Air Force Association

Air Commandos Lunch Tomorrow – Join Us and Check Out Something New

/ Ian L. Sitren / Leave a comment

Just a reminder that our Air Commandos Lunch is tomorrow, Wednesday, August 12, at 11:30 a.m. at ROC’s Firehouse Grille, 36891 Cook Street in Palm Desert.

Tomorrow we’ll also be trying something new. We’ll be testing out our new 65-inch big screen in the back room, along with external speakers, and we’ll have aviation videos playing to do it. It’s another step toward making our gatherings even more enjoyable, so come check it out with us and have some fun.

The lunches are informal, friendly, and have no agenda. They’re simply a great opportunity to enjoy good food, good conversation, and the company of fellow members and guests. There is no charge to attend. Just pay for your own lunch and beverage. Whether you’re a long-time member, a veteran, currently serving, or simply interested in aviation, military history, or the Air and Space Forces, we’d be glad to have you join us.

If this will be your first time attending, you’re especially welcome.

We look forward to seeing you tomorrow!

If you’d like to learn how these lunches began and why they have become such a popular tradition for us, read The Story Behind Our Air Commandos Lunch.

Thanks!

Help Us Build Our Virtual Hangar

/ Ian L. Sitren / 1 Comment

We’re probably still a few years, a few billion dollars, and perhaps a space program away from building something like this.

Many organizations have a building where they display photographs, squadron memorabilia, and aircraft artwork. While we don’t have a permanent chapter hangar, we do have something just as accessible… our website.

Do you have one or two photographs from your military service? Your career in aviation? Were you an airline pilot, aircraft mechanic, air traffic controller, aerospace engineer, airport employee, Civil Air Patrol member, or simply someone who has loved airplanes your entire life? Maybe your career took you in a completely different direction, but aviation has always been one of your passions. We’d love to preserve and share your photographs and your story.

Digital photographs are welcome, but don’t worry if your memories are still tucked away in albums or boxes. If you have prints, slides, or negatives, simply bring them to one of our Air Commandos Lunches or another chapter event. I’ll professionally scan them, return the originals to you, and prepare them for our Virtual Hangar.

When you submit your photograph or photographs, please include as much information as you can about them, such as who is in the photograph, the aircraft, location, approximate date, squadron or organization, and the story behind the image. Even if you don’t know all of the details, don’t let that stop you. Every photograph helps preserve a small part of our shared history.

You can email digital photographs to:

AFAPalmSprings@outlook.com

Or bring your prints, slides, or negatives to one of our chapter gatherings, and I’ll scan them and promptly return the originals.

If you’ve previously given a presentation to our chapter, I probably already have the photographs and information you shared. I’ll begin building our Virtual Hangar with those, and I hope everyone else will add one or two photographs of their own to help it grow.

Thank You!

The 2026 Air & Space Forces Almanac Has Arrived

/ Ian L. Sitren / Leave a comment

One of the things I still enjoy is receiving a magazine in the mail.

Call me old fashioned, but there is something satisfying about holding a printed publication in your hands. The battery never runs out. It slips easily into a backpack or briefcase. You can read it at the beach, beside the pool, or in bright sunlight without fighting reflections on a screen. And if you happen to drip nacho cheese on it, you simply wipe it off and keep reading.

The latest issue of Air & Space Forces Magazine has started arriving in members’ mailboxes, and it is one I look forward to every year.

The 2026 Air & Space Forces Almanac is a remarkable 176-page reference filled with current information about the United States Air Force and United States Space Force. It covers everything from aircraft inventories, weapons systems, budgets, installations, and organizational structure to personnel statistics, leadership, awards, and much more. It is also packed with outstanding photography and graphics that make it just as enjoyable to browse as it is to study. 

Unlike most magazines that are read once and recycled, this is a publication that stays within easy reach. Throughout the year, I find myself pulling it off the shelf whenever I want to verify a fact, check an aircraft inventory, look up a command, or simply enjoy some excellent aviation photography.

Receiving Air & Space Forces Magazine, including this annual Almanac, is one of the many benefits available to AFA members at qualifying membership levels. It is another reminder that membership is about much more than supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. It also connects you with information and resources that are difficult to find gathered together anywhere else.

If your copy has already arrived, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. If not, keep an eye on your mailbox. I think you’ll find it’s well worth the wait.

Air Commandos Lunch Tomorrow July 1st

/ Ian L. Sitren / 1 Comment

Just a reminder that our Air Commandos Lunch is tomorrow, Wednesday, July 1, at 11:30 a.m. at ROC’s Firehouse Grille, 36891 Cook Street in Palm Desert.

The lunches are informal, friendly, no agenda, and a great opportunity to meet fellow members and guests over good food. There is no charge to attend. Simply pay for your own lunch and beverage. Whether you’re a long-time member, a veteran, currently serving, or simply interested in aviation, military history, and the Air and Space Forces, we would enjoy having you join us.

If this will be your first time attending, you’re especially welcome.

We hope to see you tomorrow!

If you’d like to learn how these lunches began and why they have become such a popular tradition for us, read The Story Behind Our Air Commandos Lunch. Thanks!

The Story Behind Our Air Commandos Lunch

A New Way to Join the Air & Space Forces Association Free!

/ Ian L. Sitren / Leave a comment

The Air & Space Forces Association has introduced something completely new.

For the first time, AFA now offers a free Mission Membership. This new membership makes it easier than ever for anyone with an interest in our Air Force, Space Force, aerospace, aviation, STEM education, or national security to become part of the AFA community. Again, membership is open to everyone.

Mission Membership provides access to AFA news, educational programs, webinars, research, national events, and local Chapter activities. Whether you have served in the military, work in aerospace, are a student, educator, or simply support the mission of the Air & Space Forces Association, there is now a place for you in AFA at absolutely no cost.

This is also a tremendous opportunity for AFA Palm Springs Chapter 134.

Every new member strengthens our Chapter and helps us expand our educational programs, CyberPatriot, community outreach, aerospace education, and partnerships throughout the Coachella Valley. The more members we have, the more we can accomplish.

If you are already an AFA member, thank you for your continued support.

If you know someone who has ever thought about joining AFA, now is the perfect time. Invite your family, friends, neighbors, fellow veterans, active duty military, educators, students, pilots, aviation enthusiasts, and anyone interested in aerospace and our nation’s defense.

Joining is easy.

Simply visit:

Join AFA

When completing your registration, please be sure to select Palm Springs Chapter 134. That simple step helps strengthen our local Chapter and ensures you receive information about our activities, meetings, educational programs, and special events.

It costs nothing.

It only takes a few minutes.

We look forward to welcoming many new members to AFA Palm Springs Chapter 134.

Thank You!

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From the Air Force Global Strike Command by Airman 1st Class Bryan Crane, 509th Bomb Wing Public Affairs – December 6, 2012

WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. —  “Yesterday, December 7, 1941 – a date which will live in infamy – the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan,”- Franklin Roosevelt.

President Roosevelt uttered these well-remembered words the day after the Pearl Harbor attacks.

Seventy-one years later, we still remember the fallen victims of that day.

The Pearl Harbor attack, at the time, was the largest enemy assault on United States territory. By the end of the day, more than 2,000 individuals had lost their lives.

Today, we thank those that gave their lives that day, those who defended our home and who would continue the fight throughout World War II.

At 7:55 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941, a Japanese force of 183 airplanes attacked U.S. military and naval facilities on Oahu without warning.

For 30 minutes, dive bombers, level bombers and torpedo planes struck airfields and naval vessels. Not only did the attack hit the fleet at Pearl Harbor, but also air bases at Ford Island and Kaneohe Bay, the Marine airfield at Ewa and the Army Air Corps fields at Bellows, Wheeler and Hickam.

After a 15-minute lull, another wave of 170 planes launched a second attack at 8:40 a.m. Japanese aircraft destroyed 151 U.S. planes on the ground and sank or damaged all eight U.S. battleships anchored in Pearl Harbor.

However, not all American assets were damaged in the attack.

“The Japanese success was overwhelming, but it was not complete. They failed to damage any American aircraft carriers, which by a stroke of luck, had been absent from the harbor,” according to the Naval History and Heritage Command.

The next day, the U.S. declared war on Japan and entered World War II, changing the trajectory of the war, and of history.

This flag was flown on the U.S.S. St. Louis at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, the day of the Japanese attack. It was later flown on the U.S.S. Iowa in Tokyo Bay at the time of the Japanese surrender in 1945. – National Museum of the U.S. Air Force

Veterans Day – A Moment of Honor and Reflection

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Today, we pause to recognize the men and women who have worn our nation’s uniform and carried its responsibilities with courage, commitment, and sacrifice. Veterans Day is not simply a date on the calendar—it is a reminder that freedom has a cost, and that cost has been paid by generations who stepped forward when the country needed them most.

The image here was photographed yesterday at the Fields of Valor installation in Cathedral City. Among two thousand waving flags, each tribute tells a personal story. This one honors a Vietnam veteran who earned the Purple Heart—an unmistakable reminder of the human toll of service and the quiet strength that defines so many who return home carrying both visible and invisible wounds.

As we mark Veterans Day, AFA Palm Springs extends our gratitude to every veteran, from every era, and to the families who stood beside them. Whether you served overseas or stateside, in combat or in support, your service continues to shape the freedoms and security we depend upon today.

We invite our community to take a moment—today and every day—to reflect on that service, to thank a veteran, and to carry forward the respect they deserve.

Keep Watching The Skies!

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“Watch the skies. Everywhere. Keep looking. Keep watching the skies!”. This iconic line is from the 1951 science fiction film “The Thing from Another World”. But in this case many of these launches are clearly seen all the way out here in the Coachella Valley.

Starting in 2026, The U.S. Air Force has approved SpaceX’s proposal to increase launch rates from Vandenberg Space Force Base to up to 100 rockets per year, doubling the previous limit. This approval allows SpaceX to use a second launch complex, SLC-6, which will support up to five Falcon Heavy launches and landings per year, alongside increased Falcon 9 activity at SLC-4. This expansion follows the completion of the Final Environmental Impact Statement and a Record of Decision signed on October 10, 2025.

Launch increase: The annual cap will increase from 50 to 100 launches, combining Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy missions.
New launch complex: A second launch complex, Space Launch Complex (SLC)-6, will be used for up to five Falcon Heavy launches and landings annually.
Facility upgrades: The approval includes authorization for new infrastructure, such as a new hangar, to support the increased activity.
Environmental review: The decision was based on a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and a Record of Decision signed in October 2025, which concluded that noise impacts would not be significant, though mitigation measures will be implemented.
State opposition: The California Coastal Commission previously opposed the expansion, citing concerns about noise and environmental impacts, but the federal government maintains that launch operations are exempt from state oversight. 

The Day NASA Went to Space… with a Corned Beef Sandwich

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Astronauts Gus Grissom (foreground), command pilot; and John Young, pilot, are shown inside their Gemini III spacecraft as they prepared for their launch from Cape Kennedy, Florida, on March 23, 1965. (NASA)

Gemini III was supposed to test spacecraft maneuvers and prove America could handle two men in orbit. Instead, it became famous for something far more down-to-earth: a smuggled corned beef sandwich.

Astronaut John Young tucked the deli special into his spacesuit pocket, courtesy of Wally Schirra, and surprised Gus Grissom mid-flight. For a moment, outer space smelled like a New York deli. But the laughter didn’t last — crumbs floated free in zero-G, raising alarms about what could happen if one drifted into the controls.

Congress wasn’t laughing, NASA tightened the rules, and the “space sandwich” went down in history as the snack that changed spaceflight policy.

👉 Want the full bite-by-bite account? Read NASA’s official story here:
https://www.nasa.gov/history/fallout-from-the-unauthorized-gemini-iii-space-sandwich/

Freedom, Air Power, and Palm Springs: A 4th of July Reflection

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This Independence Day, while we gather with family and friends, it’s worth remembering that Palm Springs played a direct role in defending freedom in the air.

In 1941, as the world plunged into war, the War Department certified improvements to Palm Springs’ small municipal airport, transforming it into the Palm Springs Army Air Field. The clear skies and proximity to March Field and Los Angeles made it ideal for emergency landings and training missions. By early 1942, a new, larger airfield was completed, becoming a staging field for the Air Corps Ferrying Command. Crews trained here, aircraft were serviced here, and the skies above the Coachella Valley filled with the sounds of engines working to secure freedom far from home.

Personnel lodged at the nearby La Paz Guest Ranch, and Western Airlines landed daily under a government license, showing the intersection of military preparation and civilian life that helped sustain the war effort. By the war’s end, over 1,600 acres were used for runways, taxiways, hangars, barracks, and the infrastructure necessary to support Airmen on their missions.

When you see the fireworks this July 4th, remember that the freedom they celebrate was, and still is, safeguarded in part by the airpower that took off and landed here in Palm Springs.

The Air & Space Forces Association Palm Springs Chapter continues that legacy of service, community, and education, supporting today’s Airmen and preserving the stories of those who came before.

Happy Independence Day!