My Air Force Timeline
A reference of when and where I spent my days in the service
As Land, Fly or Die evolves, I will talk about the events and stories from my flying days that have moved me to start this Substack adventure. For future reference, I want to publish the timeline of my Air Force service.
May 30, 1979:Â Graduated from the Air Force Academy and was sworn in as a 2nd Lieutenant.
Sworn in as 2nd Lieutenant July 1979: Reported for duty at Williams AFB, outside Chandler, AZ. Pilot training was split equally between flying the T-37 Tweet and the T-38 Talon.
I went through pilot training with class 80-07. At the Academy, I, and three of my closest friends, had worked the system to get the same pilot training class, class 80-08. I arrived at Willy a month early and was asked if I wanted to start pilot training immediately. I accepted the offer.Â
July 1980: Graduated from undergraduate pilot training (UPT) with an assignment to fly OV-10s at Osan AB, South Korea.
September 1980: Reported to Holloman AFB, Alamogordo, NM, for the five-week FAC lead-in course flying AT-38B aircraft (click the link for a nice little write-up about this plane).
November 1980:Â I reported to Patrick AFB, Cocoa Beach, FL, for the eight-week Forward Air Controller (FAC) course, flying OV-10s.
February 1981: I reported to the 19th TASS at OSAN AB, South Korea. I spent the one-year tour flying FAC missions in the OV-10 Bronco.
February 1983: Reported to the 549 TASTS Patrick AFB for a two-year assignment as an OV-10 flight instructor.Â
February 1984: Reported back to Holloman AFB for the 10-week Fighter Lead-In course, flying the AT-38B.
May 1984: Reported to Luke AFB, near Phoenix, AZ, for the 23-week F-16 Falcon training program.
November 1984: Reported to the 439th TFS Nellis AFB in Las Vegas, NV. I spent the next three years as a front-line F-16A pilot, flying all types of missions performed by an F-16 squadron.Â
December 1, 1987: My official separation date from the Air Force.
In the middle of all of this, I was promoted to Captain in May 1983 and held that rank at separation.
I will share more photos of the planes I flew in upcoming posts that highlight my experiences!
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About the time you left the Air Force, I was detailed direct support to Air Force wings with CENTCOM missions. I got to understand AF pretty well.
I also did a tour in Korea and understand your FAO mission there.
I love reading this history. I feel like we are nearly the same age as I graduated UGA in 1980, so I can relate to the timeframes if your events.