High-flying scoutmaster: Robert Collier Jr.
Inspiring another generation of Scouts
By Tyler Knight
In 1977, 23-year-old Robert Collier Jr. was stationed in Corpus Christi, Texas, when the Navy paused his primary flight training to clear its backlogged schedule. After seeing a TV advertisement for the Boy Scouts and recalling his own days as a Scout, Collier offered to teach the young men of Troop 327 the aviation merit badge. The Scouts accepted, so when Collier wasn’t learning, he was teaching.
One year later Collier was transferred to Norfolk, Virginia, to start flying twin turboprop E–2C Hawkeye early warning aircraft. During an 18-year career spanning Europe, Iceland, the Middle East, and every modern aircraft carrier, Collier continued helping Scouts everywhere he could.
In 1994, Collier retired to Kerrville, Texas, as a lieutenant commander. Looking for a new career that kept him airborne, he walked into Mooney’s nearby headquarters and asked if they needed a pilot. He was offered a job in quality assurance—a department he now directs—but he also regularly flies the company’s renowned speedsters. His wife, with whom he raised two children, works down the hall.
Collier wanted to begin working with Scouts again, but there wasn’t a group in his area, so he formed Troop 111 in 1995 and continues serving as its Scoutmaster. The troop has produced 74 Eagle Scouts, one of whom became a Marine Corps helicopter pilot.
In the 41 years he’s been working with Scouts, Collier has taught hundreds of young men the aviation merit badge, which requires them to get lots of hands-on exposure to flight. More important, Robert says, he has helped guide them through life. “It has meant the world to me, teaching them what I can,” Collier said. “It has been the most enriching experience I can imagine.”
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