United States Air Force

Historical eventJuly 81948

United States Air Force

The United States Air Force accepts its first female recruits into a program called the Women's Air Force (WAF).

Everything on July 8Original source
Photo: Bob Sommer · Public domain

In context

When
Thursday, July 8 194878 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
20th century · 1940s
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

At a glance

Dates: From 1948.

What happened

The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is a part of the United States Department of Defense (DoD) and is one of the six armed forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its origins to 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal Corps, the Air Force was established by transfer of personnel from the Army Air Forces with the enactment of the National Security Act of 1947.

July 8 through the years

Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.

  1. 1948United States Air Force
  2. 1994Kim Jong Il
  3. 2003Sudan Airways Flight 139
  4. 2011Space Shuttle Atlantis
  5. 2014Israel
  6. 20142014 FIFA World Cup
  7. 2014Disappearance of Lars Mittank
  8. 2014Brazil national football team
  9. 2021Head of a Bear
  10. 2022Shinzo Abe
  11. 2025Hurricane Beryl

Also in 1948

  • September 12People's Liberation ArmyThe People's Liberation Army launched the Liaoshen campaign, the first of the three major military campaigns during the late stage of the…
  • September 18Australia national cricket teamThe Australian cricket team's Invincibles tour of England concluded; they had played 34 matches, including five Tests, without defeat.
  • June 17United Air Lines Flight 624United Air Lines Flight 624, a Douglas DC-6, crashes near Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, killing all 43 people on board.
  • December 14Thomas T. Goldsmith Jr.American physicists Thomas T. Goldsmith Jr. and Estle Ray Mann were awarded a patent for their cathode-ray tube amusement device, the fir…
  • December 22Sjafruddin PrawiranegaraChaired by Sjafruddin Prawiranegara, the Emergency Government of the Republic of Indonesia was established to counter Dutch attempts to r…
  • December 9United Nations General AssemblyThe United Nations General Assembly adopted the Genocide Convention, which defines genocide in legal terms and obligates its signatories…
  • July 17Olympia, GreeceIn Olympia, Greece, the Summer Olympics torch relay, nicknamed the "relay of peace", began.
  • October 291948 Arab–Israeli WarArab–Israeli War: The Israel Defense Forces massacred at least 52 villagers while capturing the Palestinian Arab village of Safsaf.

Everything we record for 1948 →

Sources

Cite this page

“United States Air Force”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/united-states-air-force-1948-july-8, accessed October 25, 2026.

Cite the underlying source as well — the source links above go to the record this entry is adapted from.

Questions about this entry

When did United States Air Force happen?

July 8 1948 — 78 years ago, on a Thursday.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.

How do I cite this page?

Use the ready-made citation near the sources at the bottom of the page, and follow the source link to cite the underlying record as well.

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