Arnie Odegaard was born the son of Scandinavian parents in Cloquet, Minnesota on October 5. 1936. Arnie's father Maurice Odegaard immigrated to America from Roan Norway in 1924 and settled in Cloquet, Minnesota. His mother was born in Duluth, Minnesota 6 months after her parents immigrated to America from southern Sweden.
Arnie attended school in Cloquet, Minnesota He began flying with relatives who were farmers in the Ashby, Minnesota area during the summers of 1946, 47, & 48. It was then that his interest in aviation began. It was December of 1949 that Tragedy struck this family when one of the family members was killed in a light airplane crash near Aitkin, Minnesota. At this time Arnie's parents forbid him to fly in aircraft again.
On his 17th birthday Arnie dropped out of High School and enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. During his first 4 years he did very well, being selected for work as an Elint operator and was further selected to work with the very secretive CIA Intelligence flights conducted from West Germany during 1956 & 1957.
Upon return to the U.S. He was selected for U.S. Air Force Pilot training. This started his aviation career as a pilot. Was has lasted nearly a half a century and is still going.
Upon leaving the Air Force he returned to his home town Of Cloquet, Minnesota where he was hired as a pilot for The Northwest Paper Company a Weyerhaeuser Timber Company Holding. There he continued as a corporate pilot for nearly twenty years becoming this company’s Chief pilot. During this time he organized and operated several very successful aviation businesses. One a very successful Flying School, an aerial photography & mapping company, a Canadian certified charter company and he was very active as a contractor with the Department of natural resources as a forest fire suppression Contractor.
In 1982 Arnie sold all of his business interests in Minnesota and moved to Northern Florida where he accepted a position with the U.S. Air Force Locating at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. He held this position for two years after this time he left the Air Force and accepted a position With the U.S. Army Contract Fixed Wing pilot training program; also he accepted a concurrent position with the Fair child Aircraft Company as an Engineering Test Pilot. He held these two positions concurrently for a number of years then he was promoted by Fairchild to become the division Flight Operations Manager and Chief test pilot. This demanded that he resign from his Army Training position and devote full time to the Fairchild position.
Arnie Odegaard had qualified for his first Flight Instructors Certificate in 1962. Subsequently he has qualified for both the Airplane and Helicopter Flight instructor Certificates along with Heavy aircraft type ratings on his Airline Transport Pilot Certificate.
In 1970 Arnie Odegaard was appointed by the Federal Aviation Agency as a Designated Pilot Examiner a position which he holds to this day and is authorized to examine pilots for certification for all Certificates and Ratings up to the Airline Transport Pilot level.
Arnie Odegaard has served as a Flight Instructor for the U.S. Air Force, The U.S. Army along with very advanced civilian pilot training. He has also served a six year period as a Pilot and Flight Instructor with the Air Force of Israel on a U.S. State Dept. program and holds Military Orders as a Pilot and Flight Instructor from that country.
As of June of 1999 Arnold P. Odegaard has flown aircraft in excess of 30,000. Flight Hours, 13,000. Hours of which has been instruction to student pilots. As a Representative of the Federal Aviation Agency he has certified in excess of 8,000. Pilots for all types of piloting Certificates and Ratings.
As a Hobby Arnie became a very proficient and entertaining Air Show Performer, performing in many Large and Small airshows throughout the country entertaining the crowds and has performed at such airshows as the Oshkosh Wisconsin Annual event.
Arnold P. Odegaard, Truly a professional Aviator.