Henry H. Arnold (1886-1950) – Brief Profile & History

Henry Harley “Hap” Arnold led the development of the U.S. Army Air Force from its infancy to its post-World War II status as a separate service. Arnold established air doctrine, organization, and procedures that assisted in the Allied victory in World War II and continue today to affect the air forces of the United States and other countries.

Born on June 25, 1886, at Gladwyne, Pennsylvania, the son of a medical doctor and the grandson of a Civil War veteran, Arnold graduated from West Point in 1907 with a commission in the infantry. After a tour of duty in the Philippines, Arnold transferred to the Signal Corps and, with the Wright brothers as his instruc-tors, learned to fly in Dayton, Ohio, in 1911. Arnold’s pilot license was only the twenty-ninth issued in the United States. In September of that year he made the first flight delivery of U.S. mail, and in 1912 set an altitude record of 6,540 feet.

While setting these marks, which brought attention to the advancement of aeronautics, Arnold assembled a small group of pilots and aircraft mechanics at a College Park, Maryland, airfield. In addition to training new aviators, the group established the military nomenclature for airplane parts and flying procedures and also experimented with aerial gunnery, bombsights, and air-to-ground communications.

In 1913 Arnold returned to the infantry and another assignment in the Philippines. During field maneuvers at Batanga, he met fellow lieutenant George Catlett Marshall [16], and they developed both a friendship and professional relationship that would last the remainder of their careers.

Back with the Aviation Section of the Signal Corps in 1916, Arnold, the youngest colonel in the army, supervised pilot training during World War I. When the newly formed Air Section of the U.S. Army separated from the Signal Corps, Arnold assumed its assistant director’s position. Because the war ended before he could get to France to gain combat experience of his own, Arnold considered leaving the army after the armistice. He finally decided to remain on active duty and during the next decade served in a series of assignments on the West Coast of the United States, where he continued to make advances in military and civilian aviation.

Arnold used various demonstrations and record attempts to bring attention to the fledgling aviation arm and to increase its funding. In 1924 he set an aerial speed record of 113 miles per hour and in 1934 commanded a flight of ten B-10 bombers in a highly publicized round-trip flight between Washington, D.C., and Fairbanks, Alaska. During this time, and for the rest of his life, he wrote and published magazine articles promoting aviation as well as a series of children’s books featuring a flier as the hero.

As one of America’s pioneer pilots and a leading military commander, Arnold became a spokesman for both military and civilian aviation. He assisted in the formation of the commercial Pan American Airways and encouraged industry to adapt automobile factories to the mass production of airplanes. During this time Arnold also, lobbied for an independent air force within the U.S. military and advocated of developing long-range bombers. His sup-port proved instrumental in the creadon and funding of the B-17 (Flying Fortress), which would soon prove extremely important

In 1939 Arnold joined the staff of his old friend George Marshall, now Army chief of staff, as head of the Army Air Corps. Despite a limited budget and a policy of isolationism, favored by many Americans, Arnold provided support for Great Britain’s aerial war against Germany while at the same time building up American aviation assets. In a litde more than a year, Arnold increased the production of American aircraft and pilot training sixfold.

When the United States entered the war in 1941, Arnold continued his close relationship with civilian aircraft manufacturers and pilot training schools to accommodate a massive mobilization of men and machines. All the while, he supported long-range bombers as the key to the air corps throughout the war.

By 1942, Arnold had gained recognition for the newly named U.S. Army Air Forces as an equal to the army’s ground forces. In 1943 he was promoted to general in recognition of his accomplishments, which included the Allied dominance of airpower throughout Europe.

In 1944 Arnold organized the Twentieth Air Force in the Pacific, composed of B-29s. These new bombers had the capability of reaching the Japanese home islands from Pacific bases and ultimately delivered the atomic bombs that ended the war. Long-range bombing was hot Arnold’s only purpose in organizing the Twentieth. He also envisioned the unit as a global strategic bombing force that would oudast the conflict and lead to a totally independent air force. Arnold’s efforts were rewarded by his promotion to five-star rank near the end of the war.

During the final months of World War II, Arnold suffered several heart attacks and formally stepped down from active duty in June 1946. A year later, the U.S. Air Force gained die separate status he had sought, becoming an equal of the army and navy. In May 1949, still on the active roster because five-star generals never formally retire, Arnold became general of the air force—the first and only such distinction ever made in the U.S. armed forces. On January 15, 1950, General of the Air Force “Hap” Arnold, sixty-three, died at his Sonoma, California, home.

Arnold shepherded the American air corps from its infancy to maturity. Like Marshall, Arnold achieved his influence from the Pentagon rather than in the front lines. Nevertheless, he was the primary influence in the development of the U.S. Air Force and directly responsible for its world dominance.

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