Chris Austin, SKHS Class of 1990, joins the elite Thunderbirds flight squadron.
On the Web: Visit the USAF Thunderbirds Web site
Classmates of Chris Austin, a 1990 graduate of South Kitsap High
School, may remember a skinny blond kid with thick black eyebrows
and a winning smile. At Burley-Glenwood and Manchester Elementary
schools, he was the kid always drawing planes that streaked across
the sky of his childhood imagination.
Like many youngsters, Austin dreamed of becoming a pilot. Today,
Maj. Chris Austin is a member of the fabled Thunderbirds precision
Air Force flying squadron, currently embarked on a worldwide
tour.
As the Thunderbirds’ left wing pilot, Austin flies at 600 miles per
hour, his jet a mere three feet from others in the squadron. For
Austin, 35, it’s the thrill of a lifetime, but ask him what excites
him the most about his new assignment, and he’ll talk about the
people on the ground.
“I love the fact we represent the 513,000 men and women of the Air
Force. Sometimes we represent the entire military. It’s quite
humbling. It’s a huge honor,” said Austin, speaking from Ft.
Lauderdale, Fla. Thursday, where he was doing a show.
Austin, who has served two tours of duty as a pilot in Iraq, said,
when he’s flying with the Thunderbirds, he thinks of the servicemen
and servicewomen stationed in that country, Afghanistan and other
war-torn areas of the world.
“Most of the kids in Iraq and Afghanistan are just young kids doing
the best they can,” Austin said. “Whether you agree or disagree
with war, the bottom line is, our military men and women, they’re
some of the best people I’ve ever met.”
Austin also has a soft spot in his heart for kids. As a member of
the Thunderbirds, he and his fellow pilots regularly speak to
school and youth groups, and the squadron often visits with
seriously ill children through the Make-a-Wish Foundation.
Austin’s mother, Cathy Pinard of South Colby, is understandably
proud of her son. She says she gets chills whenever she watches his
squadron perform.
“It makes your heart beat when you see them taking off down the
runway together, and they’re just inches apart,” said Pinard, who
saw Austin’s first public flight with the Thunderbirds March 24 at
Luke Air Force Base in Arizona.
The Thunderbirds will continue touring the United States before
continuing their 2007 tour overseas.
The Thunderbirds, the Air Force equivalent of the Navy’s Blue
Angels, were formed in 1953 as a flight demonstration squadron.
Through the years, the squadron has served to inspire all members
of the military and civilians with their high altitude ballet
designed to showcase the precision and maneuverability of the Air
Force F-16 fighter jet. But the Thunderbirds are not just for show;
they’re fully combat ready.
Austin has seen his share of combat. After graduating from the Air
Force Academy in 1995, he completed flight training in 1997. He has
been deployed to Bosnia, Korea, Iraq, Italy and Djibouti, Africa.
He was tapped to join the Thunderbirds last summer and began
training with the elite corps in November. He is currently assigned
to Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.
Austin said he’s never been the best student or the best anything,
but he never let go of his dream.
“I always knew I wanted to be a pilot,” he said. “I never gave up.
I was always improving my study skills, my athletic skills, my
personal skills. I was always working at it.”
Austin, who now calls Huntington Beach, Calif., home, is the son of
the late Richard Austin, the step-son of the late Vic Pinard and
the grandson of Ivan Kapovich of Harper. His grandmother Vivian
Kapovich is deceased. Austin’s wife, Sia Austin, is also an Air
Force major. His sister Angie Watkins of San Antonio, Texas, is a
retired Air Force master sergeant. His other sister, Michelle
Addie, lives in Bremerton.
