My Grandfather: a part of the heritage and horizon of the U.S. Air Force

  • Published
  • By Evan Woolard
This particular essay theme has a very special meaning for me because my
grandfather, Jim Rogers, joined the Army Air Force in July 1947, just two months before it was re-organized as the United States Air Force. Like so many other young men and women, my grandfather had a passion and desire to both fly and see the world. Growing up in the small farming town of Taylorsville, North Carolina, joining the Air Force was my grandfather's only opportunity to fulfill his dreams, even enlisting before his 18th birthday. My grandfather, as well as other Airmen of his generation, truly represents the heri~e of the Air Force, and serves as a beacon for its bright horizon.

As a newly enlisted Airman, my grandfather completed basic training in San
Antonio at Lackland Air Force Base, before beginning his first tour as a gunner on a B-29 bomber, operating out of Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota. By his last mission twenty-five years later at Andrews Air Force Base, he had become a Master Sergeant, assigned to the Airborne Command Post as part of Operation Looking Glass. His career was one of excitement and challenge, and especially rewarding since he was there at the very beginning of the Air Force. He very much represents its heritage.

Without question, the Air Force - through my grandfather -- has had an impact on my life as well as others. The morals, values and character displayed by my grandfather were undoubtedly molded by his Air Force career. These same values were instilled in my mother, one of three Air Force "brats," and, in turn, her children.

With remarkable detail and great pride, my grandfather has often described the role the Air Force has had in defending and providing security for the United States. He has witnessed first hand the evolution of aircraft including those that he flew such as the B-29, B-36, B-50, and the KC-135 Stratotanker. He has brought to life the critical role the Air Force played in many wars and conflicts including Cold War confrontations such as the Berlin Airlift and the Cuban Missile Crisis, and, more recently, the Air Force's pivotal role as an essential component of our global war on terror.

With its accomplished heritage as its foundation, the U.S. Air Force continues to build on its military and technological capabilities. To meet even greater challenges to our national security, the Air Force is expanding its scope of operations to include outer space and even cyberspace. Innovation will once again lead the way in the development of leading edge defense systems such as air-launched anti-satellite missiles capable of intercepting satellites in low earth orbit, ground based lasers with relay mirrors that are capable of destroying satellites or earth targets, and space-based surveillance systems to
track and identify space forces and enable counter-space operations. The growing
demand for real-time global intelligence-gathering and surveillance will be paramount as the Air Force transforms itself once again to meet the challenges that our nation will undoubtedly encounter.

The horizon of the U.S. Air Force does, indeed, appear very bright. The
development of innovative technology and advanced weapon systems results only by
attracting the best and brightest minds; individuals who joined the Air Force because they see it as one of the world's most elite organizations - just as my grandfather once did sixty years ago.