From Grant to Patton, from Bradley to MacArthur, many of America's most celebrated generals had careers footnoted by controversies.
Meanwhile, many Americans and most history textbooks are unaware of one the most admired American general of recent times. It is hard to find anyone â?? at least since the days of George Washington and John Paul Jones â?? who's more universally admired, even revered, within his own service than Henry Harley â??Hapâ? Arnold is within the U.S. Air Force. Heâ??s also the man most responsible for America's aerial victory in World War II â?? he created the Air Force.
So itâ??s time for the history books to pay attention.
Having been taught to fly by the Wright brothers themselves, Arnold was one of Americaâ??s first military aviators. He grew up with U.S. Army aviation, and ultimately he became its leader. In 1938, he became chief of the U.S. Army Air Corps.
His boss, Army Chief of Staff General Malin Craig thought that the U.S. Army should not spend money on airplanes because they became obsolete too fast. Many of the â??old cavalry officersâ? who dominated the Army officer corps at the time looked upon the Armyâ??s â??bird menâ? as effete posers who needed to find a real job. Meanwhile, tactical doctrine held that the only role for U.S. Army aviation was to support ground forces in the field.
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