User:Billbraswell/Bill Braswell

Bill Braswell, (pronounced brass-well) born August 13,1957 is a retired Air Force and airline pilot. Prior to retirement Braswell became a blueberry farmer in central Florida.

1. Early life. Braswell was born and raised in Bartow Florida. His parents, William Larson Braswell (deceased) and Kathryn Braswell(Watson). He has one sibling, Sharon Baker. He graduated from Bartow High School in 1975. After high school he attended Polk Community College and the University of South Florida. In 1977 Braswell transferred to the University of Florida in Gainesville Florida. He graduated in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science degree in agriculture, majoring in agronomy. Braswell attended graduate school the following year and then moved to Atlanta Georgia.

2. Air Force. In April on 1982 Braswell entered the US Air Force. He graduated from Officer Training School in San Antonio Texas. He was then assigned to undergraduate pilot training in Del Rio Texas. While waiting for his next assignment Braswell married Mary Kuentz September of 1984. Braswell was assigned to the 11th Aeromedical Airlift Squadron at Scott AFB in Belleville Illinois flying C-9 Nightingales. Braswell held the positions of Aircraft Commander, Instructor Pilot, and Wing Safety Officer (375th AAW) while at Scott AFB. In 1989 he was released from active duty and began his airline career. In 1991 Braswell entered the Air Force Reserves as a pilot flying C-5 aircraft at Dover AFB. Braswell flew C-5s at Dover until 2002 when he transfered back to flying C-9s at Scott AFB in the 73rd Aeromedical Airlift Squadron. In 2004 Braswell retired as a Major with 20 years of service.

3. Airline Career. After leaving active duty Braswell began flying Fokker F-28s for Piedmont Airlines. Shortly after coming to work for Piedmont the company was purchased by USAir. In 1991 Braswell went on a leave of absense from USAir and began flying for Delta Airlines. There he flew the Boeing 727, 737, 757,and 767. Braswell flew at Delta until he retired in June of 2008.

4. Farming. Bill began farming blueberries in 2000. He started with 2 acres adjacent to is home. The experiment was a success. He, his wife Cathy, and step-son Tyson Dunlap formed Polkdale Farms LLC. In 2004 Braswell partnered with Howard Ekblad to form Juliana Plantation LLC a 20 Acre blueberry farm adjacent to Lake Juliana. In 2006 Bill began consulting for Clear Springs Land Company. Clear Springs began farming blueberries on old reclaimed phosphate land south of Bartow Florida. As of this writing Clear Springs has expanded to 350 acres of blueberries.