Biographical Sketches

WILLIAM "BILLY" MITCHELL

Born: December 26, 1879    In: Nice, France
Died: February 10, 1936    In: New York City, NY

Pilot, aviation and aerial bombing advocate. As an officer in the Army Mitchell served in the Philippines, Cuba, and on the Mexican border, and on the Army General Staff (1913-16). During and after WW1 he held a number of command and staff posts in the Air Service, both in France (1917-19), and in the U S (Director of Military Aeronautics, 1919; Chief of Training and Operations, 1920).

As Assistant to the Chief of Air Service (1921-26), he advocated the creation of an independent Air Service. He arranged demonstrations illustrating the utility of air power through the historic bomber vs. battleship trials (1921), the group flight to Alaska from the continental U.S. (1923), and the Army’s Around-the-World Flight of 1924. Mitchell’s public criticism of government policies, in defiance of Army regulations, resulted in his court martial for "conduct prejudicial of good order and military discipline" and insubordination in Oct-Dec 1925. Found guilty and suspended for five years, Mitchell resigned his commission in Jan 1926. He continued to promote aviation and decry government inefficiencies until his death.

Enshrined in National Aviation Hall of Fame 1966.

REFERENCES:
Billy Mitchell: America’s Eagle of Air Power; Arch Whitehouse (Putnam’s Sons 1962)
Billy Mitchell: Crusader for Air Power; Alfred F Hurley (Watts 1964, Indiana 1975)
Billy Mitchell: Founder of Our Air Force and Prophet Without Honor; Emile Gauvreau & Lester Cohen (Dutton 1942)
The Billy Mitchell Affair; Burke Davis (Random House 1967)
The Billy Mitchell Story; Burke Davis (Chilton 1969)
General Billy Mitchell; Booth Mooney (Follett 1968)
General Billy Mitchell; Helen Woodward (Duell Sloan Pearce 1960)
General Billy Mitchell: Champion of Air Defense; Roger Burlingame (McGraw-Hill 1952, Signet 1956)
Memories of World War I; BrGen William Mitchell (Random House 1960)
Mitchell: Pioneer of Air Power; Isaac D Levine (Duell Sloane Pearce 1943)
My Brother Bill: The Life of General Billy Mitchell; Ruth Mitchell (Harcourt Brace 1953)
Outlines of the World’s Military History; BrGen William A Mitchell (Military Service Publ 1940)
Skyways: A Book On Modern Aeronautics; Gen William Mitchell (Lippincott 1930)
Winged Defense; BrGen William Mitchell (Putnams 1925, Dover 1988)

Denotes an individual known to have soloed an aircraft prior to December 16, 1917, whether they were members of the "Early Birds of Aviation" Organization or not.