General Curtis LeMay
 
 
Curtis E. LeMay earned his pilot's wings from the U.S. Army's
Aviation Cadet program in 1929.  Soon he was flying a fighter
with the famous 27th Pursuit Squadron.  Then, in 1937, LeMay made
a fateful shift from fighters to bombers.  He distinguished
himself in the B-17 as the lead navigator in a famed tour of
South America, and in the interception of the Italian liner Rex.
 
During World War II, LeMay enjoyed a meteoric rise as a combat
commander in the Eighth Air Force.  His insistence on training
and the tight "combat box" formation allowed the B-17s and B-24s
to withstand Luftwaffe attacks in their bombing raids over
Germany.  After a successful tour in England, LeMay was summoned
to the Pacific where he devised low-level incendiary bomb tactics
for the 20th Bomber Command's B-29s.  These tactics gutted
Japanese cities and hastened the end of the Second World War.
 
Following World War II, Curtis LeMay became legendary as the
demanding four-star general in command of the mighty Strategic
Air Command (SAC).  As the head of SAC, LeMay transformed a
handful of jet bombers into the most powerful fighting force on
earth. 
 
Over the years, LeMay's stern expression engendered a lot of
fear.  (Few people knew that a defective nerve in his cheek made
it hard for him to smile.)  In truth, LeMay was tremendously
concerned about the people in his command, fighting hard to get
enlisted forces adequate pay, housing and career opportunities. 
Curtis LeMay was one of the most important figures both in 
winning the Second World War and in keeping the world out of a
third.