Reflections on Air Force Independence

Reflections on Air Force Independence PDF

Author: Office of Air Force History

Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub

Published: 2015-03-03

Total Pages: 136

ISBN-13: 9781508697466

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Almost twenty-five years after publishing Planning and Organizing the Postwar Air Force, 1943–1947, and a decade after publishing his definitive work, The Struggle for Air Force Independence, 1943–1947, Herman S. Wolk, retired Air Force senior historian, returns to the subject that capped his nearly fifty-year career with the Air Force history program. As Wolk explains, this briefwork is a reflective analysis.The United States Army's air arm waged a frustrating and uncertain battle during the interwar years to gain greater autonomy from the War Department. For the air arm, the key transition was the establishment in 1935 of the General Headquarters (GHQ) Air Force under Brig. Gen. Frank M. Andrews. The GHQ Air Force was the first American air force that consolidated all striking forces.For several years before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, which triggered U.S. entry into World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt foresaw the major role that air power would play in the conflict, and he called for a massive buildup. The president wanted the major share of aircraft produced to go to the Allies. Consequently, he was sometimes at cross purposes with his Air Corps chief, Maj. Gen. Henry H. “Hap” Arnold, who was hard at work trying toincrease the Army's air capability. The formation in June 1944 of the Twentieth Air Force was a landmark event in the Army air arm's drive for independence. With B–29s to send against the Japanese home islands, the Twentieth gave the Army Air Forces (AAF) what Arnold termed “a Global Air Force.” Its formation set the precedent for that of the postwar Strategic Air Command, which provided the United States with its nuclear deterrence force in the Cold War.The lessons of World War II were many. Many also were the significant contributions of the AAF—tactical, strategic, support, humanitarian—that convinced President Harry S. Truman, Congress, and the American people that the creation of the United States Air Force (USAF) was necessary in the postwar era. Wolk makes the pivotal connections between politics and the searing experience of war to explain how and why the USAF was established. His analysis addresses not only technology, bureaucracy, and politics, but also people. The service's founding airmen were more than flyers and technologists; they were,above all, men of faith who believed in what they were doing. For many years they fought against long odds. The nation owes them a great debt.

The Struggle for Air Force Independence

The Struggle for Air Force Independence PDF

Author: Herman S. Wolk

Publisher: Government Reprints Press

Published: 2001-06-01

Total Pages: 434

ISBN-13: 9781931641197

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This series introduces the core areas of chemical science, covering important concepts in an easy, accessible style. Each title contains a number of experiments and demonstrations, approached through the process of problem, hypothesis, experiment and conclusion. All the books support the QCA schemes of work and contain: definitions of important terms and explanations of key concepts; formulae and word equations; and the periodic table with explanatory notes. This title explores the concepts of the states of matter.

Reflections on Research and Development in the United States Air Force

Reflections on Research and Development in the United States Air Force PDF

Author: Office of Air Force History

Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub

Published: 2015-02-28

Total Pages: 110

ISBN-13: 9781508660323

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Reflections on Research and Development in the United States Air Force was intended to be part of the now-defunct Warrior Series. While the necessity for that particular series has lapsed, its long-term goal remains valid-to produce books which will appeal to all levels of Air Force people, who may learn from the past and perhaps apply the experiences of past generations to the present. This publication should interest readers who have scant familiarity with research and development, as well as those intimately familiar with the subject. The former will gain an understanding of the outline history of Air Force research and development, while the latter will obtain fresh, personal perspectives. In 1982 General Lew Allen, Jr. called for "the continuing study of military history, combat leadership, the principles of war, and particularly, the applications of air power." All of us in the Air Force community can benefit from such study and reflection. The challenges of today and the future demand no less.

Reflections and Remembrances: Veterans of the United States Army Air Forces Reminisce about World War II

Reflections and Remembrances: Veterans of the United States Army Air Forces Reminisce about World War II PDF

Author: Office of Air Force History

Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub

Published: 2015-03-02

Total Pages: 88

ISBN-13: 9781508684923

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An anniversary gives us the opportunity to recognize the deeds of our predecessors, take pride in our heritage, show gratitude for our victories, reflect on our losses, and review the past with the benefit of the longer perspective of history. Each generation tends to see the past in terms of its own experience. History both illuminates what has lain hidden and reinforces what we know. For its 1995 observance of the fiftieth anniversary of the end of World War II, the Air Force History and Museums Program sponsored a series of commemorative events. One, a National Day of Recognition for Veterans of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), held on August 7th in the Washington, D.C. area, was celebrated at three locations. First, at the Pentagon's center court, Secretary of the Air Force Sheila E. Widnall and Chief of Staff of the Air Force General Ronald R. Fogleman, praised the veterans' numberless contributions to Allied victory in the war. The Air Force Historian, Richard P. Hallion, read a congressional resolution marking the day and then Lieutenant Colonel Donald S. Lopez, USAF, retired, spoke on behalf of all World War II airmen. A flyover by vintage USAAF aircraft capped the festivities. During the afternoon in a symposium at the National Archives and Records Administration, eleven USAAF veterans, in separate sessions covering the conflicts in Europe and Asia, reflected on their own wartime experiences of half a century ago. They spoke with clarity and authority and in remarkable detail on such topics as military preparedness, leadership, training, racial segregation, the treatment of American prisoners of war, military technology, the Allied invasion of Japan, and the use of atomic weapons. Historians Richard G. Davis and William T. Y'Blood presented overviews at the respective sessions. That evening, the Daughters of the American Revolution gave a reception in honor of the symposium participants and opened Constitution Hall for an outstanding musical tribute, which was performed before a packed house by the United States Air Force Band. Dr. Hallion, joined by General Bryce Poe, II, president of the Air Force Historical Foundation, hosted the symposium. Reminiscences and remarks are faithfully preserved herein.

Command Of The Air

Command Of The Air PDF

Author: General Giulio Douhet

Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing

Published: 2014-08-15

Total Pages: 327

ISBN-13: 1782898522

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In the pantheon of air power spokesmen, Giulio Douhet holds center stage. His writings, more often cited than perhaps actually read, appear as excerpts and aphorisms in the writings of numerous other air power spokesmen, advocates-and critics. Though a highly controversial figure, the very controversy that surrounds him offers to us a testimonial of the value and depth of his work, and the need for airmen today to become familiar with his thought. The progressive development of air power to the point where, today, it is more correct to refer to aerospace power has not outdated the notions of Douhet in the slightest In fact, in many ways, the kinds of technological capabilities that we enjoy as a global air power provider attest to the breadth of his vision. Douhet, together with Hugh “Boom” Trenchard of Great Britain and William “Billy” Mitchell of the United States, is justly recognized as one of the three great spokesmen of the early air power era. This reprint is offered in the spirit of continuing the dialogue that Douhet himself so perceptively began with the first edition of this book, published in 1921. Readers may well find much that they disagree with in this book, but also much that is of enduring value. The vital necessity of Douhet’s central vision-that command of the air is all important in modern warfare-has been proven throughout the history of wars in this century, from the fighting over the Somme to the air war over Kuwait and Iraq.

Reflections of a Servant Leader

Reflections of a Servant Leader PDF

Author: Alfred K. Flowers

Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

Published: 2017-06-12

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781547080571

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Growing up in a family of sharecroppers in the segregated South in the 1950s and '60s, Al Flowers never dreamed of becoming a history-maker. Lying in his bed late at night and looking up at the sky through the holes in the tin roof of his four-room home perched among the tobacco fields of eastern North Carolina, he just yearned to find some way out of poverty. At 17, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. Earning a pay of $94 per month at his first assignment as a warehouseman in North Dakota, he put aside $30 of his monthly check to save for his future and to someday buy a proper home for the grandmother who loved and raised him. He believed that if he worked hard, followed the rules and demonstrated the right attitude no matter where he was sent or what he was asked to do, he might eventually retire as a Chief Master Sergeant. He did not meet that goal-he soared much, much higher! Overcoming every challenge and obstacle in his path, he became an officer after 13 years as an enlisted man and went on to earn an impeccable reputation as a trusted servant leader. When he finally retired, Alfred K. Flowers had risen to the rank of Major General whose last assignment had been to manage the entire $170 billion annual Air Force budget. He was hailed as the longest serving airman in the history of the Air Force, and the longest-serving active-duty African American in all the branches in the history of the Defense Department. How did he come so far from his roots mired in extreme economic, educational and social hardship? In his own words, Major General Flowers chronicles his astounding American success story. Along the way, he shares the wisdom he has gained about perseverance, commitment, leadership and what it means to be a dedicated servant for our country. Today, Major General Flowers travels all across the U.S. and beyond inspiring men and women of all ages and backgrounds to summon the courage to lift themselves out of any hardship and challenge they may face and go after their true goals and dreams. In this book, he extends the same inspirational message, while also providing valuable lessons on leadership and seasoned advice on how to navigate a military career for those who choose to serve. Finally, he conveys a passionate reminder to never forget those who have loved, supported and guided you along your path to success.

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