USAFA Class Histories

Colonel Sula was born on 18 April 1940 in Chicago, Illinois and graduated from York Community High School, Elmhurst, Illinois. He was commissioned on 5 June 1963 following graduation from the Air Force Academy and married his wife, Diane, the same day. After completing Undergraduate Navigator Training at James Connally AFB, Texas in October 1964, he was assigned to Travis AFB, California where he navigated both C-124 and C-141 transport aircraft.

Selected for graduate study in 1970, he attended the University of Nebraska/Lincoln earning an MA in Business. In April of 1972 he completed AC-119K Gunship training and was assigned to the 18th Special Operations Squadron at Nakhon Phanom AB, Thailand. During this Southeast Asian tour he flew 103 combat missions as a navigator / sensor operator out of Nakhon Phanom, Bien Hoa AB, RVN, and DaNang AB, RVN.

A directed duty assignment to Headquarters Air Training Command (ATC) at Randolph AFB, Texas followed in 1973. As a Systems Analyst and Section Chief, he managed the computer hardware configurations of all 16 ATC bases, and coordinated the installation of the “state-of-the-art” Honeywell 8000 mainframe at Randolph. In 1975 he was selected to attend Air Command and Staff College, and he graduated as a Distinguished Graduate.

Returning to rated duties in 1976, he was assigned to Charleston AFB, South Carolina, where he again navigated C-141 transport aircraft and served as the 437th Military Airlift Wing (MAW) standardization navigator. In 1979 he was assigned to HQ Military Airlift Command, Scott AFB, Illinois, as a war plans automation officer. He later served as Chief, OPLAN Analysis Division for two years at Scott.

Following his promotion to colonel in 1985, he was assigned to the 438th MAW, McGuire AFB, New Jersey as the Deputy Base Commander, and served as Base Commander for six months before being reassigned in 1986 to Charleston AFB, South Carolina as the 437th MAW Base Commander. Colonel Sula`s final active duty assignment was in 1988 as Commander of Air Force ROTC Detachment 867 at Norwich University, Northfield, Vermont. He retired In August 1991, a Master Navigator with almost 8,000 flying hours. His military awards include the Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Force Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters, the Air Medal with ten oak leaf clusters, and the Air Force Commendation Medal with one oak leaf cluster.

He and Diane then moved to O`Fallon, Illinois, where he began a second career teaching World and American History to 7th and 8th grade students at Wolf Branch School in Shiloh, Illinois. In 1997 the Sulas relocated to Kiawah Island, South Carolina to begin their "real retirement." This has included volunteer work with the Turtle Patrol where they monitored the nesting and hatching of loggerhead turtle nests. Both have worked on several committees for the Kiawah Island Community Association, and Colonel Sula served on the association`s Board of Directors for three years, the last of which he was Board President.