Curtis LeMay
Sign in to saveAlso known as Curtis Emerson LeMay, Curtis E. LeMay, C. E. LeMay
American general and politician (1906–1990)
Key facts
- Other names
- Old Iron Pants, The Demon, Bombs Away LeMay, The Big Cigar
- Born
- ( 1906-11-15 ) November 15, 1906, Columbus, Ohio , U.S.
- Died
- October 1, 1990 (1990-10-01) (aged 83), March Air Force Base , California, U.S.
- Buried
- United States Air Force Academy Cemetery
- Allegiance
- United States
- Branch
- United States Army United States Army Air Corps United States Army Air Forces United States Air Force
- Service years
- 1929–1965
- Rank
- General
- Commands
- Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force Strategic Air Command Twentieth Air Force XXI Bomber Command XX Bomber Command 3rd Air Division 305th Bomb Group
- Conflicts
- World War II Korean War Vietnam War
- Awards
- Distinguished Service Cross Army Distinguished Service Medal (3) Silver Star Distinguished Flying Cross (3) Air Medal (5) Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun (Japan)
- Alma mater
- Ohio State University ( BS )
- Spouse
- Helen Maitland ( married</span>"}]]}'>m. 1934 )
- Political party
- Republican
- Other political affiliations
- American Independent (1968)
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- human
- Gender
- male
- Citizenship
- United States
- Place of birth
- Columbus
- Place of death
- Riverside
- Occupation
- politician
- Position held
- Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force
- Political party
- Republican Party (United States)
- Languages spoken
- English language
- Native language
- English language
- Conflict
- World War II
- Military rank
- general
- Image
- Curtis LeMay (USAF).jpg
Show 11 more facts
- Commons gallery
- Curtis LeMay
- Commons category
- Curtis LeMay
- date of birth
- 1906-11-15
- date of death
- 1990-10-01
- name in native language
- Curtis Emerson LeMay
- commander of (DEPRECATED)
- Strategic Air Command
- cause of death
- myocardial infarction
- manner of death
- natural causes
- writing language
- English language
- allegiance
- United States
- date of burial or cremation
- 1990-10-04
via Wikidata · CC0
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Encyclopedic overview
Curtis Emerson LeMay (November 15, 1906 – October 1, 1990) was a US Air Force general who was a key American military commander during World War II and the Cold War, including the Korean War. He served as Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force from 1961 to 1965.
LeMay joined the United States Army Air Corps, the precursor to the United States Air Force, in 1929 while studying civil engineering at Ohio State University. He had risen to the rank of major by the time of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 and the United States' entry into World War II. He commanded the 305th Bombardment Group from October 1942 until September 1943, and the 3rd Air Division in the European theatre of World War II until August 1944, when he was transferred to the China Burma India Theater. He was then placed in command of strategic bombing operations against Japan, planning and executing a massive fire bombing campaign against 66 Japanese cities, and Operation Starvation, a crippling minelaying campaign in Japan's internal waterways.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Curtis LeMay” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.