From A to Z

Representing countries from Algeria to Zambia, foreign air attaches from more than 40 countries with embassies in Washington, D.C., accepted the invitation to Air Force Magazine’s annual reception, held in their honor March 21 in Arlington, Va.

At this 26th annual event, the foreign military attaches had an opportunity to meet informally with Air Force senior leaders, including Ronald M. Sega, undersecretary of the Air Force, and Lt. Gen. Arthur J. Lichte, USAF assistant vice chief of staff. The Air Force Association’s Industrial Associates, many of them representing US defense contractors, were also on hand, as well as AFA Chairman of the Board Stephen P. “Pat” Condon, Vice Chairman L. Boyd Anderson, and National President Robert E. “Bob” Largent.

The dean of the foreign air attache corps, Belgian Brig. Gen. Daniel Van de Ven, spoke to the gathering, highlighting the role of AFA. He thanked the association for inviting the attaches to the Air Warfare Symposium every February in Orlando, Fla., and said the group looked forward to September’s Air & Space Conference in Washington, D.C. Van de Ven said the attaches feel that they are the adopted sons or daughters of AFA because they’re included in so many of its activities.

He pointed out that attaches are responsible for reporting information and maintaining communication between countries and said this is what makes Air Force Magazine a “reference tool,” invaluable for its “current and accurate information.”

Group of Four

In February, the Snake River Valley Chapter in Mountain Home, Idaho, and three other military associations hosted their first joint event—a banquet with AFA Executive Director Donald L. Peterson as guest speaker and retired USAF Col. Bernard F. Fisher, Medal of Honor recipient, as one of the VIPs.

Held at Mountain Home Air Force Base’s all-ranks Gunfighter Club, the banquet was sponsored by the AFA chapter and the local Military Officers Association of America, Air Force Sergeants Association, and Order of Daedalians.

The diverse guest list included Gary A. Hoff, AFA’s Northwest Region president, who traveled from Anchorage, Alaska; Col. Charles K. Shugg and Col. Robert E. Broderick, commander and vice commander of Mountain Home’s 366th Fighter Wing; Mary Miracle, president of Mountain Home’s Chamber of Commerce; Dale W. Smith from the Veterans of Foreign Wars (and an AFA member); Billy F. Richey, the governor’s military affairs assistant; and many community business leaders.

Peterson said he covered “AFA 101”—basic information about the association—in his remarks. He also spoke about how the Air Force has changed since the Cold War, evolving from a forward deployed force to one that deploys forward.

The Snake River Valley Chapter, led by Lt. Col. Robert J. Capozella, is undergoing a revitalization, Peterson reported. He added that the base’s “senior leadership is very supportive of AFA.” Plans are under way to make the four-group February banquet an annual event.

Most Senior, Most Junior

In February, the Lance P. Sijan Chapter joined Air Force units in Colorado Springs, Colo., in hosting an annual Air Force Ball.

Gen. Lance W. Lord, then commander of Air Force Space Command, headed the guest list of more than 1,000. As the most senior airman, he later joined Amn. Amanda Easton, the most junior, in cutting a birthday cake for the ball guests. Easton had been assigned to the 21st Medical Group, Peterson AFB, Colo., for only two months.

Other guests included Lt. Gen. John F. Regni, Air Force Academy superintendent; Lt. Gen. Frank G. Klotz, AFSPC vice commander; Maj. Gen. Paul J. Sullivan, chief of staff, NORAD and NORTHCOM; CMSgt. Ronald G. Kriete, command chief for AFSPC; and CMSgt. Michael E. Eitnier, command chief at the academy.

Representing AFA were Robert Largent, National President; Joan Sell, president of the Colorado AFA; and Brian A. Binn, chapter president.

Binn noted that this year’s gala was organized by chapter member Daniel J. Beatty Jr. and Lt. Col. Tim Howard from AFSPC. Binn said their organizing committee rounded up Community Partners to sponsor tables, so junior enlisted airmen in the area could attend the ball, held at the five-star Broadmoor Hotel and Resort.

Get on the Bus

Once a month, members of the Chiefs Group at Luke AFB, Ariz., surprise an airman who has been selected as “Luke’s Finest,” showing up unannounced at the outstanding performer’s workplace to present the award. The president of the Frank Luke Chapter, retired CMSgt. Harry Bailey, joins these drop-in visits to present the AFA portion of the airman’s awards—a refurbished computer.

January’s outstanding airman wasn’t located on base, however. A1C Tiffany Mendoza of the 56th Training Squadron works at an Air National Guard facility some 15 miles from Luke. So the chiefs—10 of them active duty, and Bailey—rounded up a bus and rode out to the Papago Park Military Reservation, located outside Phoenix.

Having 11 chiefs suddenly show up at Mendoza’s workplace definitely made an impression on the young airman, Bailey said.

The chapter has been donating refurbished computers to Luke’s Finest for about three years. Mendoza received the 31st. Bailey said that in 2004, when the chapter began running low on computers to fix up, a newspaper article mentioning his role in this award program generated a flood of donations. “Ordinary citizens still remember to call when they are ready to upgrade their equipment,” he said.

Lifetime Achievement

Bailey’s efforts on behalf of Luke airmen over the years have spanned a range of activities, including morale-boosting pizza parties, donations to families separated because of deployments, free movies for airmen in dormitories, and donations to the base chapel’s programs.

In recognition of these initiatives, the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke honored Bailey with a Lifetime Achievement Award. It was presented at the wing’s annual awards dinner—an event supported, of course, by the Frank Luke Chapter.

Fellow Luke Chapter member Geno Piccoli also received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the banquet. The retired chief master sergeant works in the 56th Mission Support Squadron and manages a military family support organization.

These were the first Lifetime Achievement Awards bestowed by the wing in its 24 years of annual awards ceremonies. CMSgt. Scott Dearduff, the 56th’s command chief master sergeant and a Luke Chapter member, told the base newspaper that Bailey and Piccoli have given “far above and beyond for the enlisted men and women here at Luke.”

Addressing the Tigers

The Air Force’s new chief of warfighting integration and chief information officer addressed a luncheon meeting of the Strom Thurmond Chapter in Clemson, S.C., in March.

Lt. Gen. Michael W. Peterson spoke about USAF operations, the Global War on Terror, and AFA’s role in informing the public on key Air Force issues. Peterson had taken on his current position last November.

Col. Lance S. Young, chapter VP, said that Community Partners received recognition during this chapter meeting, with presentation of CP plaques to new members. The chapter has increased Community Partner membership by 800 percent, he said.

Young, who commands the AFROTC detachment at Clemson University, said Peterson later was guest speaker at a joint Air Force-Army ROTC Military Ball on campus. The more than 200 guests at the event included Justin Mastrangelo, national commander of the Arnold Air Society, an affiliate of AFA. AAS is headquartered this year at Clemson, home of the “Tigers.”

Looking to the Future

A group of AFROTC cadets got a glimpse of what might be in their futures when they visited Boeing facilities in Seattle for a day of information sessions organized by the Greater Seattle Chapter.

Accompanied by Washington State President Ernest L. Hansen, some two dozen cadets and cadre from the University of Washington and Central Washington University listened to briefings on the F-22, the C-17, and Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft operations and upgrades.

Other presentations covered the Army’s Future Combat Systems and the Navy’s P-8A Multimission Maritime Aircraft. Boeing Integrated Defense Systems hosted the young cadets.

At the end of the information sessions, the cadets toured the manufacturing area where Boeing builds the F-22’s wings and aft fuselage.

The chapter has been arranging cadet visits to Boeing’s Seattle Developmental Center and plants since 2003. I. Fred Rosenfelder, chapter president, said, “The program provides the cadets with a unique opportunity to talk to the people who are designing and developing the weapons systems they will be operating and supporting when they are commissioned.”

Robert L. Carr, 1925-2006

Robert L. Carr, an AFA national director emeritus, died March 21 at age 80.

He was born in Pittsburgh and returned there from duty with the Army Air Corps, joining AFA in 1947 and becoming a charter member and a founding member of the Greater Pittsburgh Chapter that same year.

While maintaining a career in real estate in the Pittsburgh area, he established a continuous record of service to AFA, serving in various capacities, including state president and national vice president, before being elected to the board of directors in 1976. He served several elected terms on the board before becoming a permanent director in 1985 and a national director emeritus in 1997.

He was president of the Greater Pittsburgh Chapter at the time of his death.

More AFA News

On March 18, the Thomas B. McGuire Jr. Chapter (N.J.) hosted its annual awards banquet at McGuire Air Force Base’s Community Center. Maj. Gen. David S. Gray, commander of Air Mobility Warfare Center at Ft. Dix, was guest speaker for an evening that honored all quarterly award recipients from McGuire. Geraldine Jones, chapter president, said 27 people were named Scott Associate Fellows, that evening.

In Colorado, the Gen. Robert E. Huyser Chapter helped judge the 50th annual Western Colorado Regional Science Fair. Chapter President Michael E. Peterson said local Air Force recruiter SSgt. Jeremy Montgomery got the idea of turning to the AFA chapter to find knowledgeable judges. Most of the other judges came from Mesa State College in Grand Junction, Colo., where the fair took place over two days in February.

Several members of the Cape Canaveral Chapter joined Richard A. Ortega of the Central Florida Chapter in attending the Civil Air Patrol Group 4 Awards Banquet at Patrick AFB, Fla., in February. Chris G. Bailey, Cape Canaveral Chapter president; David Froiseth, chapter VP; and member Kenneth Frey were among those representing AFA. Ortega, the evening’s guest speaker, highlighted the efforts of the CAP Florida Wing and the local AFA chapters in promoting aerospace education. He encouraged more collaboration between the two organizations.

In Belleville, Ill., Lee W. Niehaus, president of the Total Force Chapter (Pa.) presented the AFA award at the CAP Group 19 Awards Banquet to CAP cadet Christopher L. Sommer. Guest speaker for the event was Maj. Gen. Thomas P. Kane, director of plans and programs at Air Mobility Command, Scott AFB, Ill. Kane spoke about USAF’s air mobility capabilities and about the importance of CAP in homeland security.

Miss Indiana visited patients at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Fort Wayne, Ind., on Valentine’s Day, with behindthe- scenes help from the Fort Wayne Chapter. Susan Guilkey posed with each bedridden patient, while Chapter Treasurer Everitt Padgitt took a photo. Miss Indiana then presented the photo, a rose, gifts, and valentines to the patient. Jeanne L. Hissem, chapter secretary, said fellow chapter officers each year spend at least three days beforehand sorting valentines that come from all over the Hoosier State, as well as neighboring states, for the VA patients. Hundreds of valentines were distributed this year, Hissem reported.

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