The Outstanding Airman of the Year Ribbon is a military award of the United States Air Force which was created on February 21, 1968 by order of Secretary of the Air Force Harold Brown. The first presentation of the award was in June 1970. The Outstanding Airman of the Year Ribbon is the highest personal ribbon award of the United States Air Force.
The Outstanding Airman of the Year Ribbon is awarded to any enlisted member of the U.S. Air Force who is nominated by their Major Command, Field Operating Agency, or Direct Reporting Unit for competition in the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year Program.
Airmen selected as one of the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year are authorized to wear the Outstanding Airman badge for one year, and are permanently awarded the ribbon with a bronze service star. Any future awards of the ribbon are represented by oak leaf clusters.
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“For generations, a wide range of shooting in Northern Ireland has provided all sections of the population with a pastime which ... has occupied a great deal of leisure time. Unlike many other countries, the outstanding characteristic of the sport has been that it was not confined to any one class.”
—Northern Irish Tourist Board. quoted in New Statesman (London, Aug. 29, 1969)
“‘Take the cylinders out of my kidneys,
The connecting-rod out of my brain,
Take the cam-shaft from out of my backbone,
And Assemble the engine again.’”
—Unknown. The Dying Airman (l. 5–8)
“The principle of fashion is ... the principle of the kaleidoscope. A new year can only bring us a new combination of the same elements; and about once in so often we go back and begin again.”
—Katharine Fullerton Gerould (1879–1944)
“I have taken the ribbon from around my neck and hidden it somewhere on my person. If you find it, you can have it. You are free to look for it any way you will, and I will think very little of you if you do not find it.”
—Stanley Kubrick (b. 1928)