7 EMS flight chief earns Levitow Award at Senior NCO Academy

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Carolyn Viss
  • 7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  A 7th Equipment Maintenance Squadron senior noncommissioned officer earned top graduate honors and was awarded the John L. Levitow Award at the Senior NCO Academy Nov. 19 at Maxwell Air Force Base's Gunter Annex, Montgomery, Ala. 

Master Sgt. David Wade, 7th EMS maintenance flight chief, arrived at Dyess in June and was already enrolled in two college classes when he got orders to spend more than seven weeks with 346 other students at the academy. He quickly finished his college courses while rising to the top 10 percent of his class at the academy. Just before graduation, he was called to an interview with the commandant of the school. Based on that interview, as well as his leadership, communication skills, and outstanding academics, he was given the Levitow Award. 

"I'm honored to win this award because I met so many outstanding senior NCOs at the academy who would have deserved the award," said Sergeant Wade, who won his first Levitow Award at Airman Leadership School as a senior airman. "To be named top graduate out of such an esteemed group is very humbling." 

Although just 16 years into his Air Force career, he has already earned a line number for senior master sergeant and the respect of his new flight at Dyess. 

"Sergeant Wade has been a breath of fresh air sense the moment I met him," said Chief Master Sgt. Jeffery Barnes, 7th EMS superintendent, who has supervised Sergeant Wade for the past six months. "His professionalism and enthusiasm truly enhance his leadership abilities and it was desperately needed when he arrived. He quickly identified problem areas, made the proper adjustments, and led the unit to mission success." 

The multi-dimensional husband and father of two has worked on B-52s, C-130s, C-5s, C-17s, and now B-1s. After Sept. 11, his career took him to Iraq and twice to Kuwait as a flying crew chief. Of all the things he learned at the Senior NCO Academy, Sergeant Wade said the issue he saw predominantly throughout the curriculum was an emphasis on the joint nature of war fighting. 

"The academy works very hard to make sure everything they teach is valuable, and they did a great job of that," Sergeant Wade said. "Interwoven into almost everything was the idea that in order to be successful we've got to learn to work with other services to get the mission done." 

Traditionally a communication navigation systems technician, Sergeant Wade stepped from years of experience in aircraft maintenance squadrons into a leadership role in Air Combat Command. 

"I've always worked on the flightline in the AMXS," Sergeant Wade said. "My goal here is to become well-rounded in other parts of maintenance ... and to make chief the first time." 

If his answers to the commandant's questions are any indication of his future success, Sergeant Wade, who is just eight classes away from a bachelor's degree in liberal arts, may be well on his way to that goal. 

"I think professional military education profoundly impacts who we are as supervisors and leaders, and I'm happy to come back to the shop and put the tools I learned at the academy to use here," Sergeant Wade said. 

"His unique leadership style inspires Airmen to do their best in executing the mission," Chief Barnes said. "I was not surprised to hear that he won the Levitow Award."