Thomas “Tuck” Pearson McAtee

Early years

Tuck was born on March 28, 1939, in St. Louis, Missouri to Jack and Marjorie McAtee, the second of four brothers. While attending St. Louis University High School he earned his private pilot's license at age 17 — and that early love of flight launched a lifetime career in aviation.

He went on to the United States Air Force Academy, graduating in 1962 with a B.S. in Engineering Sciences as part of the class famously known as the “Red Tag Bastards.” He later earned an M.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Arizona and completed both the USAF Test Pilot School and Fighter Weapons School.

Combat over Vietnam

Tuck began his operational career in the F-100 Super Sabre, flying 258 combat missions over Vietnam. He earned two Distinguished Flying Crosses and eight Air Medals, and developed an integrated bombing tactic with the F-105 that greatly enhanced its effectiveness. He flew with the legendary “Misty FAC” fast forward air controllers — some of the most dangerous flying of the war.

Test pilot

As a test pilot, Tuck led the AGM-65 Maverick missile test program and was the first person ever to fire a Maverick in flight. He was an initial test pilot for the YF-16, led the F-16 tropical climate tests in Panama, set the world record for a coast-to-coast flight across America at one hour and forty minutes, and led both the F-16's first trans-oceanic crossing and its European test program. He established the F-16 schoolhouse at MacDill AFB.

Across more than six decades in the cockpit, Tuck flew combat, flight test, air racing at Oshkosh, and just about every other corner of aviation a person could touch.

Founding WASP

In 2013, Tuck and Charley Rogers began discussions about creating an aviation scholarship program for local youth. In mid-2014, the Williamsburg Aviation Scholarship Program was incorporated in Virginia as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization with the mission to create career opportunities in aviation, help build and sustain local aviation, and support national efforts to address the projected pilot shortage.

Since 2014, WASP has helped Virginia high school students earn their private pilot license through a structured flight training program at no cost to them or their families. Tuck served as the program's first Board President and remained its loudest advocate until the end.

Recognition and legacy

Tuck's contributions to aviation were recognized in 2023 when he was inducted into the Virginia Aviation Hall of Fame. He died peacefully on January 24, 2025, with his family by his side. He is survived by his wife Ann, his children Molly, Patrick, and Cathy, and eleven grandchildren.

Every WASP student who climbs into a cockpit today does so because Tuck believed they should have the chance. His legacy lives on in every student who earns their wings.