LANGLEY AFB, VA. –
More than 100 members of the 1st Fighter Association toured Langley Tuesday as part of their 2006 reunion.
They started off their visit with a group photo in front of the F-86 in Memorial Park and then received an Air Combat Command briefing in Quesada Hall.
The group was escorted and assisted by three 1st Fighter Wing alumni, Col. Jim Hardenbrook, former 27th Fighter Squadron commander, Col. Pete Marty, former 1st Operations Group commander and Maj. Gen. Bill Lay, former 1st Fighter Wing commander, all Air Force retirees.
They enjoyed a catered lunch at the Static Display Hangar, and afterward, Brig. Gen. Burton Field, 1st FW commander, addressed the group, gave them an overview of what is currently occurring in the wing and a little bit of what it is like to fly the F-22 A Raptor.
Pilots within the group flew the P-38, F-106, F-86, F-102 and the F-4 and were in awe a little later when they watched F-22As in the pattern and an F-15 aerial demonstration.
After the demo, the guests got to see a Raptor up close and talk to the wing's new generation of fighter pilots. The reunion group wound up their day on base with separate visits to the three fighter squadrons.
That evening was the formal banquet at the Radisson Hotel in Hampton and their keynote speaker was Gen. Richard Myers, 15th chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, who also served as the commander of the 1st Tactical Fighter Wing June 1987 - February 1989. After his talk, he was made a lifetime member of the 1st Fighter Association.
The association welcomes new members who are presently in the 1st FW or who have served with the unit in the past. Details can be found at www.1stfighter.org.