Horace Meek Hickam
Encyclopedia
Horace Meek Hickam was a pioneer airpower advocate and an officer in the United States Army Air Corps
. Hickam Air Force Base
, Hawaii
, is named in his honor.
, the eldest of four children. While a student at the Indiana University
, he was a member of the Indiana National Guard
, then received an appointment to the United States Military Academy
, where he excelled in both academics and athletics.
Hickam was commissioned a second lieutenant, Cavalry
, in 1908 and assigned to the 11th Cavalry
, serving in Vermont
, Georgia
and Texas
.
In 1911, while at Fort Sam Houston
, Texas, Hickam received flying training in addition to his regularly assigned duties. In January 1914 he was transferred to the Philippines
and assigned to the 8th Cavalry
, serving two years, then returned to the United States and assigned to the 7th Cavalry
. He served in Mexico as part of the Mexican Punitive Expedition
and saw combat on April 22, 1916, at Tomochic, Chihuahua, where he was awarded the Silver Star
in an action against Villistas led by Candelario Cervantes. Following his service in Mexico, Hickam served as a Professor of Military Science at the University of Maine
.
. On August 5, 1917, he received a brevet
promotion to Major (United States)
and an assignment to the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps
. He received his military pilot's rating at Rockwell Field
, California
, on August 15, 1918, and training in pursuit flying at Dorr Field, Arcadia, Florida
. In October he was made commander of both Dorr and Carlstrom Fields, now under the auspices of the U.S. Air Service.
On January 21, 1919, Major Hickam was appointed chief of the Information Division, Office of the Director of Air Service, in Washington D.C., where he supervised the first written history of the Air Service. In January 1923, he became assistant commandant of the Advanced Flying School, Kelly Field
, Texas. In November 1925 he testified on behalf of airpower and a separate Air Force before the Morrow Board, appointed by President Coolidge
and chaired by Dwight Morrow
to offset adverse political effects of the court martial of Billy Mitchell.
Hickam attended the Air Corps Tactical School
at Langley Field, Virginia
, the Command and General Staff College
, and the Army War College before a four-year assignment to the War Plans Division of the General Staff
. Hickam was promoted to lieutenant colonel
on March 1, 1932, and given command of the 3rd Attack Group, based at Fort Crockett
, Galveston, Texas. From February to June 1934, during the Air Mail scandal
, he commanded mail delivery operations in the Central Zone, headquartered in Chicago
.
On May 10, 1926, while attending the Air Corps Tactical School
, he collided in mid-air during a flight formation with fellow student, Major Harold Geiger
. Hickam parachuted to safety, and narrowly escaped death. This resulted in Hickam's initiation into the famed "Caterpillar Club
," a fraternal order with membership based on surviving an emergency parachute jump.
Colonel Hickam was killed in a landing accident at Fort Crockett
, Galveston, Texas, on November 5, 1934. Flying a Curtiss
A-12 Shrike
, Hickam was practicing night landings on an unlighted strip when his aircraft struck an embankment and flipped over. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery
. On May 21, 1935, a new flying field at Honolulu, Hawaii
, was designated Hickam Field. Additionally, Veterans Of Foreign Wars Post 970 is named after Colonel Hickam. The post is located next to the Air Force Base bearing his name.
United States Army Air Corps
The United States Army Air Corps was a forerunner of the United States Air Force. Renamed from the Air Service on 2 July 1926, it was part of the United States Army and the predecessor of the United States Army Air Forces , established in 1941...
. Hickam Air Force Base
Hickam Air Force Base
Hickam Field, re-named Hickam Air Force Base in 1948, was a United States Air Force facility now part of Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, named in honor of aviation pioneer Lt Col Horace Meek Hickam.- History :...
, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, is named in his honor.
Background
The son of a lawyer, Hickam was born in Spencer, IndianaSpencer, Indiana
Spencer is a town in Washington Township, Owen County, Indiana, United States. The population was 2,217 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Owen County.Spencer is part of the Bloomington, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
, the eldest of four children. While a student at the Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
, he was a member of the Indiana National Guard
United States National Guard
The National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...
, then received an appointment to the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
, where he excelled in both academics and athletics.
Hickam was commissioned a second lieutenant, Cavalry
United States Cavalry
The United States Cavalry, or U.S. Cavalry, is the designation of the mounted force of the United States Army. The role of the U.S. Cavalry is reconnaissance, security and mounted assault. Cavalry has served as a part of the Army forces in every war in which the United States has participated...
, in 1908 and assigned to the 11th Cavalry
U.S. 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment
The 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army garrisoned at Fort Irwin, California. Although termed an armored cavalry regiment, it is currently being re-organized as a multi-component Heavy Brigade Combat Team...
, serving in Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
and Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
.
In 1911, while at Fort Sam Houston
Fort Sam Houston
Fort Sam Houston is a U.S. Army post in San Antonio, Texas.Known colloquially as "Fort Sam," it is named for the first President of the Republic of Texas, Sam Houston....
, Texas, Hickam received flying training in addition to his regularly assigned duties. In January 1914 he was transferred to the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and assigned to the 8th Cavalry
U.S. 8th Cavalry Regiment
The 8th Cavalry Regiment was constituted 28 July 1866 and organized as a regiment on 21 September 1866 at Camp Reynolds, Angel Island, California. Enlisted personnel were "composed chiefly of men enlisted on the Pacific Coast, and included many of the class styled 'Forty-niners'; men who had worked...
, serving two years, then returned to the United States and assigned to the 7th Cavalry
U.S. 7th Cavalry Regiment
The 7th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army Cavalry Regiment, whose lineage traces back to the mid-19th century. Its official nickname is "Garryowen," in honor of the Irish air Garryowen that was adopted as its march tune....
. He served in Mexico as part of the Mexican Punitive Expedition
Pancho Villa Expedition
The Pancho Villa Expedition—officially known in the United States as the Mexican Expedition and sometimes colloquially referred to as the Punitive Expedition—was a military operation conducted by the United States Army against the paramilitary forces of Mexican insurgent Francisco "Pancho" Villa...
and saw combat on April 22, 1916, at Tomochic, Chihuahua, where he was awarded the 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....
in an action against Villistas led by Candelario Cervantes. Following his service in Mexico, Hickam served as a Professor of Military Science at the University of Maine
University of Maine
The University of Maine is a public research university located in Orono, Maine, United States. The university was established in 1865 as a land grant college and is referred to as the flagship university of the University of Maine System...
.
Air Service and Air Corps duty
Hickam's association with aviation began with the United States' entry into World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. On August 5, 1917, he received a brevet
Brevet (military)
In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
promotion to Major (United States)
Major (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, major is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel...
and an assignment to the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps
Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps
The Aviation Section, Signal Corps, was the military aviation service of the United States Army from 1914 to 1918, and a direct ancestor of the United States Air Force. It replaced and absorbed the Aeronautical Division, Signal Corps, and was succeeded briefly by the Division of Military...
. He received his military pilot's rating at Rockwell Field
Rockwell Field
Rockwell Field was an Army air base located in Coronado, California, near San Diego. It shared the area known as North Island with Naval Air Station North Island from 1912 to 1935. Its functions were eventually moved to March Field so that the naval air station could take over the whole area...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, on August 15, 1918, and training in pursuit flying at Dorr Field, Arcadia, Florida
Arcadia, Florida
Arcadia is a city in DeSoto County, Florida, United States. The population was 6,604 as of the 2000 census. According to the U.S Census estimates of 2005, the city grew to 7,151. It is the county seat of DeSoto County; it is also DeSoto County's only incorporated community. On October 27, 2009,...
. In October he was made commander of both Dorr and Carlstrom Fields, now under the auspices of the U.S. Air Service.
On January 21, 1919, Major Hickam was appointed chief of the Information Division, Office of the Director of Air Service, in Washington D.C., where he supervised the first written history of the Air Service. In January 1923, he became assistant commandant of the Advanced Flying School, Kelly Field
Kelly Air Force Base
Kelly Field Annex and is a former United States Air Force facility located in San Antonio, Texas. In 2001, the runway and land west of the runway became "Kelly Field Annex" and control of it was transferred to the adjacent Lackland Air Force Base, part of Joint Base San Antonio...
, Texas. In November 1925 he testified on behalf of airpower and a separate Air Force before the Morrow Board, appointed by President Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge
John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
and chaired by Dwight Morrow
Dwight Morrow
Dwight Whitney Morrow was an American businessman, politician, and diplomat.-Life:Born in Huntington, West Virginia, he moved with his parents, James E. and Clara Morrow to Allegheny, Pennsylvania in 1875. His father James, was principal of Marshall College, which is now Marshall University...
to offset adverse political effects of the court martial of Billy Mitchell.
Hickam attended the Air Corps Tactical School
Air Corps Tactical School
The Air Corps Tactical School, also known as ACTS and "the Tactical School", was a military professional development school for officers of the United States Army Air Service and United States Army Air Corps, the first such school in the world. Created in 1920 at Langley Field, Virginia, it...
at Langley Field, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, the Command and General Staff College
Command and General Staff College
The United States Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military officers. The college was established in 1881 by William Tecumseh Sherman as a...
, and the Army War College before a four-year assignment to the War Plans Division of the General Staff
General Staff
A military staff, often referred to as General Staff, Army Staff, Navy Staff or Air Staff within the individual services, is a group of officers and enlisted personnel that provides a bi-directional flow of information between a commanding officer and subordinate military units...
. Hickam was promoted to lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
on March 1, 1932, and given command of the 3rd Attack Group, based at Fort Crockett
Fort Crockett
Fort Crockett is a government reservation on Galveston Island overlookingthe Gulf of Mexico originally built as a defense installation to protect the city and harbor of Galveston and to secure the entrance to Galveston Bay,...
, Galveston, Texas. From February to June 1934, during the Air Mail scandal
Air Mail Scandal
The Air Mail scandal, also known as the Air Mail fiasco, is the name that the American press gave to the political scandal resulting from a congressional investigation of a 1930 meeting , between Postmaster General Walter Folger Brown and the executives of the top airlines, and to the disastrous...
, he commanded mail delivery operations in the Central Zone, headquartered in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
On May 10, 1926, while attending the Air Corps Tactical School
Air Corps Tactical School
The Air Corps Tactical School, also known as ACTS and "the Tactical School", was a military professional development school for officers of the United States Army Air Service and United States Army Air Corps, the first such school in the world. Created in 1920 at Langley Field, Virginia, it...
, he collided in mid-air during a flight formation with fellow student, Major Harold Geiger
Harold Geiger
Major Harold C. Geiger , born in East Orange, New Jersey, was a pioneer in US military aviation and ballooning who was killed in an airplane crash in 1927...
. Hickam parachuted to safety, and narrowly escaped death. This resulted in Hickam's initiation into the famed "Caterpillar Club
Caterpillar Club
The Caterpillar Club is an informal association of people who have successfully used a parachute to bail out of a disabled aircraft. After authentication by the parachute maker, applicants receive a membership certificate and a distinctive lapel pin...
," a fraternal order with membership based on surviving an emergency parachute jump.
Colonel Hickam was killed in a landing accident at Fort Crockett
Fort Crockett
Fort Crockett is a government reservation on Galveston Island overlookingthe Gulf of Mexico originally built as a defense installation to protect the city and harbor of Galveston and to secure the entrance to Galveston Bay,...
, Galveston, Texas, on November 5, 1934. Flying a Curtiss
Curtiss-Wright
The Curtiss-Wright Corporation was the largest aircraft manufacturer in the United States at the end of World War II, but has evolved to largely become a component manufacturer, specializing in actuators, aircraft controls, valves, and metalworking....
A-12 Shrike
A-12 Shrike
|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Eden, Paul and Soph Moeng, eds. The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. London: Amber Books Ltd., 2002, ISBN 0-7607-3432-1....
, Hickam was practicing night landings on an unlighted strip when his aircraft struck an embankment and flipped over. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
. On May 21, 1935, a new flying field at Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. Honolulu is the southernmost major U.S. city. Although the name "Honolulu" refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and county government are consolidated as the City and...
, was designated Hickam Field. Additionally, Veterans Of Foreign Wars Post 970 is named after Colonel Hickam. The post is located next to the Air Force Base bearing his name.