February issue of Airman available

SAN ANTONIO (AFPN) -- Take a look at Air Force risk takers through the years, learn the inside scoop on preparing for a deployment, and read about how combat controllers are prepared for war through advanced skills training. These features and more highlight the February issue of Airman magazine, now available in print and online.

America's early airmen made the jump from the horse and buggy to aviation. It was an exciting and dangerous move. But those early pioneers shaped aviation and laid the foundations of the modern Air Force.

When it comes to preparing for a deployment, the Air Force has checklists for just about every contingency, every country and every situation. But even the best checklist cannot answer all the questions. For the inside scoop, look to those who have been there, done that.

For more than 40 years, Ray Scheffler, a World War II B-24 pilot, has served the Air Force from the comforts of a small room in his Indiana farm house. He has linked airmen, soldiers, sailors and Marines to their families by patching their phone calls through the Military Affiliate Radio System.

Getting combat controllers ready for war is the goal of advanced skills training in Florida's sun-kissed panhandle. Officers and enlisted alike are drenched, dropped and developed into mission-ready airmen.

From the homes of ancient Asian people to the remnants of World War II bunkers, the heritage of air bases in the Pacific region rests in the hands of Air Force people dedicated to preserving the cultures of the host countries.

Airmen at McChord Air Force Base, Wash., are working nonstop to do their part in the war on terrorism. It means a lot of flying to and from Southwest Asia and Afghanistan. But once in a while, they still manage to head west to the Far East. It is a heavy lifestyle.