Subscribe

(Gerald Waller/Stars and Stripes)

Frankfurt, West Germany, July 1949: The Joint Chiefs of Staff are welcomed to Rhein-Main Air Force Base after arriving on the "Independence," President Harry S Truman's private plane (seen in the background). Left to right are Adm. Louis E. Denfeld, Chief of Naval Operations; John J. McCloy, U.S. High Commissioner; Lt. Gen. Clarence R. Huebner, acting commander-in-chief, EUCOM; Gen. Hoyt S. Vandenberg, Air Force Chief of Staff; Lt. Gen. John K. Cannon, USAFE commanding general; and Gen. Omar N. Bradley, Army Chief of Staff. During their 10-day visit to Europe, the three joint chiefs (the Marine Corps did not yet have a full membership) were to confer on collective security with military leaders from participants in the recently-signed North Atlantic Treaty (on which NATO was based) in Frankfurt, London, Paris, Vienna and Rome. After returning to Washington, Bradley was sworn in as the first JCS chairman.

Sign Up for Daily Headlines

Sign up to receive a daily email of today's top military news stories from Stars and Stripes and top news outlets from around the world.

Sign Up Now