in 1999 in 2013 Sean Tucker, a native of
Eagle Rock, California, earned his
Private Pilot certificate at age 17. His father, William, was an aviation industry lawyer who had learned to fly as part of his job. Tucker started out as a cropduster, eventually starting a
cropdusting business in
Salinas, California. In order to overcome his fear of crashing, he took an aerobatics course, through which he "found out you could roll an airplane upside down and it wouldn't fall out of the sky." To endure the extreme physical demands of his acrobatic flying routine, Tucker maintains a rigorous physical training schedule, working out more than 340 days per year in a routine of jogging and weightlifting on alternating days. His other physical activities include mountain climbing, heli-skiing, cave SCUBA diving, and golfing. When asked about flying airshows, Tucker has said, "I like to think that I bring the fans' dreams of flying into the plane with me, and there's nowhere I’d rather be than in the cockpit. That’s why I train so hard to keep a finely-tuned edge." Tucker's self-proclaimed goal is to "share the magic of flight with Team Oracle’s guests by inspiring and thrilling them. I want them to go away saying that the airshow was one of the most-engaging days of their lives." He is one of only a handful of civilian performers who have been allowed to fly close formation with the
Blue Angels and the
Thunderbirds. In 2013, Tucker was appointed Chairman of the
Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) program
Young Eagles, which introduces and educates children aged 8 to 17 about aviation. It has given flights to over 2 million children around the world. Tucker is an annual fixture at the
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh airshow each summer. At the 2016 event, Tucker was joined by past EAA Young Eagles chairmen
Harrison Ford,
Chesley Sullenberger and
Jeff Skiles as they flew the 2 millionth Young Eagle. In July 2018, NFL player
Jimmy Graham became co-chairman of the program, with Tucker. On October 21, 2018, he flew his last solo performance at the Wings Over Houston Airshow over
Ellington Field in
Houston, Texas. In 2019, Tucker lead an aerobatic demo team with Jessy Panzer. On May 13, 2020, Tucker announced that he will be flying a new formation aerobatic act featuring
Cristian Bolton, Bill Stein, and Jessy Panzer. The team will perform aerial demonstrations in the
Game Composites GB1 GameBird. In May 2021, the
Washington Post reported that he was no longer sponsored by the
Oracle Corporation, effectively ending his 20-year-long partnership with the company as "Team Oracle".
Bob Hoover Academy In 2013, Tucker and his son Eric founded the nonprofit organization Every Kid Can Fly, which in 2017 led to the Bob Hoover Academy, a program that aims to create opportunities in aviation that inspire at-risk and low-income teens in the Salinas area. In partnership with the Monterey County Office of Education, teens take classes focused on core
STEM principles. As they progress in the program, the students take aviation ground school and flight lessons leading to an eventual solo flight. Rather than producing professional pilots, Tucker's goal is for the teens to develop the skills and confidence necessary to improve their lives using education and the experience of flight as the motivator. The school district provides the teachers and classroom curriculum while Tucker provides the aviation resources - including a dedicated flight instructor, aircraft, fuel and hangar facilities. The academy was named after famed aviator
Bob Hoover - a World War II pilot, airshow pilot and mentor to Tucker. In 2018, both
Harrison Ford and
Redbird Flight Simulations donated substantial resources to the academy. == Tucker’s airplane ==