Courtesy of the United States Air Force
MAJOR GENERAL ST. CLAIR STREETT
Retired February 1952, Died October 1, 1970
St. Clair Streett was born in Washington, D.C., in 1893. After graduating from high school, he enlisted as a sergeant in the Signal Corps, Enlisted Reserve, on December 8, 1916 and was assigned to the Curtis School in Newport News, Virginia, as a flying cadet. He received training at Columbus, Ohio, and Wright Field, Ohio and was commissioned a first lieutenant in the Aviation Section of the Signal Officers’ Reserve Corps September. 27, 1917.
The following December, General Streett was stationed at Issoudun, France, in charge of flight training. He was assigned to the Fifth Pursuit Group at St. Remy, France and served with the American Forces in Germany before returning to the United States in August 1919. He was promoted to captain in the Signal Officers’ Reserve Corps in November 1918 and received a Regular Army Officers’ Reserve Corps commission as a first lieutenant in the Air Service on July 1, 1920.
General Streett participated in the Alaskan flight made by the Air Service between July 15 and October 20, 1920, for which he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. He then was appointed assistant to the assistant chief of the Air Service. In July 1922, he became commanding officer of the headquarters detachment at Bolling Field, D.C., and soon afterward became model airways officer at Bolling Field.
In January 1924, General Streett was named assistant chief of the Airways Section in the Office of the Chief of Air Corps. In September 1925, he entered the Air Corps Tactical School at Langley Field, Virginia, graduating the following June. He was transferred to Selfridge Field, Mich., in August 1926, and appointed commanding officer
of the First Pursuit Group Headquarters. He was assigned to Wright Field, Ohio in March 1928 as test pilot and chief of the Flying Branch. During July 1932, he was on special assignment as assistant in the preparation of data on performance tests of aircraft.
General Streett spent the following three years at service schools. He entered the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, In August 1932. After graduation In June 1934, he began a course at the Chemical Warfare School at Edgewood Arsenal, Md., which he completed in August. He then was transferred to the Army War College, from which he graduated in June 1935.
General Streett’s next assignment was with the War Department General Staff where he served as a member of the Miscellaneous and Operations Section of the War Plans Division. He became a student at the Naval War College at Newport, Rhode Island, in June 1939, and in July 1940 reported to Hickam Field, Hawaii, for duty as commanding officer of the 11th Bombardment Group. In April 1941, he became plans and training officer for the Hawaiian Department at Fort Shafter, and then was attached to the Army Air Forces division of the War Department as deputy chief of operations. In March 1942, he became chief of the Theater Group of the Operations Division in the Office of the Chief of Staff. In November 1942, he was appointed commander of the Third Air Force at Tampa, Fla., and in September 1943, assumed command of the Second Air Force at Colorado Springs, Colorado.
In January 1944, General Streett was assigned to the Southwest Pacific Area and assumed command of the 13th Air Force the following June. In January 1949, he became deputy commander of the Continental Air Forces with headquarters at Bolling Field. When the Continental Air Forces became Strategic Air Command with station at Andrews Field, Md., he retained his position as deputy commander. In January 1947, he was assigned to the adjutant general’s office as chief of the Military Personnel Procurement Service. He was appointed the air inspector in the newly-established Office of the Inspector General in January 1948, and two months later became deputy inspector general.
He was named deputy commander of Air Materiel Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, in October 1949. In December 1951, he became special assistant to the commanding general of Air Materiel Command.
General Streett has been awarded the Distinguished Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters, the Legion of Merit and the Distinguished Flying Cross of Italy in the grade of officer.
General Streett was buried with full military honors in Section 5 of Arlington National Cemetery.
STREETT, ST CLAIR
MAJ GEN US AIR FORCE
- VETERAN SERVICE DATES: 05/12/1910 – 02/01/1959
- DATE OF BIRTH: 10/06/1893
- DATE OF DEATH: 09/28/1970
- DATE OF INTERMENT: 10/01/1970
- BURIED AT: SECTION 5 SITE 24
ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY
STREETT, MARY W
- DATE OF BIRTH: 09/22/1895
- DATE OF DEATH: 10/17/1999
- DATE OF INTERMENT: 11/15/1999
- BURIED AT: SECTION 5 SITE 24
ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY - WIFE OF STREETT, ST CLAIR MAJ GEN US AIR FORCE
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