I heard via the grape vine that there was a C-54 over at the Convair plant across the runway. That airplane was scheduled to make a trip from Texas to Boston, Massachusetts to pick up some important electronics components. They were rumored to have room for a navigator, so I naturally made tracks to find out what the deal was ... and hopefully get the open navigator's slot.
Well, luck was with me, for I got over to the flight operation section of the Air Force Plant Representative's Office just in time to arrange for the assignment. We would be leaving for L.G. Hanscom AFB in about eight hours. That gave me just enough time to get back across the flight line to arrange for temporary duty orders and permission to be out of the office for the couple days needed to get my flying time.
Getting permission was the easy part. But, as I hand-carried the paperwork for the necessary travel orders from place to place to get the approval signatures of the various offices controlling such things as travel authorizations, finance authorizations and publications of the documents, I also found myself taking orders for things to pick up in Boston. People were telling me what to get and shoving money in my hands to cover what they expected the costs to be.
What was that precious cargo I was supposed to bring back ? You guessed it. It was fresh lobsters and New England clams. By the time I finally got out of the headquarters with my travel orders in hand ( all I really asked for ... ) I also had orders and cash for several dozen lobsters and many pounds of clams. It seems that I was just learning what everybody else in the headquarters already knew. That was the fact that the C-54 flights to Boston had not only an official purpose, they were well known as " Lobster Runs " too. And I just happened to be the guy tasked with making the purchases, pickups and later distribution of those delicacies. I discovered on the flight up north that one of the regular crew members on that C-54 had important contacts with seafood wholesalers in Boston. In fact that individual had himself been a seafood buyer for the A&P food store chain before coming on active duty in the Air Force. He would, upon our landing at L.G. Hanscom AFB just west of the city, arrange for the lobsters and clams to be purchased and packaged for the flight back to Texas.
When it was time to leave the next morning a truck drove up to the awaiting C-54 on the flight line at Hanscom AFB with the cargo .... not the important electronics gear ( that was already loaded ), the large boxes of lobsters and clams packed with seaweed and ice. There were four or five heavy boxes, cubes about two feet on a side and weighing seventy to eighty pounds apiece, for me to shepherd back to Texas. And though I hadn't ordered any for myself because my wife is not a seafood devotee, I was told that there were four or five extras in there for me for my trouble.
We had to stop at Mitchell Field on Long Island on our way home to collect more official cargo (Really ... not more seafood or other goodies!). That delay meant that it would be midnight or so by the time we would get back to Texas. And it would be at that late hour that I was expected to deliver the lobsters and clams to those who placed the orders and paid me in advance.
We landed back at Carswell AFB just about as planned ... it was midnight. And it was about one o'clock in the morning by the time I got through with my official duties relative to the real mission and could load the heavy boxes in my station wagon. I placed several telephone calls to the folks awaiting their seafood and told them that I was on the way.
By two in the morning I had distributed all but the last couple dozen lobsters. They were in the remaining box ... all still very much alive and apparently not suffering from their experience in the least.
When I got to the last house to complete the delivery process the Major from the Headquarters Squadron (the fellow who had given me the last signature I'd needed for the trip) asked me to put the live and very active lobsters into his bathtub. He'd tend to them in the morning. They'd be all right if I would just include most of the remaining ice and seaweed. So I did as he asked ... and kept the remaining two lobsters for myself.
Later on I learned that the Major's wife had quite a shock before breakfast when she stepped into the bathroom and pulled back the shower curtain. I was told that she let out quite a scream and in no uncertain terms told her husband to get those wiggly things out of there .. NOW !! He assured her that they were pegged and quite harmless, but she would not be convinced.
Oh, the things we had to go through to get those precious flying hours. That trip got me about seventeen hours and two lobsters. Such a deal !