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  • Tinker History: Iszard Memorial Pool

    Editor’s note: As part of Tinker’s year-long 75th Anniversary celebration, the Tinker Take Off will focus on some notable people whose legacy lives on at Tinker.Iszard Memorial Pool was named for Chief Master Sgt. Edward J. Iszard, who served as the non-commissioned officer in charge of the Social

  • TINKER HISTORY: Republic F-105 Thunderchief aircraft

    The Republic F-105 Thunderchief was a heavy fighter/bomber which was a workhorse of the Vietnam War. The single-engine “Thud,” as it was known, sat on tricycle landing gear with a standard tail configuration and highly-swept wing with mid-fuselage intersection. Dual air-inlets, one on each side of

  • TINKER HISTORY: Ling-Temco-Vought A-7 Corsair II aircraft

    The Ling-Temco-Vought A-7 Corsair II was originally designed as a single-seat, mid-weight fighter/bomber for the United States Navy. The prototype A-7A took flight on Sept. 27, 1965, after a short design and development period due to Vought’s experience with the supersonic F-8 Crusader. The A-7 has

  • AIR FORCE HISTORY: Enlisted MOH recipient: “Woody” Vosler

    Editor's note: This is the first in a two-part series on the Medal of Honor recipient.Forrest Lee “Woody” Vosler was just 18 years old working as a drill press operator for the Rochester Products Division of General Motors on the day that lives in infamy. Over the next few months, older friends were

  • TINKER HISTORY: McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II

    The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is the most significant fighter aircraft of the 20th Century. First flown on May 27, 1958, the Phantom II entered service with the Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force. The Air Force’s initial version was the F-4C which first flew in 1963. For the most part, this

  • TINKER HISTORY: CFM International CFM56 (F108) engine

    The CFM International CFM56 engine is a high-bypass, two-shaft turbofan produced by an international consortium made up of General Electric in the United States and Safran Aircraft Engines in France. The CFM56 is the world’s most widely used turbofan in commercial aviation. The CFM56 powers entire

  • TINKER HISTORY: Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker

    The Boeing C-135 aircraft is a derivative of the popular Boeing 707 airframe modified from commercial airliner use to military missions with the largest produced model being the KC-135 “Stratotanker” purposely designed for air-refueling. The C-135 family has a large fuselage with traditional tail

  • TINKER HISTORY: Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter Aircraft

    The Boeing C-97 “Stratofreighter” was designed as a four-engine cargo and troop transport using components and design features from two previous Boeing designs, the B-29 and B-50 bombers, to make an entirely new transport aircraft. The large “pinched” fuselage is formed by taking two B-29 fuselage

  • AIR FORCE HISTORY: Capt. Lillian Kinkella Keil, AF hero

    For National Nurse Appreciation week, I get the honor of telling you about one of our greatest military heroes – medical or otherwise, Capt. Lillian Kinkella Keil. One of the most decorated women in American military history, this nurse flew on 425 combat evacuation missions in World War II and

  • AIR FORCE HISTORY: The Evacuation of Clark Air Force Base

    On June 10, 1991, Col. Jeffrey R. Grime, commander of the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing at Clark Air Force Base, began carrying out the order to evacuate Clark Air Base, Philippines. U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay eventually followed suit. It was worried that a harmless looking nearby volcano, Mount