Alvin Santee, WW1, 1917?

Alvin Santee (Charles' son and Harry's nephew) flew planes as a flight instructor in World War I and survived. According to his obituary in the January 25, 1960 issue of the Monday Morning Mail (a Loves Park newspaper at the time), Alvin was "the shortest and lightest doughboy ever to become a U.S. army air corps pilot during World War I. He "became famous for the way he got into the air corps by eating two dozen bananas and drinking huge quantities of water to make the minimum weight. He was only 5-feet-2 and weighed only 110 pounds when he enlisted with Rockford's Co. K of the National Guard's 129th Infantry. In July 1917, only a few hours before the outfit entrained for Texas, he staged the bananas-and-water feast to win transfer to the air corps."