The World War I Years (1917–1919)

The period that transformed Fleet from a skilled aviator into a national leader in aviation safety, training, and engineering.

The World War I Years (1917–1919)

When the United States entered World War I, military aviation was still in its infancy. Aircraft were fragile, unpredictable machines, and the country faced the urgent challenge of training thousands of new pilots in an incredibly short time. Into this crucible stepped Reuben H. Fleet.

Fleet quickly rose to become one of America’s key aviation leaders, directing flight training programs, enforcing new safety standards, and bringing discipline to an environment where accidents were tragically common. His reforms were practical, immediate, and lifesaving.

During this period, Fleet also became deeply involved in engineering improvements. He worked to correct dangerous flaws in early military aircraft and championed innovations—such as improved fuel distribution systems—that saved countless lives by preventing catastrophic spins.

The war years forged Fleet’s lifelong mission: to make aviation safer, more reliable, and more worthy of the pilots who risked everything to fly.

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Explore This Era

• Training Command
  Fleet’s leadership of America’s wartime flight schools and his efforts to reduce deadly accidents.

• Safety Innovations
  His early reforms to aircraft procedures, design oversight, and operational standards.

• Spin Recovery System
  The breakthrough fuel-balancing method that dramatically improved recovery from spins.

• Improving the DH-4
  Fleet’s role in correcting the dangerous flaws of America’s primary WWI aircraft.