ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. -- Gen. Bernard A. Schriever frequently visited Arnold Engineering Development Center during its early years.
As such, Schriever, referred to in the Air Force as the “Father of Air Force space and missiles,” was present to witness or contribute to significant events occurring at or involving the Center. Examples include his attendance at the June 1951 dedication of AEDC and his work several years later with Bernhard Goethert to bring the University of Tennessee Space Institute to fruition.
While leading the nation’s Intercontinental Ballistic Missile program, Schriever also relied on AEDC for aerodynamic and rocket propulsion data.
“Schriever was a truly unique leader of America’s missile and space programs,” states Schriever’s profile on the U.S. Space Force website. “Those who followed his career believed he made his own decisions and was an independent and creative thinker. He earned the respect of influential figures in the Air Force such as Gen. Henry H. ‘Hap’ Arnold, Gen. Thomas D. White, Gen. Curtis E. Lemay, Gen. Donald L. Putt, fairly early in his career.”
The son of an engineering officer on a German ship line, Schriever was born in Bremen, Germany, in 1910. He came to America in 1917 when his parents emigrated from Germany and settled in Texas. Schriever became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1923.
Schriever graduated from Texas A & M University in 1931 with a Bachelor of Science in architectural engineering.
A Reserve Officer Training Corps cadet at the university, Schriever in late 1931 accepted a commission in the Army Field Artillery.
In June 1932, Schriever entered the Army Air Corps Flying School. The following month, he began flight training at Randolph Field, Texas, and earned his wings and commission in the Air Corps in June 1933 at Kelly Field, Texas.
According to his profile on the U.S. Space Force website, Schriever was a member of the Air Reserves from July 1933 to September 1938, serving on active duty until April 1935. He returned to active duty in the fall of 1936 and went to Panama for duty at Albrook Field.
In September 1937, Schriever left the Air Corps to fly as a pilot with Northwest Airlines.
Schriever returned to duty in October 1938 after passing the Air Corps examination for commission as a Regular second lieutenant and took an assignment with the 7th Bombardment Group at Hamilton Field, California.
The following year, he became a test pilot at Wright Field, Ohio, where he also attended the Air Corps Engineering School, graduating in 1941.
Schriever also took an advanced course in aeronautical engineering at Stanford University. He was promoted to captain in April 1942. That June, he earned his master’s degree from Standford as a newly promoted major.
The following month, Schriever went to the Pacific for combat with the 19th Bombardment Group, taking part in the Bismarck Archipelago, Leyte, Papua, North Solomon, South Philippine and Ryukyu campaigns.
In January 1943, Schriever moved to the 5th Air Force Service Command, serving in maintenance and engineering assignments as a chief of staff. He went on to become commanding officer of Advanced Headquarters for the Far East Air Service Command.
Schriever was promoted to lieutenant colonel in August 1943 and to colonel that December.
“After the massive demobilization that followed World War II, the Army Air Forces had few officers with qualifications like Schriever’s,” the Space Force profile states. “Colonel Schriever’s experience, education, practicality, and analytical bent destined him for technical duties.”
In January 1946, Schriever accepted an assignment at the Army Air Forces Headquarters at the Pentagon as Chief of the Scientific Liaison Branch in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Materiel.
In an excerpt from the book The U.S. Air Force in Space, Schriever wrote he accepted this position, offered by Gen. Arnold, his previous boss, because many of the scientists that helped make significant technological breakthroughs during the war were returning to their civilian jobs at universities but the Army Air Forces needed to “maintain a close and cooperative relationship with the scientific community.”
“It is not enough to just have a close relationship with the aviation industry,” Schriever wrote.
In this role, Schriever worked closely with several scientists whose research formed the foundation of the current space program, including Theodore von Kármán, who had been asked by Gen. Arnold around the mid-1940s to form an advisory group to provide recommendations on the future direction of aviation research.
“Von Kármán took the young colonel under his wing and introduced him to many leading scientists, enabling Schriever to establish valuable connections with the scientific and technical community,” the Space Force profile states.
Schriever, in turn, worked with the Scientific Advisory Group to ensure “that they understood the goals of the nation’s leadership,” while ensuring the government “gave the board what it needed,” according to Beyond the Speed of Sound, a book detailing the history of AEDC.
“Soon, Schriever found himself at the center of a select group of young officers who believe the Air Force had slighted scientific research and development since Gen. ‘Hap’ Arnold’s retirement in February 1946,” the Space Force profile states. “This group prevailed upon Air Force’s leadership to commission a [Scientific Advisory Board] study of research and development (R&D). Dr. Louis Ridenour, one of the original group of consultants to Project RAND, headed a committee of scientists that reviewed the status of R&D in the Air Force. The Ridenour Committee agreed with Schriever and his fellow officers that creating a research and development command would vastly improve R&D in the Air Force. A parallel study by a military committee, at the same time, concurred. The military committee also recommended that the Air Staff add a Deputy Chief of Staff for Development.
“These suggestions led to the Air Force’s formation of the Air Research and Development Command and the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Development at the Air Staff.”
AEDC was assigned to the Air Research and Development Command, which was established in the early 1950s. The ARDC was later redesignated Air Force Systems Command under Schriever.
In mid-1950, Schriever graduated from the National War College and returned to Headquarters Air Force. There, he joined the new Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Development, serving as Deputy Assistant for Evaluation.
“In addition, he became a proponent of American preparedness,” states the Space Force profile. “He asserted, at this time: ‘Obsolete weapons invite national disaster,’ and, wherever he went, he advocated the development and deployment of missiles to provide for America’s security.”
Schriever was promoted to brigadier general in June 1953. In June of the following year, he began what Beyond the Speed of Sound referred to as a “long association” with ARDC as assistant to the commander. The next month, Schriever led a small group of officers who went to Los Angeles to organize and form what later became the Air Force’s Ballistic Systems Division under Air Force Systems Command.
“The end products were ballistic missiles such as Thor, Atlas, Titan and Minuteman and all of the aerospace systems that have been launched into orbit, including support for NASA’s man-in-space programs,” Beyond the Speed of Sound states.
The development of ICBMs had become a national priority around the mid-1950s. The urgency was accelerated following the Soviet Union’s launch of the Sputnik satellite in October 1957.
Schriever was promoted to two-star rank in December 1955. He left Los Angeles in 1958.
From 1959 to 1963, Schriever served as commander of ARDC, which became Air Force Systems Command on April 1, 1961, under redesignation initiated by Schriever himself.
“As commander of AFSC, General Schriever was responsible for the development of all Air Force weapons,” the Space Force profile states. “In addition, in partnership with National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), he began transforming his missiles into reliable launching systems for sending man into space. He supported NASA's manned space programs by providing modified Atlas and Titan boosters and launch services at Cape Canaveral.
“By 1962, General Schriever was intimately involved in the activation of missile sites and the deployment of operational Titan and Minuteman missiles to the Strategic Air Command. He played an important part in the growth of the Minuteman force, which became a vital part of the strategic deterrent countering any nuclear attack. Not resting on this success, General Schriever, at the same time, also oversaw the development of more advanced missiles.”
Schriever was promoted to lieutenant general in April 1959 and to full general on July 1, 1961.
Schriever retired in 1966 but continued to act as an adviser for various corporate and government clients.
Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado, was named for him in 1998. That installation is now known as Schriever Space Force Base.
Schriever was recognized as an Honorary AEDC Fellow in 2004 for his efforts in shaping the Air Force and AEDC.
He passed away on June 20, 2005, at the age of 94.
This is the 14th in a series of articles highlighting the history of Arnold Engineering Development Complex during its first 75 years. Additional articles will be published throughout 2026 to commemorate the anniversary of AEDC.