Kepner was born in 1893, and served in the Marines prior to and during WWI. By the 1920s he had become an expert in military uses of balloons. In the 1930s he was chief of Wright Field's lighter-than-air research. By WWII, he was at Langley and commanded the 8th pursuit group, then to Mitchell Field, and commanded all aviation under the 1st Army. In 1942 he was promoted to Brig. General and took over 8th Fighter Command in the European Theatre. By 1945 he headed the 9th Air Force. Post the war, he spent time at various Pentagon duties, including Chief of the USAF Atomic Energy Division. He became commander at Eglin AFB and the Alaska Command before retiring in 1953. Kepner's linkage to NICAP is as unknown and as brief as General Wedemeyer's, and parallels it time wise. According to Dick Hall, he joined NICAP early [1956] and accepted Keyhoe's invitation to be a board member. By later 1957 that public association was no longer true.