MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. -- 1. What is your official job title?
931st Civil Engineer Squadron commander.
2. What is your hometown? Where did you grow up?
My wife and I both grew up in Spokane, Wash.
3. What is your civilian job? Are you an ART, ARG or TR)?
I am the lead engineer of the Environmental Control Systems Electrical group working on the 737 Program at Boeing. I lead and manage a team of eight engineers. I am responsible for the design and certification of the electrical portion of cabin air conditioning, cabin pressurization, pneumatic supply, overheat detection and anti-ice systems (probe heat, engine, wing anti-ice and ice detection).
4. Why did you join the AF?
In December of 1990, my father (who was Air National Guard Security Forces) was mobilized for Operation Desert Storm. Seeing my father deploy to Saudi Arabia to serve his country was the reason my wife and I (she was my girlfriend at the time) both enlisted.
5. What are your goals (i.e. personal, school)?
It is my goal to become an associate technical fellow at Boeing in the Electronic and Electrical Engineering discipline. When I achieve that goal I believe I will be the first mechanical engineer to earn that distinction.
6. What are your hobbies?
In what little spare time I have, I enjoy working on my classic cars, spending time at our house in Spokane and our lake property in North Idaho. I am also an amateur radio operator (ham), and I hold a general class license with the FCC (callsign is W7HYZ).
7. How do you contribute to the 931st mission?
I am responsible for ensuring that members of the civil engineer squadron are trained and ready to deploy when called upon to perform our primary wartime tasking: Building a bare base, maintaining the base and recovering the base after attack.
8. What challenges do you face?
The challenges I face are the budgets that we are provided in Air Force Reserve command and trying to ensure 65 airmen are trained and ready to deploy is quite challenging.
8. What's your favorite part of the mission?
My amazing people.