of Britain’ Banquet Wednesday October 26, 2022 The Mayflower Hotel, Connecticut Avenue, Washington, D.C. Celebrating achievements in space
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4 6 8 11 12 14 17 21 WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION Major General (Ret) Frederick F. Roggero USAF, Chairman, RAFMAF AIR CHIEF MARSHAL SIR MIKE WIGSTON KCB CBE ADC, Chief of the Air Staff, RAF 24 A BRIEF HISTORY OF SPACE EXPLORATION Recalling landmark events and key developments in the fascinating story of our quest into space 26 SERIOUSLY OUT OF THIS WORLD! The little-known role played in space exploration by M&M’s® chocolates 27 BRIGADIER GENERAL (RET) CHARLES MOSS DUKE JR USAF Involved in five Apollo missions, serving as CapCom for both Apollo 10 and 11, Duke became the tenth and youngest person to walk on the lunar surface 28 DR NICK PATRICK From learning to fly in a Scottish Aviation Bulldog and working in the aviation industry, Patrick was selected for two Space Shuttle missions 30 THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE AT 75 A look at the origins, importance and future role of the USAF as it celebrates its 75th birthday 34 MAINTAINING THE LEADING EDGE A report on Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston’s speech at the Chief of the Air Staff’s Global Air & Space Chiefs’ Conference, held in London in July RAF MUSEUM REVIEW The RAF Museum reflects on its 50th anniversary year and shares its exciting plans for the future THE START OF A SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP The origins of the USAF/RAF Military Personnel Exchange Program LIEUTENANT J.R. PAYDEN – THE FIRST EXCHANGE OFFICER The story of a young American who served in Europe at the inception of the Royal Air Force THE ROYAL AIR FORCE MUSEUM AMERICAN FOUNDATION SWORDS OF HONOR Recognizing the most outstanding RAF and USAF officers on exchange this year SWORDS OF HONOR 2022 CITATIONS Flight Lieutenant Christopher Bradshaw RAF and Captain Kaitlin M. Ellwein USAF RAFMAF SWORDS OF HONOR WINNERS 2009-22 Cover: (top) Apollo 16 astronaut Charlie Duke salutes the U.S. flag on the surface of the Moon – April 21, 1972; (bottom) astronaut Nick Patrick embarks on one of three spacewalks during the STS-130 Space Shuttle mission in 2010 Produced by Harfield Media www.harfieldmedia.com RAF MUSEUM AMERICAN FOUNDATION 3
Major General (Ret.) Frederick F. Roggero, USAF, Chairman, Royal Air Force Museum American Foundation THE ROYAL AIR FORCE MUSEUM AMERICAN Foundation (RAFMAF) is honored and proud to host the ‘Spirit of the Battle of Britain’ Banquet, and we would like to thank Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston, Chief of Staff of the Royal Air Force (RAF), for his, and the RAF’s, continued help in our efforts to promote the ties, friendship and common values between our two great nations and our air and space forces. This year, it is our great privilege to honor the achievements of the pioneering astronauts of the latter half of the past century. Since the launch of the first artificial satellite in 1957 and the formation of NASA in 1958, astronauts have travelled to the Moon, probes have explored the solar system, and instruments in space have discovered thousands of planets around other stars. The RAF and USAF have been working together in space for over 50 years, and great strides have been taken in recent years to expand our combined efforts. The first RAFMAF ‘Spirit of the Battle of Britain’ Banquet was held in 2009, when former Apollo 11 astronaut Colonel Buzz Aldrin was the guest of honor, who was then, and is still, an outspoken champion for the pursuit of space exploration. This year it is an honor to host Brigadier General (Ret.) Charlie Duke, USAF – the Apollo 16 Lunar Module pilot and the tenth and youngest man to walk on the Moon. Duke became a familiar voice worldwide when he served as CAPCOM (Capsule Communicator) for Apollo 11 who, following a long delay after the landing of the ‘Eagle’ on the Moon said, “You got a bunch of guys about to turn blue. We’re breathing again.” Duke will be joined by Dr Nicholas Patrick, a British-born NASA astronaut and mission specialist on the International Space Station construction flights, who started his career in aviation as a cadet in the RAF’s University Air Squadron at Cambridge University. Dr Patrick now works for commercial space company Blue Origin. Together, these two space pioneers mirror the modern-day innovative sustainable programs of space exploration by commercial and international partnerships. Their courage and bravery in the face of unknown challenges is reminiscent of those same qualities shown to the world in 1940 and remembered here at this event as the ‘Spirit of the Battle of Britain.’ OUR SHARED VALUES It is also an honor for the Foundation to recognize the continued close association between our active-duty militaries by presenting two ceremonial Swords of Honor to the RAF and USAF Exchange Officers whose contributions have most reflected the values that our veterans, and the Foundation, share: Service, Excellence, Integrity and Courage. It is these values that we honor in our young women and men of today, and encourage in the young people of tomorrow. Even though Covid-19 forced us to cancel the previous two annual banquets, we still honored the 2020 and 2021 Exchange officers at specially arranged receptions. The presentation in 2020 was held at the National Museum of the USAF at Wright-Patterson AFB, Dayton, Ohio. Captain Katie Broyles, USAF, received her award from General Arnold Bunch, USAF, and Group Captain Andrew Lloyd, RAF, received his sword from Mr Alan Gogbashian, the British Consul General. Earlier this year at the RAF’s Birthday Party, hosted by the British Embassy, the 2021 Sword RAF MUSEUM AMERICAN FOUNDATION 4
Squadron Leader Bonnie Posselt, RAF, received her award from Her Excellency Dame Karen Pierce, British Ambassador to the United States of America, and Captain Robert Ippolito, USAF, received his award from Mr Frank Kendall. Apollo 16’s Lunar Module makes its rendezvous with the Command and Service Module in lunar orbit on April 23, 1972, after spending three days on the Moon’s surface to individuals from diverse ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, offering new experiences and paths to success in aerospace. With the help of our sponsors, the Foundation will continue to keep our combined and shared histories of air and space power alive, and continue to inspire the next generation by highlighting the shared values of the fighting Airmen, Airwomen and Guardians of the past and the present. Thank you for attending tonight and for your continued support of the Royal Air Force Museum American Foundation. FOCUS ON EDUCATION Meanwhile, the Foundation’s philanthropic work continues, in spite of the pandemic and global economic challenges. We have maintained our focus on education by endowing an RAF Museum Educational Learning Fund and providing funding to expand the Museum’s apprenticeship program with the employment of a dedicated staff member. This new position will spearhead creative opportunities RAF MUSEUM AMERICAN FOUNDATION 5
Sir Mike Wigston KCB CBE ADC, Chief of the Air Staff, RAF I AM DELIGHTED TO RETURN TO Washington D.C. and attend the RAF Museum American Foundation’s annual ‘Spirit of the Battle of Britain’ Banquet. This year’s Banquet will celebrate our many collective achievements in Space, and we have the privilege of dining with two distinguished Guests of Honor: Brigadier General Charlie Duke Jr, who was not only CapCom for Apollo 11, but also walked on the Moon with Apollo 16 – 50 years ago this year; and one of our own British-born NASA astronauts, Dr Nicholas Patrick, who was a mission specialist on the International Space Station’s construction flights and now works at the forefront of space exploration at Blue Origin. In the Combined Air and Space Power Shared Vision Statement I signed last year with my great friends General C.Q. Brown and General Jay Raymond, we acknowledged that the security of the Space domain has become essential to the maintenance of our way of life and our mutual national interests. When viewed through the lens of increased strategic competition, the need for international collaboration in this area has never been more important if we are to preserve and ensure our way of life. We all remember President Kennedy’s acknowledgement that progress in the Space domain will be hard. Just like the architects of the Apollo Program and the International Space Station, it will require vision, innovative thinking and an ability to act at pace to meet emergent threats and challenges. My Service’s founding father, Lord Trenchard, had amazing foresight when he gave us our motto, Per Ardua Ad Astra, which translates as Through Adversity to the Stars. I do not know how he knew in 1918 what my challenges would be in 2022, but our motto has never been more apt. It will be hard work, but these are electrifying times. Recent advances in the Space domain are transforming lives now and will transform the lives of future generations, just as the Apollo programme did in its time. Whether in Government, Defence, Industry or our kindergartens, high schools or colleges, Space is once more capturing the imagination of a new generation. As leaders of today, one of our greatest legacies will be setting the conditions for those future generations to succeed in this exhilarating new era for humankind in Space. RAF MUSEUM AMERICAN FOUNDATION 6
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space exploration From the first artificial satellites to manned Moon missions and a permanent space station, the story of our quest into space is only just beginning HUMANS HAVE ALWAYS LOOKED UP INTO the night sky and dreamed about space. In the latter half of the 20th century, rockets were developed that were powerful enough to overcome the force of gravity to reach orbital velocities, paving the way for space exploration to become a reality. In the 1930s and 1940s, Nazi Germany saw the possibilities of using long-distance rockets as weapons. Late in the Second World War, London was attacked by 200-mile-range V-2 missiles, which arched 60 miles high over the English Channel at more than 3,500 miles per hour. After the war, the United States and the Soviet Union created their own missile programs. In 1957, the Soviets launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, into space. In April 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit Earth, beating Alan Shepard the first American to fly into space, by a month. Nine months later, John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth. RAF MUSEUM AMERICAN FOUNDATION 8
“Landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to Earth within a decade” was a national goal set by President John F. Kennedy in 1961. On July 20, 1969, astronaut Neil Armstrong took “one giant leap for mankind” as he stepped onto the Moon. Six Apollo missions were made to explore the Moon between 1969 and 1972. During the 1960s, unmanned spacecraft photographed and probed the moon before astronauts ever landed. By the early 1970s, orbiting communications and navigation satellites were in everyday use, and the Mariner spacecraft was orbiting and mapping the surface of Mars. By the end of the decade, the Voyager spacecraft had sent back detailed images of Jupiter and Saturn, their rings, and their moons. Skylab, America’s first space station, was a human-spaceflight highlight of the 1970s, and, by the 1980s, satellite communications had expaned and discovered an ozone hole over Antarctica, pinpointed forest fires, and gave us photographs of the nuclear power plant disaster at Chernobyl in 1986. Astronomical satellites found new stars and gave us a new view of the center of our galaxy. Space Shuttle Columbia launches from Kennedy Space Center on its final successful mission in 2002 During the Apollo 11 mission in 1969, Buzz Aldrin is photographed on the Moon by Neil Armstrong SPACE SHUTTLE In April 1981, the launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia ushered in a period of reliance on the craft for most civilian and military space missions. The Space Shuttle was the first reusable spacecraft to carry people into orbit; launch, recover, and repair satellites; conduct cutting-edge research; and help in building the International Space Station. Twenty-four successful shuttle launches fulfilled many scientific and military requirements, until January 28, 1986, when, just 73 seconds after liftoff, Space Shuttle Challenger exploded. The crew of seven was killed, including Christa McAuliffe, a teacher from New Hampshire, who would have been the first civilian in space. The tragedy resulted in a suspension of space travel for two years. The space shuttle program lasted for 30 years, ending with the landing of Atlantis on July 21, 2011. RAF MUSEUM AMERICAN FOUNDATION 9
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