Section: People
Metro State’s success begins with … Kevin Kuhlmann
May 13, 2009

Professor of Aviation and Aerospace Science Kevin Kuhlmann says he’s anxious to share his “eyes on” experiences in Qatar, to which he’ll be deployed next week, with Metro State students upon his return.

Kevin Kuhlmann’s head has been tilted to the skies since the first time he left the ground in a commercial airplane.

“[My interest in aviation] goes back to being five years old and taking my first flight,” says Kuhlmann, a professor of aviation and aerospace science. “I probably made my decision when I was 12 or 13 that flying was what I was going to do.”

Kuhlmann, who has been at Metro State for nearly 15 years, has been actively involved for more than 30 years in most aspects of aviation, including 25 years in the Air Force. During his undergraduate studies at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and Southern Illinois University, Kuhlmann was enlisted in the Air National Guard. After graduation, he inquired about and ultimately was allocated a flight slot with the Air Force. After completing officer and flight training, Kuhlmann spent about six years at the controls of a low-level, high-speed fighter jet—the now retired F-111.

Since 1995, Kuhlmann has been involved with the Air Force Reserve and is now focused on air and space operations rather than on flying. Based out of Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Kuhlmann serves a few days a month and is getting ready for his first deployment later this month.

Kuhlmann is slated to leave May 21 for the Combined Air and Space Operations Center (CAOC), located west of Doha, Qatar. While he admits to not looking forward to being away from his two children, Kuhlmann says he’s excited to work inside the facility that the military refers to as “the nerve center of the air campaign” in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“CAOC’s primary focus is to give the commander’s battle space awareness to run their operations,” explains Kuhlmann.

Kuhlmann says he will be tasked with interviewing and collecting data from a range of personnel, including the military’s senior leadership, to garner and cull the information for “things that went well” and “things that didn’t go well.”

“I’m anxious to go over there and actually get ‘eyes on’ joint military air operations,” says Kuhlmann. “I’ll get the magic curtains parted and be able to see what’s happening on a day-to-day basis. That part will be interesting.”

Kuhlmann, who refers to Metro State’s Aviation and Aerospace Science Department as “a local jewel that people don’t always know about,” says he’s excited to share with his students some of what he learns during his tour. Even though he realizes that things likely will have changed to some extent even a week after he returns, he is confident that he’ll still be able to teach valuable real-world information that is “as fresh as it can be.”

Kuhlmann will be on administrative leave from the College until he returns in late September.