HR 562

                                               PRINTER'S NO.    3578
             THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
      HOUSE RESOLUTION
         No. 562
                                         Session of
                                           2026
INTRODUCED BY McNEILL, COOK, VENKAT, HOHENSTEIN, PIELLI, MERSKI,
   HAMM, KUZMA, NEILSON, STAATS, ANDERSON, RIVERA, GALLAGHER,
   COOPER, CONKLIN, JAMES, PASHINSKI, SANCHEZ AND DEASY,
   JUNE 9, 2026
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS AND EMERGENCY
   PREPAREDNESS, JUNE 10, 2026
                          A RESOLUTION
1 Designating September 18, 2026, as "U.S. Air Force Birthday" in
2    Pennsylvania.
3    WHEREAS, The United States military obtained its first
4 aircraft in 1909; and
5    WHEREAS, The Air Force was not initially a separate and
6 independent branch of the military, but was part of the United
7 States Army; and
8    WHEREAS, The United States Air Force had several designations
9 such as the Aeronautical Section, Signal Corps (1909), Aviation
10 Section, Signal Corps (1914), United States Army Air Service
11 (1918), United States Army Corps (1926) and United States Army
12 Air Forces (1941); and
13    WHEREAS, In 1939, the United States Air Force expanded from
14 20,000 military personnel and 2,400 planes to 2.4 million
15 military personnel and 80,000 aircrafts by 1944; and
16    WHEREAS, Following World War II, the Department of Defense
1 was created, which led to the merging of military branches under
2 a unified command composed of a Joint Chiefs of Staff, including
3 Army, Navy and Air Force leaders; and
4    WHEREAS, On July 26, 1947, President Harry S. Truman signed
5 the National Security Act of 1947, which led to the
6 establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate and
7 independent branch of the military on September 18, 1947; and
8    WHEREAS, This establishment gave the Air Force the same
9 status as the United States Army and United States Navy,
10 strengthening its contribution in national defense; and
11    WHEREAS, The reorganization of the United States Air Force
12 immensely improved the operational and tactical aptitudes of the
13 military while guaranteeing an efficient approach to national
14 security; and
15    WHEREAS, The United States Air Force's birthday is
16 commemorated on September 18 annually; and
17    WHEREAS, It is important that the House of Representatives
18 recognizes the formal establishment of the United States Air
19 Force and celebrates Air Force personnel; therefore be it
20    RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives designate
21 September 18, 2026, as "U.S. Air Force Birthday" in
22 Pennsylvania.
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