My USAFA Appointment
How I "landed" at the United States Air Force Academy
My plan for the next post was to outline my time as an Air Force pilot including where I trained and served and the aircrafts I flew but, before I dive into that, I want to share what drove me to pursue a career as an Air Force pilot. It all started with my acceptance to the U.S. Air Force Academy (USAFA). Had I not attended USAFA, I would not have had the experiences that shaped my life.
The Cost of College
I lived in Algona, IA for much of my childhood but my family moved to Spring Valley, MN where I attended high school. My dad managed a pipeline terminal for Amoco Oil Company and my mom was a school teacher. Spring Valley High School was your typical small-town high school and my graduating class only had about 80 kids. While still in high school, I had decided that I wanted to go to college to obtain some sort of engineering degree but paying for this degree wasn’t something I had considered. I had a talk with my dad and he made it clear to me that he wouldn’t be covering the cost of my college tuition.
I remembered driving past the AF Academy on a family trip and it popped into my head that I should find out what was required to attend one of the academies. I knew that military academies were free in exchange for time in the service. My research revealed that to be accepted to a military academy, I had to be nominated by my U.S. Congressman or a U.S. Senator from my state. I put together application packets and sent one out to all three of them. Through some of his contacts, my dad was able to set up an interview with my Congressman.
My Nominations
Each Senator and Congressman can have up to five appointed cadets attending the Academy. Annually, they can nominate up to ten prospective candidates per person and, typically, one of the ten will be accepted. A Senator/Congressman can submit an unranked or ranked list. With a ranked list, if the top candidate is qualified to attend the Academy, he would get the acceptance.
The two Minnesota U.S. Senators nominated me for all three service academies (including West Point and Annapolis) on unranked lists. Interestingly, at least to me, both eventually became U.S. Vice Presidents.
Walter Mondale
Hubert Humphrey
My Congressman, Al Quie, submitted a ranked list with me as his top candidate.Â
I remember the whole process was done by mail. Locally, I completed a medical exam and a physical fitness test. I was a runner in high school and the test was a piece of cake for me. One specific part that I recall is having to throw a basketball from a kneeling position.
After passing the exam and fitness test, I was accepted to both West Point and the U.S. Air Force Academy. I don’t know what the Navy folks were thinking as I was a great recruit! I chose the Air Force Academy appointment as it had always been my first choice. I had applied to the others just in case I didn’t get accepted.
Time to Report
On June 30, 1975, I joined 1,463 other young men and reported to Basic Cadet Training at the Academy. My dad dropped me at the Minneapolis airport and from there I flew to Colorado Springs. It was my first flight of any type and little did I know how many very exciting flights would follow. I caught a bus from the C-Springs airport to the Academy, taking my first step to becoming an Air Force officer.Â
Upon reaching the Academy, the system took over. We were assigned rooms, roommates were found, uniforms and gear was issued and all of that 1970s hair was cut off. Upperclassmen would yell at you all the time and tell you what to do next or how you messed up the last task. Most of the first year involved a lot of yelling! I owe a lot of thanks to my senior year roommate and good friend, Colonel (Ret) Randy Helms, who provided the class starting details.
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Tim, I too received an appointment to the USAFA in 1975. However, I chose to attend a small private college in Illinois which made me the 3rd generation in my family to do so. I feel a special camaraderie with you even though I never served. Your stories give me a sense of what I missed and I appreciate your sharing them. Thanks for the "what if" memories!