b'Being Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Forceis 90 percent common sense and 10 percent knowledge. You have to try and get along with the Air Staff. Thats whom you are going to be working with. You have to try to get along with certain people in order to best represent the force. There are people who will make a patsyout of you, both officer and enlisted. There are people who will use you. There are people, Iam sorry to say, who have axes to grind. Orthey will ask you for a favor, and you will look into it and find they dont have a good reason, and because you tell them that, they dont want to hear that, then you are no good.Airey had the fortitude and patience to calmly build credibility in the position. By the time Airman 1st Class Chanelle Cabanayan, left, 436th Aerial Port Squadron administrativehe passed the baton to Donald L. Harlow, the apprentice, speaks with Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force JoAnne S. prior to being coined on Jan. 8, 2021, at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware. Cabanayan and nominated as a starinfluence had begun to grow. In The Enlisted performer for exhibiting professionalism and exceptional Airmanship in her duties as a commander administrative assistant. Experience, Harlow recalled that full acceptance (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Christopher Quail) and influence did not come until years later:.Chief Master Sergeant continued from page 15 There was an awful lot of opposition. Even than 5,900 chiefs on active duty. Candidates hadCMSAF Dick Kisling ran into it. It wasnt untilto have at least 22 years of activeduty servicelater on that the leadership started to realizeand two years time in grade as a chief masterthat it was a good position. We had no authority; sergeant. They also had to have a high schoolwe couldnt sign anything. When Paul and Idiploma and represent the highest standards ofwere asked to comment on various issues, usually integrity and performance. through staff summary sheets, we gave ourCommanders nominated 21 chiefs, and a input. As each one of us got into the position, theselection board narrowed them down to threejob increased in importance and significance.finalists: CMSgt Conrad Stevens of the MilitaryThose who followed served on more committees Airlift Command, CMSgt Jefferson Red Marshand got to go over to Congress to testify onfrom Pacific Air Forces, and CMSgt Paul Airey ofvarious issues. The position became morethe Air Defense Command.visible, and I think that was great.In January 1967 Gen. McConnell announcedAs the position became more widely accepted and commanders began to realize the importance CMSgt Paul Airey would be the first Chief Masterof an enlisted Airman on the staff, commanders Sergeant of the Air Force. Airey assumed thebegan to hire their own senior enlisted advisors.role on 3 April 1967 during a ceremony in the It began in major commands, then downSecretary of the Air Forces conference room. to the wings and other commands where We were at the start of a period when thethe position still exists today. The position is leadership realized suddenly that they neededcalled the Command Chief Master Sergeant, a better communications, Airey said, reflecting ontitle introduced in 1998 during CMSAF Eric W. the time years later. Many people say thats theBenkens tenure.reason this job was established: to give enlistedIn the years since Airey first stepped in aspeople a route right to the top without goingthe Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force, the through the various channels, so that they wouldChiefs have heavily influenced the direction ofhave somebody up there representing them. the enlisted force. Airey was involved with the Although the position was established and Aireyfirst efforts to standardize and centralize enlisted was given an office in the Pentagon, the influencepromotions and helped develop the Weighted and impact of the CMSAF did not arrive overnight. Airman Promotion System. All the chiefs have Airey had to establish relations and build pushed for better professional development influence, often needing to press against thethrough enlisted professional military education, notion that enlisted Airmen should have no establishing the Senior Noncommissionedbearing on Air Force decisions. In an interviewOfficer Academy and evolving the deliverywith the Air Force Historical Research Center inof professional military education over the years. 1981, Airey reflected on the lessons he learned The chiefs have also addressed social issues, in the first few months in the position: working to build an environment that better 16 Military Appreciation Resource Magazine Thank You For Your Service'