List of United States airmen

This is a list of people who served in the United States Air Force, the Air National Guard, or their antecedents in the Army. See also Graduates of the United States Air Force Academy.

A

 * Paul W. Airey – First Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force
 * Buzz Aldrin – Astronaut (Gemini 12 and Apollo 11 – Second man to walk on the Moon)
 * Robert Altman – Hollywood director
 * William Anders – Astronaut (Apollo 8 – first flight to orbit the Moon)
 * Michael P. Anderson – Astronaut (Killed in Columbia Accident)
 * Sunny Anderson – Radio and television personality
 * Edward Anhalt – Novelist and screenwriter
 * Hap Arnold – Aviation pioneer and General of the Air Force
 * Xavier Atencio – Hollywood animator
 * Gene Autry – Film actor, singer, and professional baseball team owner
 * Al Anthony – Radio personality

B

 * Alonzo Babers – Airline pilot and Olympic athlete
 * Max Baer, Jr – Hollywood actor
 * Hobey Baker – Amateur hockey player
 * Bernt Balchen - Norwegian-born aviation explorer
 * Thomas Scott Baldwin – Pioneer balloonist
 * Martin Balsam – Hollywood actor
 * Sy Bartlett – Hollywood screenwriter and producer, co-author of Twelve O'Clock High
 * Chuck Bednarik – Professional football player
 * Lloyd Bentsen – Senator of Texas, 1988 vice presidential nominee, 69th Secretary of the Treasury
 * John Birch – East China missionary
 * Barry Bishop – Member of the first American team to summit Mount Everest.
 * Charles F. Blair, Jr. – General officer, and husband of actress Maureen O'Hara.
 * Esther Blake – First female member of the United States Air Force
 * John Boccieri – Member of Congress of Ohio.
 * Richard Bong – American Ace of Aces
 * Frank Borman – Astronaut (Gemini 7 & Apollo 8 – first flight to orbit the Moon)
 * Boxcar Willie – Country music entertainer
 * Charles Bronson – Hollywood actor
 * Dale Brown – Author
 * Roscoe C. Brown, Jr. – Tuskegee Airman, educator, and TV personality
 * John Bunch - Jazz pianist
 * William Bundy – CIA analyst and foreign affairs advisor
 * George W. Bush - 43rd President of the United States of America.
 * Craig D. Button – Victim of mysterious flight and crash

C

 * Dann Cahn – Film editor
 * George Carlin – Actor & Comedian
 * Johnny Cash – Country Music Singer
 * Clint Castleberry – College football player
 * Harry Chapin – Singer/songwriter
 * Hollis B. Chenery - Economist
 * John Ciardi – Poet
 * Hal Clement - Author
 * Larry Clinton – Band leader
 * William Close – Surgeon and physician, father of actress Glenn Close
 * Jacqueline Cochran - Aviatrix; co-founder and director of the Women Airforce Service Pilots
 * Red Cochran - Professional football player, coach, and scout
 * Charles J. Colgan – Virginia politician and founder of Colgan Air.
 * Eileen Collins – Astronaut (STS-84, STS-93, STS-114)
 * Michael Collins – Astronaut (Gemini 10 & Apollo 11)
 * Ramón Colón-López - First Hispanic recipient of the Air Force Combat Action Medal
 * Jackie Coogan – Hollywood and television actor
 * Gordon Cooper – Mercury Astronaut (Mercury 9 & Gemini 5)
 * Merian C. Cooper – Adventurer and Hollywood film producer
 * James E. Counsilman - Collegiate swimming coach
 * Clyde Cowan – Physicist and discoverer of the neutrino
 * James Gould Cozzens – Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist
 * Bob Cummings – Hollywood actor

D

 * Sabu Dastagir - Film actor
 * Tom Daschle – Senator of South Dakota
 * Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. – First African-American USAF general officer
 * Bud Day - Medal of Honor recipient and Vietnam POW.
 * Dieter Dengler - Vietnam War POW that the movie Rescue Dawn is based on.
 * James Dickey - Poet
 * Brian Donlevy – Hollywood actor
 * Jimmy Doolittle – Commander of the Doolittle Raid.
 * Dr. Seuss – Author
 * Charles Duke – Astronaut (Apollo 16)

E

 * Eagle Squadrons – American pilots who flew for the Royal Air Force in World War II.
 * Jules Engel – Filmmaker and animator
 * Joe Engle – Astronaut, X-15 and space shuttle pilot

F

 * Kelly Flinn – First female B-52 pilot
 * Flying Tigers – American pilots who flew for the Chinese Air Force in World War II
 * Tennessee Ernie Ford – Television comedian and recording artist
 * Nathan Bedford Forrest III – Great-grandson of Confederate general Nathan Bedford Forrest
 * Joe Foss – Marine Corps ace and 20th Governor of South Dakota
 * Arthur Franz – Film actor
 * Morgan Freeman – Film actor
 * Theodore Freeman – Astronaut (first fatality)

G

 * Clark Gable – Film actor
 * Ernest K. Gann – Novelist
 * Robert Gates – 22d United States Secretary of Defense
 * Marvin Gaye – Singer
 * Elmer Gedeon – Three-sport college athlete and professional baseball player
 * Arthur Godfrey – Television personality
 * George Gobel – Television comedian
 * Barry Goldwater – Senator of Arizona and 1964 presidential candidate
 * Alberto Gonzales – 80th United States Attorney General
 * Dick Grace - Hollywood stunt flyer
 * Lindsey Graham – Senator of South Carolina
 * Susan Grant – Novelist
 * Peter Graves – Film and television actor
 * Hank Greenberg – Professional baseball player
 * Gus Grissom – Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo Astronaut

H

 * William Wister Haines – Novelist, screenwriter, and playwright
 * Iceal Hambleton – Missile expert, subject of "Bat 21" rescue
 * Arthur B. Hancock, Jr. - Thoroughbred racehorse breeder
 * Michael Hayden – 19th CIA Director
 * Van Heflin – Hollywood actor
 * H. John Heinz III – Senator of Pennsylvania.
 * Joseph Heller – Novelist
 * Skitch Henderson – Band leader
 * Chad Hennings – Professional football player
 * Jim Hensley – Beer executive and father-in-law to John McCain
 * Don Herbert – Television personality as "Mr. Wizard"
 * Charlton Heston – Hollywood actor
 * John Hillerman – Hollywood actor
 * Ben Hogan - Professional golfer
 * William Holden – Hollywood actor
 * Tim Holt – Hollywood actor
 * LeRoy Homer – Airline pilot, co-pilot of United Airlines Flight 93
 * John Hope – Television meteorologist
 * Rick Husband – NASA astronaut (killed in the Columbia accident)

I

 * James Irwin – Astronaut (Apollo 15)

J

 * James Jabara – First American jet ace
 * Bernard James - NBA player for the Dallas Mavericks
 * Randall Jarrell – Poet
 * Russell Johnson – Hollywood actor
 * Sam Johnson – Member of Congress of Texas
 * Bobby Jones – Amateur golf champion, founder of the Masters Tournament
 * David M. Jones – Doolittle Raider and POW of Stalag Luft III.

K

 * Nicholas Katzenbach – 65th United States Attorney General
 * DeForest Kelley – Film and television actor
 * Arthur Kennedy – Film actor
 * Ron Kenoly – Christian music worship leader
 * Algene and Frederick Key – Brothers and aviation pioneers
 * Ivan Kincheloe – Air Force test pilot
 * Micki King – Olympic diving gold-medalist and athletic coach
 * Wally Kinnan – Pioneering meteorologist
 * Irvin Kershner - Film director
 * Norman Krasna – Screenwriter

L

 * Alan Ladd – Film actor
 * Lafayette Escadrille and Lafayette Flying Corps – American pilots who flew for the French Air Service in World War I
 * Fiorello H. La Guardia – Mayor of New York City
 * Frank Purdy Lahm – First military aviator
 * Tom Landry - Dallas Cowboys football coach
 * Beirne Lay, Jr. – Hollywood screenwriter, co-author of Twelve O'Clock High
 * Norman Lear – Television and motion picture producer
 * Curtis LeMay – USAF Chief of Staff and 1968 vice presidential candidate
 * John Levitow – Enlisted recipient of the Medal of Honor
 * Charles Lindbergh – Legendary aviator
 * Donald S. Lopez, Sr. – Ace with the Flying Tigers
 * Nancy Harkness Love - Aviatrix and co-founder of the Women Airforce Service Pilots
 * Frank Luke Jr. – Medal of Honor recipient in World War I

M

 * MC Tee – Musician
 * Gordon MacRae – Broadway and Hollywood actor
 * John Lee Mahin – Hollywood screenwriter and producer
 * Karl Malden – Hollywood actor
 * Delbert Mann - Television and film director
 * Paul Mantz – Hollywood stunt pilot
 * Dean Paul Martin - Singer and actor
 * Tony Martin – Entertainer
 * Jerry Mathers – Television actor
 * Walter Matthau – Hollywood actor
 * T. Allen McArtor – Business executive and FAA Administrator
 * Kevin McCarthy – Hollywood actor
 * Joseph C. McConnell – Leading U.S. ace of the Korean War
 * George McGovern – Senator of South Dakota, 1972 presidential nominee
 * Robert McNamara and the Whiz Kids – Ford Motor Company executives
 * James Meredith - Civil Rights figure; first African-American to attend the University of Mississippi
 * Gary Merrill – Hollywood actor
 * Dana Mohler-Faria – President, Bridgewater State College
 * Nicole Malachowski – Pilot with United States Air Force Thunderbirds
 * Glenn Miller – Musician and band leader
 * Ron Miller – Businessman and politician
 * Walter M. Miller, Jr. – Science fiction author
 * John Purroy Mitchel - 95th Mayor of New York City
 * Billy Mitchell – Grandfather of the U.S. Air Force.
 * Cameron Mitchell – Hollywood actor
 * George Montgomery – Hollywood and television actor
 * Dodge Morgan - Single-handed sailor and entrepreneur
 * Charles Munger – Billionaire investor
 * Richard Murphy – Hollywood screenwriter

N

 * Jack Narz - TV game show host
 * Chuck Norris – Actor
 * wille nelson-singer,songwriter

O

 * Edmond O'Brien – Hollywood actor
 * Jarvis Offutt – Air Service aviator and namesake of Offutt Air Force Base.
 * Robin Olds – Two-war triple ace
 * George Olesen - Cartoonist

P

 * Jack Palance – Hollywood actor
 * Ron Paul – Member of Congress; 1988, 2008 & 2012 Presidential candidate
 * John Payne – Hollywood actor
 * Oscar Francis Perdomo – "Ace in a Day"
 * Leo Penn - Film director
 * Leonard Pennario – Concert pianist and composer
 * Sonny Perdue – 81st Governor of Georgia.
 * H. Ross Perot, Jr. – Member of the Forbes 400 and son of Ross Perot
 * Rick Perry - 47th Governor of Texas
 * Paul Picerni - Actor
 * Tom Poston – Television comedian
 * William H. Pitsenbarger – Enlisted recipient of the Medal of Honor
 * Robert M. Polich, Sr. – Recipient of Distinguished Flying Cross and POW of Stalag Luft III
 * Greg Popovich – Head Coach of the NBA professional basketball team San Antonio Spurs
 * Jody Powell – White House Press Secretary
 * Francis Gary Powers - His U-2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union causing the 1960 U-2 incident.
 * Robert Preston – Hollywood and Broadway actor

Q

 * Elwood R. "Pete" Quesada – Aviation pioneer
 * Robin Quivers – Co-host of the Howard Stern Show

R

 * Dennis Rader – BTK Serial Killer
 * Gene Raymond – Hollywood actor
 * Ronald Reagan – 40th President of the United States
 * Chuck Reed – Mayor of San Jose, California and his daughter, Kim Campbell, a decorated Iraq War pilot
 * George Reeves – Television actor portraying Superman
 * William Rehnquist – 16th Chief Justice of the United States
 * Roy Riegels – All-American football player
 * Robinson Risner - A decorated USAF General and Vietnam POW.
 * R. Stephen Ritchie – USAF Ace in the Vietnam War
 * Gene Roddenberry – American television producer, Star Trek creator
 * Elliott Roosevelt – Son of Franklin D. Roosevelt
 * Quentin Roosevelt – Son of Theodore Roosevelt, killed in WWI
 * Bob Ross – Painter
 * Chelcie Ross – Hollywood actor
 * Dan Rowan – Comedian and television actor
 * Eddie Rickenbacker – Leading American World War I ace
 * Dick Rutan - Set record for nonstop around-the-world flight with Jeana Yeager

S

 * James Salter – Novelist
 * Mark Sanford – 115th Governor of South Carolina
 * Roy Scheider – Actor
 * Bob Schieffer – Television journalist
 * Dick Scobee – Astronaut, killed in Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster
 * David Scott – Astronaut (Gemini 8, Apollo 9, and Apollo 15)
 * Donald E. Scott – All-American college football quarterback
 * Lance Sijan – Medal of Honor recipient
 * Sinbad – Actor & Comedian
 * Deke Slayton – Mercury and Apollo-Soyuz Test Project astronaut
 * Jack Smight - Theater and film director
 * Tubby Smith - NCAA Men's Basketball Coach
 * Carl Spaatz – Pioneer airman, first Chief of Staff of the Air Force
 * Aaron Spelling – Film and television producer
 * Mickey Spillane – Hardboiled crime novelist
 * Bill Stealey – Business CEO and co-founder of MicroProse
 * David Steeves – Pilot who crashed in the Sierra Nevada and endured a nearly two month survival ordeal.
 * George Steinbrenner – Professional baseball team owner
 * Robert Sterling – Hollywood actor
 * Craig Stevens – Television actor
 * Ted Stevens – Senator of Alaska
 * James Stewart – Hollywood actor
 * Bert Stiles – Author
 * Ralph Story – Television personality
 * Chesley Sullenberger – Airline pilot, hero of Miracle on the Hudson
 * Bruce Sundlun - 71st governor of Rhode Island
 * Charles Sweeney – Pilot who flew the Fat Man bomb to Nagasaki.

T

 * Fred Taylor – College basketball coach
 * Kenneth M. Taylor – World War II ace, decorated for heroism at the Attack on Pearl Harbor
 * Hunter S. Thompson – Writer
 * Harrison R. Thyng – Two-war ace and Senate candidate
 * Stephen W. Thompson- First person in U. S. Military to shoot down an enemy aircraft.
 * Bobby Thomson – Professional baseball player
 * Leo K. Thorsness - Medal of Honor recipient and Vietnam POW.
 * Paul Tibbets – Commander of the Enola Gay
 * Tuskegee Airmen – First African-American military pilots

U

 * Stewart Udall – 37th United States Secretary of the Interior

W

 * Joseph A. Walker – X-15 test pilot
 * Kenneth N. Walker – Medal of Honor recipient, airpower visionary
 * George Wallace – 45th Governor of Alabama and presidential candidate
 * Jack L. Warner – Hollywood film executive
 * Jack Webb – Hollywood and television actor, director, and producer
 * George Welch – World War II ace, decorated for heroism at the Attack on Pearl Harbor
 * David Westheimer – Novelist
 * Edward H. White, II – Astronaut (Gemini 4, first American to walk in space)
 * Frank D. White – 41st Governor of Arkansas
 * Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney – Businessman
 * John Hay Whitney – Newspaper publisher and Ambassador to Great Britain
 * Thornton Wilder – Novelist and playwright
 * Flip Wilson - Comedian
 * Heather Wilson – Member of Congress of New Mexico
 * Harris Wofford – Senator of Pennsylvania
 * Alfred Worden – Astronaut (Apollo 15)
 * James C. "Jim" Wright, Jr. – 56th Speaker of the House
 * William Wyler – Film director

Y

 * Coleman Young – Mayor of Detroit (1974–1994)
 * Chuck Yeager – Air Force test pilot

Z

 * Louis Zamperini – Olympic distance runner