This month we spotlight the service of Tom Eggers. Tom served in the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War, Operation Urgent Fury and Operation Desert Storm.
Tom was born just before America’s entry into World War II, in the city of Centralia, Illinois. He grew up surrounded by relatives and others who passed stories of their service during World War II and the Korean War. It became his life’s passion to become a pilot.
After graduation from high school, Tom was accepted into the Air Force Academy. Upon completion of his time there in 1965, he was admitted to flight school at Reese Air Force Base where he specialized in the sizeable C-141 transport. After a three-year duty assignment at Dover Air Force Base, Tom was deployed to Vietnam in 1968 and would spend the entirety of the year there.
Shortly after arriving in Vietnam, Tom cross-trained on the C-47 airframe and quickly became a regional flight instructor to train newly arriving pilots. After a few months, he was reassigned to flying electronic reconnaissance missions over Vietnam and Laos where his crew listened in on enemy radio transmissions and monitored troop movements. In our interview with Tom, he recalls regular rocket attacks on the airbase at Pleiku, long monsoon seasons, and methods of maintaining contact with family back in the states. One of his most vivid memories was the complete lack of ice cream in Vietnam.
During his time in Vietnam, Tom flew over 100 missions totaling over 800 hours of flight time. He stated that his homecoming was relatively uneventful. He returned home in 1970 as a Captain and transferred with his family to San Antonio where he flew CONUS patient transport missions. He recalled this duty station as his favorite. In 1973, Tom moved to the Pentagon. It was during this assignment he noticed the protestors and their increasing hostility toward members of the military. They became so intense, that the commander ordered that no one was to wear their uniforms to or from the installation.
Between 1975 and 1978, he returned to the Air Medical Transport duty in Germany. By this time, Tom was a Lieutenant Colonel. Following his stint in Germany, he transferred to the War College. The highlight of his time there was his trip to mainland China. After two years, Tom moved again to the Pentagon where he served on the Foreign Relations Counsel. It was here he was promoted to Colonel.
Following his year in Arlington, Tom transferred to Charleston Air Force Base, where he received his formal introduction to the Special Operations Community. He again was in the cockpit of the AC-141, transporting SEALs and DELTA members to operations worldwide. While at this assignment, he participated in activities in Grenada and Panama. In Grenada, Tom flew the transport that repatriated the rescued students to the United States.
After his time at Charleston AFB, Tom, now a Brigadier General, transferred again to the Pentagon where he was named the first commander of the Air Force’s Special Operations Command. In 1991, when the United States again found itself in a state of war, General Eggers served as the Special Operations Commander during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He cited his service during this period as his highest achievement.
Tom retired from the Air Force in 1994 at the rank of Major General. His son followed in his footsteps and served a term in the Air Force. Tom asserts even today that the military is an excellent way of life and highly recommends it.
During his distinguished career, Tom Eggers was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Air Medal with four oak leaf clusters and the Air Force Commendation Medal.
