Makin' rank!

[pishta]

Anyone in the service knows making rank is a long and tedious road..unless your in the USAAF back in early 40's! Many of you know the name Curtis LeMay, he was the USAF big wig in the cold war era, and a VP candidate in 68 I think, Anyway, this guy was on the fast track for sure, he made rank faster than race motors get replaced:
Captain, Army Air Corps: January 26, 1940
Major, Army Air Corps: March 21, 1941
Lieutenant Colonel, Army of the United States: January 23, 1942
Colonel, Army of the United States: June 17, 1942
Brigadier General, Army of the United States: September 28, 1943
Major General, Army of the United States: March 3, 1944.

He was a Lt. Col for less than 5 months! I spent more time than that on Marine mess duty!!! :wack:

 

[70aarcuda]

Bombs Away LeMay...nickname...

 

[67Dart273]

Lots of people moved up rapidly during wartime, particularly WWII

Something I never understood, was the Army's way of "whatever it's called" "permanent" rank and "temporary" rank.

I believe 'now' after these years, that if LeMay had had more authority, as in Korea, that we would have been in BIG trouble. I believe he was big on atomic weapons.

 

[pishta]

His character was crazy "precious bodily fluids" General Jack D. Ripper in Dr. Strangelove. smokin' that fat cigar until the end. And yes, he was more like George C.Scotts character in the movie; a childish war monger that believed that nuclear war with the Soviets was imminent and we should be the ones to deliver the "Sunday Punch": 133 A-bombs dropped on 70 cities in 30 days, then that was shortened to "starting on Christmas and ending before new years". Yeah, that guy would have been dangerous if Kennedy didnt reign in the military brass during his short presidency.
Kennedy commented that if these military leaders (the 2 Army and USAF) were picked to rise to the top, the selection process is not the best to his friendly Navy chief of staff.

 

[67Dart273]

Even "Ike" warned against "the military complex".

On a side note, with all the "Pattons," the "I have returned" and the pha pha pha from the Bratish side, I'm amazed that a guy like Ike ever got to be where he was in WWII.