ATLANTA, Nov. 11, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Otis Bray
served America as a mechanic in the Korean War. Afterwards, he
plied much the same trade for more than 41 years at Delta (NYSE:
DAL).
Chick Smith flew 238 combat missions during the Vietnam War. In
1973, he joined Delta and kept flying for three decades.
Daniel Christopher joined the
Army after 9/11, serving in both Afghanistan and Iraq. After his service, he also found a home
at Delta.
The three heeded the call to duty at different times in American
history, but they share common bonds: love of country and love of
their careers with Delta Air Lines.
Today, America honors its veterans and the sacrifices they have
made to preserve its freedom. Delta News Hub asked three of the
airline's veterans from different generations to share reflections
from their military careers and their post-war lives. This video
captures their recent conversation at the Delta Flight Museum in
Atlanta.
Bray, 86, served in the Air
Force during the Korean War, working his way up from mechanic to
hangar chief.
"We were only 14 miles from the main line of resistance," he
said. "The experience was hectic, it was stressful, but it was very
valuable… I was proud to be a part of it."
Bray joined Delta in 1954,
becoming a manager in the engine shop before retiring in 1995.
"It's been an honor for me to serve in the military, and it's an
honor for me to have worked for Delta Air Lines," he said.
Smith, an Air Force pilot in Vietnam, describes his combat missions with
flourish. "We had five squadrons of F-100's at Tuy Hoa, where I was based. Our planes would
average two to three hops a day. We flew 'em hard and put 'em away
wet sometimes. It was some of the best years of my life."
The 71-year-old went from the military to Delta and his flying
career finally ended 30 years later.
"It was a fantastic career. The guys I flew with were the
greatest guys in the world," he said. "From the time I was a junior
'birdman,' we used to call ourselves, up to my last flight as a
Captain on a 767-400."
His love of flying didn't keep him out of the cockpit for long.
Smith is now one of the Delta Flight Museum's flight simulator
operators, taking aspiring aviators on a ride so real, you think
you're in the air.
Daniel Christopher, 33, said the
9/11 attacks inspired him to join the Army in 2004. He graduated
from Army Ranger and Army Airborne schools before serving one tour
in Afghanistan and one tour in
Iraq with the 82nd
Airborne.
"Being able to serve in both theaters of war from my generation
was a real honor. It gave me a lot of insight into life… and death,
unfortunately," he said.
Last year, Christopher joined Delta and now works as a Ground
Maintenance Technician, a job he says he's proud of. "Delta's been
a wonderful company. I can't imagine being anywhere else."
Working for Delta was a natural progression of military careers
for the three. And the military well prepared them to successfully
deal with the airline's challenges.
"There is no substitute for the focus, the discipline that's
ingrained in you in the military from the first day. Most everybody
carries it with them when they leave," Bray said. "And it makes a difference."
Full Veteran's Day coverage of Delta's legacy of supporting the
U.S. military and veterans is available on Delta News
Hub.
Delta Air Lines serves more than 170 million customers each
year. Delta was named to FORTUNE magazine's top 50 World's Most
Admired Companies in addition to being named the most admired
airline for the fourth time in five years. Additionally, Delta has
ranked No.1 in the Business Travel News Annual Airline survey for
four consecutive years, a first for any airline. With an
industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta
Connection carriers offer service to 316 destinations in 57
countries on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs nearly 80,000 employees
worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 800 aircraft.
The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam global
alliance and participates in the industry's
leading trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air
France-KLM and Alitalia as well as a joint venture
with Virgin Atlantic. Including its worldwide alliance
partners, Delta offers customers more than 15,000 daily flights,
with key hubs and markets including Amsterdam,
Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los
Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK, New
York-LaGuardia, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake
City, Seattle and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has invested
billions of dollars in airport facilities, global products and
services, and technology to enhance the customer experience in the
air and on the ground. Additional information is available on
the Delta News Hub, as well as delta.com, Twitter
@DeltaNewsHub, Google.com/+Delta, Facebook.com/delta and
Delta's blog takingoff.delta.com.
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SOURCE Delta Air Lines