The Wild Blue Yonder Trivia Quiz

Answer:

Each of the military services of the United States has (at least) one song that is its official song. The official song of the United States Air Force is "The U.S. Air Force", but it is popularly known as "The Wild Blue Yonder."

Robert MacArthur Crawford (1899-1961) composed the melody and wrote the first verse in May of 1939 and submitted them to a contest conducted by Bernarr A. MacFadden (1868-1955), the publisher of "Liberty" magazine. He offered a prize of $1000 (roughly the equivalent of $22,910 in 2025 dollars) for a song (words and music) which exalted the U.S. Army Air Corps. The winner was required to be easy for untrained singers to sing, easy to harmonise, and suitable to be sung while marching. Crawford won.

The song has changed in various ways since its composition. In 1939, both the Army and the Navy conducted flight operations. The Army flying service was called the Army Air Corps (hence the original name of the song). During the Second World War, the Army Air Corps was renamed the Army Air Forces (and the name of the song was adjusted accordingly). Finally, in 1947, the United States Air Force became a separate military branch (and the name of the song was changed to suit the new name, but not the rhyme scheme).

More extensive changes have resulted from the service's wish to have a gender-free anthem. On 27 February 2020, General David L. Goldfein (the Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force) announced an "update" to embrace "all who have -- and will -- step up to serve." In the third verse, the line "To a friend we send a message of his brother men who fly" was changed to "To a friend we send a message of the brave who serve on high." Also in the third verse, the line "A toast to the host of men we boast, the U.S. Air Force!" was changed to "A toast to the host of those we boast, the U.S. Air Force!" Three months later, further changes to effect the same end were made. In the first verse, the line "At 'em boys, Give 'er the gun!" was changed to "At 'em now, Give 'em the gun!" Three changes were made in the second verse: from "Minds of men fashioned a crate of thunder," to "Brilliant minds fashioned a crate of thunder"; "Hands of men blasted the world asunder;" to "Valiant hands blasted the world asunder"; and "Souls of men dreaming of skies to conquer" to "Boundless souls dreaming of skies to conquer." In the fourth verse, "Flying men, guarding the nation's border," was changed to "Fly to fight, guarding the nation's border." An effort to change the lyrics such that they rhymed with "Force" was attempted but failed, as did a puritanical push to delete "helluva."

The language of the lyrics reflects their age.

The word "yonder" comes from the Old English. It is/was a spatial term (often accompanied by a sweeping gesture). It can apply to someplace physically far away, upward, or outward. Its use in "Wild Blue Yonder" imports a sense of crossing a frontier, entry into a mythic space full of adventure, risk, and glory. Whereas once "yonder" was a distinctly English word, it has since picked up the sense of sagebrush, creaking leather, rattlesnakes, and hats with very wide brims.

One may wonder about the "crate of thunder" in the second verse. As used here, it is a colloquialism for an old clunky airplane, a jalopy automobile, a coffin, a leaking boat, a truck or bus, or a dilapidated bicycle. From World War One, pilots referred to their airplanes as "crates." The song honours the aeronautical engineers and craftspersons who produced them. The lyrics describe a powerful warplane. Synonyms include bird, kite, and contraption.

The line "valiant hands blasted the world asunder" adopts another old-fashioned sounding word meaning to break something into wee pieces, scattered over a wide area. The use of "asunder" is a reference to the power of aerial bombardment to tear apart structures. Jesus uses the word (in Greek) when he speaks of the permanence of marriage, "What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." (Mark 10:9, KJV)

The advice to "Keep the wings level and true" is good advice to an aviator. To the pilot, it means to maintain stable horizontal flight with neither banking nor tilting. The clause has metaphoric implications, as well. To describe a course as "true" means it is the correct one which will lead to the desired destination. To describe it metaphorically as "true" imports a sense of integrity, honesty, and heroism.

In the Old and New Testaments, and in the Quran, "the host of Heaven" describes a vast assembly of military angels prepared for war. There is the sense that each star visible in the nighttime sky is one of these warrior angels. In verse three, the lyrics say "Here's a toast to the host / Of those who love the vastness of the sky" and "A toast to the host of those we boast." The literal meaning of the "host" in this verse is of the assembly of all those who serve or have served in the air forces. The use of "host" carries with it a sense of immensity. An even more symbolic meaning is a coming together of all those who have served and died. These revered figures form a sort of vanguard with the living aeronauts and support personnel.

"Then down we roar to score the rainbow's pot of gold" is an allusion to the Irish folk tale or myth of a Leprechaun's container of gold coins, which may be found at the end of a rainbow. Reaching the "end" of a rainbow is a fantasy because rainbows are not physical objects but rather optical phenomena, the location of which depends upon the location of the observer. When the person looking at a rainbow moves toward what appears to be its end, the whole rainbow moves with the observer. As a metaphor, the pot of gold stands for a prize which is difficult (if not impossible) to attain. The notion of roaring down suggests a dive bomber screaming down on its target, the destruction of which is like a pot of gold.

Much like the advice to keep the "wings level and true," the fourth verse urges the aviator to "[k]eep the nose out of the blue!" This is another example of practical aeronautics. The "nose" is the frontmost part of the airplane. If the plane is pointed too steeply upward, the aircraft is likely to stall. A "stall" is what happens when the airplane runs out of lift and that is not good. This practical advice suggests a poetic parallel: setting one's sights too high as a result of hubris is a prelude to failure.

The last word or phrase which can bear scrutiny and explanation is "echelon." "The Wild Blue Yonder" concludes "[i]n echelon we carry on." The English term descends from the French "eschelon" meaning "the rung of a ladder." In military aviation, an echelon is a formation in which following aircraft line up, either to the left or right of the leader, in a diagonal line. Each airplane is slightly behind and slightly to the side of the one ahead. Experience has demonstrated how echelon improves visibility between aircraft and enhances manoeuvrability. Echelon is also a visible symbol of coordination and collective purpose.