William Lendrum Mitchell was a United States Army officer who is regarded as the father of the United States Air Force.
Mitchell, c. 1920s
Mitchell as assistant chief of Air Service (in non-regulation uniform)
The French-built SPAD XVI which Mitchell piloted in the war, now exhibited inside the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. The SPAD XVI, an observation and bomber aircraft, has a Lewis twin machine gun mounted in the rear cockpit.
Mitchell posing with his Vought VE-7 Bluebird aircraft at the Bolling Field Air Tournament in Washington, D.C., held on May 14–16, 1920
United States Army Air Service
The United States Army Air Service (USAAS) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1918 and 1926 and a forerunner of the United States Air Force. It was established as an independent but temporary branch of the U.S. War Department during World War I by two executive orders of President Woodrow Wilson: on May 24, 1918, replacing the Aviation Section, Signal Corps as the nation's air force; and March 19, 1919, establishing a military Director of Air Service to control all aviation activities. Its life was extended for another year in July 1919, during which time Congress passed the legislation necessary to make it a permanent establishment. The National Defense Act of 1920 assigned the Air Service the status of "combatant arm of the line" of the United States Army with a major general in command.
World War I recruiting poster calling for skilled workers
World War I recruiting poster. Artwork by Charles Livingston Bull
World War I recruiting poster, 1917. Artwork by J. Paul Verrees
SPAD S.XIII in livery of Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker, 94th Aero Squadron. Note U.S. national insignia painted on wheel hubs.
