Commemorating the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the Department of the Air Force and celebrating the United States Air Force for 75 years of serving and defending the United States.

Commemorating the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the Department of the Air Force and celebrating the United States Air Force for 75 years of serving and defending the United States.

Whereas, on August 1, 1907, the Aeronautical Division of the Army Signal Corps, consisting of 1 officer and 2 enlisted men, began operation under the command of Captain Charles deForest Chandler with the responsibility for “all matters pertaining to military ballooning, air machines, and all kindred subjects”;

Whereas, in 1908, the Department of War contracted with the Wright brothers to build 1 heavier-than-air flying machine for the Army and, in 1909, the Department of War accepted the Wright Military Flyer, the first military airplane in the world;

Whereas pilots of the United States, flying with both Allied Air Forces and with the Army Air Service, performed admirably during the course of World War I, the first air war in history, by participating in pursuit, observation, and day and night bombing missions;

Whereas pioneering aviators of the United States, including Mason M. Patrick, William “Billy” Mitchell, Benjamin D. Foulois, Frank M. Andrews, Henry H. “Hap” Arnold, James H. “Jimmy” Doolittle, and Edward “Eddie” Rickenbacker, were among the first individuals to recognize the military potential of airpower and, in the decades following World War I, courageously laid the foundation for the creation of an independent arm for the air forces of the United States;

Whereas General Henry H. “Hap” Arnold drew upon the industrial prowess and human resources of the United States to transform the Army Air Corps from a force of 22,400 men and 2,402 aircraft in 1939, into an entity with a peak wartime strength of 2,400,000 personnel and 79,908 aircraft;

Whereas, on June 20, 1941, the Department of War established the Army Air Forces as the aviation element of that Department and, shortly thereafter, the Department made the Army Air Forces co-equal to the Army Ground Forces;

Whereas the standard for courage, flexibility, and intrepidity in combat was established for all airmen during the first aerial raid in the Pacific Theater on April 18, 1942, when Lieutenant Colonel James “Jimmy” H. Doolittle led 16 North American B–25 Mitchell bombers in a joint operation from the deck of the USS Hornet to strike the Japanese mainland in response to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor;

Whereas the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.), signed into law by President Harry S. Truman, realigned and reorganized the Armed Forces to establish the Department of the Air Force and the United States Air Force (referred to in this preamble as the “USAF”) as separate from other military services;

Whereas, on September 18, 1947, W. Stuart Symington became the first Secretary of the newly formed and independent Air Force, marking the date on which the USAF was established;

Whereas the Air National Guard was also created by the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.) and has played a vital role in guarding the United States and defending freedom in nearly every major conflict and contingency since its creation;

Whereas, on October 14, 1947, the USAF demonstrated the historic and ongoing commitment of the USAF to technological innovation when Captain Charles “Chuck” Yeager piloted the X–1 developmental rocket plane to a speed of Mach 1.07, becoming the first flyer to break the sound barrier in a powered aircraft in level flight;

Whereas the Air Force Reserve, created on April 14, 1948, is comprised of citizen airmen who serve as unrivaled wingmen of the active duty USAF during every deployment and on every mission and battlefield around the world in which the USAF is engaged;

Whereas the USAF carried out the Berlin Airlift in 1948 and 1949 to provide humanitarian relief to post-war Germany and has established a tradition of offering humanitarian assistance when responding to natural disasters and needs across the world;

Whereas the Tuskegee Airmen served the United States with tremendous dignity and honor, overcame segregation and prejudice to become one of the most highly respected fighter groups of World War II, and helped to establish a policy of racial integration within the ranks of the USAF, as, on April 26, 1948, the USAF became the first military branch to integrate, a full 3 months before an Executive order integrated all military services;

Whereas, in the early years of the Cold War, the arsenal of bombers of the USAF, such as the long-range Convair B–58 Hustler and B–36 Peacemaker, and the Boeing B–47 Stratojet and B–52 Stratofortress, served as the preeminent deterrent of the United States against the forces of the Soviet Union and were later augmented by the development and deployment of medium range and intercontinental ballistic missiles, such as the Titan and Minuteman, developed by General Bernard A. Schriever;

Whereas, on April 1, 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed legislation establishing the United States Air Force Academy, the mission of which is to educate, develop, and inspire men and women to become aerospace officers and leaders of impeccable character and knowledge, and which, as of 2022, has graduated 64 classes and commissioned 53,491 officers into the USAF and United States Space Force (referred to in this preamble as the “USSF”);

Whereas, during the Korean War, the USAF employed the first large-scale combat use of jet aircraft, helped to establish air superiority over the Korean Peninsula, protected ground forces of the United Nations with close air support, and interdicted enemy reinforcements and supplies;

Whereas, during the Vietnam War, the USAF engaged in a limited campaign of airpower to assist the South Vietnamese Government in countering the Communist Viet Cong Guerillas and fought to disrupt supply lines, halt enemy ground offensives, and protect United States and Allied Forces;

Whereas, on April 3, 1967, former prisoner of war Paul W. Airey, a career radio operator, aerial gunner, and First Sergeant, became the first Chief Master Sergeant of the USAF;

Whereas, in recent decades, the USAF and coalition partners of the United States have supported successful actions in Grenada, Panama, Iraq, Kuwait, Somalia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Haiti, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, and many other locations around the world;

Whereas USAF Special Operations Forces have served with honor and distinction around the world since their activation in 1990, providing the United States with specialized airpower across the broad spectrum of conflicts in any place and at any time;

Whereas, for over 3 decades beginning in 1990, airmen engaged in continuous combat operations from Operation Desert Shield to Operation Inherent Resolve, demonstrating an air and space expeditionary force of outstanding capability that is ready to fight and win wars and deter aggression whenever and wherever called upon;

Whereas, when terrorists attacked the United States on September 11, 2001, fighter and air refueling aircraft of the USAF took to the skies to fly combat air patrols over major cities of the United States and protect the people of the United States from further attack;

Whereas, on December 20, 2019, in recognition that space had become a warfighting domain, former President Donald Trump signed legislation establishing the USSF as an independent service to ensure that the space domain remained open to all countries;

Whereas, on May 30, 2020, in collaboration and engagement with interagency and commercial partners, the USSF provided unparalleled space launch capabilities in support of the first manned spaceflight from American soil in 9 years;

Whereas, in 2021, in a step toward organizing the forces of the USSF to meet the needs of an independent military service devoted to space, the USSF activated Space Operations Command, Space Systems Command, and Space Training and Readiness Command;

Whereas, to establish a unique and enduring culture for the USSF, the Department of the Air Force redesignated certain Air Force Bases and Air Force Stations supporting the USSF mission as Space Force Bases and Space Force Stations and graduated its first-ever basic military training course taught completely by USSF training instructors;

Whereas space capabilities provide the foundation for everything the United States Armed Forces do, from humanitarian efforts to combat operations;

Whereas, in 2022, following a ‘wings of hope and compassion’ tradition dating back more than a century, when airmen provided food and supplies to Texas flood victims in 1919, the USAF and coalition partners airlifted 124,334 people out of Afghanistan in the largest humanitarian evacuation operation in history, spanning 17 days, 9 countries, 8 time zones, and more than 10 temporary safe havens;

Whereas, since February 24, 2022, airmen and guardians have responded to Russian aggression against Ukraine by guarding the skies of members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (commonly referred to as “NATO”), transporting essential equipment to the Ukrainian military, and providing critical support from space;

Whereas women have played a prominent role in the evolution of the Department of the Air Force, courageously fighting alongside their male counterparts and dedicating their lives to protecting peace, liberty, and freedom around the world as they provide air and space power whenever and wherever needed;

Whereas the Department of the Air Force has made tremendous strides in the global warfighting domain of cyberspace by revolutionizing offensive and defensive capabilities and effects with speed, agility, and surgical precision, thereby ensuring the continuous command, control, and execution of operations in contested, degraded, and limited environments;

Whereas the Civil Air Patrol, as a Total Force partner and auxiliary of the USAF, has maintained a steadfast commitment to the United States and the communities of the United States through a proud legacy of service, from the earliest days of World War II, when the Civil Air Patrol protected the shorelines of the United States, through 2022, as the Civil Air Patrol executes emergency service missions and aerospace education programs;

Whereas the Department of the Air Force is steadfast in the commitment to fielding a world-class air and space expeditionary force by recruiting, training, and educating its officer, enlisted, and civilian corps comprising the active duty, Guard, and Reserve components of the Total Force;

Whereas airmen were imprisoned and tortured during several major conflicts, including World War I, World War II, the Vietnam War, the Korean War, and the Persian Gulf War, and, in the valiant tradition of airmen held captive, continued serving the United States with honor and dignity under the most inhumane circumstances;

Whereas airmen have earned the Medal of Honor 18 times, the Air Force Cross 203 times, the Distinguished Service Cross 42 times, and, since September 11, 2001, the Silver Star 92 times;

Whereas the USAF and the USSF are tremendous stewards of resources in developing and applying groundbreaking technology to manage complex acquisition programs for all air and space weapon systems throughout their life cycles;

Whereas talented and dedicated airmen and guardians will continue to make the investments necessary to accelerate transformation and modernization to counter the adversaries of the United States and meet the future challenges of an ever-changing world with limitless strength, resolve, and patriotism;

Whereas the USAF and the USSF are committed to accelerating change and preparing for the future, because failure is not an option;

Whereas, on every continent around the world, airmen and guardians have bravely fought for freedom, liberty, and peace, preserved democracy, and protected the people and interests of the United States;

Whereas the future success of the United States Armed Forces depends upon the ability to control the air and space domains;

Whereas airmen and guardians will continue to be a tremendous resource for the United States in fights across every domain and at every location, thereby ensuring the safety and security of the United States; and

Whereas, for 75 years, the airmen and guardians of the Department of the Air Force, through their exemplary service and sacrifice, have repeatedly proven their value to the United States, the people of the United States, the allies of the United States, and all free people of the world: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved,