[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 151 (Tuesday, September 20, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4863-S4864]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   SENATE RESOLUTION 783--COMMEMORATING THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 
 ESTABLISHMENT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE AND CELEBRATING THE 
   UNITED STATES AIR FORCE FOR 75 YEARS OF SERVING AND DEFENDING THE 
                             UNITED STATES

  Mr. BOOZMAN (for himself, Mr. Tester, Mr. Hoeven, Mr. Brown, Mr. 
Warnock, and Ms. Rosen) submitted the following resolution; which was 
considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 783

       Whereas, on August 1, 1907, the Aeronautical Division of 
     the Army Signal Corps, consisting of 1 officer and 2 enlisted 
     men, began operation under the command of Captain Charles 
     deForest Chandler with the responsibility for ``all matters 
     pertaining to military ballooning, air machines, and all 
     kindred subjects'';
       Whereas, in 1908, the Department of War contracted with the 
     Wright brothers to build 1 heavier-than-air flying machine 
     for the Army and, in 1909, the Department of War accepted the 
     Wright Military Flyer, the first military airplane in the 
     world;
       Whereas pilots of the United States, flying with both 
     Allied air forces and with the Army Air Service, performed 
     admirably during the course of World War I, the first air war 
     in history, by participating in pursuit, observation, and day 
     and night bombing missions;
       Whereas pioneering aviators of the United States, including 
     Mason M. Patrick, William ``Billy'' Mitchell, Benjamin D. 
     Foulois, Frank M. Andrews, Henry H. ``Hap'' Arnold, James H. 
     ``Jimmy'' Doolittle, and Edward ``Eddie'' Rickenbacker, were 
     among the first individuals to recognize the military 
     potential of airpower and, in the decades following World War 
     I, courageously laid the foundation for the creation of an 
     independent arm for the air forces of the United States;
       Whereas General Henry H. ``Hap'' Arnold drew upon the 
     industrial prowess and human resources of the United States 
     to transform the Army Air Corps from a force of 22,000 men 
     and 3,900 aircraft in 1939, into an entity with a peak 
     wartime strength of nearly 2,500,000 personnel and 75,000 
     aircraft;
       Whereas, on June 20, 1941, the Department of War 
     established the Army Air Forces as the aviation element of 
     that Department and, shortly thereafter, the Department made 
     the Army Air Forces co-equal to the Army Ground Forces;
       Whereas the standard for courage, flexibility, and 
     intrepidity in combat was established for all airmen during 
     the first aerial raid in the Pacific Theater on April 18, 
     1942, when Lieutenant Colonel James ``Jimmy'' H. Doolittle 
     led 16 North American B-25 Mitchell bombers in a joint 
     operation from the deck of the USS Hornet to strike the 
     Japanese mainland in response to the Japanese attack on Pearl 
     Harbor;
       Whereas the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3001 
     et seq.), signed into law by President Harry S. Truman, 
     realigned and reorganized the Armed Forces to establish the 
     Department of the Air Force and the United States Air Force 
     (referred to in this preamble as the ``USAF'') as separate 
     from other military services;
       Whereas, on September 18, 1947, W. Stuart Symington became 
     the first Secretary of the newly formed and independent Air 
     Force, marking the date on which the USAF was established;
       Whereas the Air National Guard was also created by the 
     National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.) and 
     has played a vital role in guarding the United States and 
     defending freedom in nearly every major conflict and 
     contingency since its creation;
        Whereas, on October 14, 1947, the USAF demonstrated the 
     historic and ongoing commitment of the USAF to technological 
     innovation when Captain Charles ``Chuck'' Yeager piloted the 
     X-1 developmental rocket plane to a speed of Mach 1.06, 
     becoming the first flyer to break the sound barrier in a 
     powered aircraft in level flight;
       Whereas the Air Force Reserve, created on April 14, 1948, 
     is comprised of citizen airmen who serve as unrivaled wingmen 
     of the active duty USAF during every deployment and on every 
     mission and battlefield around the world in which the USAF is 
     engaged;
       Whereas the USAF carried out the Berlin Airlift in 1948 and 
     1949 to provide humanitarian relief to post-war Germany and 
     has established a tradition of offering humanitarian 
     assistance when responding to natural disasters and needs 
     across the world;
       Whereas the Tuskegee Airmen served the United States with 
     tremendous dignity and honor, overcame segregation and 
     prejudice to become one of the most highly respected fighter 
     groups of World War II, and helped to establish a policy of 
     racial integration within the ranks of the USAF, as, on April 
     26, 1948, the USAF became the first military branch to 
     announce a policy of racial integration, a full 3 months 
     before an executive order integrated all military services;
       Whereas, in the early years of the Cold War, the arsenal of 
     bombers of the USAF, such as the long-range Convair B-58 
     Hustler and B-36 Peacemaker, and the Boeing B-47 Stratojet 
     and B-52 Stratofortress, served as the preeminent deterrent 
     of the United States against the forces of the Soviet Union 
     and were later augmented by the development and deployment of 
     medium range and intercontinental ballistic missiles, such as 
     the Titan and Minuteman, developed by General Bernard A. 
     Schriever;
       Whereas, on April 1, 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower 
     signed legislation establishing the United States Air Force 
     Academy, the mission of which is to educate, develop, and 
     inspire men and women to become aerospace officers and 
     leaders of impeccable character and knowledge, and which, as 
     of 2022, has graduated 64 classes and commissioned 53,491 
     officers into the USAF and United States Space Force 
     (referred to in this preamble as the ``USSF'');
       Whereas, during the Korean War, the USAF employed the first 
     large-scale combat use of jet aircraft, helped to establish 
     air superiority over the Korean Peninsula, protected ground 
     forces of the United Nations with close air support, and 
     interdicted enemy reinforcements and supplies;
       Whereas, during the Vietnam War, the USAF engaged in a 
     limited campaign of airpower to assist the South Vietnamese 
     government in countering the communist Viet Cong guerillas 
     and fought to disrupt supply lines, halt enemy ground 
     offensives, and protect United States and Allied forces;
       Whereas, on April 3, 1967, former prisoner of war Paul W. 
     Airey, a career radio operator, aerial gunner, and First 
     Sergeant, became the first Chief Master Sergeant of the USAF;
       Whereas, in recent decades, the USAF and coalition partners 
     of the United States have supported successful actions in 
     Grenada, Panama, Iraq, Kuwait, Somalia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, 
     Haiti, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, and many other 
     locations around the world;
       Whereas USAF Special Operations Command has served with 
     honor and distinction around the world since its activation 
     in 1990, providing the United States with specialized 
     airpower across the broad spectrum of conflicts in any place 
     and at any time;
       Whereas, for over 3 decades beginning in 1990, airmen 
     engaged in continuous combat operations from Operation Desert 
     Shield to Operation Inherent Resolve, demonstrating an air 
     and space expeditionary force of outstanding capability that 
     is ready to fight and win wars and deter aggression whenever 
     and wherever called upon;
       Whereas, when terrorists attacked the United States on 
     September 11, 2001, fighter and air refueling aircraft of the 
     USAF took to the skies to fly combat air patrols over major 
     cities of the United States and protect the people of the 
     United States from further attack;
       Whereas, on December 20, 2019, in recognition that space 
     had become a warfighting domain, former President Donald 
     Trump signed legislation establishing the USSF as an 
     independent service to ensure that the space domain remained 
     open to all countries;
       Whereas, on May 30, 2020, in collaboration and engagement 
     with interagency and commercial partners, the USSF provided 
     unparalleled space launch capabilities in support of the 
     first manned spaceflight from American soil in 9 years;
       Whereas, in 2021, in a step toward organizing the forces of 
     the USSF to meet the needs of an independent military service 
     devoted to space, the USSF activated Space

[[Page S4864]]

     Operations Command, Space Systems Command, and Space Training 
     and Readiness Command;
       Whereas, to establish a unique and enduring culture for the 
     USSF, the Department of the Air Force redesignated certain 
     Air Force Bases and Air Force Stations supporting the USSF 
     mission as Space Force Bases and Space Force Stations and 
     graduated its first-ever basic military training course 
     taught completely by USSF training instructors;
       Whereas space capabilities provide the foundation for 
     everything the United States Armed Forces do, from 
     humanitarian efforts to combat operations;
       Whereas, in 2022, following a `wings of hope and 
     compassion' tradition dating back more than a century, when 
     airmen provided food and supplies to Texas flood victims in 
     1919, the USAF and coalition partners airlifted 124,334 
     people out of Afghanistan in the largest non-combatant 
     evacuation airlift in United States history, spanning 17 
     days, 9 countries, 8 time zones, and more than 10 temporary 
     safe havens;
       Whereas, since February 24, 2022, airmen and guardians have 
     responded to Russian aggression against Ukraine by guarding 
     the skies of members of the North Atlantic Treaty 
     Organization (commonly referred to as ``NATO''), transporting 
     essential equipment to the Ukrainian military, and providing 
     critical support from space;
       Whereas women have played a prominent role in the evolution 
     of the Department of the Air Force, courageously fighting 
     alongside their male counterparts and dedicating their lives 
     to protecting peace, liberty, and freedom around the world as 
     they provide air and space power whenever and wherever 
     needed;
       Whereas the Department of the Air Force has made tremendous 
     strides in the global warfighting domain of cyberspace by 
     revolutionizing offensive and defensive capabilities and 
     effects with speed, agility, and surgical precision, thereby 
     ensuring the continuous command, control, and execution of 
     operations in contested, degraded, and limited environments;
       Whereas the Civil Air Patrol, as a Total Force partner and 
     auxiliary of the USAF, has maintained a steadfast commitment 
     to the United States and the communities of the United States 
     through a proud legacy of service, from the earliest days of 
     World War II, when the Civil Air Patrol protected the 
     shorelines of the United States, through 2022, as the Civil 
     Air Patrol executes emergency service missions and aerospace 
     education programs;
       Whereas the Department of the Air Force is steadfast in the 
     commitment to fielding a world-class air and space 
     expeditionary force by recruiting, training, and educating 
     its officer, enlisted, and civilian corps comprising the 
     active duty, Guard, and Reserve components of the Total 
     Force;
       Whereas airmen were imprisoned and tortured during several 
     major conflicts, including World War I, World War II, the 
     Vietnam War, the Korean War, and the Persian Gulf War, and, 
     in the valiant tradition of airmen held captive, continued 
     serving the United States with honor and dignity under the 
     most inhumane circumstances;
       Whereas airmen have earned the Medal of Honor 19 times, the 
     Air Force Cross 203 times, the Distinguished Service Cross 42 
     times, and, since September 11, 2001, the Silver Star 92 
     times;
       Whereas the USAF and the USSF are tremendous stewards of 
     resources in developing and applying groundbreaking 
     technology to manage complex acquisition programs for all air 
     and space weapon systems throughout their life cycles;
       Whereas talented and dedicated airmen and guardians will 
     continue to make the investments necessary to accelerate 
     transformation and modernization to counter the adversaries 
     of the United States and meet the future challenges of an 
     ever-changing world with limitless strength, resolve, and 
     patriotism;
       Whereas the USAF and the USSF are committed to accelerating 
     change and preparing for the future, because failure is not 
     an option;
       Whereas, on every continent around the world, airmen and 
     guardians have bravely fought for freedom, liberty, and 
     peace, preserved democracy, and protected the people and 
     interests of the United States;
       Whereas the future success of the United States Armed 
     Forces depends upon the ability to control the air and space 
     domains;
       Whereas airmen and guardians will continue to be a 
     tremendous resource for the United States in fights across 
     every domain and at every location, thereby ensuring the 
     safety and security of the United States; and
       Whereas, for 75 years, the airmen and guardians of the 
     Department of the Air Force, through their exemplary service 
     and sacrifice, have repeatedly proven their value to the 
     United States, the people of the United States, the allies of 
     the United States, and all free people of the world: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) commemorates the 75th anniversary of the establishment 
     of the Department of the Air Force; and
       (2) remembers, honors, and commends the achievements of the 
     United States Air Force and the United States Space Force in 
     serving and defending the United States.

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