Charles Raeburne Landon – Major General. United States Air Force

MAJOR GENERAL CHARLES R. LANDON

Retired August 31, 1954. Died September 1, 1970.

Charles Raeburne Landon was born in Auburn, Illinois, in 1900, and graduated from high school there in 1918. He then enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, serving in the United States and France, and was honorably discharged as a Corporal December 3, 1919. The following July he entered the U.S. Military Academy, graduated June 12, 1924, and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant of Infantry.

Assigned to the 23rd Infantry at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, in August 1927 he entered the Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia, graduated the following June, and a year later graduated from the Tank School at Fort Meade, Maryland. He then served successively as operations and supply officer of a brigade and as adjutant of the Conservation Corps District at Fort McPherson, Georgia. In June 1934 he was appointed assistant adjutant of the Infantry School at Fort Benning.

Entering the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in October 1935, he graduated the following July, and was named assistant to the officer in charge of the World War Division in the Adjutant General’s Office. He transferred to the Adjutant General’s Department September 25, 1937. Moving to San Juan, Puerto Rico in October 1940, he served successively as assistant adjutant general and special service officer for the Puerto Rican Department.

Ordered to the European Theater of Operations in May 1942, General Landon was assistant adjutant general of the Services of Supply there, and two months later was named adjutant general. In November 1943 he was appointed chief of the Miscellaneous Branch, Adjutant General’s Section, of the First Army Group in that theater. He became chief of the Operations Branch, Adjutant General’s Section of the 12th Army Group in the European Theater of Operations in July 1944 and two months later was designated adjutant of the 12th Army Group. Appointed to the secretariat of the Theater General Board, U.S. Forces in the European Theater August 1, 1945, General Landon became executive secretary of the liquidation and Manpower Board there Jan. 9, 1946.

Returning to the States in April 1946, General Landon was named adjutant general of the Air Defense Command at Mitchel Air Force Base, New York. Still at Mitchel Air Force Base in December 1948, he was appointed adjutant general of the Continental Air Command, and the following month became deputy for personnel of the Continental Air Command. He transferred to the Air Force March 31, 1949. In February 1950 he was designated director of statistical services, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff Comptroller, at Air Force Headquarters, Washington D.C.

His decorations include the Legion of Merit and Bronze Star; Order of the British Empire; Luxembourg Couronne de Chene and Croix de Guerre; French Legion of Honor and Croix de Guerre with palm; Belgian Order of Leopold with palm, and Croix de Guerre with palm; and the Czechoslovakian War Cross.

Michael Robert Patterson

Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.

Reviewed by: Michael Howard