When many people think of the Air Force , they think of fast planes and high-intensity dogfights . If that wasn ’ t cool enough , did you know that the U . S . Air Force Academy puts on shows with their school mascot called Falconry Shows ?
The Air Force Academy ( USAFA ) refers to the majestic falcon as “ Nature ’ s Fighter Pilot .” This title came to be , due to the falcon ’ s aggressive nature in hunting , both while airborne and otherwise .
As part of a tradition at the academy to show the school spirit and provide an opportunity for a select few of the cadets to train falcons , they put on special shows .
16 LET ’ S GO AEROSPACE
Falconry is usually the art of training a falcon to hunt animals in their natural habitat . The falcon will go hunt small birds or other prey and bring it back to the falconers . While this is the more popular use for trained falcons , it is not what the Air Force Academy typically means when talking about falconry .
Falconry shows are usually put on during football games and are performed by a few of the cadets that have taken on the special job of training and caring for the mascot falcons .
There are 12 falconers at any given time , with four new cadets selected each year to replace those that have graduated .
The newcomers learn from the cadets that have already been part of the program for many years , and graduate to mentor others as upperclassmen .
Training these birds takes a lot of time , so there is a reason that only 12 of the cadets get the opportunity to work with them . The falconers at the academy have more falconry duties than just training the birds , though . They must also give them daily checkups , maintain their equipment , and clean the areas in which the falcons stay .
Falcons are not typically used for performing because they supposedly are too skittish in front of crowds .