IV

107TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. CON. RES. 412

Honoring General Bernard A. Schriever, United States Air Force (retired),

for his dedication and service to the United States Air Force, for his

essential service in the development of the United States ballistic missile

program, and for his lifetime of work to enhance the security of the

United States.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MAY 23, 2002

Mr. STEARNS (for himself and Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas) submitted the

following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on

Armed Services

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Honoring General Bernard A. Schriever, United States Air

Force (retired), for his dedication and service to the

United States Air Force, for his essential service in

the development of the United States ballistic missile

program, and for his lifetime of work to enhance the

security of the United States.

Whereas the United States Air Force recognizes General Bernard A. Schriever, United States Air Force (retired), as

the architect of the Nation’s ballistic missile and military

space program;

Whereas General Schriever began his military career in 1931

as an Army artillery officer, later transferring to the
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Army Air Corps and attending flight school and flying 36

combat missions during World War II;

Whereas in 1943, General Schriever became chief of the

Maintenance and Engineering Division, 5th Air Force

Service Command, and then commander of the advance

headquarters, Far East Air Service Command, which

supported theater operations from bases in Hollandia,

New Guinea, Leyte, Manila, and Okinawa;

Whereas General Schriever was promoted to the grade of

colonel at the remarkably young age of 33;

Whereas following World War II, General Schriever was assigned to the position of Chief of the Scientific Liaison

Section under the Deputy Chief of Staff for Material,

Army Air Forces headquarters, and while in that post,

introduced the development planning documents that

linked ongoing research and development efforts with

long-range military planning;

Whereas General Schriever’s leadership and technological expertise were responsible for the creation of an operational

intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM);

Whereas in 1954, the Air Force’s highest priority was the development of the first intercontinental ballistic missile,

the Atlas, and soon thereafter development of that missile

became a top national priority under the Eisenhower administration to counter the Soviet nuclear threat;

Whereas at that time the Soviet Union had produced nuclear

and thermonuclear bombs and was pursuing an ‘‘aggressive rocket technology program’’ culminating in the October 1957 launch and orbit of the Sputnik satellite;

Whereas General Schriever was assigned to head the Air

Force’s Western Development Division (later called the
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Ballistic Missile Division), which was solely responsible

for planning, programming, and developing the intercontinental ballistic missile;

Whereas the size and funding of the Western Development

Division was larger than that of the Manhattan project;

Whereas the Air Force conducted the first successful test

launch of an Atlas missile on December 17, 1957, and

by 1963 the Strategic Air Command had deployed 13

Atlas missiles squadrons with 120 missiles on alert to

meet the contemporary Soviet threat;

Whereas General Schriever oversaw the simultaneous development of the Atlas missile and the intermediate-range ballistic missile, Thor, which achieved an initial operating

capability in 1959;

Whereas in April 1961 General Schriever was assigned command of the newly created Air Force Systems Command;

Whereas the more advanced Titan intercontinental ballistic

missile reached initial operating capability by April 1962,

and 10 Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missiles were

placed in service in October 1962 in response to the

Cuban Missile Crisis;

Whereas General Schriever’s efforts produced, within eight

years, four complete missile systems for the United

States;

Whereas, by contrast, the F–102 fighter aircraft alone took

10 years to develop;

Whereas the Atlas missile is still used as a satellite launch

vehicle;

Whereas Walter J. Boyne, former Director of the National

Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution,
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states ‘‘Today’s navigational, meteorological, intelligence,

and communication satellites owe their existence to the

work of Schriever and his team’’;

Whereas General Schriever retired from the Air Force in the

grade of general in 1966 after 33 years of service;

Whereas after retirement, General Schriever served as a

member of the President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory

Board, the Defense Science Board, and the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization Advisory Committee; and

Whereas America’s dominance in space today is due in large

part to the leadership, talent, and selfless service of General Bernard A. Schriever: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That Congress recognizes and honors General

3 Bernard A. Schriever, United States Air Force (retired),

4 for his dedication and service to the United States Air

5 Force, for his essential service in the development of the

6 United States ballistic missile program, and for his life7 time of work to enhance the security of the United States.

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