Scrubs to flight suit: Major changes gear Published March 7, 2014 By Senior Airman Charles V. Rivezzo 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- As far back as he can remember, Maj. Christopher Bates wanted to fly. Whether it was the single-engine Cessna his family flew around its small Kansas town that served as his inspiration or the 26 years his father served as a fighter pilot in the F-4 Phantom, all Bates knew was that he was meant to be airborne. But by the third grade, Bates' aspirations to fly seemed more like a pipe dream than a reality. He wore glasses and his vision was poor. He knew pilots needed better vision. By the eighth grade, his focus shifted from the sky toward another calling - medicine. After graduating high school, Bates went on to attend the U.S. Air Force Academy to pursue a degree in biochemistry. "My dad was the one who opened my eyes to the opportunities the military and the Air Force Academy had to offer," Bates said. "So once I got that idea in my system, it was hard to shake." Throughout his tenure at the Academy, if his head wasn't in his biochemistry books, he was flying gliders and earning his parachutist badge. But there was always a burning desire inside of him as he would catch himself gazing into the sky watching aircraft fly by. It was during his senior year that the impossible became possible and a new type of eye surgery known as photorefractive keratectomy, better known as PRK, was allowed for future pilots. "I immediately obtained permission for my eye surgery and sought out a reputable eye surgeon," he said. "I even paid for it at my own expense, just hoping for a chance to go to pilot training. But within a few days of my surgery, the pilot slots were full; my surgery was a little too late." Bates went on to continue his medical profession and attended the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. He received his medical degree in 2005, and then did a non-categorical internship year in internal medicine. "At first, I really didn't know what specialty I wanted to go into," Bates said. "I ended up pursuing flight medicine, as I prepared to become a flight surgeon and earn my wings." Stationed at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, Bates worked in Reid Clinic where he further learned about his aircrew patients, their careers and work environments. For Bates, it served as a bridge that would connect his two passions. In 2008, he deployed to Iraq to serve as a flight surgeon, where his primary job was clearing patients for aeromedical evacuation as well as serving at the clinic in Balad, Iraq. "Iraq was a very unique and exciting experience for me," he said. "Aside from working at the clinic, I medically managed multiple ICU level patients in Black Hawks. Most missions were flown under the cover of darkness to prevent any enemy attacks. All you had was your pen light at the most. It's noisy and dark and you're just focused on keeping your patient alive." Upon his return, Bates decided to venture into the realm of emergency medicine and deployed Afghanistan in 2012. "Afghanistan turned out to be a different type of mission than Iraq," Bates said. "I flew many missions on C-130s, C-17s and the KC-135, transporting critically injured American Soldiers to higher level of care. Those are intense situations because you have someone's life in your hands and you are it, especially when you are hours from the nearest hospital and 30,000 feet in the air." Thus far, Bates seemed to develop a distinctive trend throughout his military career, a mixture of flying and medicine. Yet the urge to fly his own aircraft still eluded him - until recently. "For a while, the Air Force had a program where pilots could transition into the medical career field and serve as a pilot-physician, but never the other way around," he said. "You would always hear whispers about a program that would allow doctors to make the switch to aircrew, however there was no program in place yet." It wasn't until he returned from his most recent deployment to Afghanistan that he saw an email come across his computer screen, stating that the Air Force was now accepting applications. "I only had about a month before the deadline for applicant submissions were due and this time around, I wasn't going to risk losing this opportunity," he said. At the age of 34, Bates was well above the maximum allowable age to begin pilot training and was required to submit a waiver request. "The age wavier was probably my biggest hurdle to get into the program," Bates said. "When it came to that, it didn't matter how good my submission package was, it was either a go or no-go." Luckily for Bates, his age waiver was approved and his package accepted to the Pilot-Physician program. He is slated to leave for pilot training this summer at Vance AFB, Okla. For the Air Force veteran and surgeon, this program hits the reset button on his career in many aspects, but if you ask Bates, he has no problem starting over from the beginning. "At pilot training the majority of the students are younger guys. You have few that are prior service that are a bit older. And then you have me," he laughed. "So it will be exciting, but at the same time it will be a little different. But I'm there to learn and do the best I can. It's not every day that your childhood dream becomes a reality."