Courtesy Photo | Chief Warrant Officer 4 Kelley Caudle, a C-12 pilot with Task Force ODIN-A, 10th...... read more read more
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By U.S. Army Spc. Morgan McAffee
Task Force ODIN-A
PARWAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Growing up in Myrtle Beach, S.C., in a home with two brothers, U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 Kelley Caudle’s father never held her back because she was his only daughter.
“He would say, don’t give up before you try, and my mom always said I couldn’t do it because I was a girl.” said Caudle, currently a C-12 aircraft pilot with Task Force ODIN-A, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, TF Falcon.
Caudle cites her father for giving her the determination and values she has today. He challenged her to soar to new heights on her sweet sixteen.
“My dad got me a few flight lessons at a flight school in Conway, S.C., for my 16th birthday, but I was still in high school playing softball and doing teenage stuff, so I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do this for a career.”
Following high school, she attended the University of South Carolina and earned a history degree in 1988.
“I had a few jobs after college, and I wasn’t happy being an office manager, so I went back to the same flight school in Conway,” Caudle said.
She called a former boyfriend from high school, who had since become an aviation warrant officer, and began asking questions about how to become a pilot in the Army. He tried to convince her to go into the Air Force, but the wait list to go to the board was a year long.
With her mind set, she headed off to the recruiter’s office, and they tried to persuade her to become a lieutenant because she had a degree. But there was no guarantee of getting into flight school, she said.
“I joined so I could fly, so I applied for Warrant Officer Flight School,” said Caudle.
The path to become a warrant officer in 1990 was much different from current day procedures. Caudle went to basic training with enlisted soldiers as a private first class, and on graduation day, she was given a conditional promotion to sergeant on the condition that she graduates Warrant Officer Candidate School.
She attended Warrant Officer Candidate School, and graduated flight school with a certification to fly the UH-1H Huey helicopter.
“It was challenging going through WOC and flight school. I felt like the fifth wheel,” Caudle recalled. “You knew some of the females that were in classes in front or behind you, but you didn’t spend any time with them. The guys were stand-offish, no one wanted to be the first to be your stickman and fly with you until you could prove you knew what you were doing.”
After eight months, Caudle graduated flight school in 1991. As part of the three-day graduation festivities, she was discharged for one day, pinned Warrant Officer 1 the second day, and received her aviation wings the final day.
“The Gulf War was just starting, so everyone in my class got a transition to the OH-58D Kiowa helicopter,” she explained. “At the time the 58D was still considered for combat only, so only males could fly it. I had a choice between a Black Hawk and a Chinook, so I picked the Black Hawk.”
Even through the trials and hardships in Warrant Officer Candidate and Flight Schools, she says she has always thought of those for whom she paved the way.
“What about the girl behind me? I have to do my best to make it better for her,” Caudle said.
At every unit she goes to, she tries to lay the groundwork for a successful tour for the next woman to follow.
In 1999 she returned to Fort Rucker to work at Warrant Officer Candidate School as a training advisory council officer, which is similar to a drill sergeant for warrant officers. Caudle said she has been to Korea twice, Bosnia, Kosovo, Germany and Japan. This is her first tour to Afghanistan.
Caudle recalls several memorable experiences as a pilot, but two stand out: an assignment to the Golden Knights Parachute Team as a pilot, during which she had the honor of flying former President George Bush Sr. on his 80th birthday, and his son, President George Bush Jr.; and an assignment in 2009 to U.S. Army Priority Air Transport at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., during which she flew Gen. George Casey, Army chief of staff, to Afghanistan, and frequently transported then Sgt. Maj. of the Army Kenneth Preston.
With almost 22 years in the service, Caudle has become certified to fly a variety of aircraft: the UH-1H Huey and UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, the C-12 King Air, the twin-engine Otter, the Fokker, the UC-35 and the GV5 transport aircraft.
Caudle said the GV5 aircraft took the longest to learn to fly.
“The GV5 has the nicest Army cooks,” she said. “They usually come from Fort Hood where the culinary school is, and they make some awesome food with real silverware and garnish the meals. These are the planes used to fly the secretary of the Army, vice chief of staff and generals.”
The upcoming promotion list will determine whether she stays in for a full 30 years. If not, she plans to start her civilian career.
Caudle says she has had some rough times and some better times; and even some experiences that allowed her to meet some prestigious individuals. Through it all she remembers the advice of her father:
“Don’t give up before you try.”
Caudle has kept that same mentality throughout her whole career.
She challenges other females in the military:
“Don’t give up, whatever challenges and obstacles in front of you, just don’t give up.”
| Date Taken: | 07.14.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 07.14.2011 11:39 |
| Story ID: | 73722 |
| Location: | PARWAN PROVINCE, AF |
| Web Views: | 1,114 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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