Serve and Protect

Top: The Colorado Air National Guard fighter pilots are among the world's best aviators. They are trained for dangerous missions, skilled in dogfighting, and ready to serve at any time. Yet they are not above taking a little time to fly less critical missions: These pilots often man the stadium flyovers you'll see on the Fourth of July. Bottom: The "Mile High Militia"—a moniker emblazoned across each of the 120th's F-16s—also protects Colorado. At any given time, fighter pilots and maintainers from Buckley are on alert to run homeland defense missions. If issues arise on a commercial plane, for example, NORAD can direct Buckley to scramble jets to defend U.S. citizens and other potential targets.