[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 42, Number 42 (Monday, October 23, 2006)]
[Pages 1828-1830]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at the United States Air Force Memorial Dedication in Arlington, 
Virginia

October 14, 2006

    Thank you all. Thank you very much. Mr. Secretary, thank you for 
your kind words. Secretary Nicholson, General Hayden, General Pace, 
Secretary Wynne, General Moseley, Chief Master Sergeant McKinley, Ross 
Perot, Jr., Major General Grillo, members of the Armed Forces, military 
veterans, and distinguished guests: Laura and I are honored to join you 
on this historic day.
    With today's ceremony, the United States Air Force begins a year-
long celebration of its 60th birthday. As someone who recently crossed 
that milestone--[laughter]--it's not all that bad. [Laughter] I can 
think of no better way to begin the celebrations than by dedicating this 
magnificent monument. So, General Grillo, here in the company of the 
brave men and women of the United States Air Force, I proudly accept the 
Air Force Memorial on behalf of the American people.
    A soldier can walk the battlefields where he once fought; a marine 
can walk the beaches he once stormed; but an airman can never visit the 
patch of sky he raced across on a mission to defend freedom. And so it's 
fitting that, from this day forward, the men and women of the Air Force 
will have this memorial, a place here on the ground that recognizes 
their achievements and sacrifices in the skies above.
    Building this memorial took a lot of talent and creativity and 
determination. Like the aircraft whose flight it represents, this 
memorial is a incredible feat of engineering. Like the country whose 
freedom it represents, this memorial is hopeful and optimistic. By its 
design, this monument raises our eyes toward the vast and open skies and 
focuses our mind on the endless possibilities of human flight.
    Having flown an F-102, I know the exhilaration of flight, and as a 
son of an aviator who was shot down in combat, I am keenly aware of its 
dangers. I have spent a lot of time with the aviators, and one thing 
about them that has always struck me, aviators, by their nature, are 
optimistic people. It takes an optimist to climb into a steel tube, race 
to the sky at 1,500 miles an hour heading toward danger, and expect to 
return home safely. Yet this is precisely what the men and women of the 
Air Force do for our country every day.
    America is grateful for your service, and I'm proud to be the 
Commander in Chief of such fine men and women.
    Today, it's hard to imagine a world without the Air Force protecting 
us in the skies above. Yet by the standards of history, air power is 
still a relatively new phenomenon. Men have been fighting on land and 
sea for thousands of years, but there are still Americans alive today 
who were born before man had ever flown. Over the past century, manned 
flight has gone from the dream of two brothers working in an Ohio 
bicycle shop to an indispensable tool in our Nation's arsenal.
    We saw the importance of air power 6 days ago--six decades ago, 
after our Nation was attacked at Pearl Harbor. Soon after the attack, 
General Hap Arnold called Lieutenant Colonel Jimmy Doolittle into his 
office and gave him an unprecedented mission--retaliate against Tokyo. 
Just over 4 months later, Doolittle's raiders had shocked the world by 
striking the enemy capital some 4,000 miles away from Pearl Harbor. To 
do it, they had to load B-52 bombers on the deck of an aircraft carrier, 
sail within a few hundred miles of enemy territory, take off and drop 
their payloads, knowing they had little chance to make it safely to 
China.
    But the Doolittle raid sent a clear message to America's enemies: If 
you attack this country and you harm our people, there is no corner of 
the Earth remote enough to protect you from the reach of the aviators 
who wear our Nation's uniform.
    Five years ago, our enemies learned this lesson anew after the 
attacks of September

[[Page 1829]]

the 11th, 2001. Within weeks of the attack, pilots at Whiteman Air Force 
Base in Missouri boarded B-2 stealth bombers, flew halfway across the 
world, refueling in mid-air, took out the Taliban and Al Qaida targets 
in Afghanistan, dropped into Diego Garcia for engine-running crew 
changes, and then made the journey home. Jimmy Doolittle would have been 
proud.
    Together with Navy and Marine aircrew, submariners, Special Ops 
forces from every service, and a vast coalition of nations, the United 
States Air Force helped deliver justice to a regime nearly 7,000 miles 
away from the World Trade Center and helped put the terrorists on the 
run. Five years have passed since the opening salvos in the war on 
terror, and every day in this war, we depend on the skill and 
determination of the men and women of the United States Air Force. In 
this war, battlefield airmen on the ground scout out enemy positions, 
locate targets for aviators circling above, and use advanced laser 
guidance systems to steer bombs, allowing us to strike the terrorists 
and spare innocent civilians.
    In this war, Air Force aviators in Nevada step into a camouflage 
trailer on their base, sit down in front of computer consoles, and fly 
Predator unmanned aerial vehicles half a world away over the skies of 
Iraq, using them to find and remove terrorist nests in remote corners of 
the world.
    In this world--in this war, our airmen operate advanced space 
satellites circling the Earth. They beam down real-time images of 
terrorist positions to our troops on the ground so they can strike the 
enemy before the enemy can strike our country. In this war, Air Force C-
130 crews deliver supplies to our troops on the frontlines; Air Force 
teams disarm and remove roadside bombs; Air Force maintenance squadrons 
keep our planes in the air; Air Force A-10 Thunderbolts provide close 
air support for troops in contact with the enemy. And Air Force search 
and rescue teams evacuate soldiers and sailors, airmen, and marines 
injured in the war on terror.
    Whether they are serving on the frontlines or bases overseas or here 
in the homefront, the men and women of the United States Air Force bring 
honor to the uniform, and they are bringing us victory in the war on 
terror.
    And the stakes in this war could not be higher. Terrorists and 
extremists are fighting to overthrow moderate governments across the 
broader Middle East so they can take control of countries and use them 
as bases from which to attack America. If we do not defeat these enemies 
now, we will leave our children to face a Middle East overrun by 
terrorist states and radical dictators armed with nuclear weapons. We 
are in a war that will set the course for this new century and determine 
the destiny of millions across the world. Defeating the terrorists and 
extremists is the challenge of our time and the calling of this 
generation.
    And like generations that came before, we will answer history's call 
with confidence. We will confront the threats to our way of life; we 
will fight for our liberty without wavering; and we will prevail.
    Victory in this war depends on the one thing that has not changed 
since the founding of the Air Force six decades ago--the courage of the 
men and women who wear the Air Force blue. We see that courage in the 
men and women of the Air Force who return from battle with wounds they 
will carry with them for the rest of their lives. We see that courage in 
the airmen who left our shores to defend freedom and did not live to 
make the journey home. They gave their lives so that their fellow 
Americans could enjoy a bright horizon of freedom and peace. We mourn 
every loss. We pray for their families. And here at this memorial, we 
consecrate their memory for the ages.
    This memorial lies in sight of Arlington National Cemetery, where so 
many of those fallen airmen are buried. This memorial also lies in sight 
of the Pentagon, where our Nation came under attack. It is a fitting 
location. Under these magnificent spires, we pay tribute to the men and 
women of the Air Force who stand ready to give all for their country. 
And looking from this promontory to a place once filled with smoke and 
flames, we remember why we need them.
    Every man and woman who has worn the Air Force uniform is part of a 
great history. From the Berlin Airlift to the Korean war to Vietnam to 
the Gulf war to Kosovo and

[[Page 1830]]

today's war on terror, a long blue line of heroes has defended freedom 
in the skies above. To all who have climbed sunward and chased the 
shouting wind, America stops to say: Your service and sacrifice will be 
remembered forever and honored in this place by the citizens of a free 
and grateful nation.

    May God bless you all.

Note: The President spoke at 2:48 p.m. In his remarks, he referred to 
Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, who introduced him; Chief 
Master Sergeant of the Air Force Rodney J. McKinley; and H. Ross Perot, 
Jr., chairman of the board, and Maj. Gen. Edward F. Grillo, Jr., USAF 
(Ret.), president, Air Force Memorial Foundation.