Introduction

to the
United States Air Force

B. CHANCE SALTZMAN, Capt, USAF

and
THOMAS R. SEARLE

Airpower Research Institute,

College of Aerospace Doctrine, Research and
Education, and Air University Press
Maxwell AFB, Alabama

2001
 Disclaimer

Opinions, conclusions, and recommendations expressed or implied within are solely those of the author, and do not necessarily rep-
resent the views of Air University, the United States Air Force, the Department of Defense, or any other US government agency.
Cleared for public release: distribution unlimited.

ii
 Foreword

The initial concept of the Introduction to the United States Air Force was to facilitate the
process of learning how the US Air Force became what it is today: The most powerful mil-
itary force in the history of the world. And as our Air Force continues to grow, so will this
“primer.” I wish to thank Tom Searle at CADRE for giving me the opportunity to help him
update this introduction from an “end-user” point of view. This revised edition will take the
student up to the twenty-first century by including some recent operations, aircraft, and sig-
nificant personalities that were not included in the 1999 edition. Additionally, the 1999 edi-
tion included separate sections on significant operations and personalities but in this revised
edition operations and personalities have been merged and organized chronologically to
better match the needs of AS200. The original organization of the section on aerospace craft
has been retained to show the unique developments of each of the different types of plat-
forms.

For ROTC AS200 instructors: This book is intended to supplement The Concise History
of the United States Air Force which is currently being used in the AS200 curriculum.
Assigned reading from these books are highly encouraged to ensure the student has a firm
grasp of the lessons prior to class.

Eric M. Moody, Capt, USAF

AFOATS Curriculum Development

iii
 Authors’ Preface

To lead the US Air Force into the future, it is necessary to understand the past and pres-
ent nature of the force. With this in mind, Air Force leaders have always sought to arm
members of the force with a basic knowledge and understanding of Air Force culture and
history. This volume is a contribution to that ongoing educational process, but as the title
states, this is only an introduction. The information provided here merely scratches the sur-
face of the fascinating stories of the people, equipment, and operations of the Air Force.
Topics that are covered here in only a few short paragraphs have been, and will continue to
be the subject of entire books. We hope this volume will be a starting point and a reference
work to facilitate your continuing study of aerospace power.

The reader should keep in mind that all the people, operations, and aerospace craft
included in this book have been important to the US Air Force, but they are not the only
ones that have been important. The US Air Force has gained much from other nations,
other US military services, and civilian organizations and these outside influences on the US
Air Force are not included in this volume.

This Introduction to the United States Air Force is organized into two parts and five appen-
dices. The first part is organized chronologically and groups significant operations and per-
sonalities together in several critical periods in the development of the US Air Force. The
second part covers aerospace craft and is organized by type (fighters, bombers, missiles, etc.)
in order to show the development of each type over time. Following Part II are appendices
listing the senior leaders of the early air forces (before the creation of the US Air Force in
1947), the Air Force Chiefs of Staff, the Chief Master Sergeants of the Air Force, Fighter
Aces, and Medal of Honor Winners.

While the biographical sketches and brief descriptions of operations are fairly self-explana-
tory, the information provided on aerospace craft requires some explanation. The dates
given for aircraft and missiles are the initial delivery of production models, so prototypes will
typically have been available earlier, and it may have been some years later before large oper-
ational units were fully trained and equipped with the new system. For satellites the date is
the first successful launch of a satellite in the system. Aircraft types are continuously
improved during their service lives so range, speed, and ceiling will vary widely between dif-
ferent models of the type. The statistics listed in this book are typical for the aircraft but on
a specific day, actual performance of any single aircraft may have been different. Aircraft
range is particularly difficult to specify because it can be changed by using external fuel tanks
of various sizes and aerial refueling can make range virtually infinite. Satellite systems pose
problems of their own due partly to security classification. Additionally, satellite systems are
listed by function rather than model and over a period of decades, continuous improvement
in the satellites performing that function will result in changes in the size, shape, and weight
of the satellites. Thus the pictures of satellites and the dimensions given for them represent

v
typical recent satellites performing that function, but may be quite different from past and
future systems. For all these reasons, the statistics provided in Part I must be considered sim-
plified and incomplete synopses of much more complicated stories.

No work of this type could have been written without the invaluable assistance of many
people and institutions. We would like to take this opportunity to thank a few of them. Dr.
Daniel Mortensen and Col (Ret.) Phillip S. Meilinger are two outstanding airpower schol-
ars who gave us enormous assistance and encouragement. At Air University Press, John
Jordan, Peggy Smith, Daniel Armstrong, and Mary Ferguson provided the editing, layout,
and photograph selection without which this volume would have been a mess. Any faults
that remain are, of course, entirely our own.

B. Chance Saltzman and

Thomas R. Searle

vi
 Contents

Page

FOREWORD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii

AUTHORS’ PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v

Part I

WORLD WAR I AND THE INTERWAR YEARS: 1916–40 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

The Mexican Punitive Expedition (1916–17) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
St. Mihiel Offensive of World War I (September 1918) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
The Sinking of the Ostfriesland (1921) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
The Pan American Goodwill Flight (1927) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
The Question Mark Flight (1929) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
The Airmail Operation (1934) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
“Hap” Arnold’s B-10 Flights to Alaska (1934) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Maj Gen Benjamin D. “Benny” Foulois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Eugene Jacques Bullard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Brig Gen William “Billy” Mitchell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Capt Edward V. “Eddie” Rickenbacker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Lt Frank Luke Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Maj Gen Mason M. Patrick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Lt Gen Frank M. “Andy” Andrews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

WORLD WAR II: 1941–45 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

The Doolittle Raid on Tokyo (18 April 1942) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Kasserine Pass (February 1943) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Battle of the Bismarck Sea (1943) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Ploesti Raid (August 1943) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
The Regensburg/Schweinfurt Raids (1943) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
“The Big Week” (February 1944) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Operation Overlord (1944) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Bombing Tokyo (9–10 March 1945) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
The Hiroshima and Nagasaki Bombings (August 1945) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
General of the Army Henry H. “Hap” Arnold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Lt Gen Claire L. Chennault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Lt Gen Ira C. Eaker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Gen Carl A. “Tooey” Spaatz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Col Francis S. “Gabby” Gabreski . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Capt Colin P. Kelly Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Gen Laurence S. Kuter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

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Maj Richard I. “Dick” Bong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Lt Gen James H. “Jimmy” Doolittle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Gen George C. Kenney . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Lt Gen Ennis C. Whitehead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Lt Gen Benjamin O. Davis Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Jacqueline “Jackie” Cochran . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Gen Leon W. Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Maj Thomas B. “Mickey” McGuire Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Brig Gen Paul W. Tibbets Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

INDEPENDENT AIR FORCE, COLD WAR, AND KOREA: 1946–64 ............ 49

X-1 Supersonic Flight (14 October 1947). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 51
Berlin Airlift (1948–49) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 52
Pusan Perimeter Defense (1950) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 53
Corona (1960) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 54
Strategic Air Command (1946–92). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 55
The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 56
Brig Gen Charles E. “Chuck” Yeager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 57
Gen Hoyt S. Vandenberg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 58
Col Dean Hess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 59
Col James Jabara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 60
Capt Joseph C. “Joe” McConnell Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 60
Maj Gen Frederick C. “Boots” Blesse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 61
Brig Gen Robinson “Robbie” Risner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 62
Gen Nathan F. Twining . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 63
Lt Gen William H. Tunner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 64
Gen Curtis E. LeMay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 65
Gen Bernard A. “Bennie” Schriever . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 66
Lt Col Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 67
Lt Col Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 67
Maj Donald K. “Deke” Slayton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 67
Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Paul W. Airey . . . . . . . ............ 68

THE VIETNAM WAR: 1965–75 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Operation Rolling Thunder (1965–68). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Operation Arc Light (1965–67) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Operation Bolo (January 1967) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Operation Linebacker I (1972) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Operation Linebacker II (1972) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
A1C William H. Pitzenbarger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Lt Col Merlyn H. Dethlefsen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Capt Lance P. Sijan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Gen John D. Ryan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Gen Daniel “Chappie” James Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
A1C John L. Levitow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

viii
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Gen George S. Brown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Capt Richard S. “Steve” Ritchie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Gen David C. Jones. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Brig Gen Robin Olds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Brig Gen Harry C. “Heinie” Aderholt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

REBUILDING THE AIR FORCE AND THE GULF WAR: 1976–91 .............. 87
El Dorado Canyon (14–15 April 1986) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .............. 89
Operation Just Cause (December 1989) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .............. 90
Strategic Attack on Iraq (January 1991) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .............. 91
The Battle of Khafji (1991) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .............. 92
Col John W. Warden, III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .............. 93
Gen Charles A. Horner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .............. 94
Gen Merrill A. McPeak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .............. 95

POST-COLD WAR: 1992–2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Policing Postwar Iraq (1991–?) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Operations in Somalia (1992–94) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Operations Provide Promise and Deny Flight: Bosnia (1992–96) . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Operation Uphold Democracy: Haiti (1994) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
The Kosovo Crisis (1999) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Gen Ronald R. Fogleman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Lt Gen Michael C. Short . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Part II

EARLY AIRCRAFT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Wright 1909 Military Flyer and Curtiss JN-4D “Jenny”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
DeHavilland DH-4 and SPAD XIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

PURSUIT/FIGHTER AIRCRAFT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

Curtiss P-6E and Boeing P-26 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Bell P-39 and Lockheed P-38 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Curtiss P-40 and Republic P-47 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
North American P-51 and Bell P-59 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Northrop P-61 and Lockheed F-80 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Republic F-84 and North American F-86 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
North American F-100 and McDonnell F-101 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Convair F-102, Lockheed F-104, and Convair F-106 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Republic F-105 and McDonnell Douglas F-4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
General Dynamics F-111 and McDonnell Douglas F-15 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Lockheed Martin F-16 and Lockheed F-117 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Boeing and Lockheed Martin F-22 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

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BOMBERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Martin GMB/MB-1, Boeing B-9, and Martin B-10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Boeing B-17 and Consolidated B-24 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
North American B-25 and Martin B-26 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Boeing B-29 and Convair B-36 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Boeing B-47 and Convair B-58 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Boeing B-52 and Rockwell B-1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Northrop Grumman B-2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

ATTACK AIRCRAFT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Northrop A-17 and Douglas A-20 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Douglas A-26 and Douglas A-1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Vought A-7 and Fairchild A-10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

TANKERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Boeing KC-97 and Boeing KB-50 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Boeing KC-135 and McDonnell Douglas KC-10. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

TRANSPORT AND SPECIAL ELECTRONIC AIRCRAFT ..................... 139

Curtiss-Wright C-30 and Douglas C-47 . . . . . . . . ..................... 139
Curtiss C-46 and Douglas C-54 . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..................... 140
Fairchild C-82/119 and Douglas C-124 . . . . . . . ..................... 141
Lockheed C-69/121 and Fairchild C-123 . . . . . . ..................... 142
Lockheed C-130 and Lockheed C-141 . . . . . . . . . ..................... 143
Lockheed C-5 and Boeing E-3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..................... 144
Northrop Grumman E-8 and Boeing C-17 . . . . . . ..................... 145

TRAINING AIRCRAFT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Vultee BT-13 and North American AT-6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Lockheed T-33 and North American T-28 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Beech T-34 and Cessna T-37 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Northrop T-38 and Raytheon T-1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

EXPERIMENTAL AND STRATEGIC RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT ............ 151

Bell X-1 and Lockheed U-2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 151
North American X-15 and North American XB-70 . . . . . . . . . ............ 152
Lockheed SR-71 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 153

STRATEGIC MISSILES AND SPACE LAUNCH VEHICLES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Douglas PGM-17 Thor and General Dynamics HGM-19 Atlas . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Martin LGM-25 Titan and Boeing LGM-30 Minuteman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Boeing LGM-118 Peacekeeper and McDonnell Douglas Delta II . . . . . . . . . . 157
Boeing AGM-86 and Boeing AGM-129 Advanced Cruise Missile . . . . . . . . . . 158

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SATELLITES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Lockheed Corona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Lockheed Defense Meteorological Satellite Program
and Defense Satellite Communications System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
TRW Defense Support Program and Rockwell Navstar
Global Positioning System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Milstar Satellite Communications System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

Appendix

A Senior Leadership of the Early Air Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

B Air Force Chiefs of Staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
C Chief Master Sergeants of the Air Force . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
D Fighter Aces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
E USAF Medal of Honor Winners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

xi
 Part I
Major Operations and Personnel
of the
United States Air Force
World War I and the
Interwar Years

1916–40
 The Mexican Punitive Expedition (1916–17)

Woefully inadequate equipment

and poorly trained personnel
limited the airmen’s contribu-
tion to delivering dispatches
and mail.

1st Aero Squadron JN-3 in Mexico.

equipment and woefully inadequate training

I
n 1911 the Mexican government was over-
thrown and the country descended into civil severely limited the role of the Aero Squadron.
war. An incident in Vera Cruz in 1914 led to The squadron was equipped with the Curtiss
US Navy intervention. Cross border raids by JN-3 which was adequate as a trainer but could
Mexican revolutionaries (which killed nine sol- not cross the 10,000-foot mountains in that part
diers and six civilians) and assaults on American of Mexico, could only carry a payload of 265
citizens and property in Mexico further height- pounds, had no instruments, and was unarmed.
The pilots were no better prepared than their air-
ened tensions. In January 1916 forces loyal to
craft and the high accident and incident rate was
the bandit/revolutionary Pancho Villa, deliber-
not a surprise. Maintenance was a further prob-
ately killed 18 Americans in Mexico, and in lem because the wood and canvas suffered from
March, they crossed the border and attacked the the desert climate (especially the wooden props).
border town of Columbus, New Mexico, killing After a month of operations only two of the
eight soldiers and eight civilians. President original eight aircraft were still operational, and
Woodrow Wilson ordered American forces they were condemned.
under the command of Gen John Pershing to The squadron received Curtiss NBs and other
pursue and attack Villa’s forces in Mexico. On new aircraft and the pilots got a lot of on-the-job
15 March 1916 American troops crossed the training but the squadron’s main contribution to
international border with grudging permission the campaign was carrying dispatches and mail.
from the Mexican government. Pershing’s force Their most significant single accomplishment was
included the newly-formed 1st Aero Squadron to find a lost cavalry column. The weaknesses of
with 8 aircraft, 10 pilots, 84 enlisted men, 10 the United States air arm rapidly became clear to
trucks, one automobile, and six motorcycles. everyone, as did many of the requirements for
The airmen should have been a great help to
the cavalry units operating against a very mobile conducting a sustained air campaign. The steps
foe in difficult terrain. They should have been taken to remedy these problems bore fruit less
ideal for reconnaissance and even in small num- than two years later when the 1st Aero Squadron
bers, their attacks should have had a major and the rest of the American Air Service demon-
impact on the campaign. Unfortunately, poor strated their combat capabilities in World War I.

5
 St. Mihiel Offensive of World War I (September 1918)

St. Mihiel represented the first large scale

massing of airpower under central command.
With 1,500 aircraft, General Mitchell seized the
initiative, gained air superiority, attacked
ground forces, and interdicted supplies, helping
Allied ground forces to achieve their objectives.
General Pershing appointed Col (later Brig
Gen) William “Billy” Mitchell as his air com-
mander for the battle. Mitchell’s role was simi-
lar to that of a modern joint force air compo-
nent commander (JFACC) in that he was both
commander of air forces and the chief advisor
to the overall commander (in this case General
Pershing) on the employment of air assets.
Mitchell’s forces, consisting of airplanes and
observation balloons, were the largest massing
of airpower the world had yet seen. About 600
of these planes were flown by US personnel.

Brig Gen William “Billy” Mitchell

St. Mihiel represented the first large

O
n 12 September 1918, American forces
under Gen John J. Pershing, began the
scale massing of airpower under cen-
offensive to reduce the St. Mihiel tral command. With 1,500 aircraft,
salient. The bulge was a 24-mile wide, 14-mile General Mitchell seized the initiative,
deep salient formed by the German advance
south of the fortress city of Verdun earlier in the gained air superiority, attacked
war. For the offensive, General Pershing com- ground forces, and interdicted sup-
manded the Allied First Army in an excellent plies, helping Allied ground forces to
example of a joint and combined operation. In
addition to US Army air and ground units, the achieve their objectives.
US ground contingent of Pershing’s force
included a large number of US Marines. The
Allies also contributed substantial forces. One In 1918, the Allies organized their aircraft
of Pershing’s four ground corps was made up of into four types: observation (which we now call
French Colonial troops and air units were pro- reconnaissance and surveillance); pursuit
vided by France, Italy, Portugal, and Great (which we now call fighters); daylight bombers;
Britain. The American units were under what and night bombers. With 1918 technology, the
we would now call Operational Control of artillery of the ground armies could deliver
General Pershing, but the British air units came vastly more firepower than the small number of
from the “Independent Force.” They coordi- primitive bombers available to Colonel
nated and cooperated with the St. Mihiel offen- Mitchell, so a large portion of the observation
sive, but in an early example of the complex force (and all of the observation balloons) pro-
command relationships in combined opera- vided targeting data to the ground artillery. To
tions, they were not under Pershing’s control. facilitate the passing of data between the

6
artillery and aerial reconnaissance units, many of
these units were assigned to support the ground
commanders and their artillery units. General
Mitchell kept all of the pursuit and bombard-
ment planes under his direct control and
retained many of the observation units as well.
Mitchell believed that the first task of air-
power was achieving air superiority and he was
concerned that ground commanders would try
to use his aircraft defensively to patrol over
friendly lines and protect ground units and aer-
ial observers from German planes. Instead, Capt Eddie Rickenbacker with his Spad XIII, briefly took the
lead as the “Ace of Aces” on 15 September with his 8th victory.
Mitchell was determined to use his pursuit Later that day, Lt Elliot Springs scored his 9th victory to reclaim
planes in offensive counterair operations to the lead.
attack the Germans deep in their own territory
and drive them from the air while the bombers loons and more than 60 enemy planes not to
attacked targets deep in the German rear. mention the enormous damage done by straf-
Mitchell’s approach was extremely successful ing German units trying to escape along the
and helped the Allies gain and maintain control roads out of the salient. In this brief battle the
of the air throughout the offensive. In a fore- First Army cleared the St. Mihiel salient and
shadowing of “Big Week” and other air cam- captured 15,000 prisoners and more than 250
paigns of World War II, German pursuit aircraft
cannons. Massed airpower contributed substan-
came up to attack Allied bombers and observa-
tially to this achievement. In General Pershing’s
tion planes and were destroyed by Allied pursuit
words, “The organization and control of the
aircraft that were hunting for enemy aircraft
tremendous concentration of Air Forces has
rather than merely defending friendly ones.
enabled the First Army to carry out its danger-
While observation operations focused on areas
near the front lines, the 91st Aero Squadron con- ous and important mission.”
ducted some deeper operations. This unit was par- In addition to famous US aces like Eddie
ticularly effective because it was one of the most Rickenbacker and Frank Luke, US airmen in
experienced units in the American Air Service and the St. Mihiel offensive included George C.
had been operating in the St. Mihiel district since Kenney, Joseph T. McNarney, and Carl A.
the spring. The bombers focused on the counter- Spaatz. Kenney, McNarney, and Spaatz all went
land campaign with close air support missions and on to become four-star generals in the US Air
interdiction missions against road and rail junc- Force and Spaatz became the first Chief of Staff
tions in the German rear. The bombers operated of the US Air Force. Rickenbacker, Luke, and
in larger formations to defend themselves and free Spaatz all earned aerial victories during the St.
the Allied pursuit aircraft to hunt German planes Mihiel air battles and Luke scored 8 of his 18
and balloons. victories there. More importantly, many of the
During the four days of the offensive, future leaders of US airpower gained invaluable
American airmen made 3,300 flights over battle experience in large-scale air operations at St.
lines, logged 4,000 hours, made 1,000 individ- Mihiel. This experience paid immediate divi-
ual bomb attacks dropping 75 tons of high dends in World War I and was invaluable to the
explosive. They also destroyed 12 enemy bal- future development of US airpower.

7
 The Sinking of the Ostfriesland (1921)

A Martin MB-2, an early version of the bombers used in the tests.

only 10 years before. In September 1921, the

obsolete United States Ship (USS) Alabama was
sunk. Two years later, additional tests were con-
ducted off Cape Hatteras and two more obsolete
US battleships were sent to the bottom. The Navy
argued that the tests had been conducted under
artificial conditions. They contended that damage-
control parties could have stopped the flooding
that sank the Ostfriesland and claimed that anti-
aircraft fire could have eliminated several of the
bombers before they could strike. Nevertheless,
bombs from aircraft had sunk battleships and a
An MB-2 hits its target, the obsolete battleship realization that the Navy would require air cover
USS Alabama during tests.
in future wars began to spread. This awareness
was a boon to Navy airmen who began to receive

F
ollowing World War I, many Air Service
much more attention as a result of these tests.
flyers supported the idea of an air arm, For Mitchell, the sinkings in 1921, and in
independent of the Army and Navy, and subsequent tests, proved conclusively that the
felt that aircraft could protect US shores more day of the battleship had ended and that an
efficiently and effectively than the battleships of independent air force could defend the coasts of
the US Navy that had traditionally done that the United States and its possessions more
job. The most prominent advocate of this phi- effectively and less expensively than any combi-
losophy was Billy Mitchell. nation of the Army’s coast artillery and the
When Mitchell suggested that US airpower Navy’s warships. The Navy agreed that battle-
could defend the nation’s coasts from attacks by ships were vulnerable when they came within
enemy warships better than US sea power, a con- range of bombers, but they still firmly believed
troversy developed as to whether an airplane that the dreadnought reigned supreme on the
could even sink a battleship. No battleship had high seas beyond reach of land-based aircraft.
ever been sunk by an airplane and the Secretary of The success of the bombing trials encouraged
the Navy, Josephus Daniels, expressed the Navy’s the supporters of a separate air arm to press
contempt for Mitchell when he offered to stand even harder for their objectives but the Army
bareheaded on the bridge of any ship the Army General Staff remained firm in its belief that air-
attempted to bomb. He approved tests off the power, acting independently, could not win a
Virginia capes to be conducted in June and July of war. For its part, the US Navy became even
1921. During the tests, Mitchell’s bombers, MB- more adamant that it, not an independent air
2s of the 1st Provisional Brigade flying from force, should control naval aviation. The debate
Langley Field, Virginia, sank three captured over proper and effective organization and use
German naval vessels including the Ostfriesland, a of airpower began before the United States
fairly modern battleship built by the Germans entered World War I and continues to this day.
8
 The Pan American Goodwill Flight (1927)

one that completed the entire 23,000-mile jour-

ney, making every scheduled stop.
The flight received front-page coverage
almost every day for five months in major US
newspapers and many foreign ones. The pur-
poses of the flight included furthering relations
with Latin American countries, encouraging
commercial aviation, providing valuable train-
ing for Air Corps personnel, and giving an
extensive test to the amphibian airplane. The
OA-1 amphibian was designed for observation
work. The engine was a water-cooled Liberty
engine producing 400 horsepower, mounted
upside down so that the three-bladed alu-
minum propeller could clear the hull’s upturned
beak. Each aircraft was named after an American
city to further promote relations.
Lt Gen Ira C. Eaker
The flights did have their share of trouble. The

I
n the mid-1920s, very little flying had been New York crash-landed in Guatemala and the
done in Latin America and anti-US feelings San Antonio required an engine change in
were strong there in spite of the long- Columbia. Tragedy struck when two aircraft col-
standing US strategic interest in the region. lided over Buenos Aires. Major Dargue and Lt
Latin Americas were also buying European air- Ennis C. Whitehead escaped by parachute but
planes rather than American ones. In the hopes Captain Woolsey and Lieutenant Benton went
of garnering good publicity for the US Army down with the Detroit and were killed instantly.
Air Corps, opening up Lating America to mili- Despite these setbacks, the Pan American
tary and commerical aviation, and interesting flights were a success. Upon arrival at Bolling
Latin Americans in US-built airplanes, the War Field, Washington, D.C., the fliers were met by
Department authorized the Pan American President Calvin Coolidge who presented each
Goodwill Flight. The flight started in San of them with the first Distinguished Flying
Antonio, Texas, and proceeded south through Crosses, a medal authorized by Congress a few
Mexico and along the Pacific coast of Latin months before. The Americans had aroused the
America before crossing the continent in aviation interest of Latin Americans, many of
southern Chile and returning to the US along whom had never seen an airplane. The expedi-
the Atlantic coast of South America and across tion maps became the basis for civil aviation
the West Indies to Washington, D.C. routes in Latin American.
Maj Gen James Fechet, deputy chief of the Air
Corps nominated 20 officers to Maj Gen Mason
M. Patrick, chief of the Air Corps. Patrick
appointed Maj Herbert A. Dargue as com-
mander and nine other pilots, including Capt Ira
C. Eaker to fly the mission. Eaker’s copilot was
Lt Muir S. Fairchild. The Pan American flights
were highly publicized and captured world atten-
tion. Eaker and Fairchild won particular glory The OA-1 amphibious aircraft, the San Francisco, flown 23,000
because their OA-1, San Francisco, was the only miles by Ira Eaker and Muir Fairchild.

9
 The Question Mark Flight (1929)

The record-setting Question Mark

flight demonstrated effective air-to-air
refueling and the range possibilities of
aircraft. Bombers would be able to seek
out distant targets and the oceans
would be eliminated as barriers.

ing. The gas would flow at 75 gallons per

The Question Mark Team, 1929. minute. Oil in five-gallon containers, food, and
supplies were lowered from the C-1 by rope and
hauled into the Fokker by Spaatz.

I
n March 1928, Captain Eaker and Lt On 7 January the Fokker’s left engine quit
Elwood R. “Pete” Quesada were involved in and although the plane could remain aloft on
the rescue of the three-man crew that accom- one engine it could not maintain the five thou-
plished the first east-west flight across the sand feet deemed safe. After 150 hours, 40
Atlantic. The experience left Eaker and Quesada minutes, and 15 seconds, the Question Mark
with an idea—an effective way of refueling in touched down. It had flown about 11,000
midair. Captain Eaker was just the man to turn miles and set an endurance record that would
this project into reality. It took a mixture of last for many years. The contributions of this
imagination, political savvy, opportunism, and flight were numerous. Besides the obvious air-
zeal to succeed. At Bolling Field, he spotted two to-air refueling possibilities, the flight also
suitable aircraft, a trimotored Fokker and a showed that a plane powered by 1929 engines
Douglas. Eaker then assembled his team. He could fly 11,000 miles with five men aboard.
enlisted the help of Maj Carl A. “Tooey” Spaatz With new planes already on the drawing board,
and suggested that he be the commander of the regular nonstop transcontinental flights would
project. Eaker would act as chief pilot with soon be practical. The flight also foreshadowed
Quesada as copilot. The C-1 crew included Lt American bombers seeking distant targets and
Harry Halverson and Sgt Roy Hooe. likewise that the United States would soon be
On 1 January 1929, the Question Mark, so vulnerable to aerial attack. Finally, the ocean
named because the crew did not know how long was eliminated as a barrier and the Navy’s
it would be airborne, took off from San Diego, wartime role was forever altered.
California. It flew back and forth over the 70
miles between Los Angeles, California, and San
Diego for six days. Major Spaatz rode in the tail
section of the airplane and was responsible for
connecting the refueling hose to the tank. The
refuelings were dangerous with the C-1 hovering
only 20 feet above the Fokker at all hours of the
day and night and through turbulence. When
the hose was lowered, Spaatz would ground it to
a copper plate fixed to the Fokker to prevent a
spark and then fit it in the tank’s funneled open- The Question Mark refueling in flight.

10
 The Airmail Operation (1934)
every available type of aircraft. Twenty-five
pounds could be carried in the P-12, while two
thousand pounds could be hauled in the Martin
B-10 and Boeing B-9.
Maj Gen Oscar M. Westover, deputy chief of
the Air Corps, took over the airmail operation
and established geographic zones. The western
zone was commanded by “Hap” Arnold, the
central by Horace Hickam, and Byron Q. Jones
commanded the eastern zone.
The Army Air Corps began flying the mail on
19 February 1934. Unfortunately, the United
States experienced some of the worst late winter
weather in its history. Throughout February,
rain, snow, dense fog, and icy gales covered the
A Curtiss B-2 Condor over Airmail Route 4 (the Salt Lake nation. Aircraft on ramps couldn’t be started,
City––Los Angeles mail).
carburetor icing caused engine failure, and
pilots became disoriented in fog and clouds.
Valor and eagerness could not overcome lack of

I
n February 1934, President Franklin D.
Roosevelt canceled the airmail contracts experience and poor weather. Six Army pilots
between the Post Office and the commercial were killed in the operation’s first week. A frus-
airlines due to evidence of fraud in the conduct of trated President Roosevelt took steps to renego-
the business. Before issuing a formal cancellation tiate with the commercial airlines.
directive, Roosevelt had postal officials meet with By March, the weather was improving and a
the Chief of the Air Corps, Maj Gen Benjamin D. quick course in instrument flying combined to
“Benny” Foulois, to determine if the Air Corps improve the Air Corps’ record. However, the
could temporarily haul the mail. Foulois agreed overall effort was dismal. In the 12 months that
to the proposal because the publicity of the suc- the Air Corps delivered mail, there were 66
cessful operation would be helpful in securing crashes, 12 deaths, and only a 66 percent sortie
badly need funds for the Air Corps. completion rate. During this period, the num-
On 9 February 1934, Foulois committed the ber of deaths rose 15 percent from the average.
Air Corps to the task of delivery the nation’s air- Despite its poor showing, the Air Corps
mail. The endeavor proved to be too much for learned immensely from its airmail operation.
the Air Corps. The airmail flights took place at The Air Corps learned there was a need for an
night and regardless of weather conditions; extensive instrument training program, an auto-
however, the average Army pilot lacked experi- mated landing system, and reliable radio com-
ence in this kind of flying. The Army’s open munications. The airmail fiasco also led to the
cockpit planes were not normally equipped with convening of the Drum Board, which recom-
blind flying instruments or even radios. In addi- mended the creation of General Headquarters
tion to the equipment and training shortcom- (GHQ) Air Force. Followed by the Baker Board
ings, the staff was faced with a huge administra- that supported the formation of a centrally con-
tion challenge. Hangars had to be acquired, trolled aerial strike force. The findings of these
office space along the routes secured, refueling boards established aviation policy that endured
arrangements made, and scheduling and main- through World War II, acknowledging that mil-
tenance logistics all had to be sorted out. The itary aviation was valuable in both offensive and
task was truly daunting. The mail was carried in defensive operations.

11
 “Hap” Arnold’s B-10 Flights to Alaska (1934)

The B-10 Alaska flights proved

the strategic application of the
Army’s bombers.

except from Juneau to Seattle where there was

no landing field for 990 miles. The mission cov-
ered 18,000 miles over very rough terrain with-
out a major incident. In Cooks Bay
(Anchorage), Alaska, one of the B-10s sank into
40 feet of water. It was hauled out and repaired
and continued the mission. Arnold’s crew chief,
TSgt Henry Puzenski, was largely responsible
for this miracle and remained Arnold’s crew
chief until he retired 13 years later. The B-10s
returned to Washington, D.C., landing on 22
August 1934. The return trip angered Army
General of the Army “Hap” Arnold Chief of Staff Gen Douglas MacArthur because
Arnold had flown his B-10s off course over the

I
n the summer of 1934, Lt Col Henry H. ocean to demonstrate their coastal range. This
“Hap” Arnold was ordered to Wright Field grandstanding angered the Navy and
in Dayton, Ohio, to organize a flight of MacArthur had to deal with the delicate situa-
bombers to Alaska. The planes to be used were tion centering on which service was responsible
the Martin B-10s. The B-10 was a low-wing for coastal defense. Arnold’s detour ensured that
monoplane, the Air Corps’ first all-metal no medals were given out for the Alaska flight as
bomber. It was also the first 200 miles per hour long as MacArthur was Chief of Staff. Despite
(MPH) bomber with a range of 900 miles. The the politics, the trip had proven the extensive
flight path would take the bombers from range and strategic application of the Army’s
Dayton, Ohio, to Washington, D.C. From bombers.
Washington, D.C., the bombers would travel to
Minneapolis, Minnesota, into Canada across
Alberta to Prince George then to Fairbanks,
Alaska. The mission would include aerial pho-
tography of Alaska to map airways in and out of
Alaska and to various ports of entry to Alaska
from the Soviet Union. The return flight would
send the bombers south from Juneau, Alaska,
to Seattle, Washington, then on to Washington,
D.C. The flight would include 10 bombers with
14 officers and six enlisted men. After a month
of preparation, the B-10s took off for
Washington on 18 July 1934. The mission was
without precedent but was not unusually
tough. The B-10s averaged 820 miles a day Route of the B-10 Alaska flights.

12
 Maj Gen Benjamin D. “Benny” Foulois

• Taught himself to fly largely through correspondence with

the Wright brothers in 1910.
• During World War I, Gen “Benny” Foulois was responsible
for all Air Service support functions.
• After serving as air attache in Germany and commanding
Mitchel Field in New York, General Foulois was named
Chief of the Air Corps in 1931.
• As chief of the Air Corps, Foulois was largely responsible
for the “Air Mail Fiasco” of 1934. Delivering the country’s
mail proved to be a task the young air force was not
equipped to undertake.

shift War Department views regarding the impor-

B
enjamin D. Foulois taught himself to fly largely
through correspondence with the Wright tance of airpower gradually paid off, resulting in the
brothers in 1910. While many of his contem- increased autonomy of the General Headquarters
poraries died in plane crashes or quit flying, he con- (GHQ) Air Force, formed in 1935. On the other
tinued as an operational pilot until World War I. hand, Foulois was not popular among his Army
Foulois came from a humble background and was brethren and the disastrous performance of the Air
physically unimpressive; worse, he lacked the Corps in the “Air Mail Fiasco” of 1934 earned him
charisma of his contemporary and chief rival within the ill will of President Roosevelt. Looking for a
the air arm, William “Billy” Mitchell. The animosity scapegoat, Congress, also embarrassed by the miser-
between Mitchell and Foulois began in 1916 when able Air Corps performance, held hearings into the
he and the 1st Aero Squadron were sent to Mexico issue of aircraft procurement. Foulois was repri-
with John Pershing in pursuit of the bandit Pancho manded for “misleading” Congress and violating the
Villa. At the same time, the chief of the Signal Corps spirit of procurement laws. The Air Corps chief’s
was forced from office due to financial improprieties, relations with the Navy were also stormy during this
and Mitchell, who had not yet even flown an air- period. But in truth––given the budget crunch dur-
plane, was temporarily placed in charge. The poor ing the bottom of the Depression, their inherently
performance of the aviation unit in Mexico resulted conflicting views regarding the role of airpower in
in mutual finger pointing between Mitchell and war, and the poisoned atmosphere created by
Foulois, and the rift never healed. Pershing clearly Mitchell––such difficulties were inevitable. Without
had respect for both of them, but thought neither friends in or out of the Army and with his usefulness
had the experience or maturity to run the Air clearly limited, Foulois retired in December 1935, a
Service; hence, he appointed Mason M. Patrick to bitter and lonely man. But he lived to see the US Air
lead the air arm and control its two main recalci- Force become the most powerful military force in
trants. Nonetheless, as chief of the Air Corps after the world and he was a regular speaker at Air Force
1931, Foulois’s steady perseverance in working to bases in the 1960s.

13
 Eugene Jacques Bullard

• First African-American military pilot.

• Served in the French Army Aviation Service in World War I.
• Remained in Paris after the war and spied on Germany in World
War II.

O
f more than two hundred Americans who Following World War I, Bullard remained in
flew for France during World War I, one of France until the German occupation of Paris in
particular uniqueness was Eugene Bullard, 1940, at which time he had to flee the country
the only black pilot of World War I. A fellow flier because of his previous spying activities against the
describes Bullard in France, “His jolly face shone Nazis. He returned to the United States and lived in
with a grin of greeting and justifiable vanity. He wore New York City, New York, until his death in 1961.
a pair of tan aviator’s boots which gleamed with a Thus passed from the scene the first black pilot in the
mirror-like luster, and above his breeches smote the history of military aviation.
eye with a dash of vivid scarlet. His black tunic, excel-
lently cut and set off by a fine figure, was decorated
with a pilot’s badge, a Croix de Guerre, the four-
ragere of the Foreign Legion, and a pair of enormous
wings, which left no possible doubt, even at a dis-
tance of 50 feet, as to which arm of the Service he
adorned. The eleces-pilotes gasped, the eyes of the
neophytes stood out from their heads, and one
repressed a strong instinct to stand at attention.”
There was scarcely an American at Atord who did
not know and like Bullard. He was a brave, loyal, and
thoroughly likable man but the US Air Service did
Bullard flew the Spad XVI, a French-designed and -built fast
not accept black officers. Therefore, he fought as a two-seat reconnaissance-type aircraft developed from the Spad
member of the French Army Aviation Service and VII. At the time of its entry into service (1916), it was one of
not as a member of the US Air Service. the fastest and most maneuverable two-seaters in combat.

14
 Brig Gen William “Billy” Mitchell

• Mitchell illustrated the power of strategic bombing by sink-

ing several battleships during tests in 1921 and 1923.
• In September 1918, Gen Mitchell planned and led nearly
fifteen hundred allied aircraft in the air phase of the St.
Mihiel offensive.
• As the top American combat airman of World War I, Gen
Mitchell was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the
Distinguished Service Medal, and several foreign decora-
tions after his 18 months in France.
• In 1925 Mitchell was court-martialed and found guilty of
insubordination. He resigned in 1926 and continued to
promote airpower in his civilian life.

Mitchell managed to alienate most of his superiors,

B
illy Mitchell is the most famous and contro-
versial figure in American airpower history. both flying and nonflying, while in France.
The son of a wealthy Wisconsin senator, he Returning to the United States in early 1919,
enlisted as a private during the Spanish–American Mitchell was appointed the deputy chief of the Air
War. Quickly gaining a commission due to the inter- Service, retaining his one-star rank. His relations
vention of his father, he joined the Signal Corps. He with superiors continued to sour as he began to
was an outstanding junior officer, displaying a rare attack both the War and Navy Departments for being
degree of initiative, courage, and leadership. After insufficiently farsighted regarding airpower. His fight
challenging tours in the Philippines and Alaska, with the Navy climaxed with the dramatic bombing
tests of 1921 and 1923 that sank several battleships,
Mitchell was assigned to the General Staff—at the
proving, at least to Mitchell, that surface fleets were
time its youngest member. He slowly became excited
obsolete. Within the Army he also experienced diffi-
about aviation, which was then assigned to the Signal
culties, notably with his superiors, Charles Menoher
Corps, and its possibilities, and in 1916 at age 38, he
and later Mason M. Patrick, and in early 1925 he
took private flying lessons.
reverted to his permanent rank of colonel and was
Arriving in France in April 1917, only a few days transferred to Texas. Not content to remain quiet,
after the United States had entered the war, when the Navy dirigible Shenandoah crashed in a
Lieutenant Colonel Mitchell rapidly earned a reputa- storm and killed 14 of the crew, Mitchell issued his
tion as a daring, flamboyant, and tireless leader. He famous statement accusing senior leaders in the
eventually was elevated to the rank of brigadier gen- Army and Navy of incompetence and “almost trea-
eral and commanded all American combat units in sonable administration of the national defense.” He
France. In September 1918 he planned and led was court-martialed, found guilty of insubordina-
nearly fifteen hundred Allied aircraft in the air phase tion, and suspended from active duty for five years
of the St. Mihiel offensive. Recognized as the top without pay. Mitchell elected to resign instead as of
American combat airman of the war (he was awarded 1 February 1926, and spent the next decade contin-
the Distinguished Service Cross, the Distinguished uing to write and preach the gospel of airpower to all
Service Medal, and several foreign decorations), who would listen.

15
 Capt Edward V. “Eddie” Rickenbacker

• He had 26 confirmed aerial victories while engaging in 134 dog-

fights during World War I.
• One of his eight Distinguished Service Crosses was upgraded to
a Medal of Honor in 1930.
• He was the last witness for the defense in the court-martial of
Gen Billy Mitchell in 1925.
• The American “Ace of Aces,” went on to become president of
Eastern Airlines before his death in 1973.

C
apt Eddie Rickenbacker was originally turned and shooting down a German flying a Pfalz, without
down for enlistment for lack of education but a single bullet hitting his own machine.
was persistent, and on 25 May 1917 in New By 1 June 1918, Rickenbacker had become an
York City, he joined the Signal Enlisted Reserve ace, with five enemy kills to his credit. A daring, fear-
Corps with an assignment to the Aviation Section. less, talented but never reckless flyer, Rickenbacker as
Three days later he was on his way to Paris, France, commanding officer, would never assign his men to
for assignment to Aviation Headquarters American a target he wouldn’t lead. He continued as Hat-in-
Expeditionary Forces (AEF) as a sergeant first class. the-Ring Squadron leader until his return to the
Partly because Rickenbacker had been a successful United States on 27 January 1919, where he was
race car driver before the war, he was initially hailed for leading the Americans with 26 victories.
assigned as Gen John J. Pershing’s staff driver. At his In June 1929, Rickenbacker took a colonel’s com-
insistence he was permitted to join a fighter unit, mission as a Specialist in the Officers Reserve Corps,
being assigned as a student at the Aviation Training but he gave it up at the end of the five-year appoint-
School at Tours, France. He completed the course ment period as he had often stated he always wanted
10 October 1917, and was commissioned a first lieu- to be remembered as Captain Eddie. During the
tenant. He then became engineering officer to HQ early part of World War II, he served as the personal
Detachment, 3d Aviation Instruction Center at observer of Secretary of War Stimson in a flight over
Issoudun, serving under Maj Carl A. Spaatz, whose Leningrad. On his return to Washington to report
own fame lay ahead in World War II. For many on German war damage of the Russian city, his plane
months Spaatz refused to allow him to become a was found downed in the Pacific, but he survived a
combat pilot because he needed him on the staff. long ordeal on a raft and was eventually rescued.
However, in March 1918, Captain Rickenbacker After World War II, Rickenbacker returned to
prevailed in his repeated requests and he was auto racing and became president of the Indianapolis
assigned to the 1st Pursuit Group’s 94th Aero Speedway. He moved back into aviation and built up
Squadron, the famed “Hat-in-the-Ring” Squadron, Eastern Air Lines into one of the commercial giants.
as a pilot under Maj Raoul Lufbery. Rickenbacker On the last day of 1963, Captain Eddie retired as
was in action the next month, flying his Nieuport Eastern’s Board Chairman, more than 40 years after
fighter over the lines against the enemy on 25 April, his glory days over France.

16
 Lt Frank Luke Jr.

• Leading US ace at the time of his death on 29 September

1918 and second only to Rickenbacker among US World
War I aces.
• Awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions on 29
September 1918.

Military Cemetery at Romagne, France, for perma-

F
rank Luke, nicknamed “The Arizona Balloon
Buster,” was born in Phoenix, Arizona. He nent burial.
enlisted in the US Army in September 1917, For his last flight on 29 September, Luke was
learned to fly, and arrived on the front in France in awarded the Medal of Honor for shooting down
July 1918 where he was assigned to the 27th Aero three enemy balloons while under heavy fire both
Squadron. His exceptional bravery earned for him a from the ground and from eight pursuing enemy air-
reputation for being “wild and reckless” but his fel- planes, and for strafing enemy troops, killing six of
low pilots soon realized that he possessed that certain
them. The citation on Luke’s Medal of Honor reads,
element which distinguished a great fighter pilot
“After having previously destroyed a number of
from the others—complete fearlessness.
In September 1918 Luke began a personal cam- enemy aircraft within 17 days he voluntarily started
paign against German observation balloons and air- on a patrol after German observation balloons.
planes. During a seven-day period, 12–18 Though pursued by 8 German planes which were
September, two days of which he did not fly, he protecting the enemy balloon line, he unhesitatingly
scored 13 confirmed victories, including an amazing attacked and shot down in flames 3 German bal-
five victories (two balloons and three airplanes) on loons, being himself under heavy fire from ground
the last day. At sunset on 29 September 1918, Luke batteries and the hostile planes. Severely wounded,
took off from an advance aerodrome at Verdun to he descended to within 50 meters of the ground, and
attack balloons in the area of Dun-sur-Meuse. He flying at this low altitude near the town of Murvaux
never returned. opened fire upon enemy troops, killing 6 and
Following the Armistice, US troops found Luke’s
wounding as many more. Forced to make a landing
grave in the cemetery of the small village of
and surrounded on all sides by the enemy, who called
Murvaux, France. According to the local French res-
idents, Luke had been shot in the chest by ground upon him to surrender, he drew his automatic pistol
fire while circling Murvaux at low altitude, had and defended himself gallantly until he fell dead from
landed his Spad, crawled from it in the gathering a wound in the chest.”
dusk, and had died while firing his service automatic At the time of his death, Luke was the leading ace
at German soldiers who were searching for him along of the US Air Service with 18 confirmed victories,
a creek bank. His remains were removed to the US (14 balloons and 4 airplanes).

17
 Maj Gen Mason M. Patrick

• Appointed commander of the Air Service in 1918 and

again in 1921 by his West Point roommate, Gen John J.
“Black Jack” Pershing.
• Qualified as the world’s oldest Junior Military Aviator by
earning his wings at the age of 50.
• In 1925, General Patrick was a key instigator urging
Congress to create an Air Corps with relations to the
Army analogous to that which existed between the Navy
and Marine Corps.
• After seeing the US Army Air Corps founded in July
1926, he retired in December 1927 with nearly 40 years
of service to the country.

arm. After the Armistice, Patrick returned to the

M
ason M. Patrick was the first real head of
American aviation. Patrick entered West Corps of Engineers, but in late 1921 he was recalled
Point in September 1882 and upon gradua- to the Air Service. His predecessor, Charles
tion stood second in a class of 77. Commissioned a sec- Menoher, could not get along with the most famous
ond lieutenant of engineers, his first duty was with the airman of the day, Brig Gen William “Billy” Mitchell,
Engineer Battalion at Willets Point, New York. After a and in the resulting power struggle, Menoher lost.
couple of instructor tours at West Point, he sailed for
Because Patrick had managed the difficult airman
Cuba where he commanded the 2d Battalion of
during the war, he was given the opportunity to do
Engineers and then as Chief Engineer in the Army of
Cuban Occupation until 1909. He served as com- so again. For the next six years Patrick remained at
mander, Engineering School at Washington Barracks the helm, although Mitchell left the service in 1926.
until sent to Europe in 1917. In France, he was in General Patrick retired on 12 December 1927.
charge of engineer instruction for the American While heading the young Air Service, Patrick
Expeditionary Forces. focused on developing a doctrine that explicitly
Although an Army engineer for 30 years, in 1918 supported the need for autonomy. Patrick knew
General Pershing, Patrick’s West Point classmate, the value of airpower, but more importantly, he
appointed him as commander of the Air Service in grasped the limitations and capabilities of airpower
France. In Pershing’s words, there were many fine
at that point in time. Patrick built an airpower
people in the air arm, but they were “running
around in circles,” he wanted Patrick to make them agenda that included commercial aviation develop-
go straight. Although knowing virtually nothing ment, Air Service officer professionalization, the
about aviation at that point, Patrick was an excellent development of airpower doctrine, and legislative
organizer and administrator. By the end of the war, initiatives that would set the Air Service on the
the Air Service was an efficient and well run combat path to independence.

18
 Lt Gen Frank M. “Andy” Andrews

• First commander of General Headquarters (GHQ) Air Force, appointed by

Chief of Staff Gen Douglas MacArthur in 1935.
• Appointed by General Marshall as assistant chief of Staff for Training and
Operations (G-3)—the first airman to ever hold a position this high on
the Army General Staff.
• Commanding General of US Middle East Forces in 1942.
• Commanding General of all US Forces in newly formed European theater
of Operations preceding Gen Dwight D. Eisenhower.
• On 2 May 1943, the B-24 carrying General Andrews crashed against a
fog-shrouded promontory while landing at Meeks Field near Keflavik,
Iceland.

Air Force, Andrews was in a position to translate

F
rank Andrews was one of the great personali-
ties in Air Force history. He was entrusted with doctrine into strategy and tactics. He ordered all
major commands in the Army at a time when pilots in GHQ to become instrument rated.
airman were often at odds with their Army superiors. Instrument flying enlarged mobility as did ever-
Andrews graduated from West Point in 1906 and extending aircraft range, altitude, and speed. In
served his first 11 years as a Cavalry officer in the order to take advantage of long-range doctrine,
Philippines, Hawaii, and in the United States. In Andrews oversaw the development of the first truly
1917, he was transferred to the Signal Corps for duty long-range bomber, the B-17 Flying Fortress.
with the Aviation Division and learned to fly in In August of 1939, Andrews was named assistant
France during World War I. Chief of Staff for Training and Operations under
From August 1920 to February 1923, Andrews Gen George C. Marshall, the first airman to hold this
commanded the US Army Air Service’s European air level of position. In September 1941, he was placed
force of 13 DH-4s under his highly popular father- in command of the Caribbean Defense Command
in-law, Gen Henry Allen. While Andrews was attend-
and the Panama Canal Department—the first unified
ing the Air Corps Tactical School and the Command
command. He impressed everyone with his adminis-
and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth,
tration of the command and the preparations for war
Kansas, Billy Mitchell was fighting his battles in
that Andrews had conducted with minimal
Washington. Because of this absence, Andrews was
never considered one of “Mitchell’s Boys.” resources. In early 1943, General Marshall
On 1 March 1935 Andrews became the first com- announced the formation of a European theater of
mander of GHQ Air Force at Langley Field, Virginia. operations. General Andrews was selected to com-
GHQ Air Force was created to provide centralized mand it. In the three short months that Andrews
command and control of long-range bombardment commanded in Europe, he built up a decimated
and observation aircraft not supporting friendly Eighth Air Force and laid the foundation for the
ground forces. He handpicked his staff from the buildup that would become Operation Overlord.
brightest minds in the Air Service, among them General Andrews was killed on 2 May 1943 when
Harvey Burwell, Follett Bradley, George C. Kenney, his B-24 crashed during a fog-shrouded landing near
and Joseph T. McNarney. As commander of GHQ Keflavik, Iceland.

19
World War II

1941–45
 The Doolittle Raid on Tokyo (18 April 1942)

range of Tokyo they would go ahead and bomb

Tokyo, even though they would run out of
gasoline shortly thereafter. That was the worst
possible scenario. If the aircraft were not in
range of Tokyo, they would go back to Midway.
If neither Tokyo nor Midway were in range, the
B-25s would be pushed overboard so the decks
could be cleared for the use of the carrier’s own
aircraft.
On the morning of 18 April 1942, Japanese
patrol boats sighted the task force. The boats
were quickly destroyed, but they could have
transmitted a position report. It was eight hours
before scheduled takeoff, an additional four
Aviation pioneer, Gen James H. “Jimmy” Doolittle.
hundred miles to the target. Gas reserves would
be dangerously low, but they were spotted and

N
avy Capt Francis S. Low conceived the they would have to go.
idea of flying Army medium bombers The program went almost according to plan.
off a Navy carrier and attacking Japan. The B-25s were to bomb the targets, turn in a
The B-25 was selected because it was small; had general southerly direction, get out to sea as
sufficient range to carry two thousand-pound quickly as possible, and after being out of sight
bombs, two thousand miles; and because it took of land, turn and take a westerly course to
off and handled very well. General Arnold China.
selected Lt Col James H. “Jimmy” Doolittle to The bombers came in on the deck and pulled
lead the attack. According to Arnold, “First I up to about fifteen hundred feet to bomb and to
found out what B-25 unit had the most experi- make sure they were not hit by the fragments of
ence and then went to that crew, that organiza- friendly bombs. According to Doolittle, the
tion and called for volunteers and the entire feeling was “Get the job done and get the heck
group, including the group commander, volun- out of there.” The actual damage done by the
teered.” raid was minimal. There were 16 B-25s each
The training was hard, no one had ever taken carrying one ton of bombs. In later raids, Gen
off a fully loaded B-25 in less than five hundred Curtis E. LeMay with his Twentieth Air Force,
feet. First they had to prove it could be done,
then they had to train the people to do it.
Before they were through, the bombers would
lift off in only 287 feet. The crews proved they
were good and so were their airplanes.
The raid was carefully planned, nothing was
left to chance. Because the attack would be low-
level, Norden bombsights were replaced by a
twenty-cent improvisation to prevent the secret
devices from falling into enemy hands. Doolittle
then considered what to do if the Japanese spot-
ted the task force. If intercepted by Japanese
surface ships or aircraft, the aircraft would
Doolittle’s B-25 takes off from the carrier Hornet en route to
immediately leave the decks. If they were within Tokyo.

23
sent out five hundred planes on a mission, each against them. On 14 October 1942, Hallmark,
carrying 10 tons of bombs. Farrow, and Spatz were advised they were to be
Reaching a safe haven after the raid wasn’t executed the next day. At 4:30 P.M. on 15
easy, and because they had to take off much October 1942, the three Americans were
sooner than planned, they were very low on brought by truck to Public Cemetery No. 1
fuel. One crew went to outside Shanghai. In accor-
Vladivostok, the other 15 dance with proper ceremonial
crews proceeded until they got procedures of the Japanese
to the coast of China. When military, they were then shot.
they reached China, two of the The other five men remained
Mitchell Bombers were so low in military confinement on a
on fuel that they landed in the starvation diet, their health
surf along side the beach. rapidly deteriorating. In April
Two people were drowned, 1943 they were moved to
eight of them got ashore. The Nanking and on 1 December
weather was quite bad, so most The crew of Farrow’s plane after being 1943, Meder died. The other
of the aircraft flew on until captured. In front, L to R, were Cpl Jacob four men began to receive
they felt they were as close to DeShazer and Sgt Harold A. Spatz; in slight improvement in their
rear, L to R, Lt William G. Farrow, Lt
their final destination as possi- Robert L. Hite, and Lt George Barr. treatment and by sheer deter-
ble. Having been on dead reck- Farrow and Spatz were two of those exe- mination and the comfort they
oning for quite awhile, most cuted on 15 October 1942. received from a lone copy of
crews were off target when the Bible, they survived to
they jumped. August 1945 when they were
On 15 August 1942 it was freed. The four Japanese offi-
learned from the Swiss cers tried for their war crimes
Consulate General in Shanghai against the eight Tokyo Raiders
that eight American flyers were were found guilty. Three were
prisoners of the Japanese. After sentenced to hard labor for five
the war, the facts were uncov- years and the fourth to a nine-
ered in a War Crimes Trial held year sentence.
at Shanghai that opened in Eighty crew members flew
February 1946 to try four in the Doolittle Raid, 64
Japanese officers for mistreat- Lt Hite, blindfolded by his captors, is led returned to fight again. They
ment of the eight prisoners of from a Japanese transport plane after he were part of a team recognized
and the other seven flyers were flown
war (POW) of the Tokyo Raid. from Shanghai to Tokyo. After about 45 for its professionalism and
Two of the original 10 men, days in Japan all eight were taken back to heroism, a rich heritage remem-
Dieter and Fitzmaurice, died China by ship and imprisoned in bered by a new generation of
Shanghai.
when their B-25 ditched off airmen. When the news of the
the coast of China. The other raid was released, American
eight, Hallmark, Meder, morale zoomed from the
Nielsen, Lt William G. Farrow, Lt Robert L. depths to which it had plunged following
Hite, Lt George Barr, Sgt Harold A. Spatz, and Japan’s successes. It also caused the Japanese to
Cpl Jacob DeShazer were captured. In addition transfer back to the home islands fighter units
to being tortured, they contracted dysentery that could have been used against the Allies. In
and beriberi as a result of the deplorable condi- comparison to the B-29 attacks against Japan
tions under which they were confined. On 28 two years later, the Tokyo Raid was a token
August 1942, Hallmark, Farrow, and Spatz effort. However, it was an example of brilliant
were given a “trial” by Japanese officers, tactics and achieved a moral victory for the
although they were never told the charges nation.

24
 Kasserine Pass (February 1943)

Kasserine Pass illustrated the

importance of gaining air supe-
riority before undertaking a
land battle and the need for cen-
tralized control of air assets.

they were forced to retire from action before the

battle in Kasserine Pass. Desperate conditions
forced General Doolittle to take centralized
control of all Twelfth Air Force assets. Bad
weather, an old nemesis to effective air support,
prevented full application of theater airpower,
but Doolittle sent medium and heavy bombers
In 1943, Gen Carl A. Spaatz commanded all to help turn the tide. In the last days as Rommel
Allied air forces in Africa. pulled back, fighters and bombers hit trucks and
tanks, giving a meaningful blow to the enemy

T
he Battle for Kasserine in central Tunisia,
armor.
February 1943, was the first serious
The importance of Kasserine transcended the
encounter between Germans and
actual combat, losses or victories. Allied air and
American-led armor forces in World War II. It
ground leaders, vowing never to be pushed
has been generally regarded as a military embar-
around by the Germans in the future, recog-
rassment to Gen Dwight D. Eisenhower, com-
nized the importance of the long-held doctrinal
mander of Allied forces in northwest Africa. It
point of gaining air superiority before undertak-
laid bare the green, ill-equipped condition of
ing land battle. Leaders in Africa also recog-
American air and ground warriors. Americans
nized another historically articulated point of
lost thousands (killed, missing, or captured),
combat organization, that airmen needed to
especially in the first actions in Faid Pass and
centrally command the air aspect of modern
Sidi-bou-Zid. American “can-do-ism” could
mobile warfare. This was suggested by the
not replace proper preparation when tangling
recent reformation of the US Army combat
with a tough enemy. One of the positive results
capabilities into two equal forces: Army Ground
was that airmen gained greater equality and
Forces and Army Air Forces (AAF).
effective centralized control of air assets as a
result of Kasserine battle analysis.
Interestingly, the last of the three phases, this
in Kasserine Pass proper, was a victory over the
forces of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel. He was
forced to pull back his troops, and disappointed,
left the African theater, never to return.
American air units––the 33d Fighter Group
for one––led by Col William W. “Spike”
Momyer (later general), got so worn out in the
futile attempt to support the ground forces and US troops inspecting German Tiger tanks destroyed by Allied air-
try to gain even a modicum of air superiority, craft in Tunisia.

25
 Battle of the Bismarck Sea (1943)

new tactic. On 3 March as soon as the Japanese

came under the radius of American airpower,
the convoy was attacked relentlessly. The first
day’s attack (by high altitude B-17s) sank two
transports and damaged a third. Two destroyers
were tasked with rescuing the survivors and
making a high speed run to New Guinea to
deposit them. This they did, and returned to the
plodding convoy before dawn the next day.
Coming within range of American and
Australian medium bombers, like the B-25
Mitchell Bomber, proved to be a disaster for the
The B-25 Mitchell Bomber employed skip-bombing tech- Japanese on 4 March 1943. The convoy was
niques in the battle of the Bismarck Sea. savaged by skip-bombing and strafing. By noon,
all six remaining transports and four of the
destroyers were sinking or sunk. The remaining

A
t the same time the Guadalcanal cam-
four destroyers recovered what few survivors
paign was raging, an equally bitter series
they could and fled north to Rabaul. After this,
of battles was occurring on the island of
the Japanese would never again attempt to run
New Guinea. In early March, a Japanese convoy
slow transports into the face of American air-
set out from Rabaul to land much-needed rein-
power.
forcements in the Buna-Gona area of New
The results of the attack on the convoy in the
Guinea. It was composed of eight transports,
Bismarck Sea were astounding. The victory
escorted by eight destroyers, and screened by an
changed the direction of the war in the region,
inadequate light combat air patrol.
preventing what could have been a series of
If the reinforcements were permitted to land,
bloody battles of attrition in Southwest New
the Japanese would have an almost impenetrable
Guinea.
stronghold in New Guinea. It seemed the war in
the Pacific theater hinged on the United States
stopping this buildup. General MacArthur,
Southwest Pacific Area Commander, needed a
strategy to stop the convoy and a service to do
it. MacArthur could not depend on ground or
surface-naval forces because they had been
wiped out by previous Japanese attacks so he
turned to the Air Force. Under the guidance of
Gen George C. Kenney, Fifth Air Force
Commander, air units were organized and pre-
pared to engage the convoy.
Unbeknownst to the Japanese, the American
air force had been experimenting with a new
aerial tactic called skip-bombing, wherein the
attacking airplane drops a bomb with a long-
delay fuse close to the surface and lets it skip
into the side of the target ship. This was the first This small Japanese ship is about to be sunk by the 500-lb
occasion in which the Americans would use this bomb in the picture.

26
 Ploesti Raid (August 1943)

19 July 1943, only 11 days prior to the mission

date.
On 1 August, 165 B-24s took off to bomb
Ploesti. The 376th Bomb Group, commanded by
Col Keith Compton, led the mission. The lead
navigator was in another plane that ditched into
the Mediterranean Sea several hours after launch-
ing. Colonel Compton misidentified the initial
point, a ground feature used to coordinate the
The B-24 Liberator could carry 5,000 pounds of bombs
2,300 miles.
attack, and led his group on a route 30 miles
south of Ploesti. Three of the five groups were

T
he oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania, pro- behind schedule and Compton’s error eroded
vided Germany with 35 percent of its oil. any remaining attack coordination.
Air planners figured it would take many
high-level attacks by huge fleets of heavy The Ploesti raids illustrated the
bombers to destroy the refineries. Col Jacob E. danger of low-level strategic bomb-
Smart, a member of Arnold’s Advisory Council,
believed a low-level attack might prove success- ing but also the courage and
ful. Smart had seen A-20s in training hit moving determination of US aircrews.
targets while flying low and fast. This led him to
conclude that aircraft accuracy would allow a One hundred sixty-four B-24 Liberators
low-level attack of Ploesti. Smart believed a low- reached Ploesti and attacked at levels often
level attack might mitigate the extensive air lower than the refineries’ towers. Bombers fly-
defenses. Not everyone held this opinion. Col ing through the explosions of oil tanks were
Richard Hughes, an AAF target expert, assaulted by merciless flak trains and machine
protested that Allied pilots did not have the nec- gun fire. B-24 gunners dueled with gunners in
essary skills or experience to tackle such a com- towers and church steeples. Ploesti was also
plex mission. However, with President defended by 120 German and two hundred
Roosevelt and General Arnold’s backing, the Romanian fighter aircraft. The 98th Bomb
mission plans were built. Group, led by Col John Kane, was the only one
The plan called for a 2,700-mile mission con- to fly its assigned course and arrive on schedule.
ducted by more than three hundred bombers to The courage and determination of the aircrews
attack seven refineries. The mission was flown is the sole reason the raid had any success.
by IX Bomber Command whose training Flying so low that aircraft had to ascend to
included bombing a full-scale outline of the avoid smokestacks 210 feet high, the bombers
Ploesti complex in the Libyan desert. The oper- took high losses. Seventy-three B-24s were lost
ation included the in the raid and another 55 suffered major dam-
44th, 93d, 98th, age. Nearly five hundred aircrew were killed or
376th, and 389th wounded and more than one hundred became
Bomb Groups. Be- prisoners of war. Navigation and timing prob-
cause of other oper- lems prevented a coordinated attack. Despite
ational require- this, aircrews managed to destroy 60 percent of
ments the units the complex’s output. Five airmen, including
could not focus Colonel Kane, received the Medal of Honor for
Low-level B-24 Liberators over their training on their bravery during the raid—the most of any
Ploesti.
Ploesti until after single engagement in World War II.

27
 The Regensburg/Schweinfurt Raids (1943)

coastal airfields to draw Luftwaffe fighters from

the 1st Bomb Wing. This would allow the 1st to
attack Schweinfurt relatively unmolested.
On 17 August 1943, 139 B-17s, with LeMay
in the lead, crossed the Dutch coast headed for
southeast Germany. The 4th Bomb Wing lost
17 aircraft en route to Regensburg but the
remaining 122 bombers conducted a very accu-
rate mission from less than 20,000 feet. As the
4th left Regensburg, the 1st Bomb Wing was
Bomber formations were devised to maximize the number of
still over the North Sea, five hours behind
defensive guns brought to bear against enemy fighters.
schedule—the timing plan was awry.
The Luftwaffe expected the 4th Bomb Wing
to return to England and massed their fighters

T
he growing strength of German fighter in unprecedented numbers. The 1st Bomb
operations in Europe was a great concern Wing flew into this mass of three hundred
to the Allies in 1943. On 10 June 1943
enemy fighters over Germany. By the time the
the combined Chiefs of Staff issued the directive
1st reached the Schweinfurt initial point, 24 B-
known as “Pointblank.” This directive placed
17s were lost leaving 196 available for bombing.
German fighter strength as the top strategic pri-
The four ball-bearing plants at Schweinfurt
ority. In order to hurt the German’s fighter
were tough targets to find under ideal circum-
operation, Colonel Hughes, an Allied air plan-
stances. However, the delay in launching caused
ner, decided to attack production facilities at
Regensburg and Schweinfurt. A large percent- an approach heading change to avoid flying into
age of Germany’s fighters were produced in a setting sun. This change combined with the
Regensburg in southeast Germany. An equally Germans’ artificial fog generators made the task
critical target was Schweinfurt, a major ball- nearly impossible. The 10 bomb groups scat-
bearing production center. tered their bombs all over the town while the
The plan was for General LeMay’s 4th Bomb Luftwaffe refueled and rearmed their aircraft.
Wing to fly to Regensburg, bomb the The return trip for the 1st Bomb Wing was
Messerschmitt plant, then fly across the tougher than the trip into Germany.
Mediterranean and land in North Africa. The The Regensburg/Schweinfurt raids cost the
arrival of the new B-17F with greater range Allies 60 B-17s, 16 percent of the dispatched
made this possible. The Luftwaffe was expected force. General Arnold reported the operation a
to meet the attack early, then land and refuel for success. In terms of lost production, the attack
the attack on the bombers as they headed back on Regensburg probably accounted for one
to England. The Allied plan, however, called for thousand lost Me-109s or about three weeks of
the 1st Bomb Wing to follow the 4th by only 15 total fighter production. At Schweinfurt, the
minutes along the same flight path before attack proved to have little if any effect. Three of
breaking off to bomb Schweinfurt. By the time the five factories were severely damaged but few
the Germans figured out that the 4th Bomb of the machine tools that produced ball bearings
Wing was not returning and that the 1st was were destroyed. “The Raid” showed how diffi-
heading for Schweinfurt, they would be on the cult and costly it was to conduct air warfare.
ground short of both fuel and ammunition. The However, “The Raid” foretold the story of the
plan called for the biggest aerial diversion ever day when the Luftwaffe would not be able to
attempted with three B-26 groups raiding stop Allied bombing.

28
 “The Big Week” (February 1944)

Big Week saw some of the largest and most

ferocious air battles in history. By the end of the
week, US aircrews were exhausted but the air-
war had been transformed. United States losses
were heavy: 226 bombers were lost along with
28 fighters and more than twenty-five hundred
air crewmen were killed, seriously wounded, or
captured. But German losses were much worse.
The bombs did severe damage to the German
aircraft industry and the US fighters had devas-
tated the Luftwaffe. During the month of
February, the Luftwaffe lost 33 percent of its
daylight fighters and 20 percent of its fighter
pilots, including some of its leading aces. The
P-47s were the key to victory during “The Big Week” air battles.
German tactic of attacking the US bombers and
ignoring the US fighters had led to heavy US
bomber losses but had left the US fighters free

A
fter the heavy losses of the Regensburg/
Schweinfurt raids in August of 1943, to annihilate the German fighters.
General Spaatz, commanding the US
Strategic Air Forces in Europe decided not to
attempt daylight raids deep into Germany until
he had assembled an adequate force of long- During a week of ferocious air
range fighters that could escort the heavy battles, US planes destroyed 33%
bombers to their targets. By February 1944, a
of the Luftwaffe’s fighter planes
sizeable number of long-range P-47 “Thunder-
bolts” were available and P-51 “Mustangs” were and killed 20% of its fighter
starting to arrive. Spaatz knew that his force was pilots.
ready to get back to its main task: destroying the
Luftwaffe.
The leaders wanted an extended period of
good weather over Germany (a rare event in the After Big Week, the US Strategic Air Force
fall and winter) so that they could launch a series had turned the corner. In a few months, the
of heavy raids. On 20 February, the cloud cover United States would gain air superiority over all
finally broke and Spaatz launched over one thou- of Europe. The Germans would later change
sand heavy bombers, escorted by more than eight their tactics, and bring in jet fighters, but after
hundred fighters. Between 20 and 25 February, Big Week, their efforts were too little and too
US bombers made almost four thousand sorties late. There was another year of hard fighting
and dropped 19,000 tons of bombs on key ahead in Europe, but once the results of Big
German aircraft and ball-bearing factories. In Week became clear, the outcome of the war was
addition to Regensburg and Schweinfurt, the no longer in doubt.
B-17s and B-24s attacked Leipzig, Stuttgart,
Brunswick, Oschersleben, and Gotha. These
attacks became known as “The Big Week.”

29
 Operation Overlord (1944)

allowed Allied trucks, tanks, and guns to move

in broad daylight without interference. In plan-
ning Overlord, a German counterattack was
projected for D day plus 14. However, it never
occurred because air interdiction made enemy
troop movement or massing impossible.
Nevertheless, the Allied troops were engaged in
a stalemate against the German defensive posi-
tions—a breakout was needed.
To breakout from Normandy, Eisenhower
P-38 Lightnings were assigned to provide air cover over the invasion suggested carpet bombing. One operation, code
fleet to prevent confusion for Allied gunners. named Cobra, began on 19 July 1944. The
bombing operation planned to saturate a rec-

O
n 6 June 1944 the Allies invaded occu- tangle three miles long and one and one-half
pied Europe. Code named Operation miles wide and destroy the Panzer Lehr division.
Overlord, the assault hit five beaches Gen Omar N. Bradley wanted the bombard-
stretched along 50 miles of French coastline. ment to occur only eight hundred yards in front
The largest amphibious assault ever, it required his troops. Eighth Air Force recommended a
massive air support for success. By the day’s separation of three thousand yards. Further-
end, the IX Troop Carrier Command dropped more, Bradley wanted the bombers to fly paral-
13,000 paratroopers, 4,400 glidermen, and lel to the road, through the three-mile length of
thousands of dummy parachutists on France. the rectangle. Gen Hoyt S. Vandenberg advised
The IX Bomber Command attacked the against this because it would take hours to fly
defenses at Utah beach. Many bombers were fifteen hundred aircraft through a zone only one
assigned to bomb the beaches prior to troops and one-half miles wide. Bradley agreed. On 25
landing; the bomb craters would serve as ready- July 1944, Cobra was launched. As predicted,
made foxholes. Heavy bombers were used to with only an eight hundred yard buffer, short
destroy the towns surrounding Normandy to bombs fell on the 30th Infantry Division killing
create roadblocks and prevent resupply. or wounding five hundred soldiers including Lt
To hold down friendly-fire casualties, broad Gen Leslie J. McNair. Despite these setbacks,
white strips were painted around the wings and the carpet bombing was successful. When the
fuselage of all aircraft. As a further precaution, VII Corps attacked it met only sparse resistance.
Gen William Kepner assigned the P-38 By 31 July, American troops were on the
Lightning units to fly support over the fleet. advance.
The Germans had no aircraft that resembled the
twin-fuselage of the P-38. The plan was nearly
flawless, the Navy only shot down two American
aircraft, both P-51s.
The Allies operated with air dominance over
Normandy. The two strategic air forces had
thirty-five hundred heavies and the tactical units
operated fifteen hundred mediums and fifty-five
hundred fighters. By comparison, the Luftwaffe
had only 319 aircraft in all of France. Hitler
refused to divert fighters to Normandy because
he felt the attack was a feint. Air superiority Troops deploy on Normandy’s beaches.

30
 Bombing Tokyo (9–10 March 1945)

night at low altitude took advantage of Japanese

weakness in night-fighters and low-altitude air
defenses. The low-altitude individual bombing
runs also enabled the B-29s to carry less fuel
and hence more bombs. Since LeMay expected
little enemy fighter opposition, he removed the
gunners, guns, and ammunition from the B-29s
and replaced them with still more bombs. The
change in tactics doubled the bomb-load of
The B-29 was the best bomber of the war and the main each B-29 and incendiary bombs were much
weapon in the strategic bombing of Japan. more effective against the highly flammable
Japanese city than high-explosive bombs.

T
he Doolittle raid on Tokyo had done a
lot for US morale, but it was not a viable
method of conducting sustained strategic The Japanese underestimated air-
bombing of Japan. To bring the full weight of power and conceded air superior-
airpower to bear on Japan, the United States
built bombers of unprecedented range (the B-
ity over Japan to the United States
29s) and captured islands from which B-29s in order to concentrate their forces
could reach Japan. In November 1944, US against a surface invasion.
bombers finally returned to Tokyo in the form
of B-29s flying out of Saipan.
The Japanese tried to defend against the B- The results were stunning. Before 9 March
29s but they grossly underestimated the power 1945, the B-29s had done very little damage to
of strategic bombing. They chose to concede air the Japanese war effort, but on that night they
superiority over Japan to the United States in burned out 16 square miles of Tokyo and killed
order to use their main air strength to oppose more than 80,000 Japanese in the most devas-
Allied surface forces. This disastrous miscalcula- tating air raid ever. Subsequent firebombing
tion was partly due to the fact that Japanese air devastated more than 60 Japanese cities, left
forces were tightly controlled by army and navy millions of Japanese homeless, and radically
leaders who had a weak understanding of air- reduced Japan’s military production.
power.
Limited Japanese defenses, however, did not
guarantee successful US bombing. The B-29
was the best bomber of World War II, but it did
not have the ability to hit precision targets
through clouds. The consistently bad weather
over Japan made sustained precision bombing
of Japanese factories impossible. On the night of
9 March 1945, General LeMay, commanding
B-29 operations against Japan, ordered a radical
change in tactics. On this raid the B-29s did not
execute their normal daylight, high-altitude, for-
mation attack with high-explosives but instead,
they hit Tokyo with incendiary bombs, at night, Gen LeMay ordered a radical change in
from low altitude, flying individually. Flying at tactics.

31
 The Hiroshima and Nagasaki Bombings
(August 1945)

At approximately 2:00 A.M. on the morning

of 6 August, the Enola Gay, carrying an atomic
bomb, started on the long flight from Tinian
Island. The Enola Gay was one of 15 B-29s
modified specifically for the highly secret atomic
bomb missions. These airplanes were outfitted
with new engines and propellers and faster-
acting pneumatic bomb bay doors. Two obser-
vation planes carrying cameras and scientific
instruments followed behind her. After 6:00
The modified B-29, Enola Gay. A.M., the bomb was fully armed on board the
Enola Gay. Col Paul W. Tibbets Jr., pilot of the
Enola Gay, announced to the crew that the

P
resident Truman and the armed forces
had three strategic options for inducing plane was carrying the world’s first atomic
the Japanese surrender: continue the fire- bomb. The trip to Japan was smooth. At about
bombing and blockade, invasion, or use the 7:00 A.M., the Japanese radar net detected air-
atomic bomb. Truman was aware that the first craft heading toward Japan, and they broadcast
two options would probably not be very effec- the alert throughout the Hiroshima area. Soon
tive methods to induce the Japanese to surren- afterward when an American weather plane cir-
der. The Battle for Okinawa caused 48,000 cled over the city, the people went back to their
American casualties when the Japanese refused daily work thinking the danger had passed. At
to surrender. So it was the right time to res- 8:00 A.M. the Japanese detected two B-29’s
olutely make a decision. Gradually, US authori- heading toward Hiroshima. The radio stations
ties made preparations for the decision to use quickly broadcast a warning for the people to
the bomb, as it was close to production. The take shelter, but many did not follow the advice.
Interim Committee on S-1 suggested to the They thought that it was the same as the first
president that the bomb should be used directly time. At 8:09 A.M., the crew of the Enola Gay at
against Japan, because a demonstration explo-
26,000 feet could see the city appear below; it
sion was not thought to be a strong enough
was time to drop the bomb. Just then, they
representation of the power that the bomb held.
received a message indicating that the weather
Several US military leaders went with the presi-
was good over Hiroshima. The bomb was
dent to the Big Three meeting at Potsdam in
July, and discussions continued there. It was released at 8:16 A.M. A terrible, strong, and
determined then that the bomb should be used. unimaginable explosion occurred near the cen-
On 25 July Truman prepared the order for use tral section of the city. The crew of the Enola
of the first atomic bomb as soon after 3 August Gay saw a column of smoke rising fast and
as weather permitted on one of the four target intense fires springing up. The astonishing
cities. The Potsdam Proclamation was issued result of the first atomic strike: it killed between
during the Potsdam meeting by the heads of 70,000 and 80,000 people, injured another
government of the United States, Britain, and 70,000, and burned almost 4.4 square miles.
China. It warned of “utter devastation of the On 9 August, Nagasaki was bombed by a B-29
Japanese homeland” unless Japan surrendered named Bock’s Car. The Japanese uncondition-
unconditionally. ally surrendered on 14 August 1945.

32
 General of the Army Henry H. “Hap” Arnold

• Taught to fly by Orville and Wilbur Wright.

• A five-star general and two-time winner of the Mackay Trophy for
aeronautical achievement.
• In 1934, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for
demonstrating the range of strategic airpower by leading a flight
of B-10 bombers from Washington, D.C., to Alaska.
• Named Chief of the Army Air Corps in 1938. During World War
II, he became the first Air Chief to sit as an equal member on the
Joint Chiefs of Staff.
• He was the commanding general of the Army Air Forces (AAF)
during World War II.

After Armistice Day, he slowly began his steady rise

H
enry H. Arnold was one of the truly great
men in American airpower. Taught to fly by in rank and responsibility. He commanded wings and
the Wright brothers, he rose steadily in rank bases, became a protégé of Billy Mitchell, twice won
and responsibility throughout the ’20s and ’30s and the Mackay Trophy for aeronautical achievement, was
became the commanding general of the Army Air awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for leading a
Forces during World War II. In 1944 he was pro- flight of B-10 bombers to Alaska to display the range
moted to five-star rank, but his health was very poor, of strategic airpower, and was named assistant to the
he suffered several heart attacks during the war, and chief of the Air Corps in 1935. When Oscar Westover
retired less than a year after Japan surrendered. was killed in a plane crash in 1938, Arnold succeeded
Graduating from West Point in 1907, Arnold him as chief. In this position he was instrumental in lay-
had hoped to join the cavalry. However, his cadet ing the groundwork for the massive industrial expan-
performance was so dismal he was relegated to the sion the war would require. During the war he sat as an
infantry. After a tour in the Philippines, he reap- equal member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and was
plied to the cavalry, but again was refused. Largely responsible for guiding the air strategy of the various
out of a desire to escape from the infantry, Arnold theaters. Belying his nickname “Hap” (short for
then applied for the Signal Corps and became one “happy”), Arnold was a difficult taskmaster. He drove
of America’s first military pilots. Aviation was himself so hard during the war that he suffered several
extremely dangerous in those early days, and after heart attacks and he pushed his subordinates just as
several crashes and near crashes, Arnold elected to hard. This did not endear him to everyone in the
ground himself. After more than three years of desk USAAF, but it was just what was needed to run the
work, he overcame his fears and returned to flying. largest air force during the largest war in the history of
Because of his relatively extensive experience in avi- the world. His drive, vision, and sense of initiative were
ation, and much to his chagrin, he was forced to indispensable in leading the air arm during the war and
remain in Washington on the Air Service staff dur- setting the stage for the creation of the US Air Force
ing World War I. shortly after the war.

33
 Lt Gen Claire L. Chennault

• In the 1930s, he was the Air Corps Tactical

School’s most famous proponent of pursuit tac-
tics at a time when strategic bombardment was
premier.
• Forced out of the Air Corps in 1937 because of
bronchitis, he went to China to advise Chiang Kai-
shek on building an air force.
• Commanded the American Volunteer Group, bet-
ter known as the “Flying Tigers.”
• Under his leadership the Flying Tigers overcame
severe operational handicaps and achieved a two-
to-one kill ratio over the Japanese.

and Chennault was promoted to brigadier general

C
laire L. Chennault’s reputation as leader of
the Flying Tigers has been immortalized in and made its commander. Chennault was an out-
movies and novels, making him one of standing tactician, whose determination in the face
America’s more famous airmen. Chennault arrived at of overwhelming supply and equipment difficulties
the Air Corps Tactical School (ACTS) in 1930 with kept the Fourteenth Air Force in the field, but his
a reputation as a premier pursuit pilot. His ideas con- strategic ideas were limited to his tactical mindset.
cerning pursuit employment evolved from much Never on good terms with his Air Corps colleagues,
thought and practical experience. But Air Corps doc- Chennault exacerbated this relationship with his con-
trine was making a decisive shift in favor of bom- stant complaints and his tendency to circumvent the
bardment, and Chennault’s attempts to stem that chain of command by dealing directly with Chiang
tide were futile. Chennault’s abrasive personality and President Roosevelt. Although knowing how
negated his arguments, and his colleagues found it this infuriated his superiors, Chennault persisted. As
more satisfying simply to ignore him. Suffering from a consequence, George Marshall thought him dis-
a variety of physical ailments and realizing his theo- loyal and unreliable. Hap Arnold and Joe Stilwell dis-
ries were out of tune with Air Corps policy, he retired approved of his command style. Even if his strategic
in 1937. Soon after, he traveled to China, where he theories had been correct, his method of promoting
served as an adviser to Chiang Kai-shek, and formed them ensured their demise. He believed that a small
the Flying Tigers volunteer group to fight against the force of aircraft, mostly pursuit with a handful of
Japanese. The much-storied group of mercenaries- bombers, could so disrupt Japanese logistics as to
turned-heroes was well suited to Chennault’s aggres- lead to its eventual defeat. In retrospect, it is doubt-
sive and unconventional personality. ful if any amount of tactical airpower could have pre-
When America entered the war, the Flying Tigers vented Japan from overrunning China, much less
were incorporated into the Fourteenth Air Force, brought about its defeat.

34
 Lt Gen Ira C. Eaker

• Lt Gen Ira Eaker was commander of the VIII Bomber

Command in England which became the Eighth Air Force
in 1944.
• He piloted the Question Mark in its record-breaking air refu-
eling flight over California in 1929. The plane remained
aloft for 150 hours, 40 minutes, and 15 seconds.
• Served as aide to Maj Gen James Fechet, the Air Corps
Chief, and as private pilot to Maj Gen Douglas MacArthur.
• In 1927 he piloted the San Francisco, the only plane to
complete a 23,000 mile Pan American goodwill flight on
schedule. For this he was awarded his first Distinguished
Flying Cross.
• During World War II, he commanded Allied Air Forces in
the Mediterranian.
• He was deputy commander of the Army Air Forces in
1945–46.

O
ne of the great pioneer airmen, Ira C. Eaker, England to head the VIII Bomber Command and
met “Hap” Arnold and Carl Spaatz at eventually Eighth Air Force. In early 1944 Eaker
Rockwell Field in 1918, and the three moved down to Italy to command the
became friends and colleagues for life. Eaker was one Mediterranean Allied Air Forces.
of the premier pilots between the wars, participating The task of organizing and standing up the
in the Pan American flight of 1926–27 and the Eighth was extremely daunting. Eaker’s talents as a
Question Mark flight of 1929. The Question Mark leader and manager were essential. Strategic bomb-
project was the product of Eaker’s imagination,
ing was not a proven concept, the green Eighth was
political savvy, and zeal. He selected a trimotored
entering combat against an enemy already battle
Fokker and a Douglas C-1 for the flights. On 1
January 1929, the Fokker took off from San Diego, tested, and the prodigious production capacity of
California, and droned back and forth at 70 MPH America not yet manifest. Moreover, just as it
between Los Angeles, California, and San Diego for appeared the Eighth was strong enough to play a
six days. Eaker piloted the Question Mark with Pete major role in the war against Germany, it was
Quesada as copilot and Maj Carl Spaatz in back to stripped of men and machines for operations in
hook up the hose during refueling. On 7 January the North Africa and then Italy. Arnold pushed Eaker to
Fokker’s left engine quit and the Question Mark was do more, and finally, against Eaker’s wishes, he was
forced to land with a record-breaking 150 hours, 40 promoted and moved to Italy, while his place at
minutes, and 15 seconds aloft. Eighth was taken by James H. “Jimmy” Doolittle.
Eaker was also politically well connected, serving
Soon after Doolittle took over, Eaker’s labors bore
not only as an aide to Maj Gen James Fechet, the Air
fruit: air superiority over the Luftwaffe was gained,
Corps chief, but also as the private pilot of Gen
Douglas MacArthur. An excellent writer with a grad- the invasion of France took place, and the sweep
uate degree in journalism, he figured prominently in across northern Europe eventually led to victory.
airpower public relations efforts during the 1930s In April 1945, Eaker was named deputy com-
and coauthored several aviation books with Hap mander of the AAF and chief of the Air Staff. He
Arnold. During World War II he joined Spaatz in retired from active duty on 31 July 1947.

35
 Gen Carl A. “Tooey” Spaatz

• One of the most favored American air commanders of

World War II. Both Generals Eisenhower and Bradley rated
Spaatz the best combat leader in the European theater.
• Received the Distinguished Service Cross for shooting
down three German aircraft during World War I.
• The project leader for the Question Mark flight which refu-
eled in the air to stay aloft over 150 hours. Spaatz rode in
the rear of the aircraft where he reeled in and hooked up
the refueling hose from the tanker plane.

Combat Command in Washington, D.C. In May

C
arl A. Spaatz was born 28 June 1891, in
Boyertown, Pennsylvania. In 1910 he was 1942 he became commander of the Eighth Air Force
appointed to the United States Military to prepare for the American bombing of Germany.
Academy. Upon graduation on 12 June 1914, he was On 7 July he was appointed commanding general of
commissioned into the Infantry. He served with the the AAF in the European theater an addition to his
Twenty-fifth United States Infantry at Schofield duties as commander of Eighth Air Force.
Barracks, Hawaii, from 4 October 1914 to 13 On 1 December 1942, Spaatz became command-
October 1915, when he was detailed as a student in ing general of the Twelfth Air Force in North Africa.
the Aviation School at San Diego, California, until He returned to England in January 1944, to com-
15 May 1916. mand the US Strategic Air Forces in Europe, which
Spaatz went to France with the American he headed throughout the preinvasion period and
Expeditionary Forces in command of the 31st Aero the ensuing campaign which culminated with the
Squadron and joined the 2d Pursuit Group in
utter defeat of Germany. His service in Africa won an
September 1918. He was officially credited with
award of the Distinguished Service Medal, and the
shooting down three German Fokker planes, and
accomplishments of his Strategic Air Force in 1944
received the Distinguished Service Cross. After
earned him the Robert J. Collier Trophy for that
World War I he reverted to his permanent rank of
captain, 27 February 1920, but was promoted to year, awarded annually to the American making the
major on 1 July 1920. most outstanding contribution to aviation. He was
Spaatz commanded the Army plane Question present at all three signings of unconditional surren-
Mark in its refueling endurance flight over southern der by the enemy—Rheims, Berlin, and Tokyo. In
California, 1–7 January 1929, keeping the plane aloft February 1946, he was nominated to become com-
a record total of 150 hours, 40 minutes, and 15 sec- mander of the Army Air Forces. In September 1947
onds, and was awarded the Distinguished Flying he was appointed by President Harry S. Truman as
Cross. the First Chief of Staff of the new United States Air
A few weeks after Pearl Harbor, in January 1942, Force until 30 April 1948. General Spaatz retired on
General Spaatz was assigned as chief of the AAF 30 June 1948.

36
 Col Francis S. “Gabby” Gabreski

shot at by his own nervous troops upon his return.

After many delays, Gabby was posted to the Polish-
manned 315th Squadron at Northolt in the United
Kingdom. After gaining much needed experience fly-
ing in combat, Gabby was assigned to the 56th
Fighter Group flying P-47 Thunderbolts. On 24
August 1943 he scored his first victory. From that
day on, victories came frequently, often by doubles
and triples. After flying 193 missions, the AAF
ordered him home. While waiting for the transport,
Gabby learned of a mission scheduled for that morn-
ing. He convinced the commander to let him fly just

F
rancis S. Gabreski was the leading American
ace in the World War II European theater with one more. While strafing an enemy airfield, his prop
28 victories. He was born of Polish immigrants hit a rise at the end of the field and he was forced to
in Oil City, Pennsylvania, and grew up bilingual. belly-in. After eluding the enemy for five days, he
While he worked his way through college at Notre was captured and spent the remaining eight months
Dame, he became interested in airplanes and scraped of the war as a POW in Stalag Luft 1 in Germany.
together money for flying lessons. He did not excel. During the Korean War, Gabreski commanded
After his second year in college he joined the Army the 51st Fighter Wing. He played a major role in
Air Forces and squeaked through primary pilot train-
developing fighter tactics in the newly emerging jet
ing. His first assignment was at Wheeler Field,
Hawaii. On 7 December 1941 Gabby’s was one of war. Gabby shot down six and one-half MiG-15s
the first aircraft launched to chase the Japanese between July 1951 and April 1952. He is one of only
armada. Taking off in an obsolete P-36, he was too seven USAF pilots who were aces in both World War
late to catch the departing enemy, however, he was II and the Korean War.

Capt Colin P. Kelly Jr.

C
apt Colin P. Kelly Jr. was America’s first hero
of World War II. He was credited at that time
after attacking and sinking the Japanese bat-
tleship Haruna off Luzon in the Philippines on 10
December 1941. While returning to base, Kelly’s
B-17 was set on fire by Japanese airplanes and one
waist gunner was killed. Kelley then ordered the
remainder of the crew to bail out. All were saved but
Kelly who died when the B-17 crashed to the
ground. President Franklin D. Roosevelt posthu-
mously conferred the Distinguished Service Cross
upon Kelly for his sacrifice. It was not until after
World War II had ended that it was learned that at
that early period of the war, the Haruna was operat-
ing hundreds of miles away off Malaysia. Kelly’s air-
plane had attacked a light cruiser named Ashigara
and not the Haruna.

37
 Gen Laurence S. Kuter

• One of the more accomplished air planners and staff officers in

Air Force history.
• On the faculty of the Air Corps Tactical School from 1935 to
1939.
• In 1933, flew alternate wing position with Capt Claire Chennault’s
acrobatic group, “The Flying Trapeze.” This was the first recog-
nized aerial acrobatic team in military service.
• As a major, he was one of the four principal authors of the basic
plan for employment of airpower in World War II.

staff and Arnold’s AAF staff; commanded a bomb

L
aurence S. Kuter was born in Rockford,
Illinois, on 28 May 1905. He graduated from wing in England; was deputy commander of the
West Point on 14 June 1927. Originally an Northwest African Tactical Air Force; then returned
artillery officer, serving at the Presidio of Monterey, to Washington for the rest of the war, even repre-
California, he saw a need for better air observation. senting the AAF at the Yalta conference in 1945 dur-
Smitten by flight, he asked for a transfer to the Air ing Arnold’s illness. After the war he again served on
Corps. He graduated from pilot training in June the Air Staff, headed the Military Air Transport
Service during the Berlin airlift, commanded Air
1930. In 1933 Lieutenant Kuter flew alternate wing
University (then Pacific Air Forces), and completed
position with Capt Claire Chennault’s acrobatic
his career as a full general and commander of North
group, The Flying Trapeze. This was the first recog-
American Air Defense Command (NORAD).
nized aerial acrobatic team in military service.
Because of Hap Arnold’s illness (one of his five
One of the more accomplished air planners and
heart attacks), then Major General Kuter was desig-
staff officers in Air Force history, he was on the fac- nated to attend the Allied conference at Yalta in
ulty of the Air Corps Tactical School from 1935 to February 1945 as the AAF representative. The
1939. Kuter was a staunch strategic bombardment Americans had hoped to establish a communication
advocate. In 1941, he was one of four officers tasked system to coordinate the air efforts of the three
to write Air War Plans Division (AWPD)1, countries to avoid the danger of fratricide. In addi-
Munitions Requirements of the Army Air Force, the tion, the United States pushed for an agreement to
seminal war plan that served as the blueprint for the site B-29 bases near Vladivostok, USSR, from which
air assault on Germany. Promotion followed quickly. to bomb Japan. With the end of the war in Europe
The youngest general officer in the Army in 1942, approaching, however, the Soviets had little incen-
he served on General Marshall’s War Department tive to be agreeable: they rejected both proposals.

38
 Maj Richard I. “Dick” Bong

• America’s leading ace of all wars.

• Credited with 40 aerial victories in World War II.
• Awarded the Medal of Honor in 1944 personally
by Gen Douglas MacArthur in the Pacific, who
lauded him as the greatest fighter ace of all
Americans.
• Died test piloting a P-80 at Muroc, California, in
August 1945.

A
fter schooling in his hometown, Dick Bong In September 1944 he returned to the Pacific
enlisted as a flying cadet at nearby Wausau, with the V Fighter Command as gunnery training
Wisconsin, 29 May 1941. He took flying officer. Though not required to perform further
training at Tulare and Gardner Fields, California, and combat flying, he voluntarily put in 30 more combat
Luke Field, Arizona, receiving his wings and com- missions over Borneo and the Philippine Islands,
mission on 9 January 1942. He instructed other destroying 12 more planes to bring his total to 40.
pilots at Luke until May when he went to Hamilton Gen George C. Kenney, his overall commanding
Field, California, for combat training in P-38s. officer, who later wrote Major Bong’s biography,
decided that two hundred missions and five hundred
He went to the Pacific as a fighter pilot with the
combat hours were enough for any individual and
9th Fighter Squadron of the 49th Fighter Group in
ordered him returned to the United States, in
Australia. In November 1942, Major Bong was reas-
December 1944, with recommendation for the
signed to the 39th Squadron of the 35th Group with
Medal of Honor for his second overseas tour. Major
which he destroyed five Japanese fighter planes
Bong then became a test pilot at Wright Field, Ohio.
before returning to the 9th Squadron in January
In June 1945 he went to Burbank, California, as
1943. He flew with the 9th until November, being chief of Flight Operations and Air Force Plant
promoted to first lieutenant in April and to captain in Representative to Lockheed Aircraft Company, then
August. engaged in developing and manufacturing P-80 jet
On 11 November 1943 he was given 60 days of aircraft.
leave and reassigned to Headquarters V Fighter Major Bong received a full training course for P-
Command, New Guinea, as assistant operations offi- 80s at Muroc Lake Flight Test Base, California, but
cer in charge of replacement airplanes. In this assign- died that August when his plane’s engine failed dur-
ment Major Bong continued to fly combat missions ing a flight over Burbank.
in P-38s and increased his enemy aircraft kills to 28. In combat he had earned the Distinguished
In April 1944 he was promoted to major and sent Service Cross, two Silver Stars, seven Distinguished
home to instruct others in the art of aerial superior- Flying Crosses, and 15 Air Medals, in addition to the
ity, with assignment to Foster Field, Texas. Medal of Honor.

39
 Lt Gen James H. “Jimmy” Doolittle

• In 1921 Doolittle led a flight of DH-4s in Mitchell’s 1st

Provisional Air Brigade in the scientific sinking of German
battleships.
• He received one of the first PhDs awarded in aeronautical
engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology
(MIT) and established himself as one of the finest racing
pilots in the United States before World War II.
• In April 1942 he led 16 B-25s from the deck of the car-
rier Hornet and scored a stunning coup by bombing
Tokyo.
• During World War II, Gen Jimmy Doolittle commanded
the Twelfth, Fifteenth, and Eighth Air Forces.

J
ames H. “Jimmy” Doolittle was educated in ficial horizontal and directional gyroscopes and made
Nome, Alaska; Los Angeles Junior College, the first flight completely by instruments. He
California; and the University of California attracted wide newspaper attention with this feat of
School of Mines, California. He enlisted as a flying blind flying and later received the Harmon Trophy
cadet in the Signal Corps Reserve in October 1917, for his experiments.
and trained at the School of Military Aeronautics, He was promoted to lieutenant colonel 2 January
University of California, and Rockwell Field, 1942, and went to Headquarters, Army Air Force to
California. He was commissioned a second lieu- plan the first aerial raid on the Japanese homeland. He
tenant in the Signal Corps Aviation Section on 11 volunteered and received Gen H. H. Arnold’s approval
March 1918. to lead the attack of 16 B-25 medium bombers from
the aircraft carrier Hornet with targets in Tokyo, Kobe,
In September 1922 he made the first of many pio-
Osaka, and Nagoya. The daring one-way mission on
neering flights which earned him major air trophies
18 April 1942 electrified the world and gave America’s
and international fame. He flew a DH-4, equipped
war hopes a terrific lift. Colonel Doolittle received the
with crude navigational instruments, in the first
Medal of Honor, presented to him by President
cross-country flight, from Pablo Beach, Florida, to
Roosevelt at the White House, for planning and lead-
San Diego, California, in 21 hours and 19 minutes. ing this successful operation.
He made only one refueling stop, at Kelly Field, In July 1942, as a brigadier general, he had been
Texas. The military gave him the Distinguished advanced two grades the day after the Tokyo attack,
Flying Cross for this historic feat. Doolittle was assigned to the Eighth Air Force and in
He won the Schneider Cup Race, the World Series September became commander of Twelfth Air Force
of seaplane racing in 1925, with an average speed of in North Africa. He was promoted to major general
232 MPH in a Curtiss Navy racer equipped with in November, and in March 1943 became com-
pontoons. This was the fastest a seaplane had ever mander of the North African Strategic Air Forces.
flown, and Doolittle received the Mackay Trophy for He took command of Fifteenth Air Force in
this feat. November, and from January 1944 to September
At Mitchel Field, in September 1928, he assisted 1945, he commanded Eighth Air Force in Europe
in the development of fog flying equipment. He and the Pacific, until war’s end, as a lieutenant gen-
helped develop the now almost universally used arti- eral, the promotion date being 13 March 1944.

40
 Gen George C. Kenney

• George C. Kenney was a fighter pilot during World War I. He

downed two German aircraft and won the Distinguished Service
Cross.
• Commander of Fifth Air Force and Far East Air Forces providing
airpower for Gen Douglas MacArthur in the Southwest Pacific
Theater during World War II.
• One of only four airmen to hold the rank of four-star general dur-
ing World War II.
• One of the most innovative operational airmen of World War II.
• The first commander in chief of Strategic Air Command from
1946 to 1948.

the modern concept of an “air component com-

G
eorge C. Kenney was America’s top airman
in the Pacific theater during World War II. mander,” the one individual in charge of all aviation
Kenney had served as a fighter pilot in the assets in a theater. Kenney’s grasp of what is today
First World War, downing two German aircraft and called “operational art” and how airpower could be
winning the Distinguished Service Cross. Between used to complement the operations of land and sea
the wars he attended Command and General Staff forces was outstanding, and he was considered by
College, the Army War College, and taught at the many to be the most accomplished combat air strate-
Air Corps Tactical School before heading Operations gist of the war.
and Training for General Headquarters Air Forces. In April 1945 he was promoted to full general—
He also earned a reputation as an accomplished one of only four airmen holding that rank during the
engineer through assignments at Wright Field, and war. However, Arnold had more complete confi-
became recognized as an expert in tactical aviation.
dence in Spaatz and after the war Spaatz was named
Significantly, he was serving as an air attaché to Paris
Arnold’s successor. Kenney had hoped to become
during the German invasion of France in 1940 and
Chief of Staff after Spaatz but Hoyt Vandenberg,
witnessed the effectiveness of airpower in that cam-
paign. nine years younger than Kenney, replaced Spaatz as
In July 1942, Arnold selected Kenney to become chief of staff in 1948. Kenney was instead given com-
Douglas MacArthur’s air deputy. For the rest of the mand of the new Strategic Air Command (SAC) after
war the short, fiery, and tireless Kenney served as the war. When the Berlin Crisis of 1948 broke out,
commander of the Fifth Air Force and then Far East Vandenberg conducted an investigation of SAC’s war
Air Forces under the difficult and demanding readiness. The results were unacceptable, so
MacArthur. His success in such battles as Bismarck Vandenberg replaced Kenney with Curtis E. LeMay.
Sea, Rabaul, Wewak, and the Philippine campaign Kenney was then named commander of Air
were dramatic, and he has become the prototype for University. He retired from that position in 1951.

41
 Lt Gen Ennis C. Whitehead

• Participated in Billy Mitchell’s bombing tests against the

Ostfriesland in 1921.
• Joined the Pan American flight of 1927—where he narrowly
escaped death in a midair collision over Buenos Aires.
• Set a speed record from Miami, Florida, to Panama in 1931.
• George Kenney’s strong right arm in the Pacific, he became com-
mander of the Fifth Air Force in 1944.
• Responsible for such innovations as skip-bombing, parafrag
bombs, nose cannons in medium bombers, and the use of com-
bat airlift.

outstanding tactician who performed extremely well

E
nnis C. Whitehead is another of the largely
forgotten figures of American airpower, in the Southwest Pacific theater. Whitehead was a
although he played an important role at an hard, uncompromising man with a heavy twinge of
important time. Enlisting in the Army in 1917, chauvinism; he was a good combat commander who
Whitehead quickly joined the Air Service, won his engendered respect rather than admiration among
wings, and was sent to France. He was an excellent his subordinates. He was also seen by some in the Air
pilot, but as a result he was made a test pilot and thus Force hierarchy as too attached to Kenney and
saw no combat. After the war, his reputation as an MacArthur, too political, too outspoken, and too
aviator grew within the small coterie of military air- tactically focused. He was disappointed by President
Trumon’s choice of
men. He participated in Billy Mitchell’s bombing
Hoyt Vandenberg
tests against the Ostfriesland in 1921, joined the Pan
rather than Kenney
American flight of 1927, where he narrowly escaped
as Chief of Staff in
death in a midair collision over Buenos Aires, and set
1948 and was out-
a speed record from Miami, Florida, to Panama in raged when the
1931. When war came, he was sent to the Pacific new chief quickly
where he became George Kenney’s strong right arm. relieved Kenney as
Whitehead stayed in Asia for the next seven years, commander of Stra-
becoming commander of the Fifth Air Force in tegic Air Command.
1944; and after Kenney left the theater, he took over These feelings, com-
the Far East Air Forces. Returning to the States in bined with ill health,
1949, Whitehead commanded the shortlived caused him to teder
Continental Air Command and then the Air Defense his resignation in
Command until his retirement in 1951. early 1951.
In addition, although Kenney has received credit
for such innovations as skip-bombing, parafrag
bombs, nose cannons in medium bombers, and the
An MB-2 attempts to sink the USS
use of combat airlift, it was Whitehead who actually Alabama during Mitchell’s 1921
pioneered them. Unquestionably, Whitehead was an bombing trials.

42
 Lt Gen Benjamin O. Davis Jr.

• The first black to graduate from West Point this century

and later became the first African-American Air Force
general.
• During his years at West Point he was officially “silenced”
by all cadets—no one spoke to him for four years except
on official business.
• Commissioned in 1936, earned his wings at Tuskegee in
1941 and was a lieutenant colonel squadron commander
in August 1942.
• Commanded the all-black 99th Fighter Squadron in
North Africa in 1943 and a fighter wing in Korea in 1953.
• His commands culminated with his third star and com-
mand of Thirteenth Air Force.

year he received his first star and moved to the

D
uring World War II, a group of blacks was
sent to Tuskegee Institute in Alabama and Philippines as vice commander of the Thirteenth Air
trained as pilots. The famous Tuskegee air- Force. After tours in Taiwan, Germany, the Pentagon,
men went on to serve with distinction in the and a return to Korea—while also gaining two more
European theater and the years thereafter. The most stars—Davis became commander of the Thirteenth Air
famous of these was Benjamin O. Davis Jr. Force at Clark Air Base, Philippines. He relished this
Davis was the first black to graduate from West command at the height of the Vietnam War and was
Point in this century. His four years there were not, reluctant to leave in July 1968 to become deputy com-
however, pleasant. Because he was black, he was offi- mander of US Strike Command. He retired from that
cially “silenced” by all cadets—no one spoke to him assignment in 1970.
for four years except on official business; he roomed
alone; he had no friends. That so many cadets, fac-
ulty members, and senior officers could allow such
behavior is astonishing. This was surely one of the
most shameful chapters in West Point history.
Nonetheless, Davis graduated but was promptly
turned down for pilot training—no black officers
were allowed in the Air Corps. While he was serving
in the infantry in 1940, this policy was reconsidered,
and Davis was sent to Tuskegee for pilot training.
Because of the war and his ability, promotion fol-
lowed rapidly, and soon he was a lieutenant colonel
commanding the 99th Fighter Squadron in combat.
After one year with this all-black unit in Italy, Davis
was promoted to colonel and tasked to form the
322d Group. This black fighter group served
admirably for the remainder of the war.
Segregation ended in the services in 1948 with a
presidential decree. Davis then attended Air War
College, served in the Pentagon, and was sent to Korea Col Davis with his P-47 as commander of the 332d Fighter
in 1953 to command a fighter wing. The following Group in Italy.

43
 Jacqueline “Jackie” Cochran

• First woman to break the sound barrier.

• First Woman to enter the Bendix Race, 1935.
• Won 14 Harmon Trophies in her lifetime.
• Set altitude record of 33,000 feet, 1939.
• First female trans-Atlantic bomber pilot, 1941.
• Supervised the Women’s Air Force Service Pilots (WASP),
1942–44.
• Served as an advisor to the US Air Force, Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA), and National Aeronautics Space
Administration (NASA) during the ’50s and ’60s.
• Set world speed record of 1,429 MPH, 1964.

J
ackie Cochran was born in Florida into a life of planes for the British Ferry Command, and became
poverty, somewhere between 1905 and 1908. the first female trans-Atlantic bomber pilot.
She had almost no formal education and since In 1942 Jackie recruited over one thousand
she was orphaned at birth, she had to depend on fos- WASPs and supervised their training and service until
ter parents. By the age of 22 she was working at a they were disbanded in 1944. She didn’t stop there.
prestigious beauty salon and was at the top of her Jackie went on to be a press correspondent and was
profession. With money saved, she developed a line present at the surrender of Japanese General
of cosmetics, which would later become her empire, Yamashita, was the first US woman to set foot in
Jacqueline Cochran Cosmetics. Her husband to be, Japan after the war, went on to China, Russia,
millionaire businessman Floyd Odlum, suggested she Germany, and even the Nuremburg trials. Flying was
learn to fly in order to use her travel and sales time still her passion, and with the onset of the jet age,
more efficiently. In two days she soloed and 18 days there were new planes to fly and records to break!
later had her pilots license. Despite her lack of edu- And she did both. Access to jet aircraft was mainly
cation, she mastered flying in mere weeks. Jackie restricted to military personnel, but Jackie had
soon bought her first airplane, a Travelair. She was enough connections to get where she wanted to be.
the first woman to enter the Bendix Race in 1935. With the assistance of her friend Gen Chuck Yeager,
Jackie was hooked on flying and her taste for Jackie became the first woman to break the sound
record setting was strong. She set three speed barrier in an F-86 Sabre Jet, and went on to set a
records, won the Clifford Burke Harmon trophy world speed record of 1,429 MPH in 1964.
three times, and set a world altitude record of Jacqueline Cochran broke the sound barrier when
33,000 feet—all before 1940. With World War II on she was well over 50 years old. After heart problems
the horizon, Jackie talked Eleanor Roosevelt (who, and a pacemaker stopped her fast-flying activities at
like Jackie, had been friendly with Amelia Earhart) the age of 70, Jackie took up soaring. At the time of
into the necessity of women pilots in the coming war her death in 1980 she held literally hundreds of
effort. It was probably no small coincidence that speed and altitude records—more than anyone else
Jackie was soon recruiting women pilots to ferry in the world, male or female.

44
 Gen Leon W. Johnson

• Awarded the Medal of Honor for heroic actions while leading the
44th Bomb Group attacking Ploesti, Romania on 1 August 1943.

within the Ploesti complex. Despite heavy antiaircraft

L
eon Johnson graduated from West Point in
June 1926 and went to Fort Crook, Nebraska, fire, numerous enemy fighter planes, the eminent
as a second lieutenant in the 17th Infantry. danger of exploding delayed-action bombs from the
After flight training at Brooks and Kelly Air Fields, previous element, Colonel Johnson led the 44th for-
Texas, he was transferred to the Air Corps with ward. Oil fires and intense smoke obscured the target,
assignment to the 5th Observation Squadron at but Colonel Johnson demonstrated enormous
Mitchell Field. As a lieutenant colonel, he went with courage and superior flying skill as he led his forma-
Eighth Air Force to England in June 1942 as assis- tion on a bomb run that totally destroyed the impor-
tant chief of Staff for Operations. In January 1943, tant refining plants and installations. He was awarded
the Medal of Honor for his heroic leadership.
he took command of the 44th Bomb Group, was
promoted to colonel and went to Africa on loan to
Ninth Air Force.
On 1 August 1943, he led the 44th, called the
“Eight Balls,” as one of the major elements in the
massive B-24 bomber attack on the oil refineries at
Ploesti, Romania. The element he led became sepa-
rated and temporarily lost from the lead elements.
Colonel Johnson reestablished contact with the main
formation and continued on the mission to discover
the assigned target had been attacked and damaged
by earlier B-24s. Having lost the element of surprise,
upon which the safety and success of such a daring
mission depended, Colonel Johnson elected to carry B-24 Liberators during the low-level bombing of the oil
out his planned low-level attack against another target refineries at Ploesti, Romania, 1 August 1943.

45
 Maj Thomas B. “Mickey” McGuire Jr.

• Second highest scoring ace in Air Force history.

• Awarded Medal of Honor for heroic performance on 25 and 26
December 1944.

scored one Zero and exposed himself to permit a

T
homas “Mickey” McGuire completed high
school at Sebring, Florida, and attended friendly bomber to escape and then shot down three
Georgia School of Technology. He enlisted at other fighters before the mission was completed.
MacDill Field, Florida, on 12 July 1941 and took McGuire lost his life on 7 January 1945 while
pilot training at Randolph and Kelly Fields, Texas, leading four P-38s over a Japanese-held airstrip on
getting his wings and commission in February 1942. Los Negros Island. A single Japanese fighter jumped
He then shipped out to the Pacific where he shot the squadron so McGuire led them into a tight
down 38 Japanese planes with his P-38 Lightning. In Lufbery Circle snaring the Zero inside. The enemy
fighter made a sharp dive to get out of the trap, but
the entire history of the US Air Force, McGuire’s 38
the P-38s stayed with him from 2,000 feet down to
aerial victories are second only to Richard Bong’s 40
200 feet. There the formation scattered and the
kills.
enemy plane maneuvered into position on the tail of
McGuire went to Australia in March of 1943 and
one of the Lightnings. The pilot called for help and
served with the 131st Fighter Squadron, 475th
McGuire responded. However, a tight maneuver
Fighter Group, in the long campaign from Australia with wing tanks still attached caused the fighter to
to New Guinea, on to Biak Island and the stall at low altitude and crash.
Philippines. He ran up his long score in all types of Major McGuire received the Medal of Honor for
fighter missions: bombers escort, fighter bomber combat over the Philippine Islands on 25 and 26
sweeps, and aerial combat. On Christmas day 1944, December 1944 when he shot down seven enemy
McGuire volunteered to lead a squadron of 15 fighters in two days, bringing his total to 38. The
planes escorting heavy bombers attacking Mabalaent citation for the medal concludes with a tribute to
Airdrome in the Philippines. As the formation McGuire’s spirit. “With gallant initiative, deep and
crossed Luzon it was jumped by a large group of unselfish concern for the safety of others, and heroic
enemy fighters. In the ensuing battle, Major determination to destroy the enemy at all costs, Maj.
McGuire shot down three enemy planes. This was McGuire set an inspiring example in keeping with
typical of many of his missions. In another action, he the highest traditions of the military service.”

46
 Brig Gen Paul W. Tibbets Jr.

• Led a B-17 Squadron on the first B-17 raid on Germany.

• Commanded the B-29 units tasked with modifying the aircraft to
carry an atomic bomb and developing tactics and techniques for
delivering atomic bombs.
• Dropped the first atomic bomb ever used in combat.

After the war, Tibbets was the technical advisor to

P
aul Tibbets was born in Quincy, Illinois, on 23
February 1915. He entered the Army Air the AF commander during the Bikini Bomb Project.
Corps on 25 February 1937 at Fort Thomas, From July 1950 to February 1952, Tibbets was the
Kentucky. After graduating from flying training in B-47 Project Officer. After serving as 308th Bomb
February 1938, he was assigned to Fort Benning, Wing commander, 6th Air Division commander, and
Georgia, in the 16th Observation Squadron. After deputy director of Operations on the Joint Staff,
being assigned to the 29th Bomb Group in early Tibbets retired as a brigadier general with promotion
1942, he was selected to command the 340th Bomb date effective 4 May 1960.
Squadron, taking it into combat operations from
England in June of 1942. Tibbets flew 25 combat
missions in B-17s, including the first American Flying
Fortress raid against occupied Europe. Tibbets also
flew combat missions in support of the invasion of
North Africa before returning to the United States in
March of 1943 to participate in the B-29 program. In
September 1944 Tibbets was assigned to the Atomic
Bomb Project as the Air Force officer in charge of
developing an organization capable of employing the
atomic bomb in combat operations and mating the
development of the bomb to the airplane. On 6
August 1945, Tibbets, commanding the B-29 Enola The Enola Gay was one of 15 B-29s modified specifically for
Gay, dropped the first atomic weapon against enemy the highly secret atomic bomb missions. These airplanes were
forces on Hiroshima, Japan. The Japanese surren- outfitted with new engines and propellers and faster-acting
dered unconditionally on 14 August 1945. pneumatic bomb bay doors.

47
Independent Air Force,
Cold War, and Korea

1946–64
 X-1 Supersonic Flight (14 October 1947)

altitude of 40,000 feet. From this position, he

would give Yeager an aiming point during his
climb. One minute prior to launch, Ridley asked
if Yeager was ready. “Hell, yes, let’s get it over
with.” A typical Yeager response. With that, the
B-29 went into a shallow dive and at 20,000
feet Ridley pulled the release mechanism and
the XS-1 dropped free.
The drop speed was slower than desired, and
the XS-1, nicknamed the Glamorous Glennis in
honor of Yeager’s wife, began to stall. Yeager
The Glamorous Glennis piloted by Capt Chuck Yeager, was the
first aircraft to break the sound barrier. brought the nose down to gain airspeed and
then fired all four of his rocket chambers in

O
n the morning of Tuesday, 14 October rapid sequence. Accelerating upward rapidly,
1947, ground crews completed final Yeager shut down two cylinders and tested the
preparations and hoisted the Bell XS-1 stabilizer control system. Without it he would
into the bomb bay of a B-29. At 10:00 A.M., the lose elevator effectiveness and be “in a helluva
B-29 took off from Muroc’s main eight-thou- bind.” It was working. He reached Mach 0.92
sand-foot runway. Aboard the B-29 was 24-
as he leveled out at 42,000 feet with 50 percent
year-old Capt Charles E. “Chuck” Yeager.
of his propellants left. Igniting the third cylinder
Yeager had made a name for himself as a fantas-
tic stick and rudder test pilot at Wright Field, pushed the aircraft to Mach 0.98. The machme-
Ohio, after World War II. During World War II, ter needle fluctuated at this reading momentar-
Yeager had scored 12.5 aerial victories, includ- ily, then passed off the scale. Yeager radioed,
ing five in one day. Yeager had been selected by “Ridley! Make another note. There’s something
Col Albert Boyd, chief of the Test Flight wrong with this machmeter. Its gone screwy!”
Division, because he had demonstrated an Ridley replied, “If it is, we’ll fix it. Personally, I
uncanny ability to find and understand any air- think you’re seeing things.”
plane’s flaws. The XS-1 project engineer was Postflight analysis revealed that Yeager had
Capt Jack Ridley. Ridley was a test pilot with an attained a top speed of Mach 1.06, approxi-
advanced degree in aeronautical engineering mately 700 MPH, at 43,000 feet. The sound
from the California Institute of Technology. barrier had been broken. Yeager had felt no wild
As the B-29 climbed slowly to altitude, buffeting or any other indication that he had
Yeager made his way back to the XS-1’s cockpit.
broken the barrier. Somewhat disappointed he
Over the weekend, Yeager had broken a couple
later reported, “it took a damned instrument
of ribs falling from his horse near the “Happy
meter to tell me what I’d done.” The flight had
Bottom Riding Club.” To avoid being
grounded by the flight surgeon, he had gone to lasted only 14 minutes but his “sonic boom”
a civilian doctor off base and only told Ridley to resonated around the world. This major mile-
help him figure out how to close the XS-1’s stone had been accomplished in just over two
door. Ridley provided Yeager with a 10-inch years in an era without simulator preflights and
length of broom handle to use as leverage in despite scientists predicting the barrier to be
securing the hatch. impenetrable. For the newly independent Air
Bob Hoover flew the FP-80 chase plane to a Force, created less than a month before, it was a
position 10 miles ahead of the B-29 and at an signal for all the greatness to come.

51
 Berlin Airlift (1948–49)

participated but regardless of the point of ori-

gin, all aircraft were handled by flight con-
trollers at the Berlin traffic center. The coming
of winter brought the need to carry tons of coal
in addition to food supplies. The Soviets felt the
Americans would be unable to supply the
needed fuel during the period of bad weather
and short days. Despite the poor conditions, US
and allied airmen accomplished their missions,
C-47s line up during the airlift operations.
often depending on ground controlled
approach radar. The radar guided aircraft along

I
n the spring of 1948, tensions in Europe were
high because the United States, Britain, and a flight path until the pilot could see runway
France were moving toward uniting their lights. Radar and tight control made it possible
three occupation zones in Germany into a single to control the steady flow of aircraft, day and
country—West Germany—economically inte- night, in good and bad weather.
grated into Western Europe. The Soviet Union
instead wanted all four zones united into a single
country dominated by the Soviets. The point
where the western nations were most vulnerable The USAF’s success in the Berlin
was West Berlin, an island of western control in Airlift thwarted Soviet efforts to
the middle of the Soviet zone. In April, the
Soviets placed restrictions on surface transporta- intimidate the West in the first
tion to the western troop in Berlin for 10 days, “battle” of the Cold War.
but Lt Gen Curtis E. LeMay (US Air Force
Europe [USAFE] Commander) provided C-47
transports that supplied the garrisons. In June The Berlin Airlift frustrated the Soviet block-
1948 the Soviets announced new restrictions ade by supplying the two million residents of
intended to cut off all Western ground links to Berlin with food and fuel for almost a year.
Berlin. Instead of discouraging the Western powers, the
USAFE began supplying the city by air joint and combined airlift operation strength-
because the western powers were determined to ened morale in the West. Though the Soviets
supply the city but did not want a ground con- agreed to lift the blockade in May 1949, the air-
frontation with the Soviets. The airlift began lift continued until the end of September to
with C-47s but they were soon replaced by four- ensure a constant supply of fuel and food while
engine C-54s with three times the cargo capac- ground traffic resumed.
ity. Because of the strategic importance of the The Berlin Airlift delivered 2.3 million tons
airlift, Air Force Chief of Staff, Gen Hoyt S. of food and fuel. In spite of poor weather and
Vandenberg ordered the formation of a task crowded flying conditions, the 15-month oper-
force headquarters to run the operation under ation had an accident rate less than one-half that
the command of the famous airlifter, Maj Gen of the entire Air Force. Gallant efforts by
William H. Tunner. Military Air Transport Service, Air Materiel
The difficulties of the Berlin Airlift were Command, the Air Weather Service, and
mind-boggling. Air bases spread across Europe USAFE ensured the success of the operation.

52
 Pusan Perimeter Defense (1950)

Gen Walton Walker. The Eighth Army faced the

gravest challenge of any American ground forces
in history. The North Koreans outnumbered the
United Nations forces, who had very few reserve
units and were spread dangerously thin along the
perimeter. However, Eighth Army did have
some important advantages, most notably the
FEAF. Because of American airpower the North
Koreans could only move and fight at night.
The FEAF had severely damaged the Inmun
Gun armor to the point of ineffectiveness.
North Korean T-34 tanks knocked out by US aircraft. Furthermore, no American Army had ever
received more close air support. During August,

A
ir Force defensive operations played a
key role in the early days of the Korean Korea showed airpower’s flexibility
War against a formidable enemy. Some
30,000 Koreans who fought with Mao Tse-tung when centrally controlled to meet sit-
in the Chinese communist revolution formed uational needs.
the backbone of the North Korean People’s
Army or Inmun Gun. After US Secretary of the FEAF flew 7,397 close-air-support missions
State Dean Acheson declared Korea outside the averaging 238 sorties daily. The flexibility of air-
United State’s “defense perimeter” in January power also brought a decided advantage. When
1950, it took only six months for Kim Il Sung enemy troops achieved penetrations in the
to invade South Korea. It took the Inmun Gun perimeter against which no ground strength
only 48 hours to reach Seoul, claiming the city could be brought to bear, General Walker
on 28 June 1950. The Inmun Gun stopped for requested Maj Gen Earl E. Partridge, Fifth Air
nothing. Force commander, conduct an air attack. On
General MacArthur, commander in chief of one occasion, massive enemy troop concentra-
American forces in the Far East, examined the tions were targeted by B-29s at MacArthur’s
invasion and recommended the United States request. Ninety-eight B-29’s dropped 3,084
intervention to President Truman. The North five-hundred-pound bombs on Waegwan,
Koreans were trained, supplied, and advised by destroying the enemy concentration and pre-
the Russians; abandoning South Korea to them venting any major attacks for weeks.
would have been a dangerous form of appease- On 31 August 1950, the communists
ment. The United States sent troops into South decided to launch an all-out, human wave
Korea in July, but they were inexperienced and assault against the Pusan perimeter. During the
lacked good equipment. The Inmun Gun day, Fifth Air Force fighter-bombers provided
moved with minimal opposition toward the 167 close-air-support sorties. The communist
South Korean port of Pusan at the southern tip attack was repelled prompting Maj Gen William
of the peninsula. The only successful opposition Kean, 25th Infantry Division commander, to
to the advance came from the six hundred com- remark, “The close air support strikes rendered
bat planes of the Far East Air Forces (FEAF). by the 5th AF saved this division as they have
In early August, North Koreans reached the many times before.” The Inchon landing finally
Naktong River that enclosed the southeastern repelled the North Koreans, but the air opera-
corner of Korea. Within this 50-mile by 80-mile tions in the defense of the Pusan Perimeter
area was the Eighth Army, commanded by Lt saved the UN cause.

53
 Corona (1960)

the photographs could only distinguish objects

larger than 40 feet across, this was still an amazing
photographic achievement because the camera
was more than one hundred miles above the earth
and moving more than 17,000 MPH. Since there
was no way to electronically transmit the images
back to earth, the Corona film had to be physi-
cally brought back to the photo analysts.
Once the Corona camera had taken all its pic-
tures, the film was wound onto a reel in the nose
cone return capsule. (Later Corona satellites car-
ried twice as much film and two capsules.) The
capsule was dropped back to earth at a pre-
arranged time and place. When it had fallen to an
altitude of approximately 60,000 feet, it deployed
a parachute. Using a radio beacon on the capsule
and visually spotting the parachute, aircraft of the
6593d Test Squadron would snag the parachute
and reel in the capsule. The film was then ana-
lyzed on the ground. Newer systems that have
Schematic drawing of a later Corona satellite equipped with two replaced Corona transmit images electronically in
takeup reels and two return capsules.
real time.

I
n 1958, a few months after Sputnik, the
Soviets demonstrated that they would soon be Corona was the first Air Force
able to launch nuclear-armed intercontinental
ballistic missiles (ICBM) at the United States. satellite program that accom-
President Eisenhower authorized Corona, a top plished a critical military mis-
priority reconnaissance satellite program managed
jointly by the Air Force and the Central
sion.
Intelligence Agency (CIA). The Corona program
faced three major hurdles: getting the satellite
over the Soviet Union, taking useful pictures, and Corona images were invaluable for piercing the
getting the images back to US intelligence ana- veil of secrecy surrounding the Soviet military and
lysts. In all of these areas, Corona was at the tech- improved technology increased the quality and
nological limit of US capabilities. quantity of Corona images until the program was
It took two years and 12 failed launches before superseded in 1972. More than one hundred
Corona finally managed to get a satellite into orbit Corona missions returned over eight hundred
in August 1960. The next mission (Corona 14) thousand photographs to earth. Since Corona,
carried the first Corona camera into space and our use of space has increased until it has become
took the first satellite pictures of the Soviet Union. vital to virtually all Air Force operations.
Its photos covered more of the Soviet Union than
all the previous U-2 flights combined. Although

54
 Strategic Air Command (1946–92)

These events made it clear that the Soviet

Union was ready and willing to confront the
United States militarily, and made nuclear deter-
rence an overwhelming national security need.
For more than 40 years, SAC remained con-
tinuously on alert with nuclear armed bombers
in the air, ready to immediately destroy any
adversary. As the United States developed
Throughout most of SAC’s history, the B-52 was the backbone
nuclear armed intermediate range missiles,
of its manned bomber fleet. The B-52 continues in service intercontinental ballistic missiles, and cruise
today and has been the longest-serving combat aircraft type in missiles, these all enhanced SAC’s awesome
USAF history.
capabilities. SAC’s technological capabilities

P
erhaps the greatest achievement of the US extended beyond nuclear weapons to surveil-
military during the Cold War was its suc- lance and reconnaissance where it controlled the
cess in deterring a Soviet nuclear attack on U-2 and SR-71 and was also an early innovator
the United States. The centerpiece of US in using unmanned aerial vehicles for reconnais-
nuclear deterrence throughout the Cold War
sance and surveillance.
was the US Air Force’s Strategic Air Command
While SAC is best known for its invaluable
(SAC). Throughout its 46 year life, SAC was the
most powerful military force on earth. service preparing for, and thus deterring nuclear
SAC was created in 1946, shortly after the war, it also achieved impressive results in con-
end of World War II, to manage what were then ventional combat. During Vietnam and the Gulf
the world’s only nuclear weapons and nuclear- War, SAC bombers delivered devastating con-
capable delivery systems (modified B-29s). ventional strikes against strategic targets and
Though Gen George C. Kenney was the first enemy ground forces.
SAC commander, it was SAC’s second com- With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the
mander, Gen Curtis E. LeMay, who truly end of the Cold War, SAC’s initial mission was
shaped the character of the command. LeMay complete and US nuclear forces could lower
commanded SAC from 1948–57—some of the their alert status. In 1992, the US Air Force
tensest years of the Cold War. LeMay felt that
deactivated SAC as part of Chief of Staff
SAC had to be prepared to destroy the Soviet
General McPeak’s efforts to reorganize the
Union at a moment’s notice, and he therefore
demanded an unprecedented level of combat force to meet the challenges of the post-Cold
readiness in peacetime. In 1948 some felt that War era. SAC’s nuclear deterrent mission went
LeMay was over-reacting but in the early 1950s to US Strategic Command, and the personnel
the Soviets developed nuclear weapons, inter- and equipment were consolidated with Tactical
continental ballistic missiles, and Soviet pilots Air Command (TAC) to form the new Air
battled US pilots over Korea. Combat Command.

55
 The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)

and was not absolutely necessary because the

missile sites were not yet operational. Instead
Kennedy made a televised announcement on 22
October demanding that the Soviets remove the
missiles, and announcing that the United States
would enforce a blockade on Cuba to prevent
the delivery of offensive weapons to the island.
While the president and the national com-
mand authorities were weighing their options,
US military forces prepared for imminent war.
For the Air Force this meant adding RF-101
and RB-66 low-altitude reconnaissance flights
This soviet freighter photographed in a Cuban port has missile to the daily U-2 missions, moving large num-
transporters on its deck. The shadow of the RF-101 that took this bers of fighters to south Florida bases for attacks
picture is visible in the lower right of the photo.
on Cuba and for air defense of the United
States, and airlifting ground forces into Florida.

I
n the early 1960s, the nuclear forces of the
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) The most dramatic measures involved putting
were vastly weaker than those of the United the entire Strategic Air Command (which com-
States, and the US was trying to overthrow manded virtually all US strategic nuclear forces)
Fidel Castro’s Communist government. Cuba on full wartime alert. The Soviets responded
and the USSR felt that they could defend Cuba belligerently and the world came closer to
and increase the nuclear threat they posed to nuclear war than at any other time during the
the United States by stationing Soviet nuclear Cold War. Then the Soviets backed down and
armed bombers, medium range missiles, and offered to remove the missiles if the United
intermediate range missiles in Cuba. These States agreed not to invade Cuba.
weapons could hit US cities in a matter of For some cold warriors it was hard to accept
minutes. the indefinite presence of Communist Cuba just
In August 1962, the Soviets started building off the southern coast of the United States but
missile sites in Cuba, and in October photos President Kennedy accepted the Soviet offer. As
from US Air Force U-2 reconnaissance aircraft the missiles were removed, US forces went back
revealed what the Cubans and Soviets were up to their normal peacetime bases and activities.
to. President John F. Kennedy called on the Backing down to US demands was a major
joint chiefs of staff (JCS) and his other advisors humiliation for the Soviet Union and forcing
to consider how the United States should them to do so without nuclear war was one of
respond. Everyone agreed that the Soviet mis- the greatest accomplishments of the Kennedy
siles had to be removed from Cuba but there administration. Kennedy worked from a posi-
were several options for forcing the Cubans and tion of strength because of the power and high
Soviets to remove them. One option, favored by readiness of the USAF Strategic Air Command.
the JCS, was to destroy the sites with conven- Spotting the missile sites before they became
tional air strikes followed by a US invasion of operational gave Kennedy the option of a block-
the island. President Kennedy felt that this made ade and was one of the greatest achievements of
the risk of nuclear war with the Soviets too likely USAF reconnaissance.

56
 Brig Gen Charles E. “Chuck” Yeager

• First person to break the sound barrier, 14 October 1947. Piloted

the Bell X-1 to Mach 1.05 at 42,000 feet.
• Fighter pilot ace in World War II with 13 and one-half aerial vic-
tories to his credit.
• Shot down five enemy aircraft in a single day—12 October 1944.

low dive, then released the X-1 like a bomb. Yeager

C
huck Yeager grew up in Hamlin, West
Virginia. He enlisted in the Army Air Force in ignited the four rocket chambers and began a 45-
1941 at the age of 18. In 1943 he became a degree climb. At approximately 10:33 A.M. at 42,000
flight officer (a noncommissioned officer who was feet, Yeager made the famous radio call, “Say, Ridley
allowed to fly) and went to England to fly fighter (X-1 Flight Engineer). . . make another note, will ya?
planes over France and Germany. In his first eight There’s something wrong with this machmeter . . .
missions, at the age of 20, Yeager shot down two it’s gone screwy.” Yeager had broken the sound bar-
Luftwaffe aircraft. On his ninth mission, his aircraft
rier achieving Mach 1.05. He remained supersonic
was hit and he suffered flak wounds forcing him to
for about 20 seconds before cutting off the engine,
bail out over France. The French underground
smuggled him into Spain, where he found his way coasting up to 45,000 feet and then gliding to a
back to England and returned to combat in time for landing at Rogers Dry Lake.
the Normandy Invasion. Yeager quit testing rocket planes in 1954 and went
On 12 October 1944, Yeager engaged five to Okinawa where he tested a Soviet MiG-15. His
German fighters and shot each of them down. Later assessment confirmed the outstanding characteristics
that year, flying a P-51 Mustang, he shot down an of the MiG-15 but upheld the notion that the F-86
ME-262 German jet fighter and four FW-190s. By was a comparable aircraft with many advantages. In
war’s end, he had tallied 13 and one-half kills. 1957, Yeager commanded an F-100 squadron at
After the war, he was trained as a test pilot at George AFB, California. In 1966, he assumed com-
Wright Field, Ohio, where he impressed his instruc-
mand of the 405th Fighter Wing at Clark AFB,
tors with his ability to perform stunt flying. Despite
Philippines. While there he flew 127 missions in South
his abilities, people were amazed when he was
Vietnam. General Yeager’s final assignment was direc-
selected to go to Muroc Field, California, for the XS-
1 project at the age of 24. On 14 October 1947, tor of the Air Force Inspection and Safety Center.
despite two broken ribs sustained in a horseback rid- General Yeager won the Mackay and Collier
ing accident two days earlier, Yeager climbed into the Trophies in 1948 and the Harmon International
X-1 Glamorous Glennis in the belly of the mother Trophy in 1954. He retired from active duty on 1
ship B-29. At 26,000 feet the B-29 went into a shal- March 1975.

57
 Gen Hoyt S. Vandenberg

• Went from captain to lieutenant general in less than four years.

• During the North Africa campaign of World War II, Vandenberg
earned the Silver Star. For his role in planning the Normandy
invasion he received an oak leaf cluster for his Distinguished
Service Medal.
• Served as director of Central Intelligence from June 1945 to
April 1947.
• Served as vice chief under General Spaatz and then succeeded
him as Chief of Staff in 1948.
• Served as Chief of Staff during the Berlin Airlift, the deployment
of the Hydrogen bomb and the Korean War.

H
oyt S. Vandenberg graduated from the US After a brief return to the Air Staff he went back to
Military Academy in 1923, and was com- Britain to serve as deputy Air Commander in Chief of
missioned a second lieutenant in the Air the Allied Expeditionary Forces and commander of its
Service. He graduated from the Air Service Flying American Air Component for the invasion of France.
School at Brooks Field, Texas, and from the Air Two months after D day Vandenberg assumed com-
Service Advanced Flying School at Kelly Field, Texas, mand of the Ninth Air Force—the largest tactical air
in 1924. force ever fielded—and commanded it throughout the
His first assignment was with the 3d Attack Group liberation of France and conquest of Germany. He was
at Kelly Field, where he commanded the 90th Attack promoted to lieutenant general in March 1945, less
Squadron and developed a reputation as an outstand- than four years after he made major.
ing pilot and commander. From mid-1934 to 1936 he After the war he served as assistant chief of Air Staff
attended the Air Corps Tactical School at Maxwell at AAF headquarters for six months before Gen
Field, Alabama, and the Army Command and General Dwight D. Eisenhower named him director of
Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. With this Intelligence for the War Department. He was so effec-
schooling behind him he became an instructor at the tive in reorganizing Army intelligence that President
Air Corps Tactical School before attending the Army Harry Truman named him director of the Central
War College.
Intelligence Group (forerunner of the Central
After graduating from the War College in 1939,
Intelligence Agency).
Vandenberg put his training to use in the Air Staff
He returned to the Air Force in 1947 and, as deputy
until late 1942 when he was assigned to the United
commander and chief of Air Staff, he worked out all
Kingdom. In North Africa he was appointed Chief of
the details of Air Force independence from the Army.
Staff of the Twelth Air Force, which he helped
organize. He returned to Washington in 1943 as When the Air Force achieved the independence
deputy chief of Air Staff but soon left for the Soviet Vandenberg and so many other airmen had sought for
Union where he helped negotiate the use of bases in so long, he became the first vice Chief of Staff of the
the Soviet Union for bombing targets in Eastern Air Force and was promoted to the rank of general. On
Germany out of range of bombers flying from 30 April 1948 Vandenberg became Chief of Staff of the
Britain, Italy, and North Africa. These frustrating Air Force, succeeding Gen Carl A. Spaatz.
negotiations, and his participation in the conferences During his tour as Chief of Staff he led the Air Force
Roosevelt and Churchill held with Chiang Kai-shek through the early conflicts of the Cold War including
in Cairo and with Stalin in Tehran, got Vandenberg the Berlin blockade and the Korean War and struck a
involved in wartime diplomacy at the highest levels balance between conventional tactical forces and strate-
and helped prepare him for Cold War confrontations gic nuclear forces. Vandenberg retired from active duty
with the Soviets. 30 June 1953 and died of cancer the following year.

58
 Col Dean Hess

• Was an ordained minister before joining the Army.

• Flew 63 combat missions in Europe during World War II.
• Flew 250 combat missions in Korea.
• Trained and led Korean pilots.
• Established an orphanage in Korea for the vast number of chil-
dren orphaned by the war.

So many were given shelter that Hess’s airfield

O
n 7 December 1941 Dean Hess was an
ordained minister of the Christian Church, could no longer accommodate them and they were
living in Cleveland, Ohio. Realizing he taken to a central orphanage in Seoul, South Korea.
could not expect his parishioners to bear arms for the When the communists began to overrun the city,
United States if he was not willing to do so, he Hess persuaded the USAF to lend assistance. In the
enlisted in the Aviation Cadet Program and became midst of grave defensive holding actions by United
a pilot. Sent to France in 1944, Hess flew P-47s on Nations (UN) troops, 15 C-54s were sent to Seoul,
63 combat missions. under “Operation Kiddy Car,” and evacuated hun-
Following World War II, Hess returned to the dreds of children to safety. The children were flown to
pulpit and to graduate school, but in July 1948 he Cheju Island, off the southern coast of Korea, where
was recalled to active duty. He was stationed in Japan Hess had established an orphanage. With contribu-
in June 1950 when the Korean Conflict began and tions from UN soldiers, the orphanage was gradually
immediately was sent to Korea as commanding offi- able to accept more and more children. By the time
cer of a detachment of USAF personnel training Hess was transferred from Korea, his orphanage had
South Korean pilots to fly F-51 type fighters. Despite taken in more than 1,054 Korean children who prob-
numerous obstacles, Hess was able to expand this ably would have died without this assistance.
training into operational flights, which he often led. In 1957, Hess published his story in a book enti-
By June 1951 when he left Korea, he had flown 250 tled Battle Hymn. The story was made into a motion
combat missions. During this period, Hess started an picture starring Rock Hudson as Dean Hess. Hess’s
unofficial program for giving food and shelter to the royalties from both the book and the movie were
real victims of the war, children who had lost their used to construct a new orphanage near Seoul. Hess
parents and their homes. retired from the USAF in 1969.

59
 Col James Jabara

request, he returned to Korea in January 1953. By

T
he world’s first jet-
versus-jet ace was June he had shot down nine additional MiG-15s,
James Jabara of the giving him a total of 15 air-to-air jet victories during
US Air Force who scored the Korean War. Jabara was also credited with one
his initial victory on 3 and one-half victories over Europe during World War
April 1951 and his fifth
II. (The German Luftwaffe had 22 jet pilot aces dur-
and sixth victories on 20
May 1951. He was then ing World War II but all claims were Allied prop-
ordered back to the driven aircraft.) On 17 November 1966, Jabara, a
United States for special colonel, was killed in an automobile accident while
duty. However, at his own traveling to a new assignment.

Capt Joseph C. “Joe” McConnell Jr.

T
he leading jet ace of the Korean War was
Capt Joseph McConnell Jr., who scored his
first victory on 14 January 1953. In a little
more than a month, he gained his fifth MiG-15 vic-
tory, thereby becoming an ace. On the day
McConnell shot down his eighth MiG, his F-86
was hit by enemy aircraft fire and he was forced to
bail out over enemy-controlled waters of the Yellow
Sea west of Korea. After only two minutes in the
freezing water, he was rescued by helicopter. The
following day he was back in combat and shot down
his ninth MiG. By the end of April 1953, he had
scored his 10th victory to become a “double ace.”
On the morning of 18 May 1953, McConnell shot
down two MiGs in a furious air battle and became a
“triple ace.” On another mission that afternoon, he
shot down his 16th and last MiG-15. A little more
than a year later, 25 August 1954, while testing an
F-84H at Edwards AFB, California, Capt
McConnell crashed to his death.

F-86 Sabres take off heading

for “MiG Alley” during the
Korean War.

60
 Maj Gen Frederick C. “Boots” Blesse

• Credited with 10 aerial victories during the Korean War, he is America’s

sixth leading jet ace.
• 1954 and 1955 winner of the Air Training Command (ATC) Fighter
Gunnery Championship.
• In 1955, he won all six individual trophies at the Gunnery Championship—
a feat that has never been equaled.

In April 1967, Blesse was assigned as director of

F
red Blesse was born on 22 August 1921 in
Colon, Panama Canal Zone. He graduated Operations for the 366th Tactical Fighter Wing at
from the United States Military Academy at Da Nang AB, Republic of Vietnam. During this one-
West Point in 1945. For the next three years, Blesse year tour, he flew 108 combat missions over North
flew many different aircraft including P-40, P-51, Vietnam and another 46 in Laos and South Vietnam.
P-47, and F-80. During the Korean War, he flew two In 1968, he was assigned to Nellis AFB as the direc-
tor of Operations for the first F-111 wing and in
volunteer combat tours. He completed 67 missions
June of 1969 became its commander.
in F-51 aircraft, 35 missions in F-80 aircraft, and 121
In August 1974, General Blesse was appointed
missions in F-86 aircraft. During his second combat
deputy Inspector General of the United States Air
tour, he was credited with destroying nine MiG-15s Force. He accumulated more than sixty-five hundred
and one LA-9. He was the Air Force’s leading jet ace flying hours and 650 hours of combat flying. He is
when he returned to the United States in October of the sixth ranking American jet ace.
1952.
In December of 1952, Blesse was assigned to
Nellis AFB, Nevada, as a jet fighter gunnery instruc-
tor, squadron operations officer, and squadron com-
mander. In the 1955 Air Force Worldwide Fighter
Gunnery Championship, Blesse flew an F-86F and
claimed all six trophies offered for individual per-
formance—a feat that has never been equaled. While
at Nellis, Blesse wrote a fighter tactics book, No
Guts, No Glory, that was used worldwide to teach
Mikoyan and Gurevich’s (MiG) 15 was the premier communist
fighter operations. As recently as 1973, three thou- fighter during the Korean Conflict. Above 27,000 feet it was
sand copies were sent to tactical units in the field. faster and more maneuverable than the F-86.

61
 Brig Gen Robinson “Robbie” Risner

1965, Risner was shot down over North Vietnam

and rescued. In September of 1965, he was shot
down again over North Vietnam and captured.
While prisoner in Hanoi, North Vietnam, Risner
served first as the Senior Ranking Officer and later as
vice commander of the 4th Allied Prisoner-of-War
Wing. He was repatriated in February 1973. Risner
was promoted to brigadier general effective 8 May
1974. His military decorations include the Air Force
Cross with one oak leaf cluster, Silver Star with one
oak leaf cluster, Distinguished Flying Cross with two
oak leaf clusters, Bronze Star with V device and one
oak leaf cluster, Air Medal with seven oak leaf clus-
ters, and the Purple Heart with three oak leaf clus-
ters. General Risner retired on 1 August 1976.

R
obinson Risner was born in Mammoth
Spring, Arkansas, on 16 January 1925. He
enlisted in the Army Air Corps in April of
1943 and was awarded pilot wings and his commis-
sion in May of 1944. After training in P-38s and
P-39s and serving in Panama, he was relieved of
active duty in 1946 and became an F-51 pilot in the
Oklahoma Air National Guard. Called back to ser-
vice in 1952, he was assigned to Kimpo, Korea, with
the 4th Fighter Wing. He flew one hundred combat
missions in F-86s and is credited with eight aerial vic-
tories to become the 20th jet ace during the Korean
War. While assigned as a squadron commander at
George AFB, California, he was selected to fly the
Charles Lindbergh Commemoration Flight from
New York to Paris. Flying the F-100, he set a transat-
lantic speed record, covering the distance in six hours
and 38 minutes. In August 1964 Risner was assigned
The F-86 Sabre combined with the pilots’ skills gave
commander of the 67th Tactical Fighter Squadron at
Americans a 792 to 78 shoot down advantage over the MiG-
Kadena AB, South Korea, flying the F-105 15 during the Korean Conflict from December 1950
Thunderchief. While TDY to Thailand in April of through the summer of 1953.

62
 Gen Nathan F. Twining

• In 1957 he became the first Air Force Chief of Staff to serve

as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
• Began his active service in June 1916 with Company H of the
Third Oregon Infantry (National Guard) and served as a cor-
poral on Mexican border duty.
• In 1943, he was placed in tactical control of all Army, Navy,
Marine, and Allied Air Forces in the South Pacific, one of the
first Joint Air Commands in US history.
• On 2 August 1945 he was appointed commander of
Twentieth Air Force in the Pacific; a few days later, his com-
mand dropped the first atomic bomb, at Hiroshima.

traveled across the world to take over the Fifteenth

N
athan F. Twining came from a rich military
background; his forebears had served in the Air Force from Jimmy Doolittle.
American Army and Navy since the French When Germany surrendered, Arnold sent
and Indian Wars. Twining enlisted in World War I Twining back to the Pacific to command the B-29s
but soon received an appointment to West Point. of Twentieth Air Force in the last push against Japan,
Because the program was shortened to produce but he was there only a short time when the atomic
strikes ended the war. He returned to the States
more officers for combat, he spent only two years at
where he was named commander of Air Materiel
the academy. After graduating in 1919 and serving in
Command, and in 1947 he took over Alaskan Air
the infantry for three years, he transferred to the Air
Command. After three years there he was set to
Service. Over the next 15 years he flew fighter air-
retire as a lieutenant general, but when Muir S.
craft in Texas, Louisiana, and Hawaii, while also Fairchild, the vice chief of Staff, died unexpectedly of
attending the Air Corps Tactical School and the a heart attack, Twining was elevated to full general
Command and General Staff College. and named his successor.
When war broke out in Europe he was assigned to When Vandenberg retired in mid-1953, Twining
the operations division on the Air Staff; then in 1942 was selected as chief; during his tenure, massive retal-
he was sent to the South Pacific where he became iation based on airpower became the national strat-
chief of staff of the Allied air forces in that area. In egy. In 1957, President Eisenhower appointed
January 1943, he assumed command of the Twining chairman of the Joint Chiefs, the first air-
Thirteenth Air Force, and that same November he man to hold that position.

63
 Lt Gen William H. Tunner

• Greatest Airlift commander in USAF History.

• Commanded the “Hump” Operations in World War II.
• Headed the task force that ran the Berlin Airlift.
• Commanded airlift operations during the Korean War.

inadequately trained; and the unpressurized, piston-

G
en William H. Tunner was born in 1906 and
graduated from West Point in 1928. He engine aircraft could barely get their loads over the
completed advanced flying school in 1929 mountains. But General Tunner instituted mainte-
and served in various Army Air Corps units through- nance, organization, and crew qualification programs
out the 1930s, but he made his reputation as an air- that drastically reduced the accident rate while mov-
lift genius during World War II. ing more cargo than any previous airlift.
General Tunner’s first major assignment of the When the Soviets closed the land routes to Berlin
war was as commander of the Ferry Division of Air in 1948, the US Air Force called on General Tunner
Transport Command. At that time the Ferry to run the Berlin Airlift. Once again Tunner stream-
Division was ferrying more than 10,000 aircraft a lined and standardized maintenance and operational
month to users in the continental United States and procedures driving up the cargo tonnage delivered
overseas. From there he took command of the while maintaining an extraordinarily low accident
“Hump” airlift: the toughest airlift operation of the rate. In 1950, General Tunner was called upon to
war. direct airlift operations in Korea where he made
When the Japanese cut the overland route Combat Cargo Command into a remarkably flexible
between Allied forces in China and Burma, the forces and efficient theater airlift organization and made
in China had to be supplied by air from India over history by parachuting in a bridge that enabled the
the Himalayas. This route was called the “Hump” US Marines to get over Funchilin Pass.
and the entire operation defied common sense. The After the Korean War General Tunner served as
austere “base” areas in northern India were about as commander of US Air Forces Europe and then as
far from the United States as any place on earth; the commander Military Air Transport Service (a prede-
weather over the Himalayas was treacherous; the cessor of Air Mobility Command) before retiring in
navigational equipment was primitive; the pilots were 1960.

64
 Gen Curtis E. LeMay

• Commissioned through the Reserve Officer

Training Corps (ROTC) at Ohio State University
in 1928.
• Began World War II as a group commander in
Eighth Air Force, but within 18 months had gone
from lieutenant colonel to major general and an
air division commander.
• Commanded the B-29 bombing campaign
against the Japanese home islands.
• In 1948, he commanded US Air Forces in Europe
(USAFE) and initiated the Berlin Airlift.
• Commander of SAC from 1948–57.
• After serving as vice Chief of Staff, he became
Chief of Staff in 1961.

C
urtis E. LeMay, one of the icons of American cipitated a major reshuffling in Washington. A war
military history, rivals Mitchell in importance with the Soviets appeared increasingly possible, and
and controversy. Early in his career he the Strategic Air Command, which would bear the
became known as one of the best navigators and brunt of such a war, was seen as deficient. As a result,
pilots in the Air Corps. War brought rapid promo- Hoyt S. Vandenberg relieved George C. Kenney
tion and increased responsibility. He had earned a from command at SAC and named LeMay his suc-
reputation as an unusually innovative tactician and cessor. The building of SAC into an effective and
problem solver, so when Hap Arnold had difficulty efficient warfighting arm was LeMay’s greatest
making the new B-29 combat effective, he chose accomplishment. To test his command’s state of
LeMay to take over B-29 operations in China. His readiness he ordered a “bombing raid” on Dayton,
ability led Arnold to name him commander of the Ohio, but not a single SAC aircraft carried out the
XXI Bomber Command conducting the main air mission as planned. He then set about the difficult
effort against Japan from the Marianas. Always a tac-
but essential task of retraining SAC. Using the
tical innovator, LeMay took the risky and controver-
authority delegated him by Vandenberg, LeMay built
sial step of abandoning the long-held American doc-
new bases, facilities, and training programs; began a
trine of high altitude, daylight, precision bombing,
“spot promotion” system for rewarding his best air-
and instead stripped his B-29s of guns, loaded them
with incendiaries, and sent them against Japanese crews; and, through his legendary use of iron disci-
cities at night and at low level. The new strategy was pline, soon transformed his command into one of the
remarkably successful; Japan was devastated, and most effective military units in the world.
then with the dropping of the atomic bombs in In 1957, LeMay was named vice Chief of Staff,
August 1945 brought the Pacific war to an end. and when Thomas White retired in 1961, he was ele-
In 1948, LeMay was sent to Germany to com- vated to the position of chief. LeMay had strong feel-
mand the air forces in Europe arrayed against the ings regarding American involvement in Vietnam,
Soviets. In this position he was responsible for get- arguing against the gradual response advocated by
ting the Berlin Airlift started in 1948. This crisis pre- the administration. He retired in 1965.

65
 Gen Bernard A. “Bennie” Schriever

• The “Father” of the Ballistic Missile Program.

• In August 1954 he was appointed commander of the Air Force
Western Development Division, ARDC, Inglewood, California.
• Directed the nation’s highest priority project in the 1950s—
the development of a ballistic missile program.
• He was responsible for technical phases of the Atlas, Titan,
Thor, and Minuteman ballistic missiles.
• Assumed command of Air Force Systems Command in April of
1961.

B
ennie Schriever was born in Bremen, tracking facilities, and ground support necessary for
Germany, on 14 September 1910. His parents missile operation.
migrated to the United States in 1917 and he Schriever assumed command of Air Force Systems
became a naturalized citizen in 1923. He graduated Command in April of 1961 and was promoted to
from Texas A&M in 1931. Schriever entered flight general in July 1961. He retired from active duty on
training at Randolph Field, Texas, in June of 1932 1 September 1966.
and graduated in 1933.
In 1939 Schriever was assigned as a test pilot at
Wright Field, Ohio. After receiving advanced school-
ing in engineering at Stanford University, he was
assigned to the 19th Bomb Group in the Southwest
Pacific in July 1942. While in the Pacific theater he
participated in the Bismarck Archipelago, Leyte,
Papua, North Solomon, South Philippine, and
Ryukyu campaigns.
From 1946 to 1954 Schriever served in several
positions at the headquarters concerning material
and development planning. In August 1954, he was
appointed commander of the Air Force Western
Development Division, ARDC, Inglewood,
California. In this capacity, he directed the nation’s
highest priority project—the development of a ballis-
tic missile program and the initial space programs.
He was responsible for technical phases of the Atlas,
Titan, Thor, and Minuteman ballistic missiles, as well The first Titan intercontinental ballsitic missile launch on 6
as providing the launching sites and equipment, February 1959.

66
 Lt Col Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin

E
dwin “Buzz” Aldrin was an American astronaut born in Montclair, New
Jersey. He was nicknamed Buzz by his sister. He trained at West Point,
flew combat missions in Korea, and later flew in Germany with the 36th
Tactical Wing. He logged over twenty-nine hundred hours of flying time.
Aldrin became an astronaut in 1963. In 1966 he set a world record by walking
in space for five hours and 37 minutes during the Gemini 12 mission, the last
Gemini mission. He was the second man to set foot on the moon in the Apollo
11 mission in 1969.

Lt Col Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom

G
us Grissom was an American astronaut who was born on 3 April
1926 in Indiana. Before he became an astronaut, Grissom served as
a fighter pilot in the Korean War. He logged over forty-six hundred
hours of flight time. Grissom became an astronaut in 1959. He was one of
the original seven Mercury astronauts. He spent over five hours in space on
two spaceflights. In 1961, Grissom flew aboard Mercury 4. He became the
second American to make a suborbital flight into space during this 16-
minute flight. In 1965 Grissom piloted the first maneuverable spacecraft
aboard Gemini 3. Grissom was one of three astronauts to be killed in the
Apollo I fire in 1967. The three astronauts were training for the first
manned Apollo flight when an electrical fire broke out in the cockpit.

Maj Donald K. “Deke” Slayton

D
onald “Deke” Slayton, an American astronaut, was born on 1
March 1924 in Wisconsin. Before he became an astronaut, Slayton
was a fighter pilot in World War II. He logged over nine thousand
hours of flight time.
Slayton became an astronaut in 1959. He was one of the original seven
Mercury astronauts. He spent over 216 hours in space on one spaceflight.
In 1975 Slayton flew aboard the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. The Apollo
spacecraft linked up with a Soviet spacecraft. The crews of each country
spent nine days performing experiments together. Slayton left NASA in
1981.

67
 Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Paul W. Airey

1944–May 1945), following capture after he was

forced to bail out of his flak-damaged aircraft.
During the Korean Conflict, Chief Airey was
awarded the Legion of Merit while assigned at Naha
Air Base, Okinawa. The award, an uncommon deco-
ration for an enlisted man, was earned for having
conceived a means of constructing equipment from
salvaged parts that improved corrosion control of
sensitive radio and radar components.

C
MSgt Paul W. Airey was selected from among
21 major air command nominees to become
the first Chief Master Sergeant of the United
States Air Force. He was formally installed on 3 April
1967, by Gen John P. McConnell, Air Force Chief of
Staff. His previous assignment was with the Air
Defense Command’s 4756th Civil Engineering
Squadron at Tyndall AFB, Florida, where he served
as the unit’s first sergeant.
Chief Airey spent much of his 24-year career as a
first sergeant. During World War II, however, he
served as an aerial gunner on B-24 bombers, and is
credited with 28 combat missions in Europe. Chief Like the B-24 in this photograph, Airey’s B-24 was brought
Airey was a prisoner of war in Germany (19 July down by German flak.

68
THE VIETNAM WAR

1965–75
 Operation Rolling Thunder (1965–68)

Air Force would be too aggressive, the White

House maintained tight control of all phases of
the operation. Johnson correctly claimed that
the military could not bomb an outhouse in
North Vietnam without his permission. In the
words of one historian, “the policy-makers did
everything but fly the aircraft.” But the cam-
paign failed to achieve US policy objectives.
The F-105 Thud delivered 75 percent of bomb tonnage dur-
ing Operation Rolling Thunder.
Top strategists within the administration
noted the ineffectiveness of the air campaign

T
he Rolling Thunder air campaign lasted from the beginning. For example, in April 1965
from February 1965 to March 1968. To the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS)
avoid escalating military actions until (Gen Earle G. Wheeler) told Secretary
after the 1964 elections, President Lyndon B. McNamara that the February–April bombings
Johnson did not send significant US ground had not appreciably reduced “the overall mili-
forces to Vietnam until July 1965. The US tary capability of the [communists]. I think it is
Military Assistance Advisory Group, Vietnam, fair to state that our strikes to date, while dam-
had been operating in Southeast Asia since 1955 aging, have not curtailed [their] military capa-
but had not prevented the Vietnamese commu- bilities in any major way.”
nists from making steady progress against South
Vietnamese forces. By January 1965, Johnson
was under mounting pressure from his closest Rolling Thunder’s use of precise
national security advisors to “do something” in
increments of force succeeded only in
response to the increasing communist attacks on
United States and South Vietnamese personnel preventing the attainment of US
and installations. strategic objectives. In fact, these
Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara
spelled out the US strategic objective in a mem- halfhearted attempts at using air-
orandum for the president. In McNamara’s power bolstered the enemy’s resolve.
words, “Our objective is to create conditions for
a favorable settlement by demonstrating to the
[communists] that the odds are against their Rolling Thunder demonstrated US support
winning.” The administration believed that for the government of South Vietnam and the
once the communist North Vietnamese realized United States’ desire to contain communist
they probably would not win, they would stop expansion but it failed to bring the North
attacking the South. Johnson’s advisors consid- Vietnamese to the negotiating table, failed to
ered three options: continue a policy of limited impede the flow of logistics support from the
military assistance; launch bold attacks against North, and failed to weaken the North’s
the North; or gradually increase the use of mil- resolve. In all, the United States flew 304,000
itary force. fighter-bomber sorties and 2,380 B-52 bomber
Option three, perceived as a middle ground sorties over North Vietnam, lost 922 aircraft,
between the hawks and doves, was endorsed by and dropped 634,000 tons of bombs. The fail-
the president. To the greatest extent possible, ure of Rolling Thunder also contributed to the
the administration wanted to achieve its ends decisions that sent US ground troops to
through a finely calibrated use of airpower Vietnam, escalating the war and raising the price
known as “Rolling Thunder.” Fearing that the of our ultimate failure in Vietnam.

71
 Operation Arc Light (1965–67)

strafed the base camps to soften them up as

landing zones. Then three reconnaissance teams
performed a ground sweep of the target area
but found no enemy and little bomb damage.
The B-52s returned to Guam, completing the
13-hour mission. The immediate observable
results of the bombing were less than spectacu-
lar especially placed in the politically charged
atmosphere of the time. Journalists questioned
why such a powerful strategic weapon was used
on such a minuscule enemy. However, the B-52s
The B-52 Stratofortress proved its worth in Vietnam. were one part of a large operation that included
tactical aircraft, ground troops, and helicopters.

T
he United States began direct involve-
ment in military operations in Southeast The B-52s added an element to the air war that
Asia in the spring of 1965. In April, Gen had been missing. They could strike dug-in tar-
William C. Westmoreland, commander of gets, saturate large areas, surprise the enemy,
Military Assistance Command, Vietnam reduce enemy safe areas, and encourage the
(MACV), urged the use of B-52s against South Vietnamese soldiers to venture back into
Vietcong base camps in advance of ground enemy territory.
forces. These base camps were too spread out to The tactic of using B-52s to surprise enemy
be effectively bombed by the more tactical concentrations and soften them for a follow-up
fighter-bombers. B-52s could deliver an even ground sweep saw a steady increase in use after
pattern of bombs over a large area in a short this first mission in 1965. By July 1966, B-52s
time. The Joint Chiefs approved the idea and by had flown 4,309 sorties in 471 missions.
May the details for the strikes had been worked Westmoreland used subjective valuations of the
out. The first strike was scheduled for 18 June missions (weight of ordnance dropped, percent
1965. of bombs planned and dropped) to press for
At 1:00 A.M., 30 B-52s took off from Guam increases. He viewed the missions as extremely
and headed to the refueling area off the north- effective in lowering enemy morale, increasing
western tip of Luzon in the Philippines. Most of desertions, forcing changes in tactics, and caus-
the bombers carried 51 750-pound bombs. Six ing disruptions in the enemy’s economy.
of the B-52s were loaded with one- thousand-
American ground commanders considered
pound armor-piercing bombs. A tailwind caused
the B-52s as the most effective weapon system
the bombers to arrive at the rendezvous early so
used in South Vietnam. Their enthusiasm fell in
the lead cell of 10 aircraft began to circle. In the
dark, the turn caused two of the Stratofortresses line with their view that bombers were “flying
to collide killing eight of the 12 crewmembers. artillery.” The Air Force objected to the B-52’s
Twenty-seven of the remaining bombers refu- Arc Light role because the strategic assets were
eled and continued the mission. not being used effectively. The draw for politi-
At 6:45 A.M. and between 19,000 and cians was clear due to the high enemy attrition
22,000 feet, the B-52s began dropping their rate and an extremely low loss of US life.
bombs on a one-mile-by-two-mile target box. During 1965 through 1967, the Air Force flew
Slightly more than one-half of the thirteen hun- 25 percent of its tactical strike sorties (46,000)
dred bombs hit the target box. Shortly after the and 30 percent of its B-52 sorties (3,300) in
B-52s departed, 32 A-1Es from Bien Hoa supporting ground offensives.

72
 Operation Bolo (January 1967)

F-4s flew north with jamming pods which made

them appear to be F-105s and enticed MiG-21s
at Phuc Yen into the air.
Olds flew lead for one flight of F-4s, his first
mission to Hanoi. The Hanoi Delta was a dan-
gerous place to loiter particularly for the 55
minutes called for by the plan. As Olds pushed
his flight deep into North Vietnam airspace,
MiGs began to scramble from every base. Col
Daniel “Chappie” James Jr., flying lead on
another flight spotted a MiG closing on Olds
and warned him. Soon there were numerous
MiGs all over the sky and a no-holds-barred
Col Robin Olds, an ace in World War II, won four dogfight ensued. The engagement lasted only
victories in Vietnam. nine tense minutes before the MiGs dived
through the clouds and landed at Phuc Yen—

O
n 2 January 1967, 12 F-4s of the 8th saved from further losses by President Johnson’s
Tactical Fighter Wing shot down seven rules of engagement.
MiG-21s over North Vietnam without The Vietnamese had launched 32 enemy
a loss. The commander of the 8th, Col Robin fighters and the F-4s had downed seven of
Olds, led the sweep and got one of the kills. them. If the weather had cooperated and all the
Nearly two years into the Rolling Thunder air MiGs been destroyed, mission planning would
campaign against North Vietnam, Operation have most certainly been affected. As it was,
Bolo was the first time the Air Force managed Seventh Air Force returned to business as usual
to destroy more than two enemy aircraft on a shortly after the success of Operation Bolo. Not
single day. until the spring did Johnson authorize attacks
By the end of 1966, President Johnson had on North Vietnamese airfields, and not until the
not yet permitted air strikes on North fall did he permit Phuc Yen airfield to be
Vietnamese airfields, where Soviet and Chinese struck—causing surviving North Vietnamese
advisors were staying. Flying from these sanctu- MiGs to be based in neighboring China for the
aries, MiG pilots attacked F-105s laden with remaining months of Rolling Thunder.
bombs. Although most F-105s survived such In mid-1967, the F-4C kill ratio was an
attacks, North Vietnamese pilots often suc- impressive 21-to-1 against the MiG-21. By
ceeded in getting F-105 pilots to jettison their 1973, even with improved F-4E aircraft, mis-
bombs. Meanwhile, MiG pilots carefully avoided siles, and gun sights, the ratio had dropped to
combat with F-4 escorts, screens, and sweeps. 1.06-to-1 against the same MiG-21s.
Colonel Olds took advantage of the intro-
duction of electronic jamming pods on F-105s
to fool MiG pilots and their controllers into
thinking that F-4s were actually more vulnerable
F-105s. The new pods protected F-105s against
surface-to-air missiles by jamming North
Vietnamese radar. During a New Year’s Day
cease-fire, Olds had the pods transferred from
F-105 bases to F-4 bases at Ubon, Thailand, The F-4 Phantoms claimed 107.5 of the 137 aerial victories of
and Danang, South Vietnam. On 2 January, 28 the Vietnam War.

73
 Operation Linebacker I (1972)

F-4s used laser-guided bombs in interdiction

missions that cut communist supply lines. C-
130s dropped supplies to besieged towns and at
night, AC-119 and AC-130 gunships provided
vital close air support to hard pressed garrisons.
The devastating US airstrikes gradually turned
the tide of the fighting and enabled the South
Vietnamese to retake every important town that
the communists had managed to capture.
One of the striking departures from earlier
This F-4 is carrying 2,000 lb laser-guided bombs to strike strate-
gic targets in North Vietnam in 1972.
Rolling Thunder campaign was in strategic
attack. Improved diplomatic relations with
China enabled US aircraft to attack important

B
y the spring of 1972, the United States targets that have previously been off limits out
had withdrawn virtually all of its ground of concern that attacking them might cause the
troops from South Vietnam. On 29 Chinese to intervene on the ground. At the
March 1972 the North Vietnamese launched a same time, laser-guidance kits made USAF
major invasion of South Vietnam expecting to bombs 100 times as accurate as they had been a
have an easy time against the South Vietnamese few years earlier. These two changes enabled
army and hoping to influence the November fast-moving F-4s to strike key road and rail tar-
1972 US presidential election in their favor. gets near the Chinese border efficiently and
Unlike the guerrilla warfare that characterized effectively. In North Vietnam, strategic attacks
much of the Vietnam War, the Communist hit more than 400 bridges, cut key mountain
Spring Offensive of 1972 was a conventional roads in over 800 places, demolished petroleum
invasion by 14 divisions and 26 separate regi- storage facilities, power-generating plants, head-
ments led by hundreds of tanks and supported quarters, and repair facilities (the North
by ferocious artillery barrages. The United States Vietnamese did not have any factories).
immediately responded with airpower in an Combined with mine-laying by US Navy planes
operation which became know as Linebacker I. in North Vietnamese harbors, these strategic
Like the US ground presence in Vietnam, the attacks finally started to isolate North Vietnam
US air presence had been radically scaled back from outside support.
by early 1972. To meet the communist aggres- This North Vietnamese attempt at a conven-
sion, the US Air Force rapidly deployed forces tional offensive (requiring massed forces and
into the region. Soon the USAF had very pow- enormous quantities of supplies) came at a time
erful forces in the area including over 200 B-52s when the United States was improving relations
in theater and almost 400 F-4s operating out of with North Vietnam’s ally, China. This mistake
Thailand and South Vietnam. made the North Vietnamese army an early vic-
In some of the most effective counterland tim of the counterland and strategic attack oper-
operations of the war, US Air Force B-52s ations that make up the USAF’s “rapid halt”
chewed-up the massed communist forces, and strategy.

74
 Operation Linebacker II (1972)

Thai Airfield, Thailand, there were another 54

B-52Ds available. Missions from Thailand
would only take three to four hours and not
require refueling. It took nearly two hours for
the 87 B-52s from Guam to taxi, take off, and
become airborne on the afternoon of 18
December 1972. They were joined in flight by
42 B-52s from Thailand. Targets on the 18th
included airfields, vehicle repair centers, rail
yards, railroad repair facilities, and the main
Hanoi radio station.
The B-52s of Linebacker II conducted the most concen-
trated bombing campaign of the war.
On day one of the operation, the North
Vietnamese launched two hundred SAMs often

N
ot since World War II had bombers in 4-6 weapon volleys. United States losses that
been employed in an operation the size day totaled three B-52s and one F-111. SSgt
of Linebacker II. In December of Samuel Turner, tail gunner on Brown 03, shot
1972, the United States position in Southeast down a MiG-21, the first in B-52 combat his-
Asia was precarious. The North Vietnamese had tory.
successfully defeated the South Vietnamese Tactics were revised for day two—altitudes
forces and were unwilling to pursue peace nego- were lowered and time separation of aircraft was
tiations. The American ground presence had
increased to four minutes. The changes resulted
been reduced to approximately 26,000. A force
in no aircraft losses despite the North
this size could not engage the communists in
any large battle. President Richard M. Nixon Vietnamese shooting over 180 SAMs. Combat
turned to the Air Force for a solution. losses for the entire campaign totaled 15 B-52s,
The resultant operation, Linebacker II, two F-111s, and two F-4 flying MiG combat air
occurred 18–29 December 1972, standing patrol (MiGCAP). The B-52s had proven to be
down for Christmas day. The operation would an effective force able to meet and defeat the
be fought Air Force style—a concentrated, sus- enemy. Within 60 days of the Paris Peace
tained air attack against the enemy center of Accords signing, 591 American POWs were
power. released.
The operation would be very risky because In Linebacker II, B-52s had flown 729 of
the enemy had massed an awesome air defense 741 planned sorties and dropped 15,000 tons of
system around the Hanoi-Haiphong area. The bombs. The North Vietnamese fired 1,240 sur-
system included 145 MiG fighters, 26 SA-2 sur- face-to-air missiles but the B-52s only suffered a
face-to-air missile (SAM) sites, concentrated
2 percent loss rate. Not long after Linebacker II,
antiaircraft artillery and a very sophisticated
the United States formally disengaged from the
radar network. The mission was to destroy all
major target complexes in the Hanoi-Haiphong war in Southeast Asia. Many believe a bombing
area using B-52s and F-111s during the night campaign like Linebacker II should have been
and tactical aircraft during the day. conducted in 1965. In 1965, the Hanoi air
The flight line at Andersen AFB, Guam, was defense system was severely limited and an oper-
crowded with 99 B-52Gs and 50 B-52Ds. The ation of this nature would have achieved a mili-
mission from Guam would take 12 hours and tary victory and prevented the costly US
require in-flight refueling. At U Tapao Royal involvement in Vietnam.

75
 A1C William H. Pitzenbarger

began to lose power, the pilot realized he had to get

the Huskie away from the area as soon as possible.
Instead of climbing into the litter basket so he could
leave with the helicopter, Pits elected to remain with
the Army troops under enemy attack and he gave a
“wave-off” to the helicopter which flew away to
safety.
Pits continued to treat the wounded and, when
the others began running low on ammunition, he
gathered ammo clips from the dead and distributed
them to those still alive. Then, he joined the others
with a rifle to hold off the Vietcong. About 7:30 P.M.

O
n 11 April 1966, 21-year old A1C William
H. Pitzenbarger of Piqua, Ohio, was killed that evening, Bill Pitzenbarger was killed by
while defending some of his wounded com- Vietcong snipers. When his body was recovered the
rades. For his bravery and sacrifice, he was posthu- next day, one hand still held a rifle and the other a
mously awarded the Medal of Honor. medical kit.
“Pits,” as he was known to his friends, was near-
ing his three hundredth combat mission on that fatal
day when some men of the US Army’s 1st Division
were ambushed and pinned down in an area approx-
imately 45 miles east of Saigon. Two HH-43
“Huskie” helicopters of the USAF’s 38th Aerospace
Rescue and Recovery Squadron were rushed to the
scene to lift out the wounded. Pits was a pararescue-
man (PJ) on one of them. Upon reaching the site of
the ambush, Pits was lowered through the trees to
the ground where he attended to the wounded
before having them lifted to the helicopter by cable.
After six wounded men had been flown to an aid sta-
tion, the two USAF helicopters returned for their
second loads. As one of them lowered its litter bas-
ket to Pitzenbarger, who had remained on the An HH-43 Huskie on rescue alert could be airborne in about one
ground with the 20 infantrymen still alive, it was hit minute. It carried two rescuemen/firefighters and a fire suppres-
by a burst of enemy small-arms fire. When its engine sion kit.

76
 Lt Col Merlyn H. Dethlefsen

heavy antiaircraft fire to escape from the MiG; in

doing so, his F-105 was also hit and seriously dam-
aged. Instead of heading for home, he elected to
carry-on and even after the steel mill had been
bombed and the bombing force had withdrawn, he,
along with his wingman, stayed in the target area
looking for SAM sites. After evading a second MiG
and then having his F-105 hit once again by flak, he
spotted two SAM sites and attacked, destroying
them both. Only then did he head his battered F-
105 for friendly territory. For his valor in combat
above and beyond the call of duty, Dethlefsen was
awarded the Medal of Honor, the third USAF mem-
ber to receive the award during the South East Asian
(SEA) conflict.

O
n 10 March 1967, Merlyn H. Dethlefsen
was flying an F-105F as No. 3 in a four-
plane formation on a mission against the
Thai Nguyen Steel Mill, 50 miles north of Hanoi.
The task for the F-105s was to knock out surface-to-
air (SAM) and antiaircraft gun sites before the bomb-
ing forces arrived. When the four F-105s made their
low-altitude attack run, the flight leader was shot
down and No. 2 was damaged so heavily that he had
to head homeward. Although standard tactics called
for only one attack pass on such a heavily defended
area, or two at the most, Lt Col Dethlefsen decided
not to leave the area, but to continue his attacks.
However, a MiG appeared and he had to fly through The F-105 Thunderchief was called the “Thud” by its aircrews.

77
 Capt Lance P. Sijan

An F-4 on a bomb drop during the Vietnam War.

Vinh and thrown into a bamboo cell. He was “inter-

rogated” repeatedly, and in spite of his captors tech-
nique of twisting his damaged right hand he refused
to disclose any information but his name. When not
being interrogated he attempted additional escapes,
with beatings the only results. Lt Sijan was soon
moved to a POW camp at Hanoi. Even in his pitiful
condition, he attempted more escapes, all meeting
with failure. His physical condition continued to
weaken without proper food or medical attention

O
n 9 November 1967, the F-4 flown by 1st and soon he developed respiratory problems. After
Lt Lance P. Sijan of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, many months of ill treatment, his health—but not his
was hit by North Vietnamese ground fire spirit—broken, he was dragged one night from his
and exploded. Although badly wounded, he was able cell while delirious and never seen again.
to parachute from his stricken plane. Without food Lt Sijan was promoted posthumously to captain
and very little water he managed to avoid capture for on 13 June 1968. On 4 March 1976 he was awarded
45 days. A serious compound fracture of the left leg posthumously the Medal of Honor that was pre-
made it impossible for him to walk, but he did man- sented to his parents by President Gerald R. Ford.
age to pull himself backward through the jungle. Captain Sijan thus became the first graduate of the
Even with the broken leg, a skull fracture, and a US Air Force Academy to receive our nation’s high-
mangled right hand, he was able to escape shortly est decoration for heroism above and beyond the call
after his initial capture. Recaptured, he was taken to of duty.

78
 Gen John D. Ryan

• In April 1946 Gen John D. Ryan assumed duties with the 58th
Bombardment Wing and participated in the Bikini Atoll atomic
weapons tests.
• In December 1962 General Ryan joined a select group of athletes
when he was chosen a member of the Sports Illustrated Silver
Anniversary All-American team.
• Appointed vice Chief of Staff of the US Air Force in August 1968,
and Chief of Staff of the US Air Force in August 1969.

assumed command of SAC’s Sixteenth Air Force in

G
eneral Ryan was born in Cherokee, Iowa, 10
December 1915. Following graduation from Spain. In July 1961 he was named commander of the
Cherokee Junior College in 1934, he Second Air Force at Barksdale AFB, Louisiana.
entered the United States Military Academy from In December 1962, he joined a select group of
which he graduated in 1938. He next attended flying athletes who have been successful in their profes-
school at Randolph and Kelly Fields, Texas, and
sional careers since their college football days, when
received his pilot wings in 1939.
he was chosen a member of the Sports Illustrated
In February 1944, he was transferred to Italy
where he commanded the 2d Bombardment Group Silver Anniversary All-American team.
and later became operations officer for the 5th In August 1963, General Ryan was assigned to
Bombardment Wing, Fifteenth Air Force. He the Pentagon as Inspector General for the US Air
returned to the United States in April 1945, and Force. One year later he was named vice
became deputy Air Base Commander, Midland Army Commander in Chief of Strategic Air Command and
Air Field, Texas. In September 1945, he was assigned in December 1964, became Commander in Chief.
to the Air Training Command (ATC) at Fort Worth
He was assigned as Commander in Chief, Pacific Air
and Randolph Field, Texas, where he remained until
Forces, in February 1967.
April 1946 when he assumed duties with the 58th
Bombardment Wing and participated in the Bikini Ryan was appointed vice Chief of Staff of the US
Atoll atomic weapons tests. Air Force in August 1968, and Chief of Staff of the
Ryan became director of Materiel for the Strategic US Air Force in August 1969. He commanded the
Air Command in June 1956, and four years later Air Force during the height of the Vietnam War.

79
 Gen Daniel “Chappie” James Jr.

• Gen Daniel “Chappie” James Jr. was a Tuskegee airman

who flew one hundred combat missions during the
Korean War.
• He flew over 60 combat missions as a full colonel dur-
ing the Vietnam War.
• The first black in American history to attain the rank
of four-star general.
• Served as commander of the North American Air
Defense (NORAD) Command until his retirement in
January of 1978.

base, which he saw as a vestige of European colo-

O
ne of the great Tuskegee airmen was Daniel
“Chappie” James Jr. Chappie won his wings nialism, be closed and its facilities turned over to the
and a commission in 1943 but did not see Libyan people. This obviously was an extremely del-
combat in World War II. After the war, James quickly icate position for James requiring restraint, tact,
earned a reputation as an outstanding fighter pilot. diplomacy, and grit. He displayed an abundance of
In Korea he flew one hundred combat missions, and all these qualities, and upon leaving Wheelus a year
later, he received his first star.
in Vietnam—by 1965 he was a full colonel—he flew
After four years in the Pentagon working in Public
over threescore more. Not only was that war unpop-
Affairs where he won two more stars, he was named
ular, but racial unrest was exploding into violence all
vice commander of Military Airlift Command
over the United States. James returned from
(MAC). After less than two years at MAC, he was
Vietnam and was often called upon to defend not given a fourth star, the first black in American history
only America’s military policies, but also its racial to attain that rank, and was named commander of
policies. An articulate speaker who commanded great the North American Air Defense (NORAD)
physical presence (he was six feet, four inches and Command. Surprisingly for a man of his size and
weighed nearly 250 pounds), he was an especially appearance, James was in poor health. He suffered a
effective spokesman for the Air Force. heart attack in 1977 and soon after elected to retire.
In 1967, he was named commander of Wheelus His health continued to decline and in February
AFB in Libya just as Colonel Gadhafi succeeded in 1978, one month after retirement, he suffered a fatal
his revolution there. Gadhafi demanded that the air heart attack.

80
 AlC John L. Levitow

that they were handling was tossed inside the cargo

compartment. Spewing toxic smoke, the activated
magnesium flare was due to separate explosively from
its cannister and ignite within seconds. Although
stunned and wounded by shrapnel, Airman Levitow
moved toward the flare and flung himself on top of
it to keep the flare from rolling around the pitching
cargo hold. He then dragged himself and the flare
back toward the cargo door and tossed it out. The
flare ignited just as it cleared the aircraft. Levitow
was awarded the Medal of Honor for his selfless
heroism that saved his fellow crew members and the
gunship. President Richard M. Nixon presented the
award at the White House on 14 May 1970.

O
n 24 February 1969, Airman Levitow flew
combat patrol over South Vietnam as the
loadmaster of an AC-47 Dragon ship. The
gunship was patrolling in the vicinity of Tan Son
Nhut when the Army post at nearby Long Sinh came
under attack. The aircraft diverted to aid in the
defense of the post. Firing its mini-guns at the
enemy, the gunship knocked out two mortar posi-
tions, but further firings were observed a few kilo-
meters away. As the AC-47 flew in the direction, a
mortar shell fell on the top of its right wing. A bril-
liant explosion shook the aircraft violently and the
fuselage was riddled by thousands of shell fragments.
An AC-47 at Nha Trang Air Base displays the three
Airman Levitow and another crew member were Gatling type machine guns which make up its arma-
standing near the open cargo door at that moment ment. The AC-47s were the first gunships and were
dropping parachute illumination flares. The explo- called a variety of nicknames—Puff, Spooky, and
sion knocked both of them to the floor and a flare Dragon ship were among the most popular.

81
 Gen George S. Brown

• As executive officer of the 93d Bomb Group, he took part in

the famous low-level bombing raid against oil refineries at
Ploesti, Romania, on 1 August 1943.
• In 1957 he served as executive to the Air Force Chief of Staff,
Gen Thomas White.
• In June 1959 he was selected to be Military Assistant to the
Deputy Secretary of Defense, and later was Military
Assistant to the Secretary of Defense.
• As Seventh Air Force Commander in 1969, he was responsi-
ble for all Air Force combat air strike, air support, and air
defense operations in Southeast Asia.

then a major, took over the lead of the battered 93d

G
eneral Brown was born in Montclair, New
Jersey, on 17 August 1918. He graduated and led it back to Bengasi. He received the
from high school in Leavenworth, Kansas, Distinguished Service Cross for his actions on that
and after attending the University of Missouri for a mission.
year, he received a congressional appointment to the During the Korean War in May 1952, he joined
US Military Academy, West Point, New York, in Fifth Air Force Headquarters at Seoul, Korea, as
1937. He graduated from the Academy in 1941, and director for Operations. He served as the assistant to
entered flying training at Pine Bluff, Arkansas. He the chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, in Washington,
received his pilot wings at Kelly Field, Texas, in D.C., from August 1966 to August 1968. He then
1942. assumed command of the Seventh Air Force and also
In August 1942, he flew with the 93d became deputy commander for Air Operations, US
Bombardment Group to England, the first B-24 Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV). In
group to join the Eighth Air Force. Until April 1944, his MACV position, he advised on all matters per-
he served in various positions with the group, includ- taining to tactical air support and coordinated the
ing commander of the 329th Bombardment Republic of Vietnam and United States air opera-
Squadron, group operations, and then executive offi- tions in the MACV area of responsibility. In
cer. It was as executive officer that he took part in the September 1970, General Brown assumed duty as
famous low-level bombing raid against oil refineries commander, Air Force Systems Command, Andrews
at Ploesti, Romania, on 1 August 1943. The 93d AFB, Maryland.
Group was the second of five B-24 groups that General Brown was appointed by the president to
raided Ploesti from a temporary base at Bengasi, be Chief of Staff of the US Air Force, effective 1
Libya. The 93d Group, led by its commander, flew August 1973, and to be chairman of the Joint Chiefs
directly into heavy defenses to hit three of the six tar- of Staff, Department of Defense, effective 1 July
get refineries. The lead plane and 10 others were 1974. General Brown retired 21 June 1978, and
shot down or crashed on the target. General Brown, passed away 5 December 1978.

82
 Capt Richard S. “Steve” Ritchie

on. Ritchie fired two missiles but the MiG-21 was

able to evade them. After countering the MiG’s eva-
sion “jinks,” Ritchie fired two more air-to-air mis-
siles. The MiG went into a thin overcast and when he
came out, one of the missiles went by his left. Seeing
the missile, he immediately broke to the right caus-
ing the second missile to impact and completely
destroy the MiG. Ritchie’s fifth kill broke the
Vietnam record of four MiG kills set by Col Robin
Olds in 1967.

O
n 28 August 1972 Capt Richard S. “Steve”
Ritchie became the first USAF ace of the
Vietnam War, downing his fifth MiG-21.
Ritchie was a pilot attached to the 432d Tactical
Reconnaissance Wing flying F-4 Phantoms. His fifth
aerial victory came 30 miles west of Hanoi while he
and his Weapon Systems Operator, Capt Chuck
DeBellevue, were flying MiG Combat Air Patrol.
After receiving information that “bandits” were
threatening an F-4 strike force, Captain DeBellevue The MiG-21 was a light refined aircraft with Mach 2 capability.
The proficiency of US aircrews mitigated the superior character-
picked the MiGs up on radar. The MiGs were four istics of the MiG-21 during the Vietnam War. Between 26 April
thousand feet higher than Ritchie’s F-4 requiring a 1965 and 8 January 1973, USAF F-4s and B-52s downed 68
quick climb and a hard turn to meet the bandits head MiG-21s.

83
 Gen David C. Jones

• In combat, he was assigned to a bombardment squadron during

the Korean War and accumulated more than three hundred hours
on missions over North Korea.
• In 1969 he served in the Republic of Vietnam as deputy com-
mander for Operations and then as vice commander of the
Seventh Air Force.
• After serving four years as Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General
Jones was appointed chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on 21
June 1978.
• After retirement from the Air Force, he served on the board of
directors for General Electric.

major headquarters in the United States and over-

G
eneral Jones was born in Aberdeen, South
Dakota. He graduated from high school in seas. He served as inspector, operator, planner, and
Minot, North Dakota, in 1939 and attended Commander in Chief of United States Air Forces in
the University of North Dakota and Minot State Europe. Concurrent with duty as Commander in
College until the outbreak of World War II. He Chief USAFE, General Jones was commander of the
entered the Army Air Corps, beginning aviation Fourth Allied Tactical Air Force and led the way
cadet training in April 1942, and receiving his com- toward establishing the integrated air headquarters
mission and pilot wings in February 1943. in NATO’s Central Region, Allied Air Forces,
In combat, General Jones was assigned to a bom- Central Europe.
bardment squadron during the Korean War and General Jones served four years as Chief of Staff of
accumulated more than three hundred hours on mis- the US Air Force, responsible for administering,
sions over North Korea. In 1969, he served in the training, and equipping a worldwide organization of
Republic of Vietnam as deputy commander for men and women employing the world’s most
Operations and then as vice commander of the advanced defense systems. Concurrently, he was a
Seventh Air Force. member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
General Jones’ assignments included operational General Jones was appointed Chairman of the
and command positions in strategic, tactical, and Joint Chiefs of Staff, Department of Defense, on 21
training units, as well as service in staff positions with June 1978.

84
 Brig Gen Robin Olds

• Credited with 12 aerial victories in

World War II and four in Vietnam making
him a triple ace.
• Wingman on the first jet acrobatic team
in the Air Force.
• Won second place in the Thompson
Trophy Race (Jet Division) at Cleveland
in 1946.
• Participated in the first one-day, dawn-
to-dusk, transcontinental roundtrip
flight in June 1946 from March Field,
California, to Washington, D.C.

R
obin Olds was born on 14 July 1922, in those victories in a single day, 20 May 1967. Olds
Honolulu, Hawaii, the son of an Army Air was a beloved leader who spent many hours talking
Corps major general. He graduated from the to his junior officers constantly trying to improve his
US Military Academy at West Point and commis- skills as well as theirs. On one such occasion, a junior
sioned as second lieutenant in June of 1943. While at officer recommended swapping an F-4’s electronic
West Point, he was honored for his football skills by countermeasure pods with an F-105’s. The false sig-
being named as an All-American tackle in 1942. nal would entice MiGs to engage the F-4’s thinking
He began his combat flying in a P-38 Lightning they were engaging the slower, less agile F-105. Olds
named Scat I during World War II and finished liked the idea and managed to cut through the red
tape and employ the tactic. The resultant operation,
World War II flying Scat VII, a P-51 Mustang.
code named Bolo, was a great success.
During World War II, he flew 107 combat missions
From Vietnam, Olds returned to the United
and was credited with 12 aerial victories and destroy-
States to serve as commandant of Cadets at the Air
ing 11 and one-half aircraft on the ground.
Force Academy. He
In February 1946, Olds started flying P-80 jets at retired from active duty
March Field in the first squadron equipped with this in June of 1973. His
jet. In 1948, he went to England as a Royal Air Force decorations include: the
exchange pilot and flew the Gloster Meteor jet Air Force Cross, Distin-
fighter in the No. 1 Fighter Squadron at RAF guished Service Medal,
Tangmere. four Silver Stars, Legion
Olds’s most notable accomplishments occurred of Merit, six Distin-
when he assumed duties as commander of the 8th guished Flying Crosses,
Tactical Fighter Wing at Ubon Royal Thai Air Force and 40 Air Medals. One
Base, Thailand, in September 1966. While com- of the truly legendary
manding this unit, he shot down two MiG-17s and “stick and rudder” men
two MiG-21s. Olds, the aircraft commander, and Lt of the Air Force. Olds married film star Ella
Stephan B. Croker, the backseat pilot, scored two of Raines.

85
 Brig Gen Harry C. “Heinie” Aderholt

• Instrumental in developing Special Operations

capabilities in USAF.
• Parachuted Korean spies behind communist lines in
Korean War.
• Commanded airlift operations supporting Khamba
revolt against China.
• Established system of Lima Sites in Laos.
• Commanded night, low-altitude, B-26 raids on Ho
Chi Minh Trail.

ported special operations and combat search and res-

H
arry C. “Heinie” Aderholt was born in
1920 and joined the US Army Air Forces cue operations in Laos and North Vietnam. In 1966
through the aviation cadet program in General Aderholt established the Joint Personnel
1942. Commissioned out of pilot training in 1943, Recovery Center in Saigon and then took command
he served in North Africa and Italy as a B-17 and C- of the newly activated 56th Air Commando Wing in
47 pilot until the end of the war. Thailand conducting devastating low-level night
During the Korean War General Aderholt began interdiction missions over the Ho Chi Minh Trail
his long career in special operations by commanding with old prop-driven aircraft. Later he served as chief
a Special Air Warfare Detachment that parachuted of the Air Force Advisory Group in Thailand.
Korean spies behind communist lines. Back in the During his US tours, General Aderholt com-
United States he helped the Central Intelligence manded the 1st Air Commando Wing and was
Agency with air operations, equipment, and training, instrumental in developing the Special Operations
before beginning his long series of assignments alter- capabilities of the US Air Force. After retiring in
nating between Asia and the US Air Force Special Air 1972, he was called back to active duty in 1975 to
Warfare Center (predecessor of US Air Force Special command US Military Assistance Command in
Operations Command) in Florida. Thailand during the desperate fighting that brought
In the early 1960s General Aderholt commanded the communists to power in Cambodia and Vietnam.
the air operations supplying and assisting the In Thailand General Aderholt helped manage the
Khamba tribesman during their guerrilla war against evacuation of US personnel, employees, and allies,
China in Tibet. He also developed the system of and ensured that US-Thai relations remained strong
small airstrips in Laos (called Lima sites) that sup- after Thailand’s neighbors fell to the communists.

86
Rebuilding the Air Force
and the Gulf War

1976–91
 El Dorado Canyon (14–15 April 1986)

missiles. However, the Libyans did manage to

put up some intense ground fire over Benghazi,
including surface-to-air missiles and antiaircraft
guns of all types.
Under the cover of darkness, 18 F-111
fighter-bombers roared across the coast of Libya
at more than 500 MPH and only two hundred
feet above the ground. They lined themselves up
with an electronic beacon from a US base on
Italy’s Lampedusa Island. The American aircraft
The EF-111 Raven was used to jam Libyan search radar slipped in behind Libyan radar coming from the
and provide electronic countermeasures against any sur- west and south to destroy the military side of the
face-to-air threats.
Tripoli International Airport, a naval facility, and
Mu`ammar Gadhafi’s barracks. Over Tripoli, the

O
n 14 April 1986 the United States
launched an air attack, El Dorado F-111s faced Soviet-made ZSU-23 four-barreled
Canyon, against targets in Libya. guns clustered around the Aziziya barracks. One
President Ronald W. Reagan declared the attack F-111 was badly damaged by these guns. Capt
a reprisal for the Libyan role in the 5 April Paul Lorence and Capt Fernando Ribas-
bombing of a West Berlin discotheque that Dominicci, weapon systems operator, tried to
killed US citizens. More than six hours before get the plane out to sea before ejecting. As they
the attack, 24 F-111s took off from Lakenheath crossed the coast, however, their plane exploded
Air Base, Great Britain, escorted by 28 tankers killing both airmen. With the bomb run com-
and five EF-111 Ravens from Upper Heyford, plete, the F-111s required eight more hours and
England. The group represented the largest air- two more in-flight refuelings in order to return
combat group assembled over England since to Lakenheath. The 15-hour mission was
World War II. The planes merged well away exhausting; some men had to be lifted out of
from land over the English Channel and began their seats upon their arrival in Britain.
their twenty-eight hundred mile journey to The operation achieved the objective of hit-
Libya. Because the French and Spanish govern- ting terrorist infrastructure targets in Libya.
ments denied overflight privileges, the strike Even with much publicity about mission short-
group was forced to fly a circuitous route comings, the overall impact was one of success.
around the Iberian Peninsula. Five hours after At the Benina airfield, four MiG-23s, two Soviet
the F-111s took off, A-6 bombers and F-14s helos, and two prop planes were destroyed. At
were launched from the carriers USS America the Tripoli International Airport, five Il-76s and
and USS Coral Sea. several buildings were destroyed. The Sidi Bilal
H hour was established as 7:00 P.M. eastern naval base, as well as military barracks in
standard time. Ten minutes before H hour, Benghazi and Tripoli were damaged. The
Libyan radar operators reported confusing blips United States was able to achieve total surprise,
on their screens; the electronic countermeasures evidenced by lack of air raid alarms being
were already masking the attack. Minutes before sounded and street lights illuminating the tar-
the bomb runs began, missile attacks were gets. The complex operation involved 150 air-
launched against Libyan antiaircraft defenses. craft and resulted in the dropping of 60 tons of
These proved to be effective. No MiG intercep- bombs. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
tors were ever launched and many sites turned Staff, Adm William Crowe, declared the opera-
off their electronic sensors to avoid being tar- tion “very successful” and made the world
geted by radar-guided high-speed antiradiation smaller for the terrorists.
89
 Operation Just Cause (December 1989)

and 2 C-5s. Strategic Air Command (SAC) also

provided RC-135s and U-2s which patrolled
between the Yucatan Peninsula and Cuba to
determine if the Cubans had provided Noriega
with advance warning. They had not.
Apparently the transports successfully avoided
Cuban radar by descending to low altitude as
they passed by Cuba.
By the time the transports reached their
objectives in the early hours of 20 December,
The AC-130 Spectre gunship. fighting had already begun. A task force from
the 193d Infantry Brigade was driving from the

B
y 1989 the administration of President Panama Canal Zone toward the headquarters of
George W. Bush decided that the Panamanian Defense Forces. Two AC-130 gun-
Panamanian dictator Manual Noriega ships opened the attack on the headquarters.
had to be ousted from power because of his Their weapons, however, could not penetrate
involvement in the narcotics trade and his devel- the concrete floors of the building, which per-
oping rapprochement with communist Cuba. mitted defenders to sally out to engage the
After the failure of various political initiatives, approaching infantry task force. In the resulting
Bush decided upon the use of force. The result firefight, the neighborhood of El Chorillo
was Operation Just Cause, which began on the caught fire, killing several hundred civilians.
night of 19 December 1989. Two F-117s also attacked Rio Hato, dropping
The Air Force played a central role in Just bombs near military barracks. Alerted by explo-
Cause. No component was more deeply sions, the Panamanians quickly brought the
involved than the Military Airlift Command parachuting Rangers under fire. It took two
(MAC). In the weeks before the invasion, MAC AC-130s to suppress the defenders with auto-
helped to pre-position troops and equipment matic weapons, certainly preventing a disaster.
for Just Cause by ferrying them to Howard Air At Rio Hato—and elsewhere in Panama—the
Force Base, Panama. The plans for Just Cause AC-130 showed itself a superb instrument for
also sought tactical surprise through airborne providing highly accurate fire support for
assaults by units flown directly from the United ground forces, as well as night surveillance and
States. MAC managed to airlift three companies navigation assistance.
of the 75th Ranger Regiment and one brigade During the invasion, Noriega fled to the res-
of the 82d Airborne Division for an assault on idence of the Vatican’s ambassador, where he
Torrijos-Tocumen Airport near Panama City. surrendered on 3 January 1990. Fighting had
Forty-five hundred paratroopers dropped in the effectively ended by Christmas day, though Just
dead of the night, the largest airborne assault Cause did not officially end until 4 February
since World War II. MAC transports also 1990. A few figures convey the scale of the
brought five companies of the Army’s 75th operation: the Air Force flew 40,000 passengers
Rangers from Lawson Army Air Field, Georgia, to and from Panama and delivered nearly
to Rio Hato, Panama, where the rangers were to 21,000 tons of cargo. There were no accidents,
engage and destroy the 6th and 7th Companies and no airman lost his life. Just Cause, while not
of the Panamanian Defense Forces—both main- unmarred by errors, was on the whole a highly
stays of Noriega’s misrule. In all, MAC successful limited operation in support of polit-
employed 86 aircraft—63 C-141, 21 C-130s, ical objectives.

90
 Strategic Attack on Iraq (January 1991)

1,600 “shooter” sorties and another 540 com-

bat-support sorties.
Precision strikes in the first two nights
focused on the Iraqi leadership and its com-
mand, control and communications (C3).
Because of the heavy defenses, physical hard-
ness, small size and urban location of these tar-
gets, the F-117/GBU-27 combination was the
primary attack weapon systems. There were over
70 strikes carried out on 17–18 January against
leadership and C3 targets by F-117s, tactical
land attack missiles, conventional air launched
cruise missiles, and F-111Fs. Hits from 2,000
Initial air attacks of Instant Thunder.
The 38-day strategic air campaign

T
he first phase of Desert Storm was the
strategic air campaign, initially code
was so effective that the ground
named Instant Thunder. Gen Buster campaign took only 100 hours
Glosson reworked the plan developed by Col
John Warden and the Pentagon Checkmate staff pound bombs within feet of desired aiming
so that it addressed Iraqi forces in Kuwait as well points on government ministries, national com-
as command structures. Strategic attacks on Iraq mand and control facilities, headquarters and
focused on three “centers of gravity”: Iraqi communications centers destroyed or severely
National Command Authority; chemical, bio- disrupted Iraqi C3. The breakdown in Iraqi C3
logical, and nuclear capability; and the was so complete that at the cease-fire meetings
Republican Guard Forces Command. that ended the war, coalition commanders had to
Air superiority was the first priority of coali- tell the Iraqi generals where the Iraqi troops were.
tion forces and was achieved in the first days of Coalition airpower was overwhelming in
the campaign. The Gulf War was the first con- both numbers and in quality. Coalition fighters,
flict in history in which a large percentage of the attack aircraft, and airlift were superior and in
air-to-air engagements that produced kills conjunction with coalition aerial refueling,
involved “beyond visual range” shots. Coalition reconnaissance, electronic warfare and airborne
counterair operations were so effective that the command and control capabilities, they gave the
Iraqi air force lost more than 400 combat air- coalition air dominance from the early days of
craft while only one coalition plane was shot the campaign.
down by an Iraqi plane.
Coalition destruction of Iraqi ground-based
air defenses was equally as overwhelming. The
best measure of its effectiveness was the relative
immunity with which coalition aircraft operated
over Iraq. During the first four days of Desert
Storm, radar SAMs downed or damaged nine
coalition fixed-wing aircraft. For the remainder
of the campaign, radar SAMs hit only four more
coalition aircraft in spite of the fact that coali- The F-117 Nighthawk was spectacularly successful against even
tion air forces maintained a daily average of over the toughest targets.

91
 The Battle of Khafji (1991)

further realized air action was steadily destroy-

ing their forces and the means of support and
sustainment, as well as the means of command
and control. They were facing a “use it or lose
it” situation and needed to recapture the initia-
tive.
Saddam started ground actions on the night
of 29 January to spur the coalition into the
bloody ground war of attrition he desperately
needed for either military or political victory.
The Iraqi 5th Mechanized Division units
attacked across the Saudi-Kuwaiti border at
three locations. Their 1st Mechanized Division
Destroyed Iraqi armored columns. was to conduct screening operations to the west
and their 3d Armor Division was to exploit any

O
n 17 January 1991 coalition airpower breakthroughs. Many other Iraqi units also had
started offensive actions against military supporting roles and were prepared to “grind
targets in Iraq and Kuwait. Planning down” any subsequent coalition ground pene-
depended upon the air campaign to attrit Iraqi trations into Kuwait.
forces, prevent them from detecting coalition Two prongs of the attack were stopped by US
redeployments to the west, and to lock Iraqi Marine Corps units with close air support. One
forces in place. Iraqi battalion did make it into the town of
Indeed, Iraqi forces were well prepared for a Khafji that had been evacuated because it was
frontal ground assault against their positions in within range of Iraqi artillery in Kuwait. The
Kuwait. During months of preparation, miles of joint surveillance, target attack radar system pin-
fortified positions, obstacles, minefields, and fire pointed the movements of Iraqi follow-on rein-
trenches were constructed just north of the
forcements for airpower strikes. With airpower
Saudi-Kuwaiti border. Saddam Hussein was
halting the majority of Iraqi forces in Kuwait,
convinced that bloody ground action would be
the Saudis reclaimed the town of Khafji on 31
the ultimate determining factor. During an
January.
interview, he declared that the United States
relied on its Air Force, but that air forces have While combat activity in the town was not
never been decisive in war. extensive, movement of the reinforcing divi-
Neither the Iraqis, nor the world in general, sions, stopped by airpower, was substantial. The
expected independent air operations past the Joint Force Commander’s refusal to take
first week. Indeed, classical theory and exercise Saddam’s bait and the predominant use of air-
practice only allotted five to seven days for inde- power allowed redeployments and preparations
pendent air actions in combined arms opera- for the “Hail Mary” to continue without inter-
tions. The secretary of defense and chairman of ruption. The impact on the Iraqis was even
the Joint Chiefs stated on 23 January that air more momentous as they attempted no other
supremacy had been achieved and there was “no offensive. Indeed, subsequent activity to dig
hurry” to stop pounding the Iraqi forces. deeper, disperse, use more deception, move fre-
By the second week, Iraqi commanders real- quently, and use smaller convoys demonstrated
ized their much touted air defense system was renewed efforts to simply survive continuing
not exacting the toll they had counted on. They joint air attacks.

92
 Col John W. Warden, III

• Author of The Air War.

• Created the “Five Rings” model of enemy systems and
“Inside-out” warfare.
• Developed the original draft for the “Instant Thunder” plan
for the air campaign in the Gulf War.
• Reinvigorated the Air Command and Staff College and
Airpower Theory throughout the Air Force.

is sometimes called “inside-out” warfare. This idea

J
ohn Warden had a full operational career includ-
ing 266 combat missions in Vietnam as Forward was at the core of the air plan Warden and his subor-
Air Control pilot flying OV-10s and flying and dinates on the Air Staff drafted for the Gulf War. The
command assignments in F-4 and F-15C units culmi- plan as ultimately executed was enormously success-
nating in command of a F-15C Fighter Wing. He is ful in paralyzing the Iraqi leadership and infrastruc-
best known, however, as one of the leading airpower ture before moving on to cripple the Iraqi ground
theorists of the late twentieth-century and as the forces which were finished off by the ground inva-
sion.
guiding light behind the Gulf War air campaign.
Colonel Warden’s extensive writings contain
many original, provocative, and influential ideas and
he continues to be a prolific author and speaker. One
FIELDED MILITARY FORCES
of his simplest and most influential ideas is that the
POPULATION
enemy (whether a nation or a drug cartel) can be
INFRASTRUCTURE
thought of as a system consisting of five concentric
rings: leadership, system essentials, infrastructure, SYSTEM ESSENTIALS
population, and fielded military forces. The most LEADERSHIP
important ring, leadership, is at the center and
fielded military forces are on the outside protecting
all the others (see figure). Airpower is uniquely capa-
ble of attacking any of these rings and is most effec-
tive when used against the most important inner
rings rather than the less important outer rings.
Attacking the inner rings and then working outward The Warden “Five Ring” Model of the Enemy.

93
 Gen Charles A. Horner

• As JFACC for Operation Desert Shield/Storm he com-

manded all air operations in the Gulf War.
• Flew 112 F-105 combat missions over North Vietnam dur-
ing the Vietnam War.

portion of Operation Desert Storm, employing more

G
en Charles Horner received his Air Force
commission in 1958 from the Reserve Office than 2,600 aircraft from 11 countries. General
Training Corps (ROTC) program at the Horner’s leadership helped produce one of the most
University of Iowa. During the Vietnam War he flew rapid and devastating air campaigns in military his-
41 combat missions over North Vietnam in F-105 tory. This campaign not only wiped out the Iraqi air
fighters and an additional 71 combat missions in F- force and air defenses but also destroyed some of the
105 Wild Weasel aircraft, hunting down North Iraqi infrastructure for building chemical, biological,
Vietnamese air defenses. During his distinguished and nuclear weapons, and large parts of the Iraqi
operational career he commanded a tactical training army. The campaign disrupted Iraqi command and
wing, a fighter wing, two air divisions, a numbered control so effectively that at the surrender negotia-
Air Force, and served as commander in chief of the
tions, the US representatives had to tell the Iraqi
North American Aerospace Defense Command and
generals where the Iraqi troops were. Most impres-
US Space Command. He is best known for his five
sively, Horner accomplished all this in just over 40
years as commander of 9th US Air Force and US
Central Command Air Forces (1987–92) and partic- days at a cost of only 42 coalition aircraft against very
ularly his command of air operations during the Gulf powerful and experienced Iraqi forces.
War (1991). After his retirement in 1994, General Horner has
During the Gulf War General Horner served as lectured, consulted, and written extensively on
joint force air component commander (JFACC) defense matters including a book on the Gulf War,
commanding all coalition air operations. In this Every Man a Tiger, which he coauthored with Tom
capacity he managed the enormously complicated air Clancy.

94
 Gen Merrill A. McPeak

• Radically reorganized the USAF to meet new post-Cold

War challenges.
• USAF Chief of Staff during the Gulf War.
• Leading advocate of the “Composite Wing.”

had ever experienced. The most visible change was

M
errill McPeak was commissioned in 1957
from the ROTC program at San Diego that he scrapped the old three-part Air Force struc-
State College. He was a demonstration ture of Tactical Air Command (TAC), Strategic Air
pilot in the US Air Force Air Demonstration Command (SAC), and Military Airlift Command
Squadron (Thunderbirds) for two years before going (MAC). The new Air Force organization fit better
to Vietnam where he fought as an attack pilot and a with the Goldwater-Nichols Defense Reorganization
forward air controller. He went on to command a Act and was the critical first step in reshaping the Air
wing, a numbered Air Force, and Pacific Air Force Force to meet the needs of the post–Cold War era.
before being named Chief of Staff of the US Air He was also a leading advocate for the Composite
Force in late 1990. Wing concept that combined several different aircraft
Appointed unexpectedly on the eve of the Gulf types in a single air wing.
War, General McPeak immediately guided the Air Not everyone welcomed the changes General
Force through Operations Desert Shield and Desert McPeak made in the Air Force, but he was not
Storm, the largest airlift and largest air war in deterred by criticism or opposition from following
decades. the path he felt was best for the service. Oddly
After the triumph of the Gulf War, General enough, he received more vociferous criticism for his
McPeak became perhaps the most controversial ill-fated efforts to change Air Force uniforms than
Chief of Staff in Air Force history. He pushed the Air for the enormous changes he made in the way we do
Force through the most extensive reorganizations it business.

95
Post-Cold War

1992–2000
 Policing Postwar Iraq (1992–?)

tion of supplies. What made these efforts possi-

ble was coalition air supremacy.
The ground security zone (where no Iraqi
troops were allowed) and the “no-fly” zone
(where no Iraqi aircraft were allowed) made it
safe for the Kurds to return to their homes and
by the end of May almost all of the refugees had
returned and by mid-July the coalition ground
forces had withdrawn from Iraq. The United
States has continued to maintain the no-fly zone
ever since and in recognition of the end of the
transition from a humanitarian mission to one
of monitoring Iraqi airspace, Operation Provide
Comfort was replaced by Operation Northern
Watch at the beginning of 1997.
Shortly after the Gulf War, the Iraqi army put
down a rebellion by Shiite Moslems in southern
Iraq and the repression there was so severe that
the United Nations adopted a resolution to pro-
tect them from Iraqi air attack. In August 1992

T
he Gulf War drove Saddam Hussein’s
the United States announced a no-fly zone over
forces out of Kuwait and weakened him
southern Iraq. Maintenance of the southern no-
dramatically and this prompted rebel- fly zone has been the task of Operation
lions in March 1991 by ethnic Kurds in north- Southern Watch ever since. In October 1994, in
ern Iraq and the Shiite religious group in south- response to Iraqi troop movements that threat-
ern Iraq. The rebels, however, were not well ened another invasion of Kuwait, the United
equipped and the international community did States declared the southern no-fly zone a no-
not support their efforts to break away from fly/no-drive zone. In 1996, in response to
Iraq because that would have further destabi- renewed Iraqi attacks on the Kurds, the United
lized the already unstable Middle East. Without States expanded the southern no-fly zone and
international military support the rebels were launched extensive attacks (Operation Desert
too weak to face the Iraqi army and they were Strike) to destroy Iraqi air defenses in the new
soon defeated. patrol areas.
The defeat of the Kurdish forces in the north Since the completion of the airlift and
created a massive refugee problem as more than humanitarian relief phases of Operation Provide
a million Kurds fled their homes to escape vio- Comfort, US and coalition efforts have focused
lent reprisals by the Iraqi army. The United on continuous intelligence gathering, surveil-
States and the United Nations responded to this lance, and reconnaissance over Iraq. These
humanitarian crisis with Operation Provide efforts have put a heavy strain on E-3, RC-135,
Comfort in April 1991. In order to stabilize the and other surveillance aircraft and units but
situation, US and coalition forces launched an have also produced some dramatic successes. In
airlift to deliver relief supplies and used ground counterair operations the most notable victories
forces to establish a ground security zone in were the downing of an Iraqi MiG-25 in
northern Iraq and refugee camps in northern December of 1992 by a US F-16 assigned to
Iraq and southern Turkey to facilitate distribu- Southern Watch and the downing of an Iraqi

99
MiG-29 in January 1993 by a US F-16 assigned Though the Iraqis have not shot down any
to Provide Comfort. coalition aircraft during our operations against
The most dramatic impact of operations has Iraq after the Gulf War, these missions have not
been in strategic attack. When the Iraqi’s con- been cost-free. Two tragedies (the accidental
tinued to block UN inspectors trying to dis-
shoot-down of two US Army helicopters over
mantle Iraq’s missile and weapons of mass
northern Iraq by USAF fighters and the death
destruction (WMD) programs, the United
States and United Kingdom launched a four- of 19 US airmen in a terrorist attack in Saudi
night series of attacks against roughly 100 Arabia) have reminded us of the difficulties and
strategic military targets in Iraq. These attacks dangers of these operations. Both of these
in December 1998 (Operation Desert Fox) events have led to improvements in US opera-
struck Iraq’s military through destruction of air tions to prevent a repetition. The demands of
defense, command and control facilities, and air 10 years of operations against Iraq and the end
bases. Oil facilities used by Iraq to evade UN of the Cold War have led to a major reorganiza-
economic sanctions were also attacked. Most tion of the US Air Force into Aerospace
importantly, though the Iraqis could keep
Expeditionary Forces.
inspectors out of their missile and WMD sites,
they could not defend the sites from air and mis- Gen Ronald R. Fogleman, then Air Force
sile attacks, so Desert Fox shut them down. In Chief of Staff, summed up our postwar opera-
addition to F-15, F-16, F-117, A-10, and B-52, tions over Iraq nicely when he said that “What
the strike missions during Desert Fox witnessed we have effectively done since 1992 is conduct
the combat debut of the B-1B. an air occupation of a country.”

The B-1B bomber made its combat debut against Iraq in December 1999 as part of Operation Desert Fox.

100
 Operations in Somalia (1992–94)

1993 and Restore Hope ended in May with the

turnover of relief operations to the United
Nations and the redeployment of the vast
majority of the 25,000 US troops that had been
brought into Somalia.
Unfortunately, the UN’s efforts to build a
stable government in Somalia soon brought it
into conflict with a Somali warlord
(Mohammed Farah Aidid) who felt he was not
getting as much power as he deserved. In June,
An AFSOC MH-53 Pave Low delivers relief supplies to a remote
Aidid’s forces ambushed and wiped out a
part of Somalia.
Pakistani convoy and from then on the UN was
in open conflict with Aidid. US Air Force and

T
wo years of civil war tore apart Somalia in
the early 1990s and contributed to a joint special operations units were sent to try to
famine that killed about one-third of a capture Aidid but his supporters kept him hid-
million people in 1992 and drove three-fourths den. The US forces conducted raids to capture
of a million refugees out of the country. A shaky his closest subordinates, as a means of increasing
cease-fire went into effect in March 1992,
pressure on Aidid. On 3 October 1993 US
United Nations troops from Pakistan arrived in
forces conducted a successful raid deep into
July, and the United States launched Operation
Provide Relief in August. By late December, Aidid’s stronghold and captured some of his key
USAF C-141s and C-130s had delivered over supporters, but the Somalis managed to shoot
19,000 tons of food to starving Somalis. down one of the US Army helicopters. The
Unfortunately, armed Somali groups were ensuing combat search and rescue effort turned
intimidating relief workers and stealing the food into a major pitched battle in the streets of
supplies. They even shelled cargo ships deliver- Mogadishu. When the battle ended the next
ing supplies, and C-130s were hit by ground
day, 19 US troops and hundreds of Somalis
fire. Additional UN troops were airlifted in, but
were dead. The United States immediately
when the situation did not improve, the United
States launched Operation Restore Hope in launched Operation Restore Hope II which air-
December 1992. lifted US combat forces back into Mogadishu
Operation Restore Hope deployed over- (including 18 M-1 tanks and 44 Bradley fight-
whelming ground forces from 23 countries into ing vehicles) and returned AC-130s to bases in
Somalia and secured the ports, airfields, and Kenya from which they could attack targets in
lines of communication necessary to conduct Somalia. These 8,000 mile one-way flights
effective relief operations. In addition, Marine
directly from Georgia to Mogadishu were
and Navy forces came in by sea, and the Restore
another airlift triumph, but the willingness of
Hope airlift brought more than 32,000 troops
and 32,000 tons of supplies into Somalia. This thousands of Somalis to die for Aidid indicated
massive operation required more than 1,100 that the UN’s plan to leave him out of the
aerial refueling sorties by KC-135 aircraft. future government was doomed and the last US
Operation Provide Relief ended in February troops left in March 1994.

101
 Operations Provide Promise and
Deny Flight: Bosnia (1992–96)
Promise and continued until January 1996. The
core of the airlift operations were deliveries of
aid to Sarajevo, the besieged capital of Bosnia,
where nearly 400,000 people depended on
Provide Promise for three and one-half years.
During that time aircraft from the United States
and 20 other nations flew nearly 13,000 sorties,
delivered more than 160,000 tons of food,
medicines and supplies, and evacuated 1,300
wounded Bosnians. In addition to being the
longest humanitarian airlift operation in USAF
history, Provide Promise was one of the most
hazardous. Ten US aircraft were hit by hostile
C-130s, like this one being deiced before a mission in the ground fire and an Italian aircraft was shot
Balkans, were the backbone of Operation Provide Promise. down with the loss of all four crewmen.
Sarajevo was not the only besieged Bosnian

S
erbs were the largest ethnic group within
Yugoslavia and had most of the political city in danger of being ethnically cleansed.
power, but this caused only limited friction Several other cities were surrounded by hostile
within the country until 1990 when the collapse Serbs who periodically cut off ground contact
of the Soviet Union ended the threat of foreign with the outside world. US aircraft had to air-
invasion and the communist party began to lose drop supplies into these smaller cities that did
control of the country. Without communism not have airports. The danger of Serbian ground
and foreign threats, ethnic and religious loyal- fire was so severe that some of these loads had
ties became the strongest bonds among the peo- to be dropped from altitudes over 10,000 feet
ple, and the various republics within Yugoslavia and numerous innovations were required to
began to break away and declare independence. enable even GPS-equipped C-130s to success-
Slovenia and Croatia declared independence in fully complete more than 2,200 airdrop sorties.
1991 and Bosnia did so in 1992. The Serb- While C-130s were the backbone of the Provide
dominated government of Yugoslavia, under Promise airlift, USAF C-141s, huge C-5s, and
Slobodan Milosevic, opposed the independence new C-17s also participated.
of the former Yugoslav republics as did the The United States and the UN were not con-
Serbian minority in the break-away republics. tent to merely relieve the suffering, they also
With Milosevic’s support, the heavily armed took positive steps to try to stop the fighting
Serb minority in Bosnia began a campaign of and punish the aggressors. With this in mind,
murder, rape, and arson that became known as the UN Security Council authorized NATO to
“ethnic cleansing.” The purpose of this cam- enforce a no-fly zone over Bosnia. This enforce-
paign was to terrorize the Bosnian Croats and ment operation (Deny Flight) began in April
Muslims into fleeing large parts of Bosnia that 1993. For example, in February 1994, Capt
the Serbs would then occupy and separate from Robert L. Wright (an F-16 pilot with the 512th
Bosnia. The ethnic cleansing campaign killed Fighter Squadron) shot down three Serbian jets
thousands and left millions homeless. The in a single day. Unfortunately, the politics of
United States began to airlift humanitarian sup- enforcing the UN resolutions became very com-
plies into Bosnia in July 1992 as part of the UN plicated because UN peacekeepers were
airlift. The US operation was named Provide deployed in Bosnia to monitor one of the early

102
cease-fires. These forces were scattered that made full use of precision guided muni-
throughout the country in small, lightly armed tions. At the same time, Muslim and Croat
groups ideal for monitoring a cease-fire but ground forces launched a major ground offen-
unable to defend themselves effectively from sive against the Serbs. The Serbs quickly capitu-
Serb attacks. Whenever US and NATO airstrikes lated, so attacks stopped on 14 September. The
began to hurt them, the Serbs simply took operation officially ended on 21 September.
peacekeepers hostage and forced a halt to the Peace talks in November at Wright-Patterson
bombing.
AFB, Ohio, produced the agreement that ended
By the summer of 1995 NATO had run out
the long war in Bosnia, and Operation Deny
of patience with the Serbs and a mortar attack
Flight ended in December with Operation
on the Sarajevo marketplace was the last straw.
In July and August the peacekeeping forces on Provide Promise ending the next month, in
the ground were reinforced and consolidated so January 1996.
that they could defend themselves against Serb US airpower was not the only thing that
attacks. On 30 August, NATO air forces (under finally brought a just peace to Bosnia but it was
the command of Lt Gen Michael Ryan) began decisive and essential to feeding the hungry,
an aggressive strategic attack and counterland protecting the innocent, and punishing the
campaign called Operation Deliberate Force aggressors.

NATO counterair operations drove Serbian aircraft from the sky during Operation Deny Flight and strategic attack and counterland
strikes during Operation Deliberate Force drove the Serbs to sign the peace treaty that ended the war in Bosnia.

103
 Operation Uphold Democracy: Haiti (1994)

US Atlantic Command had prepared two

plans for the operation. If the Haitian military
resisted, an airborne assault (like Operation Just
Cause in Panama in 1989) would forcibly
remove the current government and take over
the country before handing it over to Aristide,
the elected president. If the Haitian military
capitulated, the United States would conduct an
unopposed occupation of Haiti to facilitate a
peaceful transition of power. The US Air Force
had already launched the first two waves of air-
craft (a total of 60 C-130s) loaded with US
Army Airborne troops and equipment rigged
for airdrop when the military government
agreed to step down. The military government
Unloading a C-5 in Haiti. seemed to have realized, either through news
reports or some other means, that the US had
launched an invasion force and was suddenly

I
n December 1990, a leftist priest named anxious to back down before the fighting
Jean-Bertrand Aristide was elected President started.
of Haiti by a landslide. He took office in The sudden capitulation of the illegal Haitian
February 1991 but was removed by a military government demonstrates that an aggressive
coup in September. The United States, the
military plan, well resourced, and vigorously
Organization of American States, and the
United Nations all opposed this assault on executed, can intimidate an adversary into capit-
democracy and instituted diplomatic and eco- ulation even before the first shot is fired. The
nomic sanctions. The vast majority of Haitians quick capitulation prevented a good deal of
still supported Aristide and the new government bloodshed but enormously complicated the exe-
could only stay in power through massive cution of Uphold Democracy because the airlift
repression. had to switch from the invasion plan to the per-
As the Haitian economy collapsed, the coun- missive-entry plan in midstream. When the US
try was wracked by violence and a growing
Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) got word that the
number of Haitians tried to flee the 700 miles to
Haitian military had agreed to step down, they
the United States in small boats. Vigorous
diplomatic efforts, including an agreement ordered the aircraft already on their way to Haiti
between President Aristide and the military gov- to turn around and return to base, a 24-hour
ernment in mid-1993, failed to resolve the cri- pause in the movement to Haiti; and ordered
sis. Finally in September 1994 the US launched the execution of the permissive-entry plan
Operation Uphold Democracy. instead.

104
 The Kosovo Crisis (1999)

Force, Maj Gen William S. Hinton) delivered

more than 3,400 tons of food, equipment, and
medical supplies to the refugees. The ability of
the United States and NATO to sustain the
Kosovo refugees in Albania and Macedonia was
critical to our ultimate success in returning them
to their homes and thwarting Milosevic’s
attempt to wipeout the ethnic Albanian popula-
tion in Kosovo.
The Joint Forces Air Component Comman-
der (JFACC) for Allied Force, Lt Gen Michael
Refugees from Kosovo at a NATO refugee camp in Albania,
April 1999.
C. Short, had always favored a more aggressive
air campaign. When the initial small-scale air
attacks failed to convince Milosevic to comply
with NATO demands, General Short got his

I
n the late 1990s Serbian dictator Slobodan
Milosevic directed violent repression against wish. The United States and our NATO allies
the ethnic Albanian population in the dramatically increased the forces committed to
Serbian province of Kosovo. After several brutal operations against Serbia. The political leaders
massacres of ethnic Albanians by Serbian forces, also approved additional targets for strategic
NATO demanded that Milosevic allow NATO attack while NATO commenced a major coun-
peacekeepers to police Kosovo. When Milosevic terland campaign to punish the Serb force in
refused, NATO launched an air campaign to Kosovo. This sort of gradual escalation was not
force him to comply. the most efficient way to use airpower, but was
NATO ruled out ground combat, so from ultimately successful in achieving NATO goals
the outset on 23 March 1999, the NATO air after a 78-day campaign and contributed to
campaign (Operation Allied Force) was the only Milosevic’s downfall the following year.
combat effort. The initial hope was that By the time Milosevic capitulated, NATO air
Milosevic was bluffing and that after a few days forces had conducted over 38,000 sorties.
of air attacks, he would have the excuse he NATO counterair operations rapidly wiped out
needed to give in to NATO demands, remove the Serbian air force but Serbian air defenses
his troops from Kosovo, and allow NATO continued to pose a significant threat through-
troops to move in. Instead he used the air cam- out the 11-week campaign. Learning from the
paign as an excuse to dramatically increase the rapid destruction of Saddam Hussein’s air
scale of his attacks on the ethnic Albanian pop- defenses during Desert Storm, the Serbs did not
ulation in Kosovo. Within a week of opening
the air campaign, Milosevic’s troops had killed
thousands of Albanian civilians and driven
nearly one million from their homes.
The vast and sudden flow of refugees out of
Kosovo and into neighboring Albania and
Macedonia created a massive humanitarian crisis
and the United States responded with a huge
humanitarian relief Operation: Shining Hope.
During its first 50 days, Shining Hope forces
(under the command of Commander 3d US Air NATO troops in Bosnia inspect the remains of a Serbian MiG-
29, shot down by allied airmen.

105
immediately and aggressively try to defend their
airspace. Instead, they kept their air defenses
moving or hid them in populated areas (where
collateral damage considerations would keep
NATO from attacking them) and tried to
ambush NATO aircraft when they got the
opportunity. NATO tactics overcame this sort
of guerrilla-warfare technique of air defense.
Only two NATO aircraft were shot down dur-
ing Operation Allied Force and both pilots were
rescued by bold Combat Search and Rescue
operations. This new air defense tactic did, how- The B-2 and the JDAM made their combat debut during the
ever, force NATO to consider the surviving air Kosovo crisis and were enormously effective.
defenses throughout the campaign.
In keeping with NATO’s humanitarian goals,
the entire Allied Force air campaign was con-
ducted under very tight collateral damage restric- bad weather made Serbian ground forces very
tions. To achieve the unprecedented level of pre- hard to find from the air. These difficulties were
cision called for by these rules, the campaign compounded by the fact that the Serbs did not
relied more heavily on precision guided munitions have to face NATO ground forces so they could
(PGM) than Desert Storm. In all, Serbian targets concentrate on hiding from NATO aircraft. In
were attacked with over 23,000 NATO bombs the last three or four weeks of the campaign,
and missiles but there were only 20 incidents of new tactics and improved weather combined to
collateral damage. In spite of this spectacular dramatically increase Serbian losses and helped
NATO success, the Serbs conducted effective force Milosevic’s surrender.
information operations to make sure that the few Two systems that made their combat debut
accidental civilian casualties received a great deal during Allied Force were the B-2 bomber and
of public attention. The diplomatic difficulties the GBU-31 joint direct attack munition
created by collateral damage and the unfortunate (JDAM). The JDAM was still in testing when
chain of events that led to an attack on the Operation Allied Force began but was used
Chinese embassy in Belgrade reinforced the need extensively and achieved amazing accuracy
to continue to improve the Allied targeting under all weather conditions. B-2 “stealth”
process and the precision of our attacks. bombers made 30-hour round-trip missions
The counterland campaign was particularly from their home base in Missouri, each drop-
challenging for NATO airmen. The rugged ping up to 16 2,000 pound JDAM’s on up to
wooded terrain in Kosovo and the persistent 16 different targets with devastating results.

106
 Gen Ronald R. Fogleman

• As Chief of Staff of the USAF he renewed service commitment to high

technology and space.
• Flew 315 combat missions during the Vietnam War.
• Shot down over South Vietnam and rescued, under fire, by a US hel-
icopter.

becoming commander in chief of US Transportation

G
en Ronald Fogleman was commissioned out
of the Air Force Academy in 1963 (the Command.
Academy’s third graduating class). He flew General Fogleman served as Chief of Staff of the
315 combat missions over Vietnam in F-100 aircraft US Air Force from 1994–97 and tried to calm some
as a fighter pilot and high-speed forward air con- of the passions that his predecessor aroused. General
troller. On one of these missions he was shot down Fogleman’s most visible change was “stylistic.” He
and was rescued from a rice-paddy by a US Army made sure that he spent as much time as possible out
helicopter as the Vietcong were closing in on him. with the force and he truly listened to the concerns
He was wounded by Vietcong fire as he clung to the of airmen out in USAF units all over the world.
skid of the damaged US helicopter.
General Fogleman stressed personal accountability
Later in his career, General Fogleman earned a
and renewed the Air Force’s commitment to its core
masters degree in military history and political sci-
values: integrity, service before self, and excellence in
ence at Duke University, taught history at the Air
Force Academy, flew as an F-15 demonstration pilot all we do. Two of his primary areas of concern were
for international air shows, and commanded an Air high technology and the role of the Air Force in
Force wing, an air division, and a numbered air force. space. As Chief of Staff he did a lot to start the Air
He also served in Korea as deputy commander in Force on its transformation into an Air and Space
chief, United Nations Command; deputy com- Force and to help the entire organization recognize
mander, US Forces Korea; and commander Republic that we will ultimately become a Space and Air
of Korea/US Air Component Command before Force.

107
 Lt Gen Michael C. Short

• As JFACC during Operation Allied Force, he is credited with being the

commander of the only air campaign to win a war without the assis-
tance of friendly surface forces.
• Flew 276 combat missions during the Vietnam War.

leadership and General Short made it work. That was

G
en Michael Short was commissioned out of
the Air Force Academy in 1965. He flew 276 no easy task.
combat missions as an F-4 pilot in the General Short had to work within very strict polit-
Vietnam War and commanded two squadrons and ical guidance coming from not just US policy makers
the F-117 “stealth fighter” group (4450th Tactical but a wide variety of NATO capitals as well. The ini-
Group) while it was still a classified program. He also tial plan had envisioned only a small, brief bombing
commanded three wings and a numbered Air Force. campaign like the earlier one in Bosnia. When
He is best known for his work as joint force air com- Serbian dictator Slobodan Milosevic continued to
ponent commander (JFACC), commanding NATO resist NATO demands, the forces involved had to be
air operations during Operation Allied Force (the dramatically expanded to more than three times the
conflict over Kosovo). initial force and nearly three times as many bases in a
Operation Allied Force has been described as the total of 15 countries.
first time in history that a war has been fought and Victory over Milosevic ultimately required 78
won purely by airpower without the assistance of days and over 38,000 sorties. General Short led this
friendly surface forces. The United States and NATO air campaign so effectively that only two manned
Air Forces were not designed to fight without the NATO aircraft were lost and no NATO troops were
involvement of friendly ground troops and US Air killed or injured by enemy fire.
Force leaders did not advocate an all-air strategy, but Since his retirement in 2000, General Short has
that was the approach favored by NATO’s political lectured widely on defense topics.

108
 Part II
Aerospace Craft
of the
United States Air Force
Early Aircraft
Wright 1909 Military Flyer
Top Speed: 40 MPH
Range: 125 mi
Endurance: one hour, 12 min,
40 secs

The world’s first military airplane. It was built in response to United States Army Signal
Corps specification 486, issued December 1907. The specifications for the aircraft were a speed
of 40 miles per hour (MPH), a range of 125 miles, “and the ability to steer in all directions
without difficulty.” On 27 July 1909, Orville Wright, with Lt Frank P. Lahm as passenger, flew
the aircraft for one hour, 12 minutes, 40 seconds and covered 40 miles, which met the Army’s
endurance requirements. Three days later, Orville Wright, with Lt Benjamin D. Foulois as pas-
senger, covered a 10-mile test course at an average speed of 42 MPH, earning the Wrights a
performance bonus (10 percent of the aircraft’s base price for each MPH over 40). The aircraft
was accepted on 2 August 1909 and redesignated Signal Corps Aeroplane Number 1.

Curtiss JN-4D “Jenny” (1916)

Top Speed: 75 MPH
Ceiling: 6,500 ft
Engine: Curtiss OX-5, liquid-
cooled V-8 of 90 hp
Endurance: two hours, 30 min

The Jenny was generally used for primary flight training, but some were equipped with
machine guns and bomb racks for advanced training. After World War I, hundreds were sold
on the civilian market. The “Barnstormer” airplanes of the 1920s attracted many future World
War II air force leaders to the thrills of flying. Powered by a Curtiss OX-5, 90 horsepower (hp)
engine it could reach 75 MPH and stay aloft for 2.5 hours.

111
 DeHavilland DH-4 (1917)
Top Speed: 128 MPH
Cruise: 90 MPH
Ceiling: 19,600 ft
Engine: Liberty V-12, 421 hp

The DH-4 was the only US-built airplane to get into combat during World War I.
Following World War I, the DH-4 continued in use with the Army for a decade. More than
1,500 were rebuilt to increase their strength and some were modified to carry the airmail in
the 1920s.

SPAD XIII (1918)

Top Speed: 138 MPH
Cruise: 124 MPH
Ceiling: 22,300 ft
Engine: Hispano-Suiza 8BEc,
235 hp

The Spad XIII was the best French fighter plane of World War I and the most common
fighter-type flown by the American Expeditionary Force (AEF). Fifteen of the 16 AEF pur-
suit squadrons flew Spad XIIIs by the time the war ended. The main advantage of the Spad
XIII over previous Spads was that it had two machine guns instead of one. Capt Eddie
Rickenbacker, commander of the 94th Aero Squadron and America’s “Ace of Aces,”
recorded most of his victories in the Spad XIII.

112
Pursuit/Fighter Aircraft
Curtiss P-6E Hawk (1929)
Top Speed: 204 MPH
Cruise: 167 MPH
Ceiling: 24,900 ft
Engine: Curtiss V-1570-23, 600 hp

The Curtiss Hawk was a composite of the merits of the best pursuit aircraft of its day. The
turbosupercharged V-12 engine served as the predecessor for the V-12 fighter engines that
powered World War II aircraft. Lt Col Henry H. “Hap” Arnold designated the new aircraft
the P-6E. The Hawk was easy to fly but was usually outmaneuvered in mock dogfights by
lighter Army aircraft. This pursuit aircraft was the Army’s last major biplane purchase.

Boeing P-26 Pea Shooter (1933)

Top Speed: 234 MPH
Cruise: 199 MPH
Ceiling: 28,300 ft
Engine: P&W R-1340-27,
600 hp

The Pea Shooter was the first all-metal monoplane in Air Corps pursuit-squadron service.
It was the last Army fighter with an open cockpit, fixed landing gear, and external wires to
brace the wings. After the first production delivery of the aircraft, flaps were added to reduce
landing speed and the headrest was raised to protect the pilot because the plane often over-
turned. The Pea Shooter was obsolete before the United States entered World War II, but
Filipino pilots took it into combat against Japanese bombers in 1941.

113
 Bell P-39 Airacobra (1940)
Top Speed: 375 MPH
Cruise: 308 MPH
Ceiling: 33,200 ft
Engine: Allison V-1710-35;
1,150 hp
Range: 450 miles normal

The Airacobra was originally designed to attack enemy aircraft. The first design included
a turbosupercharger that was omitted in the P-39C to make the aircraft less expensive and
handier at low altitudes. The trade-off was poor high-altitude performance. Most P-39s
were lend-leased to the Soviet Union during World War II. Alexander Pokryshkin used a
P-39 to score 47 aerial victories making him the second greatest Soviet ace and the most
successful ace using an American fighter. The 37 millimeter (mm) cannon in the propeller
hub made the P-39 a devastating ground attack aircraft as well.

Lockheed P-38 Lightning (1941)

Top Speed: 414 MPH
Cruise: 290 MPH
Ceiling: 44,000 ft
Engine: (2) Allison V-1710-89;
1,425 hp
Range: 450 miles loaded

The Lightning, designed for pursuit intercept, was the first fighter fast enough to
encounter compressibility and consequently suffered buffeting when diving too steeply. The
problem was solved using wing fillets. Two drop tanks gave the Lightning a combat radius
of 795 miles making it the first fighter useful for long-range escort. The P-38’s main limi-
tation was the awkward maneuverability inherent to the aircraft’s size. With proper tactics
emphasizing its superior speed and ceiling, these limitations were overcome and the
Lightning enjoyed great success in the Pacific theater, where range was important.

114
 Curtiss P-40 Warhawk (1939)
Top Speed: 354 MPH
Cruise: 277 MPH
Ceiling: 29,000 ft
Engine: Allison V-1710-39;
1,150 hp
Range: 700 miles

The P-40 was originally dubbed the Kittyhawk but was renamed Warhawk in January
1942. Gen Claire L. Chennault’s AVG, “Flying Tigers” flew the P-40 with great success
against the Japanese largely because of the superior tactics he devised. The Allison engine
had poor high-altitude performance and the P-40 had overall maneuverability limitations.
Its strengths were speed, toughness, and firepower. Lt Boyd Wagner shot down eight enemy
planes with a P-40E to become World War II’s first Army Air Forces (AAF) ace. The P-40
helped the British defeat Erwin Rommel in North Africa.

Republic P-47 Thunderbolt (1942)

Top Speed: 428 MPH
Cruise: 350 MPH
Ceiling: 42,000 ft
Engine: P&W R-2800-59;
2,100 hp
Range: 475 miles with 500 lb
bombs

The Thunderbolt was affectionately called the “Jug.” The huge radial engine with bigger
turbo was built to speed the aircraft to 15,000 feet under five minutes. It, like all prewar
fighters, was designed as an interceptor. The P-47Ds were delivered to Ninth Air Force to
support the D day landing in France. The bubble canopy seen in this P-47 was so superior
to the old “razorback” shape that every model after the P-47D block 25 was fitted with it.
The heavily armed Thunderbolt was outstanding in its role as a low-altitude fighter-bomber
in the last year of the European war.

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 North American P-51 Mustang (1942)
Top Speed: 437 MPH
Cruise: 362 MPH
Ceiling: 41,900 ft
Engine: Packard V-1650-7; 1,490 hp
Range: 950 miles

The Mustang was the most effective American air superiority fighter of World War II. At
low altitudes, the early Mustangs were superior to the Kittyhawk, Airacobra, and Spitfire in
speed and maneuverability. However, the 1,150 hp Allison engine that was initially used had
severe limitations at altitude. In the summer of 1942, the Mustang was fitted with the
Packard Merlin V-1650-3 engine and a two-stage supercharger. The refitted Mustangs then
became the fastest fighters in combat but more importantly the superior design allowed
more fuel to be carried. This gave the Mustang the range to escort bombers to any target
in Germany.

Bell P-59 Airacomet (1944)

Top Speed: 413 MPH
Cruise: 375 MPH
Ceiling: 46,200 ft
Engine: (2) GE J31-GE-5;
2,000 lbs thrust
Range: 525 miles

The Airacomet was the United States’ first jet fighter. Limitations in the jet’s performance
and tendency toward “snaking” made it a bad gun platform and confined its use to orien-
tation experience with jet flying.

116
 Northrop P-61 Black Widow (1943)
Top Speed: 430 MPH
Cruise: 307 MPH
Ceiling: 41,000 ft
Engine: (2) P&W R-2800-65;
2,000 hp
Range: 415 miles

The Black Widow was the first American fighter designed specifically for the purpose of
night fighting. The plane was equipped with an SCR-720 radar transmitter that permitted
location of targets 10 miles away. The P-61 was a very maneuverable aircraft and scored vic-
tories against the Japanese in 1944. The three-man crew was composed of pilot, gunner,
and radar operator.

Lockheed F-80 Shooting Star (1945)

Top Speed: 580 MPH
Cruise: 439 MPH
Ceiling: 42,750 ft
Engine: Allison J33-A-11;
4,000 lbs thrust
Range: 1,380 miles

The Shooting Star jet fighter, widely used as the T-33 jet trainer, was the most successful
jet produced during World War II. The Shooting Star could match the performance of the
ME262. However, the P-80 was delivered in April of 1945 and with the war all but won, it
did not see action. The P (pursuit) designation was replaced by F (fighter) in June of 1948.
On 8 November 1950, an F-80C destroyed a MiG-15 in air history’s first all-jet air battle.
Still, mostly unable to compete with the communist fighters, it gave way to the F-86.

117
 Republic F-84 Thunderjet/Thunderstreak (1947)
Top Speed: 622 MPH
Cruise: 483 MPH
Ceiling: 42,100 ft
Engine: Allison J35-A-29;
5,600 lbs thrust
Range: 2,000 miles

The F-84 was the first new fighter of the postwar period. The early straight-wing versions
of the F-84 were dubbed “Thunderjets.” Subsequent modifications improved the jet’s
power bringing it close to the airframe’s speed limit. The F-84F was designed with swept-
wings and called the “Thunderstreak.” They were equipped with a low-altitude bombing
system (LABS) to deliver tactical nuclear weapons. The F-84 saw extensive action in Korea
as a fighter-bomber, but, it too, could not compete with MiG-15s in air-to-air combat.

North American F-86 Sabre (1948)

Top Speed: 695 MPH
Cruise: 486 MPH
Ceiling: 48,000 ft
Engine: GE J47-GE-27;
5,910 lbs thrust
Range: 458 miles combat
radius

The Sabre was the first American aircraft to be designed with swept wings. This modifi-
cation delays the onset of compressibility troubles inherent with flying at sonic speeds.
Although the F-86 was inferior in climb and ceiling to the lighter Soviet type fighters, with
better pilots it proved superior in air-to-air combat. In Korea, Sabres downed 792 MiGs
while losing only 78.

118
 North American F-100 Super Sabre (1954)
Top Speed: 924 MPH
Cruise: 593 MPH
Ceiling: 38,700 ft
Engine: P&W J57-P-21;
10,200 lbs thrust
Range: 572 miles combat
radius

The Super Sabre was the first supersonic aircraft in production anywhere in the world.
The F-100 was the first in the Air Force’s “Century” series of fighters. The F-100 created
maintenance and cost problems for the Air Force. Titanium was used in construction, rais-
ing the cost to over $1 million per aircraft. Old by the 1970s, the F-100 was used in
Vietnam as high-speed, forward air controllers (FAC). The Fast FACs and other F-100s
were used operationally until 1972.

McDonnell F-101 Voodoo (1955)

Top Speed: 1,005 MPH
Cruise: 550 MPH
Ceiling: 38,900 ft
Engine: (2) P&W J57-P-13;
10,200 lbs thrust
Range: 677 miles combat
radius

The Voodoo was the first 1,000-MPH fighter in production. The F-101 was intended to
serve as Strategic Air Command’s (SAC) fighter-escort but was transferred to Tactical Air
Command (TAC) as a low-altitude fighter-bomber to carry Mk 7 nuclear bombs.

119
 Convair F-102 Delta Dagger (1956)
Top Speed: 780 MPH
Cruise: 605 MPH
Ceiling: 53,400 ft
Engine: P&W J57-P-23; 10,200 lbs
thrust
Range: 386 miles combat radius

The F-102 was the product of the Air Force’s intention to create an air defense fighter inter-
ceptor. It used guided missiles instead of guns or unguided rockets. The delta wing design orig-
inally had limitations, particularly a drag hump at sonic speed. A design fix saved the program
and the Delta Dagger served Air Defense Command (ADC) squadrons through 1973.

Lockheed F-104 Starfighter (1958)

Top Speed: 1,324 MPH
Cruise: 584 MPH
Ceiling: 58,000 ft
Engine: GE J79-GE-7; 15,800 lbs
thrust
Range: 352 miles combat radius

The Starfighter was the first Air Force fighter with Mach 2 speed. The F-104 had the small-
est and thinnest wings ever used on an American fighter. In 1958, it became the first aircraft to
set both the speed and altitude record. However, a small weapons load and limited endurance
made them unsuitable for the Vietnam War. Though the F-104 was passed onto the Air
National Guard in 1967, it was purchased by 14 foreign air forces and served into the 1980s.

Convair F-106 Delta Dart (1959)

Top Speed: 1,328 MPH
Cruise: 594 MPH
Ceiling: 52,700 ft
Engine: P&W J75-P-17;
16,100 lbs thrust
Range: 364 miles combat radius

The Delta Dart was a further refinement of the F-102B design. As intercontinental ballistic
missiles (ICBM) replaced bombers as the principle nuclear threat, the need for interceptors was
reduced. The F-106 remained in ADC in diminishing numbers through the 1970s.

120
 Republic F-105 Thunderchief (1959)
Top Speed: 1,372 MPH
Cruise: 778 MPH
Ceiling: 48,500 ft
Engine: P&W J75-P-19W;
6,100 lbs thrust
Range: 778 miles combat radius

The nuclear-carrying “Thud” contained the first internal bomb bay used on a fighter. The
F-105 made the first supersonic bomb drops. As emphasis shifted from nuclear warfare to
conventional bombs, the Thud’s internal bomb bay was closed and a centerline pylon was
added. All-weather capabilities and speed combined with a toss-bomb computer made it the
premier fighter-bomber of the Vietnam War. The F-105D delivered 75 percent of the bomb
tonnage of Rolling Thunder.

McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II (1962)

Top Speed: 1,400 MPH
Cruise: 590 MPH
Ceiling: 55,850 ft
Engine: (2) General Electric
J79-GE-15; 17,000 lbs
thrust
Range: 1,750 miles

The F-4 Phantom opened the era of the Mach 2 missile-launching fighter. In 1960, the
F-4 made a number of record-breaking flights: a world-speed record (1,606 MPH or Mach
2.57), a climb to 49,212 feet in 114 seconds, and a zoom climb to 98,556 feet. The first
operational version was the F-4B, a Navy all-weather fighter. The Air Force purchased the
F-4C in 1962. The original F-4Cs that went to Vietnam in 1965 did not have guns. An alert
enemy pilot making a sharp turn could evade the Phantom’s missiles. A 20-mm external gun
pod was added in 1967. F-4Ds with laser-guided 3,000-lb bombs finally destroyed the
Thanh Hoa Bridge. Of 137 United States Air Force (USAF) aerial victories in Vietnam,
Phantoms were credited with 107.5. “Wild Weasel” F-4G aircraft provided lethal air defense
suppression for deep strikes on Iraq during Operation Desert Storm.

121
 General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark (1967)
Top Speed: 1,453 MPH
Cruise: 498 MPH
Ceiling: 57,900 ft
Engine: (2) P&W TF30-P-100;
25,000 lbs thrust
Range: Combat radius, 700
miles with 1,200 lbs
bombs

The F-111 program was extremely ambitious and controversial. The goal was to produce
a common fighter-bomber for both the Air Force and the Navy. The most unusual feature
of the design was a “swing-wing” that could be swept forward for take-off, landing, and low
speed operations and swept back for high speed operations. The attempt to make the F-111
all things to all people resulted in a plane that was too heavy for carrier operations so the
Navy developed a pure air-superiority swing-wing fighter (the F-14) instead. The F-111 was
not an effective air-superiority fighter but its high-speed, long-range, heavy bomb load, and
all-weather navigation and attack capability made it an effective bomber during and after the
Vietnam War. The electronic warfare version of the F-111 played a major role in Operation
Desert Storm.

McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle (1976)

Top Speed: 1,875 MPH
Cruise: 570 MPH
Ceiling: 65,000 ft
Engine: (2) P&W F100-PW-100;
25,000 lbs thrust
Range: Ferry 3,450 miles

The F-15 is the world’s premier air-superiority fighter achieving 32 aerial victories during
Operation Desert Storm with no air-to-air losses. Its advanced pulse-Doppler radar work
with the AIM-7 and AIM-120 air-to-air missiles to destroy enemy aircraft beyond visual
range. Within visual range, the F-15’s outstanding acceleration, speed, and maneuverability
(due to its high thrust-weight ratio and large wings) enable it to outmaneuver its foes so
they can be destroyed by the F-15’s AIM-9 missiles and the M-61 Vulcan cannon. The
F-15E is a two-seat strike version of the F-15, capable of devastating ground attacks deep
in enemy territory.

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 Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon (1979)
Top Speed: 1,500 MPH
Ceiling: >50,000 ft
Engine: General Electric
F110-GE-129
Range: Ferry >2,000 miles

The F-16 was designed as a light, relatively low cost, single-seat multirole fighter. It has
been so successful that the USAF has more F-16s than any other type of aircraft and the
F-16 is the backbone of many allied air forces. F-16s proved their worth in combat with the
Israeli air force and during Operation Desert Storm where F-16s flew more sorties than any
other aircraft type. Continuing improvements to the F-16 will enable it to serve as a work-
horse of the Air Force for several more decades.

Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk (1983)

Top Speed: NA
Cruise: 580 MPH
Ceiling: NA
Engine: (2) General Electric
F404-GE-F1D2; 10,500
lbs thrust
Range: Combat radius 750 miles

The F-117 represents a revolution in aircraft design. It was developed under conditions
of extreme secrecy at the famous Lockheed “Skunk Works.” It is the first production aircraft
designed specifically to take advantage of breakthroughs in low-observable (stealth) tech-
nology. The F-117’s unique shape makes it nearly invisible to radar while its engines give off
a minimal infrared signature and flying at night prevents visual detection. During Desert
Storm the F-117 few over twelve hundred strike missions against the most heavily defended
Iraqi targets without losing a single aircraft.

123
 Boeing and Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor
Top Speed: Mach 2
Cruise: Mach 1.5
Ceiling: >65,000 ft
Engine: (2) P&W F119-PW-100;
35,000 lbs thrust

The F-22 is the next generation air-superiority fighter, designed to defeat any adversary’s
aircraft and dominate the skies of the early twenty-first century. It possesses a unique com-
bination of stealth, maneuverability, super-cruise, and integrated avionics: truly leap-ahead
technologies that make it vastly more capable than any previous aircraft. Stealth, or more
accurately “low observable,” technology makes the F-22 very difficult to identify by radar
or other means. The F-22’s unique engines provide extraordinary maneuverability through
“thrust vectoring”: not all the engine thrust is always going straight ahead, but is instead
redirected, to enhance the maneuvers commanded by the pilot. These engines also enable
“super-cruise”: supersonic flight maintained for long periods of time because the engines
achieve it without afterburners. Integrated avionics enable each F-22 to receive automated
information (such as the radar picture) from other F-22s in its formation and thus dramat-
ically enhances teamwork within the formation. Though originally intended as a pure air-
superiority fighter, the F-22’s inherent ground attack capability is being developed through
adding the joint direct attack munition to its armament.

124
Bombers
Martin GMB/MB-1 (1918)
Top Speed: 105 MPH
Cruise: 100 MPH
Ceiling: 12,250 ft
Engine: (2) Liberty 12A; 400 hp
Range: 390 miles with 1,040 lbs bombs

The MB-1 and the improvements embodied in the MB-2, offered the Army a platform
to demonstrate the capability of aerial bombing. In 1921, William “Billy” Mitchell used
MB-2s to sink the ex-German battle cruiser Ostfriesland.

Boeing B-9 (1932)

Top Speed: 188 MPH
Cruise: 165 MPH
Ceiling: 22,500 ft
Engine: (2) P&W R-1860-11;
600 hp
Range: 540 miles with 2,260 lbs
bombs
With the world-class Pratt & Whitney radial engines, the B-9 could fly 50 percent faster
than contemporary bombers. This made bomber speed comparable to pursuit aircraft speed.
The B-9 monoplane design became the parent of World War II bombers.

Martin B-10 (1935)

Top Speed: 213 MPH
Cruise: 193 MPH
Ceiling: 24,200 ft
Engine: (2) Wright R-1820-33; 775 hp
Range: 1,240 miles with 2,260 lbs
bombs

The B-10 was the first all-metal monoplane bomber to be produced in quantity. It also
introduced such innovations as a monocoque fuselage, variable-pitch propellers, retractable
landing gear, enclosed cockpits, and a rotating gun turret. In 1934, Colonel Arnold led a
mass flight of B-10 crews 18,000 miles from Washington, D.C., to Alaska, proving the capa-
bility for strategic bombing.

125
 Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress (1939)
Top Speed: 287 MPH
Cruise: 182 MPH
Ceiling: 35,600 ft
Engine: (4) Wright R-1820-97;
1,200 hp
Range: 2,000 miles with 6,000
lbs bombs

The Flying Fortress, with a 10-12 man crew, was the first truly modern heavy bomber and
one of the most recognized airplanes of the World War II era. It was the Army’s first pro-
duction four-engine bomber. The YB-17 made its first flight in 1935 but the B-17C ordered
in 1939 was the first into combat in World War II. Total B-17 production was 12,276 with
peak AAF inventory reaching 4,574 in August 1944.

Consolidated B-24 Liberator (1941)

Top Speed: 303 MPH
Cruise: 200 MPH
Ceiling: 32,000 ft
Engine: (4) P&W R-1830-65;
1,200 hp
Range: 2,300 miles with 5,000
lbs bombs

More Liberators were built than any other American airplane in history (18,482), with
peak inventory reaching 6,043 in September 1944. The B-24 was used in every theater in
World War II, and it had greater range and could carry a much larger bomb load than the
B-17. It had a crew of 10. The B-24’s most famous missions were the raids on Ploesti oil
fields in Romania.

126
 North American B-25 Mitchell (1940)
Top Speed: 272 MPH
Cruise: 230 MPH
Ceiling: 24,200 ft
Engine: (2) Wright R-2600-29; 1,700 hp
Range: 1,300 miles with 3,000 lbs bombs

Named in honor of US airpower proponent Brig Gen William “Billy” Mitchell, the B-25
served in every theater of World War II and was made in larger quantities than any other
American twin-engine combat airplane. On 18 April 1942, Lt Col James H. “Jimmy”
Doolittle’s B-25 crews took off from an aircraft carrier and bombed Tokyo and other tar-
gets, the first time US aircraft had bombed Japan.

Martin B-26 Marauder (1941)

Top Speed: 282 MPH
Cruise: 214 MPH
Ceiling: 21, 700 ft
Engine: (2) P&W R-2800-43;
2,000 hp
Range: 1,150 miles with 3,000
lbs bombs

The B-26 was ordered off the drawing board (no prototypes were built) at the same time
as the B-25. With a troubled development history, it was called the “Flying Prostitute”—
with its high wing loading (51 lbs per square feet) and small wings, it was said to have had
no visible means of support. Less Marauders were built than B-25s because the B-26 proved
to be more expensive to build, maintain, and had higher accident rates. The Marauder had
a great war record, bringing back a higher percentage of crews than B-17s or B-24s.

127
 Boeing B-29 Superfortress (1944)
Top Speed: 399 MPH
Cruise: 253 MPH
Ceiling: 36,150 ft
Engine: (4) Wright R-3350-57;
2,200 hp
Range: combat radius, 1,931
miles

The Superfortress was the best bomber of World War II and the first bomber to include
pressurized crew compartments and remote controlled gun turrets. On the night of 9
March 1945, B-29s conducted the most devastating air raid in history, destroying almost 16
square miles of Tokyo. In August 1945, specially modified B-29s dropped two atomic
bombs on Japan, ending World War II. During the Korean War B-29s also did extensive
conventional bombing. B-50s (B-29s with improved engines) were modified as the first aer-
ial tankers used in large numbers and served as weather aircraft into the 1960s.

Convair B-36 Peacemaker (1948)

Top Speed: 418 MPH
Cruise: 227 MPH
Ceiling: 43,600 ft
Engine: (6) P&W R-4360-53;
3,800 hp (4) General
Electric J47-GE-19;
5,200 lbs thrust
Range: 3,990 miles combat
radius with 10,000 lbs
bombs

When it was first flown, the B-36 was the largest aircraft in the world. With its intercon-
tinental range and ability to carry nuclear weapons (primarily the Mk 17 hydrogen bomb),
the B-36 served as the United States’ airborne nuclear deterrent through the 1950s. The
Peacemaker was politically controversial, and caused the “Revolt of the Admirals” in 1949
when it was acquired at the expense of a Navy Super Cruiser.

128
 Boeing B-47 Stratojet (1951)
Top Speed: 607 MPH
Cruise: 498 MPH
Ceiling: 40,500 ft
Engine: (6) General Electric
J47-GE-25; 7,200 lbs
thrust
Range: 2,013 miles combat
radius with 10,845 lbs
bombs

The B-47 was the world’s first swept-wing bomber and the first to use a bicycle arrange-
ment for the landing gear, which was necessary because of the thin wing. At the time, the
design was so advanced that some writers called it “futuristic.” Over 2,000 entered service
with SAC and the B-47 was the nation’s primary nuclear deterrent until it was replaced by
the B-52 and intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Convair B-58 Hustler (1960)

Top Speed: 1,321 MPH
Cruise: 610 MPH
Ceiling: 64,800 ft
Engine: (4) General Electric
J79-GE-5B; 15,300
lbs thrust
Range: 1,750 miles combat
radius

The B-58 was the first supersonic bomber put into production and the first bomber to
reach Mach 2. The Hustler used a “pod” instead of internal weapons stowage and made use
of stainless-steel honeycomb construction for lower weight and greater strength. Crew
members had individual escape capsules rather than individual ejection seats. The B-58 used
sophisticated inertial and star-tracking navigation methods. On 15 October 1959, one of
the first B-58s built was flown 1,680 miles in 80 minutes with one refueling, maintaining a
speed of more than Mach 2 for more than an hour.

129
 Boeing B-52 Stratofortress (1955)
Top Speed: 650 MPH
Cruise: 530 MPH
Ceiling: 50,000 ft
Engine: (8) P&W J-57-P-43WB;
13,750 lbs thrust
Range: 3,500 miles combat
radius

The enormous range and bomb load of the B-52 has made it one of the US Air Force’s
most successful aircraft. Though originally designed as a high-altitude nuclear bomber, the
B-52 has also proven effective in low altitude and conventional bombing operations. It is
the longest serving combat aircraft in the history of the USAF and it will continue to be a
major part of the US bomber force well into the twenty-first century. In addition to serv-
ing as a cornerstone of the US nuclear deterrent, B-52s conducted devastating bombing
missions during both the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm.

Rockwell B-1 Lancer (1985)

Top Speed: >900 MPH
Cruise: high subsonic
Ceiling: >50,000 ft
Engines: (4) GE F-101-GE-102;
>30,000 lbs thrust
Range: >7,000 miles

The B-1 was the first US Air Force bomber to incorporate low-observable stealth technol-
ogy and was designed for low-altitude, deep-penetration nuclear attacks on the Soviet Union.
It has a swing-wing that gives it outstanding performance at all speeds and altitudes. With the
end of the Soviet threat, nonnuclear bombing capability has been added to the B-1.

130
 Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit (1999)
Top Speed: High Subsonic
Ceiling: 50,000 ft
Engine: (4) GE
F-118-GE-100
17,300 lbs
Range: 6,000 miles

The B-2 is the first operational combat aircraft ever built according to the “flying wing”
concept (i.e., without a tail or fuselage). Its unique shape and the exotic materials used in
its construction make it extremely difficult to detect with radar. This extraordinary level of
stealth is achieved in spite of the fact that the B-2 is a very large aircraft capable of deliver-
ing more than 32,000 lbs of bombs on enemy targets with great precision. Though origi-
nally designed to attack targets within the Soviet Union with nuclear weapons, the B-2
made its combat debut during Operation Allied Force when B-2’s delivered 2,000 lb joint
direct attack munitions (JDAM) on targets in Serbia. The B-2’s had to fly out of their home
base—Whiteman AFB, Missouri—so each mission took over 30 hours. In spite of the low
sortie rate caused by these long missions and the small number of B-2’s operational in 1999,
the ability of each B-2 to deliver 16 JDAMs with extraordinary accuracy in all weather on
the most heavily defended targets made it the preferred system for attacking many targets
in Serbia.

131
Attack Aircraft
Northrop A-17 Nomad (1936)
Top Speed: 206 MPH
Cruise: 170 MPH
Ceiling: 20,700 ft
Engine: P&W R-1535-11;
750 hp
Range: 650 miles with 654 lbs
bombs

Northrop developed the A-17 in the early 1930s to fill an Army Air Corps (AAC) require-
ment for a ground-attack bomber. The aircraft would provide ground support for infantry,
attacking at tree-top level with its four forward-firing .30-caliber machine guns and frag-
mentation or chemical bombs carried internally.

Douglas A-20 Havoc (1940)

Top Speed: 317 MPH
Cruise: 230 MPH
Ceiling: 25,000 ft
Engine: (2) Wright R-2600-23;
1,600 hp
Range: 1,025 miles

The A-20 was designed to meet an AAC attack specification in 1938 but it took British
and French orders to start production. Begun as a company-funded venture, the Havoc
eventually became the most produced AAF attack aircraft. It also helped start the trend for
nose wheels in American combat aircraft.

133
 Douglas A-26 Invader (1941)
Top Speed: 355 MPH
Cruise: 284 MPH
Ceiling: 22,100 ft
Engine: (2) P&W R-2800-27;
2,000 hp
Range: 1,400 miles with
4,000 lbs bombs

An updated A-20, it was used for level bombing, ground strafing, and rocket attacks.
When production halted after VJ day, 2,502 Invaders had been built. The A-26 was redes-
ignated the B-26 in 1948 (forever confusing it with the Martin B-26). During the Korean
War, the airplane entered combat once again, this time as a night intruder to harass North
Korean supply lines. Early in the Vietnam War, the Invader went into action for the third
time. In 1966, the B-26K was redesignated the A-26A.

Douglas A-1 Skyraider (1963)

Top Speed: 325 MPH
Cruise: 240 MPH
Ceiling: 26,200 ft
Engine: Wright R-3350; 2,700 hp
Range: 1,500 miles

This rugged dump truck of an attack aircraft was originally developed for the Navy and
entered Navy service in the 1940s. The Air Force used A-1s to attack ground targets in
Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos (where it worked closely with the Central Intelligence
Agency’s [CIA] secret operations). It was nicknamed “Spad,” because pilots considered it a
throwback airplane in the jet-age Air Force. The Skyraider was also used to cover rescue
operations, where the type picked up a second nickname, “Sandy,” its radio call sign.

134
 Vought A-7 Corsair II (1968)
Top Speed: 663 MPH
Cruise: 545 MPH
Ceiling: 33,500 ft
Engine: Allison TF41;
14,250 lbs thrust
Range: 1,330 miles with
6,560 lbs bombs

The A-7 was originally designed for the US Navy which began purchasing them in 1965.
The A-7 was the USAF’s first jet attack aircraft and performed well in the later stages of the
Vietnam War. The A-7 was the Air Force’s primary ground attack aircraft throughout the
1970s.

Fairchild A-10 Thunderbolt II (1976)

Top Speed: 450 MPH
Cruise: 335 MPH
Ceiling: 44,200 ft
Engine: (2) GE TF34-GE-100;
9,000 lbs thrust
Range: 288 miles combat
radius with 9,540 lbs
bombs and 2 hours on
station

The A-10 was designed to defeat a Soviet invasion of Western Europe by killing huge num-
bers of Soviet tanks. To do this it was equipped with one of the most powerful cannons ever
mounted in an aircraft in addition to bombs and ground attack missiles. The A-10 relies on its
exceptional maneuverability, heavy armor, and redundant systems, rather than speed, for its
survivability. Though the Soviets never invaded, the A-10 demonstrated its effectiveness
against Iraqi forces during Operation Desert Storm. Though its lack of night and all-weather
capability limit its effectiveness, the A-10’s heavy firepower, long station time, and ease of
maintenance have made it popular on peace enforcement missions in places like Bosnia.

135
Tankers
Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter (1950)
Top Speed: 400 MPH
Cruise: 230 MPH
Ceiling: 30,000 ft
Engine: (4) P&W R-4360;
3,500 hp (2) GE-J47s,
5,970 lbs thrust
Range: 2,300 miles

The KC-97, a tanker version of the C-97, was introduced in 1950 using the “flying
boom” refueling system. This was an improvement from the probe-and-drogue technique
tested earlier. The value of air refueling was demonstrated in 1952 by nonstop deployment
of the 31st Fighter-Escort Wing from Turner AFB, Georgia, to Japan. Jet squadrons could
now fly to any point in the world refueling from flying tankers at prearranged rendezvous
points. The jet engines were added in 1964 to give the Stratofreighter enough speed to
refuel faster jet aircraft.

Boeing KB-50 Superfortress (1956)

Top Speed: 445 MPH
Cruise: 410 MPH
Ceiling: 40,000 ft
Engine: (4) P&W R-4360;
3,500 hp (2) GE-J47s;
5,910 lbs thrust
Range: 2,500 miles

KB-50s were B-50 bombers modified as aerial tankers. The alterations involved the
removal of armament and the installation of additional fuel tanks and probe-and-drogue
equipment to permit the aerial refueling by hose of up to three fighter-type aircraft at one
time. As the performance of operational jet fighters increased, a J47 jet engine was installed
under each wing on some KB-50s to boost speed while refueling and to increase altitude
capability.

137
 Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker (1957)
Top Speed: 610 MPH
Cruise: 530 MPH
Ceiling: 50,000 ft
Engine: (4) CFM-56;
21,634 lbs thrust
Range: 1,500 miles with
150,000 lbs fuel

The KC-135 derives from the same prototype as the Boeing 707 commercial airplane and
uses the flying boom refueling system. It began replacing the KC-97s of the Strategic Air
Command in the late 1950s and later replaced Tactical Air Command’s KB-50s. KC-135s
played a central role in Air Force combat operations in Vietnam, Panama (1989), and
Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. There are more than 600 KC-135s in the Air
Force inventory and the new CFM-56 engines will enable them to remain the backbone of the
refueling force well into the twenty-first century. The EC-135 provides airborne command and
control for US nuclear forces in the event ground command and control is knocked out.

McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extender (1981)

Top Speed: 619 MPH
Cruise: 564 MPH
Ceiling: 42,000 ft
Engine: (3) GE CF-6-
50C2; 52,500
lbs thrust
Range: 4,400 miles
with cargo

The KC-10 is a modified civilian DC-10. It is capable of aerial refueling using both
flying-boom and hose-and-drogue refueling systems. When used strictly as a refueling air-
craft, the KC-10 can carry almost twice as much fuel as a KC-135. The KC-10 can also be
configured to transport personnel and equipment while conducting its primary aerial refu-
eling mission. During Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, KC-10s refueled aircraft
from all branches of the US armed forces and many coalition forces.

138
Transport and
Special Electronic Aircraft
Curtiss-Wright C-30 Condor (1933)
Top Speed: 181 MPH
Ceiling: 22,800 ft
Engine: (2) Wright R-1820-12;
700 hp
Range: 750 miles

The older Army transports, like the C-30, were procured in small numbers and essentially
standard commercial aircraft modified to meet military requirements. In some cases larger
cargo doors were fitted; in others unusual engines were replaced by standard Army models.

Douglas C-47 Skytrain “Gooney Bird” (1941)

Top Speed: 232 MPH
Cruise: 175 MPH
Ceiling: 24,450 ft
Engine: (2) P&W R-1830;
1,200 hp
Range: 1,513

Few aircraft are as well known or were so widely used for so long as the C-47 or “Gooney
Bird” as it was affectionately nicknamed. The first C-47s were ordered in 1940 and by the end
of World War II, 9,348 had been procured for AAF use. After World War II, many C-47s
remained in USAF service, participating in the Berlin Airlift and other peacetime activities.
During the Korean War, C-47s hauled supplies, dropped paratroops, evacuated wounded, and
dropped flares for night bombing attacks. In Vietnam, the C-47 served again as a transport, but
it was also used in a variety of other ways which included flying ground attack (gunship), recon-
naissance, and psychological warfare missions.

139
 Curtiss C-46 Commando (1942)
Top Speed: 245 MPH
Cruise: 175 MPH
Ceiling: 27,600 ft
Engine: (2) P&W R-2800;
2,000 hp
Range: 1,200 miles

The C-46 gained its greatest fame during World War II transporting war materials over
the “Hump” from India to China after the Japanese had closed the Burma Road. The
Commando carried more cargo than the famous C-47 and offered better performance at
higher altitudes, but under these difficult flying conditions, C-46s required extensive main-
tenance and had a relatively high loss rate. During the Korean War C-46s saw additional
service.

Douglas C-54 Skymaster (1942)

Top Speed: 300 MPH
Cruise: 245 MPH
Ceiling: 30,000 ft
Engine: (4) P&W R-2000;
1,450 hp
Range: 3,900 miles

This long-range heavy transport gained its greatest fame in World War II, the Berlin
Airlift, and the Korean War. Originally developed for the airlines, the first batch of what
would have been DC-4s was commandeered off the assembly line by the Army Air Forces
in 1942 and redesignated C-54. The first presidential aircraft was the lone VC-54C.
President Harry S. Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947, creating an inde-
pendent Air Force, on board this aircraft on 12 July 1947.

140
 Fairchild C-82/119 Flying Boxcar (1945)
Top Speed: 290 MPH
Cruise: 200 MPH
Ceiling: 30,000 ft
Engine: (2) Wright R-3350;
3,500 hp
Range: 2,000 miles

The C-82 appeared too late to participate in World War II and the C-119 was a major
redesign of the C-82. The C-119 had the same major design feature as the C-82—a rear-
loading, all-through cargo hold—but featured more powerful engines and a relocated flight
deck. In the 1950s, C-119s were used to ferry supplies to the Arctic for construction of the
distant early warning (DEW) line radar sites. In the late 1960s, the Air Force selected the
C-119 to replace the AC-47 Spooky in the gunship role.

Douglas C-124 Globemaster “Old Shaky” (1950)

Top Speed: 320 MPH
Cruise: 200 MPH
Ceiling: 34,000 ft
Engine: (4) P&W R-4360;
3,800 hp
Range: 2,175 miles

The Globemaster performed yeoman service through two wars and nearly 25 years. The
C-124 was a major redesign of the C-74 that was developed at the end of World War II. It
used the same wings, tail, and engines as the C-74 but had a deeper fuselage that featured
clamshell doors in the nose to permit vehicles to drive on and off under their own power.
The C-124 retained the C-74’s electrically operated elevator in the rear of the aircraft for
loading of bulk cargo. It went on to provide a much-needed airlift capability in the Korean
War, as it was the only aircraft that could carry many of the Army’s vehicles.

141
 Lockheed C-69/121 Constellation (1943)
Top Speed: 290 MPH
Cruise: 240 MPH
Ceiling: 18,000 ft
Engine: (4) Wright R-3350;
3,400 hp
Range: 4,000 miles

Howard Hughes was one of the driving forces behind the design of the Lockheed
Constellation. A number of aircraft intended for Hughes’ Transcontinental and Western
Airlines (and for Pan American) were requisitioned off the production line by the United
States AAF after the attack on Pearl Harbor and designated C-69s. It was the heaviest and
the fastest transport built to date for the Army Air Forces. The improved Constellation (the
C-121) entered service after World War II and most of them were built as EC-121s and used
for electronic reconnaissance and airborne early warning. In the mid-1960s, the Air Force
sent the first Warning Stars to Vietnam to maintain radar surveillance over North Vietnam
and then later to warn of MiG attacks.

Fairchild C-123 Provider (1955)

Top Speed: 240 MPH
Cruise: 170 MPH
Ceiling: 28,000 ft
Engine: (2) P&W R-2800;
2,500 hp (2) GE J-85;
2,850 lbs thrust
Range: 1,825 miles

The C-123 was a tactical transport originally designed as a glider, although the design was
drawn up with the intention of its eventually being powered. Two C-123Ks were modified
to the NC-123K configuration (also referred to as AC-123K) under the Black Spot project.
This was designed to give the Air Force a self-contained night attack capability to seek out
and destroy targets on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The C-123s contributed a substantial por-
tion of in-country airlift and resupply in Vietnam and Cambodia.

142
 Lockheed C-130 Hercules (1957)
Top Speed: 380 MPH
Cruise: 340 MPH
Ceilings: 33,000 ft
Engines: (4) Allison T-56-A-15;
4,300 hp
Range: 2,500 miles with
25,000 lbs cargo

The C-130’s primary mission is airlift within theater where its ability to operate from
rough, dirt airstrips is vital. It is also the primary aircraft for paradropping troops and equip-
ment. C-130s dropped Army troops into combat in Grenada and Panama. The rugged and
versatile C-130 has been modified to perform aerial refueling (KC-130) and electronic war-
fare (EC-130) operations and as the AC-130, it has served as the nation’s primary gunship
since the early 1970s. The Air Force Special Operations Command relies particularly heav-
ily on C-130 variants. The C-130 has been in production for over four decades, longer than
any other aircraft in history.

Lockheed C-141 Starlifter (1964)

Top Speed: 566 MPH
Cruise: 500 MPH
Ceiling: 41,000 ft
Engines: (4) P&W TF33-P-7;
20,250 lbs thrust
Range: 3,000 miles with
maximum payload

The C-141 was Air Mobility Command’s first jet aircraft designed to meet military cargo
standards. It dropped Army troops and equipment into combat in Panama and Grenada and
was critical to airlift operations during Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm. Between 1979
and 1982 the entire C-141 fleet was extensively modified to add air refueling receptacles and
lengthen each fuselage by over 23 feet. It has been the backbone of the US airlift fleet since the
mid-1960s and will continue to provide intercontinental airlift until replaced by the C-17.

143
 Lockheed C-5 Galaxy (1970)
Top Speed: 570 MPH
Cruise: 518 MPH
Ceiling: >30,000 ft
Engine: (4) GE TF-39;
41,000 lbs thrust
Range: >2,000 miles with
200,000 lbs of cargo

The C-5 carries outsized cargo

intercontinental distances. It is one of
the largest aircraft ever built; so large
that the Wright brothers’ entire first
flight could have been conducted
inside a C-5’s cargo bay. Its upward-
lifting “visor” nose, full-width aft
doors and ramps, and “kneel down” landing gear speed the loading and unloading of the
C-5. The C-5 fleet was critical to US airlift operations during Operations Desert Shield and
Desert Storm and there is no scheduled replacement date for the C-5.

Boeing E-3 Sentry AWACS (1977)

Optimal Cruise: 360 MPH
Ceiling: >29,000 ft
Engine: (4) P&W TF33-PW-100A;
21,000 lbs thrust
Endurance: Over 8 hours without
refueling

The E-3 is a modified Boeing 707 with a large rotating radar dome. It serves as an air-
borne warning and control system (AWACS) providing all-weather surveillance, command,
control, and communications to United States and allied aircraft. Since they entered ser-
vice, E-3s have been among the first aircraft dispatched to world trouble spots and they
directed more than 120,000 coalition sorties during Operation Desert Storm.

144
 Northrop Grumman E-8 JSTARS (1991)
Top Speed: 600 MPH
Cruise: 535 MPH
Ceiling: NA
Engines: (4) JT3D-7;
19,000 lbs thrust
Range: 5,700 miles

The E-8 joint surveillance target attack radar system (JSTARS) is a modified Boeing 707
with a phased-array radar antenna mounted in a 26-foot long canoe-shaped radome under the
forward part of the fuselage. The JSTARS radar monitors ground activity deep inside enemy
territory and provides target data to both the USAF and US Army. Though it was still under
development in 1991, the test bed E-8s were deployed to the Persian Gulf and participated in
Operation Desert Storm. Since then they have been very active in other trouble spots.

Boeing C-17 Globemaster III (1993)

Cruise: 500 MPH
Ceiling: 45,000 ft
Engines: (4) P&W F117-PW-100;
40,440 lbs thrust
Range: 2,800 miles with
160,000 lbs cargo

The C-17 is gradually replacing the C-141 in the USAF airlift fleet and the C-17 will be
the backbone of United States air mobility in the first half of the twenty-first century. The
C-17 can carry about twice as much cargo as the C-141 and can operate from shorter, more
austere airfields. These features greatly enhance the capabilities of Air Mobility Command.

145
Training Aircraft
Vultee BT-13 Valiant (1940)
Top Speed: 173 MPH
Engine: P&W R-985-25;
450 hp

The Valiant was the basic trainer most widely used by the USAAF during World War II.
Over 10,000 Valiants were built, which provided basic pilot training for the enormous num-
ber of pilots need for the war. The BT-13 had a powerful engine and was faster and heavier
than other trainers. It required the student pilot to use two-way radio communications with
the ground, and to operate both landing flaps and a two-position variable pitch propeller.

North American AT-6 Texan (1940)

Top Speed: 206 MPH
Engine: P&W R-1340-47,
600 hp

The AT-6 was one of the most widely used aircraft in history. Nearly all USAAF pilots in
World War II trained in the AT-6 prior to earning their wings. This aircraft exposed students
to high-performance aircraft with retractable landing gear. The British version of the AT-6
the “Harvard” was widely used by the British Royal Air Force during the war. During the
Korean War, some AT-6s were used to spot enemy ground targets and mark them with
smoke rockets for attack by fighter-bombers.

147
 Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star (1948)
Top Speed: 600 MPH
Engine: J33-A-23; 5,200 lbs
thrust

The two-place T-33 was the world’s first jet trainer. It was developed from the single-seat
F-80 fighter by lengthening the fuselage approximately three feet to accommodate a second
cockpit. Lockheed undertook the design of the T-33 with $1 million of its own money.
Entering service in 1948, the T-33 was the only Air Force jet trainer until the advent of the
Cessna T-37 in 1957.

North American T-28 Trojan (1949)

Top Speed: 285 MPH
Engine: Wright R-1300-1;
800 hp

The winner of the competition to build the first new Air Force trainer after World War II,
the T-28A fell short of expectations, and the Air Force eventually added the T-34 to the syl-
labus to provide ab initio training. The United States used a number of T-28s in the early
stages of Operation Farm Gate to train the South Vietnamese in commando-type opera-
tions. In 1962, the USAF began to modify nearly three hundred T-28s as fighter-bombers
for counterinsurgency warfare, and these were redesignated T-28D Nomads.

148
 Beech T-34 Mentor (1952)
Top speed: 180 MPH
Engine: O-470-13; 225 hp

The T-34A was used by the USAF for primary flight training during the 1950s. The
T-34A served as the standard primary trainer until the USAF introduced the Cessna T-37
jet trainer in the late 1950s. As they were replaced by the T-37, many T-34s were turned
over to base Aero Clubs. In all, 450 T-34As were produced for the USAF.

Cessna T-37 Tweet (1957)

Speed: 410 MPH
Engine: (2) Continental
J69-T-25; 1,025
lbs thrust

The T-37 is one of the most successful training aircraft ever built and has been the pri-
mary trainer for several generations of Air Force pilots. The student and instructor sit side
by side to facilitate instruction and the twin engines and flying characteristics help prepare
students to move on to larger and faster aircraft. Modified T-37s have also served as attack
aircraft in counterinsurgency operations.

149
 Northrop T-38 Talon (1961)
Top Speed: 810 MPH
Engine: (2) GE J85-GE-5;
2,900 lbs thrust

The T-38 is a twin-engine, high-altitude, supersonic advanced jet trainer. More than
60,000 pilots have earned their wings in the T-38. In addition to teaching supersonic tech-
niques, aerobatics, formation, night and instrument flying, and cross-country navigation,
the AT-38 teaches weapons delivery as well.

Raytheon T-1 Jayhawk (1993)

Speed: 538 MPH
Engine: (2) P&W JT15D-5;
2,900 lbs thrust

The T-1 is a version of the Beech 400A civilian aircraft and was the first new trainer air-
craft purchased by the USAF in 30 years. The T-1 represented the beginning of a new era
in pilot training. From the late 1950s to the early 1990s, all pilot training students received
primary training in the T-37 and advanced training in the T-38. In 1993 the USAF went to
specialized undergraduate pilot training with all pilots still receiving primary training in the
T-37 but only fighter and bomber pilots moving on to the T-38. Pilots going to airlift and
tanker units receive their advance training in the T-1 instead.

150
Experimental and Strategic
Reconnaissance Aircraft
Bell X-1 “Glamorous Glennis” (1947)
Top Speed: 700 MPH (Mach
1.06) Achieved on
14 October 1947
Ceiling: 45,000 ft
Engine: XLR11-RM-1 rocket
engine; 6,000 lbs
thrust

Developed in secrecy, the XS-1 (later redesignated X-1) research aircraft was the first to
explore flight beyond the speed of sound (761 MPH at sea level). Design basis for the aircraft
was a .50-caliber bullet. Air Force Capt Charles E. “Chuck” Yeager became the first pilot to
exceed Mach 1 when on 14 October 1947, he reached a speed of Mach 1.06 (700 MPH) at
an altitude of 43,000 ft. News of the flight was not revealed until nearly two months later.

Lockheed U-2 (1956)

Speed: 430 MPH
Ceiling: >70,000 ft
Engine: P&W J75-P-13B;
17,000 lbs thrust
Range: >6,000 miles

The U-2 is a high-altitude, long-endurance reconnaissance aircraft. The U-2 operates at such
high altitudes that the pilots have to wear modified spacesuits. U-2 photos alerted the United
States to the deployment of Soviet missiles to Cuba at the start of the Cuban missile crisis. One
U-2 (operated by the CIA) was shot down over the Soviet Union in 1960 and another was shot
down over Cuba in 1962. However, improved engines and surveillance equipment make the
U-2 an effective reconnaissance platform in the twenty-first century.

151
 North American X-15 (1958)
Top Speed: 4,520 MPH (Mach
6.72)
Ceiling: 354,200 ft (67 miles)
Engine: XLR99 rocket engine;
57,000 lbs thrust

The X-15 was designed to explore the identifiable problems of atmospheric flight at very
high speeds and altitudes. The aircraft was the first to use a throttle-able rocket engine, the
first to be flown to speeds of Mach 4, 5, and 6, and the first to be flown to the lower edge
of space (considered by the Air Force and National Aeronautics and Space Administration
[NASA] to be an altitude of 50 miles). It demonstrated that pilots could perform at hyper-
sonic speeds and in weightlessness. It also proved the effectiveness of reusable, piloted
spacecraft, and lifting reentry upon return to atmosphere.

North American XB-70 Valkyrie (1964)

Top Speed: 2,000 MPH
(Mach 3.08)
Ceiling: 74,000 ft
Engine: (6) YJ93-GE-3;
30,000 lbs thrust
Range: 6,000 miles

One of the most exotic aircraft ever built. Originally conceived as a high-altitude, Mach
3-capable bomber to replace the B-52, budget cuts reduced the number of aircraft to two
and the program to a research effort aimed at studying aerodynamics, propulsion, and mate-
rials used on large supersonic aircraft. On one flight above Mach 3, the recorded skin tem-
perature on the aircraft reached 620 degrees. At Mach 3, it took the aircraft an arc of 287
miles and 13 minutes to make a 180-degree turn. The aircraft utilized the phenomenon of
compression lift, where the aircraft actually rode its own shock wave. It was able to do this
in part because of the wingtips that could droop in flight.

152
 Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird (1966)
Cruise: >2,000 MPH
Ceiling: >85,000 ft
Engine: (2) P&W J58;
32,500 lbs thrust

Like the U-2 and the F-117, the SR-71 was a product of Lockheed’s famous Skunk
Works. The SR-71 has the most spectacular speed and altitude performance ever recorded
in an operational jet aircraft. Its powerful ramjet engines and unique shape enable the
SR-71 to cruise at speeds above Mach 3. No SR-71s have ever been shot down though they
have conducted high-priority reconnaissance missions in many of the world’s trouble spots.

153
Strategic Missiles and
Space Launch Vehicles
Douglas PGM-17 Thor (1959)
Length: 65 ft 10 in
Diameter: 8 ft
Weight: 109,330 lbs at launch
Engine: North American Rockedyne, liquid-propelent
rocket; 150,000 lbs thrust
Speed: 10,250 MPH
Range: 1,725 miles
Altitude: 390 miles

The single-stage Thor intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) was the free world’s
first operational IRBM. They could deliver their nuclear payloads over 1,700 miles and were
assigned to SAC until 1963. After 1963 they were used for space research and as single-stage
boosters.

General Dynamics HGM-19 Atlas (1959)

Atlas I
Length: 75 ft
Width: 10 ft
Weight: 260,000 lbs
Range as ICBM: 11,500 miles

Atlas was the United States’ first ICBM. It was a one and one-half stage liquid-fuel mis-
sile. It was retired from SAC in 1965 in favor of the Titan II. Hundreds of Atlas rockets
have been used as space launch vehicles. Atlas I rockets were used to launch the Mercury
astronauts and Atlas II rockets launched portions of the Defense Satellite Communications
System in the 1990s.

155
 Martin LGM-25 Titan (1962)
Titan I/II
Length: 98 ft 4 in/103 ft
Diameter: 10 ft (Titan II second stage as wide as first)
Weight: 221,500 lbs/330,000 lbs
Range as ICBM: 6,300 miles/9,300 miles

Titan I was a two-stage liquid-fuel ICBM. The first

Titan I squadron became operational in 1962. By 1965 the
Titan Is were already being replaced by Titan IIs that had
twice the payload and could be fired from inside their silos.
Titan IV
Titan IIs remained part of the US nuclear deterrent until
1987 when the remaining missiles were released for use as
space launch vehicles. Modified Titan IIs launched the
Gemini astronauts. Titan III was a further improvement in
the Titan family used only for launching space vehicles.
Titan IV, with two solid fuel boosters attached, is a heavy-
lift launch vehicle able to put almost 24 tons into low Titan I
Earth orbit.

Titan II

Boeing LGM-30 Minuteman (1962)

Minuteman I/III
Length: 55 ft 9 in/59 ft 10 in
Diameter: 6 ft
Weight: 65,000 lbs/78,000 lbs
Range: >6,300 miles/>8,000 miles

Minuteman ICBMs are three-stage solid propellent mis-

siles and have been the core of the US nuclear deterrent
for almost 40 years. Over 500 Minuteman III missiles
remain in the USAF inventory at the end of the twentieth
century and there are no plans to replace them. Steady
improvements since the 1960s have increased the range,
accuracy, and payload of the Minuteman series and the
Minuteman III can carry up to three independently tar-
geted nuclear warheads. These missiles, however, carry
only one warhead in compliance with arms limitations Minuteman
agreements. III
Minuteman I

156
 Boeing LGM-118 Peacekeeper (1986)
Height: 71 ft
Diameter: 7 ft 8 in
Weight: 195,000 lbs
Range: >6,000 miles

The Peacekeeper was designed to take full advantage of

developments in missile guidance and multiple reentry vehi-
cle technology. Like the Minuteman, it is a three-stage, solid
propellent missile but the Peacekeeper can carry up to 10
highly accurate, independently targeted nuclear warheads. In
accordance with arms reduction treaties, the Peacekeeper will
be phased out by 2003.

McDonnell Douglas Delta II (1989)

Delta II
Length: 125 ft 9 in
Width: 8 ft
Weight: 511,190 lbs

The first Delta rocket was launched in 1960 and used the
US Air Force’s Thor rocket as its first stage. Delta rockets
became the workhorse of NASA’s unmanned space programs.
In the late 1980s the USAF started using improved Delta II
rockets to launch Navstar Global Positioning System (GPS)
satellites into orbit.

157
 Boeing AGM-86 (1982)
Speed: 550 MPH
Range: >1,500 miles

The AGM-86 air-launched cruise missile represented a dramatic leap forward from previ-
ous USAF air-launched cruise missiles. It is the first such missile that can reasonably be con-
sidered a strategic weapon.
SAC used previous air-launched cruise missiles to assist in penetrating Soviet air defenses.
These cruise missiles were of two basic types: decoys designed to have the same radar sig-
nature as B-52s, and the inaccurate AGM-28 Hound Dog ground attack missile. The oper-
ational concept was for the B-52s to launch their decoys just outside the range of Soviet air-
defense radar and flood Soviet air defenses with more targets than they could handle. If, in
spite of the decoys, the Soviet defenses found a B-52, then it would launch its nuclear-armed
AGM-28s to supress enemy air defenses.
As cruise missile accuracy improved, it became possible to design these weapons to attack
precision targets. The AGM-86B’s sophisticated terrain-following radar enables it to fly at
very low altitudes and deliver its nuclear payload with great accuracy. The AGM-86C (orig-
inally known as conventional air-launched cruise missile [CALCM]) has a conventional war-
head and uses GPS guidance. AGM-86Cs were used in Operation Desert Storm and in sub-
sequent attacks on Iraq. Because of its heavier conventional warhead, the AGM-86C has a
shorter range than the B model.

Boeing AGM-129 Advanced Cruise Missile (1991)

Speed and Range are classified.

The AGM-129 is the USAF’s latest generation of air-launched cruise missiles with longer
range and better accuracy than the AGM-86. To enhance survivability, the AGM-129 also
incorporates low-observable stealth technology.

158
Satellites
Lockheed Corona (1960)

Corona Reconnaissance Satellite C-119 recovering a Corona capsule by snagging its parachute

The Corona project was a joint Air Force/CIA program to put camera-carrying satellites
into orbit over the Soviet Union and other areas of interest. The Corona satellites were
launched by Thor rockets and the exposed film was ejected at a predetermined time and
location in a return capsule. At about 60,000 feet, a parachute deployed and while it floated
to earth, a specially modified C-119 or C-130 aircraft used a “trapeze” bar with hooks to
snag the parachute in flight (photograph at right above). The aircraft then reeled the film
capsule into the aircraft and returned it to base for analysis. Key to Corona’s success were
the enormous improvements in camera technology that enabled later Corona photographs,
taken at an altitude of more than one hundred miles while traveling faster than 17,000
MPH, to identify objects as small as six feet across. More than 100 Corona missions were
conducted between 1960 and 1972, when the system was retired. The systems that replaced
Corona are still classified.

159
 Lockheed Defense Meteorological
Satellite Program (1960s)
Weight: 1,750 lbs
Orbital Altitude: 500 miles
Dimensions: 12 ft long, 5 ft wide
Launch Vehicle: Titan II

The Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) has been collecting weather data
for military operations for more than 20 years. DMSP satellites operate in polar orbit and
provide continual visual and infrared imagery of cloud cover and monitor moisture, tem-
peratures, electromagnetic fields, and other weather data. Since 1994, DMSP data has been
shared with NASA and the US Commerce Department.

Defense Satellite Communications System (1971)

DSCS II/III
Weight: 1,350 lbs/2,580 lbs
Orbital Altitude: 23,230 miles
Dimensions: Height 6 ft/7 ft
Width 9 ft/6 ft
Launch Vehicle: Atlas II
DSCS III

DSCS II

The Defense Satellite Communications System (DSCS) provides secure, high priority,
command and control communications to global United States military operations. The first
DSCS II was launched in 1971 and the first of the more powerful DSCS III’s were first
launched in 1982.

160
 TRW Defense Support Program (1970)
Weight: 5,250 lbs
Altitude: 22,000 miles
Dimensions: 33 ft long,
22 ft wide
Launch Vehicle: Titan IV

Defense Support Program (DSP) satellites provide early warning by detecting and report-
ing missile and space launches and nuclear detonations. Continuous improvements have
kept the program up to date. These satellites provided critical early warning of Iraqi Scud
launches to United States and coalition forces during Operation Desert Storm. The Space-
Based Infrared System will replace the DSP in the twenty-first century.

Rockwell Navstar Global

Positioning System (1978)
Weight: 3,670 lbs
Altitude: 12,000 miles
Dimensions: 11 ft long, 17 ft wide
Launch Vehicle: Delta II

The first GPS satellite was launched in 1978, but the need for extensive testing and the
large number of satellites needed to provide full coverage of the Earth (currently 24 satel-
lites) meant that the system was not complete until 1995. Though the system was not yet
fully operational, the GPS was critical to the success of United States and coalition forces in
Operation Desert Storm.

161
 Milstar Satellite Communications System (1994)
Weight: 10,000 lbs
Orbital Altitude: 25,000 miles
Dimensions: 37 ft long, 116 feet wide
(with solar panels deployed)
Launch Vehicle: Titan IV

Milstar is the Air Force’s newest communications satellite. When fully operational, the
system will consist of four satellites in geosynchronous orbits and two more in polar orbit.
Each Milstar satellite serves as a smart switchboard directing traffic from terminal to termi-
nal anywhere in the world with minimal requirement for ground controlled switching.

162
 APPENDICES
Senior Leadership of the Early Air Forces
Air Force Chiefs of Staff
Chief Master Sergeants of the Air Force
Fighter Aces
USAF Medal of Honor Winners
 Appendix A
Senior Leadership of the Early Air Forces

Chief Signal Officer

Brig Gen Adolphus V. Greely (1891–1906)
Brig Gen James Allen (1906–07)

Chief, Aeronautical Division of the Signal Corps

Capt Charles DeForest Chandler (1907–10)
Capt A. S. Cowan (1910–11)
Capt Charles DeForest Chandler (1911–12)
Lt Henry H. Arnold (1912–13)
Col Sam Reber (1913–16)

Aviation Section of the Signal Corps

Col George O. Squier (1916–17)
Lt Col John B. Bennet (1917)

Chief, Division of Military Aeronautics

Brig Gen Benjamin D. Foulois (1917)
Brig Gen Alexander L. Dade (1917–18)
Maj Gen William L. Kenly (1918)

Director of the Air Service

Maj Gen Charles Menoher (1918–21)
Maj Gen Mason M. Patrick (1921–26)

Chief of the Air Corps

Maj Gen Mason M. Patrick (1926–27)
Maj Gen James E. Fechet (1927–31)
Maj Gen Benjamin D. Foulois (1931–35)
Maj Gen Oscar Westover (1935–38)
Gen Henry H. Arnold (1938–41)

Commanding General Army Air Forces

Gen Henry H. Arnold (1941–46)
Gen Carl A. Spaatz (1946–47)

165
 Appendix B
Air Force Chiefs of Staff
Gen Carl A. Spaatz (September 1947–April 1948)
Gen Hoyt S. Vandenberg (April 1948–June 1953)
Gen Nathan F. Twining (June 1953–June 1957)
Served as Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff (August
1957–September 1960)
Gen Thomas D. White (July 1957–June 1961)
Gen Curtis E. LeMay (June 1961–January 1965)
Gen John P. McConnell (February 1965–July 1969)
Gen John D. Ryan (August 1969–July 1973)
Gen George S. Brown (August 1973–June 1974)
Served as Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff (July
1974–June 1978)
Gen David C. Jones (July 1974–June 1978)
Served as Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff (June
1978–June 1982)
Gen Lew Allen Jr. (July 1978–June 1982)
Gen Charles A. Gabriel (July 1982–June 1986)
Gen Larry D. Welch (July 1986–June 1990)
Gen Merrill A. McPeak (October 1990–October 1994)
Gen Ronald R. Fogleman (October 1994–September
1997)
Gen Michael E. Ryan (October 1997–present)

167
 Appendix C
Chief Master Sergeants of the Air Force
Paul W. Airey (3 April 1967–31 July 1969)
Donald L. Harlow (1 August 1969–30 September 1971)
Richard D. Kisling (1 October 1971–30 September 1973)
Thomas N. Barnes (1 October 1973–31 July 1977)
Robert D. Gaylor (1 August 1977–31 July 1979)
James M. McCoy (1 August 1979–31 July 1981)
Arthur L. Andrews (1 August 1981–31 July 1983)
Sam E. Parish (1 August 1983–30 June 1986)
James C. Binnicker (1 July 1986–31 July 1990)
Gary R. Pfinsgton (1 August 1990–25 October 1994)
David J. Campanale (26 October 1994–1 November 1996)
Eric W. Benken (5 November 1996–30 July 1999)
Frederick J. Finch (2 August 1999–present)

169
 Appendix D
Fighter Aces
In World War I France, Belgium, Italy, Russia, and the United States used the term ace.
It was first used to describe the exploits of Roland Garros, who when he was captured had
five kills. Thus, became the standard by which “acedom” was achieved.

World War I American Aces

Edward V. Rickenbacker 26 Frank K. Hays 6
Frank Luke Jr. 18 Donald Hudson 6
George A. Vaughn 13 Howard C. Knotts 6
Field E. Kindley 12 Robert O. Lindsay 6
Elliot White Springs 12 John K. MacArthur 6
Reed G. Landis 10 William T. Ponder 6
Jacques M. Swaab 10 David E. Putnam 6
Paul F. Baer 9 William H. Stovall 6
Thomas G. Cassady 9 Edgar G. Tobin 6
Lloyd A. Hamilton 9 Jerry C. Vasconcells 6
Chester E. Wright 9 William T. Badham 5
Henry R. Clay 8 Clayton L. Bissell 5
Hamilton Coolidge 8 Hilbert L. Blair 5
John Owen Donaldson 8 Arthur R. Brooks 5
William P. Erwin 8 Harold R. Buckley 5
Frank O. D. Hunter 8 Everett R. Cook 5
Clinton Jones 8 Charles R. D’Olive 5
James A. Meissner 8 Arthur L. Easterbrook 5
Martinus Stenseth 8 George W. Furlow 5
Wilbur W. White 8 Harold H. George 5
Howard R. Burdick 7 Charles G. Grey 5
Reed M. Chambers 7 Edward M. Haight 5
Harvey Weir Cook 7 James A. Healy 5
Jesse O. Creech 8 James Knowles Jr. 5
Lansing C. Holden 7 G. DeFreest Larner 5
Wendel A. Robertson 7 Frederick E. Luff 5
Leslie J. Rummell 7 Ralph A. O’Neill 5
Karl J. Schoen 7 John S. Owens 5
Sumner Sewall 7 Kenneth L. Porter 5
James D. Beane 6 Orville A. Ralston 5
Charles J. Biddle 6 John J. Seerley 5
Douglas Campbell 6 Victor H. Strahm 5
Edward P. Curtis 6 Robert M. Todd 5
Murray K. Guthrie 6 Remington D. Vernam 5
Leonard C. Hammond 6 Joseph F. Wehner 5

171
 World War II US Army Air Forces Aces with at Least 14.5 Victories
Richard I. Bong 40 John C. Herbst 18
Thomas B. McGuire Jr. 38 Hubert Zemke 17.75
Francis S. Gabreski 28 John B. England 17.5
Robert S. Johnson 27 Duane W. Beeson 17.33
Charles H. MacDonald 27 John F. Thornell Jr. 17.25
George E. Preddy Jr. 26.83 James S. Varnell Jr. 17
John C. Meyer 24 Gerald W. Johnson 16.5
David C. Schilling 22.5 John T. Godfrey 16.33
Gerald R. Johnson 22 Clarence E. Anderson Jr. 16.25
Jay T. Robbins 22 William D. Dunham 16
Neel E. Kearby 22 Bill Harris 16
Fred J. Christensen 21.5 George S. Welch 16
Ray S. Wetmore 21.25 Donald M. Beerbower 15.5
John J. Voll 21 Samuel J. Brown 15.5
Walker M. Mahurin 20.75 Richard A. Peterson 15.5
Robert B. Westbrook 20 William T. Whisner Jr. 15.5
Thomas J. Lynch 20 Jack T. Bradley 15
Don S. Gentile 19.83 Robert W. Foy 15
Glenn E. Duncan 19.5 Ralph K. Hofer 15
Glenn T. Eagleston 18.5 Edward Cragg 15
Leonard K. Carson 18.5 Cyril F. Homer 15
Walter C. Beckham 18 John D. Landers 14.5
Herschel H. Green 18 Joe H. Powers Jr. 14.5

Capt Robert S. Johnson of the 61st Fighter

Squadron shot down 27 aircraft between June of
1943 and May of 1944 in the European theater.

172
 US Air Force Korean Conflict Aces
Joseph McConnell Jr. 16 Francis Gabreski 6.5
James Jabara 15 Donald E. Adams 6.5
Manuel J. Fernandez 14.5 George L. Jones 6.5
George Davis Jr. 14 Winton W. Marshall 6.5
Royal N. Baker 13 James H. Kasler 6
Fredrick Blesse 10 Robert J. Love 6
Harold E. Fischer 10 William T. Whisner Jr. 5.5
Vermont Garrison 10 Robert P. Baldwin 5
James Johnson 10 Richard S. Becker 5
Lonnie R. Moore 10 Stephen L. Bettinger 5
Ralph S. Parr Jr. 10 Richard D. Creighton 5
Cecil G. Foster 9 Clyde A. Curtin 5
James F. Low 9 Ralph D. Gibson 5
James P. Hagerstrom 8.5 Ivan C. Kinchloe 5
Robinson Risner 8 Robert T. Latshaw 5
George L. Ruddell 8 Robert H. Moore 5
Henry Buttlemann 7 Dolphin D. Overton III 5
Clifford D. Jolley 7 William H. Wescott 5
Leonard W. Lilley 7 Harrison R. Thyng 5

173
 US Air Force Vietnam War Aces
Charles B. DeBellevue 6
Richard S. Ritchie 5
Jeffrey S. Feinstein 5

174
 Appendix E
USAF Medal of Honor Winners
Name Date of Action Place of Action

World War I
2Lt Erwin R. Bleckley 6 Oct 1918 Binarville, France
2Lt Harold E. Goettler 6 Oct 1918 Binarville, France
2Lt Frank Luke Jr. 29 Sep 1918 Murvaux, France
Capt Edward V. Rickenbacker 25 Sep 1918 Billy, France

World War II
Lt Col Addison E. Baker 1 Aug 1943 Ploesti, Romania
Maj Richard I. Bong Fall of 1943 Southwest Pacific
Maj Horace S. Carswell Jr. 26 Oct 1944 South China Sea
Brig Gen Frederick W. Castle 24 Dec 1944 Liege, Belgium
Maj Ralph Cheli 18 Aug 1943 Wewak, New Guinea
Col Demas T. Craw 8 Nov 1942 Port Lyautey, French
Morocco
Lt Col James H. Doolittle 18 Apr 1942 Tokyo, Japan
SSgt Henry E. Erwin 12 Apr 1945 Koriyama, Japan
2Lt Robert E. Femoyer 2 Nov 1944 Merseburg, Germany
1Lt Donald J. Gott 9 Nov 1944 Saarbrucken, Germany
Maj Pierpont M. Hamilton 8 Nov 1942 Port Lyautey, French
Morocco
Lt Col James H. Howard 11 Jan 1944 Oschersleben, Germany
2Lt Lloyd H. Hughes 1 Aug 1943 Ploesti, Romania
Maj John L. Jerstad 1 Aug 1943 Ploesti, Romania
Col Leon W. Johnson 1 Aug 1943 Ploesti, Romania
Col John R. Kane 1 Aug 1943 Ploesti, Romania
Col Neel E. Kearby 11 Oct 1943 Wewak, New Guinea
2Lt David R. Kingsley 23 Jun 1944 Ploesti, Romania
1Lt Raymond L. Knight 25 Apr 1945 Po Valley, Italy
1Lt William R. Lawley Jr. 20 Feb 1944 Leipzig, Germany
Capt Darrell R. Lindsey 9 Aug 1944 Pontoise, France
SSgt Archibald Mathies 20 Feb 1944 Leipzig, Germany
1Lt Jack W. Mathis 18 Mar 1943 Vegesack, Germany

175
 USAF Medal of Honor Winners (Cont.)
Name Date of Action Place of Action
Maj Thomas B. McGuire Jr. 25-26 Dec 1944 Luzon, Philippines
2Lt William E. Metzger Jr. 9 Nov 1944 Saarbrucken, Germany
1Lt Edward S. Michael 11 Apr 1944 Brunswick, Germany
2Lt John C. Morgan 28 Jul 1943 Kiel, Germany
Capt Harl Pease Jr. 7 Aug 1942 Rabaul, New Britain
1Lt Donald D. Pucket 9 Jul 1944 Ploesti, Romania
2Lt Joseph R. Sarnoski 16 Jun 1943 Buka, Solomon Islands
Maj William A. Shomo 11 Jan 1945 Luzon, Philippines
Sgt Maynard H. Smith 1 May 1943 St. Nazaire, France
2Lt Walter E. Truemper 20 Feb 1944 Leipzig, Germany
Lt Col Leon R. Vance Jr. 5 Jun 1944 Wimereaux, France
TSgt Forrest L. Vosler 20 Dec 1943 Bremen, Germany
Brig Gen Kenneth N. Walker 5 Jan 1943 Rabaul, New Britain
Maj Raymond H. Wilkins 2 Nov 1943 Rabaul, New Britain
Maj Jay Zeamer Jr. 16 Jun 1943 Buka, Solomon Islands

Korea
Maj George A. Davis Jr. 10 Feb 1952 Sinuiji-Yalu River, N. Korea
Maj Charles J. Loring Jr. 22 Nov 1952 Sniper Ridge, N. Korea
Maj Louis J. Sebille 5 Aug 1950 Hamch’ang, S. Korea
Capt John S. Walmsley Jr. 14 Sep 1951 Yangdok, N. Korea

Vietnam
Capt Steven L. Bennett 29 Jun 1972 Quang Tri, S. Vietnam
Col George E. Day While POW
Maj Merlyn H. Dethlefsen 10 Mar 1967 Thai Nguyen, N. Vietnam
Maj Bernard F. Fisher 10 Mar 1966 A Shau Valley, S. Vietnam
1Lt James P. Fleming 26 Nov 1968 Duc Co, S. Vietnam
Lt Col Joe M. Jackson 12 May 1968 Kham Duc, S. Vietnam
Col William A. Jones III 1 Sep 1968 Dong hoi, N. Vietnam
A1C John L. Levitow 24 Feb 1969 Long Binh, S. Vietnam
A1C William H. Pitzenbarger 11 Apr 1966 S. Vietnam
Capt Lance P. Sijan While POW
Lt Col Leo K. Thorsness 19 Apr 1967 N. Vietnam
Capt Hilliard A. Wilbanks 24 Feb 1967 Dalat, S. Vietnam
Capt Gerald O. Young 9 Nov 1967 Da Nang area, S. Vietnam

176
T
he Medal of Honor is the highest military award for

bravery that can be given to any individual in the

United States of America. Established by joint resolu-

tion of Congress, 12 July 1862 (amended by Act of 9 July 1918

and Act of 25 July 1963). The first Medals of Honor awarded

went to six Union Army volunteers, members of Andrews’s (or

Mitchel’s) Raiders. These men attempted to disrupt the

Confederate rail lines between Atlanta and Chattanooga.

Disguised as civilians, the 19 soldiers, along with civilians James

Andrews and William Campbell, captured the locomotive

General at Big Shanty, Georgia. Chased by the persistent con-

ductor of the General the raiders charged north, attempting to

burn bridges and destroy track along the way. Less than 20 miles

south of Chattanooga the “Great Locomotive Chase” ended. All

of the raiders were captured and eight were tried and executed.

On 25 March 1863, six of the raiders arrived in Washington after

parole from a Confederate prison, and these six were the first to

be presented Medals of Honor by Secretary of War Stanton.

177
Introduction to the United States Air Force

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