By Staff
Special To The Star
Nov. 16, 2001
Eight U.S. Navy and Marine Corps pilots, two Italian navy pilots and one Spanish navy pilot will receive "wings of gold" today at Naval Air Station Meridian.
The pilots will get their wings in a 3:30 p.m. ceremony in the NAS Meridian chapel. The guest speaker will be Capt. David L. Philman, deputy commander, Carrier Air Wing 3.
The naval aviator designation ceremony is not prescribed specifically by U.S. Navy regulations, but has emerged as an honored product of the rich heritage of naval tradition.
It marks the culmination of nearly two years of specialized training that has prepared officers for the rigorous demands of aerial combat and carrier operations earning each the title of "Naval Aviator" and the right to wear the coveted "Wings of Gold."
Wingees who carrier qualified in the T-45C "Goshawk" include: Lt. j.g. Ivano Daniele of Milan, Italy, and the Italian navy; Lt. j.g. Christopher Harris of Richmond, Va.; Lt. j.g. David Hurn of Groveland, Mass.; Lt. David Juarez-Galan of Alicante, Spain, and the Spanish navy; and 1st Lt. Andrew Miller of Hardy, Neb.
Also qualifying in the T-45C "Goshawk" were Lt. j.g. Garth Olsen of Missoula, Mont.; Lt. j.g. Luca Pegoraro of Cittadella, Italy, and the Italian navy; 1st Lt. Shane Price of Harrisburg, Penn.; Lt. j.g. Benjamin Stickney of Cornish, Maine; Capt. Christopher Usrey of Jasper, Ala.; and Lt. j.g. David Whitmer of Tavares, Fla.