Watch Over the Rhine Poster

As the Russians tightened their grip on West Berlin, and events appeared to be escalating toward a nuclear showdown in the world, President John F. Kennedy dramatized America's determination by mobilizing 65,460 officers and men of the Army and Air National Guard. Less than 30 days after the mobilization, citizen-airmen of the Air National Guard flew 216 fighter and reconnaissance jet aircraft swiftly and smoothly across the Atlantic in the largest mass deployment of jets in the nation's history. The prompt reaction represented the greatest display of National Guard readiness ever. In a modern version of the "Watch on the Rhine," the Air Guardsmen continued patrolling the skies over Europe until their demobilization a year later. Protecting the NATO nations from surprise attack, the Guardsmen wrote into the record a clear-cut example of the deterrent power of our 20th Century Minutemen, the combat-ready forces of the Air National Guard.