Air Force Marks 10th Anniversary of Once-Disputed Memorial

The Air Force marked the 10th anniversary Friday of the once-controversial Air Force Memorial, which features three stainless steel spires that beckon to the wild blue yonder and honor airmen who "climbed sunward and chased the shouting wind."

The United States Air Force Memorial in Arlington, Virginia, stands as a fitting place "where we come to find meaning in this thing we call service" and symbolizes the service's mission to "go wherever evil lurks," said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein.

It is also fitting that the memorial overlooks Arlington National Cemetery and the graves of the fallen, "standing watch -- top cover," Goldfein said.

"Standing watch is what we do," he said. "So, how appropriate that this powerful, moving memorial stands watch over our fallen at Arlington Cemetery."

Goldfein noted the remarks of former President George W. Bush in dedicating the memorial on Oct. 14, 2006, when he pointed out the meaning of the site to Air Force veterans:

"A soldier can walk the battlefields where he once fought; a Marine can walk the beaches he once stormed. But an airman can never visit the patch of sky he raced across on a mission to defend freedom, and so it's fitting that from this day forward airmen will have this memorial."

"To all who have climbed sunward and chased the shouting wind, America stops to say, 'Your service and your sacrifice will be remembered forever, and honored in this place by the citizens of a free and grateful nation,' " Bush said.