May 12, 2017

Senate confirms USAFA grad Wilson as Air Force Secretary

  Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs/May 11, 2017 Heather Wilson will be the next secretary of the Air Force, following her confirmation by the Senate May 8, 2017. Wilson, who is stepping down from her position as the president of the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology to take the post, is expected to be sworn in within a week. "We live in a remarkable country, protected by innovators and intrepid Airmen who take great risks on our behalf," said Wilson. "I look forward to getting to work, focusing on readiness, modernization, development of leaders and research...

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May 10, 2017

Cadet, professor improve body armor technology

Tech. Sgt. Julius Delos Reyes/May 10, 2017 A cadet and professor at the U.S. Air Force Academy concocted a thick gel that can stop a bullet fired from a .44 Magnum. Cadet 1st Class Hayley Weir and military and strategic studies professor Ryan Burke created the gel that enhances body armor when inserted into the right material. They designed the materiel for the body armor, too. Their model uses 75-percent less fabric than typical military-style body armor, weighs far less and is half as thick. So far, their invention has grabbed the attention of the Department of Homeland Security, various...

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May 10, 2017

Brig. Gen. Kristin Goodwin to assume command of the Cadet Wing

U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs/May 10, 2017 Brig. Gen. Kristin Goodwin will assume command of the U.S. Air Force Academy's cadet wing 9 a.m., May 15 near the class wall on the terrazzo. Goodwin graduated from the Academy in 1993 with a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering. She's a command pilot with more than 3,000 flight hours in various aircraft, including the B-2 Spirit.  She previously served as senior military assistant to the secretary of the Air Force. She's the first woman to command the 2nd Bomb Wing at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, and served as vice...

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May 5, 2017

From ‘dorm to swarm’: Academy cadets compete in UAS competition

By Ray Bowden/May 5, 2017 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- The U.S. Air Force Academy took second place to the Naval Academy at the DARPA-sponsored unmanned aerial systems Swarm Competition, April 23-25 at Camp Roberts, California. Cadets and midshipmen from the U.S. Air Force Academy, the Military Academy, and the Naval Academy, battled each other using 20 fixed-wing and 20 quad-rotor small unmanned aerial vehicles to protect a target or “flag” on the ground during two 30-minute battles. “Air Force was ahead until the final few minutes but was barely edged-out by Navy,” said Del Christman, an assistant computer science...

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May 3, 2017

Trump presents CINC Trophy to USAFA

Staff Sgt. Jannelle McRae, Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs / Published May 02, 2017 The U.S. Air Force Academy football team received the Commander in Chief’s Trophy from President Donald Trump during a visit to the White House May 2, 2017. The trophy is awarded to the winner of the annual service academies’ football triangular series between the U.S. Military Academy, U.S. Naval Academy, and U.S. Air Force Academy. The three-sided, 170 pound, two-and-a-half-feet tall trophy was first awarded by President Richard Nixon in 1972. The Air Force Falcons claimed the award for a record-setting 20th time, following...

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May 2, 2017

Cadets showcase FalconSAT program at end-of-semester review

Ray Bowden/May 2, 2017 Cadets gave an end-of-semester review on the Air Force Academy’s Falcon Satellite Program to faculty and the school’s space-community partners April 28. The FalconSAT program is the Academy’s small-satellite engineering program. Cadets design, built, test and operate satellites, guided by faculty and technical-staff as part of a year-long senior capstone design experience. The program is administered by the Academy’s Space Systems Research Center under the direction of the Astronautics Department. Col. Martin France, head of the Academy’s Astronautics Department, said the review served several purposes. “The cadets get the opportunity to hone their briefing skills in...

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May 2, 2017

USAFA Endowment: Academy Senior Jeremy Jacobellis to study at Oxford with Holaday Scholarship

Cadet 1st Class Jeremy Jacobellis will pursue two years of graduate studies at Exeter College at Oxford University in Oxford, England, as the recipient of the 2017 Holaday Scholarship. Bart Holaday ‘65, a Rhodes Scholar graduate of Exeter College, created the scholarship with his late wife, Lynn, to provide a deserving Academy cadet with the same educational opportunity he benefited from as a young man. Jacobellis is completing a double major at the U.S. Air Force Academy in foreign area studies (Africa) with a focus on political science and humanities. After he graduates in May, Jacobellis will move to Oxford...

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April 27, 2017

USAFA superintendent to retire later in year

U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs/April 27, 2017 The Air Force announced April 27 that the superintendent of the Air Force Academy will retire from military service later this year. Lt. Gen. Michelle Johnson, a 1981 graduate of the Academy, is the first woman to lead the Academy. She's also a Rhodes scholar and command pilot with more than 3,600 hours in various aircraft. Among her Air Force assignments, she was an aide to two presidents at the White House, and, at the Pentagon, the Air Force’s Director of Public Affairs and later Deputy Director for Information and Cyberspace Policy...

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April 27, 2017

Wings of Blue defeats Black Knights

Michelle Eberheart/April 27, 2017 The Air Force Academy Wings of Blue defeated the West Point Black Knights during the fourth annual Inter Service Academy Meet April 14-16 at the Military Academy, New York. Wings of Blue parachutists won two of the three categories, the six-way speed formation and four-way competition, while Black Knights’ Tristan Tarpey came in first for sport accuracy competition. Academy’s Chandley Beachy came in second for the accuracy competition followed by Black Knight’s Drew Cochran. “It’s always good to win any competition, especially against the Army,” said Andrew Honigbaum, Wings of Blue coach. “Most important part of...

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April 25, 2017

Ethical conversations: CCLD hosts war workshop

By Julie Imada/April 25, 2017 Modern warfare experts met with about 40 cadets April 24 at the U.S. Air Force Academy to talk about ethics in war. Retired Gen. C. Robert Kehler, former commander of U.S. Strategic Command, was one of four keynote speakers. He said ethics, technology and morality deserve significant consideration during war. "These are the most critical issues of war and peace we have to address," he said. “Addressing them in a forum to include our newest leaders and more experienced leaders really helps us with an exchange of ideas.” The Academy Ethics, Technology and War Workshop...

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