Extra Duty

ARMED FORCES Extra Duty General James A. Van Fleet had—in the opinion of his West Point Classmate Dwight Eisenhower—the best World War II combat record of "any regimental, division or corps commander we produced." On his recent visit to Korea, Eisenhower chatted with Van Fleet about his retirement, due this January; Van Fleet decided to put it off. There remained one hitch: for Van Fleet to remain on active duty, he needed the approval of Army Secretary Frank Pace Jr., who did not relish the fact that a Van Fleet letter criticizing Administration military policy had been used by Ike in his campaign.

Last week Secretary Pace named two generals who would stay on active duty two months beyond their scheduled retirements at the age of 60. The two: Lieut. General Manton S. Eddy, commander in chief, U.S. Army, Europe—and Van Fleet.