When Jay Martin, EG '88, and Dave Adams, EG '88, bumped into each other at Barksdale Air Force Base in Bossier City, La., in 1996, they immediately recognized one another. But, the members of the U.S. Air Force 96th Bomb Squadron spent a while trying to figure out exactly where they had met. After naming all of the many places they'd been on their travels with the Air Force, they finally arrived at the one experience they had in common-graduating from UD's College of Engineering.

Though not well-acquainted at UD (Adams was in chemical engineering and Martin was in civil engineering), both enjoyed the opportunity to reminisce about their college experiences. While their paths took distinctly different twists and turns, both credit UD with preparing them for the challenges they have faced.

An Air Force ROTC cadet during his undergraduate years at UD, Martin says he did not have a lifelong desire to become a pilot. But, after spending a year working as a civil engineer in Woodstown, N.J., he decided that becoming an Air Force pilot "seemed like a good thing to do."

In 1990, Martin earned his wings at Reese Air Force Base in Lubbock, Texas. He was then transferred to Castle Air Force Base in Merced, Calif., to become a B-52 pilot. Six months later, he was flying B-52s out of Carswell Air Force Base in Ft. Worth.

The B-52 is a long-range strategic bomber. With a wingspan of 188 feet, it weighs 500,000 pounds when fully loaded. The aircraft can fly 12,000 miles unrefueled and is also capable of mid-air refueling.

"The B-52 has been in the news quite a bit lately, primarily because it can carry all kinds of bombs and missiles. It is extremely versatile," Martin explains. "The same B-52s we are flying today will be in our Air Force inventory until approximately 2045. They will be over 85 years old. It's probably the biggest bargain the Department of Defense has ever gotten!"

After a year in Carswell, Martin was transferred to Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota, 45 miles from the Canadian border. During his four years there, he also flew the T-38, a supersonic jet trainer that travels at speeds of up to 12 miles a minute. While logging nearly 400 hours on T-38 training flights, Martin took advantage of the unique opportunity to see the country.

Martin continued rigorous training on the B-52 as well. Constantly practicing their skills, B-52 pilots spend 30-40 hours per month in the air. They also go through extensive training on such topics as weapons, combat tactics, life support, aircraft systems and more.

In 1996, Martin and his wife, Sue (Grimm) Martin, HNS '91, a former Air Force nurse who is now at home caring for their two children, were transferred to Barksdale. There, Martin served as flight safety officer and then became a B-52 instructor pilot. Two years later, he was moved to the 11th Bomb Squadron, known as the Formal Training Unit. Martin instructed many of the pilots who flew B-52s in the recent conflict in Kosovo.

A captain, he now serves as second operations group executive officer and is personal assistant to the colonel who commands the 1,500-member 11th Bomb Squadron. The position is demanding and requires 12- to 14-hour days, but Martin says he enjoys being at the center of activity. Still an instructor pilot, he is also just two classes away from completing his master's degree in industrial and organizational psychology at Louisiana Tech University.

After working for one year as a chemical engineer for DuPont in Glasgow, Del., Adams decided to pursue a degree in medicine. He obtained an Air Force scholarship to study at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, where he combined his interests in composite materials and the human body by conducting orthopedic research on artificial silicone wrists and knuckles. Earning his degree in 1993, Adams spent two years in orthopedic surgery at the Robert Wood Johnson University Medical Center in New Brunswick, N.J. He then decided it was time to make good on his four-year commitment to serve as an Air Force doctor. "I wanted to fly," Adams recalls.

In 1995, Adams expressed interest in becoming a flight surgeon and was assigned to the Barksdale Air Force Base. Serving with the B-52 bomber squadron there, his job was to care for all the pilots, navigators, bombardiers, weapons officers and their families. It was there that he met Jay and Sue Martin.

During his two years with the B-52s, Adams traveled throughout Europe and to destinations in Iceland, Canada, Guam, Hawaii and Asia. In 1996, he and Martin participated in Operation Desert Strike. Stationed for 43 days on Diego Garcia, a tiny island south of the equator in the middle of the Indian Ocean, the two UD grads learned the meaning of "island time." While relaxing under palm trees on secluded beaches, they were also "sitting alert" to respond if Iraq's Saddam Hussein failed to comply with the United Nations demands. Adams' role during the assignment was to prepare flight crews to deal with the physical demands of lengthy missions.

"I helped the air crews plan and carry out a 37-hour, nonstop bombing mission against Iraq. I planned their sleeping schedules and diets-things that the air crew would need to successfully undertake the mission," Adams explains. "The B-52 inside is like being in a very small closet with only a four-and-a-half foot ceiling. There's only one place to stand up straight. There's no formal bathroom, no refrigerator or anything like that. It's cramped, dark, smelly and noisy-very physically demanding. Part of my role was to anticipate the needs of the pilots and educate them on how to deal with fatigue."

After two years with the B-52s, Adams applied for a job as flight surgeon for the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds. He was selected for the position in 1997, and now travels the country with the Air Force's aerial demonstration squadron. Responsible for the health and safety of the Thunderbird pilots and crew members, he also enjoys flying at Mach 2 in the Lockheed Martin F-16. "It can carve such tight turns at such high speeds, you feel like you weigh nine times what you do," he explains. "There's nothing like flying upside down at 150 feet at 500 miles an hour. This is the greatest way to experience composite materials!"

During their two years together on the 96th Bomb Squadron, Adams and Martin became close friends. They continue to stay in touch via postcards and e-mail, and last spring reunited at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, where Adams is stationed and Martin was attending mission commander school. Over lunch one day, they brought a B-52 and an F-16 nose-to-nose on the runway to pose for a photograph to send to the Messenger. "We look forward to getting back to UD one of these days," says Adams. "We're proud to be graduates and are glad to be representing UD in the Air Force."

-Sharon Huss Roat, AS '87