Posted on 11/04/2010 2:46:13 PM PDT by STARWISE
Video - Col. Mark Tillman's talk
• Commander of Air Force One (2001-2009) • • Air Force One Pilot on September 11, 2001 • • Commander of 250 person crew • Selected by the White House as the nation’s 12th Presidential pilot, Colonel (ret) Mark W. Tillman served President George W. Bush as pilot and commander of Air Force One from 2001-2009. • As the leader of a large organization, his tenure was marked with excellence and an adherence to a Zero Fail philosophy. • Col. Tillman commanded Air Force One through multiple national events. Most notably, he protected the President and his staff on the day of September 11, 2001 by escaping and evading many potential threats. • Through careful planning and flawless decision-making, Col. Tillman and his crew provided two urgent needs for the President--complete safety and constant connection to the nation's first responders. • President Bush's seemingly impromptu Thanksgiving visit to the United States military in Iraq was another highly regarded success of Col. Tillman and his crew. The challenge was unprecedented--transport the most targeted man in the world into the heart of terrorism. • One mistake would have left the President open to attack and cost the lives of US service members. • Col. Tillman personally orchestrated and executed the covert operation with flawless success. His planning, done in complete secrecy, allowed for a complete surprise to the entire world including the press. • Col Tillman later brought President Bush into the war zone on three other occasions and defended against numerous threats during his tenure as Presidential Pilot. • Each of these experiences have been declassified and serve as a centerpiece to Col. Tillman's keynote messages on leadership, teamwork and the Zero Fail policies. • Col Tillman’s distinguished career spans 30 years in the United States Air Force. Utilizing his Bachelors of Science degree in Chemical Engineering (Tulane Univ ’79), he served as a Rocket Propulsion Engineer upon entering the service but was quickly selected to attend USAF pilot training. • His flying experiences include time as a T-37 Instructor Pilot for undergraduate pilot training, C-130 transport pilot, VIP airlift as a pilot in the Gulfstream III and IV and Presidential pilot in the VC-25 or Boeing 747. • He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in 2004 and promoted to Brigadier General by the President of the United States—the first military line officer to receive this honor (not confirmed by the Senate Armed Services Committee). • A thought-provoking and riveting story teller, Col. Tillman continues to mentor others as a consultant in the aerospace industry and flying as a corporate pilot. • He approaches each opportunity with the same personal mantra, "Zero failure doesn’t just happen ... successful leaders make it happen."
Col. Mark Tillman
President Bush (center, bending) and others look out the windows of Air Force One as their fighter escort arrives. [Source: White House]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Nat'l Geographic Special: video snippet - Bush's Secret Visit to Iraq
~~~~~~~~
WoW .. goosebumps! God bless Col Tillman and ALL those warriors who protected President Bush and us all that most surreal and horrible day. God bless and protect America! Pray for our leaders.
... MUST SEE .. Ping!
Thank you, Kathy!
(please forgive any duplications ;)
What I would give to be a fly on the wall during some of those flights.
Thank you for posting this.
THANK you for finding and posting this incredible ‘behind the scenes’ video — Colonel Tillman and his former Commander in Chief are truly GREAT AMERICANS!!
Great speaker and great story.
bump
Is that the same as the godawful 'zero defects' policy that crippled the military in the 80s?
How nice to read an uplifting story.
Thank you.
Ummm ... sounds like you must not have watched the video,
I know .. bet it was positively hair raising.
My pleasure .. unbelievable drama.
Thank you and bookmark for later
Awesome story.
Thanks for posting this. How I miss President Bush and Laura.
Wow - can’t wait to see this again!
I did advance team work for AF-1 when Col Tillman was the Presidential Pilot. He was the best boss I ever worked for. Nothing EVER ruffled his feathers. He was a genuinely nice guy and a very effective leader.
Awesome! What an adventure!
Thank you. Wonderful speaker, I would have liked to hear him talk for another hour. God bless you, Col. Tillman, for protecting our President.
WoW ! How blessed we and Pres. Bush were
that horrendous day that he was in command.
Your description sure fits all I’ve seen of
him.
Thank you, and God bless you for your service.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.