Officer retires after fini flight

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Patrick Harrower
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Lt. Col. Scott Moffat, 9th Aerial Refueling Squadron chief of training, celebrated his retirement from the Air Force with his final flight yesterday at Travis.

Moffat flew the KC-10 Extender for the majority of his career in the Air Force, after a brief three-year stint on the KC-135 Stratotanker when he first received his commission.

"Aerial refueling is a part of the mission people don't usually think about," Moffat said. "It is actually a huge force enabler. It enables planes to stay airborne to meet mission requirements, some of which are to provide critical ground support."

His Air Force career started when he was just seven years old when his father took him to an air show.

"I just stood there and looked up at an airplane," he said. "Then I said to myself 'that's it.' I have been very fortunate to have a career in the Air Force as a pilot."

Being a pilot runs in Moffat's blood, but he was unaware of this until eight years ago, he said.

"I was adopted at birth and nobody in my adoptive family had any military background," Moffat said. "After I found my birth mother I learned I had a grandfather who was a pilot in World War II. I also learned I had a great grandfather who was a pilot in the Army Air Corps and eventually became the commander of Pope Air Force Base, N.C."

Being a pilot has also awarded Moffat with the opportunity to travel the world, he said.

"I can't count how many times I've deployed with the KC-10," he said. "I have been everywhere from Italy to Zimbabwe. Even Diego Garcia multiple times."

Moffat has had a good friend with him for more than 20 years. They started flying together at Grisham Air Force Base, Ind., before it was closed and have kept crossing paths ever since.

"We have flown together all over the Middle East and Europe," said Lt. Col. Doug Sanford, 79th Aerial Refueling Squadron instructor pilot. "He has always been pleasant and professional. I like knowing that when I fly with him, he does things by the book and I can rely on him."

For Moffat, it's all about the people and relationships he has made in the Air Force. Good friends and coworkers make it easier to rise up and deal with deployments, paperwork and other distractions, he said.