Brad Hachat, a pilot who has spent the last three decades flying above the sky, has completed his retirement and is now officially retired.
When the 64-year-old student was in college, a T-38 replica on campus triggered a lifetime love with aviation. This was the beginning of the trip that would last for decades. When he was 22 years old, he enrolled in the Air Force Initial Flight Screening (IFS) program. During his time there, he was given the chance to fly a T-41, which solidified his route toward becoming a pilot.
In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Hachat says, “I have always had a passion for flying.” In addition to being a huge aviation fan, my father even constructed his very own aircraft.
Following the completion of the Air Force training program and the completion of his engineering degree, he went on to serve for a total of eight years in active duty and another eight years by serving in the Air National Guard.
In the meanwhile, he began his career in the skies in 1990 when he began working as a carrier airline pilot for American Airlines. He remained with the company for a total of 35 years until his time in the clouds came to an end.
Hachat’s family surprised him at the gate on his last trip from Hawaii to Arizona on July 1, 2025. They were dressed in Hawaiian shirts and leis, and they were carrying hand-made placards. This was the ideal way to cap off a fantastic career.
“My dad didn’t want any kind of celebration or retirement party, but we knew deep down that he would be so excited to see his family when he got off the plane,” Lindsay, who is 31 years old, says in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE.
The surprise was arranged to take place at a gate in Phoenix by her stepmother, Denise, and themselves. Despite the fact that they had intended to see him in Hawaii, the stopover was quite brief. As a result, the whole family decided to go to Arizona several days in advance.
“We thought it would be extremely challenging to get the entire family there on such short notice, but without any hesitation, every single member of the family committed to being there and stated that they would do everything in their power to be there,” adds Lindsay.
The gang was able to get special gate passes with the assistance of American Airlines and Denise, who worked as a flight attendant via Delta.
It was a moment that the pilot will never forget, and it was made possible by the presence of his mother and stepfather, as well as his three children, their wives, two of his grandkids, and other family members from all over the nation, ranging from Colorado to Nebraska and everything in between.
“I was on the verge of crying, but I knew that once I let out that first tear, I wouldn’t be able to control it, so I tried very hard to fight that back,” Hachat says in an interview with PEOPLE. The fact that I was able to enjoy such a momentous occasion with my complete family made me feel really fortunate.
Although Hachat was aware that his daughter and son-in-law would be present at the gate by virtue of the fact that he had invited them a week earlier, he was unaware that the rest of the family would also be there. Denise had joined him on the trip from Hawaii, and can be seen standing behind him in a video that has since been removed off the internet.
Due to the fact that they all share the same location, it is often difficult to pull off surprises within their family; however, Hachat had not monitored the app while they were in Hawaii. It was because of it that the surprise was carried out without any problems.
To mark the momentous occasion, the whole family gathered at his house for a day filled with exciting activities, including a day at the pool, as well as celebration beverages and food. He was overjoyed to have his whole family there to celebrate the conclusion of his professional career, and he spent the remainder of the day smiling with contentment and appreciation.
“There was a sense of relief and lifted weight of responsibility,” Hachat claims. “You know, I would never again have to go to work and have hundreds of lives be my responsibility to get them to their destinations safely,” Hachat says. “It was a relief.” “At the same time, while I was on my final flight, I was thinking about everything I had done, and I realized that I would never have the opportunity to experience this again.”
During the course of his career, which spanned many decades, Hachat not only operated military aircraft such as the A-10, AT-38, and F-16, but he also worked for American Airlines as a pilot on the 757, 777, and Airbus 321.
He made an average of four to five excursions every month, with the majority of his visits consisting of three days spent working and four days spent at home. His preferred itineraries included trips to Rome, London, and Santiago, Chile.
The profession required a number of compromises, including missing important family milestones, experiencing sleep loss due to time zone changes, and maintaining a consistent schedule of staying in hotels and dining out. But in spite of everything, he had a genuine passion for his work.
He admits, “The best parts about being a pilot were the many people from all walks of life that I got to meet,” and he says that this was the best part of his job.
At the time, I was working in the sky, which was the nicest workplace in the world… I had the opportunity to visit some very remarkable locations all around the globe.