The final fini flight

  • Published
  • By Christi Bird
  • 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  In 1983, Tyndall Air Force Base received its first F-15 Eagle. Twenty-seven years later, three F-15s made the final local area sorties, piloted by Lt. Col. Scott Yancy, Lt. Col. Brian Porter and Capt. David Magnuson.

Colonel Yancy is the 95th Fighter Squadron commander and flew the flagship jet one last time around the Panama City area.

"Being the squadron commander of the 95th has been exhilarating from beginning to end," Colonel Yancy said. "Walking out to the jet I thought 'I can't believe this is my fini flight - is this day really here?' It kind of snuck up on me."

As Colonel Yancy taxied back to park, the crowd lining the taxiway rendered a solemn salute as the jet slowly crawled past, honoring the unrivaled legacy the F-15 has forged while defending our great nation.

After climbing down from the jet, Colonel Yancy reflected on his final sortie. "On departure, I remember looking over my shoulder, watching the world fall away effortlessly as I rocketed through 10,000 feet, and thinking that I am the luckiest man on the planet!"

"I really pushed the jet today and it responded perfectly, like a seasoned professional who wasn't even being challenged! I climbed up to 50,000 feet, flew faster than the speed of sound, pulled some serious G's, and squeezed the trigger in what will most likely be my last engagement in the F-15," Colonel Yancy added.

The gravity of this "fini" occasion slowly started to sink in for the colonel. "She's been a workhorse for the Air Force and a really good friend to me over the years. I can't believe I'll be saying goodbye to her one last time in a few weeks," he said.

Colonel Porter has flown F-15s for 16 years and will now have to close this chapter of his career. "I relished max performing the F-15 one last time. But the true highlight was taxiing back to the traditional "Fini Flight" greeting by family and friends. It was especially rewarding to be met by the 325th Fighter Wing and 325th Operations Group leadership as well as the professional men and women of the 95th FS and 95th Aircraft Maintenance Unit," said Colonel Porter.

The F-15 training at Tyndall has been a significant contributor to the F-15's 104-to-zero enemy aircraft kill ratio.

On September 21, the 95th FS will hold its deactivation ceremony. At the conclusion of the ceremony, Colonel Yancy, Lt. Col. Phil Campbell, 95th FS director of operations and Colonel Porter with Colonel Wesley Hallman, 325th OG commander, will fly the last F-15s away from Tyndall, marking the end of a spectacular era for Team Tyndall.