Harry S. Truman Papers Staff Member and Office Files: Robert B. Landry Files

Air Force Aide to the President, 1948-1953

The Robert B. Landry Files primarily document his service as Air Force Aide to President Truman from 1947-1952, and include material relating to such topics as Air Force personnel, air transportation for visiting Heads of State, the Conelrad (Control of Electromagnetic Radiation) warning system, presidential aircraft, and airports. The files consist of correspondence, handwritten notes, itineraries and schedules, meeting minutes, memoranda, press releases, reports, newspaper clippings, printed material, and telegrams.

See also oral history and Landry Papers.

Size: Two linear feet (approximately 4000 pages).
Access: Open.
Copyright: Harry S. Truman donated his copyright interest in writings in these files to the United States government. Documents created by U.S. Government officials in the course of their official duties are likewise in the public domain. Copyright interest in any other writings in these files is assumed to remain with the authors of the documents, or their heirs. Processed by: James R. Fuchs (1956); Jeremy Spencer and David Clark (2004).

The creation of this online resource was made possible in part by funding from the William T. Kemper Foundation - Commerce Bank, Trustee.

The files of Robert B. Landry mostly relate to his service as Air Force Aide to President Harry S. Truman from 1948 to 1953. The U.S. Air Force was established as a separate branch of the armed forces in 1947, and the following year Landry became the first officer to be designated as the Air Force Aide on the White House staff. His status was equivalent to that of the Military Aide to the President (representing the U.S. Army) and the Naval Aide to the President. Landry held this post for the remainder of the Truman Presidency.

The Landry Files are a part of the Staff Member and Office Files of the Harry S. Truman Papers. This material was shipped to Kansas City as part of Mr. Truman's presidential papers. Truman subsequently donated his papers to the United States government. The collection is approximately two linear feet in volume, arranged alphabetically by folder title in one series, a Subject File.

The Subject File consists of correspondence, handwritten notes, itineraries and schedules, meeting minutes, memoranda, press releases, reports, newspaper clippings, printed material, and telegrams pertaining to topics including Air Force personnel, air transportation for visiting Heads of State, the Conelrad (Control of Electromagnetic Radiation) warning system, presidential aircraft, and airports.

The Air Force personnel documents pertain to promotions, veterinary services, reserve officers, appointments to positions, Congressional hearings, officer lists, discharges, leave, courts martials, training, health, Air Force bases, housing, assignments, and transfers.

The documents relating to air transportation of visiting Heads of State pertain to trips aboard the presidential aircraft, the Independence, by President Dutra of Brazil, President Plaza of Ecuador, Prime Minister Nehru of India, the Shah of Iran, President Gonzalez of Chile, President Gallegos of Venezuela, President Prio of Cuba, Prime Minister Ali Khan of Pakistan, and Queen Juliana of the Netherlands. Vice President Alben Barkley, Secretary of Defense Louis Johnson and Secretary of State Dean Acheson are also listed as using the presidential plane.

The purpose of Conelrad (Control of Electromagnetic Radiation) was to provide a warning system in the event of hostile action or imminent threat. The plans called for alerting and operating all classes of radio stations other than broadcast stations. The documents include reports, operational procedures, memos, meeting minutes and press releases.

The presidential aircraft materials include trip itineraries, budgets, lists of room assignments, and reports on expenditures, weather, baggage handling, and equipment. The airport documents relate to airports located in Burke, Virginia, the Washington D.C. area, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New Orleans, and Chicago.

Other materials in the collection relate to housing, the 1952 steel strike, the President's Airport Committee, the Air Coordinating Committee, the Civil Air Patrol, the National Guard, Selective Service and trips by President Truman to Arkansas, St. Louis, Kansas City, Wake Island, West Point and Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Other materials at the Truman Library relating to Robert B. Landry include two oral history interviews with Landry (Truman and the Robert B. Landry Papers.