PDG

Question 1

On 1 September 1939, Adolf Hitler launched a massive assault on Poland that opened the greatest war in history and spawned the term Blitzkrieg, or _____________.

Answer 1

“lightning war”

Question 2

What did the German Air Force, Luftwaffe, employ to gain air superiority, pound Poland’s capital, and to attack Polish ground forces and terrorize refugees? (3)

Answer 2

• Messerschmitt Me-109
• Heinkel He-111 and Dornier Do-17
• Junkers Ju-87 Stuka

Question 3

What event led to Luftwaffe gaining air superiority?

Answer 3

When German forces attacked France

Question 4

What battle was the first all-air campaign in history?

Answer 4

Battle of Britian

Question 5

Who invented the radar?

Answer 5

Sir Robert Watson-Watt

Question 6

Any information gained from Enigma was top secret and know as ________.

Answer 6

ULTRA

Question 7

By 15 September 1940, Hitler abandoned his planned invasion of Britian. In a tribute to the Royal Air Force Fighter Command, ____________ , stated, “ Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few”.

Answer 7

Prime Minister Winston Churchill

Question 8

The fall of France in June 1940 galvanized which president’s resolve to fight Nazi tyranny? And what did he turn to as a major weapon?

Answer 8

• President Franklin Roosevelt

- airpower

Question 9

Until December 1940, the United States built aircraft at a rate of only 800 per month. By 1942, American factories produced 47,800 aircraft, and by 1944, an astronomical 96,300 planes. American industrial production emerged as a key to Allied victory. T or F?

Answer 9

True

Question 10

To manage growing American airpower, a major reorganization created the United States Army Air Forces. ____________ was appointed Commanding General of the United States Army Air Forces and Deputy Chief of Staff, Air Force to _____________.

Answer 10

• General Henry “Hap” Arnold

- General George C. Marshall

Question 11

On 7 December 1941, “a date which will live in infamy,” Imperial Japan dealt a devastating blow to the ___________. Describe the event.

Answer 11

• United States Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor

- Two waves of 350 Japanese aircraft sank or heavily damaged all eight United States battleships

Question 12

On 8 December 1941 what did the US do?

Answer 12

• Declared war on Japan; three days later, Germany and Italy were at war with the US as allies to Japan
• Despite the fact that it was the attack on Pearl Harbor that formally brought the United States into the war, the war in Europe and the defeat of Germany would take precedence*

Question 13

To United States Army Air Forces leaders, night bombing was ineffective, inefficient, and indiscriminate with regard to civilian casualties. After tough negotiations, the Casablanca Directive of January 1943 inaugurated the ___________, codenamed __________.Specifications of this operation?

Answer 13

• Combined Bomber Offensive
• Operation Pointblank
• combining American precision daylight bombing and British night area bombing.

Question 14

The VIII Bomber Command, was established in February 1942 by whom? Who assumed command of the “Mighty Eight” in June 1942?

Answer 14

• Brig Gen Ira C. Baker

- General Spaatz

Question 15

On 17 August 1942, a dozen B-17Es from the 97th Bomb Group conducted the first American operational bombing mission. The strike against a railroad marshalling yard in Rouen, France, barely penetrated the German defenses, but the mission and a series of others known as the ____________ showed promise for American daylight bombardment.

Answer 15

“Freshman Raids”

Question 16

The 14 October 1943 mission against Schweinfurt that effectively ended the United States Army Air Forces unescorted bombing campaign was known as __________.

Answer 16

“Black Thursday”

Question 17

Which airframe revolutionized the air war over Europe after the engines were replaced to the Spitfire’s Rolls- Royce Merlin engine? What were the improvements?

Answer 17

• P-51 Mustang
• At 440 mph, the P-51B was faster and could out turn and out dive the latest models of Me-109 and the new Focke-Wulf FW-190.

Question 18

The ________ team seized the air superiority from the Luftwaffe in the spring of 1944.

Answer 18

-P-47 and P-51

Question 19

Which campaign from 1942 to 1945 was the longest, bloodiest, air campaign in history?

Answer 19

Combined Bomber Offensive

Question 20

A raid against the last operational Nazi oil refinery on 15 March 1945 was successful but cost the life of one of the enlisted force’s most decorated Airmen. Who am I?
-Flew 44 missions as a gunner with the 95th Bomb Group, 19 more than required to complete his tour. After returning home for a brief period, rather than accept an assignment as a gunnery instructor, he returned to Europe. Flying with the 353d Bombardment Squadron in Italy, my aircraft was hit by ground fire. Nine of the 10-member crew bailed out successfully, but I never made it from the stricken aircraft. I was the only enlisted airman to have a B-17 named for him.

Answer 20

Sergeant Sandy Sanchez

Question 21

Which enlisted airman am I?
-At the age of 20, on a mission to bomb the oil refineries outside Vienna, myself and my fellow crewmen were shot down on our 28th mission. I was held as a prisoner of war for 10 months, surviving a 90-day march from the Baltic Sea to Berlin before being liberated by the British Army in 1945. Promoted to Chief Master Sergeant in 1962,I became the first Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force in 1967. In 1988, he received the first Air Force prisoner of war medal.

Answer 21

Technical Sergeant Paul Airey

Question 22

In 1941, which president directed the Army Air Corps to accept black Americans into aviation cadet training?

Answer 22

President Franklin D. Roosevelt

Question 23

By the end of World War II, nearly a thousand black Americans had earned their wings as Army flyers. Fired by a determination to prove their patriotism, valor, and skill in combat, these black aviators, forever called the __________.

Answer 23

Tuskegee Airmen

Question 24

Which squadron?

• The first Tuskegee Airmen to fight were members of this squadron, were a unit commanded by black West Point graduate and future Air Force general officer, Colonel Benjamin O. Davis, Jr.
• On 27 January 1944, over Anzio, we were flying obsolete P-40s, downed nine superior Focke-Wulf 190s.

Answer 24

99th Fighter Squadron

Question 25

Which squadron?

• Manned by Tuskegee Airmen, arrived in Italy with obsolete P-39 ground-attack fighters.
• In the spring of 1944, these segregated units transitioned to P-47 Thunderbolts and to P-51 Mustangs a month later, when they began flying bomber escort missions.
• flew escort missions from 9 June 1944 until the German surrender in the spring of 1945.

Answer 25

332d Fighter Squadron

Question 26

During World War II, America’s first combat experience in the Pacific Theater occurred before the declaration of war.
In early 1941, in order to aid Nationalist China against the Japanese, Claire Lee Chennault organized the American
volunteer group known as the ________.

Answer 26

Flying Tigers

Question 27

During World War II, America’s first combat experience in the Pacific Theater occurred before the declaration of war.
In early 1941, in order to aid Nationalist China against Japanese invaders, the American volunteer group known as the
Flying Tigers was organized by ________.

Answer 27

Claire Lee Chennault

Question 28

In April 1942, Lieutenant Colonel James “Jimmy” Doolittle led 16 bombers on a bombing raid against targets in
Tokyo, Kobe, and Nagoya. The raid caused little damage but shocked the Japanese and cheered the American public. For
his actions, Doolittle received:________.

Answer 28

the Medal of Honor and promotion to brigadier general

Question 29

Who shot down several Japanese enemy aircraft and became a hero and the subject of a popular song, “Johnny Got a
Zero”?

Answer 29

Corporal John D. Foley

Question 30

During World War II, naval aviation played a vital role in the Pacific War. This battle was the first naval battle fought
entirely by air?

Answer 30

the Battle of Coral Sea

Question 31

During World War II, naval aviation played a vital role in the Pacific War. In this battle, U.S. Navy pilots sank four
Japanese carriers and turned the tide of the war in the Pacific?

Answer 31

the Battle of Midway

Question 32

During World War II, the primary U.S. Army Air Forces contribution to the Pacific counterattack was made by the
Fifth Air Force under General Douglas MacArthur. However, their efforts were hampered by___________.

Answer 32

• the “Europe First” strategy
• second string aircraft launched from primitive bases
• a low resource priority level and a 10,000 mile supply chain

Question 33

In July 1942, Major General George C. Kenney assumed command of the Fifth Air Force. Kenney maximized the
resource-poor command’s combat power in the Pacific by exploiting several innovations _____________.

Answer 33

• locally developed 150-gallon drop tanks
• .50-caliber machine guns mounted in A-20 and B-25 aircraft
• parachutes attached to fragmentation bombs and low-level “skip” bombing techniques

Question 34

During World War II, Air Transport Command crews, flying C-46s and C-47s, ferried 650,000 tons of supplies across
the Himalayas to Chinese and American forces in the China-Burma-India Theater. This perilous task was planned and
supervised by _______.

Answer 34

William H. Tunner

Question 35

During World War II, operations in the Pacific theater were hampered by the “Europe First” strategy, a low resource
priority level, and a 10,000 mile supply chain. The war’s longest supply chain supported___________.

Answer 35

Chinese and American forces in the China-Burma-India Theater

Question 36

William H. Tunner supervised the supply of Chinese and American forces across the Himalayas in the China-Burma-
India Theater and developed many maintenance and cargo-handling techniques that later proved invaluable during________________.

Answer 36

the Berlin Airlift

Question 37

During World War II, the 1st Air Commando Group provided assistance to British “Chindit” forces conducting longrange
penetration missions against the Japanese during Operation _______.

Answer 37

Thursday

Question 38

During World War II, the 1st Air Commando Group provided assistance to British “Chindit” forces conducting
missions against the Japanese during Operation Thursday. The 1st Air Commando Group also demonstrated its ingenuity
by conducting___________.

Answer 38

the first helicopter combat rescue

Question 39

General Arnold hoped to defeat Japan through airpower alone in order to avoid a costly land invasion. In November
1939, Air Corps leaders selected the primary campaign instrument__________________.

Answer 39

the Boeing XB-29

Question 40

General Arnold hoped to defeat Japan through airpower alone in order to avoid a costly land invasion. In November
1939, Air Corps leaders selected the primary campaign instrument, the Boeing XB-29. The designation for B-29
operations out of bases in India and China against the Japanese was Operation _______.

Answer 40

Matterhorn

Question 41

During Operation Matterhorn, the bombing campaign against Japan, in order to improve results, Major General
Lemay made some drastic changes____________.

Answer 41

• ordered low-altitude night attacks
• stripped bombers of defensive machine guns
• reduced fuel loads and increased bomb loads

Question 42

The Japanese government surrendered 14 August 1945 due to_______________.

Answer 42

• atomic weapons
• a declaration of war by the Soviet Union
• a defeated army, destroyed navy and air force and burned cities

Question 43

In the Pacific Theater, airpower proved even more decisive than in Europe. What factors made airpower the
preeminent weapon in the Pacific?

Answer 43

the geographic circumstances and immense distances involved

Question 44

Following a successful atomic test on 18 July 1945, the Allied powers issued an ultimatum on 26 July calling for the Japanese government to surrender or suffer “prompt and utter destruction.” Specially modified B-29s from the 393d Bombardment Squadron, a component of the 509th Composite Group, delivered the first operational atomic bombs. On 6 August 1945, Colonel Paul Tibbets piloted the Enola Gay which dropped a uranium bomb, known as ________ over Hiroshima destroying nearly five square miles of the city and killing 80,000 people. Japan did not surrender. On 9 August 1945, the B-29 Bockscar, commanded by Major Charles W. Sweeney, released a plutonium bomb called ________ on Nagasaki. Because Nagasaki was partially protected by hilly terrain, the bomb devastated 1.5 square miles, killed 35,000, and injured 60,000

Answer 44

• “Little Boy”

- “Fat Man”

Question 45

On 26 July 1947, which president signed into law the National Security Act of 1947? And what did it provide?

Answer 45

• President Harry S. Truman

- provided for a separate Department of the Air Force

Question 46

Who became the first Secretary of the Air Force and officially established the USAF as an independent coequal service on 18 September 1947?

Answer 46

Stuart Symington

Question 47

Who was the first Chief of Staff, Air Force? And who was his successor?

Answer 47

• Gen Spaatz

- Gen Hoyt S. Vanderberg

Question 48

_________ was removed from NCO status in 1950. Then in 1952, the Air Force officially changed the names of the lower ___ ranks from private to Airman basic; private first class to Airman, third class; corporal to Airman, second class; and sergeant to Airman, first class.

Answer 48

• Corporal

- 4

Question 49

The ________ awakened Americans to the impact of the Cold War between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. On 24 June 1948, the Soviets __________________. United States Air Forces in Europe Commander _________ organized a makeshift airlift of food, medicine, and coal. United States Air Forces in Europe C-47 and C-54 cargo aircraft established a precise schedule of flights every three minutes, 24-hours-a-day. After the first month, ____________ assumed command of an expanded effort that would include 300 American and 100 British aircraft flown by aircrews who would apply lessons learned while flying the “Hump” during World War II.

Answer 49

• Berlin Crisis
• blockaded railroad and road corridors serving the 2.5 million residents of West Berlin, deep within Communist East Germany
• General LeMay
• Major General William H. Tunner

Question 50

By 1949, the Soviets acknowledged the airlift’s success and lifted the blockade. Operation ______ tallied 277,804 flights delivering 2.3 million tons of supplies.

Answer 50

Vittles

Question 51

Throughout the Berlin Airlift, enlisted personnel served as _____________. (4)

Answer 51

Cargo managers and loaders (with a major assist from German civilians), air traffic controllers, communications specialists, and weather and navigation specialists.

Question 52

What was represented as one of the great Western victories of the cold war- without a bomb being dropped? and what did it lay the foundation for?

Answer 52

• The Soviets’ eventual capitulation and dismantling of the surface blockade
• The North Atlantic Treaty Organization

Question 53

What events motivated the Air Force to improve war readiness?

Answer 53

• 1948 Berlin Crisis and 1949 Soviet detonation of an atomic device

Question 54

Which aircraft entered service in December 1945 as the Air Forces first operational Jet fighter?

Answer 54

Lockheed P-80, later redesigned F-80

Question 55

Who was the first man to break the sound barrier? How?

Answer 55

• Charles “Chuck” Yeager (14 October 1947)

- His Bell X-1 “Glamorous Glennis” reached Mach 1.06 at 43,000 feet after a launch from a B-29 mother ship.

Question 56

On 25 June 1950, Communist North Korea launched a massive invasion of United States-backed South Korea. Three days later, American B-26 bombers attacked advancing North Korean troops in the first ______________.

Answer 56

major flare-up of the Cold War.

Question 57

General MacArthur’s amphibious assault at Inchon and successive operations shattered the North Korean Army, but the United Nations advance into North Korea led to Communist Chinese intervention. The entry of half a million Chinese troops in November 1950 drastically changed the war. Within weeks, advanced Soviet-made MiG-15 fighters appeared. Flown by North Korean, Chinese, and Soviet pilots, the MiG-15 outperformed American F-51, F-80, and F-84 aircraft. ___________, flying an F-80C, shot down a MiG-15 in the world’s first all-jet air battle on 8 November 1950. In response to the enemy’s superior speed and altitude, Air Force leaders rushed the North American F-86 Sabre into action. The F-86 matched the MiG’s speed and proved a more stable gun platform.

Answer 57

Lieutenant Russell Brown

Question 58

____________ of the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, serving as gunner, scored the first B-29 victory over a jet by downing a MiG-15. ________ victory was the first of 27 MiGs shot down by B-29 gunners during the course of the war. __________, a tail gunner on an Okinawa-based B-29, shot down two MiGs on 12 April 1951, a feat unmatched by any other gunner. His own plane was so shot up, however, that it and the crew barely survived an emergency landing with collapsed gear at an advanced fighter strip

Answer 58

• Corporal Harry LaVene
• Corporal Harry LaVene
• Sergeant Billie Beach

Question 59

During the Korean War, a new group of Air Force pilots entered the pantheon of fighter aces. The F-86 pilots established a remarkable 10-to-1 kill ratio. ________, a B-24 navigator in World War II, led the pack with a score of 16, closely followed by _________ who tallied 15 kills.________ gained recognition as the world’s first jet ace.

Answer 59

• Captain Joseph McConnell
• Captain James Jabara
• Captain James Jabara

Question 60

Worried that the conflict in Korea foreshadowed a Soviet invasion of Europe, American policy makers limited operations in Asia in order to build up North Atlantic Treaty Organization forces. Nevertheless, United Nations forces repelled ___ Communist invasions of South Korea, and American airpower secured the skies against enemy air attack.

Answer 60

2

Question 61

On 4 October 1957, the course of missile and satellite development changed when the ________successfully launched the Sputnik I satellite into earth orbit.

Answer 61

Soviet Union

Question 62

In response to the Sputnik I launch, which president accelerated United States civil and military space efforts; a decision that would prove crucial throughout the Cold War?

Answer 62

President Eisenhower

Question 63

In 1958, the Air Force developed plans for a manned military presence in space, but President Eisenhower reserved manned missions for the National Aeronautics and Space Agency. However, the Air Force’s plan formed the basis of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo Programs. T or F?

Answer 63

True

Question 64

In 1960, the National Reconnaissance Office was formed to take charge of highly classified reconnaissance satellites. President Eisenhower undertook several initiatives to help prevent a surprise nuclear attack against the United States, including establishing the classified Corona satellite photo reconnaissance program. This system, known publicly as the Discoverer research program, achieved its first successful launch of the _________ , 10 August 1960. _________, launched a week after recovering Discoverer XIII, shot over 3,000 feet of reconnaissance film from space, heralding the beginning of America’s space-based photo reconnaissance capability.

Answer 64

• Discoverer XIII

- Discoverer XIV

Question 65

In 1959, ________overthrew the dictator of Cuba, initially promising free elections, but instead he instituted a socialist dictatorship. Hundreds of thousands of Cubans fled their island, many coming to the United States. In late 1960, President __________authorized the Central Intelligence Agency to plan an invasion of Cuba using Cuban exiles as troops. The president hoped that, in conjunction with the invasion, the Cuban people would overthrow _______ and install a pro-United States government. The President’s second term ended before the plan could be implemented. President _________ ordered the invasion to proceed. In mid-April 1961, the Cuban exiles landed at the ________ and suffered a crushing defeat.

Answer 65

• Fidel Castro
• Eisenhower
• Fidel Castro
• John F. Kennedy
• Bay of Pigs

Question 66

Following the failure of the United States-supported Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba by Cuban exiles in April 1961, the _______ increased economic and military aid to Cuba. In August 1962, the Soviets and Cubans started constructing intermediate- and medium-range ballistic missile complexes on the island.

Answer 66

Soviet Union

Question 67

President Kennedy took the somewhat less drastic step of imposing a naval blockade of the island, which was designed to prevent any more materiel from reaching Cuba.Confronted with the photographic evidence of missiles, the Soviet Union initially responded belligerently. Soviet Premier ________ accused the United States of degenerate imperialism and declared that the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic would not observe the illegal blockade. In the ensuing days, ______ softened, and then hardened, his position and demands. Tensions increased on 27 October when Cuban air defenses shot down a ____ piloted by Major Rudolf Anderson.

Answer 67

• Nikita Khrushchev
• Khrushchev
• U-2

Question 68

What was the resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis(1962)?

Answer 68

The United States agreed not to invade Cuba in exchange for removal of Soviet missiles from the island. Secretly, the United States also agreed to remove American missiles from Turkey

Question 69

Responding to Communist efforts in Laos and South Vietnam, President Kennedy in April 1961ordered Operation ________ ; the covert deployment of the 4400th Combat Crew Training Squadron (Jungle Jim) to train the South Vietnamese Air Force.

Answer 69

-Farmgate

Question 70

Following the August 1964 Gulf of Tonkin incident, when North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked the _________ , President _______ lifted the shroud of secrecy and ordered an orchestrated air attack as a show of force. By December 1964, North American F-100 Super Sabres, McDonnell RF-101 Voodoos, and Republic F-105 Thunderchiefs, with Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker support, conducted Operation ________, attacking Communist forces in Laos.

Answer 70

• USS Maddox
• Lyndon B. Johnson
• Barrel Roll

Question 71

Following the 1968 bombing halt of Khe Sanh, President _________ initiated a phased withdrawal from the frustrating conflict

Answer 71

Richard M. Nixon

Question 72

Although the Air Force flew more than five million sorties and dropped six million tons of bombs, North Vietnamese forces eventually conquered South Vietnam in April 1975. T or F?

Answer 72

True

Question 73

Who Am I?
The recipient of 28 decorations for valor in combat (more than 70 awards and decorations in all), and winner of the Cheney Award for 1967, an honor presented for valor or self-sacrifice in a humanitarian effort.
Enlisted in the Air Force a few days after graduation, volunteering for pararescue training. An honor graduate in every phase of the tough, year-long course, he had his choice of assignments. Turned down assignments in Bermuda and England for Detachment 7, 38th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron, at Da Nang. Flew more than 200 combat missions in three and a half years of Vietnam duty, all as a volunteer. He earned four Distinguished Flying Crosses for specific acts of heroism and 18 Air Medals, many for single acts of valor. He also received the Air Force Cross, the Silver Star, the Airman’s Medal, the Purple Heart, and several foreign decorations. Most celebrated mission was on 6 February 1967. That morning he descended from a HH-3E Jolly Green Giant to look for a downed pilot near Mu Gia pass. The pilot had stopped his radio transmissions, a clue that enemy troops were nearby. For two hours, I searched for the man, dodging enemy patrols, until the mission was called off because of weather. Late that afternoon, the downed pilot came back on the air, and myself and my crew headed for the rescue area to get him out before dark. This time I found his man, badly injured but alive, got him onto the forest penetrator, and started up to the chopper, drawing small-arms fire all the way. As the men were hauled aboard, the helicopter took a direct hit from a 37-mm antiaircraft gun and burst into flame. Wounded by shell fragments and suffering third-degree burns, I, knowing that the HH-3 was not going to make it, put his own parachute on the rescued pilot and got him out of the doomed chopper. Groping through dense smoke, he found an oil-soaked chute and slipped it on. Before he could buckle the chute, a second 37-mm shell hit the HH-3, blowing him out the door. He did not remember pulling the ripcord of the unbuckled chute before hitting trees 250 feet below, then plunging 80 feet to a rock ledge in a crevasse. When he regained consciousness, enemy troops were leaping across the crevasse a few feet above him Once they were gone, I popped his smoke and was picked up by the backup chopper. There were no other survivors from the rescue helicopter. For that mission, I received the Air Force Cross. In 1973, I left the Air Force, one of the most decorated pararescuemen of the Vietnam War. Four years later, missing the camaraderie of Air Force life, he enlisted again, returning to duty as a pararescue instructor. In 1981, he suffered a severe heart attack, the result of a rescue operation, and was permanently grounded. Altogether, he served in the United States Air Force from 1965 to 1991, retiring as a Chief Master Sergeant.

Answer 73

Duane Hackney

Question 74

Who Am I?
Tail gunner that shot down an enemy MiG, the first of only two confirmed shootdowns by enlisted Airmen during the Vietnam war—both victories from gunners belonging to the 307th Strategic Wing at U-Tapao, Thailand. Credit for the fifth overall MiG-21 kill during Linebacker II also went to an enlisted Airman, ________.

Answer 74

• Staff Sergeant Samuel Turner

- Airman First Class Albert E. Moore

Question 75

Who Am I?
-was directly involved in the famed Son Tay prisoner of war camp raid and the rescue of the crew of the USS Mayaquez. When the USS Mayaquez was highjacked by Cambodian Communist forces in May 1975, I was a member of the assault force that successfully recovered the ship, the crew, and the entrapped United States Marines. For my actions, I was presented with his second Silver Star. Concluding the Mayaquez mission, I was recognized as the last American serviceman to engage Communist forces in ground combat in Southeast Asia In 1979, I was the first Air Force enlisted recipient of the United States Jaycees Ten Outstanding Young Men of America. In 1986, I became the first director of the Air Force Enlisted Heritage Hall on Maxwell Air Force Base-Gunter Annex.

Answer 75

Chief Master Sergeant Wayne Fisk