BRIGADIER GENERAL CHARLES W. SWEENEY
Retired Dec. 27, 1979
Brigadier General Charles W. Sweeney was born in Lowell, Mass., in 1919. He graduated from North Quincy High School (Mass.) in 1937. After graduating from high school, he attended evening classes at Boston University and also at Purdue University.
Charles Sweeney joined the Army Air Corps as an aviation cadet on April 28, 1941. Receiving his commission as a pilot in the Army Air Corps as an aviation cadet on April 28, 1941. Receiving his commission as a pilot in the Army Air Corps in December 1941, Lieutenant Sweeney spent two years at Jefferson Proving Grounds Ind. From the proving grounds in 1943, Charles Sweeney, now a captain, moved to Eglin Field, Fla., where he served as an operations officer and also a test pilot.
In 1944 he was promoted to the rank of major in the Army of the United States. At this time he was acting as a B-29 pilot instructor at Grand Island, Neb. Later in the same year, Major Sweeney was reassigned to Wendover Field, Utah and it was here that he began working in the "Silver Plate" project, the code name of the pilot and crew training program for the coming World War II atomic missions.
On May 4, 1945 (at the age of 25 and with the rank of major) Charles Sweeney became commander of the 393d Bombardment Squadron, a B-29 unit, which seven weeks later (on June, 1945) flew to a base on Tinian in the Mariana Islands.
It was during August 1945 that Major Sweeney flew the history-making missions and dropped the bomb which brought World War II to a close.
In November 1945, Major Sweeney and the 393d Bombardment Squadron returned home to Roswell Air Force Base, N.M. His mission at Roswell was to train aircrews for a third atomic mission -- a peacetime experiment on Bikini. Just a few months later on June 28, 1946, he was discharged from active duty with the rank of lieutenant colonel.
Colonel Sweeney, on Feb. 21, 1956, was appointed wing commander by Governor Christian A. Herter. Also in 1956, the unit was again re-designated as the 102d Air Defense Wing, and on April 6, 1956, Colonel Sweeney received his promotion to the rank of brigadier general. 1958 saw the wing receive its present designation as the 102d Tactical Fighter Wing.
General Sweeney
COL Freeman beloved by his men, finally left the RCT at noon on 15FEB1951 with tears forming in his eyes. He was devoted to his Soldiers and his ability to assess the situation and ultimately secured a successful mission in Chipyong-Ni. He would issue orders with a “handshake, a grin, and provided words of encouragement before dangerous missions.” Chipyong-Ni was that type of mission. He didn’t like the situation, but issued the order as if he thought of the idea. He set the climate that extended down to the lowest Private in the RCT, to be proud and be victorious.
After his discharge from the army he went back to carnival life. In late 1939 and early 1940 he became the manager of Gene Austin and traveled with Gene's "Models & Melodies" show.
In 1948, he was released and then he joined the Air Force. Even in the military he managed to cause trouble. He was sent to the military prison for assault many times. He also got arrested in 1950 for being absent without leave. Believe it or not, he still got an honorable discharge four years after he had joined the service. After he was released from the Air Force, he went back home to Massachusetts.
December 1940, the Army Air Corps planned an experiment for black aviators in an all black fighter squadron. This group would be called the 332nd fighter group and would consist of four fighter squadrons, the 99th, 100th, 301st, 302nd. (4 A). The squadrons that made the most history would be the 99th and the 100th. The 99th was to be made of 33 to 35 pilots and 278 ground crew men, but those accusations came from another source when the real number of men in the 99th would be a total of 12 black cadets and 1 officer trainee. 3 squadrons usually make up a fighter group so the 99th was nicknamed the “lonely Eagles”. They would be flying PT-17s, then BT-13s, and later AT-6s, that would have better landing flaps, retractable landing gear, and 650-horse power engines (Mckissack). They would be the first fighter squadron of the 332nd to go into combat over North Africa. Being part of the 12th Air force, they would fly tactical missions over the Mediterranean theater (Haulman). Going over in ships, April 15, 1943, they would arrive in Morocco, May 1943, only to be told that the battle between the Germans and North Africans was basically over. They then tested out P-40L War Hawks, and Curtis’s, that were built to reach up to 350 mph, climb over 22,000 ft., and ferry over 1,000 miles. The planes would be put through flight drills and mock dog fights. The 27th, part of another group, trained with the men in Africa. The war was always back and forth so the...
The Hammelburg Raid (also known as Task Force Baum) has been one of the most controversial operations of World War II, and it cast a shadow over General George S. Patton’s otherwise illustrious career. While in command of the 3rd Army, Gen. Patton ordered the controversial and secret operation. The operation took place on March 26-28, 1945 with the official purpose of taking a small task force 60 miles behind enemy lines to liberate the prisoner of war camp OFLAG XIII-B near Hammelburg, Germany. But unofficially, its purpose was to free Patton's son-in-law, Lieutenant Colonel John Waters, who was taken prisoner at Kasserine Pass, Tunisia, in 1943. Initially, the operation was successful. They reached the camp and released the prisoners, but they were ambushed on the way back and taken prisoner. It resulted in nine dead, 32 wounded, and 16 missing in action. I will be discussing some of the principles of Mission Command and their effects on the outcome of the Task Force Baum.
DDG-67 is another name for the USS Cole; the name Cole is a tribute to Sergeant Darrell Samuel Cole, a marine who was also a hero. Darrell Samuel Cole was born on July 20, 1920 in Flat River, Missouri. In WW II, Cole took command after his squad leader was killed was in 1944. He was earned a promotion to Sergeant. In 1945, the troops were sent to Iwo Jima on February 19, where he was serving as a leader of machine gun group. During combat after killing large numbers of Japanese soldiers himself at their strong points, and he was only armed with a pistol and grenades. Cole was killed making his way back to his squad. He was later awarded a Medal of Honor for his deeds.
The Doolittle Raid, as it is commonly referred to as today, was officially classified as the First Special Aviation Project (Shepherd). This project was planned with extreme secrecy. The crew was made up of pilots who volunteered without knowledge of mission details. Only a few officers were fully briefed and not even the captain of the aircraft carrier was briefed until shortly before deployment (Shepherd). In the initial phase of the planning the Army practiced flying B-25 Michells on an airfield meant to simulate the flight deck of a naval aircraft carrier (WorldWar2.com). Eventually the takeoffs were attempted on an actual aircraft carrier, the USS Hornet (WorldWar2.com). The problem they had to solve was to reduce the weight of the bombers so they could take-off from the flight deck of the carrier (WorldWar2.com). When it was determined that pilots could overcome this obstacle the command of the project was given to Lieutenant Cornel James Doolittle (Shepherd).
Douglas Macarthur was born on 26th January 1880, in Little Rock, Arkansas to General Arthur Macarthur and wife, Mary Pinckney Hardy. Like his father, he decided to pursue a military career and entered the army. He went to West Point Military Academy and graduated as a valedictorian in 1903. He began his career as an engineering officer in the army but climbed through the ranks and became a General. He was also nominated and given several honors and awards throughout his lifetime. He was known to be aggressive, radical and brave, which led him to make some decisions that were not generally approved (McCullough).
During WWI he chose to become a flying cadet in the Army signal corps and commissioned as a second lieutenant (Patterson). He was also a member of Billy Mitchell’s bombing crew that proved importance of air strikes. In September of 1922 he completed the first of many pioneering flights (Patterson). These flights earned him credibility and gave him the experience he would later need for future bombings in Tokyo and Berlin. Doolittle created a name for himself internationally and collected many trophies for his accomplishments, including the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Harmon trophy (for the first flight using only instruments). After the bombing at Pearl Harbor, General Arnold allowed Doolittle to lead the Tokyo raid; Doolittle hand-picked his crew and prepared them with “detailed planning, training, and rehearsals” (Donley). In 1942, Doolittle was promoted to Brigadier General when he led the first carrier based bombing on Japan. These accomplishments led Doolittle to success commanding at the operational level. Doolittle was selected to lead at the operational level because of his success in Japan and his prior experience. The Tokyo raid was successful because of Joint cooperation, a reduction of the Imperial troops, and elevated morale for the Allies (Donley). The raid Doolittle led “on the Japan homeland lured [Japan] into withholding forces for the defense of Japan and thereby overextending themselves in the Battle of Midway where the Navy would hand them a significant defeat” (Donley). Because he worked with the Navy, Doolittle successfully planned an attack that would defeat the Japanese. He also had experience commanding air units in Europe under Eisenhower. He proved early on in his career that he understood risk management which is crucial to an operational commander (Donley). His history of success and understanding of warfare were factors in his promotion to an operational
Ultimately the Pacific Theater, and WWII ended on August 15th 1945 after two atomic bombs were dropped on Japan, however, The Battle of Midway, the turning point of the Theater would not have been won had it not been for the various technological advantages and desires for revenge of pearl harbor.
Heinl, Lt. Robert Debs, Jr. Marines at Midway. Washington: Historical Section, Division of Public Information, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps, 1948. Print.
Many have heard of the Tuskegee Airmen and their accomplishments. They were a group of African American fighter pilots. They proved to be quite vital to the success of World War II. What many people may not know is the Tuskegee Airmen had several squadrons which fought throughout Europe during the war. The most famous squadron was the 332nd fighter squadron, they were commonly known as the Red Tails. Charles McGee was among those men apart of the Red Tail squadron. Charles McGee is one of most notable men in the Red Tails due to his accomplishments throughout the war. I will be explaining his life and all of his accomplishments throughout this paper on famous individuals in aviation.
Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. was born December 18, 1912 in Washington D.C. His father, Benjamin O. Davis, Sr. was one of the few African-American officers in the U.S. Army. Davis, Jr. was appointed to the U.S. Military Academy in 1932 by Rep. Oscar S. De Priest, the only black congressman at that time. At West Point he endured ostracism from both classmates and superiors who wanted to see him fail. He persevered and graduated 35th in a class of 276 in 1936. He was the fourth African-American graduate in the Academy’s history. Upon commissioning he and his father became the only two black officers in the army. His application to the Army Air Corps was refused because the Air Corps did not accept African-Americans.
Battle of Midway, 4th June -- 7th June, 1942." » Maintenance Mode. N.p., n.d. Web. 17
On 9 July 1944, 2nd Marine Division, 4th Marine Division, and 27th Infantry Division, commanded by Lieutenant General Holland Smith, defeated the 43rd Division of the Imperial Japanese Army, commanded by Lieutenant General Yoshitsugu Saito, capturing the Saipan (Moore, 2002), a 44.55 sq. mile island located Northern Mariana Islands, approximately 1,465 miles south of Tokyo, Japan. The capture of Saipan was strategically important for U.S. and Allied Forces, as it was logistically relevant, due to its location from Tokyo. "It was the decisive battle of the Pacific offensive [...] it opened the way to the Japanese home islands (Nalty, Shaw, & Turnbladh, 1966)." By November 1944, U.S. B29 bombers had commenced bombing operations on the Japanese capital city, Tokyo, from airfields located on the U.S. control island of Saipan.