Uzal Girard Ent

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(March 3, 1900 – March 5, 1948) was an American

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 ...

officer who served as the commander of the Second Air Force 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 ...

Early life and education

Ent was born on March 3, 1900, in

Northumberland, Pennsylvania Northumberland is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,911 at the 2020 census. History A brewer named Reuben Haines, a native of Philadelphia, founded the town of Northumb ...

. After attending grade school and high school in his hometown, he enrolled at

Susquehanna University Susquehanna University is a private liberal arts college in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, United States. Its name is derived from the original Susquehannock settlers of the region. Founded in 1858 as a missionary institute, it became a four-year li ...

. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Ent left to enlist as a private in the infantry in 1917. He transferred to the Aviation Section of the Army Signal Corps and was promoted to sergeant in the 59th Balloon Company in March 1919. Ent received an appointment to

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

and was commissioned into the

Army Air Service The United States Army Air Service (USAAS)Craven and Cate Vol. 1, p. 9 (also known as the ''"Air Service"'', ''"U.S. Air Service"'' and before its legislative establishment in 1920, the ''"Air Service, United States Army"'') was the aerial warf ...

in June 1924.

Career

On May 30, 1928, he was the co-pilot of a balloon in the National Balloon Race, starting at

Bettis Field Bettis Field was an airstrip in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, southeast of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, established in 1924. It was named for U.S. Army Air Corps Lieutenant Cyrus Bettis following his fatal accident on Jack's Mountain near Bellefonte, Pen ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

. During the race, Ent's balloon was struck by lightning over Youngstown, Pennsylvania. The lightning strike killed the pilot and set the balloon's

hydrogen Hydrogen is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol H and atomic number 1. It is the lightest and abundance of the chemical elements, most abundant chemical element in the universe, constituting about 75% of all baryon, normal matter ...

-filled envelope on fire. Ent could have parachuted to safety but chose to stay with the balloon, attempted to rescue the pilot, and successfully piloted the balloon to the ground. For this act of heroism, Ent was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross later that year. After graduating from the

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. ...

in June 1937 and the

Command and General Staff School The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

in June 1938, he served as a

military attaché A military attaché or defence attaché (DA),Defence Attachés
''Geneva C ...

at the American Embassy in

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

from July 1939 until October 1942, acting as the senior neutral military observer on the Peruvian side after their boundary war with

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

. He was

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

to the U.S. Army Forces in the Middle East from October 1942 until February 1943. He then served as Commanding General, 9th Bomber Command, 9th Air Force from February to December 1943. During his stint, he led 178 B-24s in "

Operation Tidal Wave Operation Tidal Wave was an air attack by bombers of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) based in Libya on nine oil refineries around Ploiești, Romania, on 1 August 1943, during World War II. It was a strategic bombing mission and part o ...

" – the bombing raid on the oil fields at Ploieşti, Romania, on August 1, 1943. He was then appointed Chief of Staff and then Commanding General, 2nd Air Force, based at

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is the most populous city in El Paso County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 478,961 at the 2020 census, a 15.02% increase since 2010. Colorado Springs is the second-most populous c ...

, Colorado. In September 1944, Ent selected Lieutenant Colonel

Paul Tibbets Paul Warfield Tibbets Jr. (23 February 1915 – 1 November 2007) was a brigadier general in the United States Air Force. He is best known as the aircraft captain who flew the B-29 Superfortress known as the '' Enola Gay'' (named after his moth ...

to form and train an organization to drop atomic weapons from B-29 bombers. Given Tibbets and two other names by General Henry "Hap" Arnold, Ent replied without hesitation, "Paul Tibbets is the man to do it." In October 1944, Ent was seriously injured in the crash of a

B-25 The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Brigadier General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served ...

on takeoff at the Fort Worth Army Airfield, Texas. Paralyzed from the waist down, he learned to walk again using braces. He retired for "disability in line of duty" in 1946, with the rank of major general. After his retirement from military service, he studied to have a career in law; he also experimented with materials to develop lightweight braces for paraplegics. He wrote a book, ''What’s My Score?'', to help victims of paralysis. He also volunteered for several experimental surgeries so surgeons could learn to better treat spinal injuries.

Personal life

In 1927, he married Eleanor Marwitz; they would have a son, Girard.

Death

He died at Fitzsimons General Hospital in

Aurora, Colorado Aurora (, ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, Arapahoe, Adams County, Colorado, Adams, and Douglas County, Colorado, Douglas List of counties in Colorado, counti ...

, on March 5, 1948, due to complications from the injuries he sustained in the plane crash. He was cremated and his ashes were scattered over the Riverview Cemetery in his hometown of Northumberland. A

cenotaph A cenotaph is an empty grave, tomb or a monument erected in honor of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere or have been lost. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although t ...

honoring him now stands there.

Awards and honors

United States

* Cheney Award

Foreign

Other honors

In 1951, a new Air Force base near Colorado Springs, Colorado, was named in the general's honor.

Ent Air Force Base Ent Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base located in the Knob Hill neighborhood of Colorado Springs, Colorado. A tent city, established in 1943 during construction of the base, was initially commanded by Major General Uzal Girar ...

was the initial home to the

North American Air Defense Command North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD ; , CDAAN), known until March 1981 as the North American Air Defense Command, is a combined organization of the United States and Canada that provides aerospace warning, air sovereignty, and pr ...

(NORAD) from 1957 until 1963 when the command center moved to a highly secure facility within Cheyenne Mountain. Ent AFB became the Ent Annex to the

Cheyenne Mountain Complex The Cheyenne Mountain Complex is a United States Space Force installation and defensive bunker located in unincorporated El Paso County, Colorado, next to the city of Colorado Springs, at the Cheyenne Mountain Space Force Station, which host ...

in 1975, and the facility was closed the following year. The Ent Credit Union was named in his honor.

Veterans of Foreign Wars The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), formally the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States Armed Forces, United States war veterans who fought in wars, Military campaign, campaig ...

(VFW) Post 8298 in Ent's hometown of Northumberland, Pennsylvania, is named "Major General Uzal G. Ent" to honor his memory.

References

External links

Ent Credit Union

Ent Credit Union – History

Official USAF biography of Maj Gen Ent
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ent, Uzal Girard 1900 births 1948 deaths People from Northumberland, Pennsylvania Susquehanna University alumni Military personnel from Pennsylvania United States Army personnel of World War I United States Military Academy alumni Aviators from Pennsylvania Survivors of aviation accidents or incidents Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Air Corps Tactical School alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States air attachés American expatriates in Peru Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army Air Forces generals of World War II Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Honorary commanders of the Order of the British Empire United States Army Air Forces generals Writers from Pennsylvania