Paul Wesley Airey (December 13, 1923 – March 11, 2009) was an airman of the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

who served as the first

Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force The chief master sergeant of the Air Force (acronym: CMSAF) is a unique non-commissioned rank in the United States Air Force. The holder of this rank and position of office represents the highest enlisted level of leadership in the Air Force, ...

from 1967 to 1969.

Early life and education

Airey born on December 13, 1923, in

New Bedford, Massachusetts New Bedford is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located on the Acushnet River in what is known as the South Coast region. At the 2020 census, New Bedford had a population of 101,079, making it the state's ninth-l ...

. He entered military service in 1940 after two years of high school in Quincy, Massachusetts. In 1948 he obtained his high school equivalency certificate, and later completed 62 semester hours of study at

McKendree College McKendree University (McK), formerly McKendree College, is a private university in Lebanon, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1828 as the "Lebanon Seminary", it is the oldest college or university in Illinois. The school was renamed McKendree ...

Lebanon, Illinois Lebanon is a city in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. The population was 4,691 at the 2020 census It is a part of the Metro East region of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area. Lebanon is home to McKendree University, the oldest ...

. His military schooling included courses in communication mechanics and personnel management. He is a graduate of the Air Defense Command Noncommissioned Officer Academy. The academy was renamed the Paul W. Airey NCO Academy on December 13, 2006, in his honor.

Military career

Airey enlisted in the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

in November 1942. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he was an aerial gunner and radio operator on

B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models desi ...

bombers and is credited with 28 combat missions over Europe. In July 1944, on his 28th

combat mission ''Combat Mission'' is a series of computer wargames simulating tactical battles. The series has progressed through two distinct game engines. The original game engine, referred to as 'CMx1' by the developer, Battlefront.com, powered a trio of g ...

, a bombing run over

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, Austria, Airey was forced to bail out of his flak-damaged aircraft over Hungary. He was captured by the German military and was taken to

Stalag Luft IV Stalag Luft IV was a German World War II prisoner-of-war camp in Gross Tychow, Pomerania (now Tychowo, Poland). It housed mostly American POWs, but also Britons, Canadians, Poles, Australians, New Zealanders, South Africans, Czechs, Frenchmen and ...

, a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

(POW) camp near the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

for Allied airmen. In February 1945, Airey and 6,000 fellow POWs were forced to march 400 miles to another camp near Berlin as the

Soviet Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of Peop ...

got closer. He was liberated in May 1945 by British forces. By that time, Airey had

dysentery Dysentery ( , ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications may include dehyd ...

and weighed less than 100 pounds. Airey reenlisted in the Air Force after completing a recuperation leave. He went to

Naha Air Base , formally known as the , is an air base of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force formerly under control of the United States Air Force. It is located at Naha Airport on the Oroku Peninsula in Naha, Okinawa, Japan. History Imperial Period Naha Air ...

Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...

, where he was responsible for radio repair. During the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

he was awarded the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

, unusual for an enlisted person, for saving more than a million dollars in electronic equipment that would have deteriorated without the corrosion control assembly line he developed. Airey spent 14 of his 30-year career as a

first sergeant First sergeant is typically a senior non-commissioned officer rank, used in many countries. Singapore First sergeant is a Specialist (Singapore), specialist in the Singapore Armed Forces. First sergeants are the most senior of the junior spe ...

. This included assignment to the Air Defense Command's 4756th Civil Engineering Squadron at

Tyndall Air Force Base Tyndall Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base located east of Panama City, Florida. The base was named in honor of World War I pilot 1st Lt. Frank Benjamin Tyndall. The base operating unit and host wing is the 325th Fighter Wing (3 ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. On April 3, 1967, he was appointed the first

, the service's ultimate

noncommissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is an enlisted leader, petty officer, or in some cases warrant officer, who does not hold a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted rank ...

position, having been selected from among 21 major command nominees. In this role he was adviser to

Secretary of the Air Force The secretary of the Air Force, sometimes referred to as the secretary of the Department of the Air Force, (SecAF, or SAF/OS) is the head of the Department of the Air Force and the service secretary for the United States Air Force and United Sta ...

Richard Campbell and

Air Force Chief of Staff The chief of staff of the Air Force (acronym: CSAF, or AF/CC) is the service chief of the United States Air Force. They are the principal military advisor to the secretary of the Air Force on matter pertaining to the Air Force. They are a mem ...

, General

John P. McConnell John McConnell may refer to: Business * John Wilson McConnell (1877–1963), Canadian businessman, newspaper publisher, and philanthropist * John H. McConnell (1923–2008), industrialist, philanthropist, and founder of the Columbus Blue Jackets * ...

Later life

Airey retired from the Air Force on August 1, 1970. He died in

Panama City, Florida Panama City is a city in and the county seat of Bay County, Florida, United States. Located along U.S. Route 98 in Florida, U.S. Highway 98 (US 98), it is the largest city between Tallahassee, Florida, Tallahassee and Pensacola, Florida, Pe ...

, on March 11, 2009.

Awards and decorations

Professional memberships and associations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Airey, Paul W. 1923 births 2009 deaths Chief Master Sergeants of the United States Air Force Recipients of the Air Medal American prisoners of war in World War II Recipients of the Legion of Merit Burials at Arlington National Cemetery United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II United States Air Force personnel of the Korean War United States Army Air Forces soldiers World War II prisoners of war held by Germany Shot-down aviators