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  • JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md.,- Chief Master Sgt. Vernon Lundskow, superintendent of the 459th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, stands in front of a KC-135 Stratotanker of the 459th Air Refueling Wing. Lundskow has been the rank of chief master sergeant for 22 years and retires from the military with 37 years of service; 22 years in the U.S. Air Force Reserve and five years with the U.S. Navy. (U.S. Air Force photo/ Senior Airman Katie Spencer)

    More than just an E-9; Chief retires after 37 years

    When people decide to join the military, one of the questions they ask themselves is, "How long am I willing to serve my country?" For some, the answer is one enlistment of four to six years. For others, the answer is 20 years as to collect retirement. For Chief Master Sgt. Vernon Lundskow, the answer is 37 years. Lundskow held a retirement
  • Capt. Brett Bakner, 477th Fighter Group executive officer, played professional baseball before joining the active duty Air Force and later the Air Force Reserve. “Sure I could have continued to play professional baseball for another three to five years but I likely would have been released after those years with little to no work experience outside of sports,” said Bakner. “Joining the Air Force was not only the most mature decision I have ever made, it was the most astute!” (U.S. Air Force photo/Capt. Ashley Conner)

    From professional baseball player to Air Force Reservist

    Although his life as the commanders executive officer is full of staff summary sheets and staff meeting slides there was a time when Capt. Brett Bakner fulfilled the childhood dream of many young boys and could call himself a professional baseball player. While playing Division II football and baseball at the University of West Virginia Bakner was
  • ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. - Master Sgt. Michele Smith, unit training manager for the Readiness Management Group here, conducts strength-training with weights in an effort to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Smith was diagnosed with two cerebral aneurysms last year after failing her fitness test. After surgery, Smith changed her fitness regimen and passed her PT test. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Megan Tomkins)

    Not giving up

    It's been said fitness is a way of life, but one Air Force Reservist found both her fitness and her life in grave danger."2011 and 2012 have been an emotional as well as physical journey for me," said Master Sgt. Michele Smith, unit training manager for the Readiness Management Group at Headquarters Air Force Reserve Command, Robins Air Force Base,
  • Senior Master Sgt. John Tingle, 436th Civil Engineer Squadron and a former military training instructor, lines up newly enlisted 512th Airlift Wing reserv¬ists and explains the fundementals of marching. The new recruits are part of the Air Force Reserve Command’s Development and Training Flight, designed to prepare Airmen for Basic Military Training. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Andria J. Allmond)

    Training flight fuels fervor of future Airmen

    Her glasses having slid down the bridge of her nose, Latoya Gatewood-Young's expression hardens slightly. She grips her pen and pad tightly while scribbling down the names of the other tan-shirted trainees whose whereabouts she's responsible for tracking this weekend.The rigid hands of the wall clock glide to 7:03 a.m. "Three minutes late; that's
  • Liz Volz and Ron Helms have been friends for three years and participated in the Bicycle Ride Across Georgia, June 2-9, 2012. They lifted weights and focused on strength training for three months to prepare for BRAG, a 359-mile trek from Oglethorp to Tiger in the foothills of Georgia’s Appalachian Mountains. (Courtesy photo)

    Right to BRAG: Fitness advocate sets example

    Capt. Ronald H. Helms, a mental health nurse with the 94th Aeromedical Staging Squadron at Dobbins Air Reserve Base, Ga., doesn't view fitness as a chore. He sees it as a joy."Most importantly, fitness is fun, it gets me outdoors, and there are lasting, overall health benefits," said Helms. "I am 56 years old, and it is imperative I stay fit for a

  • Be ready: emergency management gets personal

    In the Air Force, we are used to participating in safety drills designed to teach us emergency survival skills and techniques. That training started in grade school with fire and tornado drills that provided a nice diversion from class work and matured to chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and high-yield explosives training in Air Force.
  • U.S. Airmen from the 920th Rescue Wing, Patrick Air Force Base, Fla., exercise in Key West, Fla., during the winter months to enhance their maritime rescue skills. Royal Canadian Airmen from the 435 Transport and Rescue Squadron, 17 Wing, Winnipeg, Canada, also participated in the exercise. Both countries' rescue forces must face perilous conditions at times therefore training is conducted often. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Anton Levin)

    Winter's end showcases U.S., Canadian rescue games

    The Florida Straits served as maritime battlefields this winter for U.S. and Canadian rescue forces to sharpen their life-saving skills in a series of competitions designed to defeat a common enemy - the perils of rescue.To view a slideshow of the exercise, click here.While human and mechanical errors can cost those who specialize in rescue their
  • TSgt. Blaire Sieber

    Loadmaster soars on American Idol

    For one aspiring singer at Westover, 15 minutes of fame stretched out over weeks as a contestant on American Idol.The television show broadcast to millions gave Tech. Sgt. Blaire Sieber an opportunity to stand in front of the world and live out her dream."It's really hard to describe the experience," she said in a telephone interview. "You feel
  • Air National Guard pararescueman Tech. Sgt. Jeremy Maddamma, 212th Rescue Squadron, Joint Base Elmendor-Richardson, Alaska; Air Force Reserve pararescueman Tech. Sgt. Dan Warren, 308th Rescue Squadron, Patrick Air Force Base, Fla.; and ANG pararescueman Master Sgt. Brendon Steumke, 212th RQS, JBER, pose for a photo Feb. 9 after Warren and Maddamma were part of a rescue team that spent the night fighting a blizzard to rescue an Alaskan Native in dire need of emergency medical treatment in the remote village of Red Devil, Alaska. (Courtesy photo)

    Rescue Airmen brave blizzard to reach, save Alaskan villager

    Snowflakes stung like needles when Pararescue Airmen skydived into a blizzard at night to rescue a Native American in a remote Alaskan village who was suffering from a life-threatening infection.Ryan Morgan, 20, was deteriorating as fast as the weather blocking Alaskan rescue personnel from getting near him in Red Devil, the dying mining town in
  • Air Force Reservist Tech. Sgt. Francine Torres (left) and her visually impaired 17-year-old daughter, Jasmine Polite (right), attended a free military-sponsored mountain adventure camp for military teens with physical disabilities in New Hampshire. Along with a dozen other kids from across the U.S., The Torres duo enjoyed many winter activities and adventures they normally wouldn't do to include dog sledding, snow tubing, ice skating and downhill skiing. Torres is an knowledge operations manager with the 920th Rescue Wing, Patrick Air Force Base, Fla. (Courtesy photo)

    Mountain adventure helps visually impaired teen see possibilities

    Tech. Sgt. Francine Torres doesn't think twice about her two-hour daily commute to work each way.In fact, the Air Force Reservist and mother of three chooses to live 100 miles away from her job so her visually impaired 17-year-old daughter, Jasmyn Polite, can attend the Florida's School for the Blind and Deaf in St. Augustine, Fla. "I just do it; I
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