New York Army National Guard Chief Warrant Officer 4 James Sauer, a Churchville resident and Army aviator with more than 6,000 hours in the air, capped his 40-year career on Tuesday, August 25, with a traditional military “final flight” salute in Rochester. Upon landing, his C-12 airplane passed under two streams of water sprayed by Rochester Airport crash trucks.
Family, friends, and colleagues were on hand to witness the salute. His wife and grandchildren were among those who greeted him on the tarmac. Sauer said the outpouring of love he received was overwhelming. One family member unable to attend was his son, Josh, who was out of state on temporary duty with the Air Force Reserve unit out of Niagara Falls.
James Sauer began his military career in 1979. He was in basic training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, when the American Embassy in Tehran was invaded in November of that year. “While basic training was tough, I remember it seemed the entire mood of our training changed. There was an intense focus from our training cadre. It seemed we were going back on a war footing, and they wanted us prepared,” Sauer said. “For a young guy from Churchville, I wanted adventure, but it seemed like I bit off more than I could chew!”
After completing his initial training, Sauer served as an Armor Crewman in Schwabach, Germany, where he continually rotated to the Czechoslovakian border for security missions. “From there, we would patrol open areas between the two countries and monitor forces in the area. It was very exciting.”
Sauer returned home when his enlistment ended in 1982 and started dating fellow Churchville-Chili High School alum, Marie Ogden. They married in 1983 and welcomed son Joshua in 1984 and daughter Laura in 1986.
In 1987 Sauer went on to attend Warrant Officer Flight School at Fort Rucker, Alabama. A Warrant Officer is a technical expert who focuses on one particular field for the Army. Warrant Officers fall in between the Army’s non-commissioned officers, known as sergeants, and the commissioned officer corps. Upon graduation as a UH-60 Black Hawk pilot, Sauer served in South Korea until 1989 as a medical evacuation pilot. While overseas, he completed more than 110 medevac missions, including shipboard transfers and field site pickups.
Sauer was then assigned to Fort Drum, New York, from 1989 to 1993 as an assault helicopter pilot with the 10th Mountain Division, conducting field training exercises, multi-ship operations in day, night, and night vision goggle conditions.
As a Black Hawk helicopter pilot, Sauer deployed for counter-drug operations in the Bahamas. “We were down there intercepting boats that were smuggling drugs up the island chain, mostly from the Dominican Republic and Haiti. It was very intense, flying low level to avoid being detected and over a lot of open water, which can be nerve-racking.”
Flying in Somalia as part of Operation Restore Hope was also a memorable experience for Sauer. “We got there from Fort Drum in January 1993, and the country was a disaster. We landed at the international airport at Mogadishu, and I just couldn’t believe what I was seeing. The airport terminal was just a few crumbling buildings, merchant ships were sunk in the harbor, and concertina wire was strung around the entire airfield,” he said. “Once we got to our base of operations, we began moving troops and supplies around the region we were operating in, which was about 60 miles inland from Mogadishu. We did a lot of humanitarian support while we were there, but it seemed like it was only a drop in the bucket.”
Sauer left active duty in 1993 only to join the New York Army National Guard two years later while he was also serving as a patrolman with the Rochester Police Department and studying at Roberts Wesleyan College, earning a B.S. in Organizational Management. He participated in countless aviation training events focused on the newly fielded UH-60 aircraft. In 2000, he completed a fixed-wing aircraft transition course and was reassigned to the C-12.
Of his time with the National Guard, Sauer said his deployment to Afghanistan as part of Task Force ODIN was particularly meaningful. “We were part of a group that deployed to Bagram, Afghanistan, in the fall of 2009, flying modified C-12 observation airplanes. Our mission was to monitor ground activities of friendly and hostile forces in real-time to assist ground commanders in the area. Being able to assist our troops that were in the fight against Taliban forces really gave me a sense of accomplishment.”
He deployed again in 2014, supporting missions on the Horn of Africa in Djibouti, including the movement of personnel and cargo transport to numerous locations on the African continent.
Sauer has more than 6,100 hours of combined military and civilian aviation flight time. He left the Rochester Police Department in 2000 to become an airline pilot for American Eagle Airlines. His break from law enforcement was short-lived. “Following the events of 9/11, the airline industry took a downward turn, and I got the opportunity to fly for the New York State Police in 2004 as a civilian pilot.” He’s been with the Aviation Unit in Rochester ever since. “My primary job is a helicopter pilot for the state. In that capacity, I’m involved with a variety of tasks – assisting state and local police agencies in searches for missing persons, rescuing stranded/injured people that we have to hoist from confined areas, active police searches for criminal suspects, and vehicle pursuits.” Most recently, Sauer was overhead during the looting and burning of vehicles and property in Rochester. “We were assisting ground units with coordination between events on the ground and riot control officers.”
A member of Open Door Baptist Church in Chili, Sauer is a man of deep faith. He said, “I’ve had a long and wonderful career in aviation, but there have been many times I’ve been afraid of events. Being separated for months on end from my family took a toll. I’ve missed so much of my kids growing up where my wife had to take care of things in my absence. But my love and faith in Jesus Christ has seen me through to this day. Philippians 4:13 tells us, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’ ”
Looking ahead to life after his military service officially comes to a close in January 2021, Sauer said, “We are so blessed to be living in this community and look forward to many years here with our family and friends.”
