Col Adelbert "Buz" Carpenter was raised in California in an aviation family dreaming of becoming a pilot. A member of the 9th class from the US Air Force (USAF) Academy, he gained his pilots wings in the Air Force and flew a wide variety of aircraft with over 4,400 jet flight hours.
He served as a C-141 aircraft commander doing worldwide airlift, flew RF-4Cs in the Vietnam War and became an Instructor pilot. He was a SR-71 instructor pilot executing global reconnaissance missions, served as a F-4E fighter squadron commander, flew the T-38 trainer, and finally his last flight was taking a U-2 above 70,000 feet one last time.
Buz served as a Wing Commander in Europe during Desert Storm and was the USAF "Black World" programmer in the Pentagon from 1983-84 handling the monies for stealth F-117, F-22, & the B-2 bomber programs. At the end of his Air Force career he was Vice Commander of 2nd Air Force, which possessed the Air Force's Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance mission aircraft. A lifetime Daedalian member; Buz was a student of history and one who could spend hours learning about aircraft and how to fly them. The National Air & Space museum was always his special interest and serving as a docent there was a privilege to help support the honor of airmen who had gone ahead of us to blaze the dreams of flight; truly superb! In 2017 he was inducted into the Virginia Aviation Hall of Fame.