Civilian Army Instructor Pilot Honored for Years of Flight An instructor pilot walks onto the flightline while maintenance crews inspect at UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter at Lowe Army Heliport, Fort Rucker, Ala. in a dense fog that blanketed lower part of the state for several hours on the morning of May 9, 2013. (Andrew Kosterman/U.S. Army) 6 Feb 2021 The Associated Press | By PEGGY USSERY, Dothan Eagle DOTHAN, Ala. (AP) — Scott Tomlinson took his first solo flight as a pilot when he was only 16 years old. It’s been 50 years since that flight, and Tomlinson recently joined a prestigious list of pilots honored by the Federal Aviation Administration. And all his years as a pilot have been free of accidents.