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	U.S. Air Force Birthday Ball
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        <h1 class="title">U.S. Air Force Birthday Ball</h1>
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    <div><b>By ADM. HARRY B. HARRIS, JR.</b> <span class="date">/ Published Sept. 14, 2015</span></div>
    <span class="dateline-text">HONOLULU, HAWAII, </span>
    <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px;">
</span>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Thank
you General (Lori) Robinson, for that motivating introduction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>It’s wonderful to see you tonight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>I'd be honored to be your wingman, anytime
and anyplace.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">And
to all you Airmen out there, happy birthday!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> 
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">It’s
great to be here with you, honoring the most technologically advanced and
professional Air Force in the history of the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>And while tonight should be a celebration,
thank you for recognizing the profound importance of this date – 9/11 – and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the events which fundamentally changed our
country 14 years ago.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">...
Distinguished guest, ladies, and gentlemen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> 
</span>I’m sure, given the choice, instead of hearing a short speech from an
old Navy Admiral who’s almost as old as the Air Force itself, most of you’d
rather hear no speech at all. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I’m
going to get on with it, so that you can get on with it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The
United States Air Force has a proud and spectacular history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>From the airspace above Verdun, to the outer
space above us, to cyberspace all around us, Airmen have defended our nation with
great substance and style as well. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>"Off
we go into the wild blue yonder" is a clarion call to adventure and the
catchphrase of the coolest song of all the services.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The
Air Force has long cornered the market on capturing the imagination of young
boys and girls across America.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>As a kid,
I grew up with the exploits of Sky Pilot, Sky King, and Steve Canyon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Some would even say I took 12 O’clock High to
heart by attending the Frank Savage School of Leadership.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Tonight, we celebrate 68 years of tradition, accomplishment, and
daring-do by the youngest branch of the U.S. military. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When President Harry Truman – love that first
name – signed the National Security Act of 1947 which established the
Department of the Air Force, it was the formal recognition that air supremacy
was critically important for our national security.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">And today, 68 years later, the United States Air Force has the
most technologically advanced systems and platforms and, most importantly, some
of the most capable and professional war fighters in the world.<span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;"><br />
<br />
</span>And warfighting is what this service is about, a fact that was on clear
display just a few years after your creation during the Korean War.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">During that conflict, U.S. aviators faced a superior aircraft, the
MiG-15, which was a faster and more maneuverable than our F-84 Thunderjets and
F-86 Sabres.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>But our Air Force aviators dominated
the skies because of their superior training and tactics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>And our Air Force has dominated the skies
ever since.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">And while we celebrate your 68<sup>th</sup> birthday as an
individual service, your roots are much older and run far deeper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>It's been over 100 years since Lieutenant
Benjamin Foulois climbed into a Wright Flyer Type B biplane in what was to be
the U.S. military's first aircraft, named "Signal Corps Airplane Number 1."
<br />
<br />
Since that fateful first flight, the Signal Corps evolved into the Army Air
Service, which later became the Army Air Corps, which then became the Army Air
Forces, and finally, the United States Air Force.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Your storied history includes the Lafayette Escadrille, the Flying
Tigers, the Doolittle Raid, the Mighty 8th Air Force, the Berlin Airlift, MiG
Alley, Thud Ridge, Desert Storm, Bosnia, and the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, and
Space Shuttle programs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Yours is a lineage
stretching back over a century of flying legends – men like Eddie Rickenbacker,
Billy Mitchell, Dick Bong, Thomas McGuire, Chuck Yeager, Iven Kinchloe, General
Winton Marshall, a Korean War ace who lives right here in Hawaii ...</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"> Gus Grissom, Lance Sijan, Bud Day ... and, finally, the
only man besides Tom Selleck, Fig Leaf, and Ron Burgundy who could pull off a massively
manly mustache, the legendary Robin Olds.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="background: yellow; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-highlight: yellow;"><o:p><br />
</o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Tomorrow,
no one here is going to remember anything I said tonight except that my remarks
had “something to do with Ron Burgundy and Anchorman.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">But
men hold no monopoly on heroism in your storied history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Women like Jackie Cochran, Nancy Harkness
Love, Eileen Collins, and Martha McSally occupy positions of high honor in our
nation's pantheon of heroes.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Innovation
is your middle name – brilliant thinkers like Billy Mitchell, John Worden, John
Boyd, and Bernard Shreiver changed the way we as a military think and operate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Air Force test pilots pushed the envelope in
the air and in space – the right stuff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span><span style="color: black;">My father-in-law was an Air Force fighter pilot and test
pilot in the 1950s – like most of his colleagues you could always tell he was a
fighter pilot, you just couldn't tell him much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> 
</span></span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">For the last 68 years, you've been America’s sentinel, in the air,
in space, and cyberspace. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>President
Roosevelt had it right when he said, “Hitler built a fortress around Europe,
but he forgot to put a roof on it." <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And we must never forget that during the Cold
War, 13 Air Force reconnaissance aircraft were shot down by the Soviets and
their proxies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">For
68 years, you’ve been the MVP on America’s offense, taking the fight to the
enemy, with global power and global reach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> 
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Since
9/11, terrorist organizations around the world have seen the darker side of the
United States Air Force, living in constant fear of your fighters, your
gunships, and your appropriately named Reapers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> 
</span>After 14 years of heavy combat flying in Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S.
Air Force has much to be proud of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>You
took the fight to the enemy – and you're still putting warheads on foreheads in
our fight against ISIS.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">And
in this theater, for the past 68 years, Airmen have worked with our close allies
and partners to maintain peace and stability throughout the region.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">For
example, during Talisman Sabre 15, U.S. and Australian C-17s flew 22 hours
straight from Alaska to Australia and delivered 450 Army paratroopers with
extraordinary precision. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">After
the devastating earthquake hit Nepal back in April, PACAF deployed over 200
Airmen in support of Joint Task Force-505.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> 
</span>During the operation, Airmen flew over 148 sorties delivering equipment
and supplies and Airmen from the 36<sup>th</sup> Contingency Response Group
worked with our Nepalese partners in Kathmandu to distribute Humanitarian Aid
and validate the airport’s runway structural integrity.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">During
Cope North 15, our Airmen worked alongside 2,300 military members of our allies
and partners to increase our combat readiness, interoperability, and ability to
quickly and effectively respond to a natural disaster.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Airmen are making a real impact to the region
and the nation. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Last
month, during Red Flag, U.S., Japanese, Korean, and New Zealand Airmen executed
a large-scale airfield seizure scenario, the first in Red Flag’s history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>During the exercise, a U.S. C-130 Hercules assigned
to the 36<sup>th</sup> Airlift Squadron from Yokota Air Base became the first U.S.
aircraft ever to airdrop Japan Ground Self-Defense Force members onto U.S. soil.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The
Pacific theater is deeply embedded in the DNA of the U.S. Air Force.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The
Indo-Asia-Pacific region is center court in the great game of geo-politics in
the 21st Century.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>I speak often about
the threat from North Korea, the challenge of a rising China, and the critical
importance of America’s Rebalance to the Pacific.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Our countrymen and women are again looking to
us to ensure stability and prosperity in this vital region.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Airmen and Sailors, Soldiers and Marines, standing
the watch together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>And there’s no
question about it – we’re ready to do what’s necessary to protect our national
interests, wherever and whenever they are threatened.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">While
tonight’s events largely focus on exploits of the past, remember, the task in
front of each of us is to be ready for the next fight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Ready to fight tonight if need be.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Well
folks, I see I’ve talked too long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>I’m
reminded of the man who shot and killed a long-winded speaker.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>He went to the sheriff’s office and said,
“Sheriff, I’ve just shot me a keynote speaker.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> 
</span>The sheriff turned to the man and said, “Son, you’re in the wrong
place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>You pick up your reward money at
the courthouse.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">I’m
hoping none of you Fighter Weapons School graduates are thinking about
collecting any reward money.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>But just in
case, let me close with this thought.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The
true strength of our Joint Force is the people who devote their lives to a
cause greater than themselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>All of
you here have paid your dues, given in many cases the best years of your lives
to serve our Nation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Now, thousands of
young Sailors, Soldiers, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen stand the watch
around the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">America
is the country she is because of young men and women who are willing to forego
wearing a business suit, forego strolling down easy street, and forego living
the good life, to wear instead the cloth of the nation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>To travel instead along an uncertain road
fraught with peril, to live instead a life on the ragged edge of danger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>To live lives that matter on a fundamental
level.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Now,
I’m not a preacher-man, but there's a passage in the good book which defines
for me the spirit that lives in each and every citizen who has ever chosen to
wear the cloth of the nation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>And it's
appropriate this day of all days.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">One
day God was searching for the right man – a man with the right stuff, if you
will.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>A man to embark on a dangerous
mission and go into a dangerous land:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">“Whom
shall I send?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Who shall go for us?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">And
the prophet responded, “Here am I Lord, send me.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Here
am I, send me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Powerful words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>When our nation was attacked 14 years ago
today, Lady Liberty called out in her pain and anguish “Whom shall I send?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Who shall go for me?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">And
everywhere, Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, and civilians
called out:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">“HERE
AM I AMERICA. SEND ME.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">“HERE
AM I AMERICA. SEND ME.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">From
the Atlantic to the Pacific and beyond, America’s sons and daughters answered
that clarion call, and they continue to answer that call today, serving with
great flair and greater distinction.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Our
United States Air Force is the finest flying fighting force the world has ever
known.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>You’re expeditionary, you're fast,
tough, hard-charging, courageous, and you're always ready.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>You’re envied by many, feared by most, and
forever respected by friend and foe alike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> 
</span>None of that’s aspirational or boastful, it's just fact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">I
can assure you, you’ve got the respect of this old Navy Sailor as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>I know exactly what you’re capable of, and I'm
honored to be your wingman as we protect our great nation together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>I look forward to flying with you into the
future, as the Joint Force continues to protect our national interests abroad.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Indeed,
as Curtis Lemay once said, "If we maintain our faith in God, love of
freedom, and superior global air power, the future looks good."<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">May
God bless our men and women who serve on the forward edge of the battle area,
the FEBA of freedom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>May God bless and
comfort the families that support us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>May
God bless the United States Air Force.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>And
may God bless this land of liberty we call America.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;">Happy
birthday, Airmen ... Aim High!<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></b></span></p><br />
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