Ben Mukkala

Ben Mukkala

is a native of Marquette, Michigan. He graduate from Graveraet High School in that city in 1947 and enlisted in the U. S. Air Force as a Private in 1950 during the Korean War. He rose through the ranks to the grade of Staff Sergeant then was selected for training as an officer and pilot. He flew many aircraft, "anything they didn't physically keep me out of," he would often say, from WWII B-25 light bombers and C-47 "Gooney Bird" transports through and including the B-47 "Stratocruiser," the B-58 "Hustler" supersonic bomber and the F-4 "Phantom" fighter bomber, also supersonic, in which he served a tour of combat duty in Viet Nam.

Ben retired in 1970 as a Command Pilot with the rank of Major and immediately enrolled in Ball State University in Indiana where he was awarded a degree in Political Science and Business Administration, the culmination of seventeen years of correspondence courses and night-school classes.

After retiring Ben flew various civilian aircraft, privately, commercially and as a corporate pilot. He also travelled extensively, sailed boats and enjoyed living summers in a remote cabin in Michigan's Upper Peninsula woods. He enjoys the outdoors and leads an active life.

Ben began writing off and on during his Air Force career, began writing more seriously after retiring and has been published in flying magazines, several outdoor magazines and various newspapers. He has published several books as "Still Waters Publishing" and seems to ever have another book "in the works."

He is the father of three daughters and one son, a stepfather to two sons and four daughters and the Grandfather to numerous grandchildren. He currently lives in (semi)retirement with his wife, Dorothy, on the shore of Lake Superior in Michigan's beautiful Upper Peninsula near Marquette, Michigan.