Misplaced Pages

#309690

157-654: Originally known as the Bombing Aviator Badge , the Bombardier Badge was first issued by the United States Army Air Service during the First World War . The badge consisted of a standard observer badge , centred upon which was a downward facing bomb. The badge remained unchanged until the late 1930s, at which time it was redesignated the Bombardier Badge. This change was primarily made due to

314-450: A recess appointment (as did Menoher) on July 16 to become Assistant Chief of Air Service with the rank of brigadier general. On July 30, 1920, he was transferred and promoted to the permanent rank of colonel, Air Service, with date of rank from July 1, placing him first in seniority among all Air Service branch officers. On March 4, 1921, Mitchell was appointed Assistant Chief of Air Service by new President Warren G. Harding with consent of

471-681: A Director of Aircraft Production on April 28, 1918, and abolished the Air Division of the OCSO, creating a Division of Military Aeronautics (DMA) with Brigadier General William L. Kenly brought back from France to be its head, to separate supervision of aviation from the duties of the Chief Signal Officer. Less than a month later, Wilson used a war powers provision of the Overman Act of May 20, 1918, to issue Executive Order No. 2862 that suspended for

628-628: A bill to make Army aviation a branch separate from the Signal Corps and testified against the bill. As the only Signal Corps officer on the General Staff, he was chosen as temporary head of the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps , a predecessor of the present day United States Air Force , in May 1916, when its head was reprimanded and relieved of duty for malfeasance in the section. Mitchell administered

785-468: A continent in the past." He returned from Europe with a fervent belief that within a near future, possibly within ten years, air power would become the predominant force of war, and that it should be united entirely in an independent air force equal to the Army and Navy. He found encouragement in a number of bills before Congress proposing a Department of Aeronautics that included an air force separate from either

942-535: A final plan for 202 by June 1919. In Pershing's view, the two functions of the AEF's Air Service were to repel German aircraft and conduct observation of enemy movements. The heart of the proposed force would be its 101 observation squadrons (52 corps observation and 49 army observation), to be distributed to three armies and 16 corps. In addition, 60 pursuit squadrons, 27 night-bombardment squadrons, and 14 day-bombardment squadrons were to conduct supporting operations. Without

1099-584: A first lieutenant in the 24th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment along with future general Arthur MacArthur (the father of General Douglas MacArthur ). The elder Mitchell served as a United States senator from 1883 to 1889. His paternal grandfather, Alexander Mitchell , a Scotsman , established what became the Milwaukee Road railroad and the Marine Bank of Wisconsin. Mitchell Park and

1256-489: A highly publicized personal investigation by Gutzon Borglum , a harshly vocal critic of the board. Borglum had exchanged letters with President Wilson, a personal friend, from which he assumed an appointment to investigate had been authorized, which the administration soon denied. Both the U.S. Senate and the Department of Justice began investigations into possible fraudulent dealings. President Wilson also acted by appointing

1413-430: A minor but embarrassing protocol rift with Rear Admiral William A. Moffett at the start of the naval arms limitation conference , Patrick assigned him to an inspection tour of Europe with Alfred V. Verville and Lieutenant Clayton Bissell that lasted the duration of the conference over the winter of 1921–22. Mitchell was dispatched by President Harding to West Virginia to stop the warfare that had broken out between

1570-555: A number of aircraft innovations, including bomb-sights, sled-runner landing gear for winter operations, engine superchargers , and aerial torpedoes . He ordered the use of aircraft in fighting forest fires and border patrols. He also encouraged the staging of a transcontinental air race , a flight around the perimeter of the United States. He also encouraged Army pilots to break aviation records for speed, endurance and altitude. In short, he encouraged anything that would further develop

1727-515: A permanent part of the air forces. Observation planes often operated individually, as did pursuit pilots to attack a balloon or to meet the enemy in a dogfight . However the tendency was toward formation flying, for pursuit as well as for bombardment operations, as a defensive tactic. The dispersal of squadrons among the army ground units (each corps and division had an observation squadron attached) made coordination of air activities difficult, so that squadrons were organized by functions into groups ,

SECTION 10

#1733085295310

1884-590: A relatively unimportant Army base had been directed by Secretary of War John Weeks . In response to the Navy's first helium -filled rigid airship Shenandoah crashing in a storm in September 1925, killing 14 of the crew, and the loss of three seaplanes on a flight from the West Coast to Hawaii, Mitchell issued a statement accusing senior leaders in the Army and Navy of incompetence and "almost treasonable administration of

2041-827: A separate aviation department to act as the centralized authority for decision-making, both the War and the Navy Departments opposed it, and on October 1, 1917, Congress instead legalized the existence of the APB and changed its name to the " Aircraft Board ", transferring its functions from the Council of National Defense to the secretaries of War and the Navy. Even so, the Aircraft Board in practice had little control over procurement contracts and functioned mostly as an information provider between industrial, governmental, and military entities. Nor did

2198-531: A separate executive bureau to provide the aircraft needed. This arrangement lasted only until the War Department implemented the executive order on May 24 by issuing General Order No. 51 to coordinate the two independent agencies, with an eventual goal of creating a Director of Air Service . (The term "Air Service" had been in use in France since June 13, 1917, to describe the function of aviation units attached to

2355-508: A series of legislation in the next three months that appropriated huge sums for development of military aviation, including the largest single appropriation for a single purpose to that time, $ 640 million in the Aviation Act (40 Stat . 243), passed July 24, 1917. By the time the bill passed, the term Air Service was in widespread if unofficial usage to collectively describe all aspects of Army aviation. Although it considered creation of

2512-469: A threat to the United States and make the Air Service the nation's first line of defense instead of the Navy, he began to set out to prove that aircraft were capable of sinking ships to reinforce his position. His relations with superiors continued to sour as he began to criticize both the War and Navy departments for being insufficiently farsighted regarding air power. He advocated the development of

2669-683: Is named. Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is also named after Mitchell. Born in Nice , France, to John L. Mitchell , a wealthy Wisconsin senator , and his wife Harriet Danforth (Becker), Mitchell grew up on an estate in North Greenfield, Wisconsin , which is now the Milwaukee suburb of West Allis, Wisconsin . Mitchell's father served in the American Civil War as

2826-502: The New-York Tribune revealed that the Navy's "tests" were done with dummy sand bombs and that the ship was actually sunk using high explosives placed on the ship, Congress introduced two resolutions urging new tests and backed the Navy into a corner. In the arrangements for the new tests, there was to be a news blackout until all data had been analyzed at which point only the official news report would be released; Mitchell felt that

2983-593: The "Air Service" , "U.S. Air Service" and before its legislative establishment in 1920, the "Air Service, United States Army" ) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1918 and 1926 and a forerunner of the United States Air Force . It was established as an independent but temporary branch of the U.S. War Department during World War I by two executive orders of President Woodrow Wilson : on May 24, 1918, replacing

3140-601: The 94th Pursuit Squadron scored. The first mission by an American squadron across the lines occurred April 11, when the 1st Aero Squadron, led by its commander, Major Ralph Royce , flew a photo reconnaissance mission to the vicinity of Apremont . The first American balloon group arrived in France on December 28, 1917. It separated into four companies that were assigned individually to training centers and instructed in French balloon procedures, then equipped with Caquot balloons, winches, and parachutes. The 2d Balloon Company joined

3297-599: The Air Service that he would receive the post-war assignment of Director of Air Service. Instead, he returned to find that Maj. Gen. Charles T. Menoher , an artilleryman who had commanded the Rainbow Division in France, had been appointed director on the recommendation of his classmate General John Pershing , to maintain operational control of aviation by the ground forces. Mitchell received appointment on February 28, 1919, as Director of Military Aeronautics , to head

SECTION 20

#1733085295310

3454-457: The Aviation Section, Signal Corps as the nation's air force; and March 19, 1919, establishing a military Director of Air Service to control all aviation activities. Its life was extended for another year in July 1919, during which time Congress passed the legislation necessary to make it a permanent establishment. The National Defense Act of 1920 assigned the Air Service the status of " combatant arm of

3611-688: The Curtiss Flying School at Newport News, Virginia . In March 1912, after assignments in the Philippines that saw him tour battlefields of the Russo-Japanese War and conclude that war with Japan was inevitable one day, Mitchell was one of 21 officers selected to serve on the General Staff —at the time, its youngest member at age 32. He appeared in August 1913 at legislative hearings considering

3768-554: The Curtiss Jenny as the primary trainer. Primary flying training school usually produced a candidate for commissioning in 15 to 25 hours of flight. At the assurance of the French that they could be rapidly trained in all phases, 1,700 cadets who had graduated from ground school were sent to Europe to undertake the entire flying portion of their training in Great Britain , France , and Italy . In December 1917, after receiving 1,400 of

3925-751: The Lafayette Escadrille and Lafayette Flying Corps . The first U.S. aviator killed in action during aerial combat occurred March 8, 1918, when Captain James E. Miller, commanding the 95th Pursuit Squadron , was shot down while on a voluntary patrol near Reims . The first aerial victory in an American unit was by 1st Lt. Paul F. Baer of the 103rd Aero Squadron, and formerly a member of the Lafayette Flying Corps, on March 11. The first victories credited to American-trained pilots came on April 14, 1918, when Lieutenants Alan F. Winslow and Douglas Campbell of

4082-522: The Lampert Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives and sharply castigated Army and Navy leadership. The War Department had endorsed a proposal to establish a "General Headquarters Air Force" as a vehicle for modernization and expansion of the Air Service, to be funded through shared appropriations for aviation with the Navy, but shelved the plan when the Navy refused, incensing Mitchell. In March 1925, when Mitchell's term as Assistant Chief of

4239-647: The Philippines , where MacArthur was placed in charge of the Department of Northern Luzon in the spring of 1899. Mitchell participated in operations against Filipino insurgents in northern and central Luzon at the end of the Spanish-American War and during the Philippine–American War . He quickly gained a commission due to his father's influence and joined the U.S. Army Signal Corps . Following

4396-760: The United Mine Workers , Stone Mountain Coal Company , the Baldwin–Felts Detective Agency , and other groups after the Matewan Massacre . Miners outraged by the ambush slaying of Matewan Police Chief Sid Hatfield by agents for the coal company marched on Mingo and Logan County leading to the Battle of Blair Mountain , August 25 to September 2, 1921. On August 26, Mitchell commanded Army bombers from Maryland to Charleston, West Virginia . Mitchell told

4553-646: The United States Army during the Spanish-American War , though he eventually graduated from the school. While there he was a member of Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. Upon dropping out of Columbian at age 18, he enlisted in the United States Army as a private and was mustered into Company M of the 1st Wisconsin Infantry Regiment on May 14, 1898. Mitchell was immediately assigned and mobilized into Brigadier General Arthur MacArthur 's command in

4710-413: The mass production methods of the automotive industry , which used considerable amounts of metallic materials instead, and the priority of mass-producing spare parts was neglected. Though individual areas within the aviation industry responded well, the industry as a whole failed. Efforts to mass-produce European aircraft under license largely failed because the aircraft, made by hand, were not amenable to

4867-588: The "Equipment Division" of the Signal Corps exercise such control. Established by the Office of the Chief Signal Officer (OCSO) as one of the operating components of the Aviation Section, its task was to unify and coordinate the various agencies involved but its head was a commissioned former member of the APB who did nothing to create any effective coordination. Moreover, the largely wood and fabric airframe designs of World War I did not lend themselves to being made with

Bombardier Badge - Misplaced Pages Continue

5024-480: The "Million-Dollar Guard". The backlog was finally cleared by opening an Air Service primary school at Tours and devoting part of the advanced school at Issoudun to preliminary training for a period of time. The U.S. training program produced more than 10,000 pilots as new first lieutenants in the Signal Officers Reserve Corps (S.O.R.C.). 8,688 received ratings of Reserve Military Aviator in

5181-503: The 13 judges was Major General Douglas MacArthur , who later described the order to sit on Mitchell's court-martial as "one of the most distasteful orders I ever received." Of the thirteen judges, ( Charles Pelot Summerall , William S. Graves , Robert L. Howze , MacArthur, Benjamin A. Poore , Fred W. Sladen , Ewing E. Booth , Albert J. Bowley , George Irwin , Edward K. King, Frank R. McCoy , Edwin B. Winans , and Blanton Winship ), none had aviation experience and three (Summerall, who

5338-419: The 1st Pursuit Group of four pursuit squadrons relocated from Selfridge Field, Michigan, to add their weight to the effort. Collectively the three groups (the entire combat strength of the Air Service in the continental United States) comprised the 1st Wing . In January 1920 only the surveillance group continued the patrols, which gradually diminished until June 1921 when they ceased entirely. Another group

5495-632: The 3rd and 4th Regiments reorganized, delaying their deployment until the end of July. By the Armistice all four regiments were configured as aircraft repair and maintenance units, and designated Air Service Mechanics Regiments . The primary aircraft used by the AEF at the front (the "Zone of Advance") were the SPAD XIII (877), Nieuport 28 (181), and SPAD VII (103) as pursuit aircraft, the DeHaviland DH-4B (696) and Breguet 14 (87) for daylight bombing, and

5652-533: The 9th Observation, was formed. The 7th Bombardment and 8th Fighter Groups were designated but not activated until the end of the decade. Sect. 13a. There is hereby created an Air Service. The Air Service shall consist of one Chief of Air Service with the rank of major-general, one assistant with the rank of brigadier-general, 1,514 officers in grades from colonel to second lieutenant, inclusive, and 16,000 enlisted men, including not to exceed 2,500 flying cadets... — Section 13a, Public Law 242, 41 Stat . 759 With

5809-777: The AEF accelerated in December and January, and all but two of these squadrons returned to the United States. Mitchell was replaced in January as commander of the Third Army Air Service by Col. Harold Fowler , a combat veteran of the Royal Flying Corps and former commander of the American 17th Pursuit Squadron. On April 15, 1919, the Second Army Air Service in France also closed down. Its former air units were transferred to

5966-550: The Air Service Concentration Barracks at Saint-Maixent received all newly arrived Air Service troops, distributing them to 26 training fields and schools throughout the central and western regions of the country. Flying training schools, equipped with 2,948 airplanes, supplied 1,674 fully trained pilots and 851 observers to the Air Service, with 1,402 pilots and 769 observers serving at the front. The observers trained in France included 825 artillery officers from

6123-556: The Air Service branch, receiving new commissions. During the war its responsibilities and functions were split between two coordinate agencies, the Division of Military Aeronautics (DMA) and the Bureau of Aircraft Production (BAP), each reporting directly to the Secretary of War, creating a dual authority over military aviation that caused unity of command difficulties. The seven-year history of

6280-577: The Air Service consisted of 185 flying, 44 construction, 114 supply, 11 replacement, and 150 spruce production squadrons; 86 balloon companies; six balloon group headquarters; 15 construction companies; 55 photographic sections; and a few miscellaneous units. Its personnel strength was 19,189 officers and 178,149 enlisted men. Its aircraft inventory consisted primarily of Curtiss JN-4 trainers, de Havilland DH-4B scout planes, SE-5 and Spad S.XIII fighters, and Martin MB-1 bombers. Complete demobilization of

6437-631: The Air Service destroyed 756 enemy aircraft and 76 balloons in combat. 17 balloon companies also operated at the front, making 1,642 combat ascensions. 289 airplanes and 48 balloons were lost in battle. The Air Service was the first form of the air force to have an independent organizational structure and identity. Although officers concurrently held rank in various branches, after May 1918 their branch designation in official correspondence while on aviation assignment changed from "ASSC" (Aviation Section, Signal Corps) to "AS, USA" (Air Service, United States Army). After July 1, 1920, its personnel became members of

Bombardier Badge - Misplaced Pages Continue

6594-643: The Air Service expired, he reverted to his permanent rank of colonel and was transferred to San Antonio , Texas, as air officer to the Eighth Corps Area . Although such demotions were not unusual in demobilizations (Patrick himself had gone from major general to colonel upon returning to the Army Corps of Engineers in 1919), the move was widely seen as punishment and exile, since Mitchell had petitioned to remain as Assistant Chief when his term expired, and his transfer to an assignment with no political influence at

6751-411: The Air Service to that desired by the General Staff to maintain the aviation arm as an auxiliary component controlled by ground commanders in furtherance of the mission of the infantry. A Chief of Air Service was authorized with the rank of major general to replace the previous Director of Air Service , and an assistant chief created in the rank of brigadier general (from 1920 to 1925 this position

6908-412: The Air Service was accomplished within a year. By November 22, 1919, the Air Service had been reduced to one construction, one replacement, and 22 flying squadrons; 32 balloon companies; 15 photographic sections; and 1,168 officers and 8,428 enlisted men. The combat strength of the Air Service was only four pursuit and four bombardment squadrons. Although the leaders of the reorganized Air Service persuaded

7065-578: The Air Service was housed in the Munitions Building in Washington, D.C., and consisted of an executive staff including the chiefs of the Finance and Medical Sections, and four divisions, each administered by a chief: Personnel Group, Information Group (Intelligence), Training and War Plans Group, and Supply Group. Billy Mitchell William Lendrum Mitchell (December 29, 1879 – February 19, 1936)

7222-666: The Air Service, with 6,811 in France, conducting and supporting the dangerous duty of spotting for the artillery at the front. In all, 211 squadrons of all types trained in Great Britain, with 71 arriving in France before the Armistice. At its peak establishment in November 1918, the Air Service was based at 31 stations in the Services of Supply (rear areas) and 78 aerodromes in the Zone of Advance (combat area). The 740 combat airplanes equipping

7379-400: The Air Service. The court found the truth or falsity of Mitchell's accusations to be immaterial to the charge and on December 17, 1925, found him "guilty of all specifications and of the charge". The court suspended him from active duty for five years without pay, which President Coolidge later reduced to half-pay. The generals' ruling in the case wrote, "The Court is thus lenient because of

7536-512: The Air Service. In 1924, Gen. Patrick again dispatched him on an inspection tour, this time to Hawaii and Asia, to get him off the front pages. Mitchell came back with a 324-page report that predicted future war with Japan, including the attack on Pearl Harbor . Of note, Mitchell discounted the value of aircraft carriers in an attack on the Hawaiian Islands , believing they were of little practical use because they could not operate effectively on

7693-895: The Air Service: Mitchell took command on May 27 after testing bombs, fuses, and other equipment at Aberdeen Proving Ground and began training in anti-ship bombing techniques. Alexander Seversky , a veteran Russian pilot who had bombed German ships in the Great War , joined the effort, suggesting the bombers aim near the ships so that expanding water pressure from the underwater blasts would stave in and separate hull plates. Further discussion with Captain Alfred Wilkinson Johnson , Commander, Naval Air Force U.S. Atlantic Fleet aboard USS Shawmut , confirmed that near-miss bombs would inflict more damage than direct hits; near-misses would cause an underwater concussive effect against

7850-756: The Allies. A byproduct of the training program was the creation of the American airmail system . On May 3, 1918, Col. Henry H. Arnold , Assistant Director of the DMA, was ordered to put together a daily route for moving mail by airplane between New York City , Philadelphia , and Washington, D.C. He assigned the task to the Executive Officer for Flying Training, Major Reuben H. Fleet . The Air Service, using six pilots (four instructor pilots and two new graduates) and six Curtiss JN-4H "Jenny" trainers modified to carry mail, began

8007-431: The American Expeditionary Force.) It delayed the appointment of a director as long as the BAP operated as a separate executive bureau. In August, the Senate completed its investigation of the Aircraft Board, and while it found no criminal culpability, it reported that massive waste and delay in production had occurred. As a result, the Director of Aircraft Production (who was also chairman of the Aircraft Board), John D. Ryan,

SECTION 50

#1733085295310

8164-523: The American aircraft fleet. Of aircraft manufactured in America, the de Havilland DH-4B (3,400) was the most numerous, although only 1,213 were shipped overseas, and only 1,087 of those assembled, most used in observation units. The facilities of the Air Service in the United States totaled 40 flying fields, 8 balloon fields, 5 schools of military aeronautics, 6 technical schools, and 14 aircraft depots. 16 additional training schools were located in France, and officers also trained at three schools operated by

8321-552: The Army and Navy. Aided by a wave of pacifism following the war that drastically cut military budgets, opponents of an independent air force prevailed. The Air Service was renamed the Army Air Corps in 1926 as a compromise in the continuing struggle. Although war in Europe prompted Congress to vastly increase the appropriations for the Aviation Section in 1916, it nevertheless tabled a bill proposing an aviation department incorporating all aspects of military aviation. The declaration of war against Germany on April 6, 1917, putting

8478-439: The Army or Navy, primarily legislation introduced concurrently in August 1919 by Senator Harry New of Indiana and Representative Charles F. Curry of California, influenced by the recommendations of a fact-finding commission sent to Europe under the direction of Assistant Secretary of War Benedict Crowell in early 1919 that contradicted the findings of Army boards and advocated an independent air force. Mitchell believed that

8635-469: The Army's adjutant general , ordered Summerall and McNair to provide testimony. They refuted Mitchell's claims that during his time in Hawaii in 1923 the Hawaiian Department had no plan to defend Oahu from Japanese attack. They also demonstrated that Mitchell was incorrect in stating that the Air Service was not treated fairly in the distribution of resources in Hawaii; in fact, Summerall had reallocated funding, equipment and other items from other branches to

8792-446: The Army's most experienced divisions, and Mitchell was appointed Chief of Air Service, Third Army, on November 14, 1918. As with the ground forces, the most veteran units of the Air Service were selected to form the new Air Service. A pursuit unit, the 94th "Hat in the Ring" Aero Squadron; a day bombardment squadron, the 166th; and four observation squadrons (1st, 12th, 88th, and 9th Night) were initially assigned. The demobilization of

8949-441: The Army, Navy and industry, to study the Europeans' experience in aircraft production and the standardization of aircraft parts. The Board dispatched Major Raynal C. Bolling , a lawyer and military aviation pioneer, together with a commission of over 100 members, to Europe in the summer of 1917 to determine American aircraft needs, recommend priorities for acquisition and production, and negotiate prices and royalties. Congress passed

9106-407: The Aviation School in San Diego, then served as executive officer of the school to gain administrative experience in aviation matters. Mitchell, Bolling and Dodd were promoted to colonel and given senior positions in the Air Service hierarchy. Bolling was made Director of Air Service Supply (DASS) to administer the "Zone of the Line of Communications" (sic), later called the Service of Supply, and Dodd

9263-407: The Aviation Section developed a maintenance organization of four large units termed Motor Mechanics Regiments, Signal Corps , each regiment consisting of four battalions of five companies totaling more than 3,600 men. The key innovative element was the use of junior officers recruited from the automobile industry as "technical officers" to supervise maintenance. In February 1918, Colonel S.D. Waldon of

9420-501: The BAP and DMA into the Air Service, United States Army . Anticipating the order, Director of Air Service Maj. Gen. Charles Menoher undertook a sweeping re-organization on March 15, using the " divisional system " of the AEF as a model. Menoher created an advisory board representing the key branches of the Army, and appointed an Executive to coordinate policy between four groups, each headed by an Assistant Executive: Supply, Information, Training and Operations, and Administrative. With

9577-399: The Bombardier Badge was gradually phased out and none were issued after 1949. The modern-day Navigator Badge is considered the U.S. Air Force successor to the Bombardier Badge. Physically the badge had stamped sterling silver wings, a bomb like look in the middle, and a pin on the back. United States Army Air Service The United States Army Air Service ( USAAS ) (also known as

SECTION 60

#1733085295310

9734-459: The DH-4 and Salmson 2 A.2 (557) for observation and photo reconnaissance. The SE-5 operated as the main trainer for the Air Service. Balloon companies operated the French-designed Goodyear Type R, a winch-tethered, hydrogen -filled, captive " Caquot " observation balloon of 32,200 cubic-foot (912 cubic meters) capacity, deploying one balloon per company. The United States adopted a national insignia for all military aircraft in May 1917 using

9891-432: The French 91st Balloon Company at the front near Royaumeix on February 26, 1918. On March 5 it took over the line and began operations supporting the U.S. 1st Division , becoming the "first complete American Air Service unit in history to operate against an enemy on foreign soil." By the beginning of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive the Air Service AEF consisted of 32 squadrons (15 pursuit, 13 observation, and 4 bombing) at

10048-509: The French at Issoudun, Clermont-Ferrand , and Tours, respectively. By November 11, 1918, the Air Service both overseas and domestically had 195,024 personnel (20,568 officers; 174,456 enlisted men) and 7,900 aircraft, constituting five per cent of the United States Army. 32,520 personnel served in the Bureau of Aircraft Production and the remainder in the Division of Military Aeronautics. The Air Service commissioned over 17,000 reserve officers. More than 10,000 mechanics were trained to service

10205-411: The General Staff to increase the combat strength to 20 squadrons by 1923, the balloon force was demobilized, including dirigibles , and personnel shrank even further, to just 880 officers. By July 1924, the Air Service inventory was 457 observation planes, 55 bombers, 78 pursuit planes, and 8 attack aircraft, with trainers to make the total number 754. The Air Service replaced its wartime structure with

10362-489: The Hawaiian Department's assistant chief of staff for operations (G-3). During the Army's ongoing debate over the best methods for providing coastal defense, which engaged proponents of the Coast Artillery branch and Army Air Service, McNair's panel compared the use of coast artillery and aircraft for shore defense. The panel concluded that coastal artillery was sufficient, provided that adequate listening and lighting equipment for detecting and illuminating enemy ships and planes

10519-435: The Navy and President Harding were incensed by an apparent demonstration of naval weakness just after Harding had announced, on July 10, invitations to other naval powers to gather in Washington for a conference on the limitation of naval armaments. Statements asserting the obsolescence of the battleship by disarmament proponents in Congress such as Senator William Borah heightened official anxiety. Both services tried to defuse

10676-524: The Navy chose an area 50 mi (80 km) off the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay rather than either of two possible closer areas, minimizing the effective time the Army's bombers would have in the target area. The planes were forbidden from using aerial torpedoes, would be permitted only two hits on the battleship using their heaviest bombs, and would have to stop between hits so that a damage assessment party could go aboard. Smaller ships could not be struck by bombs larger than 600 pounds, and also were subject to

10833-521: The Navy was going to bury the results. The Chief of the Air Corps attempted to have Mitchell dismissed a week before the tests began, reacting to Navy complaints about Mitchell's criticisms, but the new Secretary of War John W. Weeks backed down when it became apparent that Mitchell had widespread public and media support. On May 1, 1921, Mitchell assembled the 1st Provisional Air Brigade , an air and ground crew of 125 aircraft and 1,000 men at Langley Field in Hampton, Virginia , using six squadrons from

10990-415: The Ostfriesland. We could see her rise eight to ten feet between the terrific blows from under water. On the fourth shot, Capt Streett, sitting in the back seat of my plane stood up and waving both arms shouted, "She is gone!" There were no direct hits but at least three of the bombs landed close enough to rip hull plates as well as cause the ship to roll over. The ship sank at 12:40 pm, 22 minutes after

11147-405: The Senate. On April 27, Mitchell was reappointed as a brigadier general with date of rank retroactive to July 2, 1920. Mitchell did not share in the common belief that World War I would be the war to end war . "If a nation ambitious for universal conquest gets off to a flying start in a war of the future", he said, "it may be able to control the whole world more easily than a nation has controlled

11304-410: The Services of Supply. A major air depot at Colombey-les-Belles ; three other maintenance depots at Behonne , LaTrecey , and Vinets ; four supply depots at Clichy , Romorantin , Tours , and Is-sur-Tille ; and 12 air park squadrons maintained the combat and training forces. Aircraft acquired from European sources were accepted at Aircraft Acceptance Park No. 1 at Orly , while those shipped from

11461-475: The Signal Corps returned from observing British factory and field methods in aviation operations, just as the Bureau of Aircraft Production concluded that the French were unable to meet their aircraft production goals. Waldon recommended that the regiments be reorganized for aircraft instead of automobile mechanics. The change came too late to affect the 1st and 2nd Regiments, which landed in France in March 1918, but both

11618-606: The Third Army Air Service in Germany. The Third Army and its air service were inactivated in July 1919 after the signing of the Treaty of Versailles . Aviation Officer, AEF Chiefs of Air Service, AEF "Though the casualties in the air force were small compared with the total strength, the casualty rate of the flying personnel at the front was somewhat above the Artillery and Infantry rates... The results of allied and American experience at

11775-502: The United States and were assigned to newly created squadrons or as instructors. 1,609 more were commissioned in Europe, with their commissions backdated in February and March 1918 to those of their peers trained in the United States. Pilots in Europe completed an advanced phase in which they received specialized training in pursuit, bombing, or observation at Air Service schools acquired from

11932-404: The United States for assembly in France were delivered to Air Service Production Center No. 2, built on the site of a former pine forest at Romorantin. Ferry operations of over 6,300 new aircraft to the air depots in "often...far from perfect" weather conditions resulted in the successful delivery of 95% and the loss of only eight pilots. A large training establishment was also set up. In France

12089-691: The United States in World War I , came too quickly (less than eight months after its use in Mexico chasing Pancho Villa ) to solve emerging engineering and production problems. The reorganization of the Aviation Section had been inadequate in resolving problems in training, leaving the United States totally unprepared to fight an air war in Europe. The Aviation Section consisted of 131 officers, 1087 enlisted men, and approximately 280 airplanes. The administration of President Woodrow Wilson created an advisory Aircraft Production Board in May 1917, consisting of members of

12246-410: The ability of bombers to sink battleships and organized a series of bombing runs against stationary ships designed to test the idea. He antagonized many administrative leaders of the Army with his arguments and criticism and in 1925, his temporary appointment as a brigadier general was not renewed, and he reverted to his permanent rank of colonel , due to his insubordination . Later that year, he

12403-449: The air phase of the Battle of Saint-Mihiel , one of the first coordinated air-ground offensives in history. He was elevated to the rank of (temporary) brigadier general on October 14, 1918, and commanded all American air combat units in France. He ended the war as Chief of Air Service and Chief Group of Armies. Recognized as one of the top American combat airmen of the war alongside aces such as his good friend, Eddie Rickenbacker , he

12560-518: The armistice, the AEF actually received 4,874 aircraft from the French, in addition to 258 from Great Britain, 19 from Italy, and 1,213 of American manufacture, for a total of 6,364 airplanes. 1,664 were classed as training craft. The United States recognized that French skilled labor was severely limited by war casualties, and promised to train and deploy 7,000 automobile mechanics to aid the French Motor Transport Corps. In December 1917

12717-456: The attacks from the controls of his DH-4 aircraft, nicknamed The Osprey . On July 20, 1921, the Navy brought out the ex-German World War I battleship, Ostfriesland . On the scheduled day, 230, 550, and 600 lb (100, 250, and 270 kg) bomb attacks by Navy, Marine Corps, and Army aircraft settled the Ostfriesland three feet by the stern with a five-degree list to port. She

12874-587: The bow. At this point, Capt. Walter R. Lawson's flight of bombers, consisting of two Handley-Page O/400 and six Martin NBS-1 bombers loaded with 2,000 lb (910 kg) bombs, was dispatched. One Handley Page dropped out for mechanical reasons, but the NBS-1s dropped six bombs in quick succession between 12:18 pm and 12:31 pm. Bomb aiming points were for the water near the ship. Mitchell described Lawson's attack, "Four bombs hit in rapid succession, close alongside

13031-472: The cadets, the French requested that further movement of cadets be halted because of training backlogs of as much as six months, and no further student pilots were sent to France until they had completed their primary training and been commissioned. During the backlog, more than 1,000 cadets were used as cooks, guards, laborers and other menial jobs, while paid at cadet salary (in the grade and rank of private first class ), for which they became derisively known as

13188-675: The cessation of hostilities, Mitchell remained in the Army. From 1900 to 1904, Mitchell was posted in the District of Alaska as a lieutenant in the Signal Corps. On May 26, 1900, the United States Congress appropriated $ 450,000 to establish a communications system connecting the many isolated and widely separated U.S. Army outposts and civilian Gold Rush camps in Alaska by telegraph . Along with Captain George C. Brunnell, Lieutenant Mitchell oversaw

13345-462: The colors specified for the U.S. flag, consisting of a white five-pointed star inside of a blue circumscribed circle, with a red circle in the center of the star having a diameter tangent to the pentagon of the interior points of the star. The insignia was ordered painted on both wingtips of the upper surface of the top wing, the lower surface of bottom wings, and the fuselage of all Army aircraft on 17 May 1917. However due to concerns about confusion with

13502-427: The combat units balked at taking orders from Foulois' non-flying staff. Considerable house-cleaning of the existing staff resulted from Patrick's appointment, bringing in experienced staff officers to administrate, and tightening up lines of communication. Pershing had in September 1917 called for creation of 260 U.S. air combat squadrons by December 1918, but slowness of the buildup reduced that on August 17, 1918, to

13659-584: The construction of what became known as the Washington-Alaska Military Cable and Telegraph System (WAMCATS). He predicted as early as 1906, while an instructor at the Army's Signal School in Fort Leavenworth , Kansas, that future conflicts would take place in the air, not on the ground. In 1908, as a young Signal Corps officer, Mitchell observed Orville Wright's flying demonstration at Fort Myer , Virginia . Mitchell took flight lessons at

13816-424: The control systems being used in Europe. Like the rest of the Army, the Aviation Section concluded that training Reserve officers was the solution to its manpower needs and sent a panel of three representatives from each of six U.S. universities to Toronto from 7 to 11 May 1917 to study Canada 's pilot training program. The Chief Signal Officer assigned Major Hiram Bingham III , an adventurer and reserve officer on

13973-534: The demonstration after news leaked of its own tests. To counter Mitchell, the Navy had sunk the old battleship Indiana near Tangier Island , Virginia , on November 1, 1920, using its own airplanes. Daniels had hoped to squelch Mitchell by releasing a report on the results written by Captain William D. Leahy stating that, "The entire experiment pointed to the improbability of a modern battleship being either destroyed or completely put out of action by aerial bombs." When

14130-402: The duration of the war plus six months the statutory responsibilities of the Aviation Section and removed the DMA entirely from the Signal Corps (reporting directly to the Secretary of War). The DMA was assigned the function of procuring and training a combat force. In addition, the executive order created a Bureau of Aircraft Production (BAP), a military organization with a civilian director, as

14287-522: The effects of smaller munitions. Navy studies of the wreck of the Ostfriesland show she had suffered little topside damage from bombs and was sunk by progressive flooding that might have been stemmed by a fast-acting damage control party on board the vessel. Mitchell used the sinking for his own publicity purposes, though his results were downplayed in public by General of the Armies John J. Pershing who hoped to smooth Army/Navy relations. The efficacy of

14444-537: The faculty of Yale , to organize a training program on the Canadian model. A three-phase Flying Cadet program came into being, and although systematic, pressing needs for manpower saw many overlaps of the phases. The first phase was an eight-week ground school course conducted by the Schools of Military Aeronautics Division, organized at the six (later eight) American universities, and commanded by Bingham. The first class at

14601-408: The first aerial victory by the U.S. military while flying as a gunner-observer with a French day bombing squadron on February 5, 1918. As other squadrons were organized, they were sent overseas, where they continued their training. The first U.S. squadron to see combat, on February 19, 1918, was the 103rd Aero Squadron , a pursuit unit flying with French forces and composed largely of former members of

14758-572: The first bomb, with a seventh bomb dropped by the Handley Page on the foam rising up from the sinking ship. Nearby the site, observing, were various foreign and domestic officials aboard the USS ; Henderson . Although Mitchell had stressed "war-time conditions", the tests were under static conditions and the sinking of the Ostfriesland was accomplished by violating rules agreed upon by General Pershing that would have allowed Navy engineers to examine

14915-505: The first flight by an American officer over German lines, flying with a French pilot. Before long, Mitchell had gained enough experience to begin preparations for American air operations. Mitchell rapidly earned a reputation as a daring, flamboyant, and tireless leader. In May, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel. He was promoted to the temporary rank of colonel on October 10, 1917, to rank from August 5. In September 1918, he planned and led nearly 1,500 British, French, and Italian aircraft in

15072-549: The first of these being the I Corps Observation Group , organized in April 1918 to patrol the Toul Sector between Flirey and Apremont in support of the U.S. 26th Division . On May 5, 1918, the 1st Pursuit Group was formed, and by the armistice the AEF had 14 heavier-than-air groups (7 observation, 5 pursuit, and 2 bombardment). Of these 14 groups, only the 1st Pursuit and 1st Day Bombardment Groups had their lineage continued into

15229-609: The flying component of the Air Service, but that office was in name only as it was a wartime agency that would expire six months after the signing of a peace treaty. Menoher instituted a reorganization of the Air Service based on the divisional system of the AEF , eliminating the DMA as an organization, and Mitchell was assigned as third assistant executive, in charge of the Training and Operations Group, Office of Director of Air Service (ODAS), in April 1919. He maintained his temporary wartime rank of brigadier general until June 18, 1920, when he

15386-527: The formation of six permanent groups in 1919, four of which were based in the United States and two overseas. The first of the new groups, the Army Surveillance Group, was organized in July to direct the operations of three squadrons patrolling the border with Mexico, where revolution had broken out, from Brownsville, Texas to Nogales, Arizona . In addition, the 1st Day Bombardment Group was formed to control four bombardment squadrons at Kelly, while

15543-497: The front indicate that two aviators lose their lives in accidents for each aviator killed in battle." — Report of the Secretary of War, 1919 The Air Service, American Expeditionary Force, totaled 78,507 personnel (7,738 officers and 70,769 enlisted men) at the armistice. Of this total, 58,090 served in France; 20,075 in England; and 342 in Italy. Balloon troops made up approximately 17,000 of

15700-654: The front, while by November 11, 1918, 45 squadrons (20 pursuit, 18 observation, and 7 bombardment ) had been assembled for combat. During the war, these squadrons played important roles in the Battle of Château-Thierry , the St-Mihiel Offensive , and the Meuse-Argonne. Several units, including the 94th Pursuit Squadron under the command of Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker , and the 27th Pursuit Squadron , which had "balloon buster" 1st Lt. Frank Luke as one of its pilots, achieved distinguished records in combat and remained

15857-404: The future, "a dominating factor in the world's development", both for national defense and economic benefit. Winged Defense sold only 4,500 copies between August 1925 and January 1926, the months surrounding the publicity of the court martial, and so Mitchell did not reach a wide audience. Mitchell experienced difficulties within the Army, notably with his superiors when he appeared before

16014-403: The ground forces "for personal reasons". A reciprocal resignation offer from Mitchell was refused. Major General Mason Patrick was again chosen by Pershing to sort out a mess in the Air Service and became the new chief on October 5. Patrick made it clear to Mitchell that although he would accept Mitchell's expertise as counsel, all decisions would be made by Patrick. When Mitchell soon got into

16171-498: The ground or navies on the sea can be the arbiter of a nation's destiny in war. The main power of defense and the power of initiative against an enemy has passed to the air. – November 1918 In 1922, while in Europe for General Patrick, Mitchell met the Italian air power theorist Giulio Douhet and soon afterwards an excerpted translation of Douhet's The Command of the Air began to circulate in

16328-485: The ground schools began 21 May 1917 and concluded 14 July 1917, graduating 147 cadets and enrolling another 1,430. By mid-November, 3,140 had graduated and more than 500 had become rated officers . Out of more than 40,000 applicants, 22,689 were accepted and 17,540 completed ground school training. Approximately 15,000 advanced to primary (preliminary) flying training, a six-to-eight week course conducted by both military and civilian flying instructors, using variants of

16485-434: The growing obsolescence of the surface fleet. His assurances that the Air Service could develop whatever bomb was needed to sink a battleship, and that a national defense organization of land, sea, and air components was essential and inevitable, were met with cool hostility. Mitchell found his ideas publicly denounced as "pernicious" by Roosevelt. Convinced that within as soon as ten years strategic air bombardment would become

16642-526: The high seas or deliver "sufficient aircraft in the air at one time to insure a concentrated operation". Instead, Mitchell believed a surprise attack on the Hawaiian Islands would be conducted by land-based aircraft operating from islands in the Pacific. His report, published in 1925 as the book Winged Defense , foretold wider benefits of an investment in air power, believing it to be, at both that time and in

16799-406: The hull. The Navy and the Air Service were at cross purposes regarding the tests. Supported by General Pershing, the Navy set rules and conditions that enhanced the survivability of the targets, stating that the purpose of the tests was to determine how much damage ships could withstand. The ships had to be sunk in at least 100  fathoms of water (so as not to become navigational hazards), and

16956-1038: The infantry divisions who volunteered to fill a critical shortage in 1918. After the Armistice, the schools graduated 675 additional pilots and 357 observers to serve with the Third Army Air Service in the Army of Occupation . The 3rd Aviation Instruction Center at Issoudun provided 766 pursuit pilots. 169 students and 49 instructors died in training accidents. Balloon candidates made 4,224 practice ascensions while training. Air Service combat losses were 289 airplanes and 48 balloons with 235 airmen killed in action, 130 wounded, 145 captured, and 654 Air Service members of all ranks dead of illness or accidents. Air Service personnel were awarded 611 decorations in combat, including 4 Medals of Honor and 312 Distinguished Service Crosses (54 were oak leaf clusters ). 210 decorations were awarded to aviators by France, 22 by Great Britain, and 69 by other nations. Executive Order 3066, issued by President Wilson on March 19, 1919, formally consolidated

17113-474: The last days of the civil disturbance, Mitchell's bombers flew several reconnaissance missions but did not engage in combat; one bomber crashed on a return flight, killing three crew members. On September 3, surrounded by 2,000 Army troops, Chafin's force dispersed and most miners went home although some surrendered to the Army. Later, Mitchell cited the "Mingo War" as an example of the potential for air power in civil disturbances. The day has passed when armies on

17270-631: The line " of the United States Army with a major general in command. In France, the Air Service of the American Expeditionary Force , a separate entity under commanding General John J. Pershing that conducted the combat operations of U.S. military aviation, began field service in the spring of 1918. By the end of the war, the Air Service used 45 squadrons to cover 137 kilometers (85 miles) of front from Pont-à-Mousson to Sedan . 71 pursuit pilots were credited with shooting down five or more German aircraft while in American service. Overall

17427-663: The mail service on May 15. It later extended the route to Boston and added Curtiss R-4LMs to its small fleet, carrying mail until August 12, 1918, when the U.S. Post Office took over. Sent to Europe in March 1917 as an observer, Lieutenant Colonel Billy Mitchell arrived in Paris just four days after the United States declared war and established an office for the American "air service." Upon his arrival in France in June 1917, American Expeditionary Force commanding general John J. Pershing met with Mitchell, who advised Pershing that his office

17584-622: The markings of enemy aircraft , in early 1918 a red, blue, and white roundel similar to those used by the Allied Powers, in the former color arrangement of the defunct Imperial Russian Air Service , was instead ordered painted on all U.S. aircraft operating in Europe, remaining in effect until 1919. On May 6, 1918 Foulois established a policy authorizing creation of emblems for aviation units, and ordered all squadrons to create an official insignia to be painted on each side of an airplane fuselage: "The squadron will design their own insignia during

17741-626: The more precise American manufacturing methods. At the same time the Aeronautical Division of the OCSO was renamed the Air Division with continued responsibility for training and operations but with no influence on acquisition or doctrine. In the end the decision-making process in aircraft procurement was badly fragmented and production on a large scale proved impossible. The Aircraft Board came under severe criticism for failure to meet goals or its own claims of aircraft production, followed by

17898-410: The morning of July 21, in accordance with a strictly orchestrated schedule of attacks, five Martin NBS-1 bombers led by 1st Lt. Clayton Bissell dropped a single 1,100 lb (500 kg) bomb each, scoring three direct hits. The Navy stopped further drops, although the Army bombers had nine bombs remaining, to assess damage. By noon, Ostfriesland had settled two more feet by the stern and one foot by

18055-410: The most modern battleships, can be destroyed easily by bombs dropped from aircraft, and further, that the most effective means of destruction are bombs. [They] demonstrated beyond a doubt that, given sufficient bombing planes—in short an adequate air force—aircraft constitute a positive defense of our country against hostile invasion. The fact of battleship sinking was indisputable, and Mitchell repeated

18212-493: The national defense." In October 1925, a charge with eight specifications was proffered against Mitchell on the direct order of President Calvin Coolidge , accusing him of violation of the 96th Article of War, an omnibus article that Mitchell's chief counsel, Congressman Frank Reid , declared to be unconstitutional as a violation of free speech. The court-martial began in early November and lasted for seven weeks. The youngest of

18369-563: The necessity of forming an "air force" to centralize control over tactical aviation. In the St-Mihiel Offensive, commencing September 12, 1918, the American and French offensive against the German salient was supported by 1,481 airplanes directed by Mitchell, totaling 24 Air Service, 58 French Aéronautique Militaire , and three Royal Air Force squadrons in coordinated operations. Observation and pursuit planes supported ground forces, while

18526-670: The other two-thirds of the aerial force bombed and strafed behind enemy lines. Later, during the Meuse-Argonne offensive , Mitchell employed a smaller concentration of airpower, nearly all American this time, to keep the German army on the defensive. Promptly after the armistice, the AEF formed the Third United States Army to march immediately into Germany, occupy the Coblenz area, and be prepared to resume combat if peace treaty negotiations failed. Three corps were formed from eight of

18683-513: The passage of the National Defense Act, June 4, 1920 (Public Law 66-242, 41 Stat . 759-88), the Air Service was statutorily recognized as a combatant arm of the line along with the Infantry , Cavalry , Field Artillery , Coast Artillery , Corps of Engineers , and Signal Corps , and given a permanent organization with a fixed complement of personnel. However this also legislated the form of

18840-460: The performance twice in tests conducted with like results on the U.S. pre-dreadnought battleships Alabama in September 1921, and the Virginia and New Jersey in September 1923. The latter two ships were subjected to teargas attacks and hit with specially designed 4,300 lb (2,000 kg) demolition bombs. The bombing tests had several immediate and turbulent results. Almost immediately

18997-463: The period of organizational training. The design must be submitted to the Chief of Air Service, AEF, for approval. The design should be simple enough to be recognizable from a distance." The first U.S. aviation squadron to reach France was the 1st Aero Squadron , which sailed from New York in August 1917 and arrived at Le Havre on September 3. A member of the squadron, Lt. Stephen W. Thompson , achieved

19154-509: The post-war Air Service was marked by a prolonged debate between adherents of airpower and the supporters of the traditional military services about the value of an independent Air Force. Airmen such as Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell supported the independent air concept. The Army's senior leadership from World War I , the United States Navy , and the majority of the nation's political leadership favored integration of all military aviation into

19311-431: The post-war Air Service. In July 1918 the AEF organized its first wing formation, the 1st Pursuit Wing, made up of the 2d Pursuit, 3rd Pursuit, and 1st Day Bombardment Groups. Each army and corps echelon of the ground forces had a chief of air service designated to direct operations. The Air Service, First Army was activated August 26, 1918, marking the commencement of large scale coordinated U.S. air operations. Foulois

19468-513: The press that Army bombers alone could end the "Mingo War" by dropping tear gas on the miners. A private army of 3,000 led by Sheriff Don Chafin and financed by the Coal Operators Association engaged in gun battles and used private planes to drop dynamite charges and World War I surplus gas and explosive bombs against an estimated 13,000 miners. Neither side responded to President Harding's August 30 proclamation to cease hostilities. In

19625-478: The rapid advances in aircraft (and aircraft bombing technology) that took place between 1920 and 1939. During World War II , the Bombardier Badge was a common aeronautical badge of the United States Army Air Forces . The badge was issued to all military bombardiers upon completion of basic flight training and advanced bomber instruction. With the creation of the United States Air Force in 1947,

19782-401: The requirements of sea-based aviation than ground forces commanders understood the capabilities and potential of air power, and vigorously resisted any alliance with Mitchell. The Navy's civilian leadership was equally opposed, if for other reasons. On April 3, Mitchell met with Roosevelt and a board of admirals to discuss aviation, and Mitchell urged the development of naval aviation because of

19939-520: The results by reports from the Joint Board and General Pershing dismissing Mitchell's claims and suppressing his report, but the report was leaked to the press. In September, General Charles T. Menoher forced a showdown over Mitchell as the bombing tests continued. Menoher confronted Secretary Weeks and demanded that Weeks either relieve Mitchell as Assistant Chief of Air Corps or he would resign. On October 4, Weeks allowed Menoher to resign and return to

20096-642: The same interruptions in attacks. Mitchell held to the Navy's restrictions for the tests of June 21, July 13, and July 18, and successfully sank the ex-German destroyer G-102 and the ex-German light cruiser Frankfurt in concert with Navy aircraft. On each of these demonstrations the ships were first attacked by SE-5 fighters strafing and bombing the decks of the ships with 25-pound anti-personnel bombs to simulate suppression of antiaircraft fire, followed by attacks from Martin NBS-1 (Martin MB-2) twin-engine bombers using high explosive demolition bombs. Mitchell observed

20253-468: The section until the new head, Lieutenant Colonel George O. Squier , arrived from attaché duties in London, England, where World War I was in progress, then became his permanent assistant. In June, he took private flying lessons at the Curtiss Flying School because he was proscribed by law from aviator training by age and rank, at an expense to himself of $ 1,470 (approximately $ 33,000 in 2015). In July 1916, he

20410-570: The shopping precinct of Mitchell Street were named in honor of Alexander. His paternal grandmother, Martha Reed Mitchell , was well known in charity, art and society circles. Mitchell's sister Ruth fought with the Chetniks in Yugoslavia during World War II and later wrote a book about her brother, My Brother Bill . Mitchell was accepted into Columbian University (later renamed George Washington University) in Washington, D.C., but dropped out to join

20567-454: The signing of the Treaty of Versailles on June 28, 1919, President Wilson relinquished his war powers under the Overman Act, and on July 11 Congress granted legislative authority to continue the Air Service as a temporary independent branch of the War Department for another year, easing fears of airmen that the Air Service would be demobilized out of existence. At the end of November 1918,

20724-445: The tests remains in debate to this day. Nevertheless, the test was highly influential at the time, causing budgets to be redrawn for further air development and forcing the Navy to look more closely at the possibilities of naval air power. Despite the advantages enjoyed by the bombers in the artificial exercise, Mitchell's report stressed points which would later be highly influential in war: sea craft of all kinds, up to and including

20881-533: The time or infrastructure in the United States to equip units to send overseas using aircraft designed and built in the U.S., the AEF Air Service acquired Allied aircraft designs already in service with the French and British air services. On August 30, 1917, the American and French governments agreed to a contract for the purchase of 1,500 Breguet 14 B.2 bombers-reconnaissance planes; 2,000 SPAD XIII and 1,500 Nieuport 28 pursuits for delivery by July 1, 1918. By

21038-673: The units at the front on November 11, 1918, were approximately 11% of the total combat aircraft strength of the Allied forces. The 45 squadrons in the Zone of Advance had 767 pilots, 481 observers, and 23 aerial gunners, covering 137 kilometers of front from Pont-à-Mousson to Sedan . They flew more than 35,000 hours over the front lines. The Air Service conducted 150 bombing missions, the longest 160 miles behind German lines, and dropped 138 tons (125 kg) of bombs. Its squadrons had confirmed destruction of 756 German aircraft and 76 German balloons, creating 71 Air Service aces . Rickenbacker finished

21195-500: The use of aircraft, and that would keep aviation in the news. In February 1921, at the urging of Mitchell, who was anxious to test his theories of destruction of ships by aerial bombing, Secretary of War Newton Baker and Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels agreed to a series of joint Army-Navy exercises, known as Project B , to be held that summer in which surplus or captured ships could be used as targets. Mitchell

21352-429: The use of floating bases was necessary to defend the nation against naval threats, but the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral William S. Benson , had dissolved Naval Aeronautics as an organization early in 1919, a decision later reversed by Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Franklin D. Roosevelt . However, senior naval aviators feared that land-based aviators in a "unified" independent air force would no more understand

21509-496: The war as the leading American ace, with 26 aircraft destroyed. 35 balloon companies also deployed in France, 17 at the front and six en route to the Second Army, and made 1,642 combat ascensions totaling 3,111 hours of observation. 13 photographic sections were assigned to observation squadrons and made 18,000 aerial photographs. 43 flying training, air park (supply), depot (maintenance), and construction squadrons were located in

21666-496: Was court-martialed for insubordination after accusing Army and Navy leaders of an "almost treasonable administration of the national defense" for investing in battleships. He resigned from the service shortly afterwards. Mitchell received many honors following his death, including a Congressional Gold Medal. He is also the first person for whom an American military aircraft design, the North American B-25 Mitchell ,

21823-451: Was a United States Army officer who had a major role in the creation of the United States Air Force . Mitchell served in France during World War I and, by the conflict's end, commanded all American air combat units in that country. After the war, he was appointed deputy director of the Air Service and began advocating for increased investment in air power, believing that this would prove vital in future wars. He argued particularly for

21980-477: Was activated on October 12 with Col. Frank P. Lahm as chief but was not ready for operations until just before the armistice. The Air Service, Third Army was created immediately after the armistice to provide aviation support to the army of occupation, primarily from veteran units transferred from the First Army Air Service. Despite their fractious relationship, Mitchell and Foulois were of one mind on

22137-565: Was appointed to the vacancy on January 2, 1919, but the patchwork nature of laws and executive orders that had created the various parts of the Air Service prevented him from exercising all their legal powers and ending the unity of command problems caused by dual authority. The United States began the World War with 65 pilots, a few of which were veterans of the Mexican Expedition , and some who were still in training. None were familiar with

22294-448: Was appointed to the vacant position of Second Assistant Secretary of War and designated as Director of Air Service, nominally in charge of the DMA. The Department of Justice report followed two months later and also blamed the delays on administrative and organizational deficiencies in the Aviation Section. Ryan's appointment came too late for any effective consolidation of both agencies, continuing an obstructive division of authority that

22451-440: Was available, and that bombers were less accurate, but more effective at destroying enemy ships at longer distances from shore, provided they could overcome obstacles including inclement weather. Summerall, the department commander, was so incensed at Mitchell's questioning of his and McNair's integrity that he attempted to be appointed as president of the court-martial. During Mitchell's trial, Major General Robert Courtney Davis ,

22608-577: Was concerned that the building of dreadnoughts was taking precious defense dollars away from military aviation. He was convinced that a force of anti-shipping airplanes could defend a coastline with more economy than a combination of coastal guns and naval vessels. A thousand bombers could be built at the same cost as one battleship, and could sink that battleship. Mitchell infuriated the Navy by claiming he could sink ships "under war conditions", and boasted he could prove it if he were permitted to bomb captured German battleships. The Navy reluctantly agreed to

22765-514: Was held by Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell). The primary missions of the Air Service were observation and pursuit aviation, and its tactical squadrons in the United States were controlled by the commanders of nine corps areas and three overseas departments created by the Act, primarily in support of the ground forces. The Chief of the Air Service retained command of training schools, depots, and support activities exempted from corps area control. The headquarters of

22922-510: Was named Director of Air Service Instruction (DAI). Kenley proved to be only an interim commander, as Brig. Gen. Benjamin Foulois replaced him on 27 November 1917, arriving in France with a large but untrained staff of non-aviators. This resulted in considerable resentment from Mitchell's smaller staff already in place, many of whom in key positions, including Bolling, Dodd and Lt. Col. Edgar S. Gorrell , were immediately displaced. Mitchell, however,

23079-628: Was named chief of the First Army Air Service over Mitchell, who had been directing air operations as chief of the I Corps Air Service since March, but Foulois voluntarily relinquished his post to Mitchell and became the Assistant Chief of Air Service, Tours, to unsnarl delays in personnel, supply, and training. Mitchell went on to become a brigadier general and chief of the Army Group Air Service in mid-October 1918, succeeded at First Army by Col. Thomas Milling . The Air Service, Second Army

23236-522: Was never resolved during the war. Following the Armistice, Ryan resigned on November 27, leaving both the BAP and DMA, as well as the original Aircraft Board, leaderless. In addition certain powers, primarily those of dealing legally with the government-owned Spruce Production Corporation , had been delegated to Ryan by name, not to his position as Director of Aircraft Production, and as such could not be legally conferred on any successor. Maj. Gen. Charles Menoher

23393-608: Was not replaced and became a source of persistent discord with Foulois. Pershing restated the responsibilities of the Air Service AEF with G.O. No. 81, May 29, 1918, in which he replaced Foulois as Chief of Air Service AEF with a West Point classmate and non-aviator, Major General Mason Patrick . Air Service staff planning had been inefficient, with considerable internal dissension as well as conflict between its members and those of Pershing's General Staff. Aircraft and unit totals lagged far behind those promised in 1917. Officers in

23550-443: Was organized overseas in 1920 to administrate squadrons in the Philippines . In 1921, the three groups based within the United States were sequentially numbered one through three and assigned different combat roles. The fourth was inactivated. The next year the groups overseas were numbered four through six as "composite" groups. In 1922 plans were formulated for three more groups to flesh out the anticipated GHQ Air Force, but only one,

23707-607: Was probably the best-known American in Europe. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross , the Distinguished Service Medal , the World War I Victory Medal with eight campaign clasps, and several foreign decorations. Despite his superb leadership and his fine combat record, he alienated many of his superiors during and after his 18 months of service in France. Mitchell returned to the United States in January 1919; it had been widely expected throughout

23864-574: Was promoted to major and appointed Chief of the Air Service of the First Army. When the United States declared war on Germany on April 6, 1917, Mitchell was in Spain en route to France as an observer. He arrived in Paris on April 10, and set up an office for the Aviation Section from which he collaborated extensively with British and French air leaders such as General Hugh Trenchard , studying their strategies as well as their aircraft. On April 24, he made

24021-529: Was ready to proceed with any project Pershing might require. Pershing's aviation officer, Major Townsend F. Dodd , first used the term "Air Service" in a memo to the chief of staff of the AEF on 20 June 1917. The term also appeared on July 5, 1917, in AEF General Order (G.O.) No. 8, in tables detailing staff organization and duties. Mitchell replaced Dodd on 30 June 1917, with the position renamed "Chief of Air Service" and its duties described. After Mitchell

24178-522: Was reduced to lieutenant colonel, Signal Corps (Menoher was reduced to brigadier general in the same orders). When the Army was reorganized by Congress on June 4, 1920, the Air Service was recognized as a combatant arm of the line, third in size behind the Infantry and Artillery. On July 1, 1920, Mitchell was promoted to the Regular Army (i.e., permanent) rank of colonel in the Signal Corps, but also received

24335-541: Was superseded in September by Kenly, he remained as ex officio chief through his influence on Kenly as Air Commander, Zone of the Advance (ACA). The Air Service, American Expeditionary Forces was formally created on 3 September 1917 by the publication of AEF G.O. No. 31 and remained in being until demobilized in 1919. Kenly, an artillery officer, had been a student the previous winter in the Field Officers Course at

24492-403: Was taking on water. Further bombing was delayed a day, the Navy claiming due to rough seas that prevented their Board of Observers from going aboard, the Air Service countering that as the Army bombers approached, they were ordered not to attack. Mitchell's bombers were forced to circle for 47 minutes, as a result of which they dropped only half their bombs, and none of their large bombs. On

24649-813: Was the president of the court, Sladen, and Bowley) were removed by defense challenges for bias. The case was then presided over by Major General Robert Lee Howze . Among those who testified for Mitchell were Eddie Rickenbacker , Hap Arnold , Carl Spaatz , Ira Eaker , Robert Olds , Thomas George Lanphier Sr. and Fiorello La Guardia . The trial attracted significant interest, and public opinion supported Mitchell. The chief prosecutors were Major Allen W. Gullion , Lieutenant Joseph L. McMullen, and Colonel Sherman Moreland . Mitchell's public assertions about non-aviation officers being ignorant of aviation matters were shown to be based on events he falsely claimed to have witnessed in Hawaii during experiments led by Lesley J. McNair ,

#309690