Editing William Anders (section)

== United States Air Force ==
Anders received an appointment to Annapolis, following in the footsteps of his father, who had graduated with the Class of 1927. He earned a [[Bachelor of Science]] degree in [[electrical engineering]] in 1955. Part of the course was orientation cruises during which midshipmen could experience life at sea. A cruise on board an aircraft carrier convinced him that he did not want to become a [[naval aviator]]: there were too many fatal accidents. Upon graduation in 1955 he chose to be commissioned a [[second lieutenant]] in the [[United States Air Force]] (USAF).<ref name="usaf"/>{{efn|A 1949 agreement allowed up to 25&nbsp;percent of the graduating classes of West Point and Annapolis to volunteer for the Air Force. Between 1950, when the agreement became effective, and 1959, when the first class graduated from the [[United States Air Force Academy]], about 3,200 West Point cadets and Annapolis midshipmen chose to do so.{{sfn|Mitchell|1996|pp=60–61}}}} While at Annapolis he met Valerie Elizabeth Hoard on a blind date. [[Midshipman|Midshipmen]] were not allowed to marry, but they were married soon after he graduated.<ref name="airportjournals" /> They had six children&nbsp;— Alan (born in 1957), Glen (born in 1958), Gayle (born in 1960), Gregory (born in 1962), Eric (born in 1964) and Diana (born in 1972).<ref>{{cite report |title=Nominees to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission: Hearings Before the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy, Congress of the United States – Part 1: Nomination of William A. Anders |year=1975 |location=Washington, DC |publisher=US Government Printing Office |pages=2–3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zngQAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA3 |access-date=7 August 2022 |archive-date=1 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221001221941/https://books.google.com/books?id=zngQAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA3 |url-status=live }}</ref>

After graduation, Anders reported for flight training, which was conducted in the piston-engine [[Beechcraft T-34 Mentor]] and [[North American T-28 Trojan]] and then in the jet [[Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star]]. After receiving his [[U.S. Air Force aeronautical rating|pilot wings]] in 1956 he became a [[fighter pilot]] with the [[84th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron]], an all-weather interceptor squadron of the [[Air Defense Command]] based at [[Hamilton Air Force Base]] in California, flying [[Northrop F-89 Scorpion]]s equipped with [[MB-1]] nuclear-tipped air-to-air rockets. He then served with the [[57th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron]] in Iceland, where he participated in intercepts of Soviet heavy bombers, which were challenging America's air defense borders. After a year he returned to the 84th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron at Hamilton, which was now flying the [[McDonnell F-101 Voodoo]].<ref name="airportjournals" /><ref name="usaf">{{cite web |title=Bill Anders |publisher=United States Air Force |url=http://www.acc.af.mil/library/biographies/bio.asp?id=10522 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080314231616/http://www.acc.af.mil/library/biographies/bio.asp?id=10522 |archive-date=14 March 2008 }}</ref>

Anders set his sights on becoming a [[test pilot]]. He spoke to [[Chuck Yeager]], who recommended that he first obtain an [[advanced degree]]. Anders submitted an application to the [[Air Force Institute of Technology]] (AFIT) at [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] in [[Ohio]], hoping to study [[aeronautical engineering]], but the [[Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion]] program was ongoing, and the AFIT had him study [[nuclear engineering]] instead. While there he took a course in aeronautical engineering at [[Ohio State University]]. He graduated from the AFIT with a [[Master of Science]] degree in nuclear engineering in 1962. By that time the Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion program had been canceled so he was assigned to the [[Air Force Weapons Laboratory]] at [[Kirtland Air Force Base]] in [[New Mexico]], where he was responsible for the technical management of the [[nuclear power reactor]] programs.<ref name="airportjournals" /><ref name="usaf" /><ref name="nasabio">{{cite web |url=https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/anders_williams.pdf |title=William A. Anders (Major General, USAF Reserve, Ret.) |access-date=8 January 2021 |date=December 2014 |publisher=NASA |archive-date=16 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916045110/https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/anders_williams.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>