May 21, 2018

8 things to know about USAFA’s Class of ’18 graduation

U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. --  -- Base gates open at 6 a.m. -- Gates to the stadium open at 7 a.m. -- A government-issued ID card such as a drivers’ license is required to access the base and Falcon Stadium. -- Food must be carried in a clear one-gallon plastic bag. Refreshments will be available from vendors at the stadium. -- Drinks or liquid are not allowed except in clear, sealed water bottles. -- Sunscreen is restricted to one 6-ounce non-aerosol container for each person. -- Cameras are allowed. All camera equipment may...

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May 17, 2018

206 cadet candidates graduate USAFA Prep School

(U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Holden Faul) By Ray Bowden / May 17, 2018 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- Families, friends and faculty celebrated the graduation of 206 Air Force Academy Prep School cadet candidates May 17. “It’s our highest graduation rate in 15 years,” said Prep School commander Col. Jaqueline Breeden during the graduation ceremony in Arnold Hall. Two-hundred-thirty-seven cadet candidates were admitted into the Prep School. Of the graduates, 195 received appointments to the Academy and are scheduled to report for Basic Cadet Training in June. The other graduates will pursue other educational paths. Successful completion of...

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May 16, 2018

Update: Thunderbirds release practice, performance schedule

U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – The Air Force Thunderbirds aerial demonstration team is scheduled to conclude the Air Force Academy’s Class of 2018 graduation ceremony with a 30-minute performance above Falcon Stadium, May 23. The performance is expected to begin between 12:30-1 p.m., after the hat toss. The Thunderbirds will arrive in Colorado Springs May 21 and fly over the Academy around 10 a.m. for a site survey. The team will practice their full performance over the Academy’s Falcon Stadium from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. May 22. As mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration, roads under the show...

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May 16, 2018

USAFA educators receive Heiser Award

(U.S. Air Force photo/Staff. Sgt. Charlie Rivezzo) Story By Ray Bowden/May 16, 2018 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- Senior cadets at the Air Force Academy cast their votes for two faculty members to receive the Heiser Award May 4: Mathematics Department deputy head Lt. Col. Kris Pruitt and Political Science Department associate professor John Riley. The award’s namesake, Professor Emeritus Dr. William H. Heiser, was an honorary fellow for the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Brig. Gen. Andrew Armacost, the Academy’s dean, presented the award to Pruitt and Riley. "The Heiser Award is particularly meaningful to us as it's...

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May 15, 2018

USAFA’s new Eisenhower Golf Course Clubhouse opens for business

Story and photo by Laurie Wilson/May 2018 U.S AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- The Air Force Academy celebrated the completion of a new clubhouse at the Eisenhower Golf Course with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, May 9. The event signaled the end of more than a decade’s effort to fund the construction of a new clubhouse. The clubhouse was completely paid for with funds generated by Air Force Morale, Welfare and Recreation programs, said Carlos Cruz-Gonzalez, the Academy’s deputy director for installations. “It wasn’t paid for with tax dollars,” he said. “It was built by funds from the Air Force Non-Appropriated Funds programs,...

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May 10, 2018

600 free USAFA graduation tickets available May 14

U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs/May 10, 2018 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – Approximately 600 free tickets for the Academy’s Class of 2018 graduation ceremony will be available May 14. Tickets may be picked up by the general public in person at: The Colorado Springs Chamber & EDC office,102 S. Tejon St., Suite 430, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday. The Tri-Lakes Chamber of Commerce, EDC and Visitor Center, 166 Second St. in Monument, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday. A maximum of five tickets are available to each person on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets cannot be mailed and there is no...

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May 10, 2018

USAFA releases graduation event parking, bad weather info and prohibited items list

By U.S. Air Force Academy Academy Public Affairs/May 10, 2018  U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- The Air Force Academy's Class of 2018 graduation ceremony is scheduled to start at 9:30 a.m. May 23 at Falcon Stadium. A graduation ticket is required to enter the stadium and guests should arrive at the venue by 8:30 a.m. Gates to the stadium will close at 9 a.m. Once graduation starts, guests will not be allowed to leave the stadium until the Air Force Thunderbirds' aerial performance ends at approximately 1 p.m. Travel, Academy access The North and South gates at the Academy are...

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May 9, 2018

USAFA Flying Team and Coach Consistent National Competitors

Story and photo by Randy Martin / May 9, 2018 TERRE HAUTE, Indiana -- The U.S. Air Force Academy Flying Team participated in the National Intercollegiate Flying Association’s annual Safety and Flight Evaluation Conference at Indiana State University and nearby Terre Haute Municipal Airport, Terre Haute Indiana April 30 – May 5, 2018. The Air Force is the only service academy among 28 colleges and universities competing and it has consistently reached the championship every year since 1999. Gilbert Boyce has been the team’s coach for nineteen years and his team credits his knowledge as a cornerstone for the team’s...

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May 8, 2018

Wounded warriors soar over Academy

Story and photos by Master Sgt. Julius Delos Reyes/May 8, 2018 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- “It was an amazing experience.” This was how Eddie Roberts described his orientation flight May 8 at the Air Force Academy. Roberts was one of eight wounded warrior veterans who soared over the Front Range. The 94th Flying Training Squadron, led by Lt. Cols. Glendon Whelan and Matthew Humphrey, facilitated the orientation flight for the veterans. They partnered with the Wounded Warrior Program and Soaring Eagle Foundation, a nonprofit that provides veterans training necessary to obtain glider certification. “We want to give back,”...

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May 8, 2018

Groundbreaking eye surgery has Airmen seeing careers saved

Maj. Marc Neuffer, chief of cornea and refractive surgery at the U.S. Air Force Academy's 10th Medical Group, prepares to perform collagen crosslinking on patient Capt. Brent Danner May 3, 2018. The medical procedure corrects progressive keratoconus and corneal ectasia, degenerative eye conditions. Story and photo by Laurie Wilson, May 7, 2018 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- Every year, Air Force Academy Cadets and Airmen are found to have eyesight conditions that can disqualify them from flight status, according to Academy ophthalmologists. For patients with progressive keratoconus and corneal ectasia, the odds of their careers ending prematurely changed dramatically May 3,...

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