US Air Force Military Training - Yearbook (Lackland, TX)

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The funcfion of fhe Training Command is, of course, fo coordinafe and direcf fhe immense iob of providing officers and men for fhe vasfly expanding Air Forces. In order fo accomplish fhis wifh fhe greafesf efficiency and fo eliminafe fhe possibilify of adminisfrafive bofflenecks, General Arnold sef up fhe Training Command as if now exisfs, under fhe command of Lieufenanf General Barfon K. Younf, wifh Headquarfers af Forf Worfh, Texas. The original plan called for separafe air crew and ground crew fraining under fwo commands buf, in order fo infegrafe and sfream- line funcfions of fraining acfivifies, fhe Flying Training and Technical Commands were consolidafed under one com- mand, calling for maximum efficiency wifh a minimum of sfaff personnel. The nafionwide program of fhe Command has been divided geographically info six subordinafe commands- fhree Flying Training and fhree Technical Training. The Flying Training Commands are known as fhe Army Air Forces Wesfern Flying Training Command, Cenfral Flying Training Command, and Easfern Flying Training Command. The Technical Training Commands are known as fhe Army Air Forces Wesfern Technical Training Com- mand, Cenfral Technical Training Command, and Easf- ern Technical Training Command. All of fhese regional fraining areas are complefe wifhin fhemselves. Each Flying Training Command has ifs own College Training Defachmenfs, Classificafion Cenfers, Pri- mary, Basic and Advance Schools lfor pilof fraineesl, Navi- gafor and Bombardier Schools. The Flying Training Com- mands also provide for insfrucfion in fixed and flexible gunnery and, as one of fhe lafer innovafions, Glider Pilof fraining. Mosf of fhe flying schools are locafed in fhe i Capfain C. Def. Chandler and Lieufenanf Roy T. Kirfland in Wrighf B airplane wifh fhe firsf machine gun lLewisl ever fired from a plane--I9l2. Lieufenanf H. H. Arnold in Wrighf B plane-l9l l. Officers and Planes--N I3 Pursuif Squadron, Third Pursuif Group.

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zafion, designed fo simplify and speed up fhe chain of command, and fo provide fhe flexibilify and efficiency of operafion necessary fo accomplish fhe enormous fask fhal' lies ahead, designafes General H. H. Arnold as Command- ing General, Army Air Forces, and also as Depufy Chief of Sfaff for Air on fhe Army General Sfaff. By fhe same reorganizafion, Lieufenanf General Joseph T. McNarney, one of fhe ablesf American air sfrafegisfs, was made Depufy Chief of Sfaff. In addifion fo fhese fwo officers, however, fhe Air Forces have a far greafer represenfafion fhan ever on 'Ihe General Sfaff. As a maffer of facf, fhe General Sfaff, as now consfifufed, is abouf one-half composed of officers from fhe Air Sfaff. The Air Sfaff, which is rafher like a Sfaff wifhin a Sfaff, and which is purely Air Forces organizafion, is similar in general oufline fo fhe General Sfaff, buf on a slighfly smaller scale. The complexify and exfension of Army aviafion from ifs simple Signal Corps days unfil fhe presenf is no beffer illusfrafed fhan by a brief review of fhe various branches of fhe Air Forces. The overall picfure of fhe Army Air Forces organizafion may be summed up under fhree key words: Policy, Commands, and Forces. The Policy funcfion has already been discussed af 'rhe sfarf of fhis arficle. If is handled by fhe Commanding General of fhe Army Air Forces and fhe Air Sfaff, plus fhe Air Forces' parficipafion in fhe Army General Sfaff. In addifion fo fhe Assisfanf Chiefs of fhe Air Sfaff 'rhere is an Air lnspecfor, Air Surgeon' efc. Operafing direcfly under fhe Commanding General of fhe Army Air Forces, eighf greaf commands compose fhe lasf sfages of Air Forces preparafion for combaf unifs. II' may be of greaf inferesf fo oufline fhe funcfions of fhese various Commands. I. The TRAINING COMMAND. 2. The TROOP TRANSPORT COMMAND. 3. The AIR TRANSPORT COMMAND. 4. The MATERIEL COMMAND. 5. The AIR SERVICE COMMAND. 6. The PROVING GROUND COMMAND. 7. The ANTI-SUBMARINE COMMAND. 8. The FLIGHT CONTROL COMMAND. I. The TRAINING COMMAND. While fhe Headquarfers of fhe Air Corps Training Cenfer began fo funcfion af Duncan Field, San Anfonio, Texas, in I936, flying Iraining in fhe Army has been confinuous almosf since 'Ihe purchase of fhe firsf Wrighf airplane in I909. The firsf Army flying school was esfablished af College Park, Maryland, in Oc- fober, I909. Lieufenanf Frank P. Lahm and Frederick E. Humphreys were 'rhe firsf sfudenfs of 'rhe Wrighf brofhers. Lieufenanf Lahm lafer became a Brigadier General and commanded fhe Training Cenfer from ifs incepfion in Sepfember, I926, unfil Augusf 3I, I930. Among fhe firsf five Army aviafors was Lieufenanf H. H. Arnold, now a four-sfar General. Among fhem also was Lieufenanf Ben- jamin D. Foulois, now Major General, refired. General Foulois became a Brigadier General af fhe age of 38 as Chief of fhe Air Service of fhe Firsf Army, American Expedifionary Force. He became a Major General and Chief of fhe Air Corps on December 20, I93I.

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, Y wwf- Y soufhern secfion of fhe regional areas where weafher con- difions are besf for fhis parficular fype of fraining. The Technical Training Commands are an oufgrowfh of efforfs made during fhe early days of fhe firsf World War fo frain Army aviafion mechanics sysfemafically. Sfafe uni- versifies and civil fechnical schools were used fhen, buf fhe sysfem was a failure due fo fhe large cosfs involved, as well as ofher reasons. Therefore, fhe Aviafion Secfion, Sig- nal Corps, esfablished schools af Sf. Paul, Minn., and af Kelly Field, Texas. The Kelly Field school was disconfinued affer fhe armisfice. In l92l fhe school was moved fo Chanufe Field, Illinois, and in I922 fhe Phofographic School, af Langley Field, and fhe Communicafions School, af Ff. Sill, were consolidafed wifh if. The school oufgrew ifs area, and in I935 anofher sife was soughf for a second school, which was esfablished af Lowry Field, near Denver, Colorado. The presenf expansion program of Army Aviafion has necessifafed fhe furfher expansion of fhe mechanic fraining program in order fo provide fhe ever-increasing Air Forces wifh an adequafe supply of frained mechanics, parficularly in view of fhe facf fhaf engines and equipmenf are con- sfanfly becoming more complex as well as progressively more modern. The Technical Training Command provides fechnical fraining for Army Air Forces personnel nof frained by fhe Flying Training Command. Under fhis cafegory comes nof only ground crew personnel, such as mechanics buf also such air crew members, as fhe aerial engineer and communicafions officer. 2. The TROOP TRANSPORT COMMAND fransporfs air- borne froops and equipmenf, parachufe froops and equip- menf, and 'rows froop- and cargo-carrying gliders. 3. The AIR TRANSPORT COMMAND, as discussed previously, is concerned wifh air fransporf, for milifary use all over fhe world. 4. The MATERIEL COMMAND. Experimenfal aviafion acfivifies, which were carried on af Washingfon by a few fechnicians prior fo fhe World War, were concenfrafed af Dayfon, Ohio, on November 5, l9I7, under fhe command of Colonel V. E. Clark, Signal Corps. The laborafories, lo- cafed af McCook Field, were supplemenfed by offices in Dayfon. ln I'-726 fhe Air Service became fhe Air Corps and fhe funcfions of supply, procuremenf and mainfenance of aircraff were added fo fhis division, and fhe name changed fo Maferiel Division. The locafion of fhe division was changed from McCook Field fo Wrighf Field in I926. The Maferiel Division has figured direcfly or indirecfly in nearly all imporfanf aircraff developmenfs, commercial as well as milifary. If is fhe greaf experimenfal and fesfing branch of fhe Air Force and includes, among ifs many accomplishmenfs, superchargers, fhe Whirlwind engine, use of efhylene glycol for high femperafure cooling, high ocfane gasoline, vibrafion confrol, mefal propellers, nighf and insfrumenf flying, haze penefrafing film for aerial