A Day in the Life of a Fighter Pilot

January 19,2023 - WACO Historical Society Aviation Lecture Series

WACO Air Museum, 1865 South County Road 25A, Troy, Ohio 45373

Thursday, January 19, 2023. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., lecture starts at 7 p.m.

A Day in the Life of a Fighter Pilot

Thursday, January 19, at 7 pm, as part of the 2022-23 Aviation Lecture Series, Eric Pushmann will share his experiences of piloting the F-111A Aardvark and the EF-111 Raven in combat. Pushmann will be sharing his combat experiences.

Eric Puschmann is a retired USAF Lieutenant Colonel. He graduated from the University of Idaho with a degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1970 and was commissioned into the USAF that same summer. He attended pilot training that fall at Laredo AFB, Texas, followed by flying the F-111A at Nellis AFB, Nevada. In January 1973, he transferred to Takhli Royal Thai Air Base, Thailand, where he flew 102 combat missions into Laos and Cambodia before transferring to the F-111D at Cannon AFB, New Mexico. From 1975 to 1979, he was a civilian petroleum engineer for Texaco in West Texas. In 1979, he returned to active duty at Mountain Home, Idaho as an F-111A pilot. In 1982, he transferred into the initial cadre of the EF-111 electronic jammer. From 1987 to 1991, he was stationed at Sembach Air Base, West Germany while he continued to fly the EF-111 located at Royal Air Force Upper Heyford, England. During DESERT STORM, he deployed to Incirlik Air Base, Turkey, where he flew 23 combat missions into Iraq. He returned to the United States in 1991 where he held several staff jobs at Langley AFB, Virginia, and the B-2 System Program Office at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. Following his time spent in the USAF, in 1998 he continued to work as an Air Force contractor in several acquisition positions at WPAFB and the Pentagon.

Mr. Pushmann is an active FAA Certificated Flight Instructor. Between 2004 and 2012, he built an RV-7A aerobatic airplane which he still flies regularly. He is active in the Experimental Aircraft Association and has flown over 300 Young Eagle youth. He holds an Airplane Transport Pilot certificate and has over 5000 flying hours.

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All aviation lectures are free and open to the public and are scheduled to last one hour, beginning at 7 pm, with questions to follow. The lecture is held in the Willis Wing of the WACO Air Museum at 1865 South County Road 25A in Troy, OH. Doors will open at 6:30. Donations to the WACO Air Museum are gratefully accepted. All lectures are sponsored in part by Collins Wheels and Brakes. For questions, please call 937-335-9226 or visit www.wacoairmuseum.org.

WACO Air Museum & Learning Center • 1865 S. County Rd. 25A • Troy, OH 45373 • 937-335-9226

www.wacoairmuseum.org

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WACO Air Museum & Learning Center is Site #11 on the Aviation Trail