Still at the helm - with precious cargo - Former Navy pilot, CHP flight officer counts his blessings these days behind the wheel of a school bus

No one has ever called Pete La Chat a control freak, at least not to his knowledge, or to his face. A former Navy fighter jet pilot and retired California Highway Patrol (CHP) air operations officer, La Chat is now working as a bus driver for the Fallbrook Union Elementary School District.

For more than 50 of his 69 years, La Chat has been at the controls of something – first a car, then a jet, a prop plane, and now a big yellow school bus. La Chat has always liked to have his hands on a stick or a wheel. A control freak? Nah. Rather, he is a man who likes to keep busy, and who counts his blessings.

“Don’t think anyone has ever called me a control freak. They might have thought it, but they never said it,” said La Chat during a break from his bus driver duties. “I’ve always like being at the controls of something, I guess. I enjoyed my time as a fighter pilot in the Navy, and I really liked working for the CHP, both as a pilot and on the road.”

“And now, I’m enjoying being a bus driver, but not because I’m in control. I’ve been happy doing all three of those things because I’ve been blessed to have worked with people I really like to be around.”

La Chat is a man who openly counts his blessings. As a fighter jock, he survived flying 140 missions over Viet Nam, and nearly 30 years as a CHP pilot and officer. Both occupations come with high-risk factors. He is thankful he’s still around to talk about those days. And he can’t say enough about how blessed he feels to have three children and a wife who all love him.

Now in his third career, La Chat says he feels blessed to be working in a position where others have put their children’s safety in his control.

“It’s a neat feeling – knowing that the parents of 84 kids trust you with their children. It’s a huge responsibility, but it’s a neat feeling, too. I’m blessed to have this job, to work with the people I do, and to have the kids on my bus that I do,” he said.

La Chat was born in Summit, N.J. and graduated from West Virginia University. After college, he joined the Navy and eventually served aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Midway. He left the military in 1972, just as the Viet Nam war was winding down. Later that year, he was accepted into the CHP academy and he served nearly 30 years in the patrol, 16 of which were spent on flying status. Along the way, he earned his law degree.

All three of his careers have kept La Chat busy, but not so busy that he didn’t find time for his children and for their hobbies or sports. Although he’s chalked up more than 35 years as a soccer and baseball coach and official, many of those years involved working with his own children.

“That’s another thing that I have been blessed with – the ability to help coach or work with my kids,” said La Chat. “I didn’t get to do all that I wanted to with them, but I really tried my best. My kids are really a blessing to me.”

La Chat says he wasn’t the best pilot in the Navy, and he doesn’t brag about his flying prowess while with the CHP. But he seems a perfect fit for the role as bus driver for 84 school kids.

“This is the perfect job for me right now,” he said. “Every year, toward the end of school, I start counting the days until summer – just like a lot of people in education. Then, during the summer, I can’t wait for school to start because I miss seeing those kids every day.”

For those 84 kids, knowing that La Chat is at the controls of that big yellow bus should be a blessing for them, too.