Knerr, Hugh Johnston (1887–1971)

US aviator. A 1908 Naval Academy graduate, he transferred to the army, and in 1917, joined the air service. An associate of William (‘Billy’) Mitchell, he argued for air power as the primary US strategic weapon. He held a series of senior administrative posts in the USA, England, and continental Europe from 1942–45, and was inspector general of the newly independent US Air Force from 1948–49. Knerr was born in Fairfield, Iowa.