Retired pilot Bill Siegel to speak at Estrella Warbirds Museum dinner
Bill Siegel.
Catered dinner requires reservations by 6 p.m. on the Monday before the event
– The Estrella Warbirds Museum will host Bill Siegel as the guest speaker for its monthly dinner next Wednesday, March 5 in Paso Robles.
Siegel will discuss his flying career in both military and commercial aviation. His father was a mechanic for American Airlines in New York City when Siegel was born in 1943. The family later moved to Tulsa, where he graduated from high school before attending the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. After graduating in 1965, he completed flight training in Pensacola and Kingsville, Texas, earning his wings.
Siegel served in several attack squadrons, completing two combat cruises and 180 combat missions over North Vietnam, South Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. After returning to the United States, he held test pilot and instructor roles until 1973. He was later assigned to the aircraft carrier Midway, where he participated in the evacuation of South Vietnam in 1975. He earned a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering and served as a curriculum officer at the Naval Postgraduate School until retiring in 1985.
After retiring, Siegel worked as a stock and commodity broker, chief pilot and instructor for Hanford Flight Center, and an Airbus captain for Northwest Airlines, retiring in 2005. He remains active with the Estrella Warbirds Museum and the local chapter of the Experimental Aircraft Association. He lives in Templeton with his wife, Mary.
The catered dinner requires reservations by 6 p.m. on the Monday before the event. The price is $25 per person. Reservations can be made online at https://www.ewarbirds.org/museum/reservations.shtml or by calling (805) 296-1935. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with a no-host bar, and dinner will be served at 6:30 p.m.
The Estrella Warbirds Museum is at 4251 Dry Creek Road in Paso Robles. It is open Thursday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Call for Monday holiday hours. For general admission information, visit www.ewarbirds.org.
