Charles F. Burlingame III

1971

Captain Burlingame, or “Chic” to those who knew him, was born in St. Paul, MN, and dreamed of being a pilot his whole life. After receiving a bachelor’s degree with a major in science from the Naval Academy in 1971, Captain Burlingame graduated with honors from the Navy “Top Gun” School. Serving aboard SARATOGA, Captain Burlingame flew F-4 Phantoms until his retirement in 1996. After leaving the Navy, he took a job as a pilot for American Airlines. He was piloting American Airlines Flight 77 on 11 September.