Tibor Puskas – U.S. Air Force Heavy Lifter and Drexel’s wisest neophyte

Tibor Puskas (Drexel ’20) served 24 years in the United States Air Force, primarily as a Loadmaster in C-17 transports delivering cargo, troops, vehicles, and ordinance wherever they were needed. He had deployments in Kosovo, Iraq, and Afghanistan as well as humanitarian and US embassy missions worldwide.

After retiring in 2013, Tibor took advantage of the GI Bill to enroll at Drexel and pursue a degree in architecture in a seven-year evening program. But he also felt like he missed out on being a part of a fraternity, leading him to become the “oldest neophyte” at Drexel. 

Choosing the Air Force

Tibor came from a blue collar family who would always support his career decisions, but couldn’t afford college. So he looked into the armed forces, initially eyeing the Marines because he thought, “It would toughen me up.”  

His neighbor who was a former Marine said, “If you want to get toughened up, I’ll kick your ass in the backyard, but you’re too smart for the Marines. Look into the Air Force.”

“I’ll go anywhere” 

Tibor joined the Air Force in 1989, but wasn’t thrilled by his first assignment in North Dakota. For a Philly-area native, moving to the middle of nowhere was as bland as pizza in the midwest. His supervisor suggested that on his “dream sheet” of assignments, he fill in the number 88. Tibor said, “This was the the code for volunteering to go anywhere worldwide.” 

It turned out to be one of the best decisions he made. He was assigned to Guam in the South Pacific where he spent more than two years saying, “It was Hawaii on steroids. It was like a vacation. I became a dive master and loved life out there.”  

Into the wild blue yonder

After a few years in paradise, Tibor decided to expand his opportunities by getting off the ground. He  changed his specialty to Loadmaster, an aircrew position that supervises the loading and unloading of cargo, vehicles, and personnel and ensures aircraft remain within safe weight and balance limits.

Tibor earned his Aircrew wings in 1994 and in his new role, he saw the world. He flew combat and non-combat missions all over the world to deliver supplies and material to war zones, non-combat areas, and humanitarian missions. In Afghanistan he directed the deployment of two Army helicopter brigades. Domestically, he directed humanitarian relief operations at JFK International Airport for Hurricane Sandy relief. 

He retired in 2013 as a highly decorated Master Sergeant with a chestful of service ribbons and commendations and over 3,000 flight hours in C-141 and C-17 Aircraft.

Joining Pilam – “You’re my boy, Blue!”

When he attended Drexel, he found Pilam brothers recruiting at a table on campus. After giving 24 years of his life to the Air Force, he felt like he missed out on that part of college life. 

He said, “I read the Creed and I really liked what Pilam stands for. And all the brothers were fun guys.” So, Tibor became the oldest known pledge in Delta Iota history. His pledge name was appropriately, “Blue” after the character in Old School. (Though Tibor rankled at being named for a Navy man.)

He said that sometimes, “I felt like the dad,” but found a good balance with the brothers. He  helped the brothers fix up the chapter house, and even had a small room to crash in. 

Tibor enjoyed the energy and enthusiasm of the brotherhood, and though he had many more life experiences, he let them take their own path saying, “I had to find a way to step back and let them find their way.”

Staying involved, “Not Five Years, But a Lifetime.”

Tibor stays active with the Pilam Delta Iota Alumni Association because he found Pilam, “Was more like a family. The fraternity would take care of you if you needed help.” 

And for future generations, he doesn’t want to see it go away. With so many young people consumed by screen time and social media he said, “We need fraternities now more than ever.”