Board Members
Air Force Historical Foundation Board of Directors Directors Capt. Jared G. Del Orfano, USAF Lt. Col. John Farquhar, USAF, Retired, Ph.D. Maj. Gen. Walter D. “Walt” Givhan, USAF, Retired Col. Phillip S. Meilinger, USAF, Retired, […]
ABOUT
History Founded in 1953 by General Carl A. “Tooey” Spaatz and other Air Power pioneers, the Air Force Historical Foundation is dedicated to preserving the history and traditions of American aviation and space capabilities. Our
AWARDS
Honoring Service The Air Force Historical Foundation continues to promote America’s Air Power and Space Power heritage by honoring specific individuals and units dedicated to the making and documentation of Air Force and Space Force
December 17, 1903
1903: Orville Wright makes the first sustained, controlled power airplane flight in the Kill Devil Hills, near Kitty Hawk. In the fourth and longest flight of the day, flown by Wilbur, the Wright Flyer
September 7, 1995
1995: Two 436th Airlift Wing C-5s from Dover AFB airlift gas turbine generators from Ramstein AB to Incirlik AB to provide electrical power for Kurdish refugees living in northern Iraq.
July 5, 1944
1944: Harry Crosby, company pilot, flies the Northrop MX-324, the first US rocket-powered aircraft, for the first time at Harper Dry Lake, CA.
May 10, 1944
1944: General Electric’s XJ79 turbojet engine makes its first flight in the NB-45 test aircraft over Schenectady, N.Y. This engine later develops and is tested in December 1955, becoming the J79. This engine will subsequently
May 4, 1968
1968: Gen Carl Spaatz (USAF retired) receives the Thomas D. White National Defense Award for 1968. The above book is published by the Air Force Historical Foundation.
December 17, 2003
1903: Orville Wright makes the first sustained, controlled power airplane flight in the Kill Devil Hills, near Kitty Hawk. In the fourth and longest flight of the day, flown by Wilbur, the Wright Flyer flies
September 7, 1956
1956: MACKAY TROPHY. At Edwards AFB, Capt Iven C. Kincheloe sets an altitude record for manned flight by flying the Bell X-2 rocket-powered aircraft to 126,000 feet. He later receives the Mackay Trophy.