One of the more accomplished air planners and staff officers in Air Force history was Laurence S. Kuter. On the faculty of the Air Corps Tactical School from 1935 to 1939, Kuter was a staunch strategic bombardment advocate. In 1941 he was one of four officers tasked to write Air War Plans Division (AWPD)1, Munitions Requirements of the Army Air Force, the seminal war plan that served as the blueprint for the air assault on Germany. Promotion followed quickly. The youngest general officer in the Army in 1942, he served on the War Department staff and Arnold's staff, commanded a bomb wing in England, was deputy commander of the Northwest African Tactical Air Force, then returned to Washington for the rest of the war, even representing the AAF at the Yalta conference in 1945 during Arnold's illness. After the war he again served on the Air Staff, headed the Military Air Transport Service during the Berlin airlift, commanded Air University then Pacific Air Forces, and completed his career as a full general and commander of North American Air Defense Command. Kuter, along with his wife, had a deep sense of history and left behind an astounding collection of scrapbooks and papers covering his entire career. Located in the Special Collections Branch of the Air Academy library in Colorado, this archive gives a remarkable picture of life in the Air Corps during the 1930s, while shedding light on all other facets of the Air Force over a 40year period.
Kuter's collection includes an autobiography that covers his life up to mid1943. It is unfortunate this memoir was not completed because it provides a very interesting look into Kuter's life at West Point, as a junior officer in a flying squadron, and during his hectic days in Washington at the start of World War II. Included are very interesting character sketches of contemporary airmen who would later achieve high rank. Of interest, Kuter's own somewhat controversial personality comes through in these pages. His extremely rapid promotion raised many eyebrows in the AAF. In addition, Arnold often sent him on troubleshooting tours around the world. He was a trenchant observer, and few local commanders liked what he reported back to Arnold. As a consequence, Kuter was held by many airmen with a mixture of fear, awe, and resentment. His unfinished manuscript, some 300 pages, is most interesting; we can only regret it was never finished.
Because of Hap Arnold's illness-one of his five heart attacks-thenMajor General Kuter was designated to attend the Allied conference at Yalta in February 1945 as the AAF representative. Kuter tells this story in Airman at Yalta (New York: Duell, Sloan, and Pearce, 1955). The title is not an accurate description of the books contents. Most of this work covers the preliminary meetings in Britain and on Malta prior to the main event in the Crimea. Barely 10 percent of the book actually deals with Yalta, and much of that is spent on unimportant protocol details. Moreover, the actual air discussions between Kuter and representatives from the Royal Air Force and the Red Air Force proved completely fruitless. The Americans had hoped to establish a communication system to coordinate the air efforts of the three countries to avoid the danger of fratricide. In addition, the US pushed for an agreement to site B29 bases near Vladivostok from which to bomb Japan. With the end of the war in Europe approaching, however, the Soviets had little incentive to be agreeable: they rejected both proposals. Overall, this book misses badly; it contains too little real insights into air strategy, while too much time is spent describing the fare at the seemingly endless stream of formal dinners during the conference.
Disclaimer
The conclusions and opinions expressed in this document are those of the author cultivated in the freedom of expression, academic environment of Air University. They do not reflect the official position of the US Government, Department of Defense, the United States Air Force or the Air University.
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