| abstract | - The United States Air Force Academy is an undergraduate college in Colorado Springs, Colorado with the mission of educating and commissioning officers for the United States Air Force. The Academy was established in 1954, entered its first class in 1955, and graduated its first class in 1959. The students are referred to as cadets. Sports media refer to the Academy as "Air Force;" this usage is officially endorsed. Most cadets are admitted through a congressional appointment system. The curriculum is broad-based but has traditionally emphasized science and engineering. Before the Academy's first graduating class in 1959, the United States Naval Academy and United States Military Academy were the primary sources of officers for the Air Force and its predecessors, the Army Air Corps and Army Air Forces.[citation needed] Though the primary focus of the college is for the Air Force, some graduates are given the option cross-commissioning into the United States Army, United States Navy, or United States Marine Corps. This list is drawn from graduates, non-graduate former cadets, current cadets, and faculty of the Air Force Academy. Over 410 noted scholars from a variety of academic fields are Academy graduates, including: 35 Rhodes Scholars, 9 Marshall Scholars, 13 Harry S. Truman Scholars, 115 John F. Kennedy School of Government Scholars, and 31 Gerahart Scholars. Additional notable graduates include 403 general officers, 164 graduates who were killed in combat, 36 repatriated prisoners of war, 1 Medal of Honor recipient, and 2 combat aces. Thirty-nine Academy graduates have become astronauts, second among institutions of higher learning only to the United States Naval Academy with 52.
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