Kenneth R. Powell

General Kenneth R. Powell, 46th Fighter Pursuit Squadron Commander, 1942-43

Kenneth R. Powell (1915 – September 16, 1987) was a Major General of the United States Air Force.

Early life Kenneth R. Powell was born in 1915 on a small farm in McMinnville, before moving to Bozeman, Montana after a short stay in Oregon. In 1921, his family moved to Tacoma, Washington. He graduated from Stadium High School in 1934. On the fall of 1934, he entered the Washington State University. He was a varsity letterman in track and field, a Reserve Officers Training Corps cadet, and was a member of the Scabbard and Blade, Crimson Circle, national senior men's honorary society, and Phi Delta Theta fraternity. He graduated on June 6, 1938, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and Psychology with a reserve commission as a second lieutenant. 15th Infantry, Fort Lewis, Washington, 1938 78th Pursuit Squadron, Wheeler Field, Territory of Hawaii 46th Fighter Squadron, Canton Island 15th Fighter Group 21st Fighter Group, June 15, 1944 – October 10, 1946 Dover Air Base, Delaware, Commander, 1946 Air Show Unit, Tactical Air Command, Langley Field, Virginia, 1946 Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, July 1955 - July 1959 Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, 1961 Commander, 819th Strategic Aerospace Division, Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, 14 May 1964 - 2 July 1966

Rank History Sources: Second Lieutenant, June 6, 1938 Lieutenant, 1940 Captain, between 1940 and 1942 Major, 1942 Lieutenant Colonel, 1943 Colonel, between April 21, 1944, and March 1961 Brigadier General, March 1961 Major General, between March 1961 and May 14, 1964