Congress promotes Billy Mitchell to Major General

[Garrison Hilliard]

Fat lot of good it does him now...

[Ugly Bob]

"Garrison Hilliard" > wrote in message
...
> Fat lot of good it does him now...

I thought he _was_ a Major General.

-Ugly Bob

[Garrison Hilliard]

"Ugly Bob" > wrote in message >...
> "Garrison Hilliard" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Fat lot of good it does him now...
>
> I thought he _was_ a Major General.

A major general, to be sure, but not a Major General...
remember the court martial (it probably dropped him a few ranks)?

[Ugly Bob]

"Garrison Hilliard" > wrote in message
om...
> "Ugly Bob" > wrote in message
> >...
> > "Garrison Hilliard" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > > Fat lot of good it does him now...
> >
> > I thought he _was_ a Major General.
>
> A major general, to be sure, but not a Major General...
> remember the court martial (it probably dropped him a few ranks)?

I remember seeing a portrait of him ages ago (I think this was
the one)

http://home.earthlink.net/~ralphcooper/billypor.jpg

Oops, one star (say, you don't think that this guy was decorated at
all, do you).

-Ugly Bob

[Gene Storey]

His decendants will probably want to collect back-pay with
interest. Major General... Give me a break, what a joke.

Why not give him an honorary PhD while they're at it?

[Larry Dighera]

On Sat, 11 Oct 2003 19:04:02 GMT, "Gene Storey" > wrote
in Message-Id: >:

>Major General... Give me a break, what a joke.
>
>Why not give him an honorary PhD while they're at it?

Wasn't Billy Mitchell the fellow who first demonstrated that aircraft
were capable of sinking battleships? I'd say that was a significant
contribution to the art of warfare.


--

Irrational beliefs ultimately lead to irrational acts.
-- Larry Dighera,

[George Z. Bush]

Larry Dighera wrote:
> On Sat, 11 Oct 2003 19:04:02 GMT, "Gene Storey" > wrote
> in Message-Id: >:
>
>> Major General... Give me a break, what a joke.
>>
>> Why not give him an honorary PhD while they're at it?
>
> Wasn't Billy Mitchell the fellow who first demonstrated that aircraft
> were capable of sinking battleships? I'd say that was a significant
> contribution to the art of warfare.

Yes, and he was also courts-martialled for insisting that airpower alone could
win a war, a concept that the Army General Staff could neither accept nor
condone. When all was said and done, however, he was awarded a posthumous CMH
in 1946 for his conceptual contributions towards winning WWII.

Incidentally, he was also a visionary. After a staff visit to Japan in 1924, he
submitted a report in which he predicted the events that actually occurred at
Pearl Harbor in 1941.

I don't know what the rationale was for his posthumous promotion to Major
General, but I'm not inclined to pooh-pooh it out of hand.

George Z.

[Regnirps]

"Gene Storey" wrote:

<< His decendants will probably want to collect back-pay with
interest. Major General... Give me a break, what a joke.

Why not give him an honorary PhD while they're at it? >>

Hey Come on! Gary Cooper was great!

-- Charlie Springer

[Regnirps]

"George Z. Bush" wrote:

<<Yes, and he was also courts-martialled for insisting that airpower alone
could
win a war, a concept that the Army General Staff could neither accept nor
condone. When all was said and done, however, he was awarded a posthumous CMH
in 1946 for his conceptual contributions towards winning WWII. >>

Small nit. There is no 'C' in the 'MH'.

-- Charlie Springer

[BUFDRVR]

>Yes, and he was also courts-martialled for insisting that airpower alone
>could
>win a war

No, he was court martialled (and rightfully so) for publically accusing both
the President (Calvin Coolidge) and Congress of treason in what he believed was
their negligence in managing and funding the US Army Air Corps and aviation in
general.

I believe the crash of a US Navy dirigible was what prompted him to make the
remarks to a national newspaper.


BUFDRVR

"Stay on the bomb run boys, I'm gonna get those bomb doors open if it harelips
everyone on Bear Creek"

[George Z. Bush]

"Regnirps" > wrote in message
...
> "George Z. Bush" wrote:
>
> <<Yes, and he was also courts-martialled for insisting that airpower alone
> could
> win a war, a concept that the Army General Staff could neither accept nor
> condone. When all was said and done, however, he was awarded a posthumous CMH
> in 1946 for his conceptual contributions towards winning WWII. >>
>
> Small nit. There is no 'C' in the 'MH'.

There are as many references to the decoration with as without Congressional in
it. There are numerous links that will bear me out on that, and here's one you
might want to take a look at, by way of example:

http://www.medalofhonor.com

George Z.

[George Z. Bush]

"BUFDRVR" > wrote in message
...
> >Yes, and he was also courts-martialled for insisting that airpower alone
> >could
> >win a war
>
> No, he was court martialled (and rightfully so) for publically accusing both
> the President (Calvin Coolidge) and Congress of treason in what he believed
was
> their negligence in managing and funding the US Army Air Corps and aviation in
> general.
>
> I believe the crash of a US Navy dirigible was what prompted him to make the
> remarks to a national newspaper.

Mitchell continued to publicly press for a separate air arm after some half
dozen obsolete naval war vessels had been sunk by air attack in various tests.
This is what the Air Force Museum's home page says about his courts-martial:

"The success of the bombing trials encouraged the supporters of a separate air
arm to press even harder for their objectives but the Army General Staff
remained firm in its belief that airpower, acting independently, could not win a
war. Mitchell became increasingly critical of his superiors until his public
statements could no longer be condoned. In Dec. 1925 he was found guilty before
a court-martial of violating the all-inclusive 96th Article of War and was
suspended from duty for five years. In 1926, Mitchell resigned from the
service."

George Z.

[Rich]

"George Z. Bush" > wrote in message >...

> ... When all was said and done, however, he was awarded a posthumous CMH
> in 1946 for his conceptual contributions towards winning WWII.
>
> George Z.

Not to be confused with THE Medal of Honor, see:

http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/history/postwwi/bmcmoh.htm

A special congressional medal to honor Mitchell, not The Medal of Honor.

Regards,

R

[George Z. Bush]

"Rich" > wrote in message
m...
> "George Z. Bush" > wrote in message
>...
>
> > ... When all was said and done, however, he was awarded a posthumous CMH
> > in 1946 for his conceptual contributions towards winning WWII.
> >
> > George Z.
>
> Not to be confused with THE Medal of Honor, see:
>
> http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/history/postwwi/bmcmoh.htm
>
> A special congressional medal to honor Mitchell, not The Medal of Honor.

Point taken. I will no longer confuse it with the regular Congressional Medal
of Honor. (^-^)))

George Z.

[Peter Stickney]

In article >,
"George Z. Bush" > writes:
>
> "BUFDRVR" > wrote in message
> ...
>> >Yes, and he was also courts-martialled for insisting that airpower alone
>> >could
>> >win a war
>>
>> No, he was court martialled (and rightfully so) for publically accusing both
>> the President (Calvin Coolidge) and Congress of treason in what he believed
> was
>> their negligence in managing and funding the US Army Air Corps and aviation in
>> general.
>>
>> I believe the crash of a US Navy dirigible was what prompted him to make the
>> remarks to a national newspaper.
>
> Mitchell continued to publicly press for a separate air arm after some half
> dozen obsolete naval war vessels had been sunk by air attack in various tests.
> This is what the Air Force Museum's home page says about his courts-martial:
>
> "The success of the bombing trials encouraged the supporters of a separate air
> arm to press even harder for their objectives but the Army General Staff
> remained firm in its belief that airpower, acting independently, could not win a
> war. Mitchell became increasingly critical of his superiors until his public
> statements could no longer be condoned. In Dec. 1925 he was found guilty before
> a court-martial of violating the all-inclusive 96th Article of War and was
> suspended from duty for five years. In 1926, Mitchell resigned from the
> service."

G.Z.,
The bombing tests were several years before the Court Martial. The
charges had nothing to do with his pressing for a separate air
force. That was, while irritatiing, tolerable. The proximate casue
of the charges was that after the loss of the Navy's rigid airship
Shenandoah (ZR-1), in a line squall over the midwest during a
publicity tour, He'd made his statements referring to the President,
the Secretary of the Navy, the Secretary of War, and the Admiralty
as traitors. (It _was_ an emotional event - the Captain of the
Shenandoah was a personal friend of Mitchell, and had advised
against the trip as too risky during that time of year. The airship
captain's non-aviator superiors ordered him out anyway.) After the
initial statements, MItchell was ordered to not make any uncleared
public statements, but continued to do so. This prompted teh
charges of insubordination.

--
Pete Stickney
A strong conviction that something must be done is the parent of many
bad measures. -- Daniel Webster

[George Z. Bush]

Peter Stickney wrote:
> In article >,
> "George Z. Bush" > writes:
>>
>> "BUFDRVR" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>>> Yes, and he was also courts-martialled for insisting that airpower alone
>>>> could
>>>> win a war
>>>
>>> No, he was court martialled (and rightfully so) for publically accusing both
>>> the President (Calvin Coolidge) and Congress of treason in what he believed
>>> was their negligence in managing and funding the US Army Air Corps and
>>> aviation in general.
>>>
>>> I believe the crash of a US Navy dirigible was what prompted him to make the
>>> remarks to a national newspaper.
>>
>> Mitchell continued to publicly press for a separate air arm after some half
>> dozen obsolete naval war vessels had been sunk by air attack in various
>> tests. This is what the Air Force Museum's home page says about his
>> courts-martial:
>>
>> "The success of the bombing trials encouraged the supporters of a separate
>> air arm to press even harder for their objectives but the Army General Staff
>> remained firm in its belief that airpower, acting independently, could not
>> win a war. Mitchell became increasingly critical of his superiors until his
>> public statements could no longer be condoned. In Dec. 1925 he was found
>> guilty before a court-martial of violating the all-inclusive 96th Article of
>> War and was suspended from duty for five years. In 1926, Mitchell resigned
>> from the service."
>
> G.Z.,
> The bombing tests were several years before the Court Martial. The
> charges had nothing to do with his pressing for a separate air
> force. That was, while irritatiing, tolerable. The proximate casue
> of the charges was that after the loss of the Navy's rigid airship
> Shenandoah (ZR-1), in a line squall over the midwest during a
> publicity tour, He'd made his statements referring to the President,
> the Secretary of the Navy, the Secretary of War, and the Admiralty
> as traitors. (It _was_ an emotional event - the Captain of the
> Shenandoah was a personal friend of Mitchell, and had advised
> against the trip as too risky during that time of year. The airship
> captain's non-aviator superiors ordered him out anyway.) After the
> initial statements, MItchell was ordered to not make any uncleared
> public statements, but continued to do so. This prompted teh
> charges of insubordination.

Thank you for the enlightening details I don't recall ever having seen before.

George Z.