F-15E pilot reaches 3,000 flying hours at Bagram

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Craig Seals
  • 455th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan --  Lt. Col. Dave Iverson, 492nd Expeditionary Fighter Squadron director of operations, became the 15th pilot to achieve 3,000 flight hours upon landing after a mission July 25 at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan.

Upon landing, Col. Iverson taxied through a arcing cascade of water shot from two fire department nozzles in a fighter squadron tradition of a post-flight "hose down" for flying achievements.

After being marshaled in to his parking spot, Col. Iverson was greeted by a host of fellow pilots and squadron members on hand to congratulate him on his historic career achievement.

"This is pretty awesome. It's not often you're surrounded by such an outstanding group of people such as this," said Col. Iverson. "I've been flying since 1991 and it's been such a great experience. You really can't find anything like this anywhere else."

The reception was a bit of a surprise for the pilot. And his fellow squadron members planned it that way.

"[Col. Iverson] is a very humble man and never would've asked for something like this," said Capt. Sam Tucker, 492nd EFS. "Everyone pretty much knew that he was approaching 3,000, but he had no idea there would be an entourage."

After posing for a few photographs and accepting a large poster from his peers commemorating his historic flight, the 492nd held a luncheon in their operations building to celebrate.

"It's a tremendous honor and a rare privilege to have someone with that kind of tactical experience in a leadership position in the squadron," said Lt. Col. Troy Stone, 492nd EFS commander. "This achievement shows that [Col. Iverson] is one of those rare individuals that has both the tactical experience and leadership potential to lead and command a fighting unit in the U.S. Air Force."

Of Col. Iverson's 3,002 flight hours in the F-15E Strike Eagle, 300 of those are combat hours with approximately 150 hours in support of Operation Enduring Freedom over Afghanistan.