U.S. Air Force Activities

Air Force sex assaults: Prevention chief arrested ten years after scandal at Air Force Academy

The arrest of Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Krusinski on charges of sexual assault in Virginia has drawn condemnation from officials as high-ranking as President Barack Obama, and no wonder. After all, he was the Air Force's chief of sexual-assault prevention. Krusinski is also a graduate of the Air F ... More >>

Phil Anschutz-owned company buys Colorado Springs Gazette

For years, media observers have speculated that Dean Singleton would someday purchase the Colorado Springs Gazette with the idea of synergizing with his other Front Range newspapers, most prominently the Denver Post. But that day isn't today. With Singleton taking a backseat to John Paton in Digital ... More >>

Stephan Claxton, Air Force Cadet: Up to nine years in military prison for sex crimes

The scandal at the Air Force Academy that followed in the wake of "The War Within," then-Westword staffer Julie Jargon's 2003 feature about female cadets victimized by sexual assault, led to changes at the institution intended to demonstrate that supervisors take the problem seriously. But these alt ... More >>

Do Ask, Do Tell: Telluride Gay Ski Week reaches out to active military service members

Reichen Lehmkuhl wants you to come to Telluride Gay Ski Week."This is the first Telluride Gay Ski since the defeat of the marginalizing 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy for our LGBTQ U.S. military service members," says Reichen Lehmkuhl, celebrity host of this Telluride Gay Ski Week, in a news release ... More >>

Sexual assaults: Air Force Academy rate half of average civilian campus's

Last week, we shared details about sex-assault accusations against three Air Force Academy cadets -- Stephan Claxton, Kyle Cressy and Robert Evenson -- nine years after a scandal over similar crimes rocked the institution. An AFA rep stresses that the academy takes such incidents very seriously -- b ... More >>

Stephan Claxton, Kyle Cressy, Robert Evenson: Inside Air Force sex charges

​In January 2003's "The War Within," Westword's Julie Jargon shared tales of female Air Force Academy attendees allegedly raped by fellow cadets amid a culture that didn't take such crimes seriously enough. And unfortunately, the war's not over. Similar charges against three more cadets have s ... More >>

Colorado School of Mines tops DU, CU in Best Colleges survey -- and AFA is liberal arts?

Big pics below.​U.S. News & World Report has released its annual list of the best colleges in the country -- but finding Colorado institutions will take a while if you start from the top. None appear in the top fifty, and of the three that appear in the top 100, Colorado School of Mines tops t ... More >>

Air Force Academy donates jet engine to West High School's aircraft maintenance program

Bigger pic below.​ West High School has a new addition to its airplane hangar. (How many of you knew West even had an airplane hangar?) Yesterday, the U.S. Air Force Academy donated a jet engine to DPS's Aircraft Maintenance Program, which is offered through the Emily Griffith Technical Colleg ... More >>

Air Force Academy prayer luncheon goes on, but advocate who sued to stop it declares victory

AFA chapel.​Yesterday, a judge rejected arguments made in a lawsuit opposing an Air Force Academy prayer luncheon. The 11:30 a.m. event is underway at this writing. But while Mikey Weinstein of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, a plaintiff in the suit, is disappointed by the ruling, h ... More >>

Air Force Academy prayer luncheon lawsuit: Faculty members say event's unconstitutional

AFA chapel.​Attorney David Lane may have lost his last high-profile case -- an excessive-force complaint against Denver cop/ex-American Gladiators contestant Vicki Ferrari -- but he's hardly shying away from taking on big challenges. Note that he's just filed a lawsuit against the Air Force Ac ... More >>

Air Force Academy's cadet survey: Rep. Mike Coffman joins advocates in call to make it public

Air Force Academy chapel.​In mid-August, an Air Force Academy cadet survey showed statistically significant discrimination, harassment and the like against females, homosexuals, bisexuals and racial minorities, plus a considerable amount of unwanted religious proselytizing. But that info came ... More >>

Air Force Academy's decision to keep cadet survey secret protested by 50 AFA backers

Air Force Academy chapel.​In recent years, Air Force Academy climate surveys, in which cadets and staffers are asked about AFA life, have been made publicly released. For 2010, though, AFA superintendent Mike Gould nixed that, saying the surveys are meant to be tools for improvement, not publi ... More >>

Brandon Gouin suspended indefinitely from CU Buffs for supplying kegs for Boulder High senior campout

Brandon Gouin's probably not as happy as in this photo.​Yesterday, CU Buffs player Brandon Gouin was charged by the Boulder County Sheriff's Office for allegedly providing booze for a Boulder High senior campout that resulted in multiple alcohol-related hospitalizations and one arrest. In our ... More >>

New Air Force Academy worship site for Pagans, Wiccans and Druids has already been "violated," says AFA spokesman

Yesterday, we told you about a new worship space at the Air Force Academy designed for use by cadets and staffers who practice Earth-centered beliefs, including Pagans, Wiccans and Druids. A photo of the new Air Force Academy worship space -- with an unwelcome addition.​ Shortly thereafter, a ... More >>

Pagans, Wiccans and Druids: The Air Force Academy wants you -- to check out its new worship space

A circle in the sun.​The last decade wasn't always kind to the Air Force Academy. In January 2003, Westword published "The War Within," a feature by reporter Julie Jargon about mistreatment of female cadets that kicked off a series of scandals and PR black eyes. Among the latter: A 2005 milita ... More >>

Top ten events of the decade, as covered by Westword

Photo by John JohnstonJessica Brakey, who was at the center of Julie Jargon's award-winning Air Force Academy feature.​It's the time of the decade when we look back at the events that stood out from the more typical sound and fury of life in general. But a simple list of incidents doesn't rev ... More >>

Air Force Academy doc's study: A lot of what we think we know about swine flu may be wrong

A Flickr photoThe Air Force Academy has punched swine flu in the snout.​ We've all been told that the H1N1 virus, aka swine flu, is no longer contagious 24 hours after a person's fever has broken. But hold up a minute. A new study overseen by Air Force Academy doctor Catherine Witkop and publi ... More >>

Peterson Air Force Base loses out to Texas' Lackland for 24th Air Force location

Lackland Air Force Base. Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs was one of the finalists to become the home for the 24th Air Force, described by the service as "a new numbered Air Force headquarters focused on the cyber mission." But it'll have to settle for Miss Congeniality. Lackland Air For ... More >>

The Tillemann-Dicks: A Guide

Graduation Day: Obama and Bush in Colorado

The Wilding Blue Yonder

Reel life, real problems.

Artbeat

Brief sketches of what's happening in the Denver art scene.

Privacy, Please

The Air Force has a bad case of subpoena envy.

The Message

Fighting the Chills

Letters to the Editor

From the week of May 27, 2004

It Won't Fly

TO: President Bush
RE: Air Force Academy

The Joke's on Us

The voice of experience speaks to CU.

Sex Marks the Spot

Colorado is hot. Too hot.

Where Are They Now?

The past year has been a mixed bag for AFA cadets.

Legal Eagles

A year later, these female cadets are still waiting for an apology. A lawsuit may be their only hope.

Letters to the Editor

From the week of January 15, 2004

Year in Review: Hall of Shame

Welcome the inductees -- both individual and institutional -- to the Class of 2003.

Strike One, You're Out!

Air Force cadets busted on drinking charges may lose their careers.

Strike One, You’re Out!

Air Force cadets busted on drinking charges may lose their careers.

Follow That Story

Ready, Aim, Fire!

Follow That Story

Follow the Leader

Follow That Story

Diss Honor

Follow That Story

Honor Thy Academy

Follow That Story

On the Prowl

Take These Wings

Andrea Prasse was an honor student -- until she met the honor board.

Honor Rolled

These Air force cadets were ready to fly. Then the honor board crashed their careers.

Brains and Brawn

Academic All-Americans make the grade while breaking a sweat.

It Takes a Pillage

Bring me men! Okay, and some women, too.

Top Guns

The Air Force Academy is changing its leadership -- but can it transform its culture?

Follow That Story

Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Follow That Story

Taco's New Tone

The War Within

As America prepares to invade Iraq, female Air Force cadets wage their own battle.

Best Air Force Academy athlete

Shane Rogers

All Vets Are Off

Some vets say the Veterans Administration's medical cost-cutting measures are unhealthy.

Of Mice and Men

What the battle to save an obscure rodent says about the cost of front range growth.