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Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Friend

Honored by:
Mrs. Sharon Kay Orff

From the day 14 year old Lowell (Budd) Amundson won a ride with a barnstormer in a Curtis Robin, he knew he would become a pilot. His first year in college, Budd worked on aircrafts and joined the Civil Air Patrol. In 1940 at age 19 Budd went to the Air Corp recruiting office and enlisted to become a pilot. This was a beginning of an Air Force career of over 30 years, but becoming a pilot would take longer than he had planned. With his Staff Sergeant promotion Budd married his college sweetheart, Ramona. In the coming years he would become an officer, but not a pilot as he had a problem with his eyes. Meanwhile he and Ramona would have two daughters and Budd would spend 18 months in Okinawa where he became a member of the Caterpillar Club when he bailed out of a burning B-29.

At age 27 Budd knew he must take his last chance to become a pilot. His commander sent him to a doctor in Phoenix who specialized in unusual eye problems. After intense therapy Budd passed the physical and was on his way to Randolph AFB and Class 49c. After graduation he would log 1,100 hours as an instructor pilot. At Craig AFB he was the director of a special school to train supervisors of instructor pilots. Budd continued to teach, flying T-34's, T-6's, T-28's, C-45G's, B-25's and T-33's. He called those years "a vacation with pay".

As with all Air Force families there were many moves. At Luke AFB Budd and Ramona had a son, and there were more planes to fly, F-84-F's and F-100 C's. At Weathersfield AFB in England he was in charge of one of the biggest and most successful air shows the base had ever done. In Oslo, Norway with NATO Budd continued to fly even if HQ only had 3 "very tired" C-47's. Back in the US he flew F-4's and qualified as a test pilot in that plane. Budd's last assignment was at Clark AFB in the Philippines, although he spent much of that time in Vietnam. On returning home Col. L.O Amundson retired at Davis Monthan AFB after 31 years, 12 days and 12 hours.

As a civilian Budd got his private pilot's license, then his commercial license and flew nearly 8,000 miles on business. He and Ramona continued to travel the world always visiting the air and space museums wherever they went. Budd is now 88 and still loves to "talk" planes and flying. His dream as a young boy became a wonderful reality.