Afd 080630 074

Airmail • profile • Frontline Duty • Notebook
M a g a z i n e o f Am e r i c a ’ s A i r F o r c e
July/August 2008
The
Space Link
Airmen provide
out-of-this-world
capabilities
On July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed Executive
Order 9981 to end segregation in the U.S. military. The order
states: “It is hereby declared to be the policy of the president
that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for
all persons in the armed services without regard to race,
color, religion or national origin.”
— Courtesy Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
AIRMAIL
COMMENTS
Got something to say about Airman? Write us
Official magazine of the U.S. Air Force
July/August 2008, Volume LII, Number 5
Director of Public Affairs Brig. Gen. Darren W. McDew
at editor@afnews.af.mil, or visit www.airmanonline. Commander, Air Force News Agency Col. Clifton Douglas Jr.
Airman Staff
af.mil, to share views with fellow readers.
Editor Louis A. Arana-Barradas
Assistant Editor Orville F. Desjarlais Jr.
Airman at war representation of the Air Force. And shame

on you for running the photograph.
Instead of degrading an officer for his shal-
low views about the word “warrior,” I would
When I read about the new Airman online
Web page, I didn’t think I would like the
Michelle’s Yellow Rose Design Staff
Design Editor G. Patrick Harris
Senior Master Sgt. Joe Kost like to personally thank all fellow veterans idea. But having browsed around a bit, I find To the brave Villers family, it was with great
Designer Luke Borland
Offutt AFB, Neb. who have served in the military or in sup- it very easy to navigate and as visually ap- honor that I learned of the valor your daugh-
Designer Mike Carabajal
port as a Department of Defense civilian em- pealing as any AFPIMS (Air Force Public ter demonstrated [“Michelle’s Yellow Rose,”
Designer Virginia Reyes
Editor’s note: Sergeant Kost, I can assure ployee. We are all warriors in our own way, Information Management System) site I’ve March-April 2008]. Every day I also struggle, Production Manager Andrew Yacenda
you we’re not in the habit of running inap- and have proven it to ourselves and others looked at. Very solid work! but persevere in serving the Air Force. My
propriate photographs. This one slipped throughout the years. The overall mission Tech. Sgt. Mike Hammond daughter, like yours, also suffered a life-end- Contributors
by inadvertently and for that we’re sorry. success at any military installation depends Randolph AFB, Texas ing virus, and each day I honor her courage Copy Editor Doug Lefforge
We’ve tweaked our review process so this equally on military and civilian personnel. and faith in her struggle for her life. Great Copy Editor Janie Santos
doesn’t happen in the future. In addition, many civilian employees have The new, revamped Airman online looks people like your daughter inspire me to con-
About Airman
prior military experience. From the basic great. The design is nice and very easy to tinue to serve my country with immeasur-
Airman is published bimonthly by the Air Force News
True Warriors? commitments to full retirement, we have
made it possible for this young lieutenant to
navigate. Great teamwork for design and
material.
able love.
Master Sgt. David Reyes
Agency for the Secretary of the Air Force Office of Public
Affairs. As the official magazine of the U.S. Air Force,
Lieutenant Hering, be where he is today. As an infant fighting Master Sgt. Sonny Shoyeb Air Force Reserve, Lackland AFB, Texas it is a medium of information for Air Force personnel.
I read your comment in the latest issue of for life in a mother’s womb, or servicemem- via e-mail Readers may submit articles, photographs and artwork.
Suggestions and criticisms are welcomed. All pictures
Airman magazine [May-June 2008 issue] bers defending their country, neither one is
are U.S. Air Force photos unless otherwise identified.
and I’m appalled! By now I hope some- less of a warrior. There are more important I personally think your magazine is the best Opinions of contributors are not necessarily
one has corrected you and put you in your things to discuss than a word that might of- I know. Thank you. those of the Air Force.
place. Civilians can, and do, earn the right fend someone. We should focus on “taking Martin Van Der Merwe
to be warriors. For your information, civil- the fight to the enemy,” not aiming shots at Kranskop, South Africa Editorial Office
ians are combatants and do deploy. Our ourselves! Airman, AFNEWS/PAM, 203 Norton St.,
San Antonio, TX 78226-1848.
Absolutely the finest Airman magazine ever

mere presence on the battlefield, as well as
our support to combat operations, allows us
Kevin Swiecicki
Charleston AFB, S.C.
Giving Iraq new wings Telephone 210-925-7757; DSN 945-7757,
fax 210-925-7219; DSN 945-7219.
printed [May-June 2008]. From the cover to to earn that title. For your information, ci- E-mail: editor@afnews.af.mil.
the Final Frame, the Airmen at War issue
captured the true essence of today’s Air-
vilian personnel have deployed beside their
maintenance counterparts and performed
New Airman online Look us up
www.airmanonline.af.mil
man warrior. And a poster too! Super work repairs on the aircraft for decades. Most
Air Force Link, the Air Force’s official
— keep it up. recently, the Air Force history program con- World Wide Web home page.
Chief Master Sgt. Neil McGillicuddy verted all of its active-duty slots to civil-
Andrews Air Force Base, Md. ian. As I type, we have civilian historians For a Unit Subscription
deployed to the front lines in Iraq and Af- Administrative support offices can send
Inappropriate patch ghanistan. And we have civilian historians

at several combined air operations centers
the unit’s mailing address and the total number
of military and civilian Air Force people
via e-mail to editor@afnews.af.mil
I have always appreciated your articles in the war zone. And the office of special to start receiving copies on a regular basis.
and the strides you take to cover the amaz- investigations sends civilian agents to the Coalition Air Force Transition Teams, or
ingly wide variety of skills and occupations front lines regularly. After reviewing your e- CAFTTs, consist of 380 Airmen working Distribution
our Air Force has to offer. I would also say mail address, and assessing what unit you to rebuild the Iraqi air force. Your March- After reading the story on Airman Paige One copy for every three Airmen and civilian workers.
that your accuracy is spot on 99 percent are with, I’m curious about just how much April 2008 magazine did a great job telling Villers’ tragic death, I felt compelled to ex-
of the time. And while there may be an oc- time you have spent on the front lines. As the story of the training school at Taji, Iraq, press to the Villers family my condolences, For a Personal Subscription
Send check or VISA/MasterCard number (including
casional inaccuracy, I have never felt the for me, well I am a retired senior NCO who which is a part of the team. Our crew is and to also thank them. Reading the story
expiration date) to Superintendent of Documents,
need to single one out. However, the May- deployed multiple times, including a short clambering to share copies of the magazine of her fight, and absolute willingness to en- P.O. Box 371954, Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954.
June edition’s “Airman At War” featured a four-month stint to Iraq. I have done my with others. Right now they’re fighting over dure to serve her country, reminded me of Telephone credit card orders 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. Eastern time
picture I just can’t ignore. On Page 13, you time and will go back in my civilian capac- the electronic issue they receive online, but the excitement I felt when I went through to toll free 1-866-512-1800; fax 202-512-2250.
chose to run a picture of a C-130 Hercules ity. Your disrespectful comments prove that it sure is hard to autograph. Thanks. basic training. And now, after close to four [24 hours] Call for costs.
pilot wearing an extremely inappropriate you need to reassess your thought process Maj. Val Baker years of service and two deployments, it
“FUBAR” patch, while the only other patch and research your line of attack before Camp Taji, Iraq was starting to feel more like a day-to-day
on the captain’s uniform was an Ameri- sticking your foot in your mouth. Editor’s note: Here are just a few comments job, and a hassle just to work an extra hour
can flag. Quite the dichotomy. The world’s Yancy Mailes from readers who visited the new Airman or two, or to have to come in for weekend
foremost symbol of freedom coupled with 366th Fighter Wing historian online Web page. duty. Not anymore.
a disturbing symbol of vulgarity. Shame on Mountain Home AFB, Idaho Senior Airman Jeremiah Hunter
the captain for the poor choice, and poorer Dyess AFB, Texas
2 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 3

Contents
July/ August 2008
4 Fear the hog

A-10 Thunderbolt II maintainers at Bagram
Air Base, Afghanistan, know their “hogs” are
helping win the war on terrorism. So they do
what it takes to keep their jets flying.
10 The space link

“Space warriors” use high-tech, spaced-
based systems to help coalition ground
forces track down their elusive enemies.
4 14 A persistent presence
Pacific Air Force’s area includes 16 time
zones, 43 countries in 100 million square
miles. That’s a lot of space and responsibil-
ity for Gen. Carrol “Howie” Chandler.
24 Recruiting the force

The Air Force is not having problems recruiting
people. But recruiters still look far and wide to
find “the best and brightest.”
36 Keesler marches on
After surviving a near knockout blow, Keesler
Air Force Base, Miss., is alive and kicking and
training Airmen like before. Its post-Katrina
transformation has put it back on track.
24 30 42 Vote of confidence
An army of voting officers worldwide is
ready to help Airmen cast their votes in the
upcoming election.
44 ‘FITTER’ to Fight
Many reasons can derail a fitness program.
But in today’s Air Force, fitter is better.
2 Airmail
20 Profile
22 Heritage
30 Frontline Duty
36 48 Notebook
On the Cover
photo by
Master Sgt. Demetrius Lester
design by Luke Borland
42 44
Bagram maintainers
keep a-10s Fighting
by Louis A. Arana-Barradas
photos by Master Sgt. Demetrius Lester

A 455th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron ground crew secures an A-10 Thunderbolt II after a combat mission and before parking it. The aircraft is a workhorse that
provides close-air support to coalition ground forces in Afghanistan, the job the Air Force built the ground-attack fighter to do.
“My job is cool because I know what I do impacts the war,” said the fines our unit — ‘Fear the Hog.’”
Airman from Archibald, Pa., who is on her first deployment. “I’m actual- Keeping the more than 30-year-old jets in the air is paramount
ly doing something that helps people, America and the cause over here.” to the success of the war on terrorism in Afghanistan. But that can
She’s one of more than 200 aircraft maintainers who deployed with be a tough duty.
After each combat mission, A-10 Thunderbolt II crew chief Staff Sgt. Damon Ballard checks his “hog” to ensure the 81st Aircraft Maintenance Unit, from Spangdahlem Air Base, Ger- “This is by no means an easy task to achieve, but teamwork is the
it’s good to go for its next mission from Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan. He deployed to the 455th Expeditionary many, to join the 455th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squad- main driving force behind the unit’s success,” the lieutenant said.
Maintenance Squadron with the 81st Aircraft Maintenance Unit, Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. ron. Their mission since January 2008: Keep their 12 jets flying. That teamwork becomes evident to anyone who takes a stroll on
The “Spang” crew has done just that, said 1st Lt. Kristen Lainis, Bagram’s busy aircraft ramp, day or night, and watches the main-
A
irman 1st Class Marissa Burke doesn’t fear the “hog.” the unit’s assistant officer in charge. tainers at work launching or recovering the A-10s — especially if it’s
Coalition ground forces fighting the war on terrorism don’t Since arriving at Bagram, maintainers have been busy keeping 81st one of their hogs.
fear it either. They love to hear the distinctive hum of the A- Fighter Squadron jets flying. They “met every air tasking order with “If the aircraft needs liquid oxygen, the LOX crew springs into
10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack fighter twin turbofan engines over- 100 percent flying schedule effectiveness and launched more than action,” Lieutenant Lainis said. “If there was a pilot-reported dis-
head. It means help is only a radio call away. 1,300 sorties,” said the lieutenant, a three-year Air Force veteran. crepancy during the sortie, the appropriate specialist is on the
But those who dare tangle with the hog definitely tremble in fear That equated to more than 5,700 combat flying hours of close-air sup- spot. This cohesive team expertly returns the aircraft to war-ready
when it is near. Because the jet’s deadly 30 mm Gatling gun can end port and show-of-force missions, she said. And squadron pilots dropped status in minimal time.
an insurgent’s career in a three-second burst of bullets. more than 130 bombs, launched more than 200 rockets and fired more “So you’ll rarely see an A-10 maintainer working solo,” she said.
Bullets Airman Burke, an A-10 weapons load crew member at Ba- than 65,000 of the heavy 30 mm rounds. That’s a fact Airman Burke, who works with a team, can attest to.
gram Air Base, Afghanistan, helps load on the aircraft. It’s a job she “The ‘hog’ has truly become feared by our enemies,” Lieutenant “You grow a lot closer to the people you work with — it’s more like
likes because of the final results. Lainis said. And that has paved the way “for the motto that now de- a family here,” the Airman said. “Everyone is there for each other.”

An A-10, deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, taxis on the flightline
for a combat mission. The A-10 is the first Air Force aircraft specially designed for
close air support of ground forces.
Expediter Tech. Sgt. Steven Nealy checks his tool box before getting to work on his Crew chief Airman 1st Class Sean Story inspects the rudder of the oldest A-10 Members of the 455th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron load foot-long 30 mm ammunition on an A-10 Thunderbolt II before a combat mission. The “hog’s”
A-10 Thunderbolt II. Thunderbolt II in U.S. Air Forces in Europe, in service since 1980. GAU-8/A seven-barrel Gatling gun is the business end of the Air Force’s premier ground-attack fighter, which has been in the Air Force inventory since October 1975.
The Airman has been in the service “Our aircraft have flown great this entire said. It’s not uncommon to see 10 people, no matter their job, work- thought of their daughter serving in a war zone.
about a year and a half and may be too “So you’ll rarely see deployment. Our maintainers do an out- ing together to clean the jets. “My parents know I’m happy to be here,
“green” to know that, in maintainer circles, standing job keeping our aircraft fully mis- And sometimes hog handlers turn into tour guides when Soldiers that this is what I want, that I needed to
the joke is weapons loaders can’t work un- an A-10 maintainer sion capable every day,” the captain from pay a visit. be here. So they accept it,” Airman Burke
less in groups of three. But load crews are Fayetteville, N.C., said. “This is proven by “Soldiers come out to the flightline just to see the A-10 because said. “They’re proud of me and brag
perfect examples of teamwork in motion. working solo.” — 1st Lt. Kristen Lainis how well our aircraft have flown here. The our jets have helped them out of a tough situation,” the lieuten- to all their friends about me.”
“After a sortie where munitions have teamwork and attention to detail is why ant said. “There’s no other airframe in the Air Force that can As the unit packed up to return
been expended, you can see the hours of we have easily made every combat sortie.” compete with the A-10 and its gun for providing combat- home, another unit was arriving
training in the ‘load barn’ have paid off for load crews,” Lieutenant But launching and “catching” jets around the clock is a tough and air support to troops on the ground.” and settling in. Get in, do the job for
Lainis said. “Like a well-oiled machine, crews follow the letter of the dirty business, and life on the A-10 ramp isn’t glamorous. For ex- That’s why maintainers ensure their hogs are always four to six months and get out. That’s
law and safely reconfigure aircraft for their next combat mission.” ample, when an A-10 returns from a combat mission, its entire nose is ready to join the fight, she said. the now-familiar way of life for today’s
But the same is true of all the maintainers, from crew chiefs to the sometimes black from the gun gas. The residue can be thick. In mid-May, the unit had done its job and was ready to re- Airmen.
Airmen who work on the jets’ avionics, hydraulics, frame, engines or “Although a blackened nose is a ‘badge of honor,’ it must be turn home to Spangdahlem’s green and rolling hill country. As they hit the Bagram ramp again — Air-
other systems on the flightline or in the back shops, Capt. Jennifer cleaned,” Lieutenant Lainis said. “And the light grey painted aircraft Though she liked her Bagram experience and learned from it, man Burke included — all the Spang crew
Gurganus said. She’s the officer in charge of the Spang maintenance show every speck of dirt and splattered bug.” Airman Burke was glad the deployment was almost over. So wanted to do was launch their last hog, pack their
unit. Luckily, no crew chief ever cleans his or her aircraft alone, she were her parents back in Pennsylvania, who didn’t relish the gear and get back home.

the
Airmen provide out-of-this-world capabilities

BY LOUIS A. ARANA-BARRADAS
F inding a fleeting enemy in Iraq’s vast deserts or the rug-

ged mountains of Afghanistan is no easy task for coali-
tion ground forces. And when the enemy hears a war-
plane overhead, they run away and hide, taking advantage of the
knowledge of the land in which they fight.
But coalition forces have a trump card. They know that high
overhead, unheard and often unseen, a host of space-based sys-
tems — and other weapon systems that depend on the informa-
tion these out-of-this-world technologies provide — help them
find the elusive enemy.
Then they can deal with them.
This continual game of cat and mouse is a demanding task with
life-and-death consequences. But it’s a mission Lt. Gen. William
L. Shelton wants to simplify. Helping him is a vigilant force of
more than 20,500 often unseen and unheard space professionals
who operate the key Air Force space systems on which warfight-
ers depend.
The general commands Air Force Space Command’s 14th Air
Force [Air Forces Strategic]. It provides missile warning, space
superiority and situational awareness, satellite operations and
space launch and range operations. And he heads U.S. Strategic
Command’s Joint Functional Component Command for Space,
which provides combatant commanders tailored, responsive, lo-
cal and global space support.
From his headquarters at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., Gen-
eral Shelton gave Airman magazine an update on the increasing
role of space warriors.

photo by Airman 1st Class Jonathan Olds
: How are space : There’s a lot of : Could you high- quate protection capability is robust space
warriors and their as- talk about unmanned light a little-known situational awareness, which we define as
sets helping “win today’s aerial vehicles, but space effect our Airmen tracking all man-made objects in space,
fight?” little about satellites are using that allows discerning the intent of others who operate
that support them. Can America and her allies in space, knowing the status of our own
you please explain their to conduct military op- forces in real-time and understanding the
General Shelton: Space capabilities are relationship? erations 24/7? natural environment and its effect upon
now foundational to military operations in space operations. In fact, space situation-
the 21st century. In fact, I would submit that al awareness is foundational for all space
every military operation today depends on General Shelton: Satellite communications General Shelton: Most people are very operations, which is why Air Force Space
space for either planning or execution, or are an essential part of how we employ un- familiar with GPS, and the navigation ca- Command is hard at work developing im-
both. As examples, satellite communications manned aerial vehicles. They allow UAVs to pability it provides. But few understand proved capabilities. In the future, a deci-
link our forces worldwide, provide mobile operate well beyond line-of-sight. In fact, we the crucial role of the GPS precision tim- sion maker’s ability to quickly answer the
communications down to the tactical level are flying UAVs from stateside locations. This ing signal in both military and commercial “who, what, when, where, how and why”
and disseminate crucial intelligence infor- greatly reduces the footprint in theater, not just applications. Extremely accurate timing questions regarding space events will help
mation. The precision that GPS [Global Po- for the crews, but also for the support those allows for a higher data rate over commu- determine the proper course of action.
sitioning System] provides is a tremendous crews require. Satellite communications also nications channels. In today’s information
force multiplier, not just as a navigational enable real-time dissemination of the data col- age this is critical to pushing as much data
tool, but by also allowing more precise mu- lected by UAVs, allowing a wide range of users as possible through our available commu- : What else would
nitions, lower collateral damage and secure access to the critical data in real-time. In ad- nications bandwidth. Additionally, GPS you like to add that
communications timing. Space-based intel- dition to satellite communications, our UAVs timing allows secure encryption of commu- you feel is important to
ligence, surveillance and reconnaissance as- depend on GPS for very precise navigation. I nications by providing a common timing share with the rest of
sets are powerful tools to find, fix, target and think it’s fair to say that UAVs are critically de- reference. Commercial users of GPS use the Air Force?
kill our enemies — wherever they are. Many pendent on satellite capabilities. the timing signal for applications such as
view the effects provided by space assets as time-stamping banking transactions and
“utilities.” But behind these space effects is Internet timing, making GPS vital to our General Shelton: As a nation, we need
the hard work of our great space team of ac- : When people international business and networking. to understand the criticality of space su-
tive-duty military, civilians and contractors. think of “Airmen at war,” periority. Most of us intuitively under-
These folks ensure the right effects are deliv- they visualize boots stand the importance of superiority in
ered on the timing and tempo requested by on the ground. How do : What can you other domains. Gaining and maintain-
the warfighter. you see these “space say about the immediate ing air, land and maritime superiority is
warriors?” future of space opera- a given in joint warfighting. Similarly, we
tions in defense of our can’t assume that someone will not chal-
: How are GPS sat- nation, and how do you lenge our current space superiority in a
ellites helping avoid General Shelton: We like to think of our prepare for the chal- future conflict. Some would argue Sad-
collateral damage and space warriors as deployed-in-place forces lenges that the future dam Hussein fired the first shot in this
unnecessary loss of because they are an essential part of the brings? regard when he tried to jam our GPS sig-
life in the war in Iraq warfighting effort 24/7 — albeit from home nals in 2003. The Chinese demonstration
and Afghanistan? station. Many in our space team have de- of an anti-satellite capability in 2007 is
General Shelton: I’ve mentioned just a
ployed forward in the U.S. Central Com- further evidence of the growing threat to
mand area of operation, providing “boots
few of our space dependencies. But we also the space domain. Many of our potential
General Shelton: GPS-guided muni- on the ground” space expertise in theater,
recognize that potential vulnerabilities adversaries have watched us successfully
tions are the weapons of choice in Iraq as well as a good conduit for reach back to
accompany that dependence. The space leverage space assets and, therefore, are
and Afghanistan. But it’s not just air-de- our space team back home. Space opera-
domain is vast, but as more nations and actively seeking ways to deny our space
livered munitions that depend on GPS. tions are inherently global in nature and,
commercial consortia become space-far- capabilities. Clearly, space is no longer
Other indirect fire weapons, like the as a result, space operators have a global
ing entities, it’s becoming more crowded. a sanctuary for operations. So we must
Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System, perspective. But at the same time, we are
We currently track more than 18,000 man- prepare accordingly to deter and dissuade
rely on GPS for the made objects in space, hostile uses of space. And if deterrence
precision that we now to include everything fails, we must develop methods to pre-
take for granted. The we must build a strategy to from active satellites serve our critical space capabilities. So, to
unprecedented accu- to man-made debris. achieve victory in future conflict, I believe
racy of these weapons preserve and protect our space And these are just the we must be prepared to gain and maintain
limits collateral effects objects that our sen- superiority in all domains: Land, sea, air,
by allowing the use of capabilities against intentional and sors are able to track space and cyberspace.
smaller warheads and — there are many more
fewer munitions to unintentional hazards. objects on orbit that we
ensure killing a given know we can’t “see.” In
target, thereby lowering the likelihood of very committed to providing all possible addition to these environmental hazards,
unintended damage. Another important space effects needed by the various the- potential adversaries possess the ability
aspect of this GPS-aided precision is the aters, in most cases, simultaneously. Our to disrupt or destroy our space capabili-
confidence we have in dropping these operators are dedicated and innovative, ties. Therefore, we must build a strategy to About critical space operations, Lt. Gen. William
weapons very close to our forces in con- always looking for new ways to maximize preserve and protect our space capabili- Shelton said, “Clearly, space is no longer a sanctuary
tact with the enemy, thereby providing our space capabilities. They are truly an ties against intentional and unintentional for operations. So we must prepare accordingly to
very effective close-air support. impressive group of people. hazards. The starting point for an ade- deter and dissuade hostile uses of space.”

photo by Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III
Pacific Air Force commander Gen. Carrol “Howie” Chandler must wear three hats as he
A persistent
works to keep the Pacific Rim a peaceful region.
presence
Pacific Air Forces: 100 million square
miles of nonstop responsibility
by Orville F. Desjarlais Jr.
I
t would take a C-17 Globemaster III more than 60 hours of nonstop clock-watching, fast-talking commander. But General Chandler is the
flying to skirt the edges of Pacific Air Forces’ area of responsibility. opposite. He seems as cool and reflective as a mountain lake.
It’s an area that includes 16 time zones and 43 countries in 100 Sipping on a glass of lemonade, the U.S. Air Force Academy Class
million square miles. of ’74 grad sat back in a brown leather chair in his office and explained
It encompasses the smoggy shores of Los Angeles to the pristine everything about the Pacific Air Forces: What’s important, what’s
coasts of Alaska. The midnight sun of the Arctic to the land of the ris- happening today, what to expect in the future.
ing sun in Japan, and from the hot west coast of Africa to the icy gla-
ciers of the Antarctic. Command’s importance
That’s a big area — half the world’s surface — and a lot of respon- The general said that although the Pacific Rim may look peaceful, the
sibility, which falls squarely on the shoulders of Gen. Carrol “Howie” area does have potential trouble spots.
Chandler, Pacific Air Forces commander. He’s also the air component “We’re not at war in the Pacific, but we’re really not at peace, ei-
commander for U.S. Pacific Command and executive director, Pacific ther,” he said, pointing out terrorist operations in the Philippines, pi-
Air Combat Operations Staff at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. rates in the Strait of Malacca in West Malaysia and the ever-present
With that many titles, it would be easy for anyone to be an uptight, threat of North Korea.

illustration by Virginia Reyes
photo by Marine Sgt. Andres Alcaraz

“We’re very fortunate that the guns are silent, because three of
the world’s 10 largest economies are located in this region of the
world,” the general said.
“Economic development and stability in this region is due, Alaska
in large part, to the contributions of the U.S. security umbrella,
along with our allies and coalition partners,” he said. “If you look
at developments in the Pacific, our high-end adversaries are get-
ting better. They’re making smart investments across the entire
spectrum — militarily and economically — in this part of the
world.
“So, while we continue to work on low-end capabilities, we
must also keep an eye on the high-end competition,” he said.
“We’ll continue to posture forces — people and equipment —
where we need them in the Pacific to do what the nation needs us
to do.”
In some cases that means providing relief when natural disas-
ters — like the typhoons, floods and earthquakes — strike, like
those that hit Burma and China in May 2008.
“We are very grateful that the Burmese government allowed us Hawaii
to do one of the things our great Air Force men and women do ex-
tremely well — provide immediate and effective humanitarian as-
sistance and disaster relief to affected regions all over the world,” Guam
General Chandler said.
Posturing weapons systems in the theater shows the com-
mand’s importance, he said. Three of the seven programmed F-22
Raptor squadrons in the Air Force are, or will be, at command
bases. And the only two overseas-based C-17 Globemaster III
squadrons are in the command. Plus, there are plans to beddown
RQ-4 Global Hawks at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam. Air Force bases in Alaska, Hawaii and Guam give the Air Force a strategic triangle in the
“One of the things we continually emphasize here is a persistent Pacific from where it can help provide stability in the region.
photo by Airman 1st Class Jonathan Snyder
Burmese military members form a line to unload much-needed water off an Air Force C-130 Hercules at Yangon International Airport, Burma. The plane, also brought
food and medical supplies that provided relief to thousands of Burmese affected by the killer Cyclone Nargis in May 2008.
presence,” he said. “It’s important in this part of the world. What I’m area, “that’s a selling point,” he said.
describing here is being in a marathon, not a sprint.” “Guam’s strategic location in the Strategic Triangle makes it an
ideal location for Global Hawks,” General Chandler said. “It’s not
The Strategic Triangle only exciting for us, but for our coalition allies. They, too, are in-
After he finished half his lem- terested in the same high-alti-
onade, the general got up and tude, long endurance UAV-type
walked outside and continued to “We’re very fortunate that the guns system.”
talk about what’s happening at Unlike the Global Hawk’s
bases in the Pacific, specifically are silent, because three of the wartime mission on the front
those that constitute the “Strate- lines, the general sees many dif-
gic Triangle” — bases in Alaska, world’s 10 largest economies are ferent ways to use the tenacious
Hawaii and Guam. aircraft.
“Each of those bases is im- located in this region of the world.” “I can see a multi-faceted use
portant because they allow us to — Gen. Carrol “Howie” Chandler of the system,” he said. “Unfor-
project U.S. military capability tunately, we’ll probably have to
off of U.S. soil,” the general said. use the system for humanitarian
“The changes we’re making at those bases today are going to dictate efforts during disaster relief.”
the direction PACAF is taking for years to come.” While Airmen at Andersen will launch and recover the unmanned
Called “50-year decisions,” the general said each base in the Stra- aircraft, Airmen at Hickam will fly the missions remotely from the
tegic Triangle is being postured for the future. base’s air operations center.
Standing in front of a static display of a Global Hawk erected Hickam has one of the largest air operations centers in the Pacific.
at Hickam a week earlier, the general talked about stationing un- A mixed group of Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors and Marines command
manned aircraft on Guam. Global Hawk is an unmanned aerial and control all the airpower in the Pacific, with the exception of the
Capt. Bryan Spence checks his F-16 Fighting Falcon’s flaps and rudder to ensure there’s no ice build up before taking off on a Red Flag-Alaska training mission from Eielson vehicle on steroids. It can fly for 35 hours straight, going more than Korean peninsula, which is under 7th Air Force control.
Air Force Base, Alaska, in April. The captain is from the 35th Fighter Wing, Misawa Air Base, Japan. 15,000 miles. And, when dealing with a 100-million-square-mile “It truly is a joint and integrated operation,” he said. “We have

photo by Tech. Sgt. Shane A. Cuomo
killed tens of thousands of people in China. Command C-17 Globe-

master III flew in to deliver tons of humanitarian relief supplies.
“In a strange way, and it’s unfortunate, but the natural disasters
that we have seen occurred — all the way from the tsunamis to
some of the other things that have happened here — have caused a
lot of nations in this region not just to work bilaterally, but multilat-
erally to try to solve some of these problems,” the general said.
“So if there is anything positive to come out of this, it’s that fact.”
Relationships with others

Hawaii’s warm trade winds kicked up and nearly blew the general’s
flight cap from his head. A smile appeared as he took a quick verbal
detour to talk about Hawaii.
“It’s no secret that living in Hawaii is a pretty good deal,” he said.
“I feel extremely lucky to be here to represent some 45,000 men and
women who work in the Pacific every day. I’d like to think that we
offer meaningful work that contributes to the defense of our nation.”
Walking on, the general said engagement, in terms of stability
and security, is a top priority and the most important thing U.S. Pa-
cific Command expects of his command. Using his analogy again,
he said engagement is a marathon, not a sprint, and that it takes al-
lies and partnerships to finish first.
“These relationships were developed over the years by my prede-
cessors. By young captains and lieutenants who had gone out and
flown together and worked together, who have later grown to be the
chiefs of their services,” he said.
The Air Force has partnerships with such nations as Japan, South
Korea, Australia, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and the
Philippines.
As the wing commander at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., the gen-
eral has first-hand knowledge about one of these relationships.
“The Republic of Singapore Air Force had a squadron at Luke
where they trained,” he said. “So, I find myself, many years later,
knowing many of the general officers in the Republic of Singa-
pore Air Force because they flew at Luke. We are very fortunate to
have these types of relationships. They pay big dividends. When it
comes to promoting security and stability, I think we’ve been very
successful over the years. And they were all interested in being as-
sociated in some way shape or form with the Air Force.”
In many ways, the general said these countries not only want to
be associated with the Air Force, many want to emulate it.
“I see the U.S. Air Force as the envy of the other air forces in
the world in terms of how we organize, train, equip, educate and
teach our leaders, both officer and enlisted,” he said. “We have the
luxury of giving our enlisted as much responsibility as they’re will-
ing to take, as quickly as they’re willing to take it. I think that’s true
throughout the Air Force — whether you’re a young Airman, a mid-
level NCO, a young captain or a major.”
The future
Since other 50-year decisions for the Pacific region have already
C-17 Globemaster III loadmaster Master Sgt. Joseph Salvador (left) explains what he does on the transport to members of the Philippine air force before a mission from been made, all that’s left to do is to make the plan a reality.
Clark Field, the Philippines, in February 2008. The mission was part of exercise Balikatan ‘08. Training and interacting with Airmen from Pacific Rim countries is big busi- learn their trade than here in the Pacific.” “For the next several years, we’ll be in the process of working out
ness for Pacific Air Forces because it increases joint security efforts. Sergeant Salvador is with the Hawaii Air National Guard’s 204th Airlift Squadron at Hickam. all the kinks and things we didn’t think about when we signed all
All exercises great and small the papers,” General Chandler said.
liaison officers from other nations, as well. At the same time, many Alaska’s rugged terrain and harsh weather, similar to that in Af- The general said the command doesn’t always need to have large, “The Pacific Air Forces will play a large part in what we need to
of the things we do in the theater are bilateral.” ghanistan, made it a natural location to expand Cope Thunder flying exercises. The little ones are just as important. For instance, do in terms of security and stability from now until as far as I can
A good example of this bilateral cooperation is missile defense. exercises — once held in the Philippines — to a much bigger Red command planners created a small exercise around the C-17 trans- see into the future. And, I think our Airmen in the Pacific will be
Japan has Patriot missiles on Kadena and Yokota air bases. Flag-Alaska. port. About 50 doctors, dentists and civil engineers flew to three training with the best equipment the Air Force has in its inventory.
“Japan is a partner with us in solving this problem about how “Alaska gives us a very good range complex that provides us separate islands in Micronesia. “All I can say is that I’m extremely proud of every officer, enlisted
to provide missile defense in the theater,” the general said, add- the opportunity to engage with our allies and our partners from They examined 4,000 patients, trained about 1,000 islanders in and civilian in the Pacific — in terms of providing security and
ing that Yokota’s bilateral air operations center plays an important around the Pacific, the Canadians, the British and other European first-responder medical skills and worked in three different clinics stability in the region,” he said. “It’s important work, and some of
role in the partnership. nations, as well. So, we’ve got a great opportunity to train, and — all in 96 hours. them do it far away from home and far away from their families. I
Bases in Alaska provide the third leg of the Strategic Triangle. I can’t think of a better place for young Airmen to grow up and Another key mission occurred in May 2008, when an earthquake appreciate what they do.”

PROFILE
C-17 GLOBEMASTER
Capt. Scott Raleigh
III PILOT
photo by Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III
There are three great aspects to my job.

First, the chance to fly varied missions
around the world. Experiencing new locations
and immersing in other cultures is an un-
believable benefit of Air Force life. Second,
Home unit/base: working with so many talented and motivated
535th Airlift Squadron individuals. I’m always amazed at how profes-
Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. sional our Airmen are and of their commit-
ment to improving our community. And third,
Hometown: the opportunity to not only teach, but to
Richland, Wash. do so outside of a classroom and inside a
Entered Air Force:
jet. Instruction is the absolute highlight
May 5, 2000. of my job. Taking new pilots and molding
them into combat-ready crewmembers is excit-
Deployments: ing to do. When teaching, it feels great. And
62 temporary duty assignments since 2000 it’s amazing to see, a ‘light bulb come on’
with 500+ combat hours. over a student. To be able to share experi-
ences and resources ensures our crews only
Marital status: improve over the previous generation. I have
Married and expecting. the best job in the Air Force.
20 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil
HOW DO YOU DISCOURAGE
A ROGUE LEADER
WHO WANTS TO
FLEX HIS MUSCLES?
©2008 Paid for by the U.S. Air Force. All rights reserved.
A Great magazine!
Subscribe today at:
www.AIRMANONLINE.af.mil
FLEX BACK.
Staff Sgt. Alberto Vazquez,

8th Aircraft Maintenance Unit
A-10 Thunderbolt
IT TAKES AIR FORCE POWER

To learn more go to airforce.com
TO DEFEND AMERICA IN A CHANGING WORLD.
The muscle of the U.S. Air Force is a powerful deterrent to would-be aggressors. No modern war
has been won without air superiority, so the strength of our Air Force alone discourages potential
threats. Today many other countries are strengthening their air power and vying to take the lead.
To stay on top, we must be faster, stronger and more forward-thinking than all the rest. The U.S.
Air Force stands ready as the decisive force for the 21st century.
©2008 Paid for by the U.S. Air Force. All rights reserved. The Air Force logo is a registered trademark of the United States Air Force. The tag line, Above All., is also
trademarked by the United States Air Force. Both marks are the exclusive property of the Department of the Air Force.
Recruiting
the Force
Meeting the goal is no reason to stop
by Staff Sgt. Matthew Bates
Photos by Master Sgt. Jack Braden
Destination 2 Destination 1 Destination 3

Destination 4
Air Force recruiter Tech. Sgt. Frank

McMahon III works in one of the largest
recruiting regions in the United States.
The 368th Recruiting Squadron sergeant
works out of Great Falls, Mont., but
travels throughout the northeastern part
of Montana to find and recruit potential
Airmen.

T
ech. Sgt. Frank McMahon III’s dark blue Ford Explorer ram- Filling a need One way Sergeant McMahon does this is by making his recruits agent and part taxi driver.
bled down the two-lane blacktop highway, the scenery vanish- Over the past decade, thanks to recruiters like Sergeant McMahon, who are entering special operations jobs give him a set of push ups “Yeah, but I’m all Air Force,” he said.
ing in a blur past his driver’s side window. the Air Force has consistently met or exceeded its enlistment goals. every time they come to his office. And Sergeant McMahon is not the exception, but the norm. He’s
Not that there’s much to see anyway, except long stretches of In light of this, there are those who argue against the need for the “I think it’s cool and it shows he’s invested in us and wants to only one of less than 1,300 recruiters scattered across the country.
prairie. Air Force to invest time and money into recruiting. see us succeed,” said Patrick Preston, a senior at Great Falls High Many work extensive hours and drive long distances, all while com-
This is Montana’s “Big Sky Country” — a wide open area where Some people say, “The Air Force is making its recruiting goals, School who enlisted as a combat controller. “He’s a good guy and peting with recruiters from the Army, Navy and Marines. In fact,
the wheat field-dominated countryside is broken up only by the oc- so why does the service need so much money and people devoted he’s got a tough job.” for every Air Force recruiter there are about nine Army, five Navy
casional herd of cattle. Even trees are rare; single ones adorn the to it?” Tough is not the word. Sergeant McMahon’s job is part recruiter, and three Marine Corps recruiters.
landscape, looking out of place and forlorn. Easy, recruiting officials say. The goal of recruiting is to find part parent, part marketing specialist, part secretary, part travel “Yet, we keep making our goals,” Colonel Chase said. “And we’re
The road stretches on for what seems forever, disappearing only quality men and women who have the right skills, at the right time
at the horizon. There’s seldom another vehicle in sight. Out here, the and in the right numbers to sustain the combat capability of Amer-
driver is alone — his only companions being the occasional voice ica’s Air Force.
breaking through the static on the radio and the gentle whirring of But the Air Force can’t hope qualified candidates will simply
tires on the pavement. walk through the door.
So, he keeps driving. “You can’t just stop recruiting because you’re making your
This is something Sergeant McMahon does a lot. He’s a recruiter goals,” said Col. Stan Chase, vice commander, Air Force Recruiting
0 7 1 2 3 9 4
with the 368th Recruiting Squadron and in charge of the largest re- Service at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. “We need to have re-
cruiting area in the country. Based in Great Falls, his Montana do- cruiters out there, pounding the pavement and telling the Air Force
main stretches east to North Dakota, north to the Canadian border story to young people. How else are they going to know about all
and west to the base of the Rocky Mountains. the tremendous opportunities the service offers?”
This is one reason Sergeant McMahon became a recruiter in the
first place — it gave him the chance to talk about the Air Force. He
joined the service right out of high school and never looked back.
“I love the Air Force,” he said. “And I want other people to be
able to experience what it has to offer. Recruiting gives me the per-
fect opportunity to do this.”
No walk in the park

Ironically, making its recruiting goals is almost a double-edged
sword for the Air Force.
“Recruiting is not easy,” Colonel Chase said. “But by always
making our goals, it almost looks like it is. Yet, the fact of the mat-
ter is recruiting is a challenging and demanding job.”
Sergeant McMahon can attest to this.
On an average week, he works anywhere from 60 to 80 hours
— many spent on the phone, filling out paperwork or ferrying pro-
Airman First Class Astacia Anderson discusses the week’s schedule with recruiter spective recruits to and from the Military Entrance Processing Sta-
Tech. Sgt. Frank McMahon III before he leaves to visit Montana schools. Airman An- tion in Butte, Mont., which is about a two- to three-hour drive away
derson was one of Sergeant McMahon’s recruits. She returned to Great Falls as part from his office.
of the Recruiters Assistant Program. Then there are the meetings and checkups with individuals who
have already enlisted and are in the Delayed Entry Program.
“It’s definitely a challenge having such large area,” he said. “And a “I check in with them regularly and expect them to check in with
lot of it is really remote towns that have small schools.” me, too,” Sergeant McMahon said. “I make sure they’re making
Growing up, remote was something Sergeant McMahon didn’t good decisions and staying fit and ready to head to basic training.”
have to deal with. He’s from Marlton, N.J., a town of about 10,000
people just outside Philadelphia.
“New Jersey is the most populated state in the U.S.,” Sergeant
McMahon said. “Montana is one of the least populated.”
Still, it’s not like Sergeant McMahon didn’t know what he was get-
ting himself into — after all, he volunteered for the job.
“When I signed up to be a recruiter, I knew I wanted to come some-
where like this because I love the outdoors,” he said. “All the guys in
my recruiting class thought I was crazy, but I love it here. The hunting
is great, the fishing is great and there’s a lot of outdoor stuff to do.”
Not that he has much time to enjoy them. Being the only recruiter
in such a large area keeps Sergeant McMahon very busy. There are
the constant phone calls, the school visits, the meetings with parents
and the seemingly endless piles of paperwork.
And then there’s the driving — miles and miles of it through the
Montana countryside.
“I’ve definitely logged a lot of time behind the steering wheel,” he Tech. Sgt. Frank McMahon III counts the flutter kicks done by recruits Dan Myles (left) Tech. Sgt. Frank McMahon III puts a lot of miles on his govern-
said. and Patrick Preston, both from Great Falls. Because both recruits will join demanding ment vehicle. And it’s not uncommon for him to travel more than
His blue Explorer, with its well-worn engine and odometer that career fields, Sergeant McMahon has them do push ups and flutter kicks when they 800 miles in one week during his monthly site visits to schools in
spins more like an electricity meter, is a silent testament to this fact. meet to prepare them for basic training. often remote areas of Montana.

Recruiting for the Air Force takes Tech. Sgt. Frank McMahon III to many rural Montana schools. At Brockton Public Schools, the student body numbers just 135 students
— in kindergarten through 12th grade, There are just 14 juniors and 11 seniors at the school.
recruiting the best and brightest.” Team this with the fact that many of these students aren’t famil-
The numbers back this statement up. Among Air Force recruits, iar with the Air Force and there are a lot of hurdles to overcome.
79 percent score within the top three categories on the Armed Ser- “Sure, the job has its challenges,” he said. “But the rewards out-
vices Vocational Aptitude Battery, 99 percent have a high school weigh them by a long shot.”
diploma or equivalent and only 9 percent need a waiver for drug or Namely, finding and recruiting the Air Force of tomorrow.
other criminal issues. All of these numbers are significantly better But, the Air Force of tomorrow isn’t simply going to walk into his
than those of the other services. office and ask where to sign. And out there, somewhere, is a person
“We’re not only finding quality recruits, but we’re doing it looking for adventure, a way out of an uncertain life or who can’t
cheaper,” Colonel Chase said. afford college on his or her own. Or who just wants to serve.
On average, it costs the Air Force approximately $7,900 to send a So, Sergeant McMahon and his blue Ford Explorer keep on
person through the enlistment process. The next closest service is driving.
the Marines, who spend a little more than $13,000 per recruit. The And recruiting.
Army, meanwhile, is triple the Air Force at $26,000.
0 7 2 1 1 8 3
Needle in a haystack
Finding recruits is difficult. According to a recent Department of
Defense market survey, about 73 percent of American youth are not
qualified to join the military. Weight, medical or conduct reasons
disqualify more than half of them.
“When almost three quarters of your audience is already dis-
qualified, it makes the job that much harder,” Sergeant McMahon
said.
Adding to this challenge is the population, or lack of, that Ser-
geant McMahon is in charge of scouring. More Details
“There are actually more cows in the state of Montana than there
are people,” he said. To learn more about becoming an Air Force recruiter, visit
Tech. Sgt. Frank McMahon III Within Sergeant McMahon’s area there are also some 40 schools
helps students at Wolf Point the Air Force classifies as priority three — schools too small or too www.rs.af.mil. To talk to the Air Force Recruiter Screening
High School, Wolf Point, remote to require regular visits. Sergeant McMahon is only required
Mont., with an exercise that to visit these schools once a year. Team, call DSN 665-0584 or commercial 210-565-0584; or e-
compares Air Force pay and “Some of these schools have four or five seniors in the entire
benefits to going directly to class,” Sergeant McMahon said. “And many of them work on farms mail questions to rst@rs.af.mil.
college or joining the civilian with the rest of their families and expect to do this when they
job market. graduate.”

Duty
Frontline
secure feeling. Airman 1st Class Kelliea Guthrie (left) and Senior
Airman Greg Ellis provide security as a ground crew does
photo by Master Sgt. Andy Dunaway
an engines-running offload of a C-130 Hercules transport

at Feyzabab Airfield, Afghanistan, in April. The Airmen are members of the 455th
Expeditionary Security Forces Fly Away Security Forces Team at Bagram Air Base,
Afghanistan. Airman Guthrie is deployed from the 9th Security Forces Squadron, Beale
Air Force Base, Calif. Airman Ellis deployed from the 355th Security Forces Squadron,
Frontline
Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz.
Airmen
perform
beyond
‘to do’ list
A
t a bleak outback airfield in Afghani-
stan, Airmen land their C-130 Hercu-
les to deliver much-needed cargo.
As the transport’s engines run during the
unloading at Feyzabab Airfield, other Air-
men — hands on their weapons — guard
against any attack.
Across the globe in California, other Air-
men show off the Air Force to visitors at an
annual air show at March Air Reserve Base.
And back at Balad Air Base, Iraq, Airman
1st Class Troy Spence — and many others
— help maintain and keep the much-in-de-
mand MQ-1 Predator unmanned aircraft
ready to fly.
These are just a few examples of what Air-
men do each day, whether doing their part in
the war on terrorism or keeping Americans
abreast of their Air Force’s capabilities.
Secretary of the Air Force Michael W.
Wynne, in a May Letter to Airman, said
Airmen continue meeting the demands of
their often stressful jobs to ensure Ameri-
can the best protection in the air, space and
cyberspace.
“At every level of action, mission success
requires clear goals, defined objectives, and
an innate grasp of how those objectives are
to be achieved, he said.
“Knowing the mission extends beyond
daily ‘to do’ lists,” the secretary said. “It re-
quires seizing every opportunity to improve
how the Air Force provides global vigilance,
global reach, and global power.”
That’s nothing new to today’s Airmen.
—Airman staff

Duty
Frontline
patient care. Maj. Patrick

Hsieh prepares 3-year-old
photo by Tech. Sgt. Jeffrey Allen
burn victim Al Amreeki for

a flight to the United States in March. Doctors had
given the child 48 hours to live, but two months later
the Air Force flew him and his mother to a stateside
hospital for more treatment. The major is a member
of the 332nd Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation
Flight critical care air transportation team at Balad Air
Base, Iraq.
careful steps. A little girl

carefully walks down the cargo
photo by Val Gempis
ramp of a gigantic C-5 Galaxy dur-

ing AirFest 2008 at March Air Reserve Base, Calif.,
in May. A host of military and civilian aircraft were
on static display at the air show, which coincides
with the 90th anniversary of March as a military
base, and the 60th anniversary of the Air Force
Reserve.
tail rotor check. Crew chief Staff Sgt. Tait Delzer reinstalls the tail rotor cover on
an HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter at Balad Air Base, Iraq, earlier this year. The
photo by Senior Airman Julianne Showalter predator upkeep. Checking for technical data on his laptop com-
sergeant was performing a 300-hour preventative inspection of the helicop- puter is part of the maintenance process for MQ-1 Predator crew
photo by Master Sgt. Demetrius Lester
ter. The sergeant, from the 723rd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, Moody Air Force Base, Ga., deployed to work chief Airman 1st Class Troy Spence at Bagram Air Base, Afghani-
at Balad’s 64th Expeditionary Helicopter Maintenance Unit. stan. The Airman deployed earlier this year to the 62nd Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squad-
ron from the 432nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Creech Air Force Base, Nev. The unit’s
main job is to launch and recover Predators.
32 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July - August 2008 33

Duty
Frontline
making friends. Senior Airman Mark Ostrander

shakes hands with an Afghan boy during a
photo by Master Sgt. Andy Dunaway
foot patrol through a town market in Afghan-

istan’s Pashwan District in April. A member of the Bagram Provincial Re-
construction Team’s police technical advisory team, he’s deployed from
the 55th Security Forces Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb.
smoke alarm. A firefighter at Charleston Air Force Base, S.C.,

walks through a thick cloud of smoke that simulates an air-
photo by Senior Airman Nicholas Pilch
craft crash on the Charleston flightline. The demonstration

was for an exercise in preparation for the 2008 Air Show held at the base.
Welcome to china. Maj. Anthony Davis exchanges salutes

with Chinese Senior Capt. Guan Youfei at Chengdu Shuangliu
photo by Tech. Sgt. Chris Vadnais wrapping it up. Firefighter Airman 1st Class Adam Baumgardner a cut above. Senior Airman Brandon Johnson
International Airport, China, in May. The major piloted a C-17 wraps up a fire hose after advancement and pump train-
photo by Senior Airman Julianne Showalter cuts a stuffed pork loin during the Iron
photo by Senior Airman Sheila deVera
Globemaster III to China filled with relief supplies bound for people affected by a major ing at Balad Air Base, Iraq, in April. Balad firefighters train Chef competition at Hurlburt Field, Fla., in
earthquake. Maj. Wu Qian (second from left), a staff officer at the Chinese Ministry of De- daily to stay ready for emergency situations. Airman Baumgardner is with the 332nd Expe- March. The competition pitted one Airman from Hurlburt against one
fense’s American and Oceanic Affairs Bureau, and Army Brig. Gen. Charles Hooper (left), the boom patrol. A KC-135 Stratotanker maintainer ditionary Civil Engineer Squadron and deployed from Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. from Eglin and Tyndall air force bases. Airman Johnson, of Tyndall’s
U.S. defense attaché in China, also met the plane. The pilot is with the Hawaii Air National checks the aging tanker’s aerial refueling
photo by Senior Airman Daniel St. Pierre 325th Services Squadron, won the inaugural event, for which he re-
Guard’s 204th Airlift Squadron, Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. The senior captain is deputy boom. The check was part of a preventa- ceived a trophy and a culinary knife set.
director of the ministry foreign affairs office. tive maintenance inspection at March Air Reserve Base, Calif., in May.
34 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July - August 2008 35

Then
U.S. Air Force photo
photo by Tech. Sgt. Cecilio Ricardo

Now
Trainees march past the intersection of D Street and Hangar Road at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss.,
in April 2008. That’s something they wouldn’t have been able to do three years ago, when Hurri-
cane Katrina flooded the road, submerged vehicles, felled trees and left tons of debris in its wake.
On Aug. 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina’s 18-foot storm surge hit Keesler Air Force
Base, Miss., with a vengeance and changed the training base forever. The storm
flooded the intersection of D Street and Hangar Road.
A
s Airmen march to and from technical school classes today of the buildings unusable.
at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., it’s no big deal. But three It destroyed much of base housing, filled the base exchange with
years ago, they would have been wading through five feet of five feet of water, flooded the basement of the Keesler Medical Center
floodwaters. and displaced many Airmen and their families.
Today, visitors would never realize the transformation that has The base was a disaster area almost beyond comprehension. Some
taken place at this training base in the three years since Hurricane people thought it would never recover from the blow. But it did, and
Katrina tried to rub it off the map. today it thrives.
Training base bounces back When the category-4 storm bashed the Gulf Coast Aug. 29, 2005,
with its 140-mph winds, it changed the region and Keesler forever.
“We want everyone to know Keesler’s back and running strong!”
said Col. Greg Touhill, the 81st Training Wing commander.
from Hurricane Katrina’s fury

by Master Sgt. Kimberly Spencer
The massive storm surge submerged more than half the base. It dam-
aged about 95 percent of the infrastructure, with nearly three-quar-
ters of the industrial facilities sustaining roof damage and a quarter
Everyone who sheltered on Keesler survived the storm. And al-
though the base had taken a devastating blow, it was the least-dam-
aged major facility on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

cour tesy photo
U.S. Air Force pho

to
Now
Then
As Hurricane Katrina raged around them, volunteers held lanterns as doctors (above left) performed an emergency Caesarian section on Stephanie Post at the Keesler
Medical Center. They safely delivered Sage Madison Post. That was on Aug. 29, 2005. A year later, the little girl (above right on left) celebrated her first birthday at the
medical center’s official reopening ceremony with (left to right) her mother, sister, Austin and father, Senior Airman Aaron Post.
photo by Tech. Sgt
. Cecilio Ricardo
photo by Master Sgt. Efrain Gonzalez

Now
Three years after Hurricane Katrina’s fury, Tech. Sgt. Melissa Jones-Johnson still gets emotional when looks through the pictures of the home she and her husband, Master
Sgt. Steven Jones-Johnson, lost on Aug. 29, 2005. A hope chest made by her grandfather was one of the few things the couple was able to save.
The first order of business was clearing a pathway through the to their next duty station, she said. Others left with the understanding
devastation. they would complete their training on-the-job at their first base. And
“Although the runway was littered with fish, sea turtles and de- some students graduated while still living in shelters.
bris, every available hand worked hard. Within 11 hours, aircraft The team also identified temporary locations for training through-
Then
were able to land on the runway,” wing vice commander Col. Richard out the command and students and instructors evacuated there.
Pierce said. However, base officials quickly revised their initial assessment that
Keesler survived the storm more intact than many of the surround- it would take up to six months to get training back online. Barely five Hurricane Katrina’s pounded many housing areas, destroying many homes (above left). Today, Airmen move into new homes built as part of the Air Force’s most robust
ing communities. As soon as base Airmen recovered enough to go weeks after Katrina struck, Keesler resumed training for the most housing project, which is still ongoing. The project, due for completion in 2010, will provide more than 1,000 new homes at the base.
outside and assess the damage and resume some kind of operations, critical courses.
they went beyond the base gates to help the people of Biloxi and The return of the students to the base was a milestone on the road
other surrounding communities. The base quickly became a hub for to recovery. Their arrival was another step toward normalcy that photo by Master Sgt.
Efrain Gonzalez photo by Tech. Sgt. Ceci
lio Ricardo
relief activity. boosted the morale of the base community.

Katrina destroyed thousands of Gulf Coast homes, many reduced While the recovery and rebuilding were underway and training Now
to mere foundations. Electrical power, telephone and cell phone ser- had resumed, it took time to complete all the repairs.
vices went out. Bridges washed away and roads filled with downed “I got here eight months after the storm and the base still looked
trees, overturned cars, beached boats and debris. There were nearly devastated at the time,” Colonel Pierce said.
300 dead or missing. However, the colonel was amazed at the strength of those working
Today, very few reminders are left of the $950 million in damages to rebuild, he said.
Katrina caused. Still, many people don’t know that Keesler is 100 “The effort has been a work of passion from the heart,” he said.
percent and marching on. That attitude helped the base rapidly progress despite incredible
“When my colleagues heard I was coming here, they called to ask adversity. Base members gave 100 percent while struggling to rebuild
me if I was going to live in a tent,” the colonel said. their own lives.
No tents. In fact, the base currently has a $287.8 million housing Base officials set up a one-stop-shop of support activities poised
project underway, the largest in Air Force history, he said.
“More than 1,000 new homes will be complete by 2010,” he said.
to help meet the needs of the base members, including legal, finance,
life skills and family support offices.
Then
While the storm devastated much of the base, the training facili- Teams from throughout the Air Force provided aid to the devastat-
ties survived. This allowed training operations to “come back online ed base both by taking in evacuees, and by deploying personnel to
within days,” said Deb Sterling, the 81st Training Group chief of re- help with the recovery.
sources and operations. As help arrived, Keesler members had the chance to check on their A Keesler Bay Ridge waterfront home (above left) lies in ruins after Hurricane Katrina swept it away with all the homeowner’s possessions. The hurricane’s brutal storm
The Air Force safely evacuated Airmen who were close to graduating homes. surge, which reached 18 feet, submerged half the base and destroyed many homes. Today, many of Bay Ridge’s waterfront homes are now
rebuilt and families have already moved into 36 new houses in the housing area.

While cleaning out their litter-strewn home, they would invite

friends over for barbecues, enjoying each other’s company and be-
ing happy to be alive, the sergeant said.
“We would just make the best of it,” she said.
Knowing the struggle wing members were going through and the
devastation they were dealing with, Colonel Touhill is determined
to make the base an oasis.
The commander, who is now on his third tour of duty at Keesler
since entering the Air Force, knows exactly what the post-Katrina
base was like, and is continuing the vigorous base beautification
program started right after the storm.
So far, base members planted more than 2,000 trees — three for
every one lost in the storm. They’ll have to plant a total of 4,000.
One of the trees they were able to save is a majestic live oak,
thought to be more than 100 years old. It now flourishes in a place
of honor in front of Keesler Medical Center. The hospital, one of the
facilities hardest hit by the storm, was back to its pre-Katrina state
within a year.
Staff members celebrated the first birthday of Sage Madison Post
— daughter of Senior Airman Aaron and Stephanie Post — at the
hospital’s official reopening. Doctors had delivered the now 3-year-
old by flashlight during the storm.
The lessons learned in the aftermath of the storm are helping
build a better Keesler. A variety of preventative measures are now
in effect that will help ensure the loss of electrical power, and a
myriad of other problems encountered during the hurricane, do not
happen again.
The chances of another major catastrophe like Katrina hitting the
coast will always exist, so the base is postured and ready in case it
happens again.
“Those coming to the base can rest assured we are prepared,”
said base Fire Chief J.D. Donnett, of the 81st Civil Engineering
Squadron. “Between Keesler, Biloxi and Gulfport, Miss., there’s
nothing we can’t handle. We are now one of the most prepared ar-
eas in the nation.”
It might be better prepared to weather another Katrina-like storm.
But Master Sgt. Kristina Keeton said Keesler needs to do more. It
has to remember, but also bury its past.
“We are to the point now where we want to look forward and
move on,” said Sergeant Keeton, the training wing’s protocol
New trainees arrive at Keesler’s superintendent.
Levitow Training Support Facility Base officials are already moving forward with new training mis-
before attending one of the base’s sions on the horizon.
technical schools. The base is “We’re looking at the virtual campus concept, which will allow
back on track with the vital training us to physically move anywhere as needed,” training group com-
mission Hurricane Katrina almost mander Col. Prince Gilliard said. “The loss of a classroom would
ended. But less than six weeks after have little impact on our operations.”
the killer storm, the base was again A good part of the training will be in the cyber world, the colonel
training high-tech warriors. said. That will benefit the base, which trains Airmen for electronic,
computer, weather, medical, personnel, comptroller, and informa-
tion management career fields, to name a few.
Personal loss “First, I saw one of our dogs lying dead in the street,” she said. It would be several long months before they would be able to get “We already have a significant stake in the training of our high-
After working non-stop for several days, people began making “After that, I was afraid to look in the house. But I knew I needed to into a new home and reunite with their children, she said. tech warriors. And now, with the stand up of U.S. Cyber Command,
their way to their homes on and off the base — struggling through find our other dog and our cat.” “An experience like this tests you,” she said. “It has shown my our training mission will continue to expand in that area,” Colonel
the devastation. They tried to enter through the front door, but debris blocked their husband and me how strong we are as a couple.” Touhill said.
“We had to go around trees, boats, fences — you name it. I entrance. But they weren’t the only ones who suffered. About one-fourth The colonel said Keesler has come a long way since Katrina.
just kept thinking, ‘thank God the kids are safe at my mom’s,’ ” “We went to the back door and I looked through the window. of Keesler’s people lost virtually all their possessions. However, the Along the way, the lessons learned from the disaster are making
said Tech. Sgt. Melissa Jones-Johnson, of the 81st Security Forces It looked like someone had filled our house up with water, spun it couple did manage to save some of their things. One was a trea- the base safer. Base Airmen continue their daily operations — and
Squadron. around in circles and then dumped it out,” she said. sured cedar hope chest Steven eventually restored. helping the communities around them.
As she and her husband, Master Sgt. Steven Jones-Johnson, the “My hand was shaking so hard I could hardly get the key in the “The cedar hope chest was made by my grandfather and passed And while Keesler is back — and marching on — it also keeps an
unit’s operations superintendent, made their way up the road to lock,” Melissa said. “The water had gone all the way to the ceiling, down to me by my mom when I got married,” Melissa said. eye on the horizon and any future killer storms. But even during
their home, a feeling of dread washed over them. Thankfully, their and in several places the ceiling had caved in.” Saving the hope chest was symbolic of the optimism shown Katrina’s worst moments, it people never lost their mission focus.
boys, Christopher and Tyler, had evacuated to her mother’s house in They were unable to find their other dog, but the cat was hiding in the throughout the base. Members like the Jones-Johnsons’ did not “Training is our middle name — and will continue to be our pri-
Camden, Tenn. rubble and had made it through the storm just fine, the sergeant said. only survive, they overcame. ority,” the colonel said.

A
Airman Kelly Anderson (left) and Airman 1st Class Andrew Jen- irman Kelly Anderson doesn’t consider herself a complete
nings have never voted. But both realize their vote does matter, so person, yet. “Whether you’re going to vote at
they will cast their ballots in the November 2008 elections. Granted, she’s only 19 and has barely been in the Air
Force a nanosecond. But she desperately wants to shed her sedate, home, in Texas, Germany or Iraq,
York, Pa., upbringing and make an impact on the world.
Her first step toward doing this was joining the Air Force. The voting officers provide you with the
spunky Airman can’t wait to finish security forces training at Lack-
land Air Force Base, Texas, earn her blue beret and join the coalition means to do that.” — Gil Harrison
team fighting the war on terrorism.

The second step in her transformation is to vote, something she’s
never done.
“There are a lot of things happening in our government I don’t
agree with,” she said. “But when you vote, you say: These are the
things I believe in — the things I want to see change.”
When she votes in the November 2008 presidential elections, Air-
man Anderson joins the millions of other servicemembers who’ve
cast votes, many while serving in posts around the globe. It’s a tra-
dition dating to the turn of the 19th century, and all the wars that
followed.
To ensure Airmen, Air Force civilians and their families get the
chance to vote, the Air Force has an army of voting officers at all its
bases worldwide that provides voting assistance — one for about ev-
ery 25 people. At the top of that help pyramid are members of the Air
Force Personnel Center’s special programs branch at Randolph Air
Force Base, Texas.
In a nutshell, voting officers help people with the process of voting,
no matter where they are, or at what level, branch chief Gil Harrison
said. A retired senior master sergeant from San Antonio, he knows
how important it is to provide the proper guidance.
“There are specific instructions for things all voting officers must
do at each base for federal programs, as well as local voting pro-
grams,” he said. “They’re involved in all voting.”
Voting officers mainly focus on the Federal Voting Assistance Pro-
gram and the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Voting Act. But with
Airmen serving in all corners of the globe, they provide more than
just voting information. They also provide guidance and information
about absentee voting, which is even more important for the thou-
sands of Airmen serving in the Middle East and other locations over- Gil Harrison heads the office that oversees the thousands of unit voting officers that
seas, Mr. Harrison said. help provides Airmen voting information, no matter where their duty station is.
“Whether you’re going to vote at home, in Texas, Germany or Iraq,
voting officers provide you with the means to do that,” Mr. Harrison bers, were vital to the election outcome.
said. Voting officers down to the unit level have a responsibility to Airman Anderson was only 10 years old then and not much into
make contact with servicemembers, civilians and their families to re- politics. But she wants to get involved and today she now knows
mind them “how important it is for them to vote.” America’s future is in the hands of its voters.
“But in the Air Force, we expanded that so our points of contact “When you vote, that’s one more person who can help make
can help with local, state and other primary elections, too,” Mr. Har- change,” she said. “We’re one of the few countries whose peo-
rison said. ple have a say in how their government runs. That’s important
At Lackland’s Medina Annex, Airman 1st Class Andrew Jennings to me.”
passed the grueling airborne mission specialist course with the 344th
Training Squadron. The Airman from Gillette, Wyo., will move to
Tinker AFB, Okla., to finish his training to become a computer dis-
play maintenance technician aboard an E-3 Sentry airborne warning
by Louis A. Arana-Barradas and control system aircraft.
photos by Lance Cheung He’s never voted either, figuring his vote wouldn’t count much. But For more help
he’s changed his mind, a change of heart brought on when he joined
the Air Force. Now he can’t wait to cast his ballot. For more voting information visit these web sites
“Every vote counts,” Airman Jennings said. “The whole is made up
of many ones. So I’ll vote in this election. Because I know the next • www.afcrossroads.com/votefund/vote/default.htm
president — whatever his or her views are — will have a direct im-
pact on me as an Airman.” • www.fvap.gov/
Absentee votes are important, Mr. Harrison said.
That was true during the 2000 elections, when there were prob- • www.travel.state.gov/law/info/info_2964.html
Airmen encouraged to cast their ballots lems tabulating Florida ballots, he said. The world spotlight fell
on overseas ballots. Suddenly these votes, most from servicemem-

E
volution and progression have been a way of life for the Air The reality is, no measure of unit PT will reverse the excuses
Force since its creation more than 60 years ago. But while — being physically fit and ready to succeed in the deployed en-
many people focus on the technological side of the evolution, vironment begins with each Airman. Each person has to make
there’s a physical side as well. the conscious decision to get in shape. Not doing so can not only
You only have to look back less than five years when the Air Force threaten his or her safety, but also the safety of his or her wing-
tested Airmen’s fitness with a bike test. Exercise was not part of Air- man. Longer-term, both career and health are at risk.
men’s daily culture. Today the service marks four years under a new Airmen must look past PT scores. Though a means of mea-
fitness program and, as of August, one year since the Air Force made fit- surement, scores should only serve as a snapshot of a person’s
ness an integral part of all Airmen’s performance reports. fitness, not a once-a-year affair they prepare for only to then
The message is clear — our evolution to an expeditionary force resume a couch-potato lifestyle. Being fit to fight requires a year-
also requires an evolution into a “fitter” force. But while fitness round focus.
facilities across the Air Force are seemingly brimming with cus- “Training to test won’t help as much as a mix of cardiovascular,
tomers, many Airmen are still not tapping into their potential. For muscular and flexibility training,” Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force
some, the operational tempo doesn’t allow time for organized phys- Rodney J. McKinley said in a message to Airmen last spring. “To suc-
ical training. For others it’s a profile that gets in the way. And for cessfully boost fitness levels, we must all make regular exercise and a
many, it’s a lack of motivation. healthy lifestyle a part of our daily regimen.”
warrior ethos demands

fitness evolution by Airman Staff

Fitness program directors like Byron Black, from the health and machines are a mystery, don’t walk away, there’s help nearby. Gym
wellness center at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, couldn’t agree and health and wellness center staffs have a wealth of knowledge
more. To develop a regular fitness program, Mr. Black said it comes about fitness and nutrition and can help to develop a workout plan.
down to a simple principle — the FITTER principle. Just ask.
“It stands for frequency, intensity, time, type, enjoyment and rate 8. Show up: Almost every unit in the Air Force runs some type of
of progression,” he said, adding that applying this principle not only PT program. Whether it’s in the form of formations or a sign in sheet,
ensures a good program, but a program that a person can do long groups of Airmen everywhere are shouting cadences of exercises
term — adapting and adding changes along the way. with the goal of getting each other in shape. Some units have trouble
“The key is picking something you enjoy, and applying the fitting PT into the duty day because of operational demands. But
principle to ensure you’re getting a good workout out at the same that shouldn’t be an excuse to not work out.
time,” Mr. Black said. 7. Team up: Check with the sports director or fitness center about
How does someone do this? The American College of Sports Medi- a sports calendar. Almost every base has some type of intramural
cine recommends working out at a: sports program. While the climate may impact the types available,
Frequency of 3 to 5 times a week at an... intramural sports offers a great way to add variety to fitness routines,
Intensity of 60 to 90 percent of maximum heart rate for a... and socializing may increase the likelihood of sticking with it. Want
Time of 20 to 60 minutes using a... a challenge? Ask about base varsity sports programs, or enroll in the
Type of aerobic activity that uses a large muscle group that a World Class Athlete Program to compete at the Olympic level.
person can... 6. Compete: Need a competitive edge for motivation, but can’t
Enjoy doing, and one where they can monitor the... commit to a seasonal sport? Look for local competitions. Most cit-
Rate of progression by — continuing to challenge themselves, ies host athletic events throughout the year, like runs, family walks
workouts become easier. or basketball. Check local papers or search the Web for events held
While applying the FITTER principle to a workout may be simple, nearby. Friendly competition boosts workouts and may help find a
many Airmen are not sold on swapping their running, push-ups and group of new friends to work out with.
sit-ups workout. After all, that’s the standard. For those Airmen, a fu- 5. Plug it in: Not everyone likes the social scene, and not every
ture injury may eventually change their minds for them. climate allows for outdoor activities. But that doesn’t mean a person
“Running is brutal on the body,” said Jim Wood, fitness center can’t be active indoors. Most sports stores carry workout DVDs tai-
director at Lackland’s Gateway Fitness Center. “Airmen should run lored for a variety of fitness goals. So whether the interest is kick-
occasionally to check their performance, but should use a variety of boxing, yoga or step aerobics, don’t let bad weather hamper a fitness
aspects of aerobic activity to gain better endurance.” routine. Even more, these DVDs are perfect to take when you’re TDY
And there’s proof in this advice. Mr. Wood runs the fitness pro- or on leave and may not have access to a gym.
gram specialized for Lackland trainees on “medical hold.” He devel- 4. Lace it up: Running each day can cause injury, but it’s still a
oped a circuit training workout to help trainees reach fitness goals. great workout to mix with aerobic and strength training routines. All
“Circuit training enables them to find unique ways to work out,” that’s needed are some good running shoes and comfortable cloth-
Mr. Wood said. “Though they’re not running, we’re building enduring. Or try power walking with light weights for more
ance, and we’re doing it in a safer manner.” resistance.
Fitness specialists like Mr. Black and Mr. Wood, 3. Let the weather decide: Though winter’s frigid
who see thousands of new Air Force recruits, are temperatures, snow and ice may put a damper on
no strangers to Airmen who develop overuse inju- some outdoor activities, why not go with the flow?
ries. To avoid these injuries, they recommend add- Skiing, ice skating and snowshoeing are great ac-
ing more variety to workouts. tivities to add to a workout. The same goes for
“Most units have their Airmen run, do push-ups summer. Take advantage of warm weather at
and sit-ups at PT, which makes it even more criti- nearby lake with water skiing, swimming or beach
cal for Airmen to do something different on the other volleyball.
days,” Mr. Wood says. 2. Try a class: Bodies respond to workouts dif-
So, while running is easy and people can do it ev- ferently and people must find the workout that fits
erywhere, it’s not the solution for everyone. Not only best for their body. Instead of dismissing exercise
do many find it boring, but injuries can result from classes, give them a try. If nothing else, group
overuse and heavy impact on joints. classes add a great change of pace to an indi-
What else can a person do? Here are just a few ways vidual workout routine.
Airmen can become FITTER to fight. 1. Short on time? Circuit training may be the
10. Balance caloric intake: It’s a simple equation: To right workout. Not only can a person complete a workout
lose weight, caloric intake must be less than calories out- in about 20 minutes, but it may actually boost fitness levels bet-
put. While most Airmen focus on burning calories, the calories they ter than running laps around a track. Overweight and out-of-shape
ingest can have a negative impact. It’s true: All calories are created individuals aren’t suited for “high-impact, weight-bearing activity,”
equal. So why not put in calories that also positively influence a fit- like running, states a recent study by the Cooper Institute. These
ness routine — like lean protein, fruits and vegetables? people also lack endurance for long periods of exercise, the study
“If you think of your body as a car, then you know that the better
grade of gas you put in your car, the better it will perform,” Mr. Black
said. “If you eat healthy foods, then your body will have good fuel to
states. The study put overweight and out-of-shape people through
shorter bouts of circuit training, enabling them to not only boost
their overall levels of fitness, but also pass PT tests.
our evolution to an
use during exercise.”
9. It’s free — just ask: Nearly all Airmen have access to a free
fitness facility or health and wellness center. As leaders put more
All Airmen — big and small, thin and thick — can benefit from a
year-round focus on fitness. Gone are the days of exercising vigor-
ously a few weeks before a fitness test. A healthy lifestyle should be a
expeditionary force also requires
emphasis on fitness, these facilities continue to improve with better
equipment and programs. If the numbers game is confusing, or the
part of everyone’s daily regimen.
Remember, the Air Force expects you to be “fit to fight” every day. an evolution into a “fitter” force
NOTEBOOK
Hope for
w Bates
Story by Staff Sgt. Mat the
today’s
youth
photos by Master Sgt. Jack Braden
T
here’s no hope for today’s youth.
Or at least that ’s what some
people would have you believe.
no good,
They are disrespectful, lazy and
some say.
t.
And, in some cases, they’re righ
k to-
Overall, though, I disagree. I thin
us.
day’s youth continue to surprise
ng a trip thro ugh the
I saw that duri
town s on the prai ries of Mon tana. I
small
uite r, learn-
was there “shadowing” a recr
of the job as back -
ing the ins and outs
artic le in this issu e of Air-
ground for an
e 24).
man (“Recruiting the force,” Pag
e in
I was sitting in the recruiting offic
ng man cam e in.
Great Falls when a you While following Tech. Sgt. Frank McM
Per,” a nick nam e give n to ahon III through the vast stretches of
He was a “DE works as a recruiter, Staff Sgt. Matt Bate Mont ana where he
who are part of the Dela yed En- s found plent y of time to write his story
recruits force, Page 24] detailing the Air Forc [Recruiting the
ing e’s continued need to recruit new Airm
listment Program and who are wait said many of the potential recruits he en. Sergeant Bates
land met during his trip were eager to join
to leave for basic training at Lack the Air Force.
e, Texa s. He was ther e for
Air Force Bas
y desk
one of his regular “check ins” with
the
r in the Air Force. And not to get cush
And because as a combat controlle ht-a fter tech nica l train-
recruiter. be jobs or some soug
e was noth ing re- the Air Force he knew his job would use to get good civil ian jobs
At first glance, ther ing they can
him . Sha ggy hair , care - important. Nop e, they ’re ente ring two of the
markable abo ut out later .
And, when most kids his age are fields
free attitude, T-shirt and jeans.
In most
gam es, watc hing telev i- hardest, most specialized career
r kid from play ing vide o to offer .
ways he resembled any othe ick is the Air Force has
sion or listening to their iPod, Patr e-
any other part of the country. ups and sit ups Neither of these young men is disr
his app eara nce that im- running and doing push lazy or no good . Rath er the op-
But it was n’t ling spec tful,
to make sure he’s ready for the grue kids like
pressed me. It was his mindset. ut to und ergo . posite. So maybe there are more
Patr ick Pres - train ing he’s abo who und ersta nd the
He introduced himself as this out there — kids
-to-b e grad uate Ama zing. who wan t to be part of som e-
ton, a 17-year- old soon of cour se, Patr ick is the exception big picture,
But, do than
from Great Falls High School. I
asked
disre- thing special, who would rather
ded to join the Air to the rule. Kids these days are
him why he’d deci t? The y watch.
spectful, lazy and no good … righ h of to-
Force. dete r- And maybe it’s not that the yout
wan ted to do can’ t all be as hard-charging and espe ctfu l, lazy and no good.
“It’s something I’ve ick, can they ? day are disr
min ed as Patr tend to
for a long time,” he said. He then
went
Dan Myles. He was an- Maybe it’s just that because we
bat The n I met the ones who
on to say he was going to be a com uate of give so much attention to
other 17-year- old soon-to-be grad like Pat-
controller. DEP er, are, we forget about the ones —
w,” he said . “Bu t it’s Grea t Falls High. He, too, was a — who aren ’t.
“It’s not easy, I kno rick and Dan
and a normal-looking kid. e
sure going to be fun.” g to be a com bat con- One thing’s for sure: There is hop
t his life “You ’re not goin to Mon tana
So, here was a kid — who spen for today’s youth. One trip
ing on troller, too, are you?” I asked.
growing up in rural Montana work resc ue- proved that to me.
— who “Nope, I’m going to be a para
a wheat farm and going to school
Not to man,” he said.
dreams of joining the Air Force. same
d, not Wow. Here are two kids from the
pay for college, not to see the worl the sam e clas s, for that mat ter
. He was school —
even to have a steady paycheck are chom ping at the bit to join
a team. — who
joining to be a part of something,
48 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil
Looking for some specific or hard-to-find information about the Air Force?
Here are just a few Web sites to visit that provide a variety of informative and useful facts:
www.af.mil — Official Air Force Web site. www.retirees.af.mil — New Web site for http://ask.afpc.randolph.af.mil — The
It includes current news, features, radio and the retiree community. It includes informa- one stop for Air Force military and civilian
television stories, biographies, photos and a tion on a host of topics, from the Survivor personnel matters.
lot more. Benefit Plan to a global list of Air Force
retiree activities offices. www.ang.af.mil — Home page to all Air
www.afcommunity.af.mil — Official National Guard activities.
community Web site for the Air Force total www.airforce.com and
force. Get information on installations, www.dosomethingamazing.com www.afrc.af.mil — Home of the U.S. Air
education, parenting, deployments and a lot — Interested in an Air Force career? These Force Reserve Command.
more. are the site to visit for information about the
Air Force, its way of life, career and educa- www.usafsports.com — From the
www.ahrn.com — Site of the Department tional opportunities and more. Get some cool Air Force Services Agency, this Web site
of Defense-sponsored Automated Housing downloads, too. provides information on all service-level
Referral Network, which aims to improve the sports programs and the World Class Athlete
process of finding available housing for relo- www.defenselink.mil — Official Web Program.
cating military members and their families. site of the Department of Defense — a good
Just register and log on. starting point to find information about the http://goairforcefalcons.cstv.com/
U.S. military, in general. index-main.html — Go Falcons! Official
www.my.af.mil — Home of the Air Force Web site of U.S. Air Force Academy athletics.
Portal. Sign up for this site to access tons of www.afas.org — Link to the Air Force’s
Air Force information, from the latest Letter to official charity. The agency promotes the Air
Airmen from the secretary of the Air Force to Force mission by helping “relieve distress of
how to access the latest military pay tables. Air Force members and their families and as-
sisting them to finance their education.”
Flare check. | photo by Val Gempis
Tech. Sgt. Truong Nguyen prepares to install test equipment on the left main landing gear flare bucket of a C-17 Globemaster III
aircraft at March Air Reserve Base, Calif., in April. The device does a functional check to ensure the transport’s countermeasures
flare dispensers work properly. The sergeant is an electronic warfare technician with the reserve’s 452nd Maintenance Squadron.

Afd 080630 074

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Afd 080630 074

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Airmail • profile • Frontline Duty • Notebook

Director of Public Affairs Brig. Gen. Darren W. McDew

Airman at war representation of the Air Force. And shame

Absolutely the finest Airman magazine ever

Inappropriate patch ghanistan. And we have civilian historians

2 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 3

4 Fear the hog

10 The space link

24 Recruiting the force

4 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 5

6 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 7

8 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 9

Airmen provide out-of-this-world capabilities

F inding a fleeting enemy in Iraq’s vast deserts or the rug-

10 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 11

12 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 13

14 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 15

photo by Marine Sgt. Andres Alcaraz

16 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 17

killed tens of thousands of people in China. Command C-17 Globe-

Relationships with others

18 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 19

photo by Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III

There are three great aspects to my job.

Staff Sgt. Alberto Vazquez,

IT TAKES AIR FORCE POWER

Destination 2 Destination 1 Destination 3

Air Force recruiter Tech. Sgt. Frank

24 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 25

No walk in the park

26 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 27

28 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 29

an engines-running offload of a C-130 Hercules transport

30 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 31

patient care. Maj. Patrick

burn victim Al Amreeki for

careful steps. A little girl

ramp of a gigantic C-5 Galaxy dur-

32 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July - August 2008 33

making friends. Senior Airman Mark Ostrander

foot patrol through a town market in Afghan-

smoke alarm. A firefighter at Charleston Air Force Base, S.C.,

craft crash on the Charleston flightline. The demonstration

Welcome to china. Maj. Anthony Davis exchanges salutes

34 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July - August 2008 35

photo by Tech. Sgt. Cecilio Ricardo

from Hurricane Katrina’s fury

36 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 37

cour tesy photo

U.S. Air Force pho

photo by Master Sgt. Efrain Gonzalez

relief activity. boosted the morale of the base community.

38 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 39

While cleaning out their litter-strewn home, they would invite

40 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 41

team fighting the war on terrorism.

42 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 43

warrior ethos demands

44 www.AIRMANonline.af.mil Airman J July/August 2008 45

You might also like