Stallion 51’s Mustang assistant crew chief Kris Riel was recently sworn into the US Navy by AvDoc 51’s Dr. W.T. Busch. Dr. Busch is a retired Navy captain who was a Naval Aviator and flight surgeon from 1976 through 2005 before joining Stallion 51 as Senior FAA Medical Examiner.
Kris will continue on at Stallion 51 until he reports to Officer Candidate School in Newport, R.I., on Oct. 12 for his 12-week training program before reporting to Pensacola Naval Air Station for flight training.
According to officials with Kissimmee, Florida-based Stallion 51, Kris personifies a “local boy done good.”
He graduated from Osceola High School in 2008 and worked part time at Fat Boys restaurant while attending Everglades University.
Starting in 2011, he began volunteering at Stallion 51. His hard work and determination earned him a place on Stallion 51’s team working four days a week while still working at Fat Boys and going to the university, Stallion 51 officials noted.
Kris graduated with honors from Everglades University with a Bachelors of Science degree in Aviation Technology in September 2013. Even before graduation, he knew he wanted a career as a Naval Aviator and started the long and rigorous process of applying to the Navy’s OCS program.
Stallion 51 officials say they are honored that Kris’s first steps toward his career in the Navy were made in Stallion 51’s hangar among his Mustang family.
For more information: Stallion51.com