Sincere congratulations on the accomplishment of your daughter.

Quite a day, but not "dry" by Colorado standards. Low scattered, going
to broken and slight drizzle by the end of the ceremony and
Thunderbird showtime. Did the low show, I guess.


Thank you for your kind sentiment, Ed. I do appreciate it, and will forward it
to my daughter.

I inadvertently omitted the word "parade". The F/A-22 entertained us during
her graduation parade on Tuesday late morning. Beautiful blue skies, thin
wisps at high altitude, and a bit of a strong wind on the parade field. It was
definitely a dry day on Tuesday.

You're right about Wednesday. The dark clouds arrived suddenly, so the
Thunderbirds flew the low profile after she and the other new officers tossed
their hats. Unfortunately, we had to wait several minutes after the initial
flyby over the stadium for the Thunderbirds to return because the President's
limo was still within the five mile radius during his egress. Then they
resumed their show. While we were waiting for the Thunderbirds to return, they
entertained us with live audio and video (on the large screen at the south side
of Falcon Stadium) from several of the Thunderbird pilots who are USAFA
graduates. The live A/V feed from the cockpits was quite impressive on the
large screen. The cameras faced aft towards the pilot and included a distinct
sky/ground background behind the pilot.

How far do you live from the Zoo? Did you have an opportunity to see the
F/A-22 from your house? Every current and former USAF pilot in the stands was
talking about the Raptor incessantly after its appearance. A friend of mine,
who has been my childrens' Academy sponsor for the previous five years, and I
seldom talk about flying in our former USAF days when we met during my trips to
visit my children. However, neither one of us could stop talking about the
Raptor during and after its appearance. It was breaktaking.



Kurt Todoroff


Markets, not mandates and mob rule.
Consent, not compulsion.