It is apparent to me, although I am still trying to find the definitive link that Colorado WW2 CAP DO Capt. Bill Madsen, Wing CC Harold Smethills and Maj. General John Curry worked out the SAR portfolio for CAP Nationally during the War and that is the same assignment we treasure to this day.

Again the organizing background for CAP was NOT SAR. Initially, 1st/2nd Air Force were to handle this Continental SAR duty for private and military aviation alike. A B24 crash near Taos N.M. (see Neprud book) in Dec. 42 proved that the Air Corps couldn't handle this duty and needed smaller lighter aircraft to get in low, slow, and sooner. We weren't the officially ordered SAR Air Force outfit until April '43.

This mission was accomplished by a CAP squadron out of Alamosa CO. John Curry had previously been in Denver as 2nd Air Force Commander, then become CAP national commander, put Smethills and Madsen in place, then moved on and returned to Denver as 2nd Air Force (4th Dist.) Training and Technical Commander. This can not be coincidence as these people knew and respected the abilities of each. These people were all friends and met socially. I'm thinking that there must be some paperwork somewhere, perhaps at Maxwell that link all of these decisions.

If anyone is interested and can find the links, it would help put this story together. Earl Johnston was National Commander in Dec '42 - Hap Arnold was the Air Corps Commander. It would be great to find the after-action report describing the process of how this all came together. It would also clear up some of the misunderstanding of our History which is often mis-represented by members who believe that CAP began as a SAR arm of the Air Corps which is incorrect. The internal debate and thought process would be good to know. If anyone can help clarify this process... chime in. I'm stymied at the moment.

Well there is confusion regarding several items. According to Sheila Curry DeKalb The Major General was buried in the Bespoke British made suntan set Summer Uniform. So I am now looking for another official Winter Uniform which was donated to CAP upon the death of the General.

Also buried with him was his Command Badge. A one of a kind made for him by a group of Fellow Wartime Generals and presented to him about 6 months after he received his full and final rank. Apparently it was ordered out New York, perhaps Tiffanys, and people like Tooey Spaatz, George Kenney, and Hap Arnold chipped in.

So I guess I now know where both of these historical treasures are but there is no chance to make an exhibit using them... without disturbing the good General and his wife of course. I've got plenty of pictures of both of these items. These were obviously the uniform and
piece of regalia that most pleased the General. According to Sheila it fit him well even 30 years after it was first made for him. Rest in peace, Jack.

I have acquired for - for further display - the Ceremonial Belt and Sash that Maj. Gen. Curry used with his dress mess. It is a bright gold with thin blue stripes built on a nice leather girdle about 4 inches wide with the Air Force Eagle buckle (bright gold finish) and a shoulder sash - with tassels - made of the same color -- but from a lighter fabric than the belt. It was made by Meyers Army and Navy Supply of New York City. There is an additional buckle to which, I am supposing, a ceremonial sword was once attached. This buckle appears to have been used some and so there must be a sword about somewhere.

The belt and sash have been in the Colorado CAP Buckley AFB Hangar 909 Office for years. Former Wing Commander Col. Jack Buschmann tipped me to its presence and Patti Sampers retrieved it.

Beautifully constructed but a bit gaudy by today's uniform standards. Actually, it is really gaudy. I imagine that a room full of similarly dressed Generals would have been impressive at a senior officers dress mess. BUT, you wouldn't want to be caught dead walking around in public dressed in this sash. You might be otherwise thought to be a Generalissimo.

I have been told that at least one picture of the Good General dressed in this belt and sash exists and I hope to get a copy of that pic soon.

We are still looking for more uniform items that are around this office at Buckley AFB. I hope to gather all of this material soon for a museum display. This is an interesting piece of militaria. I hope to find out more specifics about it... More soon.   

Quote from: Smithsonia on July 23, 2008, 10:48:11 PM
After talking to Maj. Gen. Curry's daughter -- she has more than a few things to add to his biography. Historians and AEO's take notes.
1. He bought Ford Island on which Hickham Field Hawaii was built. He was a Captain when he did that, sometime around 1922.

I soloed off of Ford Island in 1998 when I was taking flying lessons while stationed at Schofield Barracks, HI

Schofield Barracks is a remarkable place all unto its own. With the Pearl Harbor Day bullet holes and plantation (Colonial) architecture - It is history - both place and event - all in one. For me, they lined us up for our Vietnam vaccinations a battalion (about a thousand) at a time.

Schofield Barracks was featured in "From Here to Eternity" - so everybody has seen it if only in the movies -

Using the Yard at the Center of the Quad, 50-60 nurses (males and females) gave a shot in each butt-cheek to about 5000-10,000 men in one day. There were Marines, Navy, Air Force, Army all there. There were officers and enlisted in Undershirts and GI skivvies, holding paperwork and shuffling through a mass physical. 

I later asked a nurse if she found looking all of our bums insulting to her sensibilities. She said, "About the first 200 bothered me, then they turned into drilling holes on an assembly line."

I often think of the heroes of Ford Island and Schofield Barracks and do NOT think I am among them. But I did get shot at -not once, but twice - At Schofield Barracks in 1968. True Story but off the topic, so thanks for the indulgence.

Many CAP Members attend the Ft. Logan National Cemetery Memorial Day Commemoration here in Denver. This year we are meeting after the flyby and walking over to Maj. General John Curry's Grave for a salute. "General and Mrs. Curry the Civil Air Patrol is here to thank you for your service to our country and your dedicated duty to the Civil Air Patrol. God bless you and rest in eternal peace."

As long as I am alive we'll do this each Memorial Day in the name of the Patrol.

 :clap: :clap: :clap:

As part of my research on John Curry I've been reading about the trial of Billy Mitchell. Pardon the extra on-coming verbiage but the right words are important.

As I have written previously... John Curry spoke on behalf of Billy Mitchell during his trial. Douglas MacArthur voted against the Court-Martialing of Billy Mitchell. He was the only officer who voted as "dissenting" on the charges against Mitchell. Meaning of 12 officer-judges, there was only one vote against the sacking of Billy Mitchell. That judge was Douglas MacArthur. Another man who worked with John Curry on behalf of Gen. Mitchell was George Kenney. Kenney would later be the air commander for MacArthur during all of WW2. Kenney is often described as a close friend and associate of Curry's. I have several letters between the two. These letters are full of teasing admiration and generous words on behalf of each. Each is marked "secret." Meaning even transient letters had some content that was of intelligence value and therefore needed to be protected. Kenney prepared Curry to testify on behalf of Mitchell. For Curry and Kenney this took a bit of courage as each was a Captain and many Generals were watching their every utterance on behalf of Mitchell.

Another officer who spoke on behalf of Mitchell was Robert Olds. Robert Olds would later become Second Air Force Commander during WW2. John Curry recommended Gen. Olds for this job. John Curry had been the Organizing Commander for 2nd Air Force (3 years previous) in the same way Curry was Organizing Commander for CAP. Robert Olds is the father of WW2-Vietnam Triple Fighter Ace Robin Olds. Robin Olds is often featured on the History Channel. Robert Olds has always been described as a protege of John Curry.

I suppose what I am describing in a loyal cabal of forward thinking officers that formed and sustained each other from the Billy Mitchell Court Martial through WW2. Hap Arnold was the obvious leader and the names of the others are feathered through this long and extensive thread.

It remains of great interest how the sterling careers of fine American Heroes of uncontested loyalty and highest principles are often described as "sponsored by" a "colleague of" or an "associate of" John Curry.

I'm reading about the "bomber mafia" The bomber mafia is group of men that conducted debates at Maxwell in the mid-30s. The bomber mafia men debated over a series of studies and exercises that eventually lead to the B17, B24, and B29. The bomber mafia is what also leads to the early retirement of Claire Chennault and self imposed exile to China because fighter/pursuit technologies were being dismissed in favor of bombers ... many of these Bomber Mafioso" are also described as Curry associates. Chennault who worked for Curry for 5 years is never described in this way. Although according to Sheila Curry DeKalb - the General's Daughter - "Daddy always spoke highly about Gen. Chennault." Meaning, I think the Curry/Chennault relationship was "complex." As I've written before, Curry helped supply men, mechanics, logistics, and ideas to the Chennault led AVG/Flying Tigers. Complex seems to work as a descriptor of the relationship between these AIR POWER titans.

I'm telling you Curry is at the fulcrum of much, always lurking behind the scenes and just out of reach. Always in the thick of the discussions, arguments, and debates. But such a delicately well balanced intellect that others are blamed or credited with the hard-feelings and animosity and never Curry. To accomplish this his judicious intellectual rigor and sincere sense of duty is never ever questioned. It is remarkable to read around the edges, to see the sparking of huge debates, as he listens to the presentations, helps each side hone their arguments, investing his eloquence in the process, leading by example, and leaving the fingerprints of only well chosen words signed by others. To me - John Curry is less a debater, or debate judge and more ... the finest debate coach American Air Power has ever known.

If there was a Mafia, Hap Arnold was the Godfather, Chennault and Kenney were some of the trigger men, so to speak... and John Curry was the mob's lawyer.

John Curry is just amazing.

Looking back on it, it seems obvious that these men would have known each other.  The AAC was truly small and its senior officers would have "grown up" together.  The part about D. Mac being the lone dessenting vote on the Mitchell court martial board is very interesting.  MacArthur was a bit of a rogue himself, being exiled to the Philippines after his retirement as Army Chief of Staff.  He and his father were deeply rooted in the PI and D. Mac became IIRC marshal of the PI Army before his recall to AD.

It's fascinating to see  Mitchell, Curry, Kenney, MacArthur, Olds, and later Robin Olds all had ties.  What a heritage!

Continuing with the friends of John Curry theme. -- George Kenney is a fascinating man. George Kenney was a close-close-close friend of John Curry. Read his wiki-bio here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Kenney

1. George Kenney - Shot down Herman Goering in WW1. Too bad Herman lived to fight another day.

2. George Kenney (working for Douglas MacArthur) - defended Australia, New Zealand, and the Guadalcanal slot when America was out gunned and on the run in the South West Pacific after the fall of the Philippines . The defense of Australia, The Battle of the Bismark Sea, the Battle of New Guinea, the Battle of the Coral Sea, Guadalcanal, Cactus Air Force, are all lesser known WW2 scenes. Look these up. These were amazing days and the world was hanging by a thread. Realize the distances that crews and planes were flying and the antiquated equipment they were flying and you'll realize that some strokes of luck and pluck were at play. George Kenney did more with less than any MAJCOMM in WW2.

3. George Kenney was the first Commander of Air University at Maxwell and brought CAP into it's MAJCOMM Structure in 1948... I would think but don't actually know -- after talking to the then recently retired and close-close friend Jack Curry.

4. Kenney was a fine writer in his own right. He wrote 2 books after WW2. Part of the bond between Kenney and Curry seems to be the clarity and regard with which each man expressed themselves. Speaking as a writer there is a natural attraction to editorially honed minds. To the ability of vast and vivid expression all writers are drawn. I am sure this was part of their mutual admiration.

Early in the war - Maj. Gen. John Curry was working on extending the range and load of both B17 and B-25s for George Kenney in Australia from the Western Technical and Training Command Headquarters in Denver at Lowry AF in late '42 and early '43. At the same time Curry was working on raising the service ceiling of the C-46 Commando, using water injection, so it could fly over the Himalayan hump for Claire Chennault and fly logistics into China after the fall of the Burma Road. So some of the Luck and Pluck was supplied by Curry and the Western Technical and Training Command.

BUT - I am working on a bigger story. How John Curry and the Civil Air Patrol Helped Shorten The War! This one has 2nd Air Force, Col. Paul Tibbets, Gen. Jack Curry, B-29s, Petersen Field Colorado Springs, CO, Los Alamos, and The CAP Courier Service -- BUT I've got a lot more research to do. I'm not completely sure that this story will fall together or when I'll get it figured out... however, I am working on it. I guess all I can say is stay tuned!

The clues are so tantalizing on this one but the proof is so thin. I hope I can validate this but have no real idea at this moment.

Being that this is Memorial Day - I am donning in my uniform and heading to Ft. Logan National Cemetery to spend a few hours with Cadets and Seniors with the General and Mrs. Curry. I'll give them regards from the Civil Air Patrol.

Quote from: Smithsonia on May 25, 2009, 12:01:50 PM
Continuing with the friends of John Curry theme. -- George Kenney is a fascinating man. George Kenney was a close-close-close friend of John Curry. Read his wiki-bio here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Kenney

3. George Kenney was the first Commander of Air University at Maxwell and brought CAP into it's MAJCOMM Structure in 1948... I would think but don't actually know -- after talking to the then recently retired and close-close friend Jack Curry.

At the time GEN Kenny was Commander of Air University, CAP came under HQ, USAF and was headquartered at Bolling AFB, DC. When I joined CAP in 1965, it came under what was then USAF Continental Air Command. It wasn't until the late 60's that it came under the Air University. It's my assumption that the change from HQ-USAF was coincident with GEN Spaatz's stepping down as Chairman of the Board of CAP.

Cecil DP;
You very well could be right. The list of officers who are credited with bringing CAP into Air University include George Kenney. I guess I made the assumption that this was during his tenure as Commander of AU and never thought it was done after his retirement but obviously before his death in 1977. Thanks - I'll put some research time on straightening that out.

I appreciate the fact checking. It is the reason I've worked so long on this thread... to display the information in a timely manner, but also to keep it all straight. You're helping to do exactly that.

Memorial Day, May 25th 2009 - Ft. Logan National Cemetery - Denver, CO. (1100 hrs)

Rain pours but Duty is clear:

About twenty Cadets and Senior Members of the Colorado Wing of the Civil Air Patrol stood along Omaha Drive at Ft Logan National Cemetery today. Under a drizzle that marched towards steady and for a moment raged torrential, sour weather scraped  this commemoration to the barest of rituals: The National Anthem, Pledge of Allegiance, a prayer, and an AT-6 flyby... flew bye in 10 minutes, then the rains came.

--  "In a moment we could hear nothing but the words 'canceled', 'sorry', 'thank you', 'drive carefully." And the assembled two thousand soggy souls hustled for their cars, canceling political speeches and other fare. It now seemed a day made for working in the mud.

Beneath a few umbrellas the Civil Air Patrol contingent weighed the options. Lt. Beth Biscardi asked that the cadets, dressed in shirt sleeve blues, be dismissed... and upon her good advice this was done.

The Senior Officers discussed and concluded that for most of us this event was a washout. However, Lt. Col. Sid Altum and Maj. Don MacCleod volunteered to finish the graveside salutes, alone and in appalling conditions. Which in its way, is the most appropriate of salutes from the Civil Air Patrol.

Project Officer Lt. Ed O'Brien stated; "We had made promises to do salutes... and promises we keep."

Cars blocked every Avenue and Street. This was to be a one mile walking round trip through the cemetery to each grave - the rain never stopped, but Sid Altum and Don MacLeod did - First to area #29 marker 976 and Col. Norman Kholos, then Maj. Earl Berger at site 53 grave 193, and finally Maj. Gen. John Curry and his wife, Eleanor, at Q-4172.

Sid and Don saluted each stone and each man: calling aloud their names, recounting their service; calling themselves to "attention", "SA - LUTE", "at ease",  -- then off they moved.

Along rivulets of washout they tiptoed, through soft footing they maneuvered, and around quick exiting cars they paused - MacLeod and Altum, on their duty, tramped this respectful mile.

Families and friends of servicemen and women unknown to Don and Sid sat among puddles next to graves.  "They looked a little forlorn, a bit cheated by this weather -- so, if the moment felt right -- We approached and simply asked; may we offer our salute to your loved one, sir. May we salute this hero ma'am?"

To attention came Don. To salute came Sid. To offer thanks to this family. To honor the dead.

In this manner these officers continued for 90 minutes.

It should be noted that when Col. Altum and Maj. MacLeod departed these wet and glistening grounds, there was not another uniform in sight. The Civil Air Patrol was the last organization in the field this day. Even though the rain poured, the duty of the Patrol remained clear and the mission accomplished.

I wish to thank the following members who attended this day's ceremony: Lt. Ken Ackerman, SM Robert Miller, Lt. Col. Sid Altum, Col. Jim Cooksey, Maj. Don MacLeod, Col. Robert Cook, Lt. Co. Bill and Barbara Gentry, Lt. Beth Biscardi, and Cadets Stephen Scheffel, Alex Axford, Alec Biscardi, Jacob Vanderhyde, Aaron Vanderhyde, Jeremy Vanderhyde, Ryne T. Sepper, Noah Gibbs. My thanks to Kim Long for the photographs below.

With respect and regards for a fine day in the field;
Lt. Ed O'Brien

Project Officer

I have referenced this photo several times in this thread. It is among the most historically important photos in all of the Air Power debate.
http://www.centennialofflight.gov/wbh/loc_wb_pdf/html/img/135-B_00694r.jpg
I believe the man on the right is Fred Eglin - for whom Eglin AFB is named. If anyone can point out different please do. He worked for John Curry for many years.
2nd on the right is Charles Lindbergh who has just returned from his trans-Atlantic flight. He has just returned from Europe, had his New York City ticker tape parade, gone to meet the President and various Washington Dignitaries, then gone to meet Maj. (at that time) John F. Curry (center). Curry is, at this moment, commandant of Hamilton Field near Dayton. Curry is in charge of building Wright Field.

These gentlemen have just toured what will become Wright Field (Wright Patterson AFB) The date is June 1927. Orville Wright is immediately to the left of Curry. Plans for Wright's workshop has just been scaled back. Likely he is not happy about this. Lindbergh has just been solicited to help build American Air Power. Curry delivered these very different messages to both men.

Orville Wright had not been active in aircraft technological development for many years. For the most part by this time Wright was an icon and an anachronism and less relevant. Lindbergh was to be the future, Wright the past, and Curry in the middle of it all.

I revisited this photo many times over the last few days as I am preparing a talk about Curry for Cadets at the Air Force Academy. SO often we think of these iconic figures of aviation without remembering they were human. Their lives had disappointments and anxieties, low and high points, melancholia and triumph. This is such a big moment. This is such a human moment. This is among the most remarkable pictures in American Aviation history and there isn't a plane in sight.

The significance of the photos of Curry, Lindbergh, and Orville Wright continue.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/John_F_Curry.jpg

Don't be fooled by this photo. Although Lindbergh and Curry are facing one another in what appears to be a spirited conversation with Wright as the outside looking in man.

Orville Wright's photographer is taking this set of pictures. Orville Wright every moment is captured on glass plates. There are 10s of thousands of these glass plates I suppose. Wrights photographer is directing the placement and action.

The group would rearrange themselves so that some photos have Curry in the middle, some have Lindbergh in the middle, and some have Wright in the middle. So here's what is worth taking away from this photo series. Pictures, the iconography of Orville's meetings and moments, were more important to him than what was said or done. He wanted to be there. He wanted to be relevant. He would be relevant, but mostly as head of the Civil Aeronautic Administration and as a bureaucrat. His day was passing.

These pictures are just fascinating. Utterly fascinating!

I see that Curry has a cane in his hands.  Did he have some sort of disability, was this a recent injury, or was it just a "gentleman's accessory" of the time?

Gunner C;
The cane. Yes, Sometime ago I asked his daughter about the cane. Sheila Curry DeKalb doesn't actually know about the cane but this is our supposition taken from her observations... Jack Curry carried a cane around his many many construction projects.

The cane is not an affectation and is not for walking. (Although Jack Curry was a daily walker.) It is for making the grandest of gestures in sweeping motions as he points here and there to the large construction projects of runways, tower, hangars, and the like. Often, and this picture is one of these cases, there is a retinue of 15-50 touring his projects. He is explaining it all: gutters, sidewalks, headquarters, chow hall, gymnasium, on and on.

Jack Curry was a wonderful storyteller and host. Cane? It is his laser pointer, his conductors baton, and symbol of his authority over the construction and command of the language. Jack Curry was a heck of a guy!

There is more to take away from this photo too. His shoes are non-standard non-military Wing tips. I also have a much larger blow up of this picture, in the
enlarged version you can see little rips, frays, cuts, and bald spots in his uniform. Jack Curry was dressed to work this day. Dressed for comfort and dressed with attention. BUT, no matter the prominence of his guests - he was dressed for work, in the field. So I would argue - for a Major, who is briefing the most significant personages of his day
(Wright and Lindbergh) that is a rather large display of confidence, and not casualness.

So the picture is - (Wright) One man of history, (Lindbergh) one man of destiny, and one Major (Curry) holding court not as the sovereign but as their judge (who has just delivered his verdict). An amazing set of photos indeed.

I have questions about the Bomber Mafia, Claire Chennault, John Curry, and numoerous other characters.

The Bomber Mafia Debate can be found here as described by Gen. Hansell, bombings main proponent in the AAF, sorry for the long URL.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/AAF/Hansell/img/p9b.jpg&imgrefurl=http://ibiblio.org/hyperwar/AAF/Hansell/Hansell-1.html&usg=__-EleCl-1cQqnC2A5-jgSsOrl9W8=&h=470&w=438&sz=75&hl=en&start=72&tbnid=nnKAv9ViDNvGdM:&tbnh=129&tbnw=120&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmaj.%2Bgen.%2BJohn%2BF.%2BCurry%26gbv%3D2%26ndsp%3D20%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26start%3D60

As regards Jack Curry here is the meat for CAP/AAF Studies:
The Air Corps Tactical School was established at Langley Field, Virginia, in 1920. Beginning as a Field Officers' School, it did not expand its scope of instruction and stress airpower employment until the end of the decade. Then, the school was blessed with a group of gifted leaders and independent thinkers -- Robert Olds, Kenneth Walker, Harold Lee George, Donald Wilson, Muir "Santy" Fairchild -- names honored by the Air War College, Air Command and Staff College, Air Force Academy, and throughout the modern Air Force. But there was another stalwart leader who has received less recognition, though he should be listed among the best. This was John F. Curry, Commandant of the Air Corps Tactical School from 1931 to 1935, a period when the principal texts were prepared for Air Warfare and Principles of Air Force Employment. Much of the basic strategy of American air power was developed under his regime. At a time when the War Department was threatening dire punishment from above, Curry protected the freedom of his faculty. He made possible the development of doctrines of air power which formed the basis for the creation of the Army Air Forces (AAF) and its employment in World War II. Under his leadership the school bridged the transition from broad generalities of pioneering air prophets to more pragmatic application of air power in attainment of specific objectives.

The early visionaries and proponents had made great claims for air power. Their strategic concepts all depended upon one basic tactical concept accepted by the Tactical School as a fundamental doctrine: bombers could reach their targets and destroy them.

    Since this philosophy had not been demonstrated in war, it was not universally accepted even in the Air Corps. There was little argument that nations needed industrial systems or that bombs could paralyze such systems. But the third premise ("the bombers will always get through") was vigorously protested by the pursuit people. However in 1932, when these concepts were first advanced, bombers rode the crest of technological achievement. They were just about as fast as the current fighters. Having the enormous advantage of the initiative, they could pick the time, place, altitude, and route of attack. Moreover, they could capitalize on the principle of mass, concentrating at the critical point. Defending pursuit planes possessed no such advantage. This was before the day of radar or even an observer corps. This still left one variable: Could the bombs be properly placed and, if so, how large a force was necessary to reasonably assure getting the requisite number of hits on the target? We worked up tables of probability based on peacetime, daylight, visual bombing practice. These served as a guide in selecting the size force that would assure the desired bomb hits and destruction.

The egalitarian qualities that Jack Curry worked through in the AAF cannot be overstated.

As previously discussed he had the Essays and Studies presented in the "All Hands" Paper which clearly stated that an oncoming War with Germany was winnable if for no other fact that through repression of the Jewish Minority "they have lost their brightest minds and this brilliance has now been gifted here, and to us. The refugees are not a problem they are a Godsend."

In this Jack Curry was speaking about Albert Einstein and what would become the A-Bomb scientist of Los Alamos Labs. Although Jack Curry was quite prescient as he wrote this document in 1938.

Also providing pilot training to "Negroes in Tuskegee" in 1934-35. Those 1934-35 pilots would fly in Ethiopia with distinction and would go on to organize the acclaimed Tuskegee Airmen of 1943-45.

AND the CAP: Regarding Curry - Cadets - and women in the Civil Air Patrol Please find the following from AFIU.

As Gen. Curry stated, "Without such a plan [as CAP], there might be no private aviation for the duration of the war; with such a plan, there is a chance that private flying might continue and develop." Under Curry's guidance, wings were formed in every state. He help mobilize 100,000 private pilots for non-combatant service; thus freeing military pilots for wartime duty. There was no discrimination because of one's gender. Individual ability, experience and past records were the real criteria for selection. Again, in Curry's words, "There must be no doubt in the minds of our gallant women fliers that they are needed and, in my opinion, indispensable to the full success of the CAP organization. A great part of the progress made in organizing civilian aviation under Civil Air Patrol has been due to the volunteer help given by women flyers.... Although he only served a few months as national Commander, Maj. Gen. Curry's organizational skills were influential in determining the future growth of this new resource. Originally, CAP was given the opportunity to prove itself for a 90-day test period. However, thanks to the vision of John F. Curry, and others like him, CAP remained throughout the war as an effective demonstration of volunteer spirit.

The Story of the Bomber Mafia in the mid-30s at Maxwell Field, which was under the command of Col. John Curry, continues. The rise of American Airpower and the story of daylight bombing; the B17. B24, and B29 begin with the debates among these men. (the Bomber Mafia and the Pursuit Boys.)

Ultimately as proposterous as it must have sounded in 1932-35 the Bomber Mafia was proven truly visionary, don't forget WW2 did end with 2 daylight bombing raids carrying the Atomic weapon. The cold war reflected this philosophy too... so add the B-47, B-52, and ballistic missiles to the eventual conclusion and outcomes of these Bomber Mafia debates.

May I introduce you to another most significant yet forgotten Air Force figure; Maj. Gen. Haywood Hansell.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haywood_S._Hansell
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0ICK/is_4_14/ai_75578190/