A Hero Among Us

Heroes wear combat boots.  They also fly F-8’s.

After reading many stories of U.S. military exploits in wars, the small town farm boy from Ohio had his eyes set on the Marine Corps.   Even at the age of three, while playing with some plastic airplanes, he told his father he was going to be a fighter pilot.   “It was my dream,” says war veteran Robert Scobie.
At the age of 19, Robert headed off to boot camp in Parris Island, South Carolina and was assigned to the number one senior drill instructor in the Corps.  “He made me his Platoon Guide, his number one recruit,” states Robert.
In 1965 Robert received his Gold Wings and became a United States Marine Corps fighter pilot. “I snuck into flight training while I was still enlisted, which was not supposed to happen. “  What should’ve taken six years (four years of college, six months of Officer Training School and 18 months of flight training) only took Robert three years and five months.  “I was given a direct pick-up to Second Lieutenant and my Gold Wings just a few years after enlisting.”  Upon graduation, Robert had enough “leverage” to convince the Department of the Navy to put him directly into a fully operational squadron of the hottest fighter in the world…the single seat, single engine, F-8 Crusader.  Robert became the youngest F-8 pilot in the Marine Corps.  “One of my primary instructors was some Navy Lieutenant named John McCain,” says Robert with a smile.
In October of 1966, Robert was sent to Vietnam, where he spent the next year fighting in the war.  “I was with both the First Marine Air Wing and First Marine Division.  I’m the only one I know who can say ‘Everything went my way,’” states Robert.  “I was never actually treated like a Lieutenant, but, as I like to put it, was usually ‘turned loose’, which the Corps normally doesn’t do. Then, because I asked for it, my Squadron Commanding Officer made a deal with his friend, the First Marine Division Air Officer, and I ended up running all of the Supporting Arms for the Line Battalion that was protecting both of them, and was also still going back into the air base and flying missions.”
While Robert was involved with many battles on the ground, he never lost any of his men and the enemy never kept any either,  “I had some airborne ‘close calls’, but never lost any of my aircraft.”
In 1972, Robert was chosen to be an instructor for the USMC Top Gun, a result of his prior achievements.  “Directly out of flight training, I was chosen as the Wingman of an Air Force Major, an Exchange Pilot, who was the all time top graduate of the Air Force Fighter Weapons School, and together we rewrote the Weapons Delivery Manual for the F-8 Crusader. Then on a later tour, I rewrote the Secret Tactics Manual for the F-4 Phantom.”
In 1976, Robert was honorably discharged from the Marine Corps and went on to pursue not one, but three college degrees.  In December of 1977, he joined the Lockheed Skunk Works in Burbank.  At the same time, he made his home in Santa Clarita.  “I thought that the Skunk Works would probably eventually move to Palmdale, which they later did. That way, all I had to do was change direction to go to work, and didn’t have to move my family.”
Robert is currently an active member of the local Chapter of the Vietnam Veterans of America, VVAm and frequently involves himself in related functions including the parades.  “My wife, Pat, is also the head of the VVA Associates for our Chapter.”  Robert spends his time working on his house, writing a book about his Vietnam experiences and also serves as a current board member of SETLA, Scientist, Engineers, and Technicians Leadership Association with Skunk Works, where he also served as past President and Chairman.
He’s also had a few roles on television, too,  “It started when I was, out of nowhere, personally hand-picked, by the head of casting, for HBO’s Deadwood, which was filmed in Melody Ranch. Then later, the lady who was the First Assistant Director of Fox’s 24, grabbed me, and with a telephone call, made me the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff…I’ve had fun.”
Thank you Robert, for your dedication and commitment to making our country a great one to live in.