Finding way back to AF piloting

Retiring from military service is generally a time of memories, and regrets. They often miss the camaraderie and mission. But mostly they don’t come back. Lt. Col. Tom Collins of the 43rd Flying Training Squadron at Columbus Air Force Base, Miss., isn’t one of them. The T-38 Talon instructor pilot was commissioned in 1999, but agreed to accept early retirement in 2014 and made Columbus home in 2019. Initially, he accepted a post with a commercial airline. But, eventually, it didn’t feel right for him and his wife. The journey began back into an AF cockpit. By fall 2017, the active duty AF started courting retired pilots in an effort to restore critical manning shortages, but wasn’t an option for the Collins family. Collins found another option. The Air Force Reserve was hiring prior service pilots to be undergraduate flying training instructors. Collins doesn’t believe in coincidence, but when opportunities opened with the 43rd FTS at Columbus it seemed miraculously ideal. (Source: 40th Flying Training Group 04/29/19)