All told , Brian Dubie logged more than 2,500 hours in military fighter aircraft . He rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Vermont Air National Guard , serving as instructor pilot , operations support flight commander of the 158th Fighter Wing . In 1998 , he left the Air Guard to join the US Air Force Reserve , where he served as an emergency preparedness liaison officer in the National Security Emergency Preparedness Agency . Serving in that role , Dubie earned a Meritorious Service Medal , First Oak Cluster , for his actions at Ground Zero in New York City following the September 11 attacks . In September 2005 , he served on the Gulf Coast in the relief effort for victims of Hurricane Katrina . He received the Meritorious Service Medal , Second Oak leaf Cluster , and the Air Force Commendation Medal , First Oak Leaf Cluster , for outstanding achievement at 1st Air Force Hurricane Katrina Operations Center . On June 2 , 2012 Dubie retired from the military in a ceremony held at Camp Johnson , the Colchester headquarters of the Vermont National Guard
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
Brian Dubie