For the first time since it was authorized in 1952, the Civil Reserve Air Fleet is activated to increase the availability of airlift to the Middle East.
Gene Smith, Former POW and AFA Chair, Dies at 91
Jan. 19, 2026
Lt. Col. Richard “Gene” Smith, who overcame five and a half years as a prisoner of war in the notorious Hanoi Hilton from 1967 until 1973, died Jan. 16. He was one day short of his 91st birthday. “Gene Smith was an American hero, whose...

