I think the old time WW2 pilots were much more extrovert than the current relatively introverted types. Maybe it was because they where pressed into service, rather than wanting a career path into a highly paid profession.
When they were being shot at with live bullets, every day of the week, they knew that life was cheap, so they made to most of it whilst they could.
I regularly met two ex WW2 pilots, and even in their advancing years, their minds where as sharp as a pin. They could converse on many different subjects even late into the early hours of the morning. One even went on to marry a Philippine lady many years his junior. Modern pilots seem to be bland by comparison.
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