"It is with great pleasure that I extend my sincere congratulations to you as the Wing Commander of the Class of 2060. I am the present Wing Commander of the Class of I960 and represent them now and here in this letter. I am one of 228 who will be graduating on 8 June I960 as Second lieutenants in the United States Air Force.

Our four years here at the Academy have prepared us for our careers in many ways. Our academic training has familiarized us with many fields of endeavor, each of which contributes to building a firm foundation of knowledge on as broad a scale as possible in four short years, we have studied, to mention only a few, economics, political theory, law, math, electrical engineering, aerodynamics, psychology, foreign languages, and many other specialized subjects in order to gain an appreciation and a basic understanding of the many-faceted world we live in. Our subjects embrace three principal areas: the sciences, the social sciences, and the humanities. Thus, although we have not concentrated in any one particular area, we have obtained at least a firm background in many areas.Our military training is quite concentrated throughout our four years here, and our flying training, although somewhat limited, has pre­pared us as rated navigators. Most of us will be going on to pilot training after graduation and eventually into an operational flying unit. Realizing the vital importance of an education, most of us hope to return to graduate school approximately five years after graduation from the Academy.

As we begin our careers, we find ourselves entering a new era: the Space Age. We realize how vital a role space will soon play in our nation's security3 and in our desperate arms and propaganda race with Russia, we consider space an unexplored and challenging realm which could be our greatest asset or our most serious liability. With the discovery of atomic energy and more potent weapon systems, we find ourselves in a life-or-death struggle with Russia and her allies. It becomes increasingly obvious that Democracy and Communism are incompatible, and we cannot fall behind.

Our future is your past. These problems which face us today will, undoubtedly, be solved as you read these words. But as space travel has only recently become a pending reality, we fully expect our lives to be centered about its exploration and understanding. But although your goals and aspirations will be considerably different from ours today, there exists a strong bond between us. We have been trained and will most certainly continue to be trained for the preservation of our way of life. Your goal, too, will be the same. What happens in the century that separates us will alter many of our present beliefs and concepts, but our dedication tb this common cause is the same. Our right to be free has been won and protected. We shall continue to protect it, and you, too, must dedicate yourselves to its protection. The right to be free is too often taken for granted until it is challenged. We shall meet this challenge and trust it to you.

We shall live with you in spirit and purpose under God.

Goodbye and good luck."