Congress
passes Public Law 393 giving soldiers 50% more pay for combat service. This bill
was also known as the Ernie Pyle Bill.
Pyle, a famous war correspondent, born and raised in Indiana, had
dropped out of Indiana University just one semester before graduating to work
for an Indiana newspaper. Within a few
months, he was working for a Washington D.C. paper, lured by the extra pay of
$2.50 per week.
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| Pyle with the infantry on Okinawa |
As a war correspondent,
he had pushed for extra combat pay for the infantry in his columns. Airmen
already received flight pay, and Pyle, who traveled mostly with the infantry,
believed these “underdogs of the military” should receive comparable “fight
pay”.
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