Immediately after completing 56M pilot training in Bainbridge, Georgia I was off to Laughlin AFB in Del Rio, Texas. There I flew the T-33 and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant. My next assignment was to head to Arizona to fly the F-86 at Williams AFB, I think the military just wanted to see if I could actually fly a new airplane without any help! They also wanted to see how good my trigger finger was in gunner school! After many successful solo landings and no major gun mishaps, I then returned to the Air National Guard in McGuire AFB, New Jersey. Back in my home state I was having fun flying F-86 and F-84.

It is now 1956 and I decided to find a challenge to add to National Guard duty. I was hired by Capitol Airlines and based in Washington, D.C. While at Capitol I flew the
DC-3, DC-4 and the Viscount. During one memorable night flight in a DC-4 over Harrisburg, Pennsylvania I proposed to my beautiful flight attendant, Joan who has now been my wife for over 46 years. The proposal occurred over her hometown where she had previously trained to be a nurse prior to taking the skies.

My next landmark event occurred in 1961 when Capitol Airlines merged with United Airlines. I was then based in Newark, New Jersey flying DC-6, DC-7, B-727, and B-737.
In 1978, United decided to close the Newark pilot base leaving the family to decide where to move. A journey out west was finally decided upon, landing in the East Bay to be based in San Francisco, California. I flew the B-767 until retirement.

Joan and I have two children, Russell and Barbara. Russell is the oldest and lives in Santa Rosa working at a sporting goods store. Barbara followed the path of good old dad and is a pilot for SkyWest Airlines (United Express carrier) living and based in Denver, Colorado. She flies the Canadair CRJ-700, a 66-seat passenger jet, that sends her coast-to-coast throughout her trips. Husband, Warren is an Aviation Data Specialist for Jeppesen at their headquarters in Englewood, Colorado.