Hump Drivers : An American Pilot's Account of Flying over the Himalayas during WWII

Arthur La Vove was born in Manhattan in 1909, the son of a French military attaché. Arthur flew commercial airliners for Century Airways and United in 1930s. When Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941, he volunteered for the Army Air Force. Any enthusiasm that Arthur had for the conflict quickly eroded once he arrived in the CBI, the China-Burma-India theater of operations, for service with Air Transport Command.

La Vove was a “Hump Pilot,” conducting the hazardous duty of ferrying men and material over the Himalayan Mountains, propping up American, Commonwealth, and Chinese Nationalist forces in their struggle against the Japanese in South Asia. The aircraft of the day were not well suited to handle the extreme environment, and the Himalayas remain littered with the remnants of aircraft and their crew who did not make it over the Hump.

Like most WWII combat veterans, Arthur and his friends suffered multitude depredations during their time in theater, and some never returned home. Arthur did survive the war and subsequently studied journalism at Columbia University. He lived a long and prosperous life, excelling in various pursuits including writing, flying, and car racing. 

This is an unusually eloquent and poignant account of service in WWII by a man who lived it. Each chapter opens with an original sketch by the author, drawn in-theatre.