BILLY MITCHELL'S WAR WITH THE NAVY:THE INTERWAR RIVALRY OVER AIR POWER

摘要

US World War Ⅰ Army Air Service general William 'Billy' Mitchell remains a highly controversial figure. Some biographers have portrayed him as the founder of the US Air Force (actually formed in 1947) and the creator of strategic bombing. In this book Thomas Wildenberg explains how he was neither, and that he sees Billy Mitchell's most important contribution to the US military as his leadership in France during World War Ⅰ. Mitchell received the DSC and DSM for his achievements as America's senior combat airman 1917-1918. Subsequent events surrounding the future of US air power during the interwar period led him to twist the truth and distort reality to achieve his goal to increase the US spending on military aviation. He was a showman who sought and gained popular support for his cause at the expense of others in the military. His disregard for the facts presented by others, including his own superiors, led to his being court-martialled in 1925 for insubordination.