Professional Achievement in Government

Lt. Cmdr. Jesse B. Kingg
Operations Officer, Strike Fighter Squadron 122
United States Navy

By Garland L. Thompson

An underreported fact in this land of immigrants is that of all of today's newcomers, Africans lead in their embrace of higher education. But even among that group, Jesse B. Kingg, the son of Liberian immigrants, shatters expectations.

Kingg, the Navy's first-ever submariner-turned-fighter-pilot, grew up in Pittsburgh and moved to Liberia, but returned to the U.S. to go to college. How he went from a top submarine billet to the cockpit of a supersonic strike plane is a study in determination.

He joined the elite submarine corps, qualified at the top of his class in the rigorous nuclear power program, then went to sea. But laurels as an exceptional nuclear engineer were not enough. So, while learning how to shoot Tomahawks in Puerto Rico, he decided to add wings to his dolphins. So what if it had never been done?

The Navy, which had invested thousands in the submariner, took a dim view. Request denied.

Ashore, Kingg reapplied. Personnel chief Vice Admiral Jeremy Boorda tried to dissuade Kingg, but Kingg was unrelenting. So off to Pensacola, where he finished number 1 at Aviation Indoctrination School, number 2 in Primary Flight Training. He took jet training and won his wings, in 1993. Then came advanced training on the F/A-18, earning the equivalent of a master's degree in aviation engineering. 

On assignment to Atasugi, Japan, Kingg flew off the carrier Independence, including six months in the Arabian Gulf, earning the Navy-Marine Corps Air Medal for 20 missions over Iraq. He also earned Top 10 grades for carrier landings among 100 fliers.

Stateside, Kingg is operations officer with the first Super Hornet squadron. As his commanding officer says, "From his superb performance as a qualified nuclear engineer aboard a Los Angeles Class attack submarine, to his equally stellar turn as a Strike Lead qualified F/A-18 aviator, LCDR Kingg has demonstrated a mastery of technical disciplines as diverse and demanding as any one can possibly find in the Navy.... His work ethic and leadership skills have made him the number one ranked junior officer or department head in every operational command to which he has been assigned. His dedication, loyalty and contribution to team spirit are unequaled, as is evidenced by the four Battle E's awarded to commands to which he's been assigned."
'Nuff said.

Garland L. Thompson is assistant managing editor of The Philadelphia Tribune and a member of the Black Engineer of the Year Awards Selection Panel. He can be reached at GThompson@ccgmag.com.