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James Edmond Fechet (August 21, 1877 – February 10, 1948) was a
major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...
in the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...
and the Chief of Air Corps 1927–1931. Men he had selected and worked with both on his staff and in other top Air Corps positions became key leaders of the
United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
in World War II.


Biography

Born at Fort Ringgold, Texas, in 1877, to Edmond G. Fechet, his military experience began with his youth as an Army Infantry officer's son living at various frontier stations in the West. He left the
University of Nebraska A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United State ...
in 1898 in his third year as a mechanical engineering student to serve as an enlisted man in the
Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...
. Wounded seriously at
San Juan Hill San Juan Hill is a series of hills to the east of Santiago, Cuba, running north to south. The area is known as the San Juan Heights or in Spanish ''Alturas de San Juan'' before Spanish–American War of 1898, and are now part of Lomas de San Ju ...
in
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, Fechet recovered and applied for a commission. Serving as a sergeant in Troop D, 6th Cavalry, in the Philippines, Fechet was commissioned in December 1900 with date if rank from July 1, and for the next six years served in many cavalry assignments, including service in
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
, against the insurgents in the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
, and on the
Punitive Expedition A punitive expedition is a military journey undertaken to punish a political entity or any group of people outside the borders of the punishing state or union. It is usually undertaken in response to perceived disobedient or morally wrong beh ...
into Mexico. In 1912, as a captain in the 4th Cavalry, Fechet was assigned to duty at the military prison at
Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., and the oldest perma ...
, Kansas. On April 10, 1907, while stationed at
Jefferson Barracks The Jefferson Barracks Military Post is located on the Mississippi River at Lemay, Missouri, south of St. Louis. It was an important and active U.S. Army installation from 1826 through 1946. It is the oldest operating U.S. military installation ...
, Missouri, as a first lieutenant with the 9th Cavalry, Fechet married Catherine Luhn, daughter of retired Major Gerhard L. Luhn and sister of the depot adjutant, Captain William L. Luhn of the 10th Cavalry. When the United States entered
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, Fechet was promoted to temporary
lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colon ...
in the Signal Corps was assigned to the expanding Aviation Section on August 5, 1917 and served successively as commander of the Signal Corps Aviation School at
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in 1917; commander of the
Aviation School Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a str ...
at
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, in 1918; and Air Officer, Southern Department at
Fort Sam Houston Fort Sam Houston is a U.S. Army post in San Antonio, Texas. "Fort Sam Houston, TX • About Fort Sam Houston" (overview), US Army, 2007, webpageSH-Army. Known colloquially as "Fort Sam," it is named for the U.S. Senator from Texas, U.S. Represen ...
, Texas, 13 May 1919 – 1 Oct 1920. He received further wartime promotion to colonel in March 1918. Fechet was promoted to permanent major and lieutenant colonel, Cavalry, on 1 July 1920 when the Army Reorganization Act took effect, and formally transferred in grade to the Air Service, now a combatant arm of the line by act of Congress, on August 6, which made him 7th in seniority among officers in the branch. Except for 10 months as the commandant of the Advanced Flying School at
Kelly Field Kelly Field (formerly Kelly Air Force Base) is a Joint-Use facility located in San Antonio, Texas. It was originally named after George E. M. Kelly, the first member of the U.S. military killed in the crash of an airplane he was piloting. In ...
, Texas, Fechet spent the years from 1920 - 1931 in the Office of the Chief of Air Service/Chief of Air Corps. He was Assistant Chief of Air Service/Air Corps for more than 2½ years before becoming Chief of Air Corps in December 1927. He retired from the Army on December 10, 1931. In March 1942, 44 years after he had served as a sergeant in the Spanish–American War, the retired Air Corps Chief was recalled to help standardize the criteria for promotions and decorations in the various Air Force commands worldwide. He was director of the Promotion Board at Army Air Forces Headquarters with additional duty as president of the Pilot Allocation Board, Procurement Board and Decorations Board. Fechet retired for the second time nearly five years later, on December 31, 1946. He died in Walter Reed Hospital February 10, 1948, and was buried in
Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...
.Burial Detail: Fechet, James E
– ANC Explorer


Legacy

Fechet was near or at the top of the air arm's leadership for more than a decade, during which the close-knit organization's strength grew from 9,000 to 15,000. In the Cavalry he had been an outstanding equestrian, and for a time was on the U.S. Cavalry team. He learned to fly and to parachute as soon as he joined the air arm although this was not required of officers entering in field grade. He said he learned to fly because he believed example to be essential to good leadership. From General Fechet's long and eventful experience as a commander in both the Cavalry and the fledgling air arm grew an attitude about military leadership and management that was adopted by top Air Force leaders in World War II who had been his protégés in the 1930s. "Take care of the little people and they'll take care of you" was his dictum. He spent much time on the flight line, in the hangars and in the shops, and often inspected mess halls and warehouses. Morale of flyers and mechanics was to him as important a measurement factor for an operation as flying accident rates and engine failures. His concern for the welfare of personnel extended to career planning. He believed in sending to service schools those officers who showed promise—not those who could most easily be spared from duty. He had a faculty for remembering as individuals hundreds of enlisted men he had served with throughout his career and greeted them by name wherever he went in the Air Corps. Being chief of the War Department's air arm was particularly difficult in the years between World War I and Hitler's rise in the mid-thirties. The government adhered to the
Kellogg–Briand Pact The Kellogg–Briand Pact or Pact of Paris – officially the General Treaty for Renunciation of War as an Instrument of National Policy – is a 1928 international agreement on peace in which signatory states promised not to use war to ...
renouncing war and endorsed the concept of limiting the strength of offensive forces. Moreover, the great military potential of airpower was not understood either by the general public or by many key officers in the ground forces. Despite great handicaps, much of which stemmed from the air arm's subordinate position in the War Department, the Air Corps progressed remarkably while General Fechet was chief. Under General Fechet the air arm grew from less than 1,000 aircraft to 1,700, organized into attack, bombardment, pursuit and observation squadrons. Big air maneuvers were organized in conjunction with the ground forces. The Air Corps was training group commanders, wing commanders and staffs for higher units. The great flying center at San Antonio was established—"the West Point of the Air," the Air Corps Training Center headquarters and site of the primary flying school. The engineering and logistics center of the air arm, the Material Division, was established in its permanent home at Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio. It directed the work of other procurement and supply and maintenance operations in several states, linked by an air transport supply service. The air arm was given the responsibility for land-based air defense of the coasts of the United States and the overseas possessions, an assignment increasing the Air Corps' requirements for long range air capabilities. Fechet encouraged work on the first experimental monoplane bomber that led to the twin-engine
Boeing B-9 The Boeing YB-9 was the first all-metal monoplane bomber aircraft designed for the United States Army Air Corps. The YB-9 was an enlarged alteration of Boeing's Model 200 Monomail commercial transport. Design and development In May 1930, Boei ...
, forerunner, along with the
Martin B-10 The Martin B-10 was the first all-metal monoplane bomber to be regularly used by the United States Army Air Corps, entering service in June 1934.Jackson 2003, p. 246. It was also the first mass-produced bomber whose performance was superior to ...
, of World War II bombers. The Fechet era of the U.S. Air Force heritage was a time of record-breaking speed, distance and endurance flights as the interest in aviation, both military and civilian, was intensified by Charles E. Lindbergh's inspiring flight.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fechet, James American military personnel of the Spanish–American War People from Rio Grande City, Texas 1877 births 1948 deaths Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) United States Army Air Service pilots of World War I United States Army Air Forces generals of World War II United States Army Air Forces generals Military personnel from Texas