Topflight Memorial

Even though our offices are only a few blocks from the White House, IT often forgets it lives in such a tourist mecca. On a recent Saturday—with help from her sight-seeking family—Emily King ventured past the Potomac to visit the newest addition to D.C.’s myriad of monuments (now one of her favorites): the United States Air Force Memorial:

For months (since mid-October when it opened), I’ve been intrigued by the memorial—specifically, the three stainless steel spires you see when crossing the Memorial Bridge or driving south on Interstate 395. From afar, the spires look like thin moon crescents—or, as I’ve heard them better described, jet streams. And while they certainly merit a look from the distance, up close—at the base of the memorial—they elicit a sort of magical, even dizzying awe as you gaze up at their massive curvature.

Intended to evoke ‘flight and the flying spirit,’ the spires (the highest of which reaches 270 feet—82 meters)

also symbolize the three core values of the United States Air Force—integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all that is done—as well as represent the Total Force of the service: active, guard, and reserve. The memorial also includes the Runway to Glory (a bluestone-paved pathway that leads to the spires), the Honor Guard statue, the Glass Contemplation Wall, and one of the best views of the city and Arlington Cemetery.

It was quiet

the day we visited, thanks to a holiday weekend and the memorial’s relative inaccessibility—it’s a three-quarter-mile (1.2-kilometer) walk from the nearest Metro (Pentagon). Add to this quiet a blue sky, a subtle breeze and spontaneity (‘Daddy, let’s stop here. It’s on our way to Mount Vernon’)—and you get five adults, ruddy-faced, jumping back into the car with the giddy excitement that (cliché as it sounds) fills your soul when you’ve just experienced something you’ll never forget.