DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. – In an educational and professional development opportunity, five 512th Airlift Wing reservists, along with more than 40 other Team Dover Airmen attended the 50th Annual Airlift/Tanker Association Convention and Technology Exposition Oct. 25-28, in Grapevine, Texas.
The A/TA is a non-profit professional organization dedicated to providing a forum for people interested in improving the capability of U.S. air mobility forces.
“America’s mobility forces are one of our nation’s true asymmetric advantages for preserving our nation’s dream,” said retired Air Force Gen. Duncan McNabb, A/TA chairman, “and for 50 years A/TA has been an instrumental part in celebrating those forces and the great legacy we have been entrusted with -- our nation’s strategic ability to move.”
Each year, air mobility mission bases across the Air Force to send a wide range of Airmen of different ranks and career fields to attend the annual convention. Dover AFB is no different. It sent a contingent of active-duty and reserve Airmen aboard a C-17A Globemaster III aircraft to attend. En route, the aircraft picked up additional Airmen at Scott AFB, Illinois.
The 512th AW, also known as the Liberty Wing, is an associate Air Force Reserve Command unit located at Dover AFB. This 1,750-member organization supports Air Mobility Command’s worldwide airlift mission, operating C-5M Super Galaxy and C-17 aircraft.
For all five Liberty Wing reservists who attended, it was their first time at an A/TA convention. This included Col. Arthur Rodi, 512th Mission Support Group commander, who is nearing retirement after a 40-year Air Force career.
“It was an awesome opportunity to hear our senior leaders,” said Rodi. “To get as many as we had, the Secretary of the Air Force, the AMC commander and the chief of the Air Force Reserve, to come out and express where the force is heading as an institution was truly an awesome experience.”
The convention’s major speaking schedule also included the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, the Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force, the commander of the U.S. Transportation Command, the commander of the Air Combat Command and the Director of the Air National Guard.
“What I truly enjoyed was hearing leadership talk about revitalizing the squadron,” said Rodi. “I think that’s the most important thing from my perspective that will help change the culture and get our mindset back to being the combat warriors the Air Force is talking about. Hearing that consistent theme across the leadership spectrum, I think is truly remarkable.”
Senior Airman Ryan Woitas, 709th Airlift Squadron C-5M flight engineer and traditional reservist, echoed Rodi’s feelings on seeing the senior military leadership.
“It was great to see the leadership give their perspectives directly,” he said. “It gives us a little bit better understanding of the decisions that leadership makes. A lot of the time, you see the impact of things but not the reasoning behind it.”
For Senior Airman Cinthia Taylor, 46th Aerial Port cargo processor, the highlight of her trip may not have been the convention itself but the flight back home, when she got to sit in the C-17 flight deck during the flight from Texas to Scott AFB.
“It was my first time doing that,” she said. “I was really excited.”
But it was also really exciting for another reason too, explained Taylor. Sitting in the flight deck with her was Gen. Maryanne Miller, AMC commander.
“That definitely enhanced the experience for sure,” said Taylor, who is also a traditional reservist.
She added she felt extremely blessed to be part of this opportunity to attend the convention.
“This whole trip was really humbling,” she said. “It’s a reminder of how proud I am to serve. I’m just really excited to come back and share what I’ve learned during this trip and really take my Air Force career to the next level.”
In all, the A/TA convention, featured 37 seminars, a technology expo, receptions, a hall of fame banquet and farewell brunch.