Pilot Takes Final Air Force Flight over La Grande

Jim Bieker was 6 years old when he boarded a Cessna aircraft for a flight around the Grande Ronde Valley about four decades ago with his family.

The child's life course may have been set by the time the plane landed.

"I had become fascinated with flight. I have been fascinated with it ever since," said Bieker, who grew up in Cove.

Bieker's aviation fascination spurred him to later begin a 22-year career with the U.S. Air Force, one now winding down as he will retire in July. He made his last Air Force flight Wednesday, May 26, and his parents, Chuck and Jeanette Bieker of La Grande, will never forget it.

Their son, a lieutenant colonel, made a La Grande flyover in a C-17 Globemaster III aircraft while on a four-hour training flight with a fellow Air Force pilot. The flyover was at 6,000 feet and could be heard throughout La Grande at about noon May 26.

"It was a good chance to fly over and say 'hello,'" said Bieker, who lives in Eatonville, Washington, and works out of McChord Air Force Base near Tacoma, Washington.

Bieker also did flyovers May 26 over Pendleton and Nyssa to greet his brothers, Dave and John, during the four-hour training flight. Dave Bieker is an elementary school teacher in Nyssa. He took his students outside to observe the flyover.

After his flight and landing at McChord Air Force Base, Jim Bieker was greeted by his wife, Kate, and their daughters, Hannah and Ella, who sprayed him with water while someone from the Air Force came up from behind and dropped several gallons of ice water on him. Bieker said he was not surprised by the dousing.

"It is a tradition for pilots after their last flights," he said.

Bieker said he will miss serving in the Air Force.

"What I really liked were the many wonderful people I got to meet," the pilot said.

Bieker, who graduated from Cove High School in 1993, has fond memories of growing up in Cove where he said some of the favorite things he did was work in cherry orchards and ride motorcycles with friends.

Bieker's Air Force experience includes eight years on active duty and 14 years as a reservist.

While in the reserves, Bieker has had to make training flights, like the one he made on May 26, every couple months. The C-17 Globemaster III he co-piloted is a military transport plane for troops and cargo. Bieker said when flying the plane it takes him about 40 minutes to go from Tacoma to Nyssa and back.

Bieker has been a pilot for Delta Airlines for 11 years, flying primarily domestic flights. He plans to continue flying for Delta for years to come. He does not hesitate when asked what it is about flying that captures his imagination.

"It is fun to see the world from above," he said.

Bieker credits his Air Force training with putting him in a position to land his job with Delta. He said he never tires of flying, and it is unlikely he ever will because "I have a job which never feels like work."

Dick Mason is a reporter with The Observer primarily covering the communities of North Powder, Imbler, Island City and Union, education, Union County veterans programs and local history. Dick joined The Observer in 1983, first working as a sports and outdoors reporter.

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