ALS graduates receive a front row seat to refueling mission

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Danielle Quilla
  • 6th Air Mobility Wing public affairs
MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  The diversity of Air Force specialties at each base is vast and often many of their contributions to the overall mission go overlooked. However, through a new initiative, frontline supervisors are now able to directly correlate their efforts to the Wing's success.

How is this accomplished? Twenty-six thousand feet in the air...

On Aug. 28, 2015, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, kicked off its first Chief Master Sgt. Aubert E. Dozier Airman Leadership School familiarization flight for 10 graduates in an effort to link Airmen to their role in the 6th Air Mobility Wing's refueling mission.

"Being that there are so many specialties on base, our primary mission cannot happen without the full buy-in and involvement of every single individual," said Senior Master Sgt. Henry Hewitt, 6th Operations Group operations superintendent. "We each have a role, and knowing that role and being an expert in it ultimately allows us to consistently meet and exceed safe, effective and flawless mission execution."

What brought on the change? The direct feedback form for the entry to 5-level Airman.

Over the past few month's Airmen have consistently provided feedback to the wing commander and command chief through Airman's time, which resulted in common theme--the inability to see how Airmen impact the 6 AMW's primary mission.  So, what better place to instill the importance than with ALS graduates, the newest frontline supervisors.

"To actually be able to be part of a mission like this not only broadens the horizon, but also opens the door," said Senior Airman Russell Bedford, ALS Class 15-F John L. Levitow award winner. "It is amazing to me to see with a complex mission how much actually goes into that process every day."

With MacDill's ALS pushing out 14 flights a year, they will be giving roughly 170 first-time supervisors an essential mentorship tool needed for the inspiration and growth of developing Airmen.