Major General Eldon W. Joersz entered the Air Force in October 1966 as a graduate of the North Dakota State University Reserve Officer Training Corps program. He has commanded a strategic reconnaissance squadron at Beale Air Force Base and two Air Force wings; a bombardment wing at K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base, and a composite fighter/tanker wing at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. He is a command pilot with more than 4,500 flying hours, which includes more than 450 hours of F-105D combat time in Vietnam and Laos. In addition, he has been qualified in the SR-71, B-52, K-135, KC-10 and F-15E aircraft. In June 1976 he set the world's absolute speed record of 2,193 miles per hour in the SR-71.