American Airpower Comes of Age

PARIS AND GERMANY
golfing partners then and later. Arnold may well have been aware by now of
the report (or the fact) that Craig had threatened to resign as Army Chief of
Staff if FDR did not appoint Arnold as Air Corps Chief in September 1938.
Although called to active duty for a brief time during the war to assist in personnel
matters, Craig had most recently suffered a stroke; hence Hap’s comment
that his demise was a “merciful thing.”
88. General Alexei I. Antonov, chief of staff, Soviet Army; Marshal of the
Air Falaleyev, chief of staff, Soviet Air Force; Fleet Admiral Nicolai Gerassimovich
Kuznetsov, chief of staff, Soviet Navy. At this session, held in the
Cecelienhof Palace at 3 P.M., much of the discussion involved Arnold’s questions
over operational control in the Manchurian-Korean border areas once
the USSR entered the war. The Soviet military chiefs present, although still
maintaining some reluctance to make any commitments themselves, without
specific instructions from Moscow or Stalin, seemed to have been
instructed to appear more cooperative. Arnold’s remarks were directed
towards handling of AAF aircraft in emergency situations. Concern over
local discretion accorded the Soviet local commanders arose from the handling
and care of crippled B-29s and their crews that had landed in or near
Vladivostok, a topic discussed as early as November 1943 at Tehran. In late
1944, for example, the Soviets forced down a B-29, 42-6365 of the 468th
Bomb Group, and compelled it to land in that city. Two other B-29s in trouble,
one curiously named General H. H. Arnold, had also landed there. In
view of their then neutral status vis-à-vis Japan, the Soviets interned the
crews but later permitted them to “escape” via Tehran. Early disposition of
the crews and planes was delayed because of the normal lack of discretion
permitted the local commander, since he was subject to strict control from
Moscow. Not surprisingly, the Soviets retained the B-29s, which became the
models for the Soviet Tu-4 bomber. See the account of the meeting in FRUS,
Potsdam, vol. 2, 408–17.
89. Churchill’s Conservative Party coalition was defeated by Clement L.
Attlee’s Labour Party, which won, by final count, 395 seats in the House of
Commons—a majority of more than 180. The elections had been held three
weeks earlier on 5 July, but announcement of the results was delayed while
the absentee military ballots were counted.
90. Truman used the hiatus occasioned by the return of Churchill to
England for the British elections to visit Eisenhower at his Frankfurt headquarters.
91. The 1911 document is not located in AP. It appeared clear that by
now Arnold was considering writing his memoirs.
92. As the British Chief of the Imperial General Staff, Brooke lamented
in his diary the day following the elections: “Whom shall I be dealing with in
the future? Attlee as PM and who as Secretary of State? I feel too old and
weary to start off any new experiments.” He reluctantly remained and served
the new government until 25 June 1946. See Bryant, 366.
93. Lawrence D. Bell, president, Bell Aircraft Corporation; Summers of
the Civil Aeronautics Administration is not otherwise identified.
403