Air Force
Valor Friday
We discussed yesterday the recent passing of Brigadier General Clarence “Bud” Anderson. He was the last American triple ace still living. He shot down 16 German Luftwaffe planes in the skies over Europe between 8 March and 5 December 1944. He earned five Distinguished Flying Crosses for his successes. Read them here. Post-war, Anderson remained […]
Beards for Airmen and Guardians
The Navy did a study to investigate the effects that facial hair has on gas mask use. The Navy hasn’t released the study’s details yet. An amendment has been added to the annual defense authorization bill that would call for a pilot program for some Air Force and Space Force personnel to grow beards. The […]
Last Triple Ace dies, age 102
Let that sink in. Triple Ace. At least fifteen kills – in his case, 16 in air-to-air combat. One Israeli in the Six Day War has 17, and Ukraine claimed one of theirs (since disputed) with 40, but since WWII these have been few and far between.* Clarence E. “Bud” Anderson arrived in the European […]
US Air Force Instructor Dies After Ejection Seat Activates
A USAF flight instructor has died after his ejection seat was activated. The officer was in a T-6A Texan II (type pictured above), which is fitted with a “Zero-Zero” ejection seat. Seats of those type are designed to deploy at zero airspeed and zero altitude. Earlier models had minimum altitude and/or speed requirements. Simple Flying […]
Hard Call
You may have read last week that a young Air Force man, Roger Fortson, assigned to the 4th Special Operatons Squadron at Florida’s Hulrburt Field was shot by police after a domestic disturbance call was placed. The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office was responding to a disturbance between a man and woman in the apartment building, […]
Dick Rutan into the skies one last time
You should remember Dick Rutan, the Air Force Vietnam vet who set a world record by flying around the world non-refueled and non-stop in 1985. He died May 3rd at the age of 85. Originally a RIO in the F-101 Voodoo, he earned his pilot’s wings in 1966. Rutan served during the Vietnam War as […]
Jack Teixeira to face military justice proceeding
Jack Teixeira pleaded guilty to federal charges related to leaking highly classified documents. He pleaded guilty to six counts of willful retention and transmission of national defense information under the Espionage Act. Jack Teixeira is now going to face two charges with the military for failing to obey a lawful order and for obstructing justice. […]
Drone Aces in the Air Force
Nice shooting, Stud. So does the Air Force have new aces now? The math involved in recent shootdowns of Iranian drones suggests yes. BY NICHOLAS SLAYTON The U.S. Air Force defines an “ace” as any pilot that has more than five combat kills. It’s been decades since American pilots reached that status, but that might […]
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