March 18, 2019

Air Force Academy senior leader and cadet candidate break innovation barriers

U.S. Air Force Academy Cadet 1st Class Yann Wollman (left) and Col. Houston Cantwell, the Academy's vice superintendent, present their idea -- the “What’s Up” App for event planning -- to senior leaders during the first Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center Innovation Rodeo, March 1, 2019, in San Antonio, Texas. (U.S. Air Force photo by Armando Perez) Story by Jennifer Spradlin, March 18, 2019 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- These days, you don’t have to be a science major or a faculty researcher to make a difference in the research arena and solve problems for the Air Force....

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May 28, 2019

Grad Week Feature: Military and Strategic Studies at Air Force Academy put cadets at ‘tip of the spear’

(U.S. Air Force photo/Dave Ahlschwede)  By Ray Bowden, May 28, 21019 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- All those Air Force Academy graduates flying combat missions overseas? If they’re under 30, they were all students in a military and strategic studies class. It’s not just pilots who say they’ve benefited from these studies -- its officers in more than 150 career fields across the Air Force. “The Academy’s Military and Strategic Studies department educates future Air Force officers in concepts of military strategy, contemporary operations and the integration of air, space and cyberspace power,” said Dr. John Farquhar, an Associate Professor...

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May 29, 2019

Grad Week Feature: Academy cadet, naturalized citizen one step closer to aviation dream

Cadet 1st Class Rodrigo Orellana (center, blue beret), was born in Honduras. He's scheduled to graduate from the U.S. Air Force Academy May 30, 2019 and later attend pilot training school. (Courtesy photo) By Jennifer Spradlin, May 29, 2019 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- Rodrigo Orellana, an Air Force Academy senior, knew as a boy he wanted to fly. He was born and raised in Tegucigalpa, the densely-packed capital of Honduras, a Central American country as beautiful as it is poor. It was, by his account, a country with generous people who had little but shared everything, and a...

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August 16, 2019

Air Force Academy hosts AF Firefighters for EMT certification training

Story and photo by Jennifer Spradlin, Aug. 16, 2019 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – Firefighters from across the Air Force travelled to the Air Force Academy recently to enhance their Emergency Medical Services skills. Eighteen students are participating in an accelerated Emergency Medical Technician course, which will qualify them to take the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians test. “The purpose of this training is to get consistent, quality EMS throughout the Air Force by certifying members as Emergency Medical Technicians and training our providers on a variety of [more advanced] skills,” said Shawn Ragsdale, EMS program coordinator here....

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July 3, 2019

‘An exchange of ideas’: 306th FTG instructors visit French air force academy

Capt. Gabriel Paterson, flight commander for the U.S. Air Force Academy Flying Team, and Lt. Col. Abby Frander (right), commander of the 98 Flying Training Squadron at the Academy,  stand near a Cirrus SR22 aircraft with a pilot from the Ecole de l'Air -- the French air force academy.  Cadre from the 306th Flying Training Group traveled to France in June to visit their French counterparts and share information about airfield operations and the Academy's Airmanship Programs (Courtesy photo). By Jennifer Spradlin, June 3, 2019 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. --  Instructors from the 306th Flying Training Group traveled to France...

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August 8, 2019

Air Force Academy awarded accreditation until 2028-2029

Story by Tech. Sgt. Charles Rivezzo, Aug. 8, 2019 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo.  – Air Force Academy officials recently announced the results of the institution’s academic accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission. The final report from the HLC found the university met all of the criteria for accreditation and federal compliance requirements without comments, reaffirming its accredited status until the 2028-2029 academic year. “This is the best possible outcome for an academic institution and is exactly what we wanted out of this review,” said Lt. Gen. Jay Silveria, Air Force Academy superintendent. “This is the result of great work...

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August 2, 2019

Air Force Academy hosts first-ever convocation ceremony

Story by Tech. Sgt. Charles Rivezzo, Aug. 2, 2019 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – For the first time, the Air Force Academy held a convocation ceremony Aug. 2, welcoming the incoming cadets from the Class of 2023. Much like how graduation marks the end of the academic year, convocation is an academic ceremony to mark the beginning of the academic year and the collegiate careers of the Academy’s newest cadets. Academy superintendent, Lt. Gen. Jay Silveria, opened the ceremony by imploring the incoming class to recognize the opportunities and challenges that lie in front of them. “There will be...

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August 2, 2019

Cadet Summer Research Program: ‘Let’s play in a sandbox!’

Commentary by Lt. Col. Thomas Smicklas, Center of Innovation deputy director U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- Since 2007, the Department of Homeland Security and the Air Force Academy have championed game-changing innovations for the U.S. government by leveraging unique public-private partnerships. Our Center of Innovation has become a one-of-a-kind “sandbox” for government agencies, private industry giants, and academia to perform collaborative research, share expertise and shape technologies within the private sector to fit government needs. The value of these partnerships allows the government to see into the future of market-shaping research technology; private industry to gain insight into the...

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August 1, 2019

Academy cadets’ invention to support battlefield Airmen awarded patents

Story by Jennifer Spradlin, Aug. 1, 2019 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- Looking for a challenge? Try coming up with a 100 different ways to get a battlefield Airman loaded with gear from a hovering aircraft to the ground -- quickly and safely. A team of Air Force Academy cadets took on this exact challenge while completing their mechanical and systems engineering degrees in 2016 and now their technology has been awarded three patents by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The project was part of an annual Air Force Research Laboratory University Design Challenge. Each service academy and...

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July 31, 2019

Basic cadets march back from Jacks Valley with Academy graduates

Story by Jennifer Spradlin, July 31, 2019 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. — Basic cadets from the Class of 2023 marched back from Jacks Valley to the main Academy grounds today after completing field training. During field training, cadets honed the mental, teamwork and physical conditioning skills critical to becoming fourth class cadets in the Cadet Wing. Among other rigorous demands, they tackled the challenges of the leadership reaction course and ran the confidence and assault courses. They also conducted first aid and combat arms training. “The skills and abilities you’ve garnered over the past 34 days are invaluable and...

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