Brown, George S.
$45.00
1975 TLS as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, congratulates Major General Smith on appointment as Army War College Commandant, thanks him for a book
Description
Autograph ID: 6788
Condition: Very good
Description: “(1918-1978) USMA 1941, Air Force General, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff 1974-78. Commissioned 2nd lieut. 1941, volunteered for Air Corps training, received pilot’s wings 1942. An Air Corps 1st lieut., in Aug. 1942 he flew with the 93d Bombardment Group to England, 1st B-24 group to join the 8th Air Force. Promoted to captain Oct. 1942, major Feb. 1943, and lieut. col. Aug. 1943. As XO, he took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the low-level bombing raid against oil refineries at Ploiesti, Romania Aug. 1943. The 93d Bombardment Group was 2nd of 5 B-24 groups that raided Ploiesti from Benghazi, Libya, flying into heavy defenses to attack 3 of the 6 target refineries. The lead plane, flown by the group commander, was shot down. Brown assumed command of the battered 93rd and led it thru the attack and return to Benghazi, receiving the DSC for that mission. For services in combat over Europe, he was awarded the Silver Star, 2 Distinguished Flying Crosses, 3 Air Medals, the French Croix de Guerre with palm and the British Distinguished Flying Cross. He was named asst. operations officer, 2d Air Div. in April 1944, promoted to colonel Oct. 1944, returning home Nov. 1944. After the June 1950 outbreak of the Korean War, he learned to fly jet fighters and in Jan. 1952 became 5th Air Force Asst. Director of Operations in So. Korea, Director 1952. In 1957 he was executive to Air Force Chief of Staff Thomas D. White, promoted to brig. general Aug. 1959. He was military asst. to Deputy Defense Secretary Gates and to Secretary of Defense McNamara as major general. In May 1966 he became the Asst. to Gen. Earle Wheeler, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as lieut. general Aug. 1966, involved in handling the Pueblo Crisis. In Aug. 1968, he took command of the 7th Air Force, becoming Deputy Commander for Air Operations, MACV as General. As 7th Air Force Commander, he was responsible for all SE Asia Air Force combat operations. In his MACV position, he advised on all tactical air support measures and coordinated So. Vietnamese and US air operations in MACV’s area of responsibility. His Vietnam tour ended in Sept. 1970, heading Air Force Systems Command. President Nixon appointed him Air Force Chief of Staff Aug. 1973. When the Arab-Israeli War broke out in Oct. 1973, Brown ordered 2 squadrons of F-4 Phantoms delivered to Israel with 100,000 tons of bombs and ammunition without waiting for approval from the Secretary of Defense. He was appointed Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff July 1974. As Chairman, he was oversaw handling of the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus, and the Mayaguez incident, the final act of the Vietnam War in 1975. He also dealt with the 1976 shootings and axe murder incident in the Korean DMZ and the 1977 Panama Canal Treaty. He retired due to ill health June 1978.
TLS as General, USAF on 7 ¾ x 5 ¾ letterhead as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Washington, June 2 1975, to Major General DeWitt C. Smith Jr., Commandant, Army War College. General Brown thanks Smith for his letter and book, “New Dynamics in National Strategy: The Paradox of Power”, looks forward to reading it when possible. He congratulates Smith on his appointment as AWC Commandant with every best wish.
DeWITT C. SMITH,JR. (1920 -1985) US Army officer, former deputy Army Chief of Staff, twice (and longest-serving) Army War College commandant 1974 -77, 1978-80. Joined the Army 1942, commissioned 2nd lieutenant, with the 4th Armored Div. in combat after Normandy to the end of the War. Wounded 3 times, awarded Silver Star, 2 Bronze Stars, and 3 Purple Hearts. Discharged 1946, returned to active duty in Korea and stayed in the military. He was an aide to Chief of Staff Maxwell Taylor, served in the “Old Guard” at Fort Myer, a battalion XO and commander in Germany. He served at the Pentagon before going to the Army War College. Led a combat brigade of the 1st Infantry in Vietnam. In 1970, under his leadership, Fort Carson, Colo. was made an initial test site for the modern volunteer Army concept. After his stints at the War College, he retired in 1980.”
Type: Letter
