LAURINBURG — Nearly 50 people came to hear about the years Howie Franklin spent on Air Force One during Tuesday’s meeting of the Rotary Club.
Franklin, a native of Long Island who is spending his retirement on Oak Island, served 29 years in the Air Force and reached the rank of chief master sergeant. He traveled the country and around the world serving under five presidents — as well as serving first ladies, the secret service, secretary of states, the press corps and VIP guests of the White House.
On Tuesday, he told Rotarians he had a few stories to tell.
“My job on Air Force One was to help make the trips secure and as comfortable as possible,” he said. “But sometimes we made them so comfortable, we couldn’t get some people off the plane.”
The first president Franklin served was Gerald Ford, whom Franklin remembers was “a Michigan man through and through. He just loved Michigan.”
He also recalls President Jimmy Carter fondly.
“Working with President Cart was my introduction to a real southern family,” Franklin said. “And Rosalynn Carter was one of the finest ladies there ever was — one day she confided in me that, as children, Jimmy had to work extra hard to get the grades his brother Billy did.
“All I could think to say was ‘oh my.’”
President Ronald Reagan quickly became Franklin’s favorite president to serve under.
“For eight years I tried to catch him being a phony, but I never could do it,” he said. “What you saw is what he was. He always tried to improve a person’s self-esteem (and) if anyone stood within three or four feet of him, it was like being plugged into a power source.
“He was easily the most organized of any president, hands down,” Franklin added.
Following Reagan was President George H.W. Bush, whom Franklin said “was the only president who continued to run his own business while president — and he could also play 18 holes of golf in 2 hours and 45 minutes. He’d hit the ball and run right after it.”
Franklin finished his career on Air Force One with President Bill Clinton.
“He loved to listen to rock and roll music, and he really liked listening to the Four Tops — really loud,” he said. “He was the only president I worked for who was younger than I was.”
Franklin has put together some 0of those and many other stories about his time on Air Force One into a book titled “Yes Sir, Mr. President,” which is available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Franklin spent time after the Rotary meeting selling and signing his book.
W. Curt Vincent can be reached at 910-506-3023 or cvincent@laurinburgexch.wpenginepowered.com.
