SCOTT “TOOL” HANES 

What started as a simple ploy to take his wife on a joy ride in a fighter jet, turned into a position as Chief Pilot for Blue Air Training. and Tool hasn’t looked back since. As Blue Air’s Chief Pilot and “employee number two,” Scott “Tool” Hanes is responsible for all Flying Operations whether during execution of contracted performance periods, for initial/continuation training or standards evaluations. In support of these primary duties, “Tool” authored all of Blue Air Training Procedural Instructions, Operational Supervisory directives and Flying Standards which dictate exactly how Blue Air Training operates as a military flight services provider. He leads the corps of pilots from the front by maintaining not just proficiency in all of the multiple types of aircraft the company flies, but also keeps his finger on the quality and safety of the flying operation as the lead Flight Evaluator and Instructor Pilot for Blue Air Training. Over two decades of military aviation service both in training & in combat and hundreds of hours of flight instruction in fighter aircraft uniquely qualify “Tool” to train, evaluate, and lead Blue Air Training’s pilots to target the customers Desired Learning Objective safely and efficiently.

Following a 4-year tour in the Army National Guard as a Russian Linguist Interrogator, “Tool” graduated from the University of Washington with Bachelors of Science in both Physics and Astronomy. He received his commission from the AFROTC program in 1995. After earning his wings at Sheppard AFB, TX (home of Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training), he has flown the A-10A/C as a combat fighter pilot and instructor over 4 different continents in training, deterrence, and combat. Scott led scheduling, training, and flight safety departments at all levels from the Squadron to the Group and Wing.

“Tool” also taught fighter fundamentals to newly winged pilots in the A/T-38A/B/C. By his estimation, he has flown with or led 800+ USAF/USN and foreign pilot on instructional sorties as well as kept the Air Force’s B-2 bomber pilots’ flying skills razor sharp. Scott is a command pilot with more than 4500 hours in the T-3 Firefly, T-37 Tweet, A/T-38A/B/ C Talon, (O)A-10A/C Thunderbolt II, IAR-823 Brasov, BAC-167 Strikemaster, A-90 Raider and OV-10 Bronco. He has experience flying contingency and combat sorties over Kuwait, Iraq, and Afghanistan. He was awarded multiple Air Medals for combat flights in Afghanistan and Aerial Achievement medals for flights along the border between South and North Korea. He retired from the US Air Force in 2015 and transitioned from flying for Blue Air Training to become its full-time Chief Pilot where continues to serve today.

Tool retired from his Air Force career after 21 years of distinguished service, including eleven years as an instructor pilot in the A-10C and AT-38. He resides in Tucson with his family and enjoys traveling internationally with his wife.