Waukesha airline pilot takes to the skies and reaches new heights as musician

By Karen Pilarski

kpilarski@conleynet.com

WAUKESHA — Peter Buffington, of Waukesha, a United Airline pilot and musician, enjoys the best of both worlds from 30,000 feet above sea level or with his feet firmly placed on the ground. He recently announced that his aviation-themed band, Speed Brake Armed, has released its seventh studio album, “737 Island Hopper,” which has already surpassed 500,000 streams across platforms within two weeks of its debut. And an eighth album is on the way.

On Monday, he was on a three-day trip and resting during a long layover in Montana.

“You know, it’s a really great job. I can’t complain about much about what I do. Just being able to travel around the planet, basically. And then you get a layover out of most destinations; it gives you a chance to get out and see some things and do some things that you wouldn’t normally do. There’s a lot of really good benefits that come with flying planes,” Buffington said.

Buffington earned his private pilot license at age 16 and later earned a degree in aviation science.

“I worked my way up through the ranks over the years as a flight instructor, and then as a cargo pilot, and then I flew corporate for a lot of years,” he said. “September 11 (2001) really hit the industry really hard. I just stayed with corporate for a long time, ... then I started flying for United, and I’ve been flying for United for the last eight years now.”

He flies out of Chicago O’Hare for threeand four-day trips and has a few days off between trips.

The pilot’s routes keep him throughout North America, South America and the Caribbean, destinations that often inspire his music.

“One of the albums that I produced recently was kind of a reggae flying album. Over the years as a pilot, I thought that I would be following the footsteps of Jimmy Buffett. I always thought that would be a really cool niche to pursue as a flying-themed album about flying around the Caribbean Islands.”

Buffington was immersed in music since childhood. He began taking piano lessons at age 7 under the guidance of his father, who served as lead technician for the Wurlitzer Company and toured with legendary musicians, including Duke Ellington and Chubby Checker.

“He passed on those skills to me, both playing and the technical side of pianos, and I stuck with it over the years,” he said.

As an aviation buff, he would attend air shows and noticed the same artists would be used such as AC/DC or Led Zeppelin.

“It’s cool to watch the Blue Angels fly to Led Zeppelin, but after hearing it for 20 or 30 years, it’s like, ‘Oh, not again.’ A lot of guys are in the same boat as me. They love going to air shows, but are tired of the music aspect of it,” Buffington said.

One of his favorite bands he follows is Stick Figure, an American reggae and dub band founded by Scott Woodruff. The musician produced the music through a software called REAPER DAW. Using this modern recording software, Buffington creates much of the music himself, layering instruments and vocals in a home studio alongside his wife Julie, who performs female vocals under the stage name Aurora Flare.

“The lyrics are just over 30 years of flying experiences that I put together,” Buffington said.

Julie, a former registered nurse who now volunteers with local churches and sings in choir, has become an integral part of the band’s sound.

“It’s been really fun,” Buffington said of working together as a married couple. “It’s kind of a venue for us to get together and work together and be in agreement, and then also build our relationship at the same time.”

The couple has now released seven albums in roughly two years, Buffington said. The titles draw on his experience as a Boeing 737 pilot and include “737 Red Eye,” “737 Diversion” and “737 Airshow America,” and cover a range of music.

The band’s growing popularity has caught the attention of the aviation community. Songs from Speed Brake Armed — a reference to high-drag devices on some planes — were recently featured at Sun ‘n Fun Aerospace Expo 2026 and will also be played during nighttime airshows at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2026 this summer.

The group also partnered with aerobatic performer Greg Koontz, whose airshow routines feature the band’s song “American Decathlon Dreams.”

“Creating Speed Brake Armed from the ground up has been an incredible journey,” Buffington said. “These albums aren’t just music — they’re soundtracks to the sky.”

Despite the success, Buffington says the project is fueled by passion rather than fame.

“We just do it out of love of the music,” he said. “We’re not looking to get rich, we’re not looking to be movie stars.”

The band is already preparing to release its eighth album on June 6, a New Age-inspired project featuring more instrumental tracks and Julie’s vocals.

Visit https://bit.ly/speedbrakearmed for more information.

Peter Buffington, of Waukesha, a United Airline pilot and musician, recently announced that his aviation-themed band, Speed Brake Armed, has released its seventh studio album, “737 Island Hopper,” which has already surpassed 500,000 streams across platforms within two weeks of its debut.

Photos courtesy of Peter Buffington

Aviation-themed band Speed Brake Armed recently announced its eighth album, “737 Echoes Above the Infinite Sky,” due out June 6.