Billy Mitchell was one of the brightest officers, but also the military’s biggest headache. If you have not heard his name yet, well, let us share his story. He was an Army general, a World War I Veteran, and one of the earliest believers that airplanes would decide future wars.

He wasn’t a rebel, though, as you might think, based on his above description. He was actually a part of the system. He was trained by it and entrusted with a huge responsibility, which made him a danger to military leadership.

Dangerous in a way that he did things that the military feared the most. What are those things? You’ll have to find out in this blog.

Billy in the Spanish-American War

Billy Mitchell grew up in a military environment on December 29, 1879, in Nice, France, and from there, you know that the influence was big and hard.

His father was a U.S. Army officer who later became a U.S. senator. From that alone, Mitchell already had the political influence. But growing up, Mitchell understood hierarchy and never saw rank as sacred.

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He began his military journey during the Spanish-American War in 1898 and left college to enlist. At the time, the U.S. was a growing power in the war, which is why he really wanted to serve in the military to also pursue his beliefs, which he later discovered.

He first served in the Signal Corps, where he worked with telegraphs and early radio systems. It was the reason why Mitchell became more interested in how information moves on a battlefield. It made him realize that factors such as speed, coordination, and technology can change the outcome of a war.

He knew from his observations that the war was improving too quickly with machines and innovation, and that stayed with him even after the war.

He Was the Highest Ranking American Air Officer

World War I was Mitchell’s turning point. He traveled to Europe before the U.S. officially entered the war. He was mainly traveling to observe British and French air forces. That is how dedicated Mitchell was. He studied it closely and flew with pilots to learn how aircraft were used for air combat.

Mitchell quickly earned his rank, and by the end of the war, he became the highest-ranking American air officer in France. He commanded thousands of aircraft during major operations.

Moreover, William Lendrum Mitchell coordinated one of the largest air operations of the war. It was the St. Mihiel offensive in 1918, during which he confirmed his belief that aircraft shaped the battlefield. When he returned home, he was convinced that the U.S. military was behind the aircraft system.

It was true that other nations were already building independent air forces, while the U.S was still treating aviation like a side project. He knew that this shouldn’t be the case, and that they couldn’t afford that mistake.

Why Did Billy Become a Problem?

William Lendrum Mitchell was supposed to be celebrated for being promoted to brigadier general and given the responsibility to guide the future of military aviation, which was a great honor. However, his beliefs were not aligned with the military.

With his beliefs, such as that the Army and Navy were clinging to outdated ideas, he spoke openly to reporters. He even testified before Congress. Public pressure was the only way to force change for Billy Mitchell. But the military saw Mitchell as reckless and insubordinate. He challenged the authority itself, and that’s what made him dangerous.

Moreover, there was a moment where it defined Mitchell’s public image. It was the bombing tests against captured and obsolete battleships in 1921 to prove that aircraft could sink them, where he helped organize. Naval leaders at the time were confident that these ships would survive. Turns out they didn’t, and that embarrassed them.

America’s First National Security Whistleblower

There was just a lot of tension during 1925, and his relationship with military leadership was really not ideal.

Aviation accidents occurred, worsening tensions. It involved the USS Shenandoah, which was considered the Navy's most publicized incident. It was a massive Navy airship that broke apart during a storm over Ohio, killing 14 crew members. Mitchell believed that this was the result of poor planning and refusal to take aviation seriously.

He snapped and released a blunt public statement accusing senior Army and Navy leaders of “almost treasonable administration of the national defense.” He also stated, “bodies of my former companions in the air molder under the soil in America, Asia, Europe, and Africa, many, yes, a great many, sent there directly by official stupidity.”

William Lendrum Mitchell spent the rest of his life warning about future wars, but few listened. He was even considered America’s first national security whistleblower because he publicly spoke about the military's unpreparedness for future wars, even though he knew it could end his career.

William Lendrum Mitchell was indeed blunt, stubborn, and often his own worst enemy. But he did prove a point that aviation matters. Even though the military tried to silence him, history did not.

Read next:

• Before Star Wars: How U.S. Military Technology Influenced the Film Franchise
• “Confederate Army of Manhattan:” The 1854 Plot to Burn Down New York City
• The Sinking of the USS Lexington and the Tales That Survived

Sources:

• The General the Military Tried to Silence: Billy Mitchell and America’s First Modern National Security Whistleblower
• William Mitchell
• William Lendrum Mitchell (1879 - 1936)