Student Profile: Michael Warren
To say that Mike Warren's head has been in the clouds a lot these days would be a real complement for this newly certificated Private Pilot! He completed Thunderbird's 141 training program just four days before his 68th birthday and immediately started getting checked out in other Thunderbird rental aircraft. Today, he flies the Piper Warrior, Archer and C-172 and enjoys taking up his friends and family to show them the view of the region from the air.

Mike has loved aviation since he was young, growing up just a mile from Kirtland AFB in Albuquerque, NM. "I was enthralled by all the military aircraft flying in and out during the 40's and 50's, B-29's, B-36's, P-51's, P-80's, and F-86's. The Air Force would hold an "open house" every Armed Forces Day and I loved to climb in the planes," explained Warren. One of the highlights of growing up near an Air Force base happened when Warren was fifteen and his next door neighbor, an Air Guard pilot, took him up in a P-51 Mustang!

Mike tried to join the Air Force when he graduated High School, but his eyesight was not good enough for flying so he joined the Navy in 1958. He spent 20 years on active duty, followed by 10 years in the Fleet Reserve. Warren was primarily a CRYPTO maintenance technician/instructor and was stationed at three Naval Air Stations (NAS) during his 20-year career, NAS Cubi Point, NAS Adak, Alaska and a joint U.S. Navy and Italian Navy NATO airbase in Sicily. During his time overseas, Warren was able to log one carrier landing in a C-2, as a passenger, and one carrier take-off in a S-53 helo, also as a passenger.

When Mike left the Navy, he started a second career with Control Data in Minneapolis and raised a family, retiring officially in December 2000. The impetus for learning to fly came about in May 2007 when Mike's mother passed away and left him a small inheritance with instructions to "do something fun".

In his own words, Mike recalls how he got started:
"I couldn't think of anything more fun than fulfilling my dream of learning how to fly and had heard Al Malmberg, of WCCO radio, talking about his personal flying experiences at Thunderbird Aviation, so last June I got my FAA medical and signed up! Everybody at TBA has been super helpful and full of encouragement -- a BIG thank you to all of you."

Your welcome, Mike! Thank you for all your doing to keep general aviation flying high in Minnesota and we'll see you on the flight line!

For more information about flight training visit our Web site at www.thunderbirdaviation.com.

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