SKGnslgr (Aka) Gunslinger's Story
Real Name: G ary S ch L echty
Age Not in my thirtys anymore.
Location Mesa , Arizona
The Gunslinger moniker is derived from the fact that I am a born and raised Arizonan, it used my initials in it, but primarily I thought it sounded really cool and no one had stolen it yet. At least that was the case on AOL where I began flying Air Warrior. I have been “Gunslinger” since my second week of AW on AOL.. I recently changed ro SKGnslgr to reflect squad affiliation and to help avoid confusion with the other “gunslingers” out there.
Life of Gunslinger (Readers Digest Version)
Grew up always interested in military aviation, built the models, read the books, watched the movies. I can mostly blame my older brother (SKJohn) for my Aviation / WWII infatuation. He is the one who got me started..
After high school, I joined the Army /Guard Aviation as a dispatcher. I realized I could not fly, but I could manage to be around them all the time. I also spent time fixing ‘em in an Attack Helicopter Battalion. I spent some time flying in the civilian world reaching soloing in a Cessna before running out of money for flight training.
Graduated Embry-Riddle Aero University with a B.S in Professional Aeronautics. Left the Army, and after a year or so landed a job at at helicopter repair company until some late 2003 cutbacks. I now work for Magellan Aerospace Corporation. We build and repair parts for Jet engines, The Space Shuttle, M1A2 tanks and lots of stuff in between.
I Started flying Air warrior on AO-Hell, moved to Gamestorm when they went to pay per hour. (would have bankrupted me for sure). Flew AW and AW2 on Gamestorm until AW3 came out. I had been a RR weenie up to this point (usually more people there). But a while after AW3 was released I decided to jump to FR. I had been flying about a week in FR when I was invited to join the SK's. I was amazed at the teamwork and camraderie they displayed as compared to most of the dweebs in the arenas. I also appreciated the sense of humor they had. These people knew how to have serious fun. I've been proud to serve ever since.
I was one the early adopters in Aces High, and was flying in the early beta of the program. As Air Warrior seemed on its way out, I realized I would need to find a new home for my fix. A few of the squad members joined me flying both Aces High and enjoying the final sunset of Airwarrior. I have found a home and friends in the skies of Aces High.
