James P. Hodges

He entered the service as a flying cadet in September 1917, and was assigned to the Aviation Ground School at the Georgia School of Technology. Upon completing the course, he transferred to Park Air Force Base, Tenn., for flying training and in April 1918 was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Aviation Section of the Signal Reserve.

The following two months he spent at Park Air Force Base and Camp Dick, Texas and in the latter part of May went to Payne Air Force Base, Miss. In June 1919, he entered the Aerial Photography School at Langley Air Force Base, Va., and upon graduation became an instructor at the Air Service Technical School at Langley Air Force Base.

On July 1, 1920, he was appointed a second lieutenant in the Air Service of the Regular Army and that same date was promoted to first lieutenant.

In June 1922, he moved with the Air Service Technical School to Chanute Air Force Base, Ill., and in October 1923 was assigned to Mitchel Air Force Base, N.Y. Two years later he went to the Philippine Islands for duty with an observation squadron and in June 1928, returned to the United States to enter the Air Corps Tactical School at Langley Air Force Base.

After graduating in 1930, he became an Air Corps instructor at the Coast Artillery School at Fort Monroe, Va. In August 1934, he entered the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., and upon graduation in June 1936, joined the general staff of the General Headquarters Air Force at Langley Air Force Base.

He went to MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., in July 1940, where he commanded, successively, the 21st Reconnaissance Squadron and the 29th Bombardment Group. In February 1942, he was appointed chief of staff of the Third Bomber Command at that station.

The following July he went to Europe as chief of staff of the Eighth Air Support Command, and later was given command of a bombardment division in the Eighth Air Force.

He returned to the United States in September 1944, to become assistant chief of air staff for intelligence at Air Force headquarters at Washington. In July 1945, he was made commanding general of the Western Flying Training Command at Santa Ana, Calif.

In December 1945, General Hodges was appointed commanding general of the Flying Division of Air Training Command, with station at Fort Worth, Texas. He remained in command of the division when it was moved to Randolph Air Force Base, Texas, in April 1946.

General Hodges went to Berlin, Germany, in October 1948, as director of the Armed Forces Division of the Military Government for Germany, and later was redesignated U.S. commissioner, Military Security Board at Coblenz, Germany.

In February 1951, he was assigned to command the First Air Forces in Mitchel Air Force Base, N.Y.

General Hodges has been awarded the Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster, Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal. His foreign decorations include the Order of the British Empire, the French National Order of the Legion of Honor, the Belgian Croix de Guerre with palm and the Chinese Special Tecklet Cloud Banner.

He is rated a command pilot, combat observer and technical observer.