Caleb Hiller has had his head in the clouds since he was 3 years old, watching fighter jets from the runway at Naval Air Station Key West, where his father was stationed.
Today, Hiller is in the cockpit of the military’s elite F/18 Super Hornets, having just earned his Wings of Gold to become a Strike Fighter Pilot on Aug. 12 at Naval Air Station Meridian in Mississippi.
His mother, Mercy Hiller, pinned his wings on him during the ceremony, as his father, Edward, a retired navy chief petty officer, beamed with pride.
Caleb Hiller is now stationed at NAS Oceana in Virginia Beach with Strike Fighter Squadron VFA-106, known as the Gladiators.
His dream of flying became a reality in 2013, when he earned his personal pilot license, a year before he graduated from Key West High School.
From there, he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy Preparatory School in 2015 and the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis in 2019.
During high school, Hiller also was a cadet with the Civil Air Patrol and founded the school’s Flying Club, created to garner interest in aviation.
