For as long as there have been aircraft, there have been brave pilots who fly them first, risking their lives to evaluate the design, pushing it to its limits to see what it can do. This month we’re meeting one of those, a 26-year Air Force Fighter Pilot who in his lifetime flew 106 different aircraft, none with an onboard toilet, including one of the premier USAF fighters. It is my honor to introduce to you Colonel Art Bergman, United States Air Force Pilot and Vietnam Veteran.

 

Art grew up in Fairfield, Connecticut and from a very young age knew he wanted to be a fighter pilot. With three different fighter aircraft companies nearby, he saw planes often and one time a Vought F4U Corsair buzzed his house so low he thought it would cut off their chimney. He was hooked. In the eighth grade, his class was given an assignment to write about their aspirations. Of course, Art wrote about his desire to be a fighter pilot and was one of the only kids to fulfill their dream!

 

After two years at the University of Connecticut, Art learned that the Air Force was looking for new pilots. He submitted his name, endured three long days of testing, and a month later was accepted. DREAMS DO COME TRUE! He attended fighter school, became an F-100 Super Saber pilot, and was off to Vietnam. During his tour with the “Buzzards of Bien Hoa,” Art took off on 300 missions, but only made 299 landings, one on a South Vietnamese airfield while losing all his fuel. The one time he couldn’t land became an ejection. Art pulled the ejection handle and was blasted out of the cockpit by a cannon cartridge. Due to damage to his back, Art is now five inches shorter than when he first started to fly!

 

After Vietnam, Art transferred to the Air War College in Maxwell AFB, followed by a tour at Langley AFB to help design the new F-15 Eagle, the premier fighter that was never shot down in combat. His commander had bigger plans for him and sent him to Edwards AFB to be one of the original test pilots on the new fighter. He would be putting the awesome jet through rigorous evaluations to turn it into the greatest fighter of its era. After four years at Edwards, Art was assigned commander of operational testing at Luke AFB. There were two missions: training the pilots of the first F15 Fighter Squadron and conducting operational testing. This was most often done at Eglin AFB, shooting down several older fighters and drones over the Gulf.

 

Art’s final assignment was at Davis-Monthan AFB as Wing Commander of 90 A-10 Warthogs and after a 26-year career retired in 1981. He moved to a ski area in California where he got into buying and selling real estate. It went so well that he was set up for a real retirement. He also did some test flying for the FAA and served as an FAA pilot examiner. He distinguished himself as the examiner with the highest failure rate, which meant the ones he passed were the best. Art was still living in California with his wife, Jackie, while their son, Kurt, was living in PCB. Art disliked California so when Kurt and his wife, Heather, invited them to come to the Emerald Coast, they bought a condo and stayed for good.

 

WOW… what a life! Thank you so much, Art, for your incredible service, the sacrifices you still make, and for being a part of Air Force history. You make this old First Sergeant proud!