The text below is by a RAF WW2 night-fighter pilot (F/O L. J. York, DFC) about his primary pilot training in the USA in 1942. How things have changed.
Primary School was at Tuscaloosa, Alabama (a University town). Here we flew Steerman PT17's (PT=Primary Trainer). They were (and still are) Radial Engine Biplanes about twice the weight of a Tiger Moth. The instructors were civilian ex bush pilots with at least 5,000 hours flying. The aircraft had no instruments whatsoever not even an air speed indicator.
We were taught to fly 'by the seat of your pants'. The whistle of the wind in the bracing wires was your air speed indicator, When it went quiet, you knew you were too slow and near the stall. It was a superb training to get you to have the real 'feel' of flying.
At the end of the two-month course, I had done a total of 67 hours flying. 50% of the course had been eliminated. For the Americans it meant that they would not be pilots. For the British it meant being shipped up to Canada, for re-assessment. We could not be as choosy as the Americans and some were trained as pilots in Canada.