The U.S. Air Force (song)

(Verse I)

Off we go into the wild blue yonder,

Climbing high into the sun;

Here they come zooming to meet our thunder,

At ‘em now, Give 'em the gun!

Down we dive, spouting our flame from under,

Off with one helluva roar!

We live in fame or go down in flame. Hey!

Nothing'll stop the U.S. Air Force!

(Verse II)

Brilliant minds fashioned a crate of thunder,

Sent it high into the blue;

Valiant hands blasted the world asunder;

How they lived God only knew!

Boundless souls dreaming of skies to conquer

Gave us wings, ever to soar!

With scouts before and bombers galore. Hey!

Nothing'll stop the U.S. Air Force!

(Verse III)

Here's a toast to the host

Of those who love the vastness of the sky,

To a friend we send a message of the brave who serve on high.

We drink to those who gave their all of old

Then down we roar to score the rainbow's pot of gold.

A toast to the host of those we boast, the U.S. Air Force!

(Verse IV)

Off we go into the wild sky yonder,

Keep the wings level and true;

If you'd live to be a grey-haired wonder

Keep the nose out of the blue!

Fly to fight, guarding the nation's border,

We'll be there, followed by more!

In echelon we carry on.

Oh, nothing'll stop the U.S. Air Force![2]

(Verse I)

Off we go into the wild blue yonder,

Climbing high into the sun;

Here they come, zooming to meet our thunder,

At 'em boys, Give 'er the gun! (Give 'er the gun, now!)

Down we dive, spouting our flame from under

Off with one helluva roar!

We live in fame or go down in flame. Hey!

Nothing'll stop the Army Air Corps!

(Verse II)

Minds of men fashioned a crate of thunder,

Sent it high into the blue;

Hands of men blasted the world asunder;

How they lived God only knew! (God only knew, then!)

Souls of men dreaming of skies to conquer

Gave us wings, ever to soar!

With scouts before and bombers galore. Hey!

Nothing'll stop the Army Air Corps!

(Verse III)

Here's a toast to the host

Of those who love the vastness of the sky,

To a friend we send a message of his brother men who fly.

We drink to those who gave their all of old

Then down we roar to score the rainbow's pot of gold.

A toast to the host of men we boast, the Army Air Corps!

(Verse IV)

Off we go into the wild sky yonder,

Keep the wings level and true.

If you'd live to be a grey-haired wonder

Keep the nose out of the blue. (Out of the blue, boy!)

Flying men, guarding the nation's border,

We'll be there, followed by more!

In echelon we carry on. Hey!

Nothing'll stop the Army Air Corps!

Mrs. Yount recalled that Rudolph Ganz, guest conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra and a consultant to the committee, was immediately and enthusiastically in favor of the winner.[3]

The contest rules required the winner to submit his entry in written form, and Crawford immediately complied. However his original title, What Do You think of the Air Corps Now?, was soon officially changed to The Army Air Corps. Crawford himself publicly sang the song for the first time over national radio from the 1939 National Air Races.[3]

Not everyone was fond of the song. During a dinner of September 1939, Mrs. Yount played a recording of the song for Charles Lindbergh and asked his opinion. He responded politely to Yount, but years later remarked in a diary, "I think it is mediocre at best. Neither the music nor the words appealed to me." Arnold did not share Lindbergh's opinion: he sought to fund publication of band and ensemble arrangements of the song for nationwide distribution. However, the Air Corps did not have enough money to publicize the song, so Crawford arranged a transfer of the song's copyright to New York music publisher Carl Fischer Inc., including a perpetual performance release in favor of the U.S. Air Force.

The third verse ("Here's a toast...") has a different melody, and a more reverent mood than the rest of the song to commemorate those who have fallen in the service of the Air Force and the United States. This verse is sometimes performed independently of the other verses. The third verse is sung by itself after most Academy sporting events, with the entire Cadet Wing participating after a football game. It is sung in conjunction with Army's Alma Mater and Navy's Blue and Gold, when the teams combine to participate in the singing of both Academies' songs. The third verse is also traditionally sung by Academy cadets and graduates as an alma mater to honor the passing of a fellow cadet or graduate.

On 27 February 2020, the third verse was updated to celebrate all men and women who serve in the USAF. In the words of USAF General David L. Goldfein (Chief of Staff, United States Air Force; USAF Academy Class of 1983) this "new version of the third verse...better reflects the reality of today's force by celebrating all who have—and will—step up to serve."[4][5] The verse's third and sixth lines were changed as follows:

Third line: from "To a friend we send a message of his brother men who fly" to "To a friend we send a message of the brave who serve on high."

Sixth line: from "A toast to the host of men we boast, the U.S. Air Force!" to "A toast to the host of those we boast, the U.S. Air Force!"

On 29 May 2020, all stanzas of the Air Force song were updated to better capture and represent the valor and heritage of the 73-year-old service while also recognizing the diversity and contributions of today’s Total Force regardless of gender. The announcement by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein, completes a two-step process in which male-only references were revised to capture the distinguished service, the high standards, and central role that women play in every facet of the modern United States Air Force. The first step focused on changing the song’s third verse, which also serves as the official song of the United States Air Force Academy. Goldfein unveiled those new lyrics in March and suggested that additional changes to remove the remaining male-only references would be made at a later date and after further review. At the time, Goldfein said that he attended a women’s volleyball tournament at the Pentagon last year that included the academy’s team. And as they sang the academy’s alma mater, with its references to only men, Goldfein said it was apparent the song left the female cadets out. The U.S. Military Academy at West Point and the U.S. Naval Academy had already updated their songs more than a decade ago.[2][6] The lyrics have been changed from male-only to gender-neutral as it follows:

First verse on fourth line: "At 'em boys, Give 'er the gun!" to "At ‘em now, Give 'em the gun!"

Second verse on first line: "Minds of men fashioned a crate of thunder," to "Brilliant minds fashioned a crate of thunder,"

Second verse on third line: "Hands of men blasted the world asunder;" to "Valiant hands blasted the world asunder;"

Second verse on fifth line: "Souls of men dreaming of skies to conquer" to "Boundless souls dreaming of skies to conquer"

Fourth verse on fifth line: "Flying men, guarding the nation's border," to "Fly to fight, guarding the nation's border,"

Following the initial change on June 20, 1941 of the American air force's name from "Army Air Corps" to "Army Air Force(s)", to the post-World War II 1947 establishment of the separate "U.S. Air Force", an attempt was made to change the sixth line of each verse so that the last word rhymed with "force" instead of "corps". Thus, "Off with one helluva roar!" became "Off on one helluva course!"; "Gave us wings, ever to soar!" became "Gave our wings every resource!"; and "We'll be there, followed by more!" became "We'll be there, ever on course!"

These changes appeared in the 1972 edition of the USAF publication Air Force Customs and Courtesies but were never popular, and the lyrics were later reverted without fanfare in later editions.