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LIEUTENANT GENERAL WALTER E. TODD
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Died March 1, 1978.
Walter Edwin Todd was born in Gonzales, Texas, in 1906. He attended Texas University for a year, graduated from the U.S. Military Academy on June 9, 1928 and was commissioned a second lieutenant of Field Artillery.
Assigned to the 15th Field Artillery at Fort Sam Houston, Texas in October 1929, General Todd entered Primary Flying School at Brooks Field, Texas and graduated from Advanced Flying School at Kelly Field, Texas in February 1931. After serving at France Field in the Panama Canal Zone in various capacities until May 1934, he went to Selfridge Field, Mich., for duty with the First Pursuit Squadron, joining the 27th Pursuit Squadron there six months later. Entering the Air Corps Technical School at Chanute Field, Ill., in August 1936, he graduated the following June.
Immediately thereafter General Todd was assigned as flight commander and instructor at the primary Flying School, Randolph Field Texas, later becoming post adjutant. Appointed a senior instructor at the Advanced Flying School, Kelly Field, Texas in July 1938, he resumed his former position at Randolph Field a year later. Moving to Westover Field, Mass., in April 1941, General Todd joined the Fourth Bomb Wing.
That August General Todd became executive in the Personnel Division of the Air Staff at Washington D.C. Appointed a member of the Southwest Pacific Section, Operations Division, War Department General Staff in March 1942, he became deputy for air, Strategy and Policy Group, Operations Division in May 1943.
Going to Europe in May 1944, the general was named assistant chief of staff for operations of the Eighth Air Force, returning to Air Corps headquarters a year later. He was appointed U.S. Military Air Attache to Russia, with duty station in Moscow in November 1945.
Returning to the United States in January 1947, General Todd joined the War Department General Staff as deputy director of Intelligence. That November he was appointed deputy director of the Joint Intelligence Group in the Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Reassigned to Air Force headquarters in October 1949, the general became deputy to the assistant for programming in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations at Air Force headquarters and named assistant for programming the following July.
Transferred to the Air Defense Command in March 1942, General Todd assumed command of the Western Air Defense Force at Hamilton Air Force Base, Calif.
Going overseas on Sept. 15, 1955, General Todd was designated vice commander of the First Air Force, Far East Air Forces, at Tokyo, Japan, becoming vice commander and chief of staff of the Far East Air Forces on July 12, 1956. On July 1, 1957 he was named commander in chief, U.N. Command with station at Musan-Ni, Korea, with additional duty as chief of staff, U.S. Forces in Korea.
On July 15, 1958, the general became commander of the Air University, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.
His decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal. He is rated a command pilot, combat observer and technical observer.
(Current as of May 1961)
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