Just like for my parents, success has not been inevitable. The Air Force also succeeds because it has talented, determined, brave and diverse Airmen and civilians who blend their skills and experience to solve tough challenges to stay ahead of our adversaries. The world recognizes that the Air Force and our sister services push technological and cultural boundaries to make our nation the leader in air and space power. The Air Force employs some of the most advanced aircraft and best-trained people in the world to defend our nation, deter our adversaries, reassure allies, and help diplomacy proceed from a position of strength. I have been wearing the uniform for more than three decades and I have loved every opportunity my service has given me and as the Air Force celebrates its 75th anniversary my history and good fortune as part of this organization comes into even sharper relief. My dream was to fly fighter jets - I wanted to fly Mach 1 with my hair on fire.įast forward to now, I’ve logged more than 4,200 hours of flight time in more than 30 different military aircraft. I set my sights on the Air Force Academy and graduated with a degree in aeronautical engineering. My passion for aviation, and the science and physics behind it, was stoked by my time as a Civil Air Patrol cadet and led me to a career in the Air Force. I got my pilot’s license before I got my driver’s license. Whether I could see over the dashboard or not, I wanted to play with the buttons and knobs and learn everything about flying.īy the time I was a teenager, I had flown a lot of different aircraft. When I wasn’t sweeping hangars or cleaning spark plugs, I was dreaming of jumping in an airplane, taking the controls and flying it myself. Some years after immigrating to the United States from the Netherlands in the 1960s, with little to their name but an abiding faith in the American Dream, my parents owned a flying operation.Īnyone who has been a part of a family business knows that it is just that, “a family’s business” - meaning it’s everyone’s responsibility to chip in, work hard, and do their part to make it successful. My interest in aviation began at an early age.
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