Feb. 7, 1994. Air Force Space Command launches the first Milstar communications satellite.

Feb. 10, 1994. Lt. Jeannie Flynn, the first woman selected for USAF combat pilot training completes her F-15E training. Read The Quiet Pioneers

Feb. 28, 1994. Air Force F-16s, operating under NATO command, shoot down four Bosnian Serb Super Galeb attack aircraft after twice warning the Serb jets to leave Bosnian airspace. It is NATO’s first combat in its 45-year history.

March 15, 1994. Reports by Air Force Magazine and the Air Force Association reveal the plans of the National Air and Space Museum to exhibit the Enola Gay, the B-29 that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, as a prop in a political horror show. A great controversy ensues, and under pressure from Congress, the news media, and public opinion, the exhibit is canceled and the museum director is fired.
Read: Chronology of the controversy
AFA special reports and analyses
Air Force Magazine articles and editorials
Revisionism Gone Wrong

April 7, 1994. Capt. Michael S. Menser (and crew) sets a recognized class record for 6,200-mile speed without payload (jet aircraft) of 599.59 mph flying from Grand Forks AFB, N.D., to Monroeville, Ala., to Mullan, Idaho, in a Rockwell B-1B Lancer. At the same time, Capt. R.F. Lewandowski (and crew) sets the recognized record for a different class for 6,200-mile speed without payload (jet aircraft) of 594.61 mph over the same course, also in a B-1.

April 10, 1994. In NATO’s first air attacks on ground positions since the Alliance was founded 45 years previously, two Air Force F-16C fighters destroy a Bosnian Serb Army command post with Mk 82 500-pound bombs.

May 3, 1994. Col. Silas Johnson Jr., 93rd Bomb Wing commander, flies the last B-52G to the “Boneyard” at Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz., thus removing this series from the active inventory.

May 18, 1994. Northrop acquires Grumman to form Northrop Grumman Corporation.

June 3, 1994. Maj. Andre A. Gerner and company pilot John D. Burns set a recognized record for STOL aircraft for greatest mass carried to a height of 6,600 feet (44,088 pounds) in a McDonnell Douglas C-17A Globemaster III at Edwards AFB, Calif.

June 12, 1994. The Boeing 777 makes its first flight. It is the first jetliner to be 100 percent digitally designed using three-dimensional computer graphics. It enters service in June 1995 with United Airlines.

June 24, 1994. The F-117 stealth aircraft is officially named Nighthawk.

June 29, 1994. First visit of a US space shuttle to a space station, the Russian Mir.

July 1994. The 184th Bomb Group, Kansas Air National Guard, becomes the first Guard unit to be equipped with the B-1B. Read Bombers in the Guard

Aug. 2, 1994. During a global power mission to Kuwait, two B-52s from the 2nd Bomb Wing, Barksdale AFB, La., set a world record while circumnavigating the Earth. Flying 47.2 hours, the bombers set a world record not only for the longest B-52 flight but also for the longest jet aircraft flight in history. Dropping 54 bombs over a range located 25 miles from the Iraqi border, the aircraft demonstrate their global reach and power on the fourth anniversary of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.

Aug. 4, 1994. Two B-1Bs (one from the 384th Bomb Group and one from the 184th Bomb Group of the Kansas Air National Guard) complete a 19-hour nonstop global power mission to Hawaii. This is the first time the 184th, the first ANG unit to receive the B-1B, flies a global power mission.

October 1994. USAF responds to hostile movements in the Persian Gulf area by Iraq’s Saddam Hussein by deploying 193 combat aircraft to augment the 77 already in place. Four bombers fly nonstop from bases in the US to deliver 55,000 pounds of bombs on target, on time, within audible range of Saddam’s forces. The Iraqis withdraw northward. Secretary of Defense William J. Perry later says, “The Air Force really has deterred a war.”

Oct. 14, 1994. The first-ever operational C-17 mission lands in the Persian Gulf area, delivering a five-ton “rolling command post,” five vehicles, and assorted supplies for the Army. The 17.2-hour flight was the longest mission to date for a C-17.

Oct. 26, 1994. Gen. Ronald R. Fogleman becomes Air Force Chief of Staff.

Oct. 26, 1994. CMSgt. David J. Campanale becomes Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force.

Nov. 21–23, 1994. In Project Sapphire, Air Mobility Command C-5s transport more than 1,300 pounds of highly enriched uranium from the former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan to Dover AFB, Del., to protect this large supply of nuclear materials from terrorists, smugglers, and unfriendly governments. From Dover, the uranium is taken to Oak Ridge, Tenn., to await conversion to commercial nuclear fuel. Read Project Sapphire

1995

Feb. 7, 1995. A crew from Whiteman AFB, Mo., makes the first drop of live bombs from the Northrop Grumman B-2A stealth bomber. The two Mk 84 bombs were dropped as part of the B-2’s first Red Flag exercise at Nellis AFB, Nev.

March 15, 1995. Lockheed and Martin Marietta merge to form Lockheed Martin.

March 24, 1995. In a trans Atlantic purchase, Allison Engine Company is acquired by Rolls Royce plc. Allison now operates as a stand alone member of the Rolls Royce Aerospace Group.

April 7, 1995. 2nd Lt. Kelly Flinn, the first woman to join a bomber crew, begins student pilot training with the 11th Bomb Squadron, 2nd Bomb Wing, Barksdale AFB, La.

April 27, 1995. The Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite constellation is declared to have achieved full operational capability (FOC) by Air Force Space Command.

June 1, 1995. Lockheed Martin and Boeing roll out the stealthy DarkStar Tier III Minus high-altitude Unmanned Aerial Vehicle in ceremonies at Palmdale, Calif.

June 2, 1995. Air Force F-16 pilot Capt. Scott F. O’Grady is shot down over northwest Bosnia on an Operation Deny Flight mission. Rescued after an eight-day ordeal during which he subsisted on bugs and rainwater, O’Grady returns home to a hero’s welcome.

June 2–3, 1995. Two Dyess AFB, Tex.–based Rockwell B-1B crews land after completing a 36 hour, 13 minute, 36 second, 20,100-mile nonstop round the world flight. This global power mission, called Coronet Bat, requires six air refuelings using tanker assets from seven major commands. Coronet Bat incorporates bombing runs over the Pachino Range, Italy; the Torishima Range near Kadena AB, Japan; and the Utah Test and Training Range. One of the crews, commanded by Col. Douglas Raaberg, sets a recognized speed record for average eastbound speed around the world (with air refueling) of 631.16 mph on the flight.

June 6, 1995. Astronaut Norman E. Thagard, flying on the Russian Mir space station, sets the US record for spaceflight endurance, passing 84 days, one hour, and 17 minutes in space. The previous US record-holders were the three astronauts on the third Skylab mission in 1974.

June 22, 1995. Secretary of the Air Force Sheila E. Widnall announces that Beech Aircraft has been selected to develop and deliver the Joint Primary Aircraft Training System (JPATS) for the Air Force and Navy. The new trainer, a modified version of the Swiss Pilatus PC-9 turboprop trainer, will replace the USAF’s Cessna T-37Bs and the Navy’s Beech T-34Cs.

June 28, 1995. The National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution finally puts the Enola Gay, the B-29 that dropped the first atomic bomb on Japan, on display. The exhibition program is straightforward and factual. Earlier, amid major controversy, the museum canceled plans to show the Enola Gay as a prop in a politicized horror show after Congress and the public—alerted by reports from the Air Force Association— strongly objected.

July 7–Aug. 5, 1995. The C-17 airlifter, earlier beset by troubles so severe that program cancellation was a possibility, produces outstanding results in a month-long wartime surge test. In Nov., DOD says the C-17 has bounced back from its problems and authorizes the Air Force to buy up to 120 of these aircraft.

July 8, 1995. The Minuteman III ICBM achieves 100 million hours of operational duty.

July 29, 1995. Air Combat Command activates the 11th Reconnaissance Squadron, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) unit, and assigns it to the 57th Operations Group at Nellis AFB, Nev. Equipped with the Tier II Predator—and later Tier II Plus and Tier III—types, the 11th RS is tasked to explore the use of remotely piloted aircraft.

Aug. 25, 1995. Capt. Russell F. Mathers and crew set three recognized class closed course speed records at Edwards AFB, Calif. The Barksdale AFB, La.–based crew flies their Boeing B-52H to a speed of 549.45 mph over the 6,200-mile course. The flight lasts 11 hours, 23 minutes.

Aug. 30, 1995. US Air Force, Navy, and Marine aircraft lead Operation Deliberate Force, a NATO bombing campaign responding to Bosnian Serb mortar attacks that killed 38 civilians at an outdoor market in Sarajevo. The operation ends Sept. 14, 1995. Read Deliberate Force

Sept. 1, 1995. Officially emerging from mothballed status, the SR-71 is declared operationally capable by Air Combat Command.

Sept. 10, 1995. First Lady, the first production Lockheed C-130 Hercules, is retired in ceremonies at Duke Field, Fla. This aircraft, which was first flown on April 7, 1955, had a distinguished career, including more than 4,500 combat hours in Southeast Asia after it was converted into a gunship. First Lady was later retired to the USAF Armament Museum at Eglin AFB, Fla.

Sept. 22, 1995. A Boeing E-3B Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft crashes on takeoff at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, after several Canadian geese flew into the aircraft’s two left wing engines. The crew of 24 US and Canadian airmen are killed. This is the first catastrophic AWACS accident in more than 18 years of operation.

Oct. 1, 1995. Air Combat Command activates the 609th Information Warfare Squadron at Shaw AFB, S.C.

Nov. 2, 1995. Lt. Col. Greg Feest becomes the first operational Air Force pilot to log 1,000 hours of flight time in the Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk stealth fighter.

Nov. 29, 1995. Company test pilot Fred Madenwald makes the first flight of the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18E Super Hornet carrier-based fighter attack aircraft at the company’s plant in St. Louis, Mo.

Dec. 6, 1995. A crew from the 37th Airlift Squadron at Ramstein AB, Germany, marks the beginning of Operation Joint Endeavor by flying their Lockheed C-130E in to Tuzla, Bosnia. Operation Joint Endeavor is the ongoing NATO effort to enforce the Bosnian peace treaty signed at Dayton, Ohio.

Dec. 7, 1995. Literally going out in a blaze of glory, the Galileo spacecraft’s atmospheric probe separates from the orbiter and plunges into Jupiter’s atmosphere. The probe sends a stream of data back to the orbiter and manages to survive 58.5 minutes before it is crushed by the intense pressure. Galileo was launched from the space shuttle in 1989.

Dec. 19, 1995. A federal judge rules in favor of General Dynamics and McDonnell Douglas, establishing that the Navy’s A-12 Avenger stealth attack aircraft was canceled for the convenience of the government, rather than default. The A-12 was canceled in 1991.

Dec. 20, 1995. NATO air operation Decisive Endeavor begins to monitor and enforce peace implementation in Bosnia.

Dec. 20, 1995. The Air Force announces that its personnel strength has dipped below 400,000 for the first time since 1948. USAF’s postwar strength peaked at 977,593

1996

Jan. 4, 1996. Sikorsky test pilot Rus Stiles and Boeing test pilot Bob Gradle make the first flight of the Army’s YRAH-66 Comanche helicopter prototype at West Palm Beach, Fla. The RAH-66, designed for armed reconnaissance/light attack missions, is the first helicopter to employ stealth technologies.

Feb. 14, 1996. A crew flying the Northrop Grumman E-8A Joint STARS surveillance platform over Bosnia makes the type’s 50th mission in support of Operation Joint Endeavor, breaking a sortie record set in Operation Desert Storm in 1991. Despite the E-8’s successes in these two operations, Joint STARS is still officially in development.

March 15, 1996. After 77 years of aircraft manufacture in The Netherlands, Fokker Aircraft declares bankruptcy.

June 25, 1996. Terrorist truck bomb explodes at Khobar Towers, a military billeting complex in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing 19 airmen and injuring hundreds of others. The Department of Defense sets aside the factual findings of two Air Force inquiries and puts the blame on the wing commander. Read Fallout From Khobar Towers
Khobar Towers
Desert Stronghold
From Khobar to the Cole
The Second Sacking of Terryl Schwalier
Death in the Desert

July 27, 1996. On the day it is retired from service, the Air Force officially bestows the nickname Aardvark on the General Dynamics F 111 in ceremonies at the now Lockheed Martin plant in Fort Worth, Tex., where the aircraft was built. The new official name formalizes what crews had been unofficially calling the aircraft for years.

Sept. 3, 1996. The 11th Reconnaissance Squadron becomes the first Air Force unit to operate the Predator, an unmanned aerial vehicle designed for aerial surveillance and reconnaissance. Flights over Bosnia help the United States to ensure a peace agreement there.

October 1996. After the terrorist bombing at Khobar Towers in June, the Air Force moves to a more secure hub for Southern Watch operations, relocating to Prince Sultan Air Base in the Saudi Arabian desert. Read Miracle in the Desert

Oct. 8, 1996. Three Air Force crews flying Northrop B-2A Spirit bombers, hit 16 out of 16 targets with live Global Position System-Aided Targeting System/ GPS-Aided Munition (GATS/GAM) weapons during a test at the Nellis AFB range in Nevada. The Whiteman AFB, Mo.,-based crews dropped the 2,000-lb. weapons from 41,000 feet and recorded 13 direct hits, three bombs recorded heavy damage, and one was functionally damaged. The Northrop-developed GAM will serve as an interim weapon until the new Joint Direct Attack Munition is fielded.

Oct. 21, 1996. The Air Force successfully conducts the first guided launch of the GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munition. JDAM, built by Boeing, is a guidance kit that converts “dumb” bombs into precision-guided munitions using Global Positioning System update information. During this test, the 2,000-pound weapon was released from a Lockheed Martin F-16C Fighting Falcon flying at 20,000 feet at Mach 0.8 over the test range at Eglin AFB, Fla. The weapon received satellite data prior to release, but primarily used inertial navigation system data on this test.

Oct. 22, 1996. The Air Force shifts operational control of Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules transports and Learjet C-21 liaison aircraft based in the United States from Air Combat Command to Air Mobility Command. C-130s and C-21s in the Pacific and in Europe will remain under PACAF and USAFE control.

Nov. 5, 1996. CMSgt. Eric W. Benken becomes Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force. Read "Chief Benken," Air Force Magazine, February 1997.

Nov. 26, 1996. The Air Force carries out the first successful test of a full-up GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM). During this test, the 2,000-pound weapon was released from an F-16C Fighting Falcon flying at 20,000 feet at Mach 0.8 over the test range at Eglin AFB, Fla. The range had a cloud cover at 10,000 feet and the pilot could not see the target when he released the weapon. The JDAM tail kit received satellite updates during its flight and missed the bull’s-eye by only 9.2 meters, well within the required 13 meters.

Dec. 4, 1996. Air Force Capt. Kurt Gallegos from the 388th Fighter Wing’s 4th Fighter Squadron at Hill AFB, Utah, flies the five millionth flight hour recorded by the U.S. Air Force’s fleet of in F-16 Fighting Falcons.

Dec. 4, 1996. The Mars Pathfinder, the first spacecraft designed to land and explore Mars in nearly 21 years, is launched from Cape Canaveral AFS, Fla., aboard a McDonnell Douglas Delta II rocket. It is expected to arrive on Mars on July 4, 1997.

1997

Jan. 1, 1997. Operation Northern Watch, the follow-on to Provide Comfort II, begins, as US aircrews patrol the no-fly zone over northern Iraq. Read Northern Watch and The Highs and Lows of Northern Watch

Jan. 1, 1997. The SR-71 “Blackbird” strategic reconnaissance aircraft is brought out of retirement, as the Air Force announces that two aircraft and crews are mission ready. Mothballed in 1990, the Blackbird was revived in 1994, but was never made operational. In December 1996, Congress appropriated $39 million to get the aircraft back in action, and the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Beale AFB, Calif., began flying training sorties.

Feb. 17, 1997. The Air Force Reserve, previously a field operating agency, is established as a major command of the Air Force and redesignated Air Force Reserve Command.

Feb. 20, 1997. The Global Hawk long-range reconnaissance Unmanned Aerial Vehicle rolls out at the Teledyne Ryan Aeronautical plant in San Diego.

April 1, 1997. The Northrop Grumman B-2A Spirit stealth bomber reaches initial operational capability (IOC) with the 509th Bomb Wing at Whiteman AFB, Mo.

April 4, 1997. A Defense Meteorological Satellite Program satellite is launched into polar orbit aboard a Titan IIG booster from Vandenberg AFB, Calif. This is the first time a satellite has been launched aboard a converted intercontinental ballistic missile.

April 9, 1997. The first F-22 fighter, “Spirit of America,” rolls out at the Lockheed plant at Marietta, Ga. Read Raptor 01 and The Indispensable Fighter

April 22–25, 1997. The Air Force Association hosts Air Force Fifty, a celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the US Air Force in Las Vegas, Nev. The event, which features a meeting of the Global Air Chiefs, is capped off by the Golden Air Tattoo, a spectacular airshow at nearby Nellis AFB.

May 12, 1997. A contingent of students from the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards AFB, Calif., visit the Russian Air Force Flight Test Facility at the Gromov Flight Research Institute at Zhukosvsky, Russia, for the first time in an unparalleled opportunity for American test pilots to interact and share experiences and techniques with their Russian counterparts. Each of the U.S. students received an orientation flight in a MiG-29 fighter.

May 16, 1997. 2d Lt. Kazue Takeuchi, 25, becomes the first woman pilot in Japan Air Self Defense Force history to earn her wings.

May 17, 1997. The NASA - McDonnell Douglas X-36, the 28 percent scale, remotely piloted research aircraft designed to demonstrate tailless, high angle of attack fighter agility utilizing stealth technologies, is flown for the first time at the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB, Calif., under the control of company pilot Larry Walker.

June 24, 1997. The Air Force issues its second report on the “Roswell Incident,” the alleged crash and recovery of an extraterrestrial vehicle and its alien occupants near Roswell, N.M., in July 1947. The report, entitled “The Roswell Report: Case Closed,” concludes that Air Force activities that occurred over a period of many years are now represented to have occurred in two or three days in 1947; “aliens” were actually anthropomorphic test dummies; “unusual military activities” were actually high altitude balloon tests; and claims of “alien bodies” at Roswell Army Air Field were a combination of human remains from two separate aircraft accidents. While the report thoroughly documents its conclusions, it is widely dismissed by groups ranging from the lunatic fringe to respected scientists.

June 30, 1997. The Defense Information Systems Agency and the Joint Chiefs of Staff disconnect the Worldwide Military Command and Control System’s (WWMCCS) Top Secret Support System, the last remnant of an information network developed in the 1970s. The Global Command and Control System (GSSC), which debuted in August 1996, is now the primary national system for planning and conducting military operations around the world.

July 4, 1997. NASA’s Pathfinder spacecraft lands on Mars in the space agency’s first “smaller, faster, cheaper” series of scientific probes. Pathfinder, built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., entered the Martian atmosphere directly, parachuted down, inflated a protective cocoon of airbags, bounced several times and then righted itself. The airbags deflated and then the spaceship’s three petals opened up to expose the ship’s scientific instruments and cameras. The Sojourner rover, a six-wheeled robot attached to one of the petals, begins operation several days later, rolling down a ramp on the spacecraft, exploring rocks on the Martian surface and sending back readings and photographs. Once the first photos from Mars are posted on JPL’s Internet Web site, nearly 40 million “hits” are recorded within the first few days. The spacecraft are renamed as a memorial to noted astronomer Carl Sagan, who had passed away several months earlier. The entire mission cost less than $275 million, including the booster.

July 28–Aug. 1, 1997. The first Open Skies Treaty mission is conducted over the United States. A Russian delegation led by Col. Mikhail Botvinko, flying an Antonov An 30 turboprop conduct surveillance operations over the United States. This was only a practice mission, as the Open Skies Treaty, which allows the 27 participating countries to gather information about one another’s military forces through unarmed observation flights, has not been formally ratified by Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia.

Aug. 1, 1997. Boeing and McDonnell Douglas merge to become The Boeing Company.

Sept. 1, 1997. Gen. Ronald R. Fogleman retires prior to the end of his full term as Air Force Chief of Staff. Read Aerospace World: The Chief Steps Down; "Aerospace World—Fogleman: Exit Was ‘Early Retirement,’ Not Protest"; and Cohen’s Actions Were ‘Purely Political’

Sept. 7, 1997. Company test pilot Paul Metz makes the first flight of the Lockheed Martin/Boeing F-22 Raptor at Dobbins ARB, Ga. After a four year test program, the F- 22 will replace the F-15 as the Air Force’s front line air combat fighter.

Sept. 12, 1997. Air University begins the Air and Space Basic Course School at Maxwell AFB, Ala. It would later be known as the Aerospace and Basic Course under the Squadron Officer College.

Sept. 14-15, 1997. Air Force C-17 airlifters fly nonstop from Pope AFB, N.C., to Kazakhstan to airdrop 500 U.S. troops from the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division as well as 40 Asian troops during an exercise named Centrazbat ’97. Two aircraft airdropped cargo and vehicles. The C-17s were refueled three times en route during the nineteen hour flight.

Sept. 25, 1997. Russia’s Sukhoi S-32 stealth fighter makes its maiden flight at Shukovsky air base outside of Moscow.

Sept. 26, 1997. Gen. Michael E. Ryan is confirmed by the Senate as the Air Force’s 16th Chief of Staff. Ryan is the first son to follow in his father’s footsteps (Gen. John D. Ryan, who served from Aug. 1, 1969, to July 31, 1973) in the Air Force’s top job.

Nov. 1, 1997. F. Whitten Peters becomes acting Secretary of the Air Force. He is named Secretary in full capacity July 30, 1999.

Dec. 18, 1997. Joint Stars officially achieves initial operational capability, seven years after the aircraft, in its development phase, was employed in the Persian Gulf War and played a pivotal role.

1998

March 23-April 3, 1998. The B-2 bomber makes its first sustained overseas deployment, to Guam, demonstrating the capability to deploy and operate from locations around the world. Read The B-2 Proves a Point

May 29, 1998. First transfer of an operational space system to a civilian agency occurred when USAF handed over primary control of the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program on-orbit assets to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Aug. 4, 1998. The Air Force announces plans to reorganize its operational capabilities into an “Expeditionary Aerospace Force” with 10 standing Air Expeditionary Forces, or “buckets of capability” available to theater commanders. One objective is to give Air Force people more predictability and stability about deployments overseas. Read The EAF in Peace and War

Dec. 9, 1998. Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., retired World War II Air Force hero and leader of the all-black Tuskegee Airmen, is promoted to four-star rank. Read Aerospace World: Benjamin O. Davis Gets Fourth Star and Benjamin O. Davis, American

Dec. 16, 1998. In Operation Desert Fox, a limited four-day operation, American and British aircraft and US air- and sea-launched cruise missiles strike some 100 targets in Iraq. Read Lessons in Limited Force

1999

March 16, 1999. Three former members of the Warsaw Pact—Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic—join NATO.

March 28, 1999. The air campaign escalates to Phase 2, as the target list expands to include industrial targets throughout Serbia.

March 24, 1999. Combat operations begin in Operation Allied Force, the NATO air campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. US aircraft flew about two-thirds of the 45,000 sorties, pressuring Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic to withdraw his forces from Kosovo. Read Airpower Made It Work

March 24, 1999. B-2 bomber makes its combat debut in Operation Allied Force. It will fly fewer than one percent of the total sorties, but account for 11 percent of the bombing. Read With Stealth in the Balkans

April 6, 1999. Two weeks into the air campaign, 24-hour strike operations finally begin. However, gradualism still marks NATO’s approach to the conflict. It will be another month before sortie rates and the number of aircraft in action reach the level required. Read The NATO Way of War

May 1, 1999. Air campaign intensifies as the target list is expanded again. The combat sortie rate for US aircraft reaches 150 per day.

May 7, 1999. A B-2 bomber—provided the wrong target coordinates by headquarters—accidentally hits the Chinese embassy in Belgrade.

May 23, 1999. NATO begins bombing the Yugoslav electricity grid, disrupting power and affecting many military related activities.

June 10, 1999. Operations against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia are suspended, and end formally on June 20. Read Victory in Kosovo

June 23-27, 1999. Air Force Lt. Col. Eileen M. Collins becomes the first woman to command a Space Shuttle mission.

July 30, 1999. CMSgt. Frederick J. Finch becomes Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force.

Oct. 1, 1999. Air Education and Training Command initiates “Warrior Week” at Lackland AFB, Tex., to give basic military trainees a taste of the Expeditionary Aerospace Force concept. It marks the biggest change in basic military training in more than 50 years. Read Warrior Week

Oct. 1, 1999. First regular Aerospace Expeditionary Force rotational cycle begins. The full cycle is 15 months, divided into five three-month periods. During each of these, two of the 10 Aerospace Expeditionary Forces will be vulnerable to deployment. Read The EAF Turns One

Oct. 6, 1999. Destruction of 150 Minuteman III silos, in accordance with the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, begins near Langdon, North Dakota.

2000

May 3, 2000. Gen. Joseph W. Ralston becomes Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, the first Air Force officer to lead NATO in almost 40 years.

May 23, 2000. Air Education and Training Command receives its first operational T-6A Texan II for training pilots at Randolph AFB, Tex.

July 25, 2000. The Air Force CV-22, a special operations-modified version of the V-22 Osprey tilt rotor aircraft, rolls out at Bell Helicopter Textron’s plant in Fort Worth, Tex.

Sept 27, 2000. Boeing unveils the first X-45A Unmanned Air Combat Vehicle at its facilities in St. Louis. Read Heavyweight Contender

Sept. 27, 2000. USAF changes the standard uniform for space and missile operators from the blue, one-piece flight suit to the green flight suit worn by aircrews.

Oct. 24, 2000. Lockheed Martin’s X-35A Joint Strike Fighter demonstrator makes its first flight, from Lockheed’s Palmdale, Calif., facility to Edwards AFB, Calif.

Oct. 27, 2000. Gen. Charles R. Holland becomes commander of US Special Operations Command, the first Air Force officer ever to command all US special operations forces.

2001

Jan. 11, 2001. Congressionally-mandated Space Commission issues report recommending significant organizational realignments and increased responsibilities for the Air Force. Read The Space Commission Reports

Jan. 20, 2001. Lawrence J. Delaney named acting Secretary of the Air Force.

Jan. 22–26, 2001. Air Force Space Command’s Space Warfare Center conducts “Schriever 2001,” the first war game to explore requirements for space control, counters to enemy space capabilities, and the ability of an enemy to deny the US and its allies the use of space assets.

Feb. 21, 2001. A Predator unmanned aerial vehicle—up to then strictly a surveillance platform—hits a stationary Army tank with a live Hellfire-C missile at Indian Springs Air Force Auxiliary Field, Nev.

April 1, 2001. Over international waters 80 miles off the Chinese coast, two Chinese fighters intercept a US Navy EP-3 surveillance aircraft. One of the fighters collides with the EP-3 and the fighter pilot is lost at sea. The EP-3 is forced to land on Hainan, where its 24 member crew, including one USAF airmen, is held for 12 days. Read The Last Flight of Wang Wei

April 22-23, 2001. Global Hawk, an Air Force unmanned aerial vehicle, takes off from Edwards AFB, Calif., flies 22-hour, 8,600-mile mission, nonstop and unrefueled, to a precision landing near Adelaide, Australia.

May 8, 2001. The Air Force is designated as Department of Defense executive agent for space.

June 1, 2001. James G. Roche is named Secretary of the Air Force.

Sept. 6, 2001. Gen. John P. Jumper becomes Air Force Chief of Staff.

Sept. 11, 2001. Airliners hijacked by terrorists crash into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Operation Noble Eagle—combat air patrols above American cities—begins. Read The Return of NORAD and Black September 11

Sept. 30, 2001. The Quadrennial defense review replaces the official force-sizing standard—in effect since 1993—that said the armed forces should be prepared to fight two Major Theater Wars almost simultaneously. (In reality, the forces were never sized or funded to meet that standard.) The new standard is called “4-2-1”: The force should be sized to deter aggression in four critical theaters (Europe, Northeast Asia, the East Asia littoral, Middle East/Southwest Asia), defeat aggression in any two theaters at the same time, and preserve the option for one major counteroffensive. The new standard is more demanding, especially of air and space power, than the old one was. Read The Evolution of the Bush Doctrine

Oct. 1, 2001. The Space and Missile Systems Center transfers from Air Force Materiel Command to Air Force Space Command, thereby placing cradle-to-grave oversight of acquisition and operation of space systems under a single command.

Oct. 7, 2001. Operation Enduring Freedom begins with air strikes against terrorist targets in Afghanistan. Read An Air War Like No Other

Oct. 8., 2001. NATO announces that five of its AWACS aircraft will patrol off the east coast of the United States. Patrols begin Oct. 12.

Oct. 17, 2001. Pentagon announces that it is employing armed Predator drones, equipped with Hellfire missiles, in Afghanistan. Read The Little Predator That Could

Oct. 26, 2001. The Air Force awards the Joint Strike Fighter contract to Lockheed Martin, which had competed with Boeing for it. Read A Strike Fighter for the Future

Nov. 9, 2001. With Taliban forces in retreat from air attacks, Northern Alliance allies capture the strategically important northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif, surge across Northern Afghanistan, and sweep south.

Nov. 13, 2001. Taliban forces, hammered hard by airpower, abandon the Afghan capital of Kabul.

Nov. 27, 2001. Operations in Afghanistan enter new phase as US Marines deploy to expeditionary bases in country.

Dec. 9, 2001. Taliban rule in Afghanistan officially ends as the final province slips from its control.

2002

March 4, 2002. During Operation Anaconda in Afghanistan, TSgt John Chapman, an Air Force combat controller, charged a frontal gun emplacement, killing several of the enemy, in an effort to rescue a fallen comrade. Ultimately, his actions saved the lives of his entire special operations team. The Air Force Cross will be awarded, posthumously, to Chapman.

April 19, 2002. Air Force Space Command becomes a four-star Air Force command in its own right. Previously, the four-star commander of US Space Command and NORAD also commanded Air Force Space Command

May 22, 2002. On its first flight, Boeing’s X-45A Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle prototype takes off, flies for 14 minutes, and lands at Edwards AFB, Calif., controlled by an on-board computer preprogrammed with flight instructions.

July 1, 2002. CMSgt. Gerald R. Murray becomes Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force. Read Top Chief

Sept. 17, 2002. The F-22 fighter is re-designated the F/A-22 to emphasize its multiple roles, including attack.

Oct. 7, 2002. Operation Noble Eagle, combat air patrols above American cities, marks end of first year, with 25,100 total sorties flown. Of these, 17,600 were fighter sorties. Most of the missions were flown by the Air National Guard: 74 percent of the fighter sorties, 62 percent of the tanker sorties, and 37 percent of the airlift sorties.

2003

Jan. 10, 2003. US Strategic Command (STRATCOM) is assigned responsibility for four new missions: global strike; integrated missile defense; integrated information operations; and global command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C4ISR). The new incarnation of STRATCOM, headquartered at Offutt AFB, Neb., is combination of the “old” STRATCOM, whose responsibility was primarily nuclear strike, and US Space Command (SPACECOM).

Feb. 1, 2003. Seven astronauts are lost as the Space Shuttle Columbia breaks up on re-entry, 200,000 feet above East Texas, on its return from a 16-day mission in space. This was the 113th Shuttle flight, and the 28th for Columbia. Crew members were Air Force Col. Rick D. Husband, Columbia’s commander, Navy Capt. David M. Brown, Kalpana Chawla, Navy Cmdr. William C. McCool, Israeli Air Force Col. Ilan Ramon, Air Force Lt. Col. Michael P. Anderson, and Navy Cmdr. Laurel Blair Salton Clark.

March 11, 2003. The Air Force drops a precision-guided Massive Ordnance Air Blast weapon from a C-130 aircraft in a test at Eglin AFB, Fla. At 21,500 pounds, it is the largest non-nuclear weapon in existence.

March 17, 2003. Operation Northern Watch flies its last mission over the northern no-fly zone in Iraq. The operation is officially terminated May 2.

March 19, 2003. Operation Iraqi Freedom begins as battlefield preparation air strikes take out air defense threats, radar communication sites, and artillery. Special Operations ground troops move into western and southern Iraq.

March 19, 2003. Operation Southern Watch flies its last mission over the southern no-fly zone in Iraq.

March 20, 2003. Air Force F-117 fighters and cruise missiles from six US warships strike “Leadership targets of opportunity” in Iraq at 5:35 a.m., Baghdad time. (10:16 EST, March 19). Coalition ground forces move from Kuwait into Iraq at 8 a.m., marking the start of G-Day, the ground campaign.

March 21, 2003. Coalition air forces launch nearly 1,000 strike sorties as A-Day, the air campaign, begins at 9 p.m.

April 9, 2003. Baghdad falls to coalition ground troops, the strength of Iraq’s Republican Guard and other forces having been negated or destroyed by airpower south of Baghdad. Read The US Air Force at War

April 12, 2003. A new world’s speed record on land is set as a Missile Defense Agency payload reaches 6,416 mph at the high speed test track at Holloman AFB, New Mex.

Dec. 15, 2003. National Air and Space Museum opens huge Udvar-Hazy annex in Chantilly, Va. Read The Nation's Hangar

2004

July 19, 2004. Lt. Col. Martha McSally becomes the first woman to command an Air Force combat squadron, the 354th Fighter Squadron.

2005

March 1, 2005. MQ-1 Predator UAV achieves initial operational capability.

Jan. 20, 2005. Peter B. Teets named acting Secretary of the Air Force.

March 1, 2005. MQ-1 Predator UAV achieves initial operational capability.

March 25, 2005. Michael L. Dominguez named acting Secretary of the Air Force.

July 29, 2005. Preston M. Geren named acting Secretary of the Air Force.

Sept. 2, 2005. Michael W. Wynne becomes Secretary of the Air Force.

Dec. 15, 2005.F-22 fighter achieves initial operational capability.

2006

March 20, 2006. Air Force receives first operational CV-22 tilt-roter aircraft.

June 30, 2006. CMSgt. Rodney J. McKinley becomes Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force. Read Chief McKinley

Oct. 14, 2006. Air Force Memorial dedicated in Arlington, Va.

Dec. 15, 2006. First flight, Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Figher.

2007

March 29, 2007. Tuskegee Airmen awarded Congressional Gold Medal.

Aug. 1, 2007. Centennial of founding of Aeronautical Division of the US Army Signal Corps, the genesis of the US Air Force.