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{{Short description|Former CIA agent}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2022}}
{{Infobox person
{{Infobox person
| name = George A. Doole Jr.
| name = George A. Doole Jr.
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| occupation = US Army Air Corps officer; pilot; ran CIA proprietary airline network 1953–1971
| occupation = US Army Air Corps officer; pilot; ran CIA proprietary airline network 1953–1971
| years_active = 50 years
| years_active = 50 years
| known_for = arranged for the escape of the Shah of Iran out of Iran to Egypt
| known_for = Arranging for the escape of the Shah of Iran to Egypt
| notable_works =
| notable_works =
}}
}}


'''George Arntzen Doole Jr.''' (12 August 1909, [[Quincy, Illinois]]<ref name="Smith" /> – 8 March 1985, [[Washington, D.C.]]) was a former [[U.S. Army Air Corps]] officer and [[Pan-Am]] pilot who ran the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]'s proprietary airline network from 1953 to 1971.<ref name="TIME" />
'''George Arntzen Doole Jr.''' (August 12, 1909, [[Quincy, Illinois]]<ref name="Smith" /> – March 8, 1985, [[Washington, D.C.]]) was a former [[U.S. Army Air Corps]] officer and [[Pan-Am]] pilot who ran the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]'s proprietary airline network from 1953 to 1971.<ref name="Time" />


==Education==
==Education==
Doodle graduates from the [[University of Illinois]] in 1931<ref name="WTS">{{cite book |last1=Smith |first1=W. Thomas |title=Encyclopedia of the Central Intelligence Agency |date=2003 |publisher=Infobase Publishing |page=81 |url=https://books.google.com/books/about/Encyclopedia_of_the_Central_Intelligence.html?id=1Jc9wBsImOIC |access-date=25 May 2021}}</ref> and earned a MBA from [[Harvard Business School]].<ref name="TNYT">{{cite news |title=HANGAR PLAQUE HONORS C.I.A.'S AIR OPERATIVE |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/12/30/us/hangar-plaque-honors-cia-s-air-operative.html |access-date=25 May 2021 |publisher=The New York Times |date=December 30, 1985}}</ref>
Doole graduated from the [[University of Illinois]] in 1931<ref name="WTS">{{cite book |last1=Smith |first1=W. Thomas |title=Encyclopedia of the Central Intelligence Agency |date=2003 |publisher=Infobase Publishing |page=81 |isbn=9781438130187 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1Jc9wBsImOIC |access-date=May 25, 2021}}</ref> and earned an MBA from [[Harvard Business School]].<ref name="TNYT">{{cite news |title=Hangar Plaque Honors C.I.A.'S Air Operative |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/12/30/us/hangar-plaque-honors-cia-s-air-operative.html |access-date=May 25, 2021 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=December 30, 1985}}</ref>


==Career==
==Career==
Doole joined the [[U.S. Army]] in 1931, where he trained as a pilot in its [[US Army Air Corps]].<ref name="Smith">W. Thomas Smith (2003), ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=1Jc9wBsImOIC&pg=PA81 Encyclopedia of the Central Intelligence Agency]'', [[Infobase Publishing]]</ref> He became a pilot for [[Pan-Am]] in 1934,<ref name="Smith" /> which included experience flying in Central America between [[Guatemala]] and [[Panama]].<ref name="TIME" /> He served again in the US Army Air Corps during [[World War II]], returning to Pan-Am afterwards.<ref name="Smith" /> In the late 1940s he left Pan-Am.<ref name="TNYT" /> As a Colonel in the Air Force Reserve, Doole was called up for the [[Korean War]] in 1951, serving in the Middle East as chief of estimates for Air Force intelligence, serving under [[Charles P. Cabell]], who Doole had known in the Air Corps in the 1930s.<ref name="Smith" />
Doole joined the [[U.S. Army]] in 1931, where he trained as a pilot in its [[US Army Air Corps]].<ref name="Smith">W. Thomas Smith (2003), ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=1Jc9wBsImOIC&pg=PA81 Encyclopedia of the Central Intelligence Agency]'', [[Infobase Publishing]]</ref> He became a pilot for [[Pan-Am]] in 1934,<ref name="Smith" /> which included experience flying in Central America between [[Guatemala]] and [[Panama]].<ref name="Time" /> He served again in the US Army Air Corps during [[World War II]], returning to Pan-Am afterwards.<ref name="Smith" /> In the late 1940s he left Pan-Am.<ref name="TNYT" /> As a colonel in the Air Force Reserve, Doole was called up for the [[Korean War]] in 1951, serving in the Middle East as chief of estimates for Air Force intelligence, serving under [[Charles P. Cabell]], who Doole had known in the Air Corps in the 1930s.<ref name="Smith" />


In mid-1953 Doole transferred to the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]], recruited by Cabell to oversee [[Civil Air Transport]].<ref name="TIME" /> Although never officially employed by the CIA, Doole was "a legend" in the CIA for his role in creating and managing the agency's proprietary airline network, organised under the [[Pacific Corporation]] from 1959.<ref name="Smith" /> At its mid-1960s peak this included dozens of airlines, including [[Civil Air Transport]] and [[Southern Air Transport]], and employed nearly 20,000 people - as many as the CIA itself, and operated around 200 aircraft. Doole so successfully obfuscated the ownership and control of companies and aircraft that even the CIA was unsure precisely how many were involved.<ref name="TIME" />
In mid-1953 Doole transferred to the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]], recruited by Cabell to oversee [[Civil Air Transport]].<ref name="Time" /> Although never officially employed by the CIA, Doole was "a legend" in the CIA for his role in creating and managing the agency's proprietary airline network, organized under the [[Pacific Corporation]] from 1959.<ref name="Smith" /> At its mid-1960s peak this included dozens of airlines, including [[Civil Air Transport]] and [[Southern Air Transport]], and employed nearly 20,000 people - as many as the CIA itself, and operated around 200 aircraft. Doole so successfully obfuscated the ownership and control of companies and aircraft that even the CIA was unsure precisely how many were involved.<ref name="Time" />


Doole formally retired in 1971, after newspaper investigations and Congressional hearings exposed the network, forcing the CIA to sell it off. Doole remained a director of [[Evergreen International Aviation]], which acquired one of Doole's CIA companies, [[Intermountain Aviation]], in 1975. Doole arranged the 1980 charter flight, on an Evergreen aircraft, which took the Shah of Iran, [[Mohammad Reza Pahlavi]], to Egypt.<ref name="TIME">Evan Thomas, ''[[Time (magazine)|TIME]]'', 7 April 1986, [http://www.air-america.org/Articles/Doole.shtml in Arizona: A Spymaster remembered] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090710021957/http://www.air-america.org/Articles/Doole.shtml |date=2009-07-10 }}</ref>
Doole formally retired in 1971, after newspaper investigations and Congressional hearings exposed the network, forcing the CIA to sell it off. Doole remained a director of [[Evergreen International Aviation]], which acquired one of Doole's CIA companies, [[Intermountain Aviation]], in 1975. Doole arranged the 1980 charter flight, on an Evergreen aircraft, which took the Shah of Iran, [[Mohammad Reza Pahlavi]], to Egypt.<ref name="Time">Evan Thomas, ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'', April 7, 1986, [http://www.air-america.org/Articles/Doole.shtml in Arizona: A Spymaster remembered] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090710021957/http://www.air-america.org/Articles/Doole.shtml |date=July 10, 2009 }}</ref>


== References ==
== References ==

Latest revision as of 08:09, 12 February 2024

George A. Doole Jr.
Born
George Arntzen Doole Jr.

(1909-08-12)August 12, 1909
Washington DC
DiedMarch 8, 1985(1985-03-08) (aged 75)
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)US Army Air Corps officer; pilot; ran CIA proprietary airline network 1953–1971
Years active50 years
Known forArranging for the escape of the Shah of Iran to Egypt

George Arntzen Doole Jr. (August 12, 1909, Quincy, Illinois[1] – March 8, 1985, Washington, D.C.) was a former U.S. Army Air Corps officer and Pan-Am pilot who ran the CIA's proprietary airline network from 1953 to 1971.[2]

Education

[edit]

Doole graduated from the University of Illinois in 1931[3] and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School.[4]

Career

[edit]

Doole joined the U.S. Army in 1931, where he trained as a pilot in its US Army Air Corps.[1] He became a pilot for Pan-Am in 1934,[1] which included experience flying in Central America between Guatemala and Panama.[2] He served again in the US Army Air Corps during World War II, returning to Pan-Am afterwards.[1] In the late 1940s he left Pan-Am.[4] As a colonel in the Air Force Reserve, Doole was called up for the Korean War in 1951, serving in the Middle East as chief of estimates for Air Force intelligence, serving under Charles P. Cabell, who Doole had known in the Air Corps in the 1930s.[1]

In mid-1953 Doole transferred to the CIA, recruited by Cabell to oversee Civil Air Transport.[2] Although never officially employed by the CIA, Doole was "a legend" in the CIA for his role in creating and managing the agency's proprietary airline network, organized under the Pacific Corporation from 1959.[1] At its mid-1960s peak this included dozens of airlines, including Civil Air Transport and Southern Air Transport, and employed nearly 20,000 people - as many as the CIA itself, and operated around 200 aircraft. Doole so successfully obfuscated the ownership and control of companies and aircraft that even the CIA was unsure precisely how many were involved.[2]

Doole formally retired in 1971, after newspaper investigations and Congressional hearings exposed the network, forcing the CIA to sell it off. Doole remained a director of Evergreen International Aviation, which acquired one of Doole's CIA companies, Intermountain Aviation, in 1975. Doole arranged the 1980 charter flight, on an Evergreen aircraft, which took the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, to Egypt.[2]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f W. Thomas Smith (2003), Encyclopedia of the Central Intelligence Agency, Infobase Publishing
  2. ^ a b c d e Evan Thomas, Time, April 7, 1986, in Arizona: A Spymaster remembered Archived July 10, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ Smith, W. Thomas (2003). Encyclopedia of the Central Intelligence Agency. Infobase Publishing. p. 81. ISBN 9781438130187. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Hangar Plaque Honors C.I.A.'S Air Operative". The New York Times. December 30, 1985. Retrieved May 25, 2021.