Hansell, Haywood Shepherd, Jr (1903-1988)

US aviator. One of a group of officers that believed air power alone could win a war, he reported on the German Blitz from London and later, commanding B-17s, participated in the bombing campaign against Germany. As chief of staff of the 20th Air Force in 1945, he helped plan the long-range strategic bombing of Japan. He became an executive for the General Electric Company after his retirement from the service in 1955. The son of an army surgeon, Hansell was born in Fort Monroe, Virginia. He graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology in 1924, and worked as a boilermaker before enrolling as a flying cadet in 1928.