Finding a simile to match the amazing experience of soaring above land 40,000 feet or jetting through skies at 600 mph is near impossible. But that just shows how rare the experience is. Who among us doesn’t get somewhat jittery when our automobile gets up in the 80 mph range? Yet, according to F-22 flight commander Capt. Chad Newkirk, recently in town for a family visit, piloting a big fighter jet can be like driving along the highway on a clear day, taking in the sunshine at 50 mph.

Sure, Chad.

“It’s somewhat like driving a car,” he said. And there’s the simile. Not so hard to find when the experience is nearer everyday reality.

Newkirk said that after some intensive training and a few hours of flight time, one adapts. And when that happens the experience becomes less overwhelming.

The 30-year-old Air Force pilot, son-in-law of Kodiak City Councilman Charlie Davidson, explained how reaction times and multiple tasks with the hands are something a person gets used to — just like hands on an automobile steering wheel when an inch can mean a fairly radical movement.

Newkirk, a member of the 94th Fighter Squadron for F-22 operations at Langley Air Force Base in West Virginia, has been flying an F-22 for the past year.

Just prior to the downfall of Saddam Hussein, Newkirk flew on patrol in an F-15 protecting the Southern Iraqi No-Fly Zone.

He said he was shot at once while patrolling the No-Fly Zone, but he wasn’t too concerned.

“We knew what kind of surface-to-air missiles they had. “We avoided fire, turned around and ensured we were far enough away. Our patrol could not fire back without clearance.

“It has been some 50 years since U.S. ground forces have been threatened by enemy aircraft, and the F-22 is the best aircraft available to extend that timeline indefinitely,” Newkirk said.

Saturday was Armed Forces Day.

“The armed services can be called upon at a moment’s notice to perform a risky and perilous mission for freedom and country,” spokeswoman Isabel Quinteros said of the special day of recognition.

“Flying an F-22 is amazing and revolutionary,” Newkirk said. “It’s a huge jump in situational awareness with what the pilot has available to him. He can see everything in the battlefield.”

Newkirk was one of the first pilots to begin flying the F-22. The 27th Fighter Squadron at Langley was the first operational F-22 squadron. His squadron, the 94th, is the second.

F-22s are located at four bases throughout the United States. There are now 66 F-22 jets flying. By 2012, there will be 183 total. These high-tech machines come at a $130 million price tag each.

“The F-22 kicks down doors. It keeps all other U.S. land and sea forces from becoming targets,” Newkirk said.

Newkirk said he is well protected with the munitions on board. His armament includes AIM-120 medium range air-to-air missiles, AIM-9 short-range missiles, 20mm bullets for the gun, and 1,000-pound GPS guided bombs.

If worse comes to worst, Newkirk said, he can always eject, but he doesn’t worry too much about that since the survival rate after ejection is high.

Newkirk was stationed at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage and Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida prior to his present base.

He graduated from high school in Albuquerque, N.M., and received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from New Mexico State University.

He met his wife, Aree, while in college. Aree graduated from Kodiak High School in 1994. She earned a degree from New Mexico State in political science and later a bachelor’s in nursing.

Mirror writer Bryan Martin can be reached via e-mail at bmartin@kodiakdailymirror.com.