Bronco in the Sky: How WMU Took This Pilot from Jackson to Jet Set
Nothing like flying the friendly skies of the WMU College of Aviation.
Recently, Tom Thinnes, the College's director of recruitment, outreach and marketing, was booked on a short flight from Detroit to Kalamazoo when the captain's voice came over the intercom.
It can't be him, Thinnes wondered. But it was -- Cole Dillon, a 2018 recipient of a degree in aviation flight science who served as one of Thinnes' program ambassadors during his days at Western.
But these days, the Jackson High School alumnus (Class of 2015) holds the rank of captain and the status of flight operations supervisor for SkyWest Airline, the regional enterprise based in Utah that flies a fleet of more than 520 planes to 258 destinations throughout North America.
And wherever he flies, Dillon carries with him warm memories and cherished experiences garnered while a College of Aviation student. It doesn't take long for him to spout out the names of folks who guided him along the way -- starting with the college's dean, David Powell, a major "influencer" and "mentor of mentors."
Followed closely by the likes of Sharon Van Dyken, Annie Quardokus, Jana Zollinger, Tracy Kauppila, Shelbi Tierney, Tom McLaughlin, Russ Kavalhuna, Jim Whittles, and Thinnes. "The learning was always interesting, and I always looked forward to going to classes," Dillon says.
"There is no better classroom than one in the sky," he says. "I had a very good experience with all of my certified flight instructors at WMU." And what he learned from them, he later passed on to those under his watch as a CFI for the college.
Dillon took advantage of just about every opportunity that came his way as a student -- a flight-operations internship with United Airlines as well as a crew scheduler and flight-support specialist with Kalitta Air, an international cargo and charter airlines based at Michigan's Willow Run Airport near Detroit.
"I was able to learn a lot about the behind-the-scenes of airline operations at both United and Kalitta," he says. "It gave me a whole new respect for the large-scale operation of the airline industry."
Closer to home was his service as an aviation ambassador. "I enjoyed attending recruiting events such as the Oshkosh AirVenture," he recalls. 'It allowed me to make new friends and industry connections. A bonus was flying to those events."
"Close to home" in Jackson was a prime reason Dillon chose Western as a college destination. "It was a large-scale university with a small-college feel through the College of Aviation," he says. As a comprehensive university as opposed to an aviation-themed technical school, Western provided him extra-curricular opportunities, such as college football at Waldo Stadium and joining the "Lawson Lunatics" at Bronco hockey games.
Dillon's affinity for all things skyward dates to a spring-break flight his family took when he was in the fourth grade. "I was instantly hooked," he says. "As soon as I got home from the trip, I started playing on a flight simulator. I took my first lesson when I was 15."
In addition to his duties as a student ambassador, Dillon joined Western's Alpha Eta Rho chapter, the fraternal organization that links the airline industry with institutions of higher education. He was also a pioneer member of the National Gay Pilots Association at WMU. Both expanded his networking capabilities and the latter provided scholarship funds to finance his flight training.
"Starting the chapter at WMU for me emphasizes the importance of diversity in aviation," he says. "As an airline pilot, you work with different people all the time so it's important to respect other people for who they are."
He cited the financing angle as one of the major challenges of his career. "It's always difficult but it definitely pays off in the end," Dillon says. "The other side of that coin is that I get to travel the country and do what I love to do."
Of course, he says, a plane's maintenance and the weather are "always on your mind. Being away from home as often as an airline pilot is can also be difficult, but with a little seniority it's pretty easy to get the schedule that you like. We have to remember that airlines are a '24/7' business." Plus, he's not alone in keeping an eye on schedules. His partner for seven years wears the pilot's uniform of JetBlue.
Still early in his career. Dillon has a passport stamped with destinations around Europe. He's been to Hawaii and "everywhere in between." Free time is spent with his dogs engaged in fitness and running activities. He recently achieved the status of "certified personal trainer."
But Bronco blood runs in his veins. "I love to represent WMU loud and proud," he says. Not too far in his conversation in meeting new pilots comes the statement that he's a graduate of the Western Michigan University College of Aviation. He'd probably state that when he greets his passengers, but the folks at SkyWest might not think too much of that.