No need to scramble the fighter jets for these UFOs. The United Flying Octogenarians come in peace.
The club for aviators age 80 and up was founded four decades ago to promote fellowship, safety and longevity among older pilots. The organization now boasts more than 1,800 members worldwide, including about 20 in Tucson.
Retired Raytheon engineer turned inventor Toshikazu Tsukii flew for the first time as an air cadet in his native Japan in 1958 and became a licensed pilot in the U.S. in 1967. He joined the UFOs on his 80th birthday so he could be the clubโs youngest member, at least for one day.
โI think thatโs kind of cute,โ he said.
Now 85, Tsukii said he mostly flies solo these days to keep his skills honed, though he also loves the beauty, the solitude and the total sense of control he gets to experience as a pilot.
Once a week or so, he rolls one of his two Cessnas out of the hangar at his house at La Cholla Airpark in Oro Valley, drives it down a street that doubles as a taxiway in his neighborhood and spends about an hour in the sky over Southern Arizona.
โI still enjoy my time flying, and I will try to continue to fly as long as my mental health and physical health allow me to,โ he said.
Tsukii was part of a small group of local UFO members who gathered at a buffet restaurant in Marana on Thursday to meet their clubโs new president, Ken โBrownieโ Brown, during his 10-city tour of chapters across the West.
The 83-year-old Brown isnโt instrument-rated, so he left his airplane at his home outside cloudy Seattle and hit the road in a car.
After Thursdayโs luncheon, the UFO president got a tour of Tsukiiโs famously eccentric home, where the aviation-obsessed engineer has fashioned whole buildings out of actual airliners โ a pool house made from a dissected 747 fuselage, and a multi-unit guest house built from the nose of a 737, the midsections of two 707s and the tail of a 727.
UFO touts itself as one of the worldโs most exclusive clubs for aviators. Anyone who has piloted an airplane at least once after his or her 80th birthday is eligible to join.
Ken Brown, president of the United Flying Octogenarians, talks to the local Tucson chapter of UFO. The UFO is an international organization that started in 1982.
The clubโs motto is: โWhere the history of aviation is still flying.โ
Brown said there is no upper age limit for general aviation pilots. To maintain their licenses, they have to do what any pilot does, namely complete a flight review with a certified instructor at least once every two years and undergo regular medical checks.
Itโs up to individuals to decide when itโs time to hang it up, Brown said, though sometimes outside forces conspire to make that decision for you.
โThe biggest issue is insurance for pilots over 80,โ he said. Some carriers will jack up their premiums when pilots reach a certain age or decline to cover them at all.
โIf you have a company thatโs insuring you, donโt change,โ Brown said. โThat seems to be the key: Donโt change.โ
Toshikazu Tsukii, center, gives a tour of his guest houses to Ken Brown, right, and Brownโs wife, Skip, after a meeting of the local Tucson chapter of United Flying Octogenarians.
Eighty and up
UFO was founded in Las Vegas in 1982 by a group of airplane-crazy seniors who were looking for a more organized excuse to hang out and swap stories.
Today there are members in all 50 states and at least seven other countries from Norway to Australia. Arizona ranks near the top in per-capita membership with 56 active UFOs.
The clubโs rolls run the gamut from relatively new recreational pilots to commercial aviators and air-combat veterans. One UFO is a former professor and flight instructor from the U.S. Air Force Academy.
Brown said he caught the aviation bug about 25 years ago when his wife, Skip, gave him a flying lesson as a gift. Since then, heโs flown them on cross-country trips to places as far away as Alaska.
These days, he mostly takes short flights a few times a week in his speedy little Vanโs RV-9A, usually with Skip in the seat next to him. โI say Iโm the navigator, but I donโt really navigate,โ she said.
United Flying Octogenarians, a club for pilots age 80 and up, touches down in Tucson.
Eighty is merely a starting point for this club. There are 276 members in their 90s and four in their 100s. The oldest is 108.
UFO members donโt die, โthey take that last flight west,โ Brown said. โWe have more gains than losses, but we do have losses.โ
The club still collects $20 a year in dues from each member โ the same amount theyโve always charged โ and โit manages to do nothing for us,โ Brown joked.
Most of their revenue these days comes from private donations, mostly from pilots, and the UFO merchandise they sell on their website.
Brown was elected president in October and is now overseeing something of a restart for the club, which lost some of its momentum during the COVID-19 pandemic.
โThings kind of deteriorated in a lot of social clubs because you couldnโt do anything social,โ he explained. โWeโre trying to turn the crank again and see if we canโt get the old engine running.โ
Theyโre also trying to expand what they offer to members by providing research on insurance issues, recruiting an aviation attorney to offer legal tips and developing a UFO hall of fame to preserve the histories of the standouts in their ranks.
Howard Deevers, a member of the local Tucson chapter of United Flying Octogenarians, tells a story about flying during a lunch meeting. The UFO is an international organization that started in 1982. Each member has an airmanโs flight certificate in a fixed or rotary wing plan, sport, balloon, or glider aircraft and has been a pilot in command after reaching the age of 80 years old.
Still learning
Tucson transplant Howard Deevers doesnโt just fly in his 80s, he teaches other people to fly.
The certified instrument flight instructor takes off almost every day from Ryan Airfield, Tucson International Airport or Marana Regional Airport, usually with a student at his side.
When he isnโt instructing, he loves to climb behind the controls of his Piper Warrior and fly cross-country to visit family or check out someplace new.
Two years ago, he and a friend flew to Montana and North Dakota because those were the last two states in the lower 48 he had โnever drug a wingtip through.โ
โThe only state I have not flown in is Alaska,โ Deevers said.
Though he didnโt take up flying until he was almost 40, aviation is in his blood. Deeversโ mother served as an aircraft mechanic during World War II.
โI wish I had her tool box now,โ he said.
Deevers is a member of UFOโs board of directors and serves as its area representative for Arizona. He has racked up 45 years as a pilot and 30 years as an instructor. He will turn 85 in a few weeks.
He believes flying helps keep him sharp, but he can guess what other people might think. Deevers is familiar with the stereotypes about people his age.
He said most of the older pilots he knows are their own toughest critics. They know their abilities better than anyone, and they can tell when theyโre losing their edge. They donโt want to keep flying if it isnโt safe for them to do it anymore.
โIโm hoping we all have the brains to know when itโs time,โ Deevers said.
Until that day, he knows just where heโll be.
โInstructors donโt know everything. They just tell you they do,โ he said with a laugh. โThereโs still stuff to learn. I learn everyday.โ
It doesnโt matter how long you live, Deevers said, โyouโre never going to learn it all.โ
Photos: Aircraft over Tucson through the years
Aircraft over Tucson
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Charles K. Hamilton, in his Curtis "Pusher" biplane, performed the first airplane flight along the banks of the Santa Cruz River in Tucson on February 19, 1910.
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The Spirit of St. Louis, the plane flown by Charles A, Lindbergh, taxiing at Davis-Monthan field in 1927.
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Curtiss biplanes from the U.S. Army Air Corps at Tucson Municipal Airport (now Davis-Monthan AFB) in 1933.
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Boeing B-29 bombers of the 19th Bomb Wing arrive at Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, during a ceremony marking their retirement from service in 1954.
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Crews prepare for flight training on Consolidated B-24 Liberator bombers at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Tucson, ca. 1940s. D-M was was the training base for nearly 20 bombardment groups during World War II.
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Douglas B-18 bombers and crews arrive at Davis-Monthan AFB on Jan. 15, 1941 for flight training. The Douglas Aircraft Co. developed the B-18 to replace the Martin B-10 as the U.S. Army Air Corps' standard bomber. The Bolo remained the Air Corps' primary bomber into 1941, and the Japanese destroyed some B-18s during the surprise attacks on Dec. 7. By early 1942, improved bombers like the B-17 replaced the Bolo as first-line bombardment aircraft.
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John Thurmon at the controls of a 1929 high-wing Curtiss Robin monoplane at his private air strip on Ajo Highway west of Tucson in 1966. A similar plane broke the world's endurance record in 1929, remaining aloft for more than 420 hours. It was also the first plane to be refueled in flight.
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With John Thurmon at the controls. The Spirit of Burwell, a replica of the historic 1911 Curtiss pusher biplane Vin Fizz, the first aircraft to fly coast-to-coast in the U.S., takes off from Thurmon's private airfield on Ajo Highway west of Tucson in 1964.
Aircraft over Tucson
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An LTV A-7D Corsair from Davis-Monthan AFB in flight. The 355th Tactical Fighter Wing at D-M was equipped with four squadrons of A-7D's in 1972 and 1973. It was less-well known than its Naval counterpart, but just as effective. The aircraft was second only to Boeing B-52 Stratofortress in the amount of ordnance dropped on Hanoi during the Vietnam War. It dropped more bombs per sortie with greater accuracy than any other U.S. attack aircraft, according to the National Museum of the Air Force.
Aircraft over Tucson
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This Avro Canada C102 Jetliner at Tucson Municipal Airport was the first commercial jetliner to land at an Arizona airport. It was flown by multi-millionaire Howard Hughes from Van Nuys, California, on July 10, 1952. It was brought to Tucson for flight testing. "We cruised at 25,000 feet and had it smooth and comfortable all the way," Hughes told the Tucson Citizen. The British de Havilland Comet beat the Avro C102 by only 13 days to become the world's first commercial jetliner.
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Roy McCauldin and Bud Wolfe in a replica of a DeHavilland DH-4, made famous roaming over the French battlefields in World War !. It was nicknamed the "flying coffin" since the gas tank rested between the pilot and co-pilot. The two stopped at Ryan Field, west of Tucson in 1992, on their way to a fly-in convention in Alabama.
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Cargo is loaded into a Fairchild C-119 Boxcar at Davis-Monthan AFB in 1965. The aircraft was famous for dropping bridge sections to aid withdrawl of UN forces from invading Chinese troops in North Korea in 1950.
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Pictured are the maintenance crew of the City of Tucson, first armed B-50 to land at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base and dedicated Sept. 19, 1948 in Air Force day ceremonies. Photo taken when plane become the first B-50 to exceed the 500-hour mark in flying time in spring 1949. Left to right are Tech. Sgt. John Weisenberger, crew chief; Staff Sgt. James Rahbe, assistant crew chief; Sgt. David A. Newberry, mechanic; Sgt. William D. D'Ottavio, mechanic; Sgt. Roger Luikens, mechanic.
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Davis-Monthan AFB on Jan. 17, 1953, the day a new 11,500-feet runway was dedicated to handle the jet age. Propeller-driven Boeing B-50 bombers site on the flightline. The base received new SAC B-47 bombers for the 303rd Bombardment Group that March.
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"Bockscar," the Boeing B-29 bomber that dropped the atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945, shown in storage at Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, in 1955. It was transferred to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in 1961.
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A section for a nuclear-tipped Titan Missile arrives at Davis-Monthan AFB in Nov. 1962 via a Douglas C-133 Cargomaster.
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A Lockheed U2 high altitude surveillance plane stationed at Davis-Monthan AFB in flight over Tucson area in July, 1966. The last U-2 high altitude reconnaissance aircraft left Davis-Monthan AFB in 1976, enroute to Beale Air Force Base in California when the 100th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing joined the high-altitude SR-71 at the same base. U-2's first arrived at D-M in 1963, along with 1,500 airmen, in a transfer from Laughlin AFB, Texas.
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Some of the estimated 122,000 visitors watch aircraft land at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base watch a Royal Air Force Vulcan bomber during the annual Aerospace and Arizona Days at the base on March 15, 1970.
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The Convair B-58 Hustler at Davis-Monthan AFB in 1958. The nuclear-capable supersonic strategic bomber made famous in the 1964 movie, "Fail Safe." The Air Force tested the planes until 1959. The first planes were officially delivered in 1964. The huge pod underneath carried one nuclear weapon and/or extra fuel. The planes were not stationed at D-M.
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A SAC B-47 bomber from Davis-Monthan AFB slides underneath a KC-97 tanker 15,000 feet above Southern Arizona in 1955. The jets slow to 210-250 mph to fly with the slower prop-driven tanker. The tanker transfers thousands of pounds of aviation fuel in a few minutes.
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A McDonnell-Douglas F-4C Phantom attack aircraft on the flight line at Davis-Monthan AFB Tucson in December, 1963. The plane was flown from Tampa for a look-see while the Air Force was considering transfer of the 4453rd Combat Crew Training to D-M. They did just that, in 1964. The F-4 was the heavy-hitter in the air war over Vietnam. The Navy version entered service in 1960. Beginning in 1959, it set 15 world records for in-flight performance.
Aircraft over Tucson
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A Boeing 707 jet airliner at Tucson International Airport in July, 1959, to undergo testing on its cabin air conditioning in the intense Summer heat before delivery to American Airlines. More than 1,000 707's were produced. It was the commercial jet workhorse of the skies for many years and was adapted for military use as airborne command center and refueling tanker.
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A Delta Airlines Douglas DC-8 taxis in front of the iconic flight control tower Tucson International Airport in July, 1959. It was the first commercial jet airliner to land at TIA. The jet suffered to flat tires due to the intense heat. It was on "acceptance flight tests" be Delta employees.
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A Douglas C-124 Globemaster sits outside Grand Central Aircraft at Tucson Municipal Airport in June, 1964. The Globemaster and C-133 Cargomaster were the only heavy-lift aircraft in the U.S. Air Force until the the jet-powered C-5A came into service.
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A new Douglas DC-7C passenger plane arrives at Douglas Aircraft Co. hanger at Tucson Municipal Airport in 1956. The "Seven Seas" version had a longer fuselage, higher fuel capacity, and more powerful engines for trans-atlantic travel. The DC-7 was Douglas's the last piston-powered passenger plane, supplanted by the jet-powered DC-8.
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An Umbaugh 18 autogyro ascends at Freeway Airport (Prince and Romero) in Tucson as more than 1,500 Tusconans watched from a safe distance in February, 1961. It was one of the last three gyroplanes certified for airworthiness by the FAA. The company was unable to meet demand and ceased operations in 1962.
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A Consolidated PBY Catalina retrofitted for airborne mineral surveys sits at Tucson Municipal Airport in 1956. Coils on the plane put out a magnetic field which returns signals from ore bodies.
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A single-engine Champion Citabria is fueled at the new restaurant and service center at Ryan Field west of Tucson in June, 1969. The airfield hosted a "Discover Flying" day for the public.
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The first jet made in Tucson, Wee-Jet made by Carma Manufacturing of Tucson taxis after a test flight at Tucson Municipal Airport in 1956. The two-seat jet trainer was built at 3544 E. Ft. Lowell Road. The company said it could cruise at 325 mph for 1,025 miles at 30,000 feet. The company was unable to interest the Navy in the jet it by 1959 it slipped into oblivion. Carma was owned by Charles Gagnier, who died in 1966.
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A Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird streaks over Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, during open house in 1971. The plane was of interest to Tucsonans, since it was seen as a successor to the U-2 spy planes, 23 of which were stationed at D-M.
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A Consolidated B-24 Liberator bomber converted for aerial firefighting sits at Libby Army Air Field at Ft. Huachuca in Sierra Vista in 1973.
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An North American Rockwell OV-10 Bronco at Davis-Monthan AFB in 1991. The twin-turboprop light attack and observation aircraft was developed in the 1960s as a special aircraft for counter-insurgency and forward air control. It can loiter airborne for three or more hours. At D-M, they were attached to the 602nd Tactical Air Control Wing. The final two OV-10 wings were retired in 1991. The aircraft was used in forward air control during the rescue of navigator Lt. Col. Iceal "Gene" Hambleton in Vietnam in 1972, made famous in the movie, "Bat 21."
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A Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber, known for its role in the Pacific Theatre during World War II, taxis to Aero Services at Tucson International Airport in 1979. It was refitted and flown to the Imperial War Museum in England. The U.S. Government donated the plane to the museum. It had sat on the ground at China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station in the California desert for 26 years.
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Dave Fowler, president of Evergreen Air Center, takes a morning ride around a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress at Pinal Air Park in 1990. The plane was likely the single most important strategic weapon in the European campaigns of World War II. Fowler estimated that Evergreen spent more than $3 million to restore the plane.
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Eastern Airlines brought its new Airbus A-300, the world's first twin-engine wide-body aircraft, to Tucson in May, 1981. The A-300 was partly a rival to the American three-engine jetliners DC-10 and L-1011. The A-300 was the first aircraft manufactured by the the British/French/German consortium.
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A Boeing 707 prototype takes off from Davis-Monthan AFB enroute to Boeing Aircraft in Seattle in 1990. It's finai destination was to be the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. The aircraft was in storage at AMARG ("The Boneyard"), adjacent to D-M.
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A C46 Curtiss Commando, the last flyable aircraft of its type in the U.S. Air Force inventory, sits at Davis-Monthan AFV in 1972, bound for the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. The plane, one of 3,135 built for use in WW II, first flew in 1944. The plane was most-famous for ferrying supplies to the Chinese after Japanese troops closed the Burma Road.
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Climate Club models rope TWA's Star of the Mediterranean as Tucson Municipal Airport welcomed the first flight by TWA (Trans World Airlines) to Tucson on Dec. 2, 1956. It was a classic Lockheed Constellation, which was the best way to fly in the pre-jet age.
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A pilot exits an F-84F Thunderstreak of the Arizona Air National Guard during the Ricks Memorial Trophy contest at Tucson International Airport on July 29, 1957. In the 1950s and 1960s the Air National Guard conducted the annual contest, a cross country timed air race designed to showcase the newly formed Air National Guard.
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A Boeing Vertol H-21 helicopter at Marana Air Base (Pinal Air Park) in Oct. 1959.
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A U.S. Air Force T-34 trainer taxiing at Marana Air Base (Pinal Air Park) in 1954.
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An Arizona Air National Guard North American F-100 Super Sabre fighter takes off from Tucson International Airport in June, 1965.
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A McDonnell Douglas F4C Phantom II fighter plane takes off from Davis-Monthan AFB in 1964. D-M was the home of the 4453rd Combat Crew Training Wing, which provided intensive flight training for Phantom crews, many of which served in Vietnam.
F-106 Delta Darts
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Two Convair F-106 Delta Dart interceptors (pilots called them "The Six") take off from Davis-Monthan AFB after being scrambled by the 26th NORAD Regional Control Center at Luke AFB in 1977.
Lockheed C5A, 1970
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A Lockheed C5A, then the largest aircraft in the world, at Davis-Monthan AFB in 1970. It was six stories tall and had a cargo capacity of 265,000 pounds and could seat 270 passengers.
DC-10, 1971
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An American Airlines ground crew watches a huge McDonnell-Douglas DC-10 Luxury Liner, christened "Flagship Arizona" taxi into position on its inaugural visit to Tucson International Airport in 1971. The prototype DC-10 made its first flight just a year prior. By the late 80s the plane had left passenger service. It's notable uses now are as a US Air Force refueling tanker (KC-10), cargo plane and the 10 Air Tanker for aerial firefighting.
DC-10, 1971
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An American Airlines McDonnell-Douglas DC-10 Luxury Liner, christened "Flagship Arizona" makes its inaugural visit to Tucson International Airport in 1971. The 204-seat aircraft featured a cocktail lounge, a revelation for veteran passengers of the old 707's and DC-80's.
747, 1970
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A TWA 747 takes off from Tucson International Airport during clear-weather flight training in January, 1970.
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Red Baron Stearman Squadron biplanes take off at the Avra Valley Airport in in 1990s.
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U.S. Marines assigned to the Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 165, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, unload off two MV-22B Ospreys on the flightline at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., May 16, 2016. The MV-22, is an assault transport for troops, equipment and supplies, and is capable of operating from ships or from expeditionary airfields ashore.
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President Barack Obama on Air Force One, a modified Boeing 747, lands at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in 2011.
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A P-47 Thunderbolt roars over Golf Links headed into Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, one of several vintage and modern warbirds practicing for Heritage Flight Training and Certification Course, Friday, March 4, 2016, Tucson, Ariz.
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An Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor speeds past a few onlookers and propeller planes during the Heritage Flight Training and Certification Course at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base on Friday, Feb. 27, 2015, in Tucson, Ariz. The annual flights feature modern fighter jets flying in formation alongside aircraft from the World War II, Korea and Vietnam era. Photo by Mike Christy / Arizona Daily Star
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A North American P-51 Mustang roars over Golf Links, one of several vintage aircraft flying formations with modern supersonic jet fighters on the second day of the Heritage Flight Training and Certification Course in the airspace surrounding Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Friday, March 4, 2016, Tucson, Ariz.
Aircraft over Tucson 2017
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An A-10 Thunderbolt II, left, flies in formation with a Lockheed P-38 Lightning during the 20th annual Heritage Flight Training and Certification Course at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base on Feb. 10, 2017, in Tucson, Ariz.
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An General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, bottom, flies alongside a North American P-51 Mustang during the 20th annual Heritage Flight Training and Certification Course at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base on Feb. 10, 2017, in Tucson, Ariz.
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The United State Air Force Thunderbirds (General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcons) shoot through the sky under a waxing crescent moon during the grand finale to the Thunder and Lightning Over Arizona, the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base 2016 Open House Air Show, Saturday, March 12, 2016, Tucson, Ariz.
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Here, crowds spill out of the front of a Lockheed C-5 Galaxy cargo plane at Davis Monthan Air Force Base during Aerospace & Arizona Days 2005.
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The NASA Space Shuttle Columbia riding piggy back on a Boeing 747 lands at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base on its way to Florida in 1990.
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A-10 West Demo Team pilot Captain Joe "Rifle" Shetterly pilots a Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II reaching seven times the force of gravity during his 12 minute performance over Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. The A-10 is the mainstay at D-M, provides close-air support for infantry and is also a feared "tank-killer," with a devastating rotary cannon gun that fires large depleted uranium armor-piercing shells.
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A welcoming crowd mingles in the shade of a Boeing B-1 Lancer bomber that was delivered to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base on August 20, 2002. This B-1 is the first of 24 Lancers that will be delivered to the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center.
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A HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter from the 55th Rescue Squadron hauls in a downed pilot and a member of the 48th Rescue Squadron during a Combat Search and Rescue exercise at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in 2013. CSAR, stationed at D-M, rescued civilians in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina.
CSAR, D-M
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An HC-130 Combat King trailing refueling booms leads two HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters during a Combat Search and Rescue demo at Thunder & Lightning Over Arizona air show at Davis-Monthan AFB on Nov. 6, 2021. The 563rd Rescue Group at D-M oversees flying operations for Combat Search and Rescue, which locates and rescues downed pilots.
EC-130H, D-M
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A EC-130H from Davis-Monthan AFB makes a pass during Thunder & Lightning Over Arizona air show at Davis-Monthan AFB on Nov. 6, 2021. The EC-130H is an electronic warfare and electronic attack aircraft stationed at D-M as part of the 43d Electronic Combat Squadron.
10 Air Tanker
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A huge DC-10 VLAT (Very Large Air Tanker) pulls up after dropping a load of fire retardant in a neighborhood just south of Catalina State Park during the Bighorn Fire burning along Pusch Ridge in Coronado National Forest north of Tucson on June 6, 2020.ย
Aircraft over Tucson
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An Arizona Air National Guard KC-135 refueling tanker (a modified Boeing 707) makes a low pass over the iconic control tower at Tucson International Airport in 2014.
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An Iraqi F-16 jet, right, taxis after landing as an Arizona Air National Guard F-16 Fighting Falcon lands in the background at the Tucson International Airport on July 13, 2017.
Aircraft Boneyard
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C-130 grounded at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base's Aircraft Boneyard on Oct. 17, 2019.
