U.S. Air Forces in Europe Celebrates 65 Years of Airpower
American Forces Press Service RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany, Jan.
22, 2007 United States Air Forces in Europe is celebrating its
65th anniversary as the oldest, continuously active Air Force
major command. USAFE began Jan. 19, 1942, when the War
Department established Headquarters 8th Air Force, and the
command continues its forward presence in Europe and Africa -
from delivering bombs in World War II to delivering humanitarian
supplies to Berlin in 1948 and 1949, from fighting the Cold War
to fighting today's war on terrorism, command officials said.
Command airmen deployed for operations Desert Shield and Desert
Storm, flew missions into Sarajevo in the longest humanitarian
airlift in history, then converted to combat missions over
Kosovo several years later. Since the terrorist attacks of Sept.
11, 2001, USAFE members have supported operations Enduring
Freedom and Iraqi Freedom with airlift, tankers, fighters and
people. In summer 2006, USAFE assisted