LONGVIEW, Texas (KLTV) - Ted Gatsch, a Vietnam War veteran and former military pilot, returned to the cockpit for the first time in 54 years, completing what he called a final flight lesson as a 77th birthday gift from his wife.

The Big Sandy resident flew Cessna Bird Dogs with the 74th Reconnaissance Airplane Company during the Vietnam War, spending two years in the air in his early twenties.

His most recent flight log entry before this week was written when he was 22 years old.