History

General H. Arnold

Henry H. Arnold was born in Gladwyn, Pennsylvania, on 25 June 1886. Following graduation from the United States Military Academy, he was appointed a Second Lieutenant of Infantry on 14 June 1907.

In 1911 he entered aviation and became a flyer. He was detailed to the Signal Corps in April 1911, piloting the Wright Bi-Plane. He was one of the first flyers taught by the Wright Brothers.

            Through the years that followed he would be a pioneer in the field of aviation through his setting of records and military leadership.

            He progressed rapidly through the ranks, and in 1941 became Chief of the Army Air Force. In March of 1942, Arnold became General of the Army Air Force. He retired from the service on 30 June 1946 with the ratings of Command Pilot and Combat Observer. His many accomplishments, of both personal and national significance, gained him the distinction of becoming the first and only five-star General of the United States Air Force on 7 May 1949 by an act of Congress.

            In January 1950, General of the Air Force H .H. Arnold died in Sonoma, California. As a society we are proud and honored to have General Henry H. Arnold as our namesake.

History of Society

            The idea of the Arnold Air Society came in 1947 in Cincinnati, Ohio, while a group of AFROTC cadets were at a summer camp. While at the camp the cadets discussed the possibility of an honorary society and presented their idea to Captain Nelkamper.

            The idea floated around until October of 1947, where a committee of cadets came to form an organization and to find a name called “Arnold Air Society of Air Cadets”.

            The name was then thought over, and chosen in a unanimous decision, to honor General H. H. Arnold, one of the greatest leaders in aviation history. General Hap Arnold didn’t give permission to use his name until December of 1947, with the stipulations that the societies begin on a local basis at the University of Cincinnati, and the tradition would expand in an impulsive nature.

            In April 1948 the USAF legitimately recognized the society, soon after the society became a project for the Air Defense Command. Their duty was to see that local groups nationalize similar organizations. They sent out copies of the Society’s Constitution to all universities and colleges throughout the nation with the hope of forming similar organizations. Only after a year twenty new squadrons were formed.

            In the early 1950’s there came many new ideas, one being the first National Conclave. At the first National Conclave, the University of Cincinnati was chosen to be National Headquarters until 1954. Mrs. H. H. Arnold was named honorary sponsor, while General H. H. Arnold named first Honorary Commander. In the spring of 1951, the society was officially became the “Arnold Air Society” following the death of General Arnold.

Iven C. Kincheloe

            Iven C. Kincheloe, Jr. was born July 2, 1928 in Detroit, Michigan. His family later moved to Cassaspolis, Michigan, where his father farmed 240 acres of land. Iven, as his father said, was "born to fly” and by the age of 14, he talked his father into letting him ride with a barnstorming pilot, officially beginning his legacy in the air.

In 1945, he entered Purdue where he studied Aeronautical Engineering joined ROTC. He graduated in 1949 with degrees in Aeronautical and Mechanical Engineering.

He received his wings at Williams AFB near Phoenix, Arizona in 1951. In early 1952, Iven was promoted to Captain and entered the Korean War with the 5th Interceptor Wing. While in Korea he flew 131 missions, downing 11 MiGs and damaging 11 others to become the 10th jet ace. For his outstanding service he received the Silver Star, the Distinguished Flying Cross with two oak leaf clusters, plus four other medals. In 1953 he was accepted into the Empire Test School in Farnborough, England. While in England, he received a Masters degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Oxford and also met his wife Dorothy.

Upon his return to the United States, he test flew the X-2 to an altitude of 126,000 feet. While he was flying the X-2, North America was preparing another plane for him, the X-15. He died before he had a chance to fly it. On July 26, 1958, he took off on a routine chase mission in an F-104. Minutes after take-off, the engine flamed out. Even though Kincheloe was able to perform the ejection, which consisted of flipping the plane over and then ejecting because the seat ejected out of the bottom of the F-104, he was too low for his chute to open. At 1100 hours on 26 July 1958, America lost one of her greatest and most decorated pilots.

The passing of "Kinch" can best be summed up by a remark by an Air Force official upon Kincheloe's death. He said, "A man like Kincheloe couldn't be bought for a million dollars. 

Squadron History

            Major General Harry S. Johnson, Commanding General of the 10^th Air Force, requested Purdue to form a local chapter of the national AFROTC honorary society and on 19 October 1951, the first announcement of the formation of an AAS Squadron at Purdue University was officially made. After the request by Major General Johnson, an organizational meeting was held at 1900 hours on Thursday, 25 October 1951, in room 26 of the Life Insurance and Marketing Building.

            The organization of the local squadron was structured as the Amelia Earhart Squadron of the Arnold Air Society in March 1952. Following the formation of the Squadron, on 10 April 1952, the first initiation banquet was held. One of the honorary members was the banquet speaker, Purdue President Frederick I. Hovde.

            During April 1959, the Purdue Squadron, with the consent of Captain Kincheloe’s family, received national approval to change its name from Amelia Earhart Squadron of the AAS to Iven C. Kincheloe, Jr. Squadron in honor of Captain Kincheloe.