www.habu.org
The Online Blackbird Museum
TSgt. Glenn Chapman (USAF-Ret)
copyright © Glenn Chapman
BIOGRAPHY
Technical Sergeant (Ret) Glenn R. Chapman was born on February 15, 1937
in Columbiaville, Michigan. He graduated from Columbiaville High School,
Lakeville Community School District in 1955. On September 17, 1956 he
enlisted in the United States Air Force, exactly thirty-nine years after
his father, Riley Virgil Chapman, enlisted in the U.S. Army for duty during
World War One. He attended Air Force Military Basic Training Phase One at
Lackland AFB, San Antonio, Texas and Phase Two at Lowry AFB, Denver, Colorado.
It was also at Lowry that he attended technical school to become an Air Force
camera repairman.
He has been stationed at Little Rock AFB, Arkansas, Laughlin AFB, Texas,
Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, K.I. Sawyer AFB, Michigan, Beale AFB, California,
and Bergstrom AFB, Texas. He spent twenty-two months on three separate tours
at Bien Hoa AB and Tan Son Nhut AB, Vietnam and Udorn RTAFB, Thailand and a
year at Spangdahlem AB, Germany. He has spent time at numerous temporary duty
assignments with the U-2 as far north as Alaska, as far south as Australia, as
far east as New Hampshire and Florida, and as far west as Vietnam. Besides his
eight years with the U-2A, U-2C, U-2E, and U-2F aircraft, he has worked on
reconnaissance systems on the RF-101C and RF-4C aircraft, bombing navigation
system cameras on B-52H bombers, the Pave Spike LASER target designator system
on F-4D fighters, and a special assignment for three years with another of
Kelly's little dreams, the once-highly secret D-21B/B-52H system. From 1972-1974
he was an Air Force Advisor to the Alabama Air National Guard in Birmingham,
Alabama when they received the RF-4C into their inventory. While with the 4200th
Support Squadron's D-21B program at Beale AFB, he was the only individual of that
unit to receive the highly-coveted Strategic Air Command Master Technician Award.
Sergeant Chapman retired from the U.S. Air Force after twenty years of service on
February 1, 1977. He and his wife, Sylvia, reside in Tucson, Arizona where he has
recently retired from his civilian job as a hospital electrician. They have two
children: a daughter, Robin; and also a son, Joseph, a Staff Sergeant in the Air Force as well as a U-2 Dragon Lady alumnus. They also have two very precious grandchildren, Felicia and Riley.
Glenn passed away in 2022 at the age of 84.
Me and U-2: My Affair with Dragon Lady
back to the Books/Videos page
back to the main page