HERITAGE MINUTE
ON THIS DAY IN KAFA HISTORY - THE MOST NOTABLE MOMENTS
A Running History of the "Voice of the Academy"
United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, CO
By Steven A. Simon '77
10 January 1969 -- Lieutenant Colonel Howard Hitchens Jr., The Director of Instructional Technology in the Dean of the Faculty’s office, sends a letter to Academy agencies addressing the possibility of the Academy having its own radio station and inquiring about their interest in providing educational programming to the station. Responses were due back no later than 17 January 1969. Exactly two years later, on 17 January 1971, KAFA went on the air.
11 September 1970 -- The New Christy Minstrels, a popular folk group, plays a special Allied Arts show. While at the Academy, a band member made a promotional tape recording for KAFA, the Academy radio station that was preparing to go on the air for the first time.
16 October 1970 -- Academy officials apply for a broadcast license for a cadet radio station. The message requested that the call letters be either KAFA or KDET. The license was granted, with the call letters KAFA.
30 October 1970 -- The Office of the Chief of Staff of the Air Force sends a message to the Academy approving the startup of its radio station. In part, the message said, “Call sign KAFA has been assigned by the FCC for use at USAFA FM broadcast facility.” The message also relayed the FCC’s approval of 89.7 megahertz as the station’s frequency. The station would have its first broadcast on 17 January 1971.
17 January 1971 -- KAFA, the Academy radio station, begins broadcasting at 6:57 p.m., under the direction of Cadet John Severski, Class of ’71. The station operated with 10 watts of power at the frequency 89.7 on the FM dial. KAFA currently broadcasts at 97.7.
20 November 1971 -- KAFA broadcasts an away football game for the first time. Cadets Gary Dutelle, Class of ’73, and Ned Schoek, Class of ’74, called the 53-17 loss to the University of Colorado in Boulder.
26 April 1974 -- The Academy radio station, KAFA, kicks off a charity marathon at 1630. The fundraiser ran for two days and raised nearly $1,400 for a local high school girl who had been seriously injured in an automobile accident. Events included a cadet versus Air Officers Commanding (AOC) basketball game.
28 February 1975 -- KAFA, the Academy’s radio station, begins its second annual charity marathon. Cadet disk jockeys stayed on the air the entire 54 ½ hour duration of the event, which raised $6,500 for a local family.
22 February 1980 -- The Falconews reports that KAFA, the Academy radio station, is closed until transition week for renovation and equipment replacement.
13 February 1989 -- KAFA, the cadet radio station, returns to the air after a long absence. The station broadcast at 104.5 FM.
15 February 1990 -- The Falcon Flyer reports that “The Academy’s radio station, KAFA 104.5FM, is beginning a new community service to all Academy people every Monday from 7 to 8 p.m. It’s called ‘Trader Sloth,’ and is a buying and selling bulletin announced over the air.”
20 January 1993 -- To commemorate the fourth anniversary of the 1989 restart of KAFA, the Academy radio station, the Los Angeles-based band Blind Melon performs in the Arnold Hall Ballroom. Denver band Martha’s Wake also performed. Blind Melon’s most successful song, “No Rain,” was from their self-titled debut album that was released in September 1992.
23 October 1993 -- The Colorado Springs Gazette reports that KAFA, the Academy’s radio station, has changed frequencies, moving from 104.5 to 104.3 on the FM dial.
4 February 1994 -- In honor of the fifth anniversary of its restart, the cadet radio station KAFA holds a dance in the Arnold Hall Ballroom. They were celebrating the station’s return to the airwaves on 13 February 1989. The station initially went on the air on 17 January 1971, but was silent for much of the 1980s.
7 February 2001 -- KAFA, the Academy radio station, begins a weekly feature whereby Academy senior leaders serve as DJs for an hour (7:00 to 8:00 p.m.) on Wednesday evenings. First up was Colonel Chuck Bensen, 34th Support Group Commander. The idea for the show came from Cadets Scott Snider and Sam Kidd, both Class of ’02.
21 January 2006 -- The Colorado Springs Gazette reports that the Academy has agreed to switch the frequency (104.3 FM) of its radio station, KAFA, to accommodate another radio station. Academy Director of Communications, Colonel (Retired) Johnny Whitaker, Class of ’73, was quoted in the article as saying finding a new home for the station could take several months. In June 2006, the station moved to 97.7 FM. As a cadet, Whitaker had been one of the founders of KAFA, which first went on the air on 17 January 1971.
31 May 2006 -- KAFA, the Academy radio station, broadcasts live from graduation for the first time. Station manager Dave West and several cadets reported from the Falcon Stadium Press Box, providing general information about and coverage of the ceremony, conducting interviews with parents and senior officers, and updating traffic and weather.
1 May 2008 -- KAFA, the Academy radio station broadcasting at 97.7 FM, begins streaming on-line. The Association of Graduates has funded the streaming, which can be accessed through the AOG and the Academy websites, since its inception.
26 June 2008 -- KAFA, the Academy radio station, broadcasts live from in-processing for the first time. Station manager Dave West provided listeners with updates and interviewed Academy staff members and parents at Doolittle Hall.
29 October 2013 -- The Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General Mark Welsh, Class of ’76, and Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force James Cody conduct an in-studio interview and town hall meeting that are broadcast on KAFA, the cadet radio station.
23 July 2018 -- At 6:00 a.m., the Academy radio station KAFA begins broadcasting from its new studios in Fairchild Hall. The station moved from Vandenberg Hall, where it had been located since its inception on 17 January 1971. Under the leadership of station manager Chris Cohn, the station never went off the air during the transition, which lasted from 18 July until 10 August.
16 April 2022 -- The 500th episode of “The Cover Hour With Steve Simon” airs on KAFA, the Academy’s radio station. The program, which consisted of remakes, versions of songs by other than the original artist, was the longest running program in KAFA history. It was conceived and hosted by Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Steve Simon, Class of ’77, who had also been a KAFA DJ as a cadet.
24 May 2022 -- Olympic gold medal speed skater Erin Jackson flies with the Thunderbirds. The Air Force’s aerial demonstration team was in Colorado Springs to perform at the Academy graduation the next day. She also conducted an interview on KAFA, the Academy radio station.
The Heritage Minute Channel and Podcast is a production of the Long Blue Line Podcast Network
and presented by the U.S. Airforce Academy Association and Foundation