Colonel Robert J. Graham was raised in northern New Jersey and attended Upsala College before enlisting in the Air Force. After enlistment, he entered the Aviation Cadet Program, was commissioned, and was awarded his navigator wings in 1955. After serving as a Radar Observer in F-94Cs and F-101Bs, he entered pilot training and received his pilot wings in 1960. He then completed F-100 training and was assigned to Misawa A.B., Japan.
In the years following, he had two tours of duty in Vietnam, stationed at Da Nang A. B., RVN. His third combat tour in Vietnam was at Bien Hoa A.B., RVN. After completing his third tour of duty and returning from Vietnam, he completed his Bachelor of Science degree in Economics at the University of Nebraska. He went on to Luke AFB, Arizona, as an F-100 gunnery instructor for three years. That was followed by two years at Incirlik A.B., Turkey, working in the Middle East. Following his assignment in Turkey, he returned for his fourth and final tour in the Vietnam War as the Commander of the 4th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Udorn A.B., Thailand, flying the F-4. After this tour, he was assigned to the Pentagon as a strategic planner on the Air Staff and then to the Air War College. He graduated from the Air War College in 1976 while earning his MBA from Auburn University. Upon graduation, he was assigned as Director of Programs at Air Force Logistics Command. Following that, he served at Osan A.B., Korea, as Deputy Commander for Operations in the 51st Wing again flying the F-4E with the 36th TFS. His final assignment was as Director of Programs for Air Forces Europe at Ramstein A.B., Germany.
Col. Graham retired from the Air Force in 1982 and began a second career in the finance industry. He founded Riggs Asset Management Company in 1990. Today, Riggs is a multi-generational investment advisor that manages the wealth of affluent families worldwide.
EDUCATION:
1966 Bachelor of Science, Economics, University of Nebraska, Omaha, Nebraska
1976 Master of Business Administration, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama
ASSIGNMENTS:
1. 1953, Enlisted in USAF, Boot Camp, Radio Intercept School, Biloxi, Mississippi
2. 1954-1955, Aviation Cadet—Graduated Flight School, Commissioned 2nd Lieutenant-Trained as Radar Observer, Navigator, Radar Intercept Officer, Houston, Texas
3. 1956, Training Fighter Interceptor, James Connally AFB, Waco, Texas and Moody, AFB, Valdosta, Georgia
4. 1956-1959, Assigned 60th FIS flying F-94C/F-101B. First C/C Major “Chappie” James
5. 1959, Pilot Training, Bainbridge Air Base, Bainbridge, GA and Laredo AFB, Laredo, TX
6. 1960, Assigned to fly F-100—Gunnery School, Luke AFB in Phoenix, AZ; Next Advanced Gunnery Training, Nellis AFB in Las Vegas, NV
7. 1961, Assigned Misawa AB, Japan flying F-100 with 531st TFS. Primary mission nuclear alert in Kunsan AB and Osan AB, Korea
8. 1962, Volunteer for classified assignment in Vietnam with CIA. Advisor ARVN division as ground FAC. Flew with Vietnamese Air Force as FAC. RTB to Misawa. (1st combat tour)
9. 1964, 531st TFS sent back to States to form 3rd Tac Fighter Wing. England AFB, Alexandria, LA
10. 1964, 531st TFS temporarily deployed to Clark A.B. in Philippines; Assigned to sit Nuke Alert Targets in Taiwan Targeting China
11. 1965, Strikes into North Vietnam—operation “Rolling Thunder” (2nd combat tour)
12. 1965, Hospital until near the end of December for injuries sustained by ejection
13. 1965, Assigned back to 531st at Bien Hoa AB, VN (3rd combat tour)
14. 1966-1970, Reassigned to Luke AFB, AZ as an Instructor Pilot
15. 1970-1972, Assigned to Incirlik AB Turkey as Assistant Director of Operations and Intelligence
16. 1972, Checkout in F-4 C/D/E at George AFB, California
17. 1972-1973, Assigned to Udorn AB, Thailand as Commander 4th TFS flying F-4Es (4th combat tour)
18. 1974-1975, Assigned to Air Staff in the Pentagon—Led Special Task Force for Chief of Staff USAF to re-write European War Plan for USAF, JCS, DOD, Congress
19. 1975-1976, Air War College—Distinguished Graduate; Also completed MBA at Auburn University, Montgomery, AL
20. 1976-1978, Director Programs Air Force Logistic Command, Dayton, Ohio
21. 1978-1980, Deputy Commander Operations and Intelligence for 51st Wing, Osan AB, South Korea; 36th TFS flying F-4Es and 19th TASS flying OV-10s
22. 1980-1982, Director of Programs—Headquarters USAF Europe, Ramstein AFB, Germany
23. 1982 Retired from the Air Force—3 years enlisted and 26 years as officer
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS:
Silver Star
Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster
Distinguished Flying Cross with “V” for Valor
Meritorious Service Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters
Air Medal with nine Oak Leaf Clusters
Commendation Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster
Presidential Unit Citation
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award
Combat Readiness Medal
Army Good Conduct Medal
National Defense Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster
Korea Defense Service Medal
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Vietnam Service Medal with four Bronze Stars
Overseas Service Medal-Long Service
Small Arms Expert Marksmanship
Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm
Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal
“The real-life embodiment of the Hollywood Top Gun franchise, Graham spent more than two decades in the Air Force; here, he recounts the exhilarating life of a fighter pilot during the height of American tensions with the Soviet Union.”
– Kirkus Reviews
BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR
ONE OF THE FEW
BY Robert Graham
A retired Air Force fighter pilot recalls his Cold War–era experiences in this debut memoir.
“Knock it off!” the author’s wingman shouts in the opening lines of this memoir by retired fighter pilot Graham. At the age of 44 in 1980, the author was the “Old Man” of the 36th Tactical Fighter Squadron, and he had taken the opportunity on his last ride to engage in a mock dogfight while flying a new model of the F-4E on a training mission off the South Korean coast. The real-life embodiment of the Hollywood Top Gun franchise, Graham spent more than two decades in the Air Force; here, he recounts the exhilarating life of a fighter pilot during the height of American tensions with the Soviet Union. For instance, he describes his experiences with the F-100 Super Sabre—a supersonic fighter with high accident rates that was “unstable” by design—as a “love-hate relationship” in which danger and exhilaration were in constant competition. Initially stationed in Misawa, Japan, in the 1960s with a squadron tasked with nuclear deterrence, the author emphasizes that, from his vantage, the war’s “temperature never got less than warm and above”; he would fly within miles of Vladivostok just to make the Russian “air defense system nervous.” From his initial deployment in East Asia, Graham transitioned to the war in Vietnam, where the author served in a variety of missions following the Tonkin Bay episode that ignited a long-term conflict.
While harrowing accounts of aerial heroism loom large in these passages, the book is at its best when giving a pilot’s view of war. Comparing his career as a fighter pilot to a “love affair,” Graham approached military life with a jocular attituded that he likens to a benched athlete eager to get into the game (“Come on, Coach, put me in!”). He even, in one account, risked going AWOL while in California because he couldn’t wait to get back to Saigon. While the narrative oozes with heroic tales and camaraderie, the author is not afraid to criticize officers “trying unsuccessfully to run the battle from an airconditioned office ten thousand miles away.” The content is generally apolitical (Graham virtually never mentions any president or politician by name), but the author notes that airmen and soldiers had to look out for themselves as “good men getting killed will not make a difference to the politicians at the negotiating table.” Graham also discusses how the tumultuous social and racial climate of the 1970s impacted military life—one anecdote concerns a knife fight between a “Ku Klux Klan guy” and a member of the Black Panther Party. The author’s engaging writing style and love for the planes he flew make for a thrilling read. The text is peppered throughout with hypermasculine inspirational quotes by Theodore Roosevelt, Ernest Hemingway, and others. The work includes full-color, high resolution photographs, maps, reproductions of handwritten letters, and other visual elements. While the text runs over 400 total pages, little information is provided about the author’s life before and after the military.
A thrilling joyride through the life of a fighter pilot.
Review Posted Online: March 24, 2025
Sign in with Google