507 Maintenance Group Superintendent retires after 34 years

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Mark Hybers
  • 507th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
In 1978, a 20-year-old construction worker from Colorado Springs Colo., decided to stop commuting from Colorado Springs to the Kansas border so that he might find a more steady paying career in the United States Air Force.

August 9, 1978, Steven Wright left for basic training to embark on a career spanning five decades -a career he never really thought possible.

"To be honest with you, I didn't really have my sites set too high," Wright said. "I thought at the time I might do 20 years and hopefully reach master sergeant and get out."

That 20 year goal not only almost doubled in length but also turned into two retirements.

Upon completing basic training, he went into aerospace ground equipment school at Chanute AFB, Illinois for 12 weeks and was then assigned to the 552 Airborne Warning and Control System Component Repair Squadron.

Wright didn't just pick up a life-long career at Chanute, he also met his wife there. The two were married in January, shortly after completion of school and have shared the journey ever since.

After four years of active duty, he decided it was time to dedicate more time to his family.

"I deployed too much," Wright said. "I came home from a deployment and my daughter started screaming bloody murder because she had no idea who I was. That's when I knew my active duty time was over."

After a brief three month separation in service, where he worked as a tire buster, automotive salesman with Montgomery Ward, Wright entered the reserves and was hired on as an Air Reserve Technician. He came over to the AGE shop as a non-powered mechanic.

"It was such a different world for me," Wright said. "On the active duty side we had to stay at work until a certain number of generators were working. I came to the civilian side, and you had to go home at the end of your shift every day."

Wright transitioned quickly however, and became instrumental in the crossover from F-16 to Tanker. He became the project manager, leading the 2.2 million dollar renovation to building 1030 to get it ready for the KC-135s.

"That was a big project. We worked out of trailers across base," he said. "It took 18 months to complete and a large part of that project was getting the flight line and fuel work finished. There was a lot of concrete added to that flight line to withstand the weight of a tanker."

That experience proved quite valuable as he took on the project manager role for the new ISO dock hangar 1053.

Wright does not consider either of these to be his biggest achievement. In 1999 he was tasked with refurbishing the F-4D and the F-105 in order to put them in the air park at the Air Depot gate.

"I was always disappointed I never got to work on the 105," said Wright. "But I was put in charge of refurbishing the one at the front gate and that is one of my biggest accomplishments. That will be there for people to see long after I'm gone. It's a piece of history."

August 3, 2008 another career milestone was reached. Wright became the Maintenance Group Superintendent.

"I never really thought I would ever put on Senior Master Sergeant, let alone becoming a chief," said Wright. "I really shattered my goals several times over the course of my career."

Chief Master Sergeant Wright spent the last five years of his career leading the maintenance group. He said, not being able to go hands on with his troops everyday was one of the hardest transitions.

"I think the best way to lead your troops is to be in the fire with them and lead by example," he said. "Taking a 20-year-plus veteran and sticking them into a fuel cell along-side an Airman is training that you can't put a value on. No technical order or no book can replace that."

Maintenance Group Commander, Col. Jeffrey Pickard said Wright brought strong, logical leadership to the group and always stepped in where he was needed.

"During the absence of the command chief (Brown), he always seamlessly took over and provided outstanding leadership and vision, no matter what was going on," Col. Pickard said.

Wright also said that there are very few people left in the reserves that are like him.

"To spend 34 years in the same unit is just not heard of anymore," he said. "An ART has to be here all week long and not miss Unit Training Assembly weekends. They are the example and trainers for the traditional reservists and almost always do it for less pay than they can get on the straight civilian side."

Summing up his career, chief Wright said it's been a fantastic 34 years. He took every course he could get his hands on to advance his career. He also said a little luck and a little skill got him where he needed to go.

"I seemed to always be in the right spots at the right times with the right men and women mentoring me," he said. "I watched, I followed and I mimicked."

As for the future, well, it's still up in the air for Wright.

"I don't think my wife is ready for me to be retired and home full time yet," he said with a hearty laugh. "I have a couple of things lined up that could keep me employed and busy for a few more years."

From the flight line, to the maintenance hangars and shops to the air park at the front gate, there is a piece of chief Wright's legacy left behind.

"It's bittersweet leaving. It's going to be very sad, but you know when it's time and after 34 great years, it's time."