“Good. Thanks. I just talked to the weather briefer about the storm we talked about earlier down in Colorado, and I’d like to head to the southeast around it. Down towards New Mexico. From there, we can head over to southern Nevada,” shared Ford, making a quick change to their planned route. “Just filed the flight plan, too.”
“Got it. I’ll talk to the rest of the crew here in a minute,” said Pinky.
Ford approached the aircraft with awe, as he did for every flight. Both Ford and Wu had dreams as teenagers long ago to fly for the military, and after years of careful planning and pursuit, they did it. It was not easy for Ford, though. After playing second string football and studying in Air Force ROTC at the University of Notre Dame, his dream was accomplished and he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant. Summers at U.S. Army Airborne School learning to parachute, and then Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape Training, and later towards graduation being embedded in a fighter squadron, all contributed to Ford being where he was today. He was able to compete successfully for a coveted pilot slot with the other Fly Irish! Detachment 225 of ROTC cadets, gaining a shot at earning his wings. Ford then continued to Vance AFB to Joint Undergraduate Pilot Training and learned to fly the T-37 Tweet, then the T-38 Talon, and eventually the B-1B Lancer. He was living his dream.
The path to success was not easy for Ford, though. He nearly failed English 101 and Accounting 102 at Notre Dame as a freshman for skipping too many classes, and got into trouble during his junior year with the University’s Administration for a toilet paper prank outside the Student Center. Later in flight school, he failed a written exam on Meteorology, and another time failed to accurately perform the landing checklist in a simulator flight. He also spent a lot of time volunteering with the Knights of Columbus, but soon realized that if he spread himself too thin, he couldn’t focus on his studies. There were no guarantees at getting a Notre Dame degree, or pilot wings.
His biggest personal hurdle came during the formal Psychological Exam and Interview by the Air Force Flight Surgeons, checking to see if he had the mental ‘Right Stuff’ to become a pilot. It was a personal hurdle because it was something you couldn’t prepare for. No studying. Either you had it, or you didn’t. It was also a hurdle to Ford because although he was smart, he wasn’t a rocket scientist with outstanding academic scores. While athletic, he wasn’t an Olympic competitor. While he earned okay grades, he wasn’t tearing up the report cards. What he did have, though, was leadership, and had the special ability to get others to join him in accomplishing goals. Whether it was related to ROTC, or toilet papering college buildings at 2:00 in the morning, he could get groups of others to make things happen. Young Ford had no idea what to expect, and since there was no way to prepare, he just acted himself and listened in awe at the psychologist results.
The psychologists told Ford he had somewhat of a unique pilot personality, meaning he had certain characteristics that made him physically and mentally different than your average bear in America. Of course, upon hearing that, Ford sat up straighter in his chair. Personality wise, they told him, he was reality-based and independent, and because of the skills required in aviation, it would be convenient. His parents raised him to be independent, which he was, and because Ford wanted a task to get done, they said he probably had some difficulty trusting anyone to do the job as well as he could. Yup, that’s me, he said to himself silently. Occasionally, Ford was apprehensive, and even distrustful, but the doctors said in small doses, this characteristic would serve him well and would be helpful in his upcoming high-speed environment. So far, so good, he thought.
They continued with their assessment. Ford’s competitive, be-on-time obsession, like setting two morning alarm clocks and his smart phone so he could get up earlier than anyone else, was to beat competitors to the punch in the morning. Those guys at the unit aren’t going to beat me! Ford was rated as intelligent, but was not ranked as intellectually gifted, which was fine for the Air Force and for Ford. He wasn’t about getting on the Honor Roll, but to perform successfully in flight school. The doctors also told him he was solid and practical in his thinking, and was extremely goal oriented. True, true. One of the two doctors also told him that he most likely craved parties and exhilaration, and a typical 9 to 5 job like his college buddies had would drive him crazy. Yes! That’s me!
Ford listened intently, and wanted to know the bottom line, seeking if it was a yes, or no. Come on, Docs can I attend flight training or not? They continued, telling Ford that he was occasionally modest, an achiever, and handled failure mostly well, which he agreed. He was a risk-taker, someone who would also put his life on the line for others, when given the chance. They shared that he had a low tolerance for mistakes, circumvented self-analysis, and sometimes found it challenging to reveal and express his own feelings. Ouch, but, okay, true. He could be unemotional from time to time, which would aid him in the future as a pilot in dealing with emergencies in the cockpit, as he was told, but they also shared with him that it could also affect his relationships with women. Oh, oh.
At the end of the day, he was approved. The doctors finally gave him the news he wanted to hear, and Ford Stevens was approved for flight training years ago. He continued to be satisfied that he selected the right occupation, and Ford loved being a pilot.
Later in flight training, Ford took an elective titled “Human Factors in Aviation,” and laughed at the list of personality traits of pilots because he saw himself in the data. These all fit me like a glove! he thought. The laundry list of traits mentioned things like being physically healthy, lacks signs of neurosis, seeks responsibility and novelty, and exhibits anxiety when feeling too close to women. The list also mentioned that pilots may be cautious about close relationships, and they avoided revealing true feelings. His studies at the time, which included academic work by the NASA Astronaut Office, validated his own thoughts on becoming a military pilot.
“Great day to fly, Sgt McCoy!” Ford announced as he approached the maintenance Airman, standing near the nose of the jet. McCoy shook his hand, but did not say anything in the cold morning air.
Ford stood in front of the B-1 and gave it a long glance. A once over. Ford continued to be impressed at not only the large size of the aircraft, but at its high speed performance for being so large. To Ford, it performed like a sports car. More important to him, he was getting paid to do something that he loved so much. To strap on something like this and wear it on his back and perform with a group of aircrew, was something he would have done for free.
To think that he and best friend Wu Lee both had a dream as teenagers to become military pilots, and then his dream come true, was extraordinary. From applicant, to medical physicals, written exams, psychology screening, to the constant scrutiny of every single training flight being criticized and graded, the graduation rates were staggeringly low. At best, it may only be that 10 % make it through all the way from applicant to earning their wings.
As Ford was climbing the ladder behind the nose landing gear to get inside the cockpit, Sgt McCoy climbed up in back of him.
“Hey fellas,” Ford greeted the other two aircrew members who were already inside the jet.