Stan Wood is a remarkable aviator who leaves an indelible mark upon every operation or organization he touches. Character, camaraderie, loyalty, dedication, and sacrifice define only a portion of this American warrior. Born in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania on 22 June...
Robert M. White was the world’s first pilot to fly a winged aircraft into space. Pursuing a typical boyhood interest in aviation, White enlisted in the Army in 1942, at the age of 18, intent on becoming a pilot. Following advanced flying training, the Army Air...
Kermit Weeks is the owner of the world’s largest private aircraft collection, totaling over 160 airframes. Weeks was born in 1953 in Salt Lake City, Utah, but he grew up in Miami, Florida. At the age of 13, he heard the song Snoopy and the Red Baron on the...
Robert “Rosie” Rosenthal is one of the most decorated Airmen of World War II. Fresh out of law school, he enlisted in the US Army on 8 December 1941 as an air cadet. He earned his wings in September 1942, and was assigned to train personnel in...
Colonel (ret) Spiro N. “Steve” Pisanos flew 110 combat missions in Spitfires, P-47 Thunderbolts, and P-51 Mustangs during World War II, becoming a double-ace. He was born in Athens, Greece, in 1919, the son of a subway driver. At the age of 11, he heard the humming...
Harold G. “Hal” Moore Jr. graduated from West Point in 1945 and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Infantry. He served as a paratrooper for a rifle platoon in Japan. His next assignment was with the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg, North Carolina....
Many considered flying a “man’s job” but women such as Barbara Erickson London had the skills and dedication that gave our country the boost it needed to win World War II in the air. Raised in the Pacific Northwest, London entered the Civilian Pilot...
Eugene F. “Gene” Kranz is one of America’s great space exploration pioneers. He was born on 17 August 1933 in Toledo, Ohio. As a child he always had a strong fascination with flight and the possibilities of space travel. After studying math, science...
Joseph W. Kittinger, Jr., commanded the 555th Triple Nickel Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS) in Vietnam, was a POW in the Hanoi Hilton, and is the current world record holder for highest manned balloon flight, longest parachute jump, and longest freefall. Born in...
David Lee “Tex” Hill was born on 13 July 1915, in Kwangju, Korea, the son of American missionaries. He grew up in Texas, but returned to the Far East years later as one of the first pilots in General Claire Chennault’s American Volunteer Group (AVG),...
Susan J. Helms is an accomplished astronaut with five space flights, logging over 5,064 hours in space. She holds the world’s record for the longest space walk of 8 hours and 56 minutes. Helms was born on 26 February 1958, in Charlotte, North Carolina, but...
Kevin A. “Mike” Gilroy is among the most highly decorated Electronic Warfare Officers (EWO) in the US Air Force. Born in Menlo Park, California, his love of flying led him to enlist in the Air Force in 1953. After 6 years as a jet engine mechanic, he...
Brigadier General George E. “Bud” Day was first selected as an Eagle by Air Command and Staff College’s Gathering of Eagles in 1992 and subsequently honored in 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, and 2013 respectively. He was born in Iowa in...
Frederick “Boots” Blesse, a double ace with two combat tours each in Korea and Vietnam, is the sixth-ranking US jet ace and one of the world’s premier jet tacticians. Born in the Panama Canal Zone in 1921, he graduated from West Point in 1945 and...
Lee A. “Buddy” Archer, Jr., is a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen, a group of black pilots who compiled an outstanding record of performance during World War II. He was born on 6 September 1919. As a child, Archer developed the passion to become a pilot...
Paul Wesley Airey Paul Wesley Airey served as the first Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force from 1967 to 1969. Born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, he was inspired to join the Navy because of the prestige of the US Navy Falls Shipyard in the Boston area. However,...
