Air Force 2

Getting on Air Force 2 took some time and planning. But, of course, it started with one of my custodians just striking up a conversation with someone at EAA AirVenture. When he found out what we were doing he volunteered that his grandson was probably going to be assigned to the maintenance group for Air Force 2 but it wouldn't be for over a year. Well, we were happy to wait if it meant getting to do something that exciting,

A year passed and I was actually off flying somewhere else, but my custodians and Flag Jr went to the gentleman's home town about an hour away and had dinner with him, his son, and his grandson, the mechanic who was still working to get credentials to work on Air Force 2.

The day finally dawned. Air Force 2 was bringing Vice President Pence to Milwaukee for a speech. Unfortunately our young friend, Allen, was not assigned to that flight. Luckily his friend, Derek, said he'd take care of meeting me and getting me back to Edwards Air Force Base where Air Force 2 is stationed.

These guys are really incredible mechanics since they are trusted with the lives of some of the countries most important public officials. Most of the time that I got to fly, I was actually on the plane with the Secretary of State and other cabinet members. I'm not always sure where we went but I know we went to Germany and to Israel. I spent most of the pandemic there at Edwards. We probably didn't fly as much as we would have if the world had been more normal, but it was still an incredible honor to fly on that plane and hang out with these dedicated people.