Tailhook Scandal

THE TAILHOOK Association is a private organization whose membership includes active duty, reserve, and retired U.S. Marine Corps and Navy flyers, defense contractors, and others. The Tailhook symposium, a reunion of flyers, began in 1956. It moved from San Diego, California, to Las Vegas, Nevada, in 1963, becoming more than a reunion by adding seminars and professional development activities. From the initial symposium, the U.S. Navy and defense contractors provided significant support to the annual meeting, and the board of directors and president were customarily active and retired naval flyers. As of 1992, the membership consisted of 10 corporations and over 15,000 individuals.

The activities of the association came under close examination in 1993 when Navy Lieutenant Paula Coughlin publicly disclosed on ABC News what had ...