March 7, 2022

Five life and innovation hacks from a cadet inventor

By Rachelle Stoll, Strategic Communications Photos by Josh Armstrong Cadet Schlichting stands in front of the United States Air Force Academy’s aeronautics laboratory. Cadet First Class Grant Schlichting, a senior at the United States Air Force Academy, holds a patent-pending for a device that will change how we fight the wars to come. Schlichting is the creator of the Aerial Tow Rehookup (ATR), an invention with a provisional patent under the US Patent and Trademark Office. The ATR involves the utilization of a military cargo plane to tow multiple aircraft at any given time, from the smallest of unmanned drones...

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March 28, 2023

Dean presents Annual Research Awards

Cadets and faculty gather in Polaris Hall for the Dean’s Annual Research Awards presentations at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo., March 20, 2023. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Justin Pacheco) U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. - Research is an integral part of a cadet’s experience at the U.S. Air Force Academy, giving cadets ample opportunity to tackle tough topics and solve real-world issues. Each year, some of the most innovative and inspiring projects are recognized at the Dean’s Annual Research Awards. These awards acknowledge the work of both cadets and faculty across many disciplines....

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May 15, 2023

Cadet team conducts robotics research

Cadets and faculty gather in Fairchild Hall to catch a glimpse of the U.S. Air Force Academy’s Ghost Robotics Vision 60 robot on campus, Feb. 8, 2023. Cadets, in collaboration with professors from the Academy’s Warfighter Effectiveness Research Center, are gathering data, employing model-based systems engineering concepts and developing solutions to determine the practicality of integrating robots into base defense missions. (U.S. Air Force photo by Trevor Cokley) By Tech. Sgt. Zach Vaughn U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – A team of professors and cadets with the U.S. Air Force Academy’s Warfighter Effectiveness Research...

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September 12, 2023

Cadets test for hypersonic speeds in aero wind tunnels

U.S. Air Force Academy Cadet 1st Class Regan Hansen inspects a control jet interaction model nose cone in the Department of Aeronautics Trisonic Wind Tunnel Aug. 29, 2023. The cadet tested jet interaction with oblique shock waves and their effects on jet effectiveness. The Trisonic Wind Tunnel can operate at speeds up to Mach 4.5. (U.S. Air Force photo by Trevor Cokley) By Randy Roughton  U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications  U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo.– U.S. Air Force Academy cadets are at the forefront of hypersonic flight research through Department of Aeronautics wind-tunnel testing. Cadets perform hypersonic testing primarily...

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October 10, 2023

Cadet AI research today leads to innovation tomorrow

Cadet 1st Class Samuel Brennen demonstrates brain-computer interface technology in the U.S. Air Force Academy Department of Computer and Cyber Sciences September 28, 2023. (U.S. Air Force photo by Justin Pacheco)  By Randy Roughton U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications  U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo.- It sounds like something straight out of Hollywood’s latest blockbuster—Airmen controlling drones with their minds.  But rather than being complete science fiction, U.S. Air Force Academy Department of Computer and Cyber Sciences cadets work to make it science fact.  Capstone research in artificial intelligence Cadet 1st Class Kayleb Klapp is just one of the cadets...

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October 10, 2023

Cadets develop cyber skills in classroom and competition

U.S. Air Force Academy Department of Cyber and Computer Sciences cadets and faculty pose with the 2023 National Security Agency Cyber Exercise Trophy August 28, 2023. The department won the trophy for the second consecutive year. (U.S. Air Force photo by Justin Pacheco) By Randy Roughton U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo.- U.S. Air Force Academy cyber and computer sciences cadets hone their skills in the classroom and competitions against the best computer hackers in the world. A superior cyber education The Academy continues to be a leader in cyber education with one of the...

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November 14, 2023

Cadet-built satellite launches into space

Cadets watch the deployment of FalconSAT-X on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 from the Department of Astronautics Space Systems Research Center. The satellite launched at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, Nov. 11, 2023. (U.S. Air Force photo by Justin Pacheco) By Randy Roughton U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo.- U.S. Air Force Academy cadets celebrated as they watched the launch of the FalconSAT-X satellite from the Department of Astronautics Space Systems Research Center Nov. 11. FalconSAT-X launched from SpaceX’s Falcon 9 mission at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. Learn space by doing space Seniors from each Academy...

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December 7, 2023

Cadets design planes to solve problems

Three cadet-designed and built sub-scale flying models of stealthy target drones appear outside the U.S. Air Force Academy Department of Aeronautics after flight testing Nov. 28, 2023. (U.S. Air Force photo by Justin Pacheco) By Randy Roughton U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo.- For three decades, U.S. Air Force Academy Department of Aeronautics aircraft design cadets have tackled real-world problems by designing, building and testing airplanes and rockets. About 75 cadets in the fall aircraft design course completed flight testing and final modifications to their aircraft in November. Their mission was to apply aeronautical concepts...

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April 11, 2022

Elon Musk urges cadet researchers at U.S. Air Force Academy to keep innovating, make rocket launches ‘boring’

Lt. Gen. Richard Clark, U.S. Air Force Academy superintendent, and Elon Musk, SpaceX CEO, discuss space exploration and innovation during the Ira C. Eaker Lecture, Air Force Academy, Colo., April 7, 2022. Musk encouraged cadets to tackle research problems, break barriers and turn fiction into reality. (U.S. Air Force photo by Trevor Cokley) By Tech. Sgt. Zach Vaughn, U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- SpaceX CEO Elon Musk motivated cadets at the U.S. Air Force Academy to keep the research industry on its toes by fighting complacency and working overtime to break boundaries. “We want...

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November 19, 2021

Combustion shock tube provides shockingly fun research opportunities for cadets

  By Rachelle Stoll, Strategic Communications, Photo by Joshua Armstrong, Video by AJ Kievenaar Cadet First Class Kendra Middleton has always been fascinated with flight. Some of her earliest memories are of her grandfather, who built and flew his own planes alongside a ragtag gang of “little old men who would fly into each other’s back yards.” Kendra’s mother is also an aerospace engineer with a degree from University of Colorado Boulder. Having been born into a family of aviators, combined with a love for science and math, the Air Force Academy seemed a fitting place for Kendra. The culture...

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