Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska

2d Lt Cristal LaPrade

    eople have always asked me “Where y’a from?”  That’s a tough question for an Air Force brat.  I grew up on Air Bases. My father, a career military man, was stationed in eastern France when I was born.  My first memories were of the immense aircraft hangar welcoming us back to the US in 1963.

    From my perspective, aircraft have been as much a part of the sky as the birds. Blackbirds sleek, loud, with delta wings, circled low on the horizon. KC-135 Stratotankers and huge B-52s rattled the windows on takeoff, one after another, as I dressed for school. Aircraft, and those who cared for them, were the center of my young world.

    I completed Private Pilot Ground School as an elective at Hot Spring County High School in Wyoming.  The instructor was not only my Physics teacher but a Major in the CAP.  Immediately after graduation, I enlisted in the Air Force. How could I resist? I made the most of the opportunity. I never turned down a chance for training or education. Being unfamiliar with the exact nature of ‘who’s – who’ in the service, and as a leap of faith, I selected the career field of Aircraft Maintenance in 1977.  I became an Air Force Crew Chief!

    After completing months of training on the muscular C-130, C-141 Starlifter, and the monstrous C-5 Galaxy, my first station was Patrick AFB in Coco Beach, Florida.  Patrick was a Forward Air Control (FAC) training base on a thin peninsula, whose runways sat between the edge of the beach and the edge of the inlet. Astronauts, training for the new Space Shuttle, parked behind us. The ramp where I worked was stacked end to end with the rally car of aerospace vehicles, the OV-10.  With such a straight forward aircraft to work on, I got the fundamentals down early.

    Alaska was my next stop, working the “Dew Line” at 40 below where I learned other important things from the people around me, such as discipline, perseverance, and leadership.   The Phantoms had to be kept in the air or they would start to have problems. This was as much an art as a science. 

    I also began to realize that I had a special contribution to my squadron. As a female, my body and hands were smaller than the other mechanics. This meant I could get in places most mechanics had trouble accessing. My skills in search and rescue of 'fod-in-the-cockpit' were always in demand. Just changing a battery in the Phantom meant working in the open, upside down and backwards under an explosive ejection seat with your feet hanging out over the rail.

A fleet of four T-43s (Boeing 737s) had just arrived and were being outfitted as airliners for special missions and to support the Air Force Academy Cadet Training Program. Competition was stiff but my name went on the “City of Denver” (top of page).

    Five years of hands on experience and a Masters in Human Resources helped me secure a position as the full-time Unit Training Manger for the 140th Logistics Squadron, about 500 and sometimes up to 1,500 people when supporting training for the Wing). I had found another calling.

    While working at the 140th, I also served on the Wing Quality Steering Committee and became a PME Leadership School instructor (see below) and Quality Process Improvement facilitator for the State ANG.

 

My first graduating class as a Leadership School instructor
Buckley ANGB, Denver, Colorado

    Around 1994, I completed two years of post-graduate work in the Teachers College at <Colorado State University.  Shortly before retiring from the Guard, the Air Force conducted its Quality Air Force Inspection of the Wing. Only a handful of us were designated as “Superior Performers”.  I still have the T-shirt.  Retiring early from the Guard in 1997 as a Master Sargent, I took a position in an organization that made parts for the new International Space Station.

In 1998, I became an Analyst at the Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland where I was responsible for managing all the technical, scientific, and engineering training. I also built websites and managed Learning Management Systems and Libraries. As an adjunct instructor at UMBC, I taught Instructional Systems Design in the evening.     My husband and I came to Maine in 2007.  He had finished his Masters in Architecture and wanted to practice on the Island (MDI). During high season I work at the Mount Desert Land and Garden Preserve indulging another passion as a fine gardening professional.      I continue our tradition of service and volunteerism with the CAP.  My association with the CAP began when I met our Commander, Major Kristian Bearscove while working for Colgan Airlines.  I am currently serving with the 38th as the Aerospace Education Officer, the Professional Development Officer, and assisting with Personnel, Administration, and Information Systems. When I am not working in the positons above, I serve as the Wing Deputy Director of IT.     Working with the Staff and Cadets has been an immense pleasure.  It's also a great way to continue to practice in my field as a Human Resources professional.

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