Flight engineer, Senior Master Sgt. Robert Fisher, who serves with the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing's 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron surpassed the 10,000 flight hours mark during a KC-10 Extender mission on March 29.
Fisher, a Florida native, stepped off the plane that day, ending his landmark flight with 10,003 hours.
According to the Air Force, the 10,000 flight hour community is small and reaching this plateau is about longevity and dedication.
Sergeant Fisher has been flying since 1986, and has been in the air as a flight engineer on the C-141 Starlifter and the KC-10 Extender, and has served in Operation Desert Storm and Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom.
"I've been really lucky in my life, in that the Air Force has given me the opportunities to see a lot of really excellent places and travel the world," Fisher said. "When I enlisted in '81 the recruiter said, 'Hey join the Air Force, see the world,' and the Air Force has kept up its end of the bargain on that one." he said.
According to Lt. Col. Tim White, 908th EARS commander, most flyers accumulate between 3,000 and 5,000 hours in the span of a career.
"For Sergeant Fisher to eclipse ten thousand hours is a reflection of great dedication to the mission and the art of flying," White said. "If one were to fly around the world for ten thousand hours, he or she would circle the planet over three hundred times, or go back and forth to the moon nine times. Sergeant Fisher is one of the greatest assets in the KC-10 community and his work ethic speaks for itself."
Sergeant Fisher has had a bird's-eye view of much of the globe and gives most of that credit to the Air Force.
