HomeNewsFeaturesDisplay

At the core of nuclear deterrence

By Airman Daniel Brosam, 341st Missile Wing Public Affairs / Published January 12, 2016

Senior Airman Jennifer Cook, 341st Munitions Squadron nuclear weapons technician, poses for a picture Jan. 12, 2016, at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. Cook is a team chief and is responsible for overseeing maintenance on nuclear weapons. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman Daniel Brosam)
PHOTO DETAILS  /   DOWNLOAD HI-RES 1 of 1

Senior Airman Jennifer Cook, 341st Munitions Squadron nuclear weapons technician, poses for a picture Jan. 12, 2016, at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. Cook is a team chief and is responsible for overseeing maintenance on nuclear weapons. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman Daniel Brosam)

PRINT | E-MAIL
MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, MONT. -- To serve in the United States Air Force is a decision only one percent of the population has taken the oath to do.

Senior Airman Jennifer Cook, 341st Munitions Squadron nuclear weapons technician, made the choice just over three years ago to better herself and serve her country.

Cook is from Portland, Oregon, and grew up with four older brothers. She was the only one to decide to serve in the Air Force, Cook said.

Her decision to serve came from wanting something different.

"It was spontaneous but I wanted to travel the world and finish my college degree," said Cook.

Cook is a team chief and is responsible for following step-by-step instructions for maintenance on nuclear weapons sent to the missile field and takes responsibility for getting it done.

"As a team chief you get to take pride in finishing the weapons," said Cook. "That weapon is complete and is going out to the field because I took control of that weapon."

Her role is critical in Malmstrom's daily operations of nuclear deterrence and keeping the nation safe with effective nuclear forces.

Cook said she has a lot of pride being a part of her unit because of the phenomenal job they do of keeping their standards high and being the best nuclear weapons maintenance there is.

"My leadership has set me up for success in a lot of ways I never thought possible," said Cook.

Aside from working as a full-time Airman, Cook completed her bachelor's degree and is currently working on her master's. She said it was difficult because of her job being stressful and time consuming but she wanted to get it done.

Furthering her education reflects the priorities in training and educating professional Airmen and being fit to fight as a reliable leader.
USAF Comments Policy
If you wish to comment, use the text box below. AF reserves the right to modify this policy at any time.

This is a moderated forum. That means all comments will be reviewed before posting. In addition, we expect that participants will treat each other, as well as our agency and our employees, with respect. We will not post comments that contain abusive or vulgar language, spam, hate speech, personal attacks, violate EEO policy, are offensive to other or similar content. We will not post comments that are spam, are clearly "off topic", promote services or products, infringe copyright protected material, or contain any links that don't contribute to the discussion. Comments that make unsupported accusations will also not be posted. The AF and the AF alone will make a determination as to which comments will be posted. Any references to commercial entities, products, services, or other non-governmental organizations or individuals that remain on the site are provided solely for the information of individuals using this page. These references are not intended to reflect the opinion of the AF, DoD, the United States, or its officers or employees concerning the significance, priority, or importance to be given the referenced entity, product, service, or organization. Such references are not an official or personal endorsement of any product, person, or service, and may not be quoted or reproduced for the purpose of stating or implying AF endorsement or approval of any product, person, or service.

Any comments that report criminal activity including: suicidal behaviour or sexual assault will be reported to appropriate authorities including OSI. This forum is not:

  • This forum is not to be used to report criminal activity. If you have information for law enforcement, please contact OSI or your local police agency.
  • Do not submit unsolicited proposals, or other business ideas or inquiries to this forum. This site is not to be used for contracting or commercial business.
  • This forum may not be used for the submission of any claim, demand, informal or formal complaint, or any other form of legal and/or administrative notice or process, or for the exhaustion of any legal and/or administrative remedy.

AF does not guarantee or warrant that any information posted by individuals on this forum is correct, and disclaims any liability for any loss or damage resulting from reliance on any such information. AF may not be able to verify, does not warrant or guarantee, and assumes no liability for anything posted on this website by any other person. AF does not endorse, support or otherwise promote any private or commercial entity or the information, products or services contained on those websites that may be reached through links on our website.

Members of the media are asked to send questions to the public affairs through their normal channels and to refrain from submitting questions here as comments. Reporter questions will not be posted. We recognize that the Web is a 24/7 medium, and your comments are welcome at any time. However, given the need to manage federal resources, moderating and posting of comments will occur during regular business hours Monday through Friday. Comments submitted after hours or on weekends will be read and posted as early as possible; in most cases, this means the next business day.

For the benefit of robust discussion, we ask that comments remain "on-topic." This means that comments will be posted only as it relates to the topic that is being discussed within the blog post. The views expressed on the site by non-federal commentators do not necessarily reflect the official views of the AF or the Federal Government.

To protect your own privacy and the privacy of others, please do not include personally identifiable information, such as name, Social Security number, DoD ID number, OSI Case number, phone numbers or email addresses in the body of your comment. If you do voluntarily include personally identifiable information in your comment, such as your name, that comment may or may not be posted on the page. If your comment is posted, your name will not be redacted or removed. In no circumstances will comments be posted that contain Social Security numbers, DoD ID numbers, OSI case numbers, addresses, email address or phone numbers. The default for the posting of comments is "anonymous", but if you opt not to, any information, including your login name, may be displayed on our site.

Thank you for taking the time to read this comment policy. We encourage your participation in our discussion and look forward to an active exchange of ideas.