I was inspired at an early age to pursue a career and life in aviation. I was like many others in this profession, aviation is not only what you do but who you are. My father was a WW2 Naval aviator. In 1947, he began a long and successful airline career, starting as a DC-3 copilot and retiring as a TWA 747 Captain.

My first flying lesson was in a 1946 Aeronca 7AC Champion on June 30, 1970. It was truly the essence of piloting, with no electrical system or fuel gauge. Flying depended on your piloting skills using a needle-ball, airspeed, and instincts. I soloed after only 7 hours of dual instruction and earned my private pilot license on July 14, 1971 in a Cessna 150.

I was accepted to the Air Force Academy class of 1976, where I was exposed to the unlimited potential of Air Force aviation. After graduation, I began my formal flight training at Columbus AFB, MS flying the T37 and T38. I received the outstanding graduate award and assigned to Luke AFB and completed training in the F-4C. Since the Vietnam war was over, I fought the cold war on alert in West Germany. During this assignment, I transitioned to the F-4G Wild Weasel mission and eventually an instructor pilot at George AFB, CA.

In 1984 my career path expanded and I separated from active duty. I continued flying in the Air Force Reserve at Wright-Patterson AFB and began flying the B737 for People Express Airlines. After airline deregulation in 1978, the industry became extremely volatile and I restarted my career in 1987 at United Airlines flying the B727 and DC10. In the AF reserve, I qualified in the F-16 aircraft. I was truly fortunate to fly DC-10s to Hawaii and the F16 in Ohio on drill weekends before I retired as a LtCol in 2000.

The airlines expanded rapidly in the 1990s and I qualified as a B737 Captain in 1995, and the A320 in 1998. After 9/11, the airlines declined as fast as they had expanded. After 9 years, I qualified in the B757/767 aircraft. It was at this point in my career that I reached what my father achieved a generation earlier, flying an international wide body aircraft. I completed my airline career flying the B777-200/300, often on 16-hour flights to Asia. I am still awed by the advances in training and technology that have evolved since I began flying. At the completion of my last flight, I accumulated 26,416 total hours. I have over 1500 hours in fighter aircraft and over 17000 hours as a United Airlines Captain.

My success has been the result hard work and the unlimited support of my family. I am extremely grateful to the exceptional pilots that I?€™ve flown with. Finally, I would like to thank the and the role models that contributed to making me a better pilot for the past 50 years.