Debra Corbo Email and Phone Number

Retired and winging it - volunteering, dancing, singing bad karaoke, laughing, and connecting with beautiful souls

United picked me up from Eastern Airlines just before the start of the EAL 1989 strike, which ended that great airline.Started as a DC-10 F/E (Flight Engineer, aka Second Officer); commuted from IAD to ORD... good grief.After six months, upgraded to B-737-200 as an F/O (First Officer, aka co-pilot); based in IAD (Washington Dulles Int'l Airport) - My first jet at the controls. Flying the "FLUFS" on short-haul routes throughout the northeast was deliriously fun since pilots take turns flying. With every other leg through IAD, we felt like a club, and even the tower controllers were members. I learned much from great Captains and we were well-oiled interchangeable teams - this served us well, especially one foggy, harrowing morning on a snow-covered runway in Burlington, VT. "FLUFS?" Fat, little, ugly... um, fellas, let's say, for the sake of polite company. :)After having my first child, I upgraded next to the B-757/767 as an F/O dual-qualified as Captain for overseas flying; based in IAD. B-757 was like a sports car for pilots; pax hated it for the same reason - too cramped in the back! B-767 was a bus - for everyone.Finally moved to the B-777 fleet as an F/O (also Captain-qualified for overseas flying); based in IAD. A dream to fly - for everyone!9/11 changed everything. We will never forget.Medically retired in 2004 - nothing fatal, but condition and meds made flying prohibitive.

Eddie Rickenbacker's legacy, known as the 'pilot's airline'​ in the industry, was destroyed in 1989 by Frank Lorenzo; Lorenzo was later banned from the industry by the DOT in 1994. The writing was on the wall at the time I was to upgrade to F/O (co-pilot) so I interviewed with United Airlines and left while I could just before . Survivor's guilt was awful though. EAL got revived by people who really cared for the airline; I think around 2015/2016. Tears of joy overcame me when I saw a jet in Eastern's colors parked at an active terminal in SJU.L-1011 Flight Engineer - dreamliner jet; the flight engineer panel was fantastic. B-727 Flight Engineer - I mainly flew the Northeast Shuttle, considered to be Eastern's crown jewel.

Captain on DHC-6 (de Havilland Twin Otter) - an fun vintage plane to fly, and to taxi in reverse on the ramp!A Commuter Captain's position is traditionally the top rung of the career ladder for a pilot striving to become a major airline pilot. I had clawed my way up the previous rungs, and was positioned well for major airline interviews. As one of two female Captains with Pilgrim Airlines at that time, I was under constant scrutiny, so I was used to pressure. These were the days of 'scud-running' for visual approaches into LGA in order to save time/fuel/money, and learning the art of using de-icing boots properly.