Posted on April 18, 2012 by Fighter Country
CAMP LEMONNIER, Djibouti —There’s an old saying that lightning doesn’t strike twice in the same place, but it did for one U.S. Air Force airman. Tech. Sgt. Gregory Spiker, joint meteorology and oceanography operations weather forecaster, Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa, was named the 2011 Air Force Weather Non-commissioned Officer of the Year—his second Air Force-wide weather award. His first one was the Air Force Battlefield Weather NCO of the Year for 2006. Spiker’s skill and enthusiasm for his job in the weather career were obvious to his home-station supervisor, U.S. Air Force Capt. Drew Moore, 56th…
Posted on April 13, 2012 by Fighter Country
The US Air Force and Lockheed Martin are getting ready to demonstrate the first operational use of live virtual constructive (LVC) training technology on 26 April at Luke Air Force Base (AFB), Arizona.
The technology has the potential to revolutionize the way air forces train-particularly for aviators who will fly 5th generation machines like Lockheed’s F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II.
Posted on January 30, 2012 by Fighter Country
Arizona Wing Aviation Museum
SPECIAL INAUGURAL TRIBUTE EVENT TO RECOGNIZE THE FIRST INDUCTEES TO THE CAF ARIZONA WING AVIATION MUSEUM’S WALK OF HONOR
PHOENIX – The Commemorative Air Force (“CAF”) Arizona Wing Aviation Museum, located at Falcon Field in Mesa, Arizona, announced today the inauguration of its Walk of Honor as a tribute recognizing the contributions by Arizonans to the field of military aviation. Inductees will be honored for their achievement with the installation of a special bronze plaque at the Museum.
The inauguration will be celebrated at a dinner recognizing the first inductees on Saturday evening, February 18, 2012 at the Phoenix Hilton East-Mesa Hotel, 1011 W. Holmes, Mesa, Arizona 85210. Cocktails will be from 6:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Dinner and the induction ceremony will follow. Brigadier General Jerry D. Harris, Commander, 56th Fighter Wing, Luke AFB will be the keynote speaker.
The first six inductees into the Arizona Military Aviation Walk of Honor include: Lieutenant Frank Luke, Major Fred Ferguson, Rear Admiral W. L. Chatham, Mr. Sergei Sikorsky, Major Joseph Foss and Dr. Harry Robertson. Inductees are native, resident or former resident Arizonans, living or deceased, who made noteworthy contributions to the field of military aviation.
Posted on January 2, 2012 by Fighter Country
Credit Union West continues to build its long and unwavering commitment to the Luke Air Force Base community. This is evident in the cooperative relationship they have developed over the years with the Airmen and Family Readiness Center. In collaboration with the Airmen and Family Readiness Center, Credit Union West conducts two of the required four hours of financial education during FTAC. They equip young airmen with the tools necessary to make sound financial decisions. The goal is to provide basic education to minimize the missteps that can so easily divert families from achieving financial success. For their dedication to…
Posted on January 1, 2012 by Fighter Country
As Wigwam resort owners kicked around the idea of naming golf course holes after patriotic Arizonans, one name quickly separated itself from the rest: Lt. Frank Luke Jr. “This was a natural,” Wigwam’s most recognizable owner, Jerry Colangelo, told the View Wednesday. “We’re honoring people who’re deserving, and Frank Luke is at the top of the list.” “Who would be at the first tee? I can’t think of anyone else but Frank Luke,” the deceased airman’s nephew, Don Luke, told the View. “It is a perfect fit.” What made the Wednesday afternoon ceremony perfect was the fact it began with…
Posted on December 31, 2011 by Fighter Country
The Glendale Fire Department recently joined forces with Luke Air Force Base to provide enhanced fire and advanced life safety protection for the base and West Glendale. The two agencies have begun a pilot program in which the Glendale Fire Department will provide a fire truck and two trained paramedics at Luke’s Fire Station 362 to provide advanced emergency medical services to the area. The program, which launched Dec. 6, is grant funded thanks to the Governor’s Office of Economic Recovery, Public Safety Stabilization Program. Because Luke is located in a remote area, the nearest Glendale fire station was approximately…
Posted on December 30, 2011 by Fighter Country
An F-100D Super Sabre Air Force jet that served at Luke Air Force Base 1962 to 1969 was used to train young pilots. The jet was retired from use by United States Air Force and placed into the National Museum of United States Air Force Static Display Program in 1971. In 1973, the jet was installed at Bonsall Park, 59th Avenue and Bethany Home Road, Glendale. Visitors to the park and passers by might not realize that the plane was piloted by retired Lt. Col Warren H. Rice, who had more than 200 missions with the F-100D during the Vietnam…
Posted on December 29, 2011 by Fighter Country
Posted on December 29, 2011 by Fighter Country
With more than 280 Thunderbolts currently deployed around the world, Operation Thunderbox focuses on sending care packages to deployed Luke Air Force Base Airmen.
The program started around 2004 by a former Luke command chief, Scott Dearduff and his wife.
“They wanted to ensure Luke personnel received a taste of home and to let them know that Luke leadership was always thinking about its deployed Thunderbolts,” said Master Sgt. Evelyn Proctor, 56th Security Forces Squadron logistics superintendent.
Operation Thunderbox is a self-sustaining program. It relies solely on donated items and money from local charitable organizations and retired communities.
Posted on December 28, 2011 by Fighter Country
At Luke Air Force Base, we’re proud to be part of the community in the West Valley. We recognize that the support of surrounding communities is vital to our success as we carry out our mission of training the world’s greatest F-16 pilots and maintainers.
We’ve had an outstanding year at Luke. This year, we graduated 372 pilots, 529 crew chiefs, and 68 intelligence specialists. We deployed 484 Airmen in support of U.S. operations overseas, while continuing to accomplish the mission at home.
We also earned a rating of “Excellent” on the Unit Compliance Inspection conducted by Air Education and Training Command. This is a major inspection conducted every two years which assesses our compliance with regulations. The results validated what I have seen over the past 14 months as the wing commander here and are a testament to the professionalism of our men and women at Luke.
