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8 Nov 2006
Base wood skills shops help Airmen split cost
It's just another chip off the old block as a woodworker steadily pulls down on a lever of the hollow chisel mortise. James Nowicki, 56th Services Squadron Wood Skills Shop wood crafter, is using the machine to make square holes for a table he is helping a customer build from a hand-drawn design. Despite the lack of air conditioning, the abundance
8 Nov 2006
Feeding the spirit soul food
In the summer of 2003, Luke Thunderbolts began a different kind of maintenance on the flightline, a spiritual maintenance. The Spiritual Maintenance Center chapel was created by Chaplain (Maj.) George Youstra, a former 56th Fighter Wing chaplain and retired Chief Master Sgt. Michael Kriely, when they saw a need for a ministerial outreach to the
8 Nov 2006
DUI can cause quick end to career, life
People join the military for many reasons: education, adventure, patriotism, travel or a steady paycheck. Regardless of a person's reason for entering the military, there's one thing members have in common -- they all want to go as far as possible in their career, and no one wants their career or their life to come to a sudden end. Driving under
8 Nov 2006
Total force integration alive, well at 107th ACS
Approximately 30 miles from Luke Air Force Base is an example of the Total Force Integration concept. The 107th Air Control Squadron is an Air National Guard unit located in Phoenix on the Papago Park Military Reservation. The 107th unit has a unique mission and a "blended" group of military professionals that perform its mission, according to Lt.
7 Nov 2006
Security guards provide Luke's first line of defense
Who has the most visible job at Luke? Hint: it's not the wing commander, command chief, or any group or squadron commander. Instead, it is the security officer, charged with installation protection, who serves as nearly every person's first point of contact upon entering the base. The civilian security officers, employed by the Maryland-based
7 Nov 2006
Getting to destination safe better than not at all
Not long after newcomers arrive in the Phoenix area, they may notice how fast the drivers travel on roads here. Over time this can cause people to react in different ways, either becoming staunch advocates of good driving habits or eventual acceptance and adoption of bad driving practices. Becoming one who adopts bad driving practices just makes
7 Nov 2006
Start of school brings focus on child safety
As the end of summer approaches and a new school year begins, the 56th Fighter Wing Safety Office asks students and parents to stop and reflect on safety concerns associated with going back to school. According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data, school bus related crashes kill more than 100 students per year and
7 Nov 2006
Valley intersections considered more dangerous than combat
Are you safer in Iraq and Afghanistan than in Phoenix? The number one threat to active duty military personnel is not actual combat, but driving on the roadways here in the area. Each year more Air Force people are killed in Phoenix intersection car accidents than are killed in combat operations. Phoenix has the dubious honor of being number one in
7 Nov 2006
56th CES firefighters take heat
If a building catches fire or a jet crashes, the 56th Civil Engineering Squadron Fire Protection Flight at Luke will take the problem head on. Led by Fire Chief Anthony Rabonza, the flight has 74 fire department personnel made up of 21 civilians and 53 active duty of which eight are deployed. Each station has a particular mission. Fire station one,
7 Nov 2006
Sponsorship vital to incoming Fighter Country Airmen
You have just arrived at the airport after a long flight. After picking up your three bags of luggage, you search the airport for a familiar face to meet you. There's no one there. Has this ever happened to you? Would you want it to happen to anyone else? Luke Air Force Base can be challenging for people new to the Phoenix area due to its size, the