Greeley grad's dream has him flying high

Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Oct 31, 1999 by Greeley Tribune

GREELEY - He's not flying Air Force One, but Air Force Maj. Terry Goodrich admits he has a pretty cool job.

Goodrich, a graduate of Greeley Central High School and the University of Northern Colorado, has been flying government officials in and out Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland for the past two years.

"Most of the time, I don't even think about the fact that there's a well-known person on board," Goodrich said. "But the other day I had a vice president mission, and we hit some turbulence. And I thought, 'Gee, I'd better smooth this out. The vice president is back there.'"

Goodrich, 37, whose parents live in Greeley, isn't the kind of guy who has always dreamed of flying high-ranking government officials all over the world.

But he has always dreamed of flying.

When he was a child in Greeley, he collected model airplanes and talked about military planes with his friends.

"Flying airplanes was always in the back of my mind," Goodrich said. "I still remember watching the Apollo moon launches on TV. Something about flying always caught my interest."

He was a senior at Bartlesville Wesleyan College in Nebraska before he decided to listen to his heart. He got a degree in religion from the Wesleyan college but headed back to Greeley to join the Air Force Reserve Officers' Training Corps and earn a math degree at the University of Northern Colorado.

After graduating from UNC and going through Air Force pilot training, Goodrich flew KC-135s, which refuel fighter jets and cargo planes at an altitude as high as 20,000 feet. Goodrich was in the Persian Gulf War and flew missions over Bosnia.

"It takes a pretty average pilot to fly a KC-135," he said.

"They decide for you when you're in pilot training which planes you'll fly. The best pilots get to fly the fighter jets. The average ones fly the bigger planes.

"At first, I really wanted to be a fighter pilot, but then I realized how hard it was. With the KC-135, I could get up and walk around, go to the bathroom, get a cup of coffee. It's a kinder, gentler experience than a fighter jet."

After nine years of flying KC-135s, Goodrich applied for a transfer to Andrews Air Force Base to fly government officials on VC- 9C planes.

"I never really thought of going to Andrews until a friend of mine did," he said. "Besides, I was kind of getting bored and needed a change."

Now Goodrich said he feels more like a commercial airline pilot than a military man. Instead of wearing the green flight suits other military pilots wear, Goodrich dons a dress uniform for each domestic mission. When flying overseas, he wears civilian clothes.

"We don't want to draw attention to ourselves when we're overseas," he said. "We could come off the plane in our uniforms, and the locals might think the Americans are invading."

Goodrich has been a co-pilot on missions carrying Al Gore, first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and Gen. Henry Shelton, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, across the world. In two years, he's been all over Europe, the former Soviet Union and Central and South America.

Each plane's name depends on which government official is on board. When the president is on board, the plane is called Air Force One.

When the vice president is the senior-ranking official, it's called Air Force Two. And only the pilots with the most experience get to fly with the president.

Six months ago, Goodrich was promoted to be head pilot on missions with members of Congress and lower-ranking government officials. No matter who's on the plane with him, though, Goodrich said he doesn't have much contact with the passengers.

"We really only greet each other," he said. "It's kind of like, 'Hi, how are you?' and then 'Thanks for flying with us' at the end."

The pilots do get to see some of the perks that go along with being a government official. The planes are equipped with furniture you would find in a house - desks, tables, chairs, sofas that pull out into beds. For meals it's steak and lobster prepared fresh on board.

A year from now, Goodrich and his wife Kristin, a former Navy officer, will probably be thinking about where they'd like to go next. His tour at Andrews Air Force Base ends in 2001.

"It's a fun job, and I'll stay as long as they want me," he said. "But if we move on in two years, that's OK. Maybe we'll get out West again for our next assignment."