American Fighter Aces Association is a non-profit organization which recognizes the 1,450 combat American pilots (referred to as
Aces
ACeS (PT Asia Cellular Satellite) was a regional satellite telecommunications company based in Jakarta, Indonesia. It offered GSM-like satellite telephony services to Asian market. The coverage area included Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Phili ...
) who have had five or more aerial victories in combat.
The AFAA is located in
Seattle's Museum of Flight. The exhibit houses documents, artifacts and histories of the Aces.
History
The American Fighter Aces Association was founded in 1960 to honor the 1,450 American "Ace" pilots.
On September 23, 1960, The AFAA held its first reunion in San Francisco, Calif.
To be a member honored by the association a pilot needs to have shot down at least five enemy aircraft in combat.
Mission
The mission of the organization is to Preserve the records of American combat fighter Aces. Part of the mission is also to educate future generations. The AFAA also awards scholarships each year.
Many of the Association's presidents have usually been aces. The organizations members are dying. In 2014
Lt. Gen. Charles "Chick" Cleveland served as president.
Clayton Kelly Gross served as president in 2016
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...
Edward Feightner also served the AFAA as president.
Current living members
World War II
Vietnam War
American Fighter Aces Congressional Gold Medal Act
The American Fighter Aces
Congressional Gold Medal was awarded to every American Fighter Ace, on May 23, 2014, by the 113th Congress.
President and CEO of the AFAA attended a White House ceremony with President
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
to sign the bill into law.
See also
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*
List of World War II flying aces
Fighter aces in World War II had tremendously varying kill scores, affected as they were by many factors: the pilot's skill level, the performance of the airplane the pilot flew and the planes they flew against, how long they served, their opport ...
References
External links
American Fighter Aces Association Video
Further reading
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{{Authority control
1960 establishments in the United States
Non-profit organizations based in Seattle
United States military support organizations
United States Navy support organizations
Organizations established in 1960
Museums in Seattle