One Hundred Years of Flight USAF Chronology ... - The Air University

1967
April 25: Maj. Gen. Benjamin D. Foulois, America’s oldest military pilot, having
flown the first Army aircraft under the tutelage of the Wright
brothers in 1909, died at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, at the age
of 87.
April 28: Air National Guard volunteer crews and KC–97L tankers began flying
air-refueling missions for United States Air Forces in Europe fighters
from Ramstein Air Base, Germany, in Operation CREEK PARTY,
which lasted 10 years. This was the first sustained volunteer operation
overseas by Air National Guard units in support of USAF “real world”
requirements.
May 31: While piloting a KC–135 Stratotanker over the Gulf of Tonkin, Maj.
John H. Casteel, USAF, and his three-man crew from the 902d Air
Refueling Squadron carried out a spectacular series of emergency
refuelings that saved six fuel-starved Navy fighters. The action earned
Major Casteel and his crew the Mackay Trophy.
June 1: The Republic of Vietnam Air Force officially accepted 20 F–5 aircraft,
its first jets, from the U.S. Air Force. The F–5 was a fighter version
of the T–38.
June 1: In the first nonstop transatlantic helicopter flight, USAF crews flew
two HH–3E helicopters from New York to Paris in 30 hours, 46 minutes,
10 seconds with nine air refuelings.
June 5: Surrounded by the forces of several Arab nations threatening to
attack, Israel launched preemptive air raids against Egyptian, Jordanian,
and Syrian airfields. Having established control of the air, Israeli
forces occupied the Sinai Peninsula, the west bank of the Jordan River,
and the Golan Heights within a week.
August 26: The North Vietnamese captured Maj. George E. Day, USAF, after
shooting down his F–100 Super Sabre aircraft. Severely wounded, he was
taken to a prison camp for interrogation and torture. Despite his crippling
injuries, Major Day escaped and evaded the enemy for two weeks.
He had crossed the demilitarized zone and come within two miles of a
Marine Corps base when he was shot and recaptured. Back in prison and
in poor health, he continued to resist his captors until he was released in
1973. For his bravery, he earned the Medal of Honor.
September 9: Sgt. Duane D. Hackney received the Air Force Cross for bravery
during the rescue of a USAF pilot in Vietnam, thereby becoming
the first living enlisted man to receive the award.
October 16: The first operational F–111A supersonic tactical fighter landed at
Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. The variable swept-wing jet used its terrainfollowing
radar-guidance controls for the flight from Fort Worth, Texas.
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