The U.S. Air Force Academy Board of Visitors met Feb. 5 in Washington, D.C. The meeting, held in the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center, was open to the public and accessible via Zoom. Academy senior leadership and some BOV members participated remotely.

The board’s agenda included opening remarks by Secretary of the Air Force Dr. Troy Meink and BOV Chairman Rep. August Pfluger ’00, introduction of newly appointed board members, a 2025 overview by the superintendent and Academy senior leaders, working group updates, action item reviews, public comments and closing board remarks.

Dr. Meink started his opening remarks by thanking BOV members and USAFA senior leaders for their contributions to making the Academy the “premier institution for training future Air Force leaders” and “setting the culture of the Air Force.”

Dr. Meink emphasized the Academy’s contributions to the Air Force’s culture and its important role in the Department of the Air Force leadership. He spoke of integrity, mental fortitude and flexibility, and resilience as critical attributes amid a “staggeringly dynamic environment” marked by high risk and stress.

Dr. Meink underscored the technical readiness required of today’s USAFA cadets as future officers. He noted that cadets are already using artificial intelligence platforms in their work, such as Grok and ChatGPT, and said it is important that they as leaders understand how to leverage and interact with autonomous agents in the cockpit and in logistics, acquisitions, development and modernization.

“Leaders…have to be able to operate in the Air Force and Space Force from a technical perspective; they are really fielding and operating some of the most complicated, complex systems humans have ever built,” Dr. Meink said. “We have to have a leadership force that can do that.”

Dr. Meink said “the Academy sets that culture, sets that leadership approach” for the Air Force and Space Force and indicated that he is “not sure we’re there,” pointing to an “infrastructure challenge” at the Academy.

“Do we have the right simulations? Do we have the right IT? Do we have the right training environments to start teaching the cadets how to be leaders in that sort of environment?” he asked. “In some cases, they [cadets] have better simulation environments on their home computers of what's going on in combat than we actually provide them sometimes at work. That has to change, and it has to start at the Academy.”

Competitiveness, Dr. Meink said, must be reinforced as a core leadership trait, adding that’s not limited to athletics, but includes clubs and all activities.

“If you want to be a winner, you’ve got to be a competitor,” he stated. “We have to be breeding competitors, because that’s what it takes.”

He said all Academy graduates “should have a solid technical background” that they can build on for 30 to 40 years of their career, adding that ethics, risk assessment skills and integrity should be at the foundation. He said integrity may come naturally, but it “needs to be taught” and must be a focus.

Dr. Meink noted that in “the next three to six months the leadership at the Academy — the [superintendent] and a commandant [of cadets] and [a dean] on the academic side — are all being changed out.”

Dr. Meink said he is looking forward to the arrival of Col. James “Fangs” Valpiani ’04 as the new dean of the faculty, noting his “high-end” and “wide” background as a fighter pilot and test pilot and his work leading AI efforts at Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

Dr. Meink concluded his remarks about the Academy’s “physical infrastructure.” He noted disappointment in the Academy’s Cadet Chapel project and mentioned the need for replacing the dormitories. He said he wants to see progress “quickly” and “cost-effectively” in these areas, noting the importance of budget prioritization. He said he welcomes BOV input on infrastructure priorities.

Dr. Meink thanked the BOV and took questions from members on topics including developing leaders amid rapid technological advancements such as autonomous agents; adding more working groups to focus on specific Academy priorities; and efficiently recapitalizing the Academy and its infrastructure needs.

During the chairman’s opening remarks, Rep. Pfluger thanked Dr. Meink for his briefing and reinforced the Board of Visitors’ role to advocate, make recommendations and provide the necessary oversight.

“This board exists to listen, to challenge and to advocate,” Rep. Pfluger said. “We’re here to support the superintendent and the Academy, and to help provide the firepower on Capitol Hill to get things done.”

He introduced newly appointed board members — North Carolina Sen. Ted Budd, Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin and North Dakota Sen. Kevin Cramer — noting their passion for air and space power and their experience on armed services and appropriations committees.

Rep. Pfluger summarized the board’s semiannual report to Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, highlighting recommendations developed since the previous meeting in December 2025. Those recommendations included increasing the Cadet Wing from 4,000 to 4,400; calling for the Air Force Manpower Analysis Agency to conduct an audit of the current faculty composition, noting a concern about the reduction in manpower; reviewing disciplinary processes to ensure justice and fairness; and examining the long-term impact of name, image and likeness policies across the service academies’ athletics mission elements.

Rep. Pfluger mentioned the BOV’s focus groups on accreditation, admissions, artificial intelligence, athletics and infrastructure and the roadmaps for these groups. He noted the critical role that air and space power have played in achieving strategic effects over the past nine months, underscoring the Academy’s vital role in the nation’s defense.

Air Force Academy Superintendent Lt. Gen. Tony Bauernfeind ’91, joined by members of the USAFA senior leadership team, delivered an extensive briefing covering operations, academics, training, culture and infrastructure, highlighting achievements from 2025.

The superintendent outlined positive changes to cadet training, including expanded use of small unmanned aerial systems, increased cadet-led instruction and year-round weapons qualification. He said three new warfighting minors have been added: future conflict, quantum technologies and aerospace materials. The superintendent reported that 480 cadets served as instructors during summer programs, and nearly the entire incoming class qualified on the M4 rifle despite limited prior experience.

Gen. Bauernfeind also cited growth in rated career opportunities. The Class of 2025 received 448 rated slots, a 16% increase from the previous year. Meanwhile, the Class of 2026 is projected to receive 605 slots, a 35% increase.

“We want those leaders of character and quality, and we want those critical thinkers to adapt, because the fight that happened yesterday is going to change tomorrow,” he said.

Gen. Bauernfeind addressed recent cultural changes, including updated fitness standards requiring minimum performance across all components of the physical fitness test.

The Academy also completed a revitalization of the Honor Code, restoring a holistic approach while maintaining developmental pathways for underclassmen. Expectations increase as cadets progress through their time at the Academy, Gen. Bauernfeind said.

Academically, the Academy continues to offer 30 majors and 22 minors, with growing emphasis on space operations, cyber and future conflict studies. He noted the opening of the Madera Cyber Innovation Center in the spring of 2025 and strong cyber partnerships.

Cadets and faculty produced more than 1,000 publications last year, secured seven patents and supported three FalconSAT satellites currently in orbit. A pilot program now allows select cadets to begin master’s-level coursework through the Air Force Institute of Technology.

Looking ahead, Gen. Bauernfeind said infrastructure remains the Academy’s most pressing long-term challenge. Built largely between 1955 and 1966, many facilities have exceeded their designed service life by 15 years. Deferred maintenance now totals approximately $4.2 billion, a gap that the superintendent said must be addressed. Gen. Bauernfeind pointed to the prolonged timeline and rising costs as evidence that aging facilities can no longer be addressed through one-off projects.

“We have had chronic underfunding over the years, well below the Air Force standard,” Gen. Bauernfeind said, adding such underfunding could undermine the mission. “In time, it will lead to a loss of our competitive edge that we have recruiting and retaining young Americans and the required permanent party.”

He outlined USAFA 2050, a long-term plan to modernize dormitories, utilities and training facilities through sustained, predictable funding. He said $340 million in annual funding would pay for key priorities under the plan, such as renovating Sijan and Vandenberg halls, modernizing Fairchild Hall and building an air, space and cyber complex.

Following the superintendent’s briefing, board members engaged in a question-and-answer session with Academy senior leadership.

A BOV member asked when the Cadet Chapel is set to be completed. USAFA senior leadership said the Academy is currently tracking fall 2028. The superintendent said water testing on the chapel was successful, and cadets are now touring the chapel during the weekends.

Board of Visitors members and senior leaders referenced the ongoing restoration of the Cadet Chapel as an example of the Academy’s broader infrastructure challenges. The superintendent noted that the chapel is not an isolated case, but part of a wider pattern tied to decades of deferred maintenance.

After a brief recess, board members provided updates from their working groups tackling issues such as merit-based admissions, accreditation, artificial intelligence, athletics and infrastructure, as well as a new group introduced at this meeting via a board vote: a working group that will examine disciplinary procedures.

“We're thinking creatively on what we can do as a board to ask the right questions, to leverage industry partners, to help the secretary of war, the secretary of the Air Force to truly max-perform this institution,” Rep Pfluger said.

The board then reviewed formal action items, advancing several issues for continued coordination ahead of the next meeting.

The board also held a brief public comment period and, during his closing, Rep. Pfluger thanked Academy leadership and fellow board members for their engagement.

“Gen. Bauernfeind, thank you for the work that you and your team do,” Rep. Pfluger said, “[and] for putting your heart and soul into crafting our warriors who will meet the need and will defend our nation.” 

Established under Title 10 U.S. Code 9455, the Board of Visitors inquires into the morale, discipline, curriculum, instruction, physical equipment, fiscal affairs, academic methods and other matters relating to the U.S. Air Force Academy that the board decides to consider.

The board consists of six members appointed by the president of the United States, three appointed by the vice president of the United States, four appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, one designated by the Senate Armed Services Committee and one designated by the House Armed Services Committee.

For more information about the USAFA Board of Visitors, including its charter, bylaws and official minutes, click here to visit its webpage.