Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, is considered "The Gateway to the Air Force." Lackland is the primary basic training destination for Air Force recruits. In addition to the grueling six-week basic military training course, Lackland is also the home of the Inter-American Air Forces Academy.

The Inter-American Air Forces Academy

The Inter-American Air Forces Academy was actually founded in 1943, before the Air Force itself. At the request of the Peruvian Minister of Aeronautics, the academy trained 11 Peruvian students in the Panama Canal Zone. Today there are as many as 850 students enrolled yearly.

The Academy offers instruction by Spanish speaking officers in more than 60 courses. Topics include maintenance, electronics, communications, intelligence, supply, logistics, security, pilot instrument procedures, and computer resources. Courses take from one week to four months. Approximately one-third of that time is spent on academics and the other two-thirds is spent on "hands-on" training.

The Academy has graduated nearly 37,000 students. They come from 26 different countries, including Belize, Cuba, Spain, Surinam, Ecuador and Venezuela. It is part of the mission of the Academy to offer education in American life, culture and government, as well as military training. To that end, the Academy offers many cultural programs. Students visit local and state seats of government, museums, historical landmarks and city courts. Another part of the program pairs students with volunteer families from the community to exchange information on their respective cultures.