First To 1,000 Hours

Posted 4 November 2011

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Photo by Capt. Ashley Conner

Lt. Col. David Piffarerio, commander of Air Force Reserve Command’s 302nd Fighter Squadron at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, became the first pilot to reach 1,000 flight hours in the F-22 Raptor during a mission on 4 November 2011. SSgt. Hank Robinson, 525th Aircraft Maintenance Unit crew chief, launched Piffarerio on the milestone sortie. Piffarerio was a part of the initial cadre that stood up the 302nd FS parent unit, the 477th Fighter Group, in 2007. Piffarerio previously served thirteen years on active duty in a variety of F-15E and F-22 assignments. After being selected in 2002 as an initial cadre member to test the F-22 during follow-on evaluations, he served as program manager and F-22 test director at Nellis AFB, Nevada.

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