10-year-old girl spends day as KC-10 pilot

TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AFPN) -- It was a foggy day in San Francisco when a 10-year-old girl flew a KC-10 Extender under the Golden Gate Bridge.

Katie Powell, daughter of Senior Master Sgt. Chris Powell of the 60th Operations Group, was named Pilot for a Day May 19 and given an inside look at the daily life of pilots at Travis.

Master Sgt. Kenneth Rossa, 60th OG C-17 loadmaster evaluator, started the program to provide opportunities to local children who are facing life-threatening diseases. Katie has Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare bone cancer.

“We’re just trying to treat her very special today,” said Capt. Cate Fienhold, 6th Air Refueling Squadron executive officer. “She is a very strong girl.” 

Katie started her day with an honorary pilot presentation. She received unit patches and a scarf. She then went on to her mission briefing and obtained her orders for the day along with a donated flight suit. 

Her mission began at the air traffic control tower where she spoke to pilots and aircrews in flight. 

Then she took command of the KC-10 simulator and flew out to San Francisco, where she buzzed the Golden Gate and executed a near-perfect landing on her first try. 

From the simulator, she went on to KC-10 boom operator training, had lunch and then toured an actual KC-10. 

At the end of the day, she met Col. Steven Arquiette, 60th Air Mobility Wing commander, who gave her a coin and the scarf from around his neck. 

“One of the things she kept saying was that she was thankful,” Sergeant Powell said. “She understands how much work people have to do. Everyone we visited took time out of their day to show her around.” 

Sergeant Powell works as a KC-10 boom operator; the tour gave Katie a chance to see what her dad does at his job. 

“To be honest, it was just fortunate that I happen to work in the same type of area,” Sergeant Powell said. “I had nothing to do with it other than my daughter was the recipient.” 

Katie was the first Pilot for a Day at Travis. 

“One of the things we told her was that she was the test run,” Sergeant Powell said. “I asked her if there was anything she recommended to make the program better; she said she wouldn’t change a thing. It was perfect. She really had a great time.” 

The day was not without its surprises for Sergeant Powell. 

“When they asked her what job she wanted to do, she said boom (operator); that was a complete shock to good old dad,” he said.