History of Detachment 025

The history of Detachment 025 at Arizona State University dates back almost 60 years.  Most of the information that has survived comes from scrapbooks and photo albums; however, we have been able to gather additional information provided by our alumni.

First founded in July of 1948, Det 025 has had a long history of excellence in commissioning outstanding officers while continuing to change in order to meet the needs of the Air Force. Both Army and Air Force ROTC were originally housed in Old Main at the heart of ASU’s campus.

Beginning in the 1960’s, ASU was host to an honorary service organization associated with the Air Force known as Angel Flight. Its objective was to promote interest in the Air Force, serve the community and support the Arnold Air Society. Every year 200 female students would try out, but only 26 became ASU Angels. In 1972, ASU’s Angel Flight was ranked number one among 139 squadrons throughout the nation. Although Angel Flight no longer exists, ASU and several other detachments across the country have Silver Wings, which is a professional organization sponsored by the Arnold Air Society, dedicated to creating proactive, knowledgeable and effective civic leaders through community service and education about national defense.

In the 1970’s, it was a hard time for cadets to avoid notice while attending classes at ASU. Many college students were weary of the military because of the war in Vietnam. For this reason, many cadets would keep their uniforms at the detachment and change out of them while on campus to avoid attention. This attitude began to change shortly after the Iranian hostage crisis in early 1981. Also during the 1970's, the Army and Air Force ROTC at ASU would annually hold a military ball. Spring of 1978 was a critical period for ASU, marking the commemoration of the very first Arnold Air Society National Conference.

In the 1980’s, the majority of the cadre were veteran pilots returning from the Vietnam war. The instruction for leadership lab consisted mainly of drill and ceremony practice. Detachment personnel were charged with providing security detail during campus elections.

We currently have well over 120 cadets, a large size detachment, and we are always looking for new cadets to join our detachment family. Our detachment still focuses on academics, leadership skills, camaraderie, community service, and physical fitness. No matter what we are doing, we do it with honor, commitment, courage, and loyalty.

Alumni

We also want to keep in touch with our flying devil alumni, so if you commissioned from ASU we would love to hear from you! Please contact our Historian Flight at det025alumni@gmail.com and tell us when you commissioned, what you have done in the Air Force, any interesting stories you would like to share, what you are currently doing now, and your contact information. Check the alumni list and pass this along to other fellow alumni who are not on it yet, or send us their contact information.  Once again we would love to hear from you and hopefully share your stories with the men and women who are entering to the Officer Corps of the Air Force. We are constantly seeking way from which we can improve with in our own detachment and we ask for your seasoned knowledge.