United States Army Air Force

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File:USAAF.jpg File:USAAF2.jpg The United States Army Air Force, or USAAF, was a part of the U.S. military during World War II and is considered to be the precursor to the U.S Air Force. The USAAF formally existed between 1941 and 1947.

Contents 1 History 2 Notable people who served in the USAAF 3 See also 4 Sources 4.1 References

History

Prior to the start of World War II, the USAAF was known as the U.S. Army Air Corps, or USAAC. The USAAC was a corps-level, subsidiary organization within the Army, and had little autonomy. Due to the efforts of several key USAAC officers and the changing political times, the Air Corps obtained greater organizational independence in 1941. Renamed the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) and considered a separate arm of the Army, the new USAAF had an equal "voice" with the Army and Navy.

Following the immense buildup in aviation infrastructure and personnel during the war, and in recognition of the tremendous new importance and strength of airpower, then-President Harry S. Truman created the United States Department of the Air Force in 1947. This legislation renamed the aviation military group again to the United States Air Force, elevating it to a truly separate branch of the U.S. military.

The establishment of seperate military air services in the twentieth century was often opposed by other army and naval branches of national militaries. Their preference was for the development of tactical air power consistent with their institutional missions rather than strategic air power. After the First World World the British government considered by chose not to eliminate the British Royal Air Force as a seperate miltiary air service.

Notable people who served in the USAAF

• Carl Albert, congressman and Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1971 to 1977
• Henry H. Arnold, commanding general of the USAAF
• Clyde Cowan, discovered existence of the neutrino
• Nathan Bedford Forrest III, brigadier general in USAAF and grandson of Confederate general Nathan Bedford Forrest.
• Charlton Heston, film actor and president of the National Rifle Association.
• Walter Miller, science fiction writer
• William Rehnquist, jurist and Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
• Carl Spaatz, commanding general of the USAAF and later first chief of staff for Air Force
• Aaron Spelling, film and television producer.
• Joseph A. Walker, military test pilot

See also

• United States Army Air Corps
• United States Air Force
• Air force

Sources

• ArmyAirForces.com — comprehensive look at the USAAF. Includes searchable databases, histories, dictionary, and forum.
  • USAAF air force/division/wing histories History of all USAAF subdivisions.
  • USAAF jargon dictionary — contains 526 words and abbreviations.
  • USAAF unit search — searchable database of groups, squadrons, squadron codes, stations, and commanders.
  • USAAF missing air crew report search — searchable database of missing air crew reports (MACRs) by MACR number, date, serial number, and group.
• USSAAF.net — "Published accounts of the Army Air Forces in World War II available in the public domain."
• USSAF in WWII — Combat chronology. Available for ZIP download.
• Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II. 1986.

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References

• Adapted from the Wikipedia article, "United_States_Army_Air_Force" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_Air_Force, used under the GNU Free Documentation License