civilian Training Program, 1941-1951, by Edwin L. Williams, Jr. (1957), though I suspect, without reading, it has little relation to your inquiry, the title just seems to brush on the subject.

Studies 151-200 are mostly related to the Luftwaffe, and there is nothing related to training of USAAC pilots or pilot procurement programs.

These are all PDFs which you can download by clicking on the bolded number to the right of the study title. Some are better quality than others.

A good opportunity for you to become the resident expert on the subject.

 

Thank you all so much for your help. Now I have lots of research-reading ahead of me!