One of the most intrigued pilot careers of Greek Americans is the one of Terry Pappas. We can definitely say that he is the fastest Greek heritage pilot in history, as he was privileged to fly the marvelous SR-71 Blackbird. During our communication with him wrote to us about his family history.

“My grandfather, Nikos Papapostolou Pappas was from Petrona, a small community above Agrinio in the region of Aetolokarnania. From Athens, you take the highway towards Patras and turn onto the new bridge call Rio Antirio towards Agrinio and Messolongi, the birthplace of my Grandmother, Sophia Drossopoulou Pappas. My grandfather immigrated to the US at Ellis Island in 1915. My grandmother, Sophia, arrived in 1920. They settled in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, which is where I was born. My parents were both born in Winston-Salem, NC and I am the oldest of eight kids.”

Terry spent 41 years flying aircraft, primarily for the USAF and NASA. His career started during the Vietnam era, conducting officer training while in college at the University of Florida, being commissioned there and attending AF pilot training at Reese AFB in Lubbock, Texas in 1971. After earning his wings he became an instructor pilot in the T-38A, training USAF and foreign national pilots in that high-performance aircraft. He went on to fly numerous aircraft, in and out of the Air Force, to include the B-52G, while stationed at Blytheville AFB, Arkansas, ’81-‘85. He was a mission commander and during the Cold War, his primary duty was the nuclear strike, according to SAC doctrines. From there he was selected to fly the Mach 3 plus, SR-71, stationed at Beale AFB, California from ’85-’90. Terry Pappas was one of those pilots who earned the title 'Habu' – the unofficial name given to the SR-71 and its flight crew in a nod to the venomous snake that the airplane is said to resemble. Pappas spent more than 5 years in the SR-71 program and flew numerous operational missions over hostile airspace. What made the Blackbird so unique was its ability to fly very fast (Mach 3.3) and very high (85,000 feet). This performance allowed it to overfly nearly any area of the world and take surveillance photos with relative impunity. Intercepting fighter pilots could only shake their fists as the SR-71 flew high above their reach. To escape surface-to-air missiles, Blackbird pilots would just ease the throttles forward and outrun them. Throughout its service life, the SR-71 was a very closely-guarded and coveted asset. Not only was it stuffed full of proprietary technology, it was also extremely expensive to purchase, maintain, and operate The US Air Force wouldn’t let just anyone fly their prized machine. It implemented a very rigorous selection and training process for the pilots and Reconnaissance Systems Officers (RSO) that would fill the Blackbird’s seats.

When the Blackbird ended its operational service of over two decades in 1990, he transferred to Edwards AFB, near Los Angeles, and served as an instructor pilot and flight examiner in the T-38A for the Air Force Flight Test Center, until he retired from the AF in 1994. Terry flew Learjet’s with camera systems onboard filming aerial scenes for the movie industry for a couple years. Then he accepted a position as a demonstration pilot for an aircraft manufacturer. There he demonstrated new business jets to chief pilots and company presidents around the world. He flew for a privately held business in Las Vegas, Nevada for two years before accepting a position as an Aerospace Engineer and Research Pilot with NASA in 1998. His duties included: T-38 Project Pilot, IP for astronauts in T-38, Gulfstream I, II and III executive transport, Super Guppy transport for outsize cargo, and DC-9 for microgravity research flights. He also managed a number of training functions for the Aircraft Operations Division. During an interview he gave to www.tested.com and Terry Dunn he referred to his NASA Service:

"It was much more challenging at NASA because I flew five very different aircraft at the same time. I remember flying all of them in a two day period more than once. The eye-height at landing is very different for each aircraft. Pilots must use their eyes heavily during a landing. And the picture that you try to 'burn in' differs greatly for each aircraft. The handling characteristics for each aircraft were vastly different too. One of the more difficult aircraft to fly, and therefore enjoyable for me, was the Super Guppy. It was 170,000 lbs, with a top speed of 205 knots, indicated airspeed. Faster, and the air over the top became supersonic. Flying the Guppy meant being low and slow, and frequently getting bounced around in the weather. It had no auto-pilot and no hydraulic assist on the flight controls. You just had to manhandle the beast. And anything approaching 15 knots of crosswind, and it wanted to weathervane and go for the grass. It was built based on the 1940's era KC-97, with the original cockpit and controls. I could fly a modern glass cockpit in the morning and then later that day, leap 60 years back in time in the Guppy. It was a blast."