Presented by the U.S. Air Force, Class of ’59 is a short film that details the life and training a cadet receives at the then-new Air Force Academy at Lowry Air Force Base. The film opens with a shot of the entrance to the Air Force Academy; new cadets arrive at Lowry Air Force Base in Denver (Aurora), CO (00:39). An Air Training Officer (ATO) teaches cadets how to march and salute. Cadets participate in close order drilling (01:21). An Air Force officer addresses the new cadets at the swearing-in ceremony (01:45); bombers and fighter jets fly over the event (02:19). A cadet cleans his shoes in his room (02:58). Cadets rush to their seats in the dining hall (03:23); first-year cadets are required to sit at attention while eating their meals. Several cadets prepare to board a T-29 Flying Classroom (04:43), a plane designed for training navigators, bombardiers, and radar operators. A cadet boards a T-33 Shooting Star jet trainer aircraft (05:09). Cadets participate in daily calisthenics and an obstacle course (05:36). They march in rugged terrain (06:08) then watch several demonstrations: medics are parachuted in for a mock medical evacuation and the wounded is evacuated with a Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw helicopter; fighter jets fire rockets and drop napalm on an open field (07:12). Men gather in Arnold Hall, the Academy’s social club house (07:31) to sing and socialize. Cadets sing during a church service (08:04). Cadets take their academic books and assemble outside of their barracks (08:41); they sit in a classroom and listen to their instructor. At 10:17 a gigantic slide rule is used to train them in mathematics. Cadets on the football team review plays (10:35). Later, the cadets are bused to the future site of the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs (11:04). Cadets play volleyball, swim, play tennis, and play intramural football. Cadets march in a parade (12:22) for special guest President Dwight D. Eisenhower. Eisenhower talks with cadets following a church service. The film ends by showing viewers how to get more information for applying to the Air Force Academy.

Lowry Air Force Base (Lowry Field 1938-1948) is a former United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) training base during World War II and a United States Air Force (USAF) training base during the Cold War, serving as the initial 1955-1958 site of the U.S. Air Force Academy. The Class of 1959 established many other important traditions that continue until the present. The first class adopted the Cadet Honor Code, and chose the falcon as the Academy’s mascot. On 29 August 1958, the wing of 1,145 cadets moved to the present site near Colorado Springs, and less than a year later the Academy received accreditation. The first USAFA class graduated and was commissioned on 3 June 1959.[

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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com