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  • End of an Era

    *Artifacts from this exhibit have been temporarily removed for conservation.The sergeant pilot training program ended in late 1942 since the educational requirement for cadets had been lowered to that for an aviation student (high school diploma) and all students were to be appointed at graduation

  • Staff Sergeant Pilot Jacket

    *Artifacts from this exhibit have been temporarily removed for conservation.A-2 jacket, goggles, sergeant stripes and helmet. Jacket was issued to the donor upon his assignment to Colorado Springs Army Air Base in August 1942 following graduation as a staff sergeant pilot. Promoted to flight officer

  • 1941-1945: World War II Sergeant Pilots

    *Artifacts from this exhibit have been temporarily removed for conservation.On the eve of World War II, it soon became apparent that there were not enough college graduates or young men with two years of college to fill planned aviation cadet requirements. As a result, in 1941 Congress authorized an

  • 1920-1939: Between the Wars

    *Artifacts from this exhibit have been temporarily removed for conservation.Between the world wars, at least 263 enlisted pilots served in the Air Corps. They were encouraged by the Air Corps Act of 1926 which directed at least 20 percent of pilots assigned to tactical units be enlisted, a rate that

  • Sergeant Pilot WWI-Era Uniform

    *Artifacts from this exhibit have been temporarily removed for conservation. Sergeant pilot William Beigel's World War I-era uniform trousers and coat. The enlisted pilot wing and propeller insignia is on the right sleeve. He was post sergeant-major at Rich Field in Waco, Texas, in 1919 when he

  • Cpl. Vernon L. Burge

    *Artifacts from this exhibit have been temporarily removed for conservation.Cpl. Vernon L. Burge became the first enlisted pilot three years after the Army bought its first airplane. He was Lt. Benjamin Foulois' mechanic on Signal Corps airplane No. 1 at Ft. Sam Houston, Texas, in 1910, and Lt.

  • Enlisted Pilots: 1912-1945

    *Artifacts from this exhibit have been temporarily removed for conservation."It is not the policy of the War Department to train enlisted men in flying aeroplanes ..."This was the rebuke to Lt. Frank P. Lahm's message announcing that one of the two new aviators he had trained was a corporal. Yet in

  • Integration of the USAF

    When the 322nd Fighter Group returned to the U.S. following the Allied victory in Europe in 1945, three of its squadrons were deactivated. The fourth, the famous 99th Fighter Squadron, was assigned to the 477th Composite Group at Godman Field, Ky. Equipped with both bombers (B-25s) and fighters

  • Gen. Daniel "Chappie" James Jr.

    Gen. Daniel "Chappie" James Jr. was the U.S. Air Force's first African American four-star general. Upon being promoted to four-star grade on Sept.1, 1975, James was assigned as Commander in Chief North American Air Defense Command (NORAD), a position he held until his retirement on Feb. 1, 1978. He

  • USAF Fighter Gunnery Competition Trophy

    This trophy represents the continuation of the pre-World War II Army Air Corps tradition of aerial gunnery excellence into the newly formed United States Air Force. It commemorates the outstanding achievement of four Air Force units in both the 1949 and 1950 service-wide competitions.The 1949