Paul K. Carlton
Encyclopedia
General Paul Kendall Carlton (April 14, 1921 – November 23, 2009), also known as P. K. Carlton, was commander in chief of the Military Airlift Command
, with headquarters at Scott Air Force Base
, Illinois.
, on April 14, 1921, and graduated from Academy High School, Erie, Pennsylvania
, in 1939. He attended the University of Pittsburgh
and Ohio University
, and in September 1941 entered the Army Air Corps aviation cadet program. He received his pilot wings and commission as a second lieutenant in April 1942 at Albany Army Airfield, Georgia.
Carlton was a B-17 Flying Fortress instructor pilot with Air Training Command
until 1944. He then flew B-29
aircraft with the first group operating against the Japanese mainland from India and China, accumulating a total of 350 combat hours.
Following World War II, from January 1946 to September 1949, he was assigned to Strategic Air Command
's first atomic bomb organization, the 509th Bombardment Wing
, Roswell Air Force Base, New Mexico. This was followed by a four-year assignment as aide-de-camp to SAC Commander in Chief General Curtis E. LeMay.
From October 1953 to January 1956, arlton was assigned to March Air Force Base, California, as director of operations, 320th Bombardment Wing, and later as director of plans, 15th Air Force. He went to Guam in January 1956 and became director of operations for SAC's 3d Air Division at Andersen Air Force Base
. He returned to the United States in November 1957 and served the next one and a half years as deputy commander of the 93d Bombardment Wing and the Combat Crew Training School for B-52
and KC-135 aircrews at Castle Air Force Base
, California. He assumed command of the 4126th Strategic Wing, Beale Air Force Base
, California, in May 1959.
Carlton was selected to attend the National War College
in Washington, D.C., from August 1961 to June 1962, during which time he also attended The George Washington University. In June 1962 Carlton assumed command of the 379th Bombardment Wing at Wurtsmith Air Force Base
, Michigan, and in November 1963, was assigned as commander of the 305th Bombardment Wing, Bunker Hill Air Force Base, Indiana.
In July 1965, Carlton was assigned to SAC headquarters at Offutt Air Force Base
, Nebraska, with dual responsibilities as chief, Single Integrated Operational Plan
s Division, Joint Strategic Target Planning Staff, and chief, Operations Plans Division, Directorate of operations. He assumed duties as assistant deputy chief of staff for operations in June 1967.
Carlton assumed command of the 1st Strategic Aerospace Division
, Vandenberg Air Force Base
, California, in August 1968. He returned to Headquarters SAC in March 1969 to serve as deputy chief of staff for operations. He next served as commander of the 15th Air Force, with headquarters at March Air Force Base, California, from August 1969 until September 1972 when he assumed command of the Military Airlift Command. On February 1, 1977, when MAC was designated as a specified command, Carlton became CINCMAC. He retired from the Air Force March 31, 1977.
While serving as commander, achievements by Military Airlift Command people resulted in award of the 1972 Benjamin D. Foulois Flying Safety Trophy; the 1973 Harmon International Trophy for the 1972 nonstop HC-130 flight from Ching Chuan Kang Air Base
, Taiwan
, to Scott Air Force Base, Illinois; the 1974 Mackay Trophy
, for the prisoner of war release, Operation Homecoming
; the 1974 David C. Schilling
Award and the 1974 Harmon International Trophy, both for the American airlift to Israel, in which MAC C-141s and C-5 Galaxies
moved 22,395 tons 6,500 miles by air to Israel in 33 days; and a special Humanitarian Award from Milwaukee's Trans-Aire '75 Exposition for MAC's many humanitarian achievements, including the airlift of Vietnamese and Cambodian orphans to their new homes in the United States and the massive airlift evacuation of Vietnamese refugees. Carlton also received the 1975 Reserve Officers Association's Minuteman Hall of Fame Award.
A command pilot, Carlton has more than 12,000 flying hours and has flown the B-47, B-52, including the "H" model, supersonic B-58 Hustler, KC-135, C-141, C-5 and the Mach 3 plus SR-71 strategic reconnaissance aircraft. He is a member of the Air Force Association
(Citation of Honor, 1973), Order of Daedalians
, American Defense Preparedness Association, and the National Defense Transportation Association.
The Senate confirmed his presidential nomination to the grade of general October 9, 1972. He died in 2009.
, Silver Star
, Legion of Merit
with oak leaf cluster, Distinguished Flying Cross
, Purple Heart
, Air Medal
with five oak leaf clusters, and the Army Commendation Medal
.
Military Airlift Command
The Military Airlift Command is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command of the USAF which was headquartered at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. It was constituted on 1 January 1966 and active until the end of the Cold War, when the Air Force table of organization was revised...
, with headquarters at Scott Air Force Base
Scott Air Force Base
Scott Air Force Base is a base of the United States Air Force in St. Clair County, Illinois, near Belleville.-Overview:The base is named after Corporal Frank S. Scott, the first enlisted person to be killed in an aviation crash...
, Illinois.
Biography
Carlton was born in Manchester, New HampshireManchester, New Hampshire
Manchester is the largest city in the U.S. state of New Hampshire, the tenth largest city in New England, and the largest city in northern New England, an area comprising the states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. It is in Hillsborough County along the banks of the Merrimack River, which...
, on April 14, 1921, and graduated from Academy High School, Erie, Pennsylvania
Erie, Pennsylvania
Erie is a city located in northwestern Pennsylvania in the United States. Named for the lake and the Native American tribe that resided along its southern shore, Erie is the state's fourth-largest city , with a population of 102,000...
, in 1939. He attended the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
and Ohio University
Ohio University
Ohio University is a public university located in the Midwestern United States in Athens, Ohio, situated on an campus...
, and in September 1941 entered the Army Air Corps aviation cadet program. He received his pilot wings and commission as a second lieutenant in April 1942 at Albany Army Airfield, Georgia.
Carlton was a B-17 Flying Fortress instructor pilot with Air Training Command
Air Training Command
Air Training Command is a former major command of the United States Army Air Forces and United States Air Force. ATC came into being as a redesignation of the Army Air Forces Training Command on July 1, 1946...
until 1944. He then flew B-29
B-29 Superfortress
The B-29 Superfortress is a four-engine propeller-driven heavy bomber designed by Boeing that was flown primarily by the United States Air Forces in late-World War II and through the Korean War. The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War II...
aircraft with the first group operating against the Japanese mainland from India and China, accumulating a total of 350 combat hours.
Following World War II, from January 1946 to September 1949, he was assigned to Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...
's first atomic bomb organization, the 509th Bombardment Wing
509th Bomb Wing
The 509th Bomb Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command, Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri....
, Roswell Air Force Base, New Mexico. This was followed by a four-year assignment as aide-de-camp to SAC Commander in Chief General Curtis E. LeMay.
From October 1953 to January 1956, arlton was assigned to March Air Force Base, California, as director of operations, 320th Bombardment Wing, and later as director of plans, 15th Air Force. He went to Guam in January 1956 and became director of operations for SAC's 3d Air Division at Andersen Air Force Base
Andersen Air Force Base
Andersen Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately northeast of Yigo in the United States territory of Guam....
. He returned to the United States in November 1957 and served the next one and a half years as deputy commander of the 93d Bombardment Wing and the Combat Crew Training School for B-52
B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber operated by the United States Air Force since the 1950s. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, who have continued to provide maintainence and upgrades to the aircraft in service...
and KC-135 aircrews at Castle Air Force Base
Castle Air Force Base
Castle Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base located northeast of Atwater, northwest of Merced and about east southeast of San Francisco, California....
, California. He assumed command of the 4126th Strategic Wing, Beale Air Force Base
Beale Air Force Base
Beale Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately east of Marysville, California. Originally known as Camp Beale....
, California, in May 1959.
Carlton was selected to attend the National War College
National War College
The National War College of the United States is a school in the National Defense University. It is housed in Roosevelt Hall on Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C., the third-oldest Army post still active. It was officially established on July 1, 1946, as an upgraded replacement for the...
in Washington, D.C., from August 1961 to June 1962, during which time he also attended The George Washington University. In June 1962 Carlton assumed command of the 379th Bombardment Wing at Wurtsmith Air Force Base
Wurtsmith Air Force Base
Wurtsmith Air Force Base is a decommissioned United States Air Force base in northeastern Iosco County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The former base includes located approximately two miles west of Lake Huron in the Charter Township of Oscoda, bordered by Van Ettan Lake, the Au Sable State...
, Michigan, and in November 1963, was assigned as commander of the 305th Bombardment Wing, Bunker Hill Air Force Base, Indiana.
In July 1965, Carlton was assigned to SAC headquarters at Offutt Air Force Base
Offutt Air Force Base
Offutt Air Force Base is a U.S. Air Force installation near Omaha, and lies adjacent to Bellevue in Sarpy County, Nebraska. It is the headquarters of the U.S...
, Nebraska, with dual responsibilities as chief, Single Integrated Operational Plan
Single Integrated Operational Plan
The Single Integrated Operational Plan was the United States' general plan for nuclear war from 1961 to 2003. The SIOP gave the President of the United States a range of targeting options, and described launch procedures and target sets against which nuclear weapons would be launched...
s Division, Joint Strategic Target Planning Staff, and chief, Operations Plans Division, Directorate of operations. He assumed duties as assistant deputy chief of staff for operations in June 1967.
Carlton assumed command of the 1st Strategic Aerospace Division
1st Strategic Aerospace Division
The 1st Strategic Aerospace Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Strategic Air Command, assigned to Fifteenth Air Force, being stationed at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California...
, Vandenberg Air Force Base
Vandenberg Air Force Base
Vandenberg Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base, located approximately northwest of Lompoc, California. It is under the jurisdiction of the 30th Space Wing, Air Force Space Command ....
, California, in August 1968. He returned to Headquarters SAC in March 1969 to serve as deputy chief of staff for operations. He next served as commander of the 15th Air Force, with headquarters at March Air Force Base, California, from August 1969 until September 1972 when he assumed command of the Military Airlift Command. On February 1, 1977, when MAC was designated as a specified command, Carlton became CINCMAC. He retired from the Air Force March 31, 1977.
While serving as commander, achievements by Military Airlift Command people resulted in award of the 1972 Benjamin D. Foulois Flying Safety Trophy; the 1973 Harmon International Trophy for the 1972 nonstop HC-130 flight from Ching Chuan Kang Air Base
Ching Chuan Kang Air Base
Ching Chuan Kang Air Base is a Republic Of China Air Force base located on Taiwan. It is the home to the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing, with three squadrons of Ching-kou air-defense /attack fighters...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, to Scott Air Force Base, Illinois; the 1974 Mackay Trophy
MacKay trophy
The Mackay Trophy was established on 27 January 1911 by Clarence Hungerford Mackay, who was then head of the Postal Telegraph-Cable Company and the Commercial Cable Company. Originally, aviators could compete for the trophy annually under rules made each year or the War Department could award the...
, for the prisoner of war release, Operation Homecoming
Operation Homecoming
Operation Homecoming was a series of diplomatic negotiations that in January 1973 made possible the return of 591 American prisoners of war held by North Vietnam. On Feb. 12, 1973, three C-141 transports flew to Hanoi, North Vietnam, and one C-9A aircraft was sent to Saigon, South Vietnam to pick...
; the 1974 David C. Schilling
David C. Schilling
David Carl Schilling was a U.S. Air Force officer, fighter ace, and leading advocate of long-range jet fighter operations. Kansas' Schilling Air Force Base was named in his memory.-Biography:...
Award and the 1974 Harmon International Trophy, both for the American airlift to Israel, in which MAC C-141s and C-5 Galaxies
C-5 Galaxy
The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is a large military transport aircraft built by Lockheed. It provides the United States Air Force with a heavy intercontinental-range strategic airlift capability, one that can carry outsize and oversize cargos, including all air-certifiable cargo. The Galaxy has many...
moved 22,395 tons 6,500 miles by air to Israel in 33 days; and a special Humanitarian Award from Milwaukee's Trans-Aire '75 Exposition for MAC's many humanitarian achievements, including the airlift of Vietnamese and Cambodian orphans to their new homes in the United States and the massive airlift evacuation of Vietnamese refugees. Carlton also received the 1975 Reserve Officers Association's Minuteman Hall of Fame Award.
A command pilot, Carlton has more than 12,000 flying hours and has flown the B-47, B-52, including the "H" model, supersonic B-58 Hustler, KC-135, C-141, C-5 and the Mach 3 plus SR-71 strategic reconnaissance aircraft. He is a member of the Air Force Association
Air Force Association
The Air Force Association is an independent, 501 non-profit, civilian education organization, headquartered in Arlington, Virginia...
(Citation of Honor, 1973), Order of Daedalians
Order of Daedalians
The Order of Daedalians is a fraternal and professional order of American military pilots. The namesake of the order is Daedalus who according to Greek mythology was the first person to achieve heavier-than-air flight.-History:...
, American Defense Preparedness Association, and the National Defense Transportation Association.
The Senate confirmed his presidential nomination to the grade of general October 9, 1972. He died in 2009.
Awards and decorations
His military decorations and awards include the Air Force Distinguished Service MedalAir Force Distinguished Service Medal
The Air Force Distinguished Service Medal was created by an act of the United States Congress on July 6, 1960. The medal was intended as a new decoration of the United States Air Force to replace the policy of awarding the Army Distinguished Service Medal to Air Force personnel.The Air Force...
, Silver Star
Silver Star
The Silver Star is the third-highest combat military decoration that can be awarded to a member of any branch of the United States armed forces for valor in the face of the enemy....
, Legion of Merit
Legion of Merit
The Legion of Merit is a military decoration of the United States armed forces that is awarded for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements...
with oak leaf cluster, Distinguished Flying Cross
Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)
The Distinguished Flying Cross is a medal awarded to any officer or enlisted member of the United States armed forces who distinguishes himself or herself in support of operations by "heroism or extraordinary achievement while participating in an aerial flight, subsequent to November 11, 1918." The...
, Purple Heart
Purple Heart
The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...
, Air Medal
Air Medal
The Air Medal is a military decoration of the United States. The award was created in 1942, and is awarded for meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight.-Criteria:...
with five oak leaf clusters, and the Army Commendation Medal
Commendation Medal
The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration which is presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. For valorous actions in direct contact with an enemy force, but of a lesser degree than required for the award of the Bronze Star, the Valor device may...
.
Air Force Distinguished Service MedalAir Force Distinguished Service MedalThe Air Force Distinguished Service Medal was created by an act of the United States Congress on July 6, 1960. The medal was intended as a new decoration of the United States Air Force to replace the policy of awarding the Army Distinguished Service Medal to Air Force personnel.The Air Force...
Silver StarSilver StarThe Silver Star is the third-highest combat military decoration that can be awarded to a member of any branch of the United States armed forces for valor in the face of the enemy....
Legion of MeritLegion of MeritThe Legion of Merit is a military decoration of the United States armed forces that is awarded for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements...
with oak leaf cluster
Distinguished Flying CrossDistinguished Flying Cross (United States)The Distinguished Flying Cross is a medal awarded to any officer or enlisted member of the United States armed forces who distinguishes himself or herself in support of operations by "heroism or extraordinary achievement while participating in an aerial flight, subsequent to November 11, 1918." The...
Purple HeartPurple HeartThe Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...
Air MedalAir MedalThe Air Medal is a military decoration of the United States. The award was created in 1942, and is awarded for meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight.-Criteria:...
with five oak leaf clusters
Army Commendation MedalCommendation MedalThe Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration which is presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. For valorous actions in direct contact with an enemy force, but of a lesser degree than required for the award of the Bronze Star, the Valor device may...