USAAF Training duration for an individual or unit?

[Felix C]

I have a distant relative who was drafted in 1942 into the USAAF and spend the entire war stateside training. He was on the verge of being deployed with the unit when the war ended. Is this unusual? Heavy bomber group and specialized in aircraft maintainence. Enlisted man if that matters.

I can only assume heavy bomber groups which were forming were stripped of aircrew for Europe and the ground crew formed the cadres for rebuilding.

[Graham Boak]

I would expect that crews were formed at an earlier training stage, and that trained crews would either be sent to a group forming in the US or directly overseas as replacements. Only at times of massive losses would forming bomber groups be stripped of flight personnel and have to start again.

Could it be that this person, once trained in his speciality, spent some time in a training unit before being posted to an (intended) operational one?

With pilots, it was normal for some who reached the end of their training to be held back as instructors: could this also be true for ground crew? In any training system, new instructors have to be found from somewhere either to support expansion or to replace attrition - not least from personnel seeking more active service.