525th FS crew chiefs honored at ceremony

by Staff Sgt. Wes Wright
JBER Public Affairs

12/4/2015 - JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- Twenty-three F-22 Raptor crew chiefs from the 525th Maintenance Unit assumed the mantle of Dedicated Crew Chief during a DCC ceremony at the 525th Fighter Squadron headquarters on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson Nov. 25.

The ceremony recognizes the top F-22 maintainers on the installation, honors for which include wearing a specialized set of overalls and a crew chief getting his name printed on the side of a jet.

"The purpose of this ceremony is to formally appoint those selected to assume the awesome responsibilities of a DCC," said Master Sgt. Daniel Helveston, 3rd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron tactical aircraft maintenance specialist section chief. "Service as a Dedicated Crew Chief is a unique opportunity that demands every day be met with pride, professionalism, and enthusiasm by every individual who accepts the challenge and privilege of crewing the world's finest fighter aircraft, the F-22 Raptor."

The ceremony followed a similar event Oct. 23 for DCCs assigned to Raptors from the 90th FS.

The Airmen spoke in unison when reciting the vow of a DCC:
"Upon our honor, we swear that we shall hold in sacred trust the rights and privileges conferred upon us as certified mechanics. Knowing full well that the safety and lives of others are dependent upon our skill and judgment ... we realize the grave responsibility which is ours as certified Airmen, to exercise our judgment on the airworthiness of aircraft and equipment. therefore, pledge unyielding adherence to these precepts for the advancement of aviation and for the dignity of our vocation."

Pride and ownership were the themes of the ceremony, as Air Force Maj. Paul Netchaeff, 3rd AMXS commander, told how the DCC program came to prominence in the 1970s.

Air Force Gen. William Creech asked an Airman what he liked most about the program.

The Airman responded, "General, when is the last time you washed a rental car?" The Airman was not being disrespectful, but trying to emphasize that having his name on the Aircraft meant something to him.

The Airman's simple answer stuck with Creech; it summarized the underlying intent of the program: aircraft ownership. The Airman was implying if you own something, chances are you'll take better care of it.

"It doesn't mean they can tow it home; it's not that kind of ownership," Netchaeff said. "It's about taking pride in what you do. DCCs are handpicked based on professionalism, dedication, leadership, initiative, expertise, and exuding the corps values. They are the last to touch it before a sortie and the first to touch it when it comes back. It is a pivotal role. This aircraft has got to be combat ready all the time. Lives are at stake."

A pilot assigned to the same aircraft presented each new DCC with a certificate, patch and coin, officially designating the crew chief to their aircraft.
The honor struck home for Air Force Staff Sgt. Matthew Garcia,  a 525th AMU Raptor crew chief.

"Being responsible for another person's life goes through my mind all the time," Garcia said. "It makes me pay that much more attention to my job and focus on the details. To see all my hard work and dedication come to life every day when my jet takes off, it means I did my job and did it well."

Air Force Col. David Abba, 3rd Operations Group commander and F-22 pilot, flies the jet to which Garcia is assigned.

"The big difference between having a dedicated crew chief and an anonymous maintenance package, is I know that he has poured his heart and soul into that airplane as if it's his own because it is," Abba said. "I would trust whoever is out there launching me anyway but just knowing that the extra piece of personal ownership is present makes a big difference. That final salute that happens from a crew chief to a pilot as the jet is rolling out entails a lot of trust. It is very powerful."

Abba described the uniqueness of the location of his and Garcia's respective names on the jet.

"One of the things that's very interesting about this airplane, is you have the pilot's name on the left side of the fuselage up underneath the canopy on the nose wheel door and the DCC's name is on the right side," Abba explained.

"They are separated on different sides of the jet, but when we take off and the nose wheel comes up, the doors come together so you have the pilot's name and the DCC's name side by side flying through the air." Garcia said seeing Abba return his salute as he takes off is an almost indescribable feeling.

"Watching that happen and seeing my name on the side of the jet is such a feeling of accomplishment," Garcia said. "Never did I think my name would be on the side of an F-22. To see it taxi by is such a great feeling."

Face of Defense: Texas State Guard Member Realizes Dream

By Army Sgt. 1st Class Malcolm McClendon, Texas Military Forces DoD News Features, Defense Media Activity

AUSTIN, Texas, December 3, 2015 — Having grown up in a family full of service members, Pvt. Angeline Sanchez knew how to take charge and lead fellow recruits through the 2nd Regiment, Texas State Guard’s Regional Basic Orientation Training.

Sanchez did so well she earned top honors in her class, which graduated in a ceremony held here recently.

Sanchez became familiar with the military long before she ever joined it. Growing up around her U.S. Army father, stepfather, mother and U.S. Marine Corps grandfather had a profound impact on her life.

“My stepfather was a drill sergeant and when he’d come home wearing that big round brown hat, I knew that was something I wanted to do,” Sanchez said. “I loved the structure and the uniform, so my goal ever since was to join the military and serve.”

Future Seen

Even before she was old enough to join, Sanchez began researching military jobs and the minimum placement scores needed for each. Then, when her older brother joined the U.S. Army she knew she had found her calling.

“My brother joined as a medic and when he was home he’d show me his gear, which I thought was really cool,” Sanchez said. “When he came back from deployment he showed me pictures and told me stories about how he helped people and fellow soldiers in Iraq as a combat medic, and I knew then that’s what I wanted to do.”

When she turned 18, Sanchez took the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery test, and enlisted into the active-duty U.S. Army and left for basic training on Valentine’s Day 2012.

“I remember the six-hour ride to Fort Sill, Oklahoma, feeling excited and saying to myself, ‘I made it. I made it.’” Sanchez said. “When we finally arrived at the base, my heart was pumping. Then the drill sergeant got on the bus and began ordering us to get our stuff and get off. It was exciting.”

Natural Leader

Sanchez, along with other new arrivals, was placed in the reception platoon while they waited for the next training cycle to begin. There, she said she did not take any time off and soon found herself being put in charge of her barracks mates and marching the platoon.

“We were marching to breakfast chow one morning, and it was my goal that day to lose my voice calling cadence,” Sanchez said. “I was in the back of the formation when the drill sergeant stopped everyone and called me to the front of the platoon and said, ‘This soldier has a voice ten times bigger than her body.’ From that point on, I was known as 'Mighty Mouse.'”

Her time at Fort Sill would be short-lived, however. Childhood asthma was all but gone, but it resurfaced, and it was brought to the drill sergeants’ attention.

“One night, they called me down to report to the drill sergeant that was on duty,” Sanchez said. “He looked right at me and said, ‘Private Sanchez, you can’t stay here, because of your asthma.’ Right then, I broke down crying.”

Transitions

Sanchez said she was devastated and returned to Texas with no plan, since the only thing she had ever wanted to do was to become a soldier.

“I didn’t have a backup plan. My plan was to do twenty-plus [years] in the Army,” Sanchez continued. “I fell in and out of jobs. I was too distracted. I didn’t have the drive for anything.”

Then, one day while picking up her partner at Camp Mabry in Austin, Sanchez spotted what she thought was a uniform violation on a soldier crossing the street. She looked over at her partner and asked why the soldier was wearing a Texas flag on his sleeve.

“She told me that he was in the Texas State Guard,” Sanchez said. “I immediately began researching what that meant. We went to lunch and I couldn’t put my phone down. I had multiple screens open, reading what they were about.”

Sanchez began calling numbers on the website to get more information on joining until she reached Army Staff Sgt. John Gately, the noncommissioned officer in charge of the communications section for the Texas State Guard.

“I talked to her on the phone and explained that the State Guard is designed to help the citizens of Texas in times of need, whether it’s a man-made or natural disaster,” Gately said. “I also told her that we are an all-volunteer force that specializes in shelter operations, search and rescue, medical assistance and the manning of points-of-distribution when called on by the governor during those emergencies.”

Since the Texas State Guard’s mission is in Texas and requires no overseas deployment, Sanchez discovered that her asthma would not be a problem and that she could once more have the opportunity to put on the uniform and serve. She signed up and began preliminarily working with her unit while waiting for the next RBOT class to begin.

Another Chance to Lead

At RBOT, Sanchez said she quickly took charge.

“My time at the reception platoon taught me to step up when they needed someone to volunteer,” Sanchez said. “I made it to formations before time, got up a little early and got my squad up and ready for the day, and of course, called cadence every chance I got.”

Sanchez’ performance was again noticed by instructors.

“She was very motivated, took ownership and had a drive-forward attitude,” said Staff Sgt. Jason Rogers, an instructor with the 2nd Regiment’s RBOT. “She was engaged with everyone else’s efforts in the training, cheering them on and pushing them to make it through.”

By training’s end, the instructors had a group discussion and overwhelmingly voted Sanchez as the honor graduate for the class. And in a ceremony full of friends and family, she was asked to stand and be recognized.

“It was amazing. My mother came in from out of town to see me,” Sanchez said. “She was there with me when I was going through my depression for not being able to complete Army basic training. I had never graduated from anything before, so when she came to see me here she had tears in her eyes. And then to find out I was honor graduate … it topped it all and made her proud.”

Sanchez is now assigned to the 1st Battalion, 1st Regiment in San Antonio and looks forward to her career in the Texas State Guard.

“I feel so much better now. This is the happiest I’ve ever felt in my life,” Sanchez said. “When I first went to basic at Fort Sill, I had that awesome feeling you get when you put on your uniform and take charge. And now, in the State Guard, I have it again.

AFMC promotes sober driving during the holiday season

Air Force Materiel Command Health & Wellness Team

12/4/2015 - WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio -- The holiday season is a time of year when people gather with friends, colleagues and family to enjoy time together and celebrate. Often these social events include alcohol. A driver's license mixed with a few alcoholic beverages can be dangerous. No one intends for alcohol-impaired driving accidents to happen, but they do.

"Every single injury and death caused by drunk driving is totally preventable by not driving under the influence," states Steve Callon, AFMC Drug Demand Reduction Manager. "Plan ahead to have a designated sober driver that will drive everyone in your group home safely at the end of the night."

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, more than 10,000 people were killed in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes in 2013. An average of one alcohol-impaired-driving fatality occurred every 52 minutes during 2013.

The NHTSA offers the following tips to stay safe and drive sober:
· Designate a sober driver before the party begins; plan a way to get home safely at the end of the night.
· Be responsible. If someone you know is drinking, do not let that person get behind the wheel.
· If you see someone driving impaired, contact law enforcement with a vehicle descripition when it is safe to do so. It is your business. Getting drunk drivers off the road saves lives.
· Walking while impaired can be just as dangerous as drunk driving. Designate a sober friend to walk you home.
· If you have been drinking, there is always another way to get home safely. You can call a taxi, phone a sober friend or family member, or call your local free ride program.

Did you know? The worst days of the year for drunk driving are:
· New Year's Eve/New Year's Day
· The Fourth of July
· St. Patrick's Day
· Thanksgiving Eve/Thanksgiving Day

Airmen Against Drunk Driving was formed to eliminate DUIs/DWIs on Air Force bases and in surrounding communities. The goal of AADD is to safely return all military members and Department of Defense civilians to a residence if they are unable to drive themselves. Individuals that choose to drink should plan ahead for a designated sober driver or ride home. But if the plan fails, call AADD. Bases vary on program hours of operation and service area. For Air Force Materiel Command AADD contact information, visit AFMCwellness.com. For quick reference, add your installation's AADD number to your list of cell phone contacts.

Mongolian NCO attends course with USARAK troops

by Sachel Harris
USARAK Public Affairs

12/4/2015 - JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- Throughout the years, more than four dozen foreign soldiers have attended Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson's Sgt. 1st Class Christopher R. Brevard Noncommissioned Officer Academy. However this year, one graduate is the first of her kind.

"I am so thankful to the U.S. and Mongolian armies for allowing me to come here," said Sgt. Muncunchimeg Nyamaajav, the first female Mongolian soldier to come to Alaska and train with U.S. Army Alaska.

On average, the NCO academy hosts 12 international students per year.
The last time Mongolian soldiers attended a course at the U.S. Army Alaska academy was 2007.

Nyamaajav, who was born in Bayankhongor City of the Bayankhongor province in Mongolia, said she has always had a desire to serve. Since joining at the age of 19, she has had a passion for seeing female soldiers succeed and 10 years later, that passion is still burning.

"My hope is that more female soldiers come here and learn," she said. "Though the terrain is the same here in Alaska, all of our experiences are different, and discussing those differences and learning from them makes us better."

Nyamaajav, who had to pass an English test in order to attend the courses, said her experiences here have built her confidence. With almost 17 percent of the Mongolian Armed Forces being female, confidence is  what she hopes for all female soldiers.

"I want female soldiers to learn and to be strong," she said. "I want them to hope and dream."

While she loves being the one to push her fellow soldiers to be great, Nyamaajav credits her own loved ones with being her source of inspiration.

"My family is a big source of support for me," she said. "My 6-year-old son is in the first grade and is studying to read.   Everything I do, I do because I want him to be proud of me."

Along with five other soldiers, Nyamaajav recently graduated from the Warrior Leadership Course and the Basic Leadership Course.

As part of the courses she attended, Nyamaajav participated in various field exercises that sharpened her leadership skills and further developed her professional ethics.

The soldiers are headed to the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, where they will participate in various hands-on training opportunities.

Though it is her first trip to the United States, Nyamaajav said there is value in the partnership between her country and  the U.S.

"This partnership with the U.S. Army is so important," Nyamaajav said. "Because of it and the people I have met here, I am stronger and a better soldier, and I am so grateful."

Marine Missing From World War II Accounted For

The Department of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that the remains of a serviceman, unaccounted for since World War II, have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial with full military honors.

Marine Cpl. James D. Otto, 20, of Los Angeles, will be buried Dec. 8, in Arlington National Cemetery. In November 1943, Otto was assigned to Company L, 3rd Battalion, 8th Marines Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, which landed against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll, in an attempt to secure the island. Over several days of intense fighting, approximately 1,000 Marines were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded. Otto was reported killed in action on the first day of the battle, Nov. 20, 1943.

In the immediate aftermath of the fighting on Tarawa, U.S. service members who died in the battle were buried in a number of battlefield cemeteries on the island. In 1946 and 1947, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company conducted remains recovery operations on Betio Island, but Otto’s remains were not recovered. On Feb. 10, 1949, a military review board declared Otto non-recoverable.

In June 2015, a nongovernmental organization, History Flight, Inc., notified DPAA that they discovered a burial site on Betio Island and recovered the remains of what they believed were U.S. Marines who fought during the battle in November 1943. The remains were turned over to DPAA in July 2015.

To identify Otto’s remains, scientists from DPAA used laboratory analysis, to include dental comparisons, which Matched Otto’s records, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.

Of the 16 million Americans who served in World War II, more than 400,000 died during the war.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for Americans who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil or call 703-699-1420.

All Air Force occupations open to women

By Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs Command Information, / Published December 03, 2015

WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced all occupations in the U.S. military will be open to men and women alike during a press conference Dec. 3.

The announcement came after a thorough review of findings from the last three years of studies, and the subsequent recommendation of service secretaries and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

"This decision means that we will be able to maximize our military effectiveness because we'll be able to draw from a larger pool of skilled and qualified individuals,” said Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James. “The bottom line is to ensure the force’s future success based on validated, gender neutral standards."

According to Carter, within 30 days all currently closed occupations will be open and available for the assignment of women or men. The services will begin implementing their current plans for recruiting, accessing and initial training of women in these occupations.

"Our Air Force is more effective when success is based on ability, qualifications, and mission performance,” said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III. “While not everyone aspires to be a Battlefield Airman, those who have the desire and are qualified will be afforded an opportunity to serve in those specialties in our Air Force. As with any new policy, implementation will take time and will be done in a deliberate and responsible manner. "

Carter said Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work and Gen. Paul Selva, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will oversee the decision’s short-term implementation, ensure there are no unintended consequences to the joint force, and periodically update Carter and Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Women will be fully integrated into combat roles deliberately and methodically, Carter said, using seven guidelines.

Seven guidelines

1. Implementation will be pursued with the objective of improved force effectiveness.

2. Leaders must assign tasks and jobs throughout the force based on ability, not gender.

3. Equal opportunity likely will not mean equal participation by men and women in all specialties, and there will be no quotas.

4. Studies conducted by the services and U.S. Special Operations Command indicate that on average there are physical and other differences between men and women, and implementation will take this into account.

5. The department will address the fact that some surveys suggest that some service members, men and women, will perceive that integration could damage combat effectiveness.

6. Particularly in the specialties that are newly open to women, survey data and the judgment of service leaders indicate that the performance of small teams is important.

7. The United States and some of its closest friends and allies are committed to having militaries that include men and women, but not all nations share this perspective.

Integrating women in all military jobs

Implementation won't happen overnight, Carter said.

“Fully integrating women into all military positions will make the U.S. armed forces better and stronger but there will be problems to fix and challenges to overcome,” he said. “We shouldn't diminish that.”

The military has long prided itself on being a meritocracy, where those who serve are judged only on what they have to offer to help defend the country, Carter said.

“That’s why we have the finest fighting force the world has ever known,” he said, “and it’s one other way we will strive to ensure that the force of the future remains so, long into the future.”