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Show HILLTOP TIMES TIMES May 8, 2008 BRILL From page 1 ' the 388th Fighter Wing at "Hill in 1980 and has been in Utah ever since. He said a number of factors have kept him in the air this long. "Well, not to break my hand patting my own back, but I am pretty good at it," he said. "Also, I've been very lucky. I have been in the right place at thejight time when doors were open, and I've stayed pretty healthy." Brill said his love for flying has also kept him in the cockpit. "I have a lot of passion for what I do— I love it. The deployments, the late nights and early hours are hard and can get old sometimes, but the passion for flying is what has kept me going." The pilot comes from a military tradition. His father spent 23 years in the Marines and Brill spent much of his childhood on Marine installations, but his mother said his choice of the Air Force came as no surprise. "When he was 3 years old, he told me he wanted to be a fighter pilot," said Edna Brill. "He followed in his dad's footsteps, but he also forged his own path and did what he always wanted to do." Brig. Gen. Burt Field, commander of the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing at Balad Air Base, said Brill is an "icon" in the Air Force. "(His) 6,000 hours equates to 250 days in the cockpit," Field said. "That is an incredible amount of time in a high-G, high-speed, high-stress arena. "Flying fighters is mentally and physically challenging. The environment, the threat, the systems, the weapons and the mission set are constantly changing." Brill climbs into an F-16 before taking his recordHis superior officers are effusive in making mission. their praise, but Brill's celebration of his achievement was rather modest. "We had a cake and everybody had three tours in support of Operation North"Lt. CoLBrill has worked extremely a piece, but then they all went back to ern Watch, two in support of Operation hard to reach this milestone," said Col. work," Brill said. "But to me, flying is the Southern Watch, two in support of Opera- Gary Batinich, 419th Fighter Wing comreward itself. The first thing I did when I* tion Iraqi Freedom, and one in support of mander of the man who serves as the got done today was check the schedule to Operation Enduring Freedom. wing's chief of safety. see when I was flying again." He has 226 combat flying hours on more "While serving in the 419th Fighter Brill's combat experience includes than 50 combat sorties. Wing over the past 19 years, he's held a Left, Lt. Col. Michael Brill, 421st Expeditionary Fighter Squadron pilot takes off on a combat mission over Iraq at Balad Air Base, on May 2, to achieve a 6,000-mile record. Below, Brill is congratulated by his wingman, Brig. Gen. Burt Field, 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing commander, after the successful flight. «.j —-!• ii i •—M^y»j IIWI^I »'^ qji.^jm i j ...""•^^>^*.— •• ,JI— .; T-t. -^»- ~i*.*~^i?3 Senior Airman JULIANNE SHOWALTER U.S. Air Force variety of key positions and has always managed to balance the demands of his day-to-day duties with the demands of a rigorous flying schedule." Brill has been deployed in Iraq since March 2007 and is expected to return home this month. SERVICE MEANS RESPONSIBILITY GETS REWARDEI •^ INSURANCE BANKING INVESTMENTS MEMBER SERVICES SAFE DRIVERS GET EXTRA SAVINGS WITH USAA. From safe driver discounts to accident forgiveness, USAA saves you money on auto insurance. In fact, most of our members saved up to $600 a year* just by switching to USAA. We provide the coverage you need, at the rates you want, with the customer service you deserve. And if you need help with finding and financing your car, we're here for you. That's the type of service our members have earned. » GET A QUOTE TODAY AT USAA.COM/AUTO OR CALL 800.292.8353 USAA We know what it means toserve. USAA.COM |