Two NCOs take lead in wing's recruiting flight

Photo By Sandra Pishner | Master Sgt. Dominic Johnson (left) and Senior Master Sgt. Roy Blanchard are the newest members of the 446th Airlift Wing's recruiting flight. Blanchard is the flight chief and comes to McChord Field, Washington from Barksdale Air Force Base, La., while Johnson is the assistant flight chief, arriving at McChord from Travis Air Force Base, California. (U.S. Air Force Reserve photo by Sandra Pishner)  

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, WA, UNITED STATES

10.09.2014

Story by Sandra Pishner 

446th Airlift Wing (AFRC)

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. - Securing and developing professional Airmen is the mission of the 446th Airlift Wing's Air Force Reserve recruiting flight at McChord Field, Washington. Leading that mission are two new NCOs who have taken charge of the flight - Senior Master Sgt. Roy Blanchard, flight chief, and Master Sgt. Dominic Johnson, assistant flight chief.

Following the departure of Chief Master Sgt. Kristyn Ervin, Blanchard was selected from Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, to take the helm of the recruiting flight. The Air Force Reserve Recruiting Service then moved the assistant flight chief position to McChord and placed Johnson into the position from Travis Air Force Base, California.

"This main operating location has always had a flight chief position," said Johnson, "but because we cover Washington, Oregon and Alaska, the assistant flight chief normally resides in Alaska. So they moved the position here."
Blanchard, a former security forces Airman and civilian police officer, has big plans for enhancing the professional Airmen status of his recruiters, including taking this opportunity to further develop Johnson's talents so that he may next move into a flight chief position.

"We're changing the way that we develop our leaders and managers in the recruiting service," said Blanchard. "There was a time where you could have been a line recruiter or an in-service recruiter and if you were really successful, then bam you were a flight chief the next day. When you worked strictly from the production side of things and then suddenly you're thrown into a leadership role it could be overwhelming. So what we're doing now is we are trying to gradually get them into a leadership position. My goal for him (Johnson), is when he leaves here, he can be ready to take over his own flight."

With nine other recruiters in the flight, Blanchard and Johnson see great potential for the development of their staff.

"My goal is to mentor and train the recruiters to make sure they are quality Airmen and quality recruiters," said Johnson, who has been a recruiter for nine years.

Or, as Blanchard likes to put it - professional Airmen.

"I'm very interested in developing our recruiters as professional Airmen and recruiters, not just recruiters," said Blanchard. "The challenge in that I have recruiters who are two, three hours away from the base. And that's a challenge; they're out there and often isolated from the military culture and we want to make sure they're doing all the things they would be doing to take care of themselves as if they were on a base."

Recruiters are only part of the equation though, and Blanchard and Johnson also have their sights set on recruits.

" I want to increase the quality of applicants we bring onboard, so that's going to be a reduction in the amount of waivers we do, a reduction in our processing times and identifying where the units need people," explained Blanchard, who has been in recruiting for 11 years.

With its main office located in the 446th AW's headquarter, Bldg. 1214, Blanchard and Johnson want to make sure units know they are fully vested in being a part of the wing.

"We have very large flight, and sometimes the (people in the) wing do not know who to contact with a lead or if there's an event coming up (that we can help with) they don't know who to contact," said Johnson. "We are part of this wing, we are part of the McChord team here, and we're here to help in whatever way we can, whether it's filling vacancies or showing up at an event, we want to be embed in the wing."

To contact the wing's recruiting flight, call 253-982-3501.

• Date Taken: 10.09.2014
• Date Posted: 10.29.2014 14:52
• Story ID: 146473
• Location: JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, WA, US
• Hometown: BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, LA, US
• Hometown: JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, AK, US
• Hometown: JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, WA, US
• Hometown: MARCH AIR FORCE BASE, CA, US
• Hometown: MARCH AIR RESERVE BASE, CA, US
• Hometown: ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, GA, US
• Hometown: TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, CA, US