Frank Aires was one of 24 men that formed the school's first post-war varsity team in 1945-46. While none returned to the roster for the 1946-47 season, basketball was only a small part of Aires' remarkable career.

Aires played basketball at Dayton prior to World War II, where he enlisted in the Army Air Corps and flew B-17 missions. Within two years after graduating from Georgetown, Aires was called back to military service as a fighter pilot in Korea and later served as an intelligence officer in Vietnam, a recipient of the Silver Star, the Purple Heart, the Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross, and the Air Medal.

Retiring from active duty in 1970, Aires settled in Colorado Springs, CO as the director of logistics for the U.S. Olympic Committee and a volunteer member of the U.S. Air Force Academy athletics department, retiring in 2010.