The airmen of Kadena Air Base on the Japanese island of Okinawa, have updated the base’s Medal of Honor Memorial, adding the name of SSgt. William Pitsenbarger—a Vietnam-era pararescuemen who defended 20 infantrymen during an April 11, 1966 operation in which he died. The Air Force initially presented a posthumous Air Force Cross to Pitsenbarger, then, in December 2000, the award was upgraded to the Medal of Honor, making him the sixth enlisted airman to receive the Medal of Honor. (Read our article “Pitsenbarger, Medal of Honor.”)
A dozen and a half Air Force Reservists formally transferred to the Space Force on July 15, becoming the new service’s first 18 part-time Guardians. The move is the culmination of more than two and a half years of work to create a system unlike any other military branch.