Museum Lecture Series: Recent Episodes
National Museum of the U.S. Air Force
The Lecture Series features an exciting array of speakers who impart a diversity of perspectives on USAF heritage. Lecturers include active duty or retired military members, specialists in research, development and technology, and historians and authors.
Space pioneers share their experiences during a presentation titled “The Dorian Files Revealed: The Manned Orbiting Laboratory Crew Members’ Secret Mission in Space.” During the presentation, the National Reconnaissance Office revealed information about recently declassified elements of the program.
Former test pilot Paul Metz discusses the evolution of the F-22 Raptor, tracing the military, geo-political and technical forces that drove the more than 30-year search for an Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF).
Air Force Special Operations Command historian Herbert A. Mason Jr. discusses the "Contributions USAF Special Operations Forces Have Made to the Development of Air and Space Power, 1942 to 2012."
Retired Col. Gaillard R. Peck Jr. addresses the 10-year period that the U.S. Air Force secretly trained Air Force, Navy and Marine fighter aircrews in an advanced joint training program against actual Soviet MiG jet fighters.
Retired Maj. Gen. John Borling shares his experiences as a prisoner of war, along with the poetry and prose he composed and memorized.
Col. Robert A. Strasser and Lt. Col. Tay W. Johannes discuss experiences in building the Afghan Air Force, including resources, organizational interactions, mission objectives and how historical events have influenced decision making.
Phil Pressel discusses the last orbiting reconnaissance camera that used film for photography and how it played an important part in U.S. intelligence and aerospace history.
Dr. Squire L. Brown discusses the museum’s Research & Development Gallery, which exhibits a unique collection of aircraft that challenged the imagination and pushed the boundaries of flight.
Dr. David K. Stumpf gives an overview of the Titan II program, culminating in a discussion of just how close a Soviet weapon would have had to come to incapacitate the silo.
Retired Col. Joseph Sweeney, the son of Bockscar pilot Gen. Charles Sweeney who was at the controls when the aircraft dropped the bomb on Aug. 9, 1945, will speak about his father and World War II.
Six-time “Military Photographer of the Year” Master Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock discusses how he became a photojournalist in the Air Force and where it has taken him, what military photojournalists do, his latest projects and where photojournalism is going in the future.
Dogster.com editor/writer Maria Goodavage discusses the four-legged heroes who serve our country, what they bring to the fight, how they do it and the deep bonds they form with those who work with them.
Dutch Van Kirk, the navigator from the B-29 Enola Gay, the aircraft that dropped the world's first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, gives a first-hand perspective of one of World War II's most famous missions.
Former NASA astronaut and retired Air Force colonel David R. Scott talks about his three space missions: Gemini VIII, Apollo 9 and Apollo 15.
Learn about the Gambit 1 KH-7, Gambit 3 KH-8 and Hexagon KH-9 reconnaissance satellites during this presentation by CIA officers Dr. Robert A. McDonald and Dr. James D. Outzen.
(Ret.) Col. Mark W. Tillman, the nation’s 12th presidential pilot, gives a first-hand account of remarkable moments in history with his experience as pilot and commander of Air Force One from 2001-2009.
Dr. Daniel L. Haulman, an historian with Air Force Historical Research Agency, discusses the Tuskegee Airmen, who were for decades virtually ignored in American military history and have since become very famous, culminating in early 2007 with the awarding of the Congressional Gold Medal.
Lt. Col. Deborah Lehker speaks about her deployment to Kandahar, Afghanistan, as a Critical Care Air Transport Team (CCATT) nurse and the goal of enhancing patient care.
Dr. Kenneth P. Werrell discusses the Korean War, which saw the first and largest jet-versus-jet fighter conflict of all time. Despite many disadvantages, American pilots won an overwhelming victory, which was critical in the outcome of the war.
Lt. Col. (Ret.) John Bessette, who flew as a navigator and served in air refueling, airlift and gunship assignments, presents “Covert Air Reconnaissance in Europe: USAFE Operations, 1946-1990.”
Author and aviation artist Paul Jacobs examines the Battle of Britain from three perspectives -- historical, aviation technology development and air tactics evolution.
Author and retired Lt. Col. George A. Larson discusses information from his latest book, “The Superfortress Final Glory: The Korean Air War, The Cold War's First Aerial Combat.”
Former Wild Weasel Electronic Warfare Officer (Ret.) Col. Mike Gilroy discusses the challenges and opportunities facing Weasel and Strike crews at Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base in the mid-1960s.
Air University professor Dr. S. Mike Pavelec discusses the three competing programs -- German, British and American -- to develop jet aircraft technology during World War II.
Former Air Force pilot and FBI agent Taylor Eubank illustrates the Vietnam reconnaissance experience from high above in the midst of surface-to-air missile (SAM) barrages and anti-aircraft flak traps and through perilous nighttime photo missions.
Dr. Conrad C. Crane, Director of the U.S. Army Military History Institute, discusses how the Korean War was the first armed engagement for the newly formed U.S. Air Force, but far from the type of conflict it expected or wanted to fight.
World record setting pilot (Ret.) Lt. Col. Dick Rutan discusses his Air Force service, specifically his time as a forward air controller during the Southeast Asia War.
Internationally-recognized aerospace historian Dr. Richard P. Hallion discusses America’s first jet-age air war.
Former enemy pilots (Ret.) Brig. Gen. Dan Cherry and Mr. Nguyen Hong My will discuss Cherry’s book “My Enemy ... My Friend.”
Air War College professor Dr. Xiaoming Zhang discusses the Chinese perspective of the air war in Korea.
British author Chris Pocock discusses the 'Black Bats' and CIA spy flights over China from Taiwan from 1951-1969.
Chief Master Sgt. Ramon Colon-Lopez, who in 2007 was one of six airmen to be awarded the first Air Force Combat Action Medal, discuss the Global War on Terror from the perspective of a special tactics pararescueman.
Col. Christopher Coombs, commander of the 703rd Aeronautical Systems Group at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, discussed the contributions of unmanned aircraft systems to the nation’s air arsenal.
Craig W. Duehring, who served as a forward air controller (FAC) during the Southeast Asia War, tells the story of the forward air controllers who fought the war in Laos.
Rocketplane Global Vice President and Chief Test Pilot Paul Metz discusses his more than 37 years and 7,000 flying hours in over 70 different types of aircraft.
Aviation pioneer (Ret.) Col. Joseph Kittinger Jr. talks about his 29-year Air Force career, including his record-breaking high-altitude jumps.
Army Times reporter and author Sean D. Naylor discusses his latest book, “Not A Good Day To Die -- The Untold Story of Operation Anaconda.”
Award-winning author William H. Bartsch discusses his latest book, "Every Day a Nightmare: American Pursuit Pilots in the Defense of Java, 1941-42.”
Career intelligence officer and author Dr. Timothy N. Castle discusses the findings contained in his book “One Day Too Long: Top Secret Site 85 and the Bombing of North Vietnam.”
NASA astronaut and USAF Col. Gregory H. Johnson highlights his time as pilot of STS-123 Endeavor from March 11-26, 2008, which was the 25th Shuttle/International Space Station assembly mission.
Dr. Thomas D. Jones, a veteran NASA astronaut, scientist, speaker, author and consultant, gives a presentation based on the book Hell Hawks! -- which he co-authored with Robert F. Dorr.
Medal of Honor recipient Col. (Ret.) Leo K. Thorsness discusses how combat and prison expand the importance of making the most of what we have, techniques of coping with disadvantages, of finding out we are stronger than we think, and of realizing most of us come out the back end of adversity better, stronger and smarter than when we went in.
Maj. Nicole Malachowski, who became well known as the first female pilot on any U.S. jet demonstration team, discusses "America's Women Military Aviators: From WASP, to Thunderbirds, to the Future."
Dr. Michael L. Grumelli examines the relationship among airmen, technology and airmindedness in early military aviation.
Air Force HH-60G Pave-Hawk pilot Lt. Col. Jeffrey Peterson recalls his role in the daring combat rescue attempt of a Navy Seal in Afghanistan.
Tech. Sgt. Israel Del Toro shares his inspiring story of survival. In Afghanistan on Dec. 4, 2005, his Humvee rolled over a roadside bomb, causing wounds that have forever changed his face, hands and Air Force career.
Retired Canadian Col. Lorne RodenBush discusses his role as Canada's Permanent Representative to the International Control Commission in Hanoi during the height of the bombing in the Vietnam War.
Son Tay Raider pilot Maj. (Ret.) William A. Guenon Jr. explains how he flew "low and slow" in the lead C-130, operating in radio silence, as he led the unlikely formation of six rescue helicopters carrying 56 Green Berets to the Son Tay Prison, while avoiding surface-to-air missiles, MiG and anti-aircraft artillery threats around Hanoi.
Former Air Force sergeant and co-author of the original story for the major motion picture, “Good Morning, Vietnam!” Adrian Cronauer discusses his work with the Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office.
Best-selling author Dr. Donald L. Miller discusses his award-winning book, “Masters of the Air: America's Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany.”
Sean "Skipper" Moulton delves into unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from a warfighter's perspective.
Retired Col. Darrel Whitcomb relates his and others' experiences from combat search and rescue (CSAR) missions in Southeast Asia and examines the organization that was established to provide CSAR services in the Iraq-Kuwait theater of operations during Desert Storm.
Dr. David S. Sorenson, an Air War College professor of national securities studies, discusses Arab identity, Arabs at war, Arab religious identity and possible Arab futures.
Retired Col. Bob Krone discusses the F-105 Thunderchief, its pilots and missions and the 2007 meaning of the war in Southeast Asia.
Former Red Eagle Commander and F-15C subject matter expert Retired Col. Gail Peck initiated a secret program to train Air Force and Navy fighter pilots to a degree of proficiency never before achieved.
Hear about the advances in stealth technology from Retired Lt. Col. Ken Dyson, one of the pilots who demonstrated that an aircraft could operate close to the battlefield without fear of being discovered by enemy radar.
World War II ace retired Col. Steve Pisanos discusses his 30-year Air Force career, including his six-month evasion of the Germans after his P-51B crash-landed during a 1944 mission in France.
Col. (Ret.) Graham Pritchard discusses the evolution of the C-130, missions now flown by the 109th Airlift Wing, and the Wing's challenging and successful recovery of Dr. Jerri Neilsen from the South Pole due to her illness.
Col. (Ret.) Darrel Whitcomb, a former cargo pilot and forward air controller/Raven, discusses how the Vietnam War raged across much of Southeast Asia and also involved fighting in Cambodia and Laos.
Dr. Richard Hallion discusses how the Air Force has contributed to aerospace technology over the years. He is the author and editor of numerous books relating to aerospace technology and military operations.
Col. Regina Aune, Col. (Ret.) Bud Traynor and CMSgt. (Ret.) Ray Snedegar will recount their experience on board a C-5 that crash-landed in 1975.
Two men who served with the famed Tuskegee Airmen discuss the Air Force between 1941 and 1949.
German immigrant and retired Air Force colonel Wolfgang Samuel uses official Air Force records and survivors' interviews to tell the story of the disarmament of the once mighty German Luftwaffe and to discuss Operation Lusty.
One of only 25 women who qualified as pilots for the original Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron, Florene Miller Watson discusses her experiences before, during and after World War II. She served as a flight instructor and taught men to fly in the War Training Program in Texas and was later made the commanding officer over the WAFS-WASPs stationed at Love Field, Texas. When WWII was finally over, Watson had flown every fighter, cargo plane, bomber and training aircraft in the Air Corps inventory.
Lt. Col. Dale Zelko reflects on his experience as the only stealth fighter mission shot down during combat and his accomplishment and fortitude in an against-all-odds scenario.