David in Hebrew is said to mean “beloved.” Nagy is described in Hungary as “great.” Taking these two meanings in mind could not have worked better at painting David’s qualities in life. And you can’t have qualities without the passion to ignite them. Where did the fire light? His passionate career as a fighter pilot, to FedEx package flier, and a husband and father. One of his biggest advocates, retired three-star general Bob Hinson, described him as in the US Air Force; “the commitment to doing things better”. 

 

Early into his life with his own family; father-figure Tibor, mother Dorothy, brothers Chris and Paul, David recalled how he grew as someone whom took up more responsibility and learned life’s essential strategies earlier compared to his brothers.

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Before heading into what could’ve been a college life, opportunity took its hand in pulling his eyes to his potential in pilot training. The environment has consistently gone on record as being overwhelmingly competitive and not for everyone. But as his also retired pilot partner Deke Winters described, he was a guy who was “just dynamic” with “a lot of energy”. The grueling days of mental and physical training would go by like a blur compared to the day in 1976 that David would graduate with a private pilot license in New Jersey. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Compared to what Deke Winters had to do for colonel status, every job a pilot received would go towards their rank progression, and once a person had a “strong enough record”, they would earn the benefits of new duties. He would only come to know David both inside the Air Force, whom Bob Hinson encouraged David to follow from an Airframe and Powerplant license exam at Thomas Edison State University, through their work in the 48th squadron, where based on Winters, was “always involved in everything”. They would learn more about each other from David’s computer expert work in integrating into flight technology. Oh, and they also played softball. Just cause, you know. 

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In Lubbock, Texas, David trained for a year for a seat in the F-15C Eagle by attending Lead In Fighter Training for half a year. After survival training in Florida for half a week, he would go on to embrace his soon-to-be glory days of flying in several environments for 17 years. During the first few, he gained on of his most notable nicknames outside of work, “Ramps” for a certain little incident played for laughs. The only accomplishment he would be prouder of than his callsign is his work as an instructor pilot in the Gulf War, to Air Force Fighter Weapons school training. 

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David had a few “love at first sight” moments. One of those being F-15C fighter jet. Another being the day he met his wife Robyn Nagy, during a job at the aircraft weaponry testing “Math Lab." 

 

Another ten years of missions and operations of pure exhilaration, ability, teamwork, and brotherhood would go by in the blink of an eye until in August of 2000, David would take his F-15C Eagle for a tearful final retirement flight. The emotion could be felt even by Robyn, whom described her view on David’s career as “Pride. Very proud of the work that he did, the way he did it”.   

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Full-on retirement wouldn’t come soon until after his more family-providing work on United Airlines. Sounds like a sustainable choice for a while, right? Well, if 9/11 had anything to say, it was a scramble. What followed was the sting of getting furloughed, to contract work in Ohio, to the overbearing stress of anticipating whether FedEx, his future employers, would hire him on any terms. The terms taken would be a one-year initial candidate consideration job as a truck driver, and after several transitions to temporary pilot to permanent pilot, David would go on to explore flying in planes such as the 727, 757, MD11, and 767. Raising his family and being captain for the latter plane would go hand-in-hand for future income and mid-life work. Until recently, he will be able to retire from flying permanently in January of 2024 at the maximum age of 67. 

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Sounds like a lot to recall? Well the boy above would soon begin to wonder whether David would regret anything about his career and family life, but would conclude that they can’t simply be compared; flying was more than a job; it was almost a catharsis. An everyday chance to escape any problems or mental troubles plaguing. Not everyone would be able to feel that, despite maybe having the equivalent feeling of that in other professions. But nothing in the form of the true pride in serving for a country worth loving, can ever be extinguished in aches, bills, worries, and fears. That’s what flying does. You feel on top of the world.

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