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Air Force celebrates 68th birthday

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Diana Cossaboom
  • 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. --  In 1947, the U.S. Air Force was born, created from experience and need, and grown through innovation and dedication.

President Harry S. Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947, activating the U.S. Air Force and enabling the United States to breed Airmen who fly, fight, and win against worldwide threats in air, space, and cyberspace.

"There was a time in the history of the world where warfare was waged on land alone," said Col. Bill Jones, 20th Fighter Wing vice commander. "Sometime later someone looked out across the water and decided to use that domain as a means to gain a military advantage. Fast forward to World War I, the nations of this world recognized a new domain available to them and of course that domain was called air. And so our national leaders, shortly after World War II, declared that our nation would have a new fighting force whose mission was to not only operate within this new domain, but to dominate it."

On September 18th, the U.S. Air Force will have provided protection in the skies and throughout cyberspace for 68 years.

"Our Nation requires not only a flexible, precise, and lethal force that is capable of rapidly responding anywhere on the globe to protect and advance America's interests," said Chief Master Sgt. Christopher McKinney, 20th FW command chief, citing a quote from 'Global Vigilance, Global Reach, Global Power for America' written by Gen. Mark Welsh, U.S. Air Force chief of staff, "but also one that can do so at a relatively low cost in relation to the return on investment. The Air Force meets this need and offers freedom of action to our joint and coalition partners through our ability to integrate our core missions to provide global vigilance, global reach, and global power."

Throughout the years the U.S. Air Force has shaped and grown into the combat-ready force that it is today and will continue to grow through innovation and flexibility provided by the unique Airmen who continuously accomplish the Air Force's vision.

"At our core, we are the same as the great Airmen who went before us," said McKinney. "We are innovative, we are tenacious, and we refuse to lose. We have built upon this solid foundation and developed to become more versatile and lethal. Our Airmen now deploy into joint environments and operate seamlessly with coalition partners or our sister services to bring about strategic objectives without batting an eye. We have some phenomenal Airmen, military and civilian."

This year's birthday theme is 'Wild Blue Yonder: yesterday, today, and tomorrow.'

There was a time in the early years when the Air Force would send 1,000 B-17 bombers to cover one high school campus sized target and would take pride in dropping a bomb within one mile of the target. Today, a four ship of F-16s loaded with precision weapons has greater firepower and a much higher probability of achieving desired weapons effects than hundreds of bombers, said Jones.

"When I think about what has developed since 1947, three key points come to mind: technology, doctrine, and education," said Jones. "To lead our Air Force through its many challenges and obstacles that lay ahead in our Air Force's future, we must have a force that can think, analyze, and operate independently without the constraints of micromanagement. The only way to have a force like this is through deliberate and focused education. Education is knowledge, knowledge is power, power is peace."

The future of the Air Force is molded by the successes and failures made in the past, the contributions and innovation of the Airmen today, and the determination and perseverance of the future Airmen. The United States Air Force has upheld its dominance in the skies and its Airmen and leadership are determined to continue its legacy for many years to come.