When people find out that I am a veteran, the first question that I’m always asked is, “what did you do in the military?”
When I give my answer, I am usually met with shock and awe because my current lifestyle involves carrying babies on my hip and changing diapers. To sum up my military job in one sentence I would say that I helped put warheads on foreheads…but seriously… With that said, I thought it would be fun to reminisce about my military job and share about some of the cool things that I got to do during my military service.
If you didn’t know already, I was in the Air Force and my military specialty was Airfield Operations. I was an Airfield Operations Officer, also known as a 13M, and I was responsible for the daily management and oversight of the airfield, air traffic control (ATC) and air traffic control landing systems (ATCALS) at my assigned duty base. In civilian terms this means that I was a combination of an airport manager, air traffic controller and technician.
Unlike other USAF Officer specialties, 13Ms are a “jack of all trades” rather than a specialist. My military training included certifications in airport management and air traffic control. Technically, I was certified to be an airfield manager or work in an ATC facility position, but my primary duties as an Officer were to supervise airfield operations and manage my flight. Typically, my days were filled with meetings, airfield construction projects, flight operations concerns, coordinating with other base agencies, paperwork and personnel actions.
I often joked that if I was needed to conduct an airfield inspection or work an ATC facility position, then everyone else was probably sick or dead.
No one wanted the 13M inspecting the airfield or working an ATC position alone. Those tasks were the responsibility of my highly proficient and professional Airmen. Being a 13M was my dream job! Outside of being a Mom, I don’t think any other “job” will compare to the excitement and thrill of managing a military airport. Everyday was different and every operation was different. Some of my most memorable war stories include…
- Earning my ATC ratings and getting my badge pinned on as a young LT.
- Chalking Air Force One in the middle of the night during the POTUS’s secret visit to Afghanistan.
- Hearing the Crash Phone ring in Base Ops with the ATC Tower reporting an inbound in-flight emergency (IFE) with smoke in the cockpit.
- Wearing chemical gear (aka sucking rubber) for 12+ hours during my monthly exercises in Korea.
- Being one of the first responders on scene after a Taliban rocket hit a helicopter on the parking apron and burned it to the ground.
- Watching F-22s do their airshow practice runs from the ATC Tower catwalk.
- The midnight phone call from the ATC Tower stating that a plane had slid off the runway into the infield.
- Watching a runway be built, the concrete poured, lights installed, and airport painting completed.
- Responding to midnight mortar attacks in our Airfield Management vehicle and surveying UXO damage on Bagram’s main runway.
But my all-time favorite military memory was leading and supporting the Airmen under my command and watching them succeed in all that they do! Even though I have hung up my combat boots, I am still a 13M and will always be a 13M. It’s the best job, outside of being a Mom, in the world!
If you want to learn more about the United States Air Force and the different jobs that you can do as an Airmen, please visit https://www.airforce.com/careers.
