The Air Force Experience, an interactive mobile attraction designed to showcase Air Force career opportunities and to connect the Air Force with the American public, will be in the Capital Region this week.
The 20-minute interactive experience features a video presentation and a high-speed virtual mission in a flight simulator. Other attractions in the road show include an F-16 Fighting Falcon static display, mission briefing rooms, and an external 7’ x 7’ video screen that displays information on various aspects of the Air Force.
The Air Force Experience will be at Hudson Valley Community College at 7 am on Wednesday, Watervliet High School at 7 am on Thursday , and Crossgates Mall from 9 am to 9 pm on Saturday.
The Air Force Experience travels on a tour of the U.S. in two customized, brightly painted 18-wheelers, to present the appeal of the U.S. Air Force to interested civilians. The Air Force Experience’s target audience is young adults between the ages of 17 and 25.
“The Air Force Experience is a fresh approach to educating the American public about the mission of the Air Force and assisting recruiting in today’s competitive market,” Brigadier General Peter U. Sutton, Air Force Recruiting Service commander, told Air Force News.
Visitors attending the Air Force Experience attractions will receive a commemorative Air Force Experience photo ID, and a credit-card-sized CD containing an overview of the air force and a computer screensaver. Because of recent events in our nation’s history, I think it is important for the public to become educated on both the mission of the air force and recruiting information. So come fly a high-speed virtual mission and show support for the U.S. Air Force in the Capital Region.
“Taking the display with a real F-16 out to places where Americans rarely see the Air Force up close, is a win-win situation,“ said Sutton.
“Americans can learn firsthand what their Air Force is doing, and it provides recruiters a great forum for our message about opportunities for young men and women to become part of the world’s greatest air and space force.”
The original traveling Air Force display, the Air Force Orientation Group, was founded in 1946 by General Henry “Hap” Arnold. The program was in service until 1992, when the personnel drawdown of the 1990s forced its closure. The Air Force Experience is a revival of that group.
