Aspiring baseball professional chooses to become world class aviator

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Keith Holcomb
  • 14th Flying Training Wing Public Affairs
COLUMBUS AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. --  Being an Air Force pilot is a dream job for some people, so much so, that they would choose this avenue instead of becoming a professional baseball player.

For Maj. Benjamin Lindsay, 41st Flying Training Squadron instructor pilot and Assistant Director of Operations, piloting was not initially his life-long goal.

Born in California, his mother moved him and his older brother to Australia, where he then spent 19 years of his life.

“My mother’s Australian, so I went back [to Australia] with my mother and brother,” Lindsay said. “I was there from ages 1 to about 19.”

His mother worked as a teacher and supported his brother and him as they grew up; this led to him learning to really go after his individual goals and allowed him to accomplish everything he has to this point.

Growing up in Australia, Lindsay said sports such as cricket and rugby were very popular; but he had stumbled upon baseball, finding his natural ability to pitch extremely well.

“I was generally good at most sports but found I could throw exceptionally hard, and using that as leverage to gain a free education made complete sense to me, that was really all it was,” Lindsay said. “It was a very short decision making process.”

Playing at high levels in Australia against traveling American teams led to him meeting many players with opportunities in America that Lindsay didn’t have available in the southern hemisphere.

“I met a guy playing baseball in the AAA league in Tennessee. He said I could play baseball for free if you’re good at any number of things, including baseball,” Lindsay said. “We still don’t have a lot of college sports in Australia that are as formal as American college sports.”

Since collegiate sports are not very popular in Australia, Lindsay said he knew he would have to look for opportunities elsewhere.

“What [we] did was put a video together of me pitching on the mound and we sent it over to a university in Tennessee and I got a full ride, bags packed,” Lindsay said. “Then we ran into a problem, because Australia doesn’t have an ACT or SAT, so I had to go to a community college to become eligible.”

He attended Itawamba Community College in Mississippi, and was drafted by the New York Yankees, but turned it down so he could obtain his original goal -- completing his degree for free.

He would go on to meet his future wife at Itawamba CC, and she furthered her education in the Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps at Mississippi State University, while he didn’t know where to go next.

Lindsay had no preference on the college, he just wanted his degree, and had many friends at the University of Mississippi who enjoyed the school. Lindsay received his full-ride scholarship for baseball from Ole Miss, and would also be able to go on and earn his degree.

“[I had a] great coach, the baseball was fun, and I got my degree; it was good,” Lindsay said. “But then I hurt my shoulder, so I had to figure out how to pay for the last six or eight months of school, and ROTC was the option I chose.”

Collegiate athletes on a scholarship usually will not keep their scholarship after certain injuries, this is why he said ROTC was appealing to him.

Lindsay said his wife’s family had veterans who pushed him toward the Army route, but one look at the Army and he walked upstairs to the Air Force recruiter and was sold.

“The mission, being able to fly something was very appealing,” Lindsay said. “It just seemed like the way to go.”

Not only would the Air Force provide him completing the last months of his education, but would also provide him with furthering his education and would allow him to give back to the country that had already given him so much.

Lindsay moved from the University of Mississippi to pilot training at Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi, and was then assigned as a first-assignment instructor pilot, working with Lt. Col. Derek Oakley, 41st Flying Training Squadron Commander.

“Like most pilots who move from student pilot to instructor pilot, his vision was very limited,” Oakley said. “He was great as an instructor pilot then, but what has changed over time has been he has a broader sense of what we do here. His focus on students has changed, to prepare the student to step into their weapons systems and be productive with it.”

Lindsay gained this broadened sense of what an Air Force pilot really is throughout his assignments between his first tour until now.

One experience that stands out to Lindsay happened during a flight en route to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, where he witnessed the flight lead crash into a high mountain that was extremely difficult to see in the night with poor weather conditions.

“It really drove a lot of the research I’ve done for people who are struggling with [post-traumatic stress disorder],” Lindsay said. “I want to help out and do what I can do to make it easier for folks who are dealing with that.”

Lindsay pulled up as soon as he realized something was wrong, circling back and assessing the situation.

“It’s a sad day that has been a mark on my Air Force career that has always stuck with me,” Lindsay said.

Experiences from the field allow instructor pilots to teach their students with more knowledge that cannot be foreseen otherwise.

“His focus has never been on making more rank or a different position, it’s just focusing on being the best pilot or instructor that he could ever be and making sure that’s portrayed by the students,” Oakley said. “What he brings to [piloting] from [baseball] is the work ethic that he had to bring him to the top level. That drive to be the best you can be is truly what has propelled him to do what he does here.”

Lindsay continues to work and help those with PTSD, as well as teach student pilots using the wealth of experience he has gained over his time in service.