Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      U.S. Air Force 2nd Lt. Andrew Dane, 47th Flying Training Wing pilot graduate, poses for a photo on the flight line at Laughlin Air Force Base, May 25, 2017. With his new wings, Dane is on his way to fly the F-16 Fighting Falcon, an aircraft that he formerly supported as a Tactical Air Control Party specialist. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Benjamin N. Valmoja)From the ground up
                        
                        
                        Second Lt. Andrew Dane, a 47th Flying Training Wing pilot graduate, poses for a photo on the flight line at Laughlin Air Force Base, May 25, 2017. With his new wings, Dane is on his way to fly the F-16 Fighting Falcon, an aircraft that he formerly supported as a Tactical Air Control Party specialist. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Benjamin N. Valmoja)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
        


        U.S. Air Force 2nd Lt. Andrew Dane stands watch while deployed as a Tactical Air Control Party specialist. In recounting his experience as a TACP specialist, Dane said “I could still wear my beret and blouse my boots, I feel like [this] was fit for me.” (Courtesy photo)From the ground up
                        
                        
                        Second  Lt. Andrew Dane stands watch while deployed as a Tactical Air Control Party specialist. In recounting his experience as a TACP specialist, Dane said “I could still wear my beret and blouse my boots, I feel like (this) was fit for me.” (Courtesy photo)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

From the ground upPublished June 7, 2017
                    
                    By Airman 1st Class Benjamin N. Valmoja
                    
                    
                    47th Flying Training Wing Public Affairs
            **LAUGHLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFNS) --***(This feature is part of the "Through Airmen's Eyes" series. These stories focus on individual Airmen, highlighting their Air Force story.)*
Some people dream of becoming a fighter pilot, while others dream of becoming a military special operator.
Very few people make both dreams come true.
Second Lt. Andrew Dane, a 47th Flying Training Wing pilot graduate and former Tactical Air Control Party special operator, will be able to see both dreams come true. Dane has successfully completed specialized undergraduate pilot training and is on his way to fly the F-16 Fighting Falcon.
“I never thought this would actually happen,” Dane said. “When I enlisted I never thought I would commission as an officer. When I commissioned, I never thought I’d be a pilot. When that happened I never thought I would (fly) fighters -- and I did. So this is beyond my wildest dreams.”
Since enlisting immediately after high school, Dane has made numerous successes and overcame insurmountable odds.
“When I’m an old man, I want to say I did something worthwhile with my life,” said Dane. “I want to do something challenging. I want to defend my country.”
Dane, a calm and quiet individual, initially enlisted as a pararescueman, one of the toughest career fields to crack, but he didn’t make the cut.
“I was disappointed in myself,” said Dane. “I chose pararescue because I knew the training was hard, and I didn’t make it.”
With his first choice depleted, he needed to find another way into combat. He found TACP.
“It didn’t involve swimming, I could still wear a beret and blouse my boots,” Dane said, laughing. “I feel like it was a better fit for me.”
Later in his career, while on his second deployment as TACP, Dane was approached by his air liaison officer and was presented an opportunity to commission.
“He came into the tent one day and said, ‘Dane, I just got an email from the commander asking if there’s anyone I would recommend for the academy. Are you interested?’” said Dane. “I just sat on my cot for a minute and said, ‘Yeah! Yeah, I’m interested.’”
At the time, he was four years into his six year enlistment, and was deciding between separating and furthering his education, or reenlisting.
“This kind of solved both of my problems,” said Dane. “I get to go to school, and I get to stay in the military.”               
The only catch was that Dane was asked to apply the day before the application deadline.
“I had to do my entire application process from a deployed location,” he said. “I didn’t take an SAT or ACT in high school, either, and I had a week to study before the next test. So after four years of being out of school, I did well enough to make it in.”
Dane made it into the Air Force Academy as a direct entry, meaning he skipped the United States Air Force Academy Preparatory School. He was one out of ten direct entries that year.
As he made his way from an enlisted airman to a commissioned officer, Dane ran into another problem. During his freshman year at the academy he was diagnosed with testicular cancer.
“It was painful,” said Dane. “But by this point in my life I’ve been shot at and blown up so I knew this wasn’t going to kill me.”
To get a slot as a pilot, a person diagnosed with cancer needs to be in remission for at least five years; in his situation, he would only be three-and-a-half years cancer-free.
“I used to do something really cool and exciting,” he said. “I wouldn’t be as happy doing something not as exciting, so I knew I needed to be a pilot. I didn’t know what I was going to do.”
The only way to get around the problem was to submit an exception to policy, he said. An exception to policy would waive the five years in remission requirement and allow Dane the opportunity to pursue his career.
“As far as I know, (the waiver) made its’ way all the way up to (the Secretary of the Air Force) to get approved,” said Dane. “So there’s another ‘never thought I’d be a pilot’ moment.”
Dane’s request was approved during his senior year, which he advanced once more to becoming a pilot.
“I was in disbelief when I found out it went through,” he said. “I didn’t think it was going to happen.”
When it was time for Dane to choose which training track he wanted to pursue at Laughlin Air Force Base, he said he had a tough choice to make.
“(Choosing) the T-1 (Jayhawk) would ultimately provide a better family life, and I’d be able to be with my wife sooner,” Dane said. “But it came down to me picking T-38 (Talon)’s.”
Now that he’s on his way to fly the F-16, Dane says he couldn’t be more excited to see the flip side of the job that he supported as a joint terminal attack controller in his old career field.
“(As TACP) I always thought the pilot had the harder job,” Dane said. The pilot has a multitude of things to worry about like fuel in the aircraft, a wingman on his or her wing, navigation and every other thing that concerns keeping the jet in the air, he said.
Dane’s face pulled into a grin as he recalled the aircraft that he had gotten support from while down range, including the F-16 he’s been slotted for.
“You never know where you’re going to end up,” Dane said. “And I think that everything does happen for a reason. I’m ready to get out there and protect our guys on the ground.”f-16 



deployment 



Air Force Academy 



TACP 



career 



pilot 



Commission 



testicular cancer 



remission 



Laughlin AFB Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                SecAF, CSAF, CMSAF begin Indo-Pacific trip focused on ACE
                    
                    DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fightInnovation
                F-16s arrive to be modified for autonomous testing
                    
                    AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalistsMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil