More detail on this person: Remembering Col.
Gene Boyer, Pilot to the Presidents
Memorial services for Col. Boyer will be at the
Nixon Library on Friday, September 9 at 10 AM.
Lt. Col. Gene Boyer, White House Senior Pilot who
flew presidents Richard Nixon, Lyndon Johnson,
Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan, died August 26,
2016. He was 87.
Col. Boyer was a 22-year Army veteran, who
clocked 7,000 flight hours including 376 combat
hours in Vietnam. He piloted 500 presidential
missions as well as flights with Leonid Brezhnev,
Charles De Gaulle and Anwar Sadat.
He served as President Nixon's helicopter pilot
throughout the entirety of his presidency.
Just weeks after inauguration, he piloted RN's
first presidential trip abroad with a tour of
Europe. During the visit, he made history by
landing the first helicopter at St. PeterâÇÖs
Square in Vatican City.
With Col. Boyer in the cockpit, Pat Nixon became
the first First Lady to fly over a combat zone,
traveling through the battlefields of Vietnam. On
a 1974 tour of the Middle East, he took the
presidential fleet to the Great Pyramids of Egypt
where RN presented Sadat with his own chopper as
a gift.
"Gene was American hero who proudly served his
country and his Commander in Chief,âÇ¥ said Col.
Jack Brennan, President NixonâÇÖs Marine Aide
and longtime friend of Col. Boyer. âÇoI
nostalgically recall our four decades of making
mischief together,âÇ¥ he added.
In retirement Col. Boyer was instrumental in
tracking down and extensively restoring his old
1960 Army One chopper that he flew the Nixons in.
Once restored he brought it home to the Nixon
Library, where itâÇÖs been enjoyed by hundreds of
thousands of visitors for the past 10 years. The
helicopter is currently undergoing a major
refurbishment and will be ready for the opening of
the new museum on October 14.
Memorial services for Col. Boyer will be at the
Nixon Library on Friday, September 9 at 10 AM.
Gene Boyer, Renowned White House Pilot, Dies at
87
September 1, 2016 - Lt. Colonel Gene Tunney
Boyer, 87, distinguished US Army aviator, passed
away Saturday, August 27, 2016 in Los Alamitos,
CA leaving behind his beloved daughter Robin and
son Curtis. Born on July 24, 1929, in Akron, OH,
to George and Edna (Monroe) Boyer, he arrived in
the company of his twin brother Jack Dempsey
Boyer. Named for two of the 20th century's
greatest prize fighters, the Boyer family,
including older brother Wallace Richard (Dick)
Boyer, battled their way through the Great
Depression one odd job, one cabbage dinner, one
shoeless summer at a time.
A Boy Scout in his youth, the Colonel excelled as
an athlete at Copley High School. His football
coach helped him land a football scholarship to
Ohio University. It was there he first became
sensitized to the injustice of racism when
African-American players were forced to stay in
"colored only" hotels on away-game trips. That
experience would fuel the Colonel's determination
to fight prejudice in the military and
purposefully integrate the White House Executive
Flight Detachment when he took command in 1969.
After the Colonel graduated from Ohio University
in 1952 with a degree in Business Administration,
he was drafted into the Army where he qualified
for Infantry Officer's Candidate School. He
attended helicopter training at Fort Sill, OK, and
began his prestigious career as an US Army aviator
flying MASH helicopters in Korea. In the
mid-1950s, the Colonel left the Army to fly for
New York Airways and was among the first civilian
helicopter pilots to fly in South America doing
oil survey work.
In 1958, the Colonel re-enlisted in the Army,
trained as a paratrooper and completed Ranger
School at Fort Benning, GA. In 1962, he was
assigned to the 1st Aviation Detachment, US
-European Command at Orly Airport southeast of
Paris, France. In addition to shuttling NATO VIPs,
he had the opportunity to fly former President
Dwight Eisenhower and CBS anchor Walter
Cronkite over the beaches of Normandy during the
filming of the 20th Anniversary of D-Day. While in
Europe, the Colonel married Cynthia (CeCe) Wells
Campbell. They would have two children and divorce
in 1980.
By the spring of 1964, the Boyer family had
relocated to Fort Belvoir, VA, where the Colonel
began his eleven-year tour of duty as a White
House helicopter pilot with the Army's Executive
Flight Detachment, a mission they shared with the
Marines. During the next decade, he accumulated
nearly 650 flight hours with President Johnson,
Nixon or Ford aboard as well as other world
leaders such as Anwar Sadat, Leonid Brezhnev and
the Shaw of Iran. Other notable passengers
included, John Wayne, John Steinbeck and Winnie
the Pooh. He flew missions in 49 US states and 17
countries amassing nearly 7,000 total helicopter
flight hours.
During a year-long tour of duty in Vietnam,
1965-66, the Colonel was stationed at An Khe
where he earned the coveted Soldier's Medal for
"heroism" and accumulated 368 hours of combat
flight time. Additional awards include a
Distinguished Flying Cross w/ 1 Gold Leaf Cluster,
a Bronze Star, an Air Medal w/"V" and 6 Oak Leaf
Clusters, and three Legion of Merit Awards, among
many other well-earned recognitions.
History will long associate the Colonel with the
day Nixon resigned from office. In the cockpit of
Army One, the helicopter upon which steps Nixon
paused to give a final salute, were LTC Boyer and
his lifelong friend CW4 Carl Burhanan, the first
black pilot to fly for the White House. Frequently
described as a "sky-witness to history," the
Colonel's military career is chronicled in his
award-winning memoir, "Inside the President's
Helicopter: Reflections of a White House Senior
Pilot."
The Colonel retired from the Army in 1975 and
moved his family to Southern California, where,
among other lofty ventures, he worked for Hughes
Helicopter as Director of Marketing for the Middle
East and Africa where he also marketed L-1011
aircraft for Lockheed. In his later years, he
became an advocate for veteran rights and
spearheaded efforts to restore the White House
helicopter now an exhibit at the Nixon Library.
LTC Gene Boyer is survived by his former wife
CeCe, daughter Robin LaFerrara (Seal Beach), son
Curtis Boyer, (Long Beach), son-in-law Guy
LaFerrara, two grandchildren, Aryn and Ryan
LaFerrara, and his devoted four-legged walking
companion, Amber.
A life celebration service is scheduled for
September 9, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm at the Richard
Nixon Library. In lieu of flowers, the Boyer
family requests a donation to the Alzheimer's
Association of Orange County at www.alzoc.org or
to the ongoing restoration of the helicopter at
the Nixon Library that LTC Boyer piloted the day
Nixon left office. Please make checks payable to
the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and
Museum, note "Helicopter Fund/Gene Boyer" in the
memo section and mail to 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd,
Yorba Linda, CA 92886.
Private interment will take place in the near
future at Riverside National Cemetery
Burial information: Riverside National Cemetery, CA
This information was last updated 09/04/2016
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Date posted on this site: 07/12/2023
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