Gr8pe Ape said, in part
"...and to reach further back, anyone should look into the accident rates of those newly minted WW2 pilots."

Double-digit hour counts, and off to the front. The wipe out rate in training was astronomical. Even though much of the training was in places like Florida and Kansas, where nothing stuck up to get in the way. The planes were made to last +/- 20 missions, because that was the average airframe lifespan. Use the parts from some to fix up the shot-up aircraft who made it back.

What amazes me is the number of airports named after some green volunteer who pranged fatally during training. Ohare is the exception, not the rule.