Zero-Six-Crossfield

A big news story last week was the untimely death of aviation legend Scott Crossfield. The story behind the story is the reason why he made that fateful flight.

I noticed that the doomed flight had originated from Prattville, Alabama. I had been to Prattville last December. It's a small town, not far from Montgomery or from Maxwell Air Force Base. Naturally, I wondered why Crossfield would be flying from Prattville.

I spoke with a friend, another Air Force lieutenant, this afternoon. It so happens that Crossfield had given a speech to the Air & Space Basic Course earlier in the week. This is a six-week course that the Air Force holds in order to teach the junior officers, senior enlisted, and a select few civilians about the basics of Air Force history and doctrine.

In death, we must remember Scott Crossfield not only for his accomplishments as an aviatior, but also as a person who volunteered his time to help future generations realize why they are here, and where they need to go. The ASBC class that just graduated had been known as Zero-Six-Charlie. They changed to Zero-Six-Crossfield in honor of a great American who had sacrified on their behalf.