Top Air Force Stories for March 2, 2012

Today's stories include:

Air Force women trace history to World War II 
http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123292278

Global Strike commander: Nuclear deterrence fundamental to national security 
http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123292281

Air Force Museum offers virtual tour 
http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123292252

Fifth generation fighters crucial to air superiority 
http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123292196

Air Force Week in Photos 
http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123292097



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Air Force women trace history to World War II

by Martha Lockwood
Defense Media Activity

FORT GEORGE G. MEADE, Md. (AFNS) -- The Air Force's acceptance of women into the force dates back to long before the first "Women's History Week" celebration in 1978.

In 1942, the U.S. Army Air Corps took the unheard-of step of forming and employing two women's aviation units. That same year, a unit of flight nurses who had not yet quite finished their training, were sent into North Africa on Christmas Day following the Allied invasion in November of that year.

And the history of women--civilian and military--was forever changed.

WASPS, WAFS and a Willingness to Serve

Originally, the idea of using women pilots was first suggested in 1930, but was considered "unfeasible," according to information maintained at the National Museum of the Air Force in Dayton, Ohio.

Then, in mid-1942, an increased need for World War II combat pilots, favored the use of experienced women pilots to fly aircraft on non-combat missions.

Two women's aviation units--The Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS--with a capital S) and the Women's Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) were formed to ease this need. More than 1,000 women participated in these programs as civilians attached to the USAAC, flying 60 million miles of non-combat military missions.

These two units were merged into a single group, the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) program in August 1943, and broke ground for U.S. Air Force female pilots who would follow in their footsteps decades later.

Of the more than 25,000 women who applied for pilot training under the WASP program, 1,830 were accepted, 1,074 were graduated, and 916 (including 16 former WAFS) remained when the program was disbanded in December 1944. WASP assignments were diverse--as flight training instructors, glider tow pilots, towing targets for air-to-air and anti-aircraft gunnery practice, engineering test flying, ferrying aircraft, and other duties.

Although WASPs had the privileges of officers, they were never formally adopted into the USAAC. In November 1977--33 years after the WASPs program was disbanded--President Carter signed a bill granting World War II veterans' status to former WASPs.
 
"Winged Angels."

It was a slightly different story for flight nurses who were members of the military from the beginning. As it was with so many advances and innovations resulting from World War II, the USAAC radically changed military medical care, and the development of air evacuation and the training of flight nurses were advanced to meet this need.

After the invasion of North Africa in November 1942, the need for flight nurses exceeded the supply, and women who had not yet finished their training were called into action and sent to North Africa on Christmas Day. Finally, in February 1943, the first class of Army Nurse Corps flight nurses graduated.

Unlike their stateside-stationed counterparts in the WASPs, flight nurses (nicknamed "Winged Angels") in the Army Nurse Corps served in combat. They were especially vulnerable to enemy attacks because aircraft used for evacuation could not display their non-combat status.

These same aircraft were also used to transport military supplies. In anticipation and preparation for almost any emergency, flight nurses were required to learn crash procedures, receive survival training, and know the effects of high altitude on a vast array of pathologies.

Of the nearly 1.2 million patients air evacuated throughout the war, only 46 died en route. About 500 USAAC nurses (only 17 died in combat) served as members of 31 medical air evacuation transport squadrons throughout the world.

When President Harry Truman signed The National Security Act of 1947, creating the Department of Defense, the U. S. Air Force became a separate military service. At the time, a number of Women's Army Corps (WACs) members continued serving in the Army but performed Air Force duties.

The following year, some WACs chose to transfer to the Women's Air Force (WAFs--with a lower case s) when it finally became possible to do so.

Originally, the WAFs were limited to 4,000 enlisted women and 300 female officers, all of whom were encouraged to fill a variety of ground duty roles--mostly clerical and medical--but were not to be trained as pilots, even though the USAAC had graduated the first class of female pilots in April 1943, during wartime.

In 1976, when women were accepted into the Air Force on an equal basis with men, the WAF program ended, but not before many milestones were achieved and marked along the way in preparation for today's Air Force woman.

The WAFs in Evolution

The first WAF recruit was Sgt. Esther Blake who enlisted on July 8, 1948, in the first minute of the first day that regular Air Force duty was authorized for women. She had been a WAC, and she transferred in from Fort McPherson, Ga.

The first recruits reported to Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, in 1948. When basic training was desegregated in the Air Force the following year, many African-American women recruits joined, even though the integration of quarters and mess had not yet been achieved.

At first, WAFs wore men's uniforms with neckties. It was "a look" that didn't last long, and inter uniforms for WAFs were modeled after flight attendants' uniforms, using the same material as the men's winter uniforms.

The necktie was abandoned early on, and was replaced with tabs on the collar. The summer uniform--a two-piece dress made of cotton-cord seersucker--didn't fare as well. Ill-fitting, it required frequent ironing. It would be years before a suitable women's uniform would be achieved.

Milestones Along the Way

In its 10-year lifespan, from 1951 to 1961, the 543rd Air Force Band (WAF) was served by 235 women musicians, with approximately 50 members at any one time. This band, the WAF Band as it was known, along with the all-male Air Force Band, served as ambassadors of the Air Force simultaneously.

The WAF band marched in both of President Eisenhower's inaugural parades, and they played for President Kennedy's inauguration, among other concert engagements throughout the nation. The band was deactivated in 1961. Some say that it was a victim of its own success.

It was during this same time period--1956--that a WAF section was introduced into the college-level Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program, and by 1959 four universities were running ROTC WAF sections. By 1970, they had achieved a national presence.
Concurrent with the expansion of the ROTC women's cadet program, Congress passed Public Law 90-130 in 1967, lifting grade restrictions and strength limitations on women in the military.

And with the end of Selective Service (the "draft") in 1973, recruiting practices changed. Shortly afterwards--1976--the separate status of WAF was abolished, and women entered pilot training as military personnel for the first time. (The WASPS and WAFS of World War II had come in to service as civilians with pilots' licenses.) Our country's bicentennial year also saw women entering the service academies, which had not been opened to them prior to President Ford's administration.

By 1993, women were receiving fighter pilot training, and Lt. Gen. Susan J. Helms (then Maj. Helms), member of the first class of the U. S. Air Force Academy to graduate women, was also the first American military woman in space as part of the Space Shuttle Endeavor team.

Coming, full circle, the final chapter for the WAFS and WASPS of World War II was achieved in 1977, when Presiden

Global Strike commander: Nuclear deterrence fundamental to national security

by Kelly Deichert
Air University Public Affairs

MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. (AFNS) -- The commander of Air Force Global Strike Command visited here recently to discuss the command's mission and its significance to Air Force operations.

Lt. Gen. Jim Kowalski spoke to students from the Air War College, School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, and Air Command and Staff College.

AFGSC's role in maintaining strategic stability, deterring political adversaries, and reassuring allies and partners of the superiority of the U.S.'s nuclear force is a vital part of the Air Force's nuclear deterrence mission, Kowalski said.

"This command is intent on restoring the focus on the nuclear deterrence mission by returning the professionalism and discipline within the command," the general said.

"Fundamentally, deterrence is about affecting the mind of your adversary," Kowalski said. "Nuclear deterrence is about creating fear ... it is constant pressure on rational states to avoid escalation."

Since the command activated in August 2009, the command's 23,000 Airmen have operated six wings that organize, train, equip and maintain America's nuclear forces, including Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles and B-2 Spirit and B-52 Stratofortress bomber aircraft. They also provide combat-ready forces for nuclear deterrence and global strike operations in support of the president.

In May 2009, the president said as long as these weapons exist, the U.S. will have a safe, secure and effective nuclear arsenal, Kowalski said.

"Those are the guiding words for our command," he said.

To achieve that objective, AFGSC aims to restore and sustain a culture of trust, maintain the current levels of excellence and modernize for the future.

"As a security forces officer charged with securing the weapons and personnel vital to critical military missions, I recognize that protecting the U.S. nuclear force must be our number one priority," said Lt. Col. Patrick Donley, an Air War College student in the audience.

The general recognized the challenge of maintaining weapons in a fiscally conservative climate, and he said the command is focused on low-cost, high-leverage solutions.

"Every other nuclear power is modernizing for the future," Kowalski said. "We've got to keep the balance, showing our national commitment to sustaining long term."

Students at the Air War College said they appreciated Kowalski's dedication to keeping the nuclear program financially viable.

"Upgrades and modernizations to the existing nuclear-capable bombers and missile force will continue, but tough decisions in a fiscally constrained environment remain," said Lt. Col. Michael Adderley, an Air War College student here.

Kowalski's visit here reinforced AFGSC's commitment to the future of the nuclear program, ensuring Air Force leaders are aware of the command's message and purpose, according to attendees.

Air Force Museum offers virtual tour

by Sarah Swan
National Museum of the U.S. Air Force

DAYTON, Ohio (AFNS) -- The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force Virtual Tour is now fully embedded with audio and video hotspots, and touch-screen devices, offering online visitors the opportunity to experience the entire museum.

Located at www.nmusafvirtualtour.com, the final two areas to be embedded -- the Cold War Gallery, with over 300 hotspots, and the Missile and Space Gallery, with close to 60 hotspots -- are now interactive with initial materials, allowing users to click on an artifact or exhibit and access factsheets, audio tour podcasts with printable transcripts, videos and interactive touch-screen displays.

Online visitors can see an array of aircraft and exhibits in the Cold War Gallery, which features an SR-71A Blackbird, B-1B Lancer, F-117F Nighthawk, A-10A Thunderbolt II and the world's only permanent public display of a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber. Other exhibits include Office of Special Investigations, Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Warrior Airmen.

The Apollo 15 Command Module and Mercury and Gemini capsules are located at the entrance to the Missile and Space Gallery. In the gallery are eight different rockets and missiles, ranging from the Minuteman to the Peacekeeper, and exhibits including astronaut food, re-entry vehicles, the Stargazer and Excelsior gondolas, and the 5-star general's insignia belonging to Gen. Henry "Hap" Arnold, which flew aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour in 2011.

The virtual tour features more than 360 aerospace vehicles and missiles on display at the museum amid more than 17 acres of indoor exhibit space. Thousands of personal artifacts, photographs and documents further highlight the people and events that comprise the Air Force storyline, from the beginnings of military flight to today's war on terrorism.

Creating and embedding material in the virtual tour took more than a year. Consisting of nearly 75,000 files and more than 1,200 clickable hotspots, the tour will be an ongoing process to update and add new content.

"We still have a lot of work to do on this project," said Bryan Carnes, who developed the tour along with a contractor. "Although we have the initial content available for our online visitors to view, we will be adding more video, audio, interactive and educational materials associated with specific aircraft and artifacts in the museum."

"The museum is always expanding and changing," said retired Lt. Gen. John L. Hudson, the museum director. "With the addition of several important artifacts like the three recently declassified National Reconnaissance Office satellites, acquisition of NASA's Crew Compartment Trainer, renovation of the Southeast Asia War Gallery and plans to construct a fourth building, the virtual tour will continue to evolve as well."

The museum offers online visitors various ways to experience the tour, whether it is downloading podcasts from iTunes or accessing the tour through handheld devices. An application is also in development for download on Android and iPhone devices and is anticipated to be available by the summer.

The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force is located in Dayton, Ohio, and is open seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. Admission and parking are free. For more information about the museum, visit www.nationalmuseum.af.mil.

Fifth generation fighters crucial to air superiority

by Tech. Sgt. Jess Harvey
Air Force Public Affairs Agency

WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- The Air Force is the world's most advanced air and space force and, with the integration of fifth generation aircraft, is gaining new tactical advantages that transcend beyond just stealth into areas such as enhanced maneuverability, multi-role capabilities and fused sensor and avionics systems that can communicate with other weapons systems.

That's why it is imperative that U.S. forces continue to develop and begin to use fifth-generation fighters as they transition to the new Pacific-based strategy, according to Lt. Gen. Herbert J. "Hawk" Carlisle, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Plans and Requirements, Headquarters U.S. Air Force.

During the Air Force Association monthly breakfast here Feb. 28, he said fifth-generation fighters, such as the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and the F-22 Raptor, are critical to maintaining air superiority and global precision attack core competencies.

"The threat environment is continuing to grow, so as we look at how we're going to maintain those competencies in the future, that's where fifth generation fighters come in," he said. "It's not just about stealth."

"The F-22 is better than any other aircraft in the world at air-to-ground except for the F-35, and the F-35 is better than any other aircraft in the world at air-to-air except for the F-22," said Carlisle.

The general said the Air Force can continue to maintain the most elite fourth generation aircraft in the world, but that won't prepare the U.S. to handle threats in the future.
"Our Air Force has got to keep evolving to meet these new challenges as we move forward into the future," said Carlisle.

To illustrate this evolution and fifth generation fighter jet technology, the general shared a scenario in which an F-22 data-links coordinates to a Navy submarine-launched tomahawk missile onto a target.

"Now you have two stealth platforms, a submarine and an F-22, communicating with naval ordnance," he said.

That level of interoperability is a large part of what makes the fifth generation aircraft so vital to the Air Force and U.S. military in general, he added. Aircraft must not only be stealth, but also be highly maneuverable, be able to conduct multiple roles, and these aircraft must also be able to handle sensor and avionics information in a network integrated way not only for the pilot, but for the entire joint force.

"We have to have a fused system capability and have them networked and integrated across the force," he said. "To me, that's as important on a fifth-generation fighter as anything."


Air Force Week in Photos

FORT GEORGE G. MEADE, Md. (AFNS) -- This week's photos feature Airmen around the globe involved in activities supporting expeditionary operations and defending America. This weekly feature showcases the men and women of the Air Force.

View the slideshow.