Nine New Stars

The Army & Navy's new five-star rank has raised the command ceiling so high that there is more room than ever before in the four-star chamber just below it. Last week the President nominated nine more men to join four-star generals Malin Craig and Joseph Stilwell. The nine:

Joseph T. McNarney, Omar N. Bradley, Walter Krueger, Brehon B. Somervell, Carl Spaatz, George C. Kenney, Mark Clark, Jacob L. Devers, Thomas T. Handy.

Least known of the nine, outside of Army circles, is softspoken, sandy-haired, 53-year-old Tom Handy. Graduate of V.M.I., artillery expert and one of the Army's shrewdest strategists, Tom Handy is Deputy Chief of Staff. The promotion of desk-bound General Handy ahead of more publicized field commanders (like George Patton, Courtney Hodges, William Simpson) underlined the importance of the home-front military job.

Three other names on the list showed once again the Army's increasing recognition of the importance of air power: Carl Andrew Spaatz,* who bosses the Strategic Air Forces in Europe; George Kenney, who made Douglas MacArthur air-conscious and bosses the Far Eastern Air Forces; Joseph T. McNarney, a veteran airman, who commands all Army forces in the Mediterranean Theater. With General of the Army Henry Arnold, who wears five stars-and is a member of the Combined Chiefs of Staff as well, Army airmen swing plenty of rank and weight.

Career airmen of the Navy, not so fortunate, are still represented in the upper strata (four-and five-star admirals) only by five-star COMINCH Ernest King, who learned to fly at 48 and has never worked hard at being an airman, and four-starred "Bull" Halsey, who was 52 before he ever had a control stick in his hands. This week, naval aviators who had been busy at flying since they were youngsters watched anxiously for the Navy's list of promotions to four-star rank. But they watched without much hope. To the Navy's crusty hierarchy, top naval airmen are still young, i.e., under 60.

* Busy at a poker game when the news was given him, Tooey Spaatz's characteristic comment was: "Whose deal?"

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