Rooted in community, driven by mission: A family united in service

Published April 13, 2026
By Airman 1st Class Emma Wright
97th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs

ALTUS AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --

In Altus, the mission of the Air Force isn’t something that only happens on base—it’s woven into the fabric of the community. For one local family, that mission is shared across dinner tables, carried into hangars and cockpits, and strengthened by roots that run generations deep.

U.S. Air Force Maj. Jeremy Delzer, 56th Air Refueling Squadron KC-46 Pegasus aircraft instructor pilot and demo team lead, and his younger brother, Johnathan Delzer, 97th Maintenance Group KC-46 electrician, grew up watching aircraft cut across the Oklahoma sky. Their grandfather, Robert Delzer, was enlisted at Altus AFB and raised their father there, where he met their mother—making Altus home for Jeremy and Johnathan.

“Growing up in Altus, seeing airplanes fly every day and going to the air show, I just thought, ‘I want to do that one day,’” reminisced Jeremy.

That childhood dream never faded. Born in Altus in 1992 and a 2011 graduate of Altus Public Schools, Jeremy left home to attend the U.S. Air Force Academy and eventually became a KC-46 pilot. In 2023, he made the deliberate decision to return home.

The decision wasn’t driven solely by the opportunity to serve as a KC-46 instructor pilot but was equally rooted in a commitment to family. Returning to Altus allowed him to raise his children close to their grandparents, creating a life where service and family support each other.

Johnathan’s path followed a different route, but was shaped by the same skies. Born in Altus in 1996, he graduated from Altus Public Schools in 2015 and began visiting his brother at the academy.

“I visited Jeremy at the academy every month for four years,” Johnathan said. “That made me want to venture into working on airplanes.”

Then, U.S. Air Force Cadet Airman Jeremy Delzer, left, and his brother, Johnathan Delzer, right, pose for a photo at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado, in September of 2011. Inspired by visiting his brother at the academy, Johnathan decided to pursue a career in aviation and now works in the 97th Maintenance Group as a U.S. Air Force KC-46 Pegasus aircraft electrician. (Courtesy photo)

Fueled by inspiration, he went on to train in aviation at Southwest Technology Center before joining the 97th Maintenance Group in 2022 as a tools and parts attendant and becoming a KC-46 electrician in 2023.

Where Jeremy operates the aircraft in the air, Johnathan ensures it’s ready on the ground. Together, they represent two halves of the same mission—execution and preparation—both essential, both interconnected.

That connection is more than symbolic as the brothers now work in the same building, seeing each other nearly every day. Jeremy regularly leans on his brother’s expertise to better understand the aircraft from a maintenance perspective, while Johnathan benefits from insight into how those aircraft perform in flight. The impact is transformative: heightened trust and communication extending beyond their relationship and into their units, driving mission readiness and efficiency to a level neither could achieve alone.

Another family member whose role adds a unique dimension to the family’s shared mission is Stephanie Delzer, Jeremy’s wife. Since being assigned to Altus in 2023, she quickly became an integral part of the mission, first serving as a victim witness assistant program coordinator and discharge clerk for the Altus AFB legal office before transitioning in 2024 to her current role as a Sexual Assault Prevention and Response victim advocate on base.

U.S. Air Force Maj. Jeremy Delzer, 56th Air Refueling Squadron KC-46 Pegasus aircraft instructor pilot and demo team lead, poses for a photo with his wife, Stephanie Delzer, Sexual Assault Prevention and Response victim advocate, at Altus Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma, April 25, 2025. Since Jeremy was assigned to Altus in 2023, Stephanie quickly became an integral part of the mission, first serving as a victim witness assistant program coordinator and discharge clerk for the Altus AFB legal office before transitioning in 2024 to her current role as a Sexual Assault Prevention and Response victim advocate on base. (Courtesy photo)

“Fulfilling these roles has been a great way to combine my education and my passion for helping people,” Stephanie said. “It has provided me the opportunity to support the mission alongside Jeremy, just in a different capacity.”

The Delzers’ dedication to service spans the town. From their aunt, a teacher at L. Mendel Rivers Elementary School on base, to Johnathan’s father-in-law, who works in the Altus AFB Inspector General’s office, this family’s shared understanding of the mission builds bridges across units and squadrons, strengthening the base as a whole.

In Altus, service and community go hand in hand. Neighbors know each other, a 12-minute drive takes you from base to family dinner, and the community rallies together in both celebration and hardship. Altus Airmen and Department of War civilians like the Delzers directly strengthen the Air Force’s warfighting capability, while the town’s close-knit, family-oriented culture provides the support and connection that make the mission possible.