The Air National Guard expects to have at its 60th birthday celebration this fall a few of a group whose numbers are diminishing more quickly now—the original airmen who returned from World War II to form Air Guard units in their respective states. TSgt. Mike Smith with the National Guard Bureau reports reminiscences from some of these airmen, including 90-year-old retired TSgt. Harry Emily of the Colorado Air Guard.
The Air Force has embraced new technical approaches like open mission systems and rapid software updates for cutting-edge aircraft like the B-21 and Collaborative Combat Aircraft. Increasingly, though, the service is also working to apply these to its older, “legacy” aircraft, officials said this week.