LeMay, Curtis E

LeMay, Curtis E(merson)

(born Nov. 15, 1906, Columbus, Ohio, U.S.—died Oct. 1, 1990, March Air Force Base, Calif.) U.S. Air Force officer. He joined the Army Air Corps in 1928. In World War II he developed advanced strategic bombardment techniques, including pattern bombing, and led bomber commands in Europe and the Pacific, where he launched firebombing raids on Japanese cities. As commander of U.S. air forces in Europe from 1945 to 1948, he directed the Berlin airlift (see Berlin blockade and airlift). From 1948 to 1957 he headed the U.S. Strategic Air Command, building it into a global strike force. He was chief of staff of the U.S. Air Force from 1961 to 1965. In 1968 he was the vice-presidential candidate on the third-party ticket headed by George Wallace.