Winton W. Marshall

Lieutenant General Winton Whittier Marshall (born July 6, 1919) was a United States Air Force lieutenant general and flying ace. He was deputy commander in chief, U.S. Readiness Command, with headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida.

Biography
Born in 1919 in Detroit, Michigan, Marshall began his military career as an aviation cadet in 1942. He completed flight training at Yuma Army Air Base, Ariz., and received his pilot wings and commission as a second lieutenant in April 1943.

Assigned to Las Vegas Army Air Field, Nevada, now Nellis Air Force Base, he began as a pilot with the 326th Fighter Gunnery Training Group before becoming chief of the P-39 Training Section there. In February 1945 he went to the Panama Canal Zone as a pilot with the 28th Fighter Squadron and as operations officer of the 32rd Fighter Squadron, later redesignated the 23rd Fighter Squadron, 36th Fighter Group.

In July 1947, he was transferred to Dow Field, Maine, as operations officer of the 48th Fighter Squadron, 14th Fighter Group, the first squadron to be assigned the F-84 Thunderjet, and participated in service testing the F-84 at Edwards Air Force Base, California.

He entered the Air Tactical School at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, in August 1948 and four months later became operations officer of the 84th Fighter Squadron at Hamilton Air Force Base, Calif. In May 1951, Marshall went to Korea as commander of the 335th Fighter Squadron, flying the F-86 Sabre jet fighter. He became the fifth jet ace of the Korean War, credited with 6 1/2 enemy aircraft destroyed, seven probable, and six damaged. In January 1952, he returned to the United States to command the 93d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico.

He was assigned as commander of the 15th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., in July 1953. There he was credited with saving a Strategic Air Command BB-47 bomber which was on fire at the end of a runway. Seeing no crash or fire-fighting equipment coming, and noting that the crew had escaped, he taxied his F-86 to the burning aircraft and blew out the fire with his jet exhaust. For this action, he was named to the Strategic Air Command's Heads-Up Club. He flew in the 1953 Bendix transcontinental air race and captained the Central Air Defense Force Team in the 1953 and 1954 Air Defense Command Weapons Meet.

In July 1954, Marshall became chief of the Central Air Defense Force Tactical Evaluation Board at Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base, Missouri, where he established the first tactical evaluation system in the Air Defense Command; developed the first wind-driven tow reel target system; and headed a team of military and civilian technicians that extended radar search capability (later known as the Marshall fix) of fighter-interceptor aircraft from 30 to 200 miles. In 1957, he was chief of the Central Air Defense Force Bendix Trophy Race Team flying the F-102 Delta Dagger, with his team taking first and second place.

He entered the Air War College at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama, in 1958, and on graduation was assigned to the 49th Tactical Fighter Wing in France as deputy commander for operations. The wing was transferred to Spangdahlem, Germany, where he was instrumental in getting the first strobe light landing system on an operational military base in Europe. In January 1961, he assumed command of NATO's Allied Defense Sector in the 86th Air Division at Ramstein Air Base, Germany. There he was credited with the development of an open-loop combat air defense communications network providing an immediate reaction system to cope with the East German and Czechoslovakian MiG threat. He also played a key role in the programming and installation of the 412-L Semi-automatic Air Defense System linking the 86th Air Division and the U.S. Army surface-to-air missile system.

In June 1964, Marshall went to Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C., to serve in the Directorate of Operations successively as deputy chief and chief of the Air Defense Division, and as deputy director for forces. In June 1966, he moved to the Joint Chiefs of Staff as deputy director of operations, J-3, in the National Military Command Center, and in July 1967 became chief of the European Division, Directorate of Plans, J-5.

In May 1968, he was assigned as chief of staff, Allied Air Forces Southern Europe in Naples, Italy, and in September 1969 became director of plans, J-5, U.S. European Command, at Vaihingen, Germany. He went from there to Vietnam in September 1971 as vice commander of the Seventh Air Force at Tan Son Nhut Airfield. The following September, he moved to Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, as deputy chief of staff, plans, and in December 1973 became deputy chief of staff, plans and operations. He was appointed vice commander in chief, Pacific Air Forces, in September 1974, transferring to his present assignment in June 1975.

His military decorations and awards include the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster; Silver Star; Legion of Merit with three oak leaf clusters; Distinguished Flying Cross with two oak leaf clusters; Bronze Star Medal; Air Medal with five oak leaf clusters; Purple Heart; from the Republic of Korea: the Chungmoo Medal with gold star and the Order of National Security Merit Medal; and from the Republic of Vietnam: the National Order of Vietnam, 5th Class, and the Gallantry Cross with palm.

His permanent residence is Beverly Hills, California.

Marshall was promoted to the grade of lieutenant general effective September 1, 1974, with date of rank August 27, 1974.