Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      Col. Alden Hilton, United States Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine commander, Lt. Gen. Dorothy Hogg, Air Force Surgeon General, Maj. Gen. William Cooley, Air Force Research Laboratory commander, and Brig. Gen. Mark Koeniger, 711th Human Performance Wing commander, pose just before cutting the ribbon during a ceremony Aug. 2 in USAFSAM to mark the full operational capability of the Department of Defense’s only human-rated centrifuge. (U.S. Air Force photo by Richard Eldridge)Only DoD human-rated centrifuge gains full operational capability
                        
                        
                        Col. Alden Hilton, U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine commander, Lt. Gen. Dorothy Hogg, Air Force Surgeon General, Maj. Gen. William Cooley, Air Force Research Laboratory commander, and Brig. Gen. Mark Koeniger, 711th Human Performance Wing commander, pose just before cutting the ribbon during a ceremony Aug. 2, 2018, in USAFSAM to mark the full operational capability of the Department of Defense’s only human-rated centrifuge. (U.S. Air Force photo by Richard Eldridge)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

Only DoD human-rated centrifuge gains full operational capabilityPublished Aug. 7, 2018
                    
                    By Gina Giardina
                    
                    
                    711th Human Performance Wing
            **WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFNS) --**A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Aug. 2 in the Air Force Research Laboratory’s 711th Human Performance Wing, to celebrate the full operational capability, or FOC, of the only human-rated centrifuge in the Department of Defense.
The equipment allows students to experience up to 9 Gs, or nine times the normal force of gravity, to teach the effects of G-forces on human physiology and to measure the student’s ability to counteract the effects in effort to prevent G-induced loss of consciousness. 
“A device such as this is needed now more than ever,” stated Brig. Gen. Mark Koeniger, 711th HPW commander, who presided over the event. “With the extreme performance that is possible in our aircraft today, it is paramount that we provide the best training possible for these aircrew members. This centrifuge will do just that.”
Air Force students will begin using this centrifuge for training beginning Oct. 1. Approximately 1,200 Air Force students - including fighter pilots, aircrew members, flight surgeons, aerospace physiologists, and others - are expected to receive training each year. 
The centrifuge has a unique capability, explained Koeniger. All three cockpits can be linked with the control room to create a virtual battle space.
Col. Alden Hilton, U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine commander, provided opening remarks and stated that he had been in two centrifuges – one at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, and the other at Brooks City Base, Texas. 
“I’ll just say that centrifuge training—is a necessary evil,” he said, which invoked laughter from the audience that included Lt. Gen. Dorothy Hogg, Air Force Surgeon General, and Maj. Gen. William Cooley, AFRL commander.
Hilton commended the Airmen responsible for getting the centrifuge ready, presenting each of them with a USAFSAM Centennial coin. 
USAFSAM, which is part of the 711 HPW and the AFRL, was established in 1918 and is the premier institute for education, research, and worldwide operational consultation in aerospace and operational medicine. USAFSAM has been a leader in the field of aerospace medicine and human performance from the beginnings of aviation through the onset of the space age and into the present.
“We are 100 percent committed to using this extraordinary training and research device to keep aircrew safe, advance science and develop technologies that keep our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines the most capable fighting force in the world,” Koeniger said.Air Force 



DOD 



Air Force Materiel Command 



AFMC 



AF 



Department of Defense 



Air Force Research Laboratory 



AFRL 



711th Human Performance Wing 



Air Force Base 



United States Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine 



711th HPW 



full operational capability 



F.O.C. 



force of gravity 



human-rated 



research 



centrifuge 



Airmen 



milestone 



Wright Patterson AFB Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                SecAF, CSAF, CMSAF begin Indo-Pacific trip focused on ACE
                    
                    DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fightInnovation
                F-16s arrive to be modified for autonomous testing
                    
                    AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalistsMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil