Military Officer - April 2008 - (Page 79) pagesofhistory F-22 Display Unveiled The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force has established a new exhibit that features an F-22 Raptor aircraft — one of only nine built for testing in 1999. A new F-22 Raptor exhibit has opened at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton, Ohio. The aircraft on display is one of nine built for engineering, manufacture, and development testing in 1999 and became the first F-22 to launch an AIM-120 air-to-air missile at supersonic speeds. After completing its test program, the aircraft was moved to the museum, where it was restored. The F-22 entered the Air Force’s operational inventory in December 2005 and was given a declaration of full operational capability Dec. 12, 2007. Such an exhibit should encourage visitors to see the museum as a place where they can learn more about the Air Force’s current and future operations environment, says museum director Maj. Gen. Charles D. Metcalf, USAF-Ret., and not just the stories of the past. Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander of MultiNational Force — Iraq, issued the oath to the soldiers at Al Faw Palace. The soldiers who participated in the ceremony are just some of the more than 1,876 Army Reserve soldiers who have reenlisted in the past year while deployed to Iraq and Kuwait. A History Unearthed Confederate fort in southeast Virginia that was once used to stop Union boats from sailing up the James River during the Civil War has now reopened as a historic park. Fort Huger, which sits on a bluff overlooking the James River in Isle of Wight County, was attacked by Union ships May 8, 1862. The fort withstood three more naval assaults, including shelling by the USS Monitor, before it was abandoned and then stormed by U.S. Marines. Before retreating, Confederate soldiers spiked the fort’s cannon, burned its carriages, and blew up most of its munitions. The fall of the fort opened the James River for the next 50 miles to the Union fleet’s advance to Richmond, the Confederate capital. Plans for the site include continuing archaeological work and reconstructing some of the fort’s structures. A formal dedication ceremony will be held May 8. MO APRIL 2008 M Army Reserve’s 100th Anniversary ore than 100 mobilized Army Reserve soldiers raised their right hands and recited the oath of enlistment in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the Army Reserve in a January 2008 ceremony in Baghdad, Iraq. THIS MONTH IN HISTORY I On April 18, 1775, Paul Revere rode to Lex- Two Air Force F-22 Raptor aircraft trail a KC-135R Stratotanker after inflight refueling during training off the coast of Florida in April 2007. ington and Concord, Mass., to warn citizens that the British were coming. The patriotic silversmith’s feats were celebrated in an epic poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. PHOTO: SMSGT THOMAS MENEGUIN, USAF/DOD MILITARY OFFICER 79
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.