1995: Operation UNITAF/UNISOM II. Through 24 March, Air Mobility Command supports the withdrawal of United Nations forces from Somalia. Altogether, Air Mobility Command’s airlifters and contracted commercial flights fly 59 missions to carry over 1,400 […]
1996: Operation Provide Promise, regarded as the longest sustained humanitarian airlift in history, ends. USAF flies 4,597 of the 12,895 sorties to Bosnia and Herzegovina. A commemorative flight takes place on Jan 9.
1993: President George H. W. Bush and Soviet President Boris Yeltsin sign the second Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START II).
1942: Gen Henry H. Arnold establishes a new numbered Air Force, which later becomes Eighth Air Force. The Eighth sustains over 26,000 deaths in World War II, greater than the US Marines.
1929: THE QUESTION MARK. Through 7 January, to test inflight refueling and crew and aircraft endurance, Maj Carl A. Spaatz and crew fly the Question Mark, a modified Fokker C2-3 with a Wright 220 HP
1908: Wilbur Wright flies 77 miles in 2 hours 20 minutes 23 seconds at LeMans, France to set a record for duration and distance, winning the Michelin Trophy and $4,000.
1944: Gen Henry H. Arnold becomes General of the Army (5 stars), the first airman to hold this rank.
1943: For extraordinary heroism this date, radio operator TSgt Forrest Vosler receives the Medal of Honor. Citation: http://www.cmohs.org/recipient-detail/3041/vosler-forrest-l.php
1972: Operation LINEBACKER II: President Nixon orders this 11-day all-out bombing campaign against targets in Hanoi and Haiphong, one of the most heavily defended areas of the world. Altogether, the USAF completes 714 B-52 and
