NW Riverside News

On April 20, Congressman Ken Calvert (CA-41) announced that former astronaut, American hero, and retired Colonel Buzz Aldrin has received a promotion to the honorary rank of brigadier general by the U.S. Air Force. On July 27, 2022, Rep. Calvert sent a letter to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall officially proposing an honorary promotion for Aldrin, as required under federal guidelines.

“Through his extraordinary service to our nation, Buzz Aldrin has inspired Americans for generations and is incredibly worthy of this wonderful honor,” said Rep. Calvert. “I am thankful for the Air Force’s approval of my request recognizing Buzz for his immeasurable contributions. The American exploration and scientific discovery achieved by Buzz is truly remarkable. Few people who have walked on our planet or soared above it have left a legacy as rich and meaningful as Buzz Aldrin.”

Under Title 10, Section 1563 of the U.S. Code, the Secretary of Defense can authorize an honorary promotion of a former member or retired member of the Armed Forces to any grade not exceeding O-8 when the honorary promotion is proposed by a Member of Congress and the Secretary concerned determines that such a promotion is merited.

Buzz Aldrin graduated third in his class from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. After scoring top in his class in flight school, he became a fighter pilot in the United States Air Force. Buzz flew 66 combat missions in the F-86 “Sabre” during the Korean War; he shot down two MiG-15 jets and was decorated with two Distinguished Flying Crosses for his service. Buzz’s success was not limited to the cockpit. In 1963, he wrote a dissertation on orbital mechanics to earn his Doctorate in Aeronautics and Astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The dissertation helped advance our understanding of the complicated physics in rendezvousing and docking spacecraft in orbit – and helped Buzz’s selection as an astronaut by NASA.

In 1963, Buzz became a member of the third cadre of men selected by NASA to attempt pioneer space flight. He oversaw exciting new techniques for spacecraft docking and developed underwater training techniques to simulate flight in zero gravity. While assigned to Gemini 12, Buzz made a five-hour spacewalk – the longest and most successful at the time. Additionally, he manually recalculated all the docking maneuvers on the flight after the onboard radar failed. On July 20, 1969, Buzz made the historic Apollo 11 moonwalk, becoming the second human to set foot on the moon. In total, Buzz spent 290 hours in space and completed eight hours of spacewalks.

Issues:Defense

Original source can be found here.