Old Bold Pilots

“There are old pilots, and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold pilots.” So goes the saying with which most of us were taught to fly. It was with this thought in mind that a handful of pilots of yore decided to meet to commemorate having beaten the odds themselves. What better name for such a group than “Old Bold Pilots”? In the fall of 1996, Pete Madison, a World War II P-38 pilot who had flown with Tommy Maguire and Charlie Lindberg in the 475th Fighter Group, invited a small group to gather for breakfast. From this humble beginning of about 10 pilots, sprang one of Coachella Valley’s most successful social groups.