My Mission
 

The fascination of flight can't be expressed with words. But it really lies beyond the capabilities of human endeavor. Once you've experienced it, you'll never be able to forget it. — Friedrich Oblessor, 127 victories WWII.

Nothing will ever equal that moment of exhilaration which filled my whole being when I felt myself flying away from the earth. It was not mere pleasure; it was perfect bliss...— Prof. Jacques Alexandre Cesare Charles, first free flight in a manned hydrogen balloon, December 1, 1783.

I was hooked on flying as soon as I experienced my first flight. It is my desire, through this website and my flight simulator, to share my love of flying with pilots and simbuilders alike.

My Profile

My name is Tom Kellogg and I live in Snellville, Georgia with my wife Kathy. We have three grown children; Angie, Jacki, and Joey. This photo was taken on our wedding day, January 22, 1983.

Here is a more recent photo of Kathy and I with our three children and our son-in-law Ed.

 In December of last year (2004) Angie and her husband Ed presented us with our first grandchild, Noel Grace.

I had my first airplane ride in 1967 when I was 12. It was aboard Mohawk Airlines FH-227 (similar to the one shown below) leaving from Broome County Airport in Binghamton, New York bound for Hartford, Connecticut.

I took my first flying lesson in 1972 and within three months I had my private pilots license. Below is a Cherokee PA-128-140, very similar to the one I flew on my private pilot's check ride.

I went on to obtain my commercial pilots license and instrument rating while in college.

In 1976 I joined the United States Navy and attended Naval Aviation Officer Candidate School in Pensacola, Florida; the home of naval aviation. I am in the back row on the far right side.

I was commissioned an Ensign in the United States Naval Reserve. Below is a picture from my commissioning ceremony.

My first squadron assignment was to VT-10 for my training as a Naval Flight Officer. I received my wings while training in Pensacola. Below is a picture of my class from our winging ceremony at the Naval Aviation Museum.

One of the proudest moments of my life was earning my wings of gold.

After receiving my wings I was off to train in Virginia Beach, Virginia with VA-42; the A-6 replacement squadron on the east coast. After completing my training I was assigned to VA-176 at NAS Oceana in Virginia Beach, Virginia. I served as a Bombardier/Navigator in the Grumman A-6E Intruder.

After leaving the United States Navy I flew for Air Kentucky Airlines as a first officer in the Beech 99 Airliner. I logged over 1000 hours in the Beech 99, over 400 in N12AK pictured below.

I hung up my wings in 1981 to pursue a career as an entrepreneur. I spent twenty years in the restaurant business as a franchisee of Burger King Corporation, and later as a franchisee of Applebee's International. While with Burger King my wife and I owned and operated nine restaurants in the Atlanta, Georgia area. Here I am pictured with my mom and daughter Jacki in front of our first Burger King restaurant in Atlanta, Georgia.

Later we owned and operated 14 Applebee's in southern Louisiana. Here Kathy and I are receiving a plaque commemorating the 200th Applebees located in Slidell, Louisiana.

In this photo we are cutting the ribbon prior to opening for business.

Today I am a graduate student at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. After 30 years I am returning to a career path that I wanted to pursue in my early days of college. I am studying to become a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA). I have been pursuing this goal since 2000, when my wife and I sold our interests in our restaurants. Below is a picture of my class.

I am presently doing my residency in Nurse Anesthesia and I will graduate in October of 2006 with a master's degree in Nursing.

Here is a photo of my first case giving anesthesia. I am proud to say my patient woke up after the case was over and did just fine. It is often said that "a good anesthetic is one that the patient can get up and walk away from."

I plan on working on FlightSim 737NG during my spare time while in graduate school. After I graduate and pass my board certification I hope to be able to accelerate the pace of building my simulator.

After 5 1/2 years of school I finally finished in October of 2006 and graduated with my Masters of Science in Nursing from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. Below is a picture of me at my hooding ceremony. In December of 2006 I passed my certification exam and became a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, CRNA. I am presently employed as a staff anesthetist at the Medical Center of Central Georgia in Macon, Georgia. Although I have a lot less free time than I used to, I hope to devote as much time as possible to building my simulator. Now I have the opposite problem that I had in graduate school. I now have more money to spend on my simulator, but I have a lot less free time.