The United States 
The United States is composed of 50 states; 48 contiguous states coupled with Alaska and Hawaii. It is the most populated country in the Western Hemisphere with over 240 million people. It has been called a "melting pot" of cultures because Americans come from virtually every ethnic and religious background in the world to unite as one people. 

Climatically, the US is equally diverse, with deserts in the Southwest, rainforest in the Northwest, dry plains in the Midwest, termperate beaches in the Southeast, and winter snow in the North. 

Geographically, the US is split by two distinct mountain ranges, the Great Rockies dividing the western coastal states from the Midwest and the Appalacian Range separating the Midwest from the eastern coastal states. It is approximately 2,500 miles wide and crosses four different time zones. 

From this diverse land come the people who comprise the United States Air Force. The Air Force has over 500,000 uniformed and civilian personnel supporting and employing the most sophisticated weapons systems in the world. Its front line combat aircraft are designed to achieve tactical and strategic superiority. The invertory includes the F-15C/E Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon, the A-10 Warthog, the B-1 Lancer, the F-117 stealth fighter, the B-52 Stratofortress, and the B-2 stealth bomber. These combat aircraft are complemented by support aircraft like the KC-135 and KC-10 tankers, and the C-5 Galaxy, C-141 Starlifter, and C-17 Globemaster transports. Training aircraft include the T-37 Tweet, T-38 Talon, and T-1 Jayhawk. These aircraft and great people combine to give the USAF a "Global Reach-Global Power" capability to meet its allied commitments throughout the world. 

In meeting these commitments, the United States believes in the concept of interoperability, or the ability to effectively go to war shoulder to shoulder with NATO partners. In keeping with that concept, the USAF serves as the host nation for ENJJPT conducted at Sheppard AFB, Texas. Here, future US fighter pilots train alongside their NATO brethren. The USAF has approximately a 50 percent share of the ENJJPT operation, providing nearly half of the instructor pilots, training nearly half of the students, and owning over half of the aircraft used in the program. ENJJPT, with its fighter-based syllabus, produces over 40 percent of the USAF's total number of program fighter pilots annually. The remainder come from various Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training schools located throughout the US.