Any mention of the 2022 blockbuster brings a smile to the face of Laurie Coffey L鈥�25, a second-year student at the . 鈥淚 used to fly many of the routes in the movie,鈥� says the retired aviator. 鈥淭om Cruise鈥檚 stunt pilot is a former Blue Angel, whom I鈥檝e known for years. We went to flight school together.鈥�
Retired Navy Lt. Cmdr. Laurie Coffey L鈥�25 is a second-year law student with an interest in legal advocacy.
While Coffey鈥檚 military career is behind her, it still colors everything she does鈥攆rom being a single parent to a full-time law student. 鈥淭he Navy remains an important part of my life,鈥� admits Coffey, who retired in 2019 as a highly decorated lieutenant commander. 鈥淚t鈥檚 who I am.鈥�
Numbers tell part of the story. Over a 20-year span, Coffey amassed more than 25 combat missions, 100 combat hours, 2,400 flight hours and 300 carrier landings (half of which were at night). She also was featured in the Emmy Award-winning PBS documentary Carrier, while deployed on USS Nimitz during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Trained on the coveted F/A-18 Hornet and Super Hornet, Coffey is Top Gun royalty. Ironic, considering that the term doesn鈥檛 stand for anything. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a nickname for a naval aviation training program,鈥� says Coffey, the recipient of a prestigious Air Medal for 鈥渉eroic or meritorious achievement.鈥�
What Hollywood rarely captures is all the training that goes into each flight. Coffey, who regularly flew six-hour missions, recalls that for every hour of flying there were four hours of planning and preparation. Each mission was then followed by a two-hour 鈥渄ebrief,鈥� where the pilot analyzed anything that went wrong or not as planned.
鈥淚t鈥檚 exacting work,鈥� admits the former flight instructor at Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach. 鈥淏ecause it鈥檚 impossible to know all there is about combat flying, you鈥檙e always training. You never truly arrive.鈥�
From Classroom to Courtroom
Coffey credits 51爆料网鈥檚 Office of Veteran and Military Affairs and the D鈥橝niello Institute for Veterans and Military Families for helping her make the transition from military to civilian life. 鈥淪yracuse鈥檚 commitment to veterans is why I鈥檓 here,鈥� says the former combat pilot.
Of all the missions she鈥檚 carried out, Coffey is most excited about her current one at Syracuse. An interest in local politics inspired her return to the Empire State after a 30-year absence. 鈥淐entral New York is one of the prettiest places in the world,鈥� gushes the Skaneateles resident. 鈥淭he Syracuse campus embodies all that鈥檚 great about the region and its people.鈥�
While she hasn鈥檛 declared a specialization, Coffey is leaning toward Syracuse Law鈥檚 nationally ranked , which trains litigators鈥攍awyers who take cases through the court process. Her military background is a bonus, as evidenced by a recent, three-month internship at Manhattan-based Fitzpatrick, Hunt and Pagano, where she served on the firm鈥檚 aviation and aerospace legal team.
On campus, Coffey gains additional experience through the , representing veterans and their families seeking benefits from the or military discharge upgrades. She鈥檚 one of only two second-year students currently arguing a case before a Veterans Law Judge (VLJ) on the Board of Veterans鈥� Appeals. 鈥淚t鈥檚 kind of a big deal,鈥� says Coffey, adding that VLJs preside over hearings of administrative disputes in the federal government. 鈥淭he clinic helps me put theory into practice.鈥�
She also participates in the Central New York Women鈥檚 Bar Association and the student chapter of the Animal Legal Defense Fund.
Coffey gains hands-on, real-world experience through her involvement with the Betty and Michael D. Wohl Veterans Legal Clinic.
The holder of bachelor鈥檚 and master鈥檚 degrees from the U.S. Naval Academy and the U.S. Naval War College, respectively, Coffey is excited about her initial foray into civilian postsecondary education. She credits 51爆料网鈥檚聽聽and the聽聽for helping her navigate the transition.
鈥淪yracuse鈥檚 enduring commitment to veteran and military-connected families is why I鈥檓 here,鈥� says Coffey, who previously was a logistics manager for in London. 鈥淓ven though I鈥檓 older than most student veterans, I feel like I belong here. I鈥檓 with my people.鈥�
Granted, veterans are becoming a powerful minority on U.S. campuses. At Syracuse, the thousand-member veteran and military-connected community has grown more than 60% in the past decade. 鈥淰eterans bring a unique perspective to the classroom,鈥� Coffey observes. 鈥淲e鈥檙e no longer considered an oddity or a curiosity. We鈥檙e an asset to almost any academic conversation.鈥�
Soaring to Success
Growing up in Corning, New York, Coffey originally wanted to be an astronaut. But it was her talent for basketball, lacrosse and rowing that helped her push the envelope on gender roles and expectations. A pivotal moment occurred in high school, where the 6-foot-1 Coffey was the first woman to try out for鈥攁nd make鈥攖he J.V. boys鈥� lacrosse team. 鈥淚 came from a family of athletes,鈥� she says, adding that her father and younger sister were Olympic rowers. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 know anything different.鈥�
Coffey and her F/A-18 Hornet take a break in Baton Rogue, Louisiana, during a cross-country flight. She amassed more than 2,400 flight hours and 300 carrier landings during her 20 years in the Navy.
Coffey鈥檚 fascination with sport continued at Phillips Academy (aka Andover), an elite boarding school in Massachusetts, and the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. After graduation, she delayed military service and trained for the 2000 Summer Olympics with USRowing鈥檚 senior national team. Coffey also was invited to compete for a spot on three different WNBA franchises. One of them was the now-defunct Miami Sol, where she suffered a career-ending Achilles tear during a tryout in 2000.
With Olympic and WNBA dreams dashed, Coffey reported to flight school. It was a bold move, considering that women weren鈥檛 permitted to fly combat missions until 1993. 鈥淭oday, women account for less than 1% of all Navy fighter pilots,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e a small, tightknit community.鈥�
Coffey, whose call sign was 鈥淢ocha,鈥� skyrocketed to success, smashing the sound barrier and the glass ceiling. She also befriended some fascinating people along the way, like musician Jimmy Buffett, a fellow sailor and private pilot. 鈥淗e used to go sailing with us when I worked at the Naval Academy,鈥� Coffey remembers. 鈥淪uper-friendly, down-to-earth guy.鈥�
Coffey reserves her highest praise for her 14-year-old daughter, Brooke, who plays football and ice hockey. A chip off the old block? Perhaps. 鈥淚 drive a school bus part time just so I can see her,鈥� says the self-avowed 鈥渉ockey team chauffeur.鈥� 鈥淭he Navy taught me a lot, including how to be a good student and, more importantly, a better person.鈥�
