I can't recall the source, but I've read that Gen. Curtis LeMay ordered that the Air Force adopt the .38 Special for its aircrews and security forces.
LeMay was a pistol shooter, and disliked the 1911A1 because it was hard to train recruits with. The .38 Special was easier to shoot accurately.
Also, there are allegations that LeMay wanted the highly refined Smith & Wesson Model 15 because it was far more accurate than the military 1911A1 .45, and each service competed in shooting matches against each other with their duty weapon.
The rules demanded that only the duty weapon could be used, and it could not be altered.
The Air Force could rightfully claim that the Model 15, with its adjustable sights, target trigger and hammer, and smooth action IS its duty weapon. This gave the Air Force a big advantage over the other services, who competed with the less-accurate .45 auto.
The Model 15 has long been noted for being an exceptionally accurate revolver. The one I carried in the late 1970s as a Security Policeman (Law Enforcement Specialist) would put 100 148 gr. wadcutters into one large, ragged hole at 25 yards that I could cover with my palm.
We carried the 130 gr. full metal jacket load, but never fired it. All qualification was done with Winchester factory 148 gr. wadcutters.
So how did the 130 gr. full metal jacket bullet get adopted?
In the early 1950s the Air Force adopted an all-aluminum .38 Special snubnose revolver for its pilots. At the time, the Air Force was manic about weight, and every bit of equipment was weighed down to the ounce. If it could be made lighter, it was done so.
According to a friend of mine, who was a USAF survival instructor at the time, the all-aluminum revolver also meant that captured aircrew members didn't provide a useable weapon to the enemy.
According to my friend, the .38 revolver with an aluminum cylinder and barrel was good for about 200 full metal jacket rounds before it was worn out and useless.
However, the standard full metal jacket load at that time employed a 158 gr. bullet. This was the load used in World War II with standard .38 Special revolvers.
In the aluminum revolver, this load was excessive at 17,000 pounds per square inch pressure. So, bullet weight was reduced to 130 grains, and pressure was reduced to 13,000 psi. This also reduced velocity to about 725 feet per second from a 4" barrel.
With the 130 gr. full metal jacket load, the all-aluminum (commonly known as the Aircrewman) revolver lasted longer. This was a major concern, because pilots needed to qualify with this revolver.
The light M41 ammunition wasn't as harsh on the all-aluminum revolver.
Unfortunately, the Air Force also adopted the M41 ammo for its larger, stronger K-frame Model 15 "Combat Masterpiece."
This resulted in an exceptionally fine sidearm being hampered by a very weak load: 130 gr. bullet at 725 fps.
In the 1970s, Speer sold in its "Lawman" line a load that pushed a 150 gr. full metal jacket bullet at about 950 fps from a 4" barrel. Some Security Police members purchased this ammo on their own, and carried it. This was strictly against regulation, and if you shot someone with it you'd be in real trouble, but it was figured that at least you'd be alive to face charges.
It was easy to spot who was doing it, as the Speer cases were nickel-plated. A quick glance at the cylinder in the SP's holster revealed who was carrying the nickel-plated Speer loads. Air Force loads had brass cases.
I knew a sergeant who shot at a fleeing vehicle with the weak, M41 ammunition. All bullets bounced off the trunk and rear window. None of the bullet reached the passenger compartment.
The all-aluminum Aircrewman didn't last long in the Air Force. It was replaced by the Model 15 or Model 10 .38 Special, with either a 2 or 4-inch barrel, and these were issued to aircrew members.
Later, probably beginning in the early 1960s, the Smith & Wesson Model 39 9mm auto pistol was issued to general officers and aircrew members. I believe the 9mm load was a 115 gr. bullet at around 1,200 fps.
We Security Police were obviously expendable, forced to carry revolvers that were slow to reload, with weak ammunition. There was a lot of grumbling about this blatant favoritism. After all, when did you EVER see a general NEED a sidearm?
Anyway, concerns over providing the enemy, via captured aircrew members, a useable pistol of .38 or 9mm caliber apparently vanished.
Probably for reasons of economy, and to avoid supply confusion, the 130 gr. full metal jacket at around 750 fps was deemed suitable for the Model 15 as well.
It became the military standard for all services. The last 158 gr. full metal jacket standard loads for the U.S. military were probably made in the early to mid 1950s.
I've heard rumors that 158 gr. +P loads were made in the late 1970s and early 1980s for trials, but never adopted.
However, in the late 1970s the Air Force DID adopt a load with a 130 gr. full metal jacket load seated deeper in the case, to increase velocity. This was the PGU 12/B High Velocity cartridge. It used the same 130 gr. FMJ bullet loaded to 20,000 psi, which increased velocity to about 950 fps in a 4" barrel.
The .38 Special was gradually replaced by the Beretta M9 9mm auto. However, not long ago I spoke to a retired USAF radar repairman who worked in South America a great deal. He said that as late as 1995 they were handed a Smith & Wesson Model 15, web belt, holster, and box of ammo before going to remote sites.
The Security Police, aircrews and others carried the M9, but the radar guys were handed the .38s. Apparently, there weren't enough 9mms to go around.
He said they felt as though their lives weren't worth as much as those who were given the 9mms.
I told him about seeing aircrewmen and generals walking around with new Smith & Wesson Model 39 9mm autos, while we Security Police were carrying Model 15s. I knew how he felt.
The Model 15 was an outstanding revolver, however, and still is. After years without one, I finally picked up one like-new, made in 1977. The same 4" barrel, but nickel-plated.
It is an extremely accurate revolver. My eyes are older, and I can't shoot the groups that I did as a Security Policeman, but I can still put all six rounds into the abdomen and thorax of a police silhouette at 50 yards.
I shoot 158 gr. lead semiwadcutters through it, over a healthy dose of Unique powder. The 130 gr. full metal jacket military loads -- still sold by Winchester and Remington -- are good for rabbits when you don't want to destroy meat intended for cooking.
I sure wouldn't carry the 130 gr. loads for self defense, though. For that, I carry my own reloads, or the 158 gr. soft lead hollowpoint bullet load dubbed the "FBI Load," as made by Remington.
My Model 15 is my "desert roaming" gun -- and every shot brings back a lot of fond memories.