Air Force celebrates 66th birthday Published Sept. 20, 2013 By Airman 1st Class Jonathan Bass 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. -- With the Air Force's birthday having happened this week, it is important to look back and see how the Air Force has grown since its inception 66 years ago. The 20th Fighter Wing can trace its heritage back to 1930, even before the Air Force was a separate service, with the birth of the 20th Pursuit Group, said Art Sevigny, the 20th FW base historian. "We can lay claim to that heritage, due to a temporary bestowal of the 20th Fighter Group's History, Battle Honors and Colors grated to the 20 FW in a 1954 letter which has remained in effect ever since" Sevigny said. Looking back at that heritage brings to mind the words written in our creed, "I am faithful to a proud heritage, a tradition of honor, and a legacy of valor." "Not to sound cliché, but it's very evident and enrooted in the fabric of what we stand for," said Chief Master Sgt. James Wilkerson, the 20th FW command chief. "It's mentioned throughout the Airman's Creed." Fast forward a decade, to June of 1941; the war department established the Army Air Forces under Maj. Gen. Hap Arnold, said Sevigny. Then in January 1942, the 20th PG was redesignated as the 20th Fighter Group. Sevigny said that even from the earliest dates when air superiority was realized, there were supporters of a separate air service. Before the vision of a separate Air Force was to be realized, the 20th FG moved to Shaw Field, S.C., in October 1946, Sevigny said. It would take until 1947 for the Air Force to be born. On July 26, President Harry Truman signed the National Security Act, thus creating the Air Force. On Aug. 15, the 20th FW was activated at Shaw Field, and on Sept. 18, W. Stuart Symington took his oath of office as the first Secretary of the Air Force, Sevigny said. Throughout the 1950s and on into 1994, the 20th FW would jump around the U.K. as a deterrent to the Soviet Union, Sevigny said. In 1952, while the 20th was at Langley AFB before moving to the U.K., , the wing became the USAF's first nuclear capable fighter unit. The wing would stay in the U.K. until Jan. 1 1994, when the 20th moved from the U.K., back to Shaw AFB. The Air Force's birthday is a very personable affair. With bases all over the world, Airmen celebrate it with the same grandeur as their own. "Personal birthdays are always celebrated no matter where you're at in the world," Wilkerson said. "The Air Force's birthday is no different, whether we were in garrison or we were serving in overseas contingency operations, we always find a way and a how to make sure we celebrate our history as the United States Air Force. I've been all over the world; I've been to a bunch of countries, and no matter where I've been, we have always celebrated the Air Force's birthday when I was deployed." Wilkerson said that to honor this day we need to reflect, congratulate and celebrate the heritage and the history of the USAF. "Live the Airman's Creed. Be faithful and proud of your heritage, because you're a part of history," Wilkerson said.