8th Air Force Monument

Picture
Dedicated October 13, 2005
This monument honors members of the NM Chapter of the 8th Air Force Historical Society; the first state chapter to be organized in the US after WWII.

The 8th Air Force, formed and dispatched to England in 1942, became the largest bomber and fighter force ever created with over 350,000 men and women.

Their missions never turned back due to enemy actions. More than 26,000 were killed in action; 28,000 were POWs in Germany.

Attacking strategic targets in industrial Germany with daylight bombing and fighter support, the “Mighty Eighth” spearheaded America’s involvement in the European conflict. Their efforts made it possible for allied armies to invade and initiate the fall of Hitler’s Third Reich.
​
New Mexico Chapter members continue to inform later generations of their contributions and sacrifices to perpetuate America’s freedom and way of life.