Robert B. Landry

Robert Broussard Landry (1 December 190914 July 2000) was a major general in the United States Air Force (USAF). A graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point class of 1932, he flew 32 combat missions in Europe during World War II as a fighter and bomber pilot. He was the USAF aide to the President of the United States, Harry S. Truman, from 1948 to 1953. In this role he represented the Air Force at the White House and advised the president on Air Force matters. He retired from the Air Force in 1962 and died at the age of 90.

Early life

Robert Broussard Landry was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on 1 December 1909, the son of Luke Valcour Landry and his wife Josephine Scharpe. He was a direct descendant of Pierre Joseph Landry, who served as a captain in the Louisiana Militia during the War of 1812. He had a brother, Ernest Scharpe Landry, and a sister, Val Louise, who later married Milton Summerfelt.

Landry entered West Point on 2 July 1928. His first posting was to Camp Stephen D. Little, Arizona, with the African-American 25th Infantry, from 31 August to 28 December 1932, when he moved to Fort Huachuca, Arizona. His papers are in the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum.

Military decorations

Dates of rank