Global Strike Challenge 2012: Meet the Maintenance Group team members

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Katrina Heikkinen
  • 341st Missile Wing Public Affairs
MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. --  Editor's Note: This is part two of a four part series highlighting the 2012 Global Strike Challenge Teams.

The second phase of the third annual Global Strike Challenge competition will get underway at Malmstrom Air Force Base, F.E. Warren AFB, Wyo., and Minot AFB, N.D., Sept. 9. Among those competing will be members from the 341st Maintenance Group, who have five teams.

Personnel from the electro-mechanical, facilities maintenance, missile communications and missile handling teams will be representing the 341st Missile Wing in missile maintenance. New this year is the addition of a team from the 341st Munitions Squadron.

Electro-Mechanical Team
Selected to compete for the electro-mechanical team are Senior Airman Dustin Melton, 341st Missile Maintenance Squadron EMT team chief, and Senior Airman Ryan Sampson, 341st MMXS EMT technician. The alternate is Senior Airman Michael Wilson, 341st MMXS EMT technician. The trainers are Tech. Sgt. Matthew Ricker, 341st MMXS EMT critical task supervisor, and Tech. Sgt. Mario Ceballosmartinez, 341st MMXS EMT NCO in charge of training.

Recent E-5 selectees, Sampson and Melton's experience is sure to help them come competition time.

"The competition brings a new desire to dominate, and become stronger and smarter at what we do every day," Sampson said. "Everyone likes to win, especially at a caliber as this. Everyone ends up winning with the knowledge and skills the competition creates."

Although Wilson is the alternate competitor, he is proud to represent Malmstrom.

"I feel honored to have this opportunity to represent Malmstrom, and I am eager to learn all I can so I can perform my day to day responsibilities better," Wilson said.

Ceballosmartinez echoed Wilson's same sentiments on the pride they feel in representing the 341st MW.

"As a trainer, it is an awesome duty to train three technicians to represent all 341st MW electro-mechanical technicians against the other wings to the level they need to achieve in order to dominate the competition," Ceballosmartinez said. "In order to prepare for that, we are working 10-hour days, six to seven days a week until the competition."

Facilities Maintenance Team
Selected to compete for the facilities maintenance team are Tech. Sgt. Shelby Iverson, 341st Maintenance Operations Squadron facilities maintenance section NCO in charge, Staff Sgt. Jerad Morgan, 341st MOS FMS shop supervisor, and Airman 1st Class Kyle Namen, 341st MOS FMS team member. The trainers are Staff Sgt. Christopher Petrus, 341st Maintenance Group FMS evaluator, and Staff Sgt. Michael Marshall, 341st MOS FMT instructor.

"We are doing constant evaluation-type troubleshooting runs and putting forth maximum efforts to ensure the team is proficient and knowledgeable in any kind of scenario that could be thrown at them during the competition," Marshall said.

From newcomers, to seasoned maintainers, this team has more than decades of job knowledge.

"I feel honored to be selected to represent Malmstrom in the Global Strike Challenge," Namen said. "Especially because I am fairly new to the job."

"I've been here for ten years," Iverson said. "I'm very proud to represent. I think competitions of this nature are important because they improve methods and procedures, and make the job safer, which improves efficiency."

Missile Communication Team
Selected to compete for the missile communication team are Staff Sgt. Dajon Begin, 341st MMXS, missile communications team chief, and Staff Sgt. Mark Montemayor, 341st MMXS, missile communications member. The alternate competitor is Airman 1st Class David Guilds, 341st MMXS electro-mechanical team technician. The trainer is Staff Sgt. Joshua Rutledge, 341st MMXS missile communications team chief.

"We are studying our technical orders, practicing procedures and setting up mock faulty scenarios to fix," Begin said. "This is helping us figure out any particular things that could come up and we are working on solving any abnormalities that we think may arise, if any. This is taking several hours every night to include some weekend time."

Alternate competitor, Guilds, is proud and thankful for his selection.

"I just want to thank the shop for the opportunity and my trainers for giving me the tools to succeed," Guilds said.

Past competitor, Rutledge, is ready to take on the challenge of being the team trainer.

"I am honored to be chosen to train and prep the team," Rutledge said.

Missile Handling Team
Selected to compete for the missile handling team are Staff Sgt. Matthew Truitt, 341st MMXS MHT team chief, and Senior Airmen Andy Wellman, Blaine Canty, Brandon King and Matthew Tobin, 341st MMXS MHT technicians. The trainers are Tech. Sgt. Markus Maar, 341st MMXS missile handling team chief, and Staff Sgt. James Carter, 341st MMXS MHT quality assurance evaluator.

In order to prepare for the upcoming competition, the team will be spending an extensive amount o time troubleshooting.

"To prepare for the competition we are training for 45 days," Truitt said. "The nature of this competition keeps us very proficient at our tasks and our job, and we maintain that proficiency through constant training and accept nothing less than perfection, which is the standard."

After recently cross-training into the missile handling career field, Canty was surprised to be selected to compete.

"I am honored to be selected as a competitor," Canty said. "Even though I cross-trained into this career field and am still in upgrade training, it makes it that much more of a big deal for me."

Munitions Team
Selected to compete for the munitions team are Staff Sgt. Terri Moore, 341st Munitions Squadron weapons maintenance technician, Senior Airman Charles Strickland, 341st MUNS RS/RV maintenance technician, Airman 1st Class John Ashley, 341st MUNS RS/RV maintenance technician, Airman 1st Class Wesley Carroll, 341st MUNS nuclear weapons technician, and Airman 1st Class Morgan Riddleberger, 341st MUNS nuclear weapons technician. The trainer is Staff Sgt. Ashley Nissen, 341st MUNS NCO in charge of maintenance training.

Although Malmstrom's munitions team may not know what to expect from other teams, all members are humble and proud to be a part of the new addition of the Global Strike Challenge.

"I am so glad to be a part of this team," Moore said. "I'm thankful for Staff Sgt. Nissen for being such a good trainer and for other maintenance technicians, because this is six weeks of an additional responsibility for not only my team but for others who have to work harder because we are gone."

Riddleberger echoes Moore's sentiments.

"I am very excited to participate in the Global Strike Challenge," Riddleberger said. "To prepare for it, myself and my team have been pulled from our regular maintenance schedule to train for the challenge from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m., five days a week. Although I'm excited for the competition itself, I'm looking forward to traveling to Barksdale AFB, La., and meeting other Air Force personnel. We already know we're the best; now we get to prove it."