Sixth CMSAF visits Fairchild, congratulates new chiefs Published March 24, 2011 By Senior Airman Natasha E. Stannard 92nd Air Refueling Wing FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash -- The sixth Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force made a special visit to Fairchild, welcoming six new Airmen into the grade of chief master sergeant at a ceremony in Spokane March 17. Chief Master Sgt. James M. McCoy, who served as CMSAF from 1979-1981, was the guest speaker for the event that honored the newest chiefs of the 92nd and 141st Air Refueling Wings. Chief McCoy recognized that today's chiefs have increased responsibilities. "When senior master sergeants became chiefs they went up in rank, but their responsibility didn't go up because everything was run by officers to include leadership schools and academies," Chief McCoy said. "It took three chief master sergeants of the Air Force to change the commandant of the senior noncommissioned officer academy to a chief. Now chiefs have more responsibility than any of the chiefs coming up when they joined." This sentiment was echoed in a private conversation he had with the new chiefs at the ceremony. "Chief McCoy had a conversation with us newly inducted chiefs and told us to take being a chief serious because there's a lot of responsibility in being a chief," said newly-inducted Chief Master Sgt. Timothy Davis, 92nd Air Refueling Wing. "Being a chief means you have to take care of people," Chief Davis said. "I have to take care of those I outrank. I put their needs ahead of my own - that's my job now. " Like chiefs take care of their people, the retired CMSAF is still taking care of his Air Force by attending Air Force events and visiting with today's Airmen, Chief Davis said. "It shows his commitment to his title and the Air Force. It gave me a better respect for my enlisted heritage and chief heritage." Through Chief McCoy's three-day visit to Fairchild, he shared with Airmen how difficult it was to create enlisted professional development. "In 1974, Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Barnes asked me to help expand professional development for enlisted Airmen and we came up with noncommissioned officer leadership school," said Chief McCoy. "Due to professional development, educational levels have come a long way. During my time, we weren't sending Airmen to Airmen Leadership School until much later in their careers and now the progression of their careers is starting much earlier. Now, we have enlisted Airmen with not only their Bachelors degree, but their Masters degree." Chief McCoy spoke to the current Airman Leadership School class. For Senior Airman Tanya Nicolay, 92nd Aeromedical Dental Squadron, it was an honor to speak with the retired CMSAF. "I firmly believe Airman Leadership School is preparing me to become a better leader, not only from the lessons we're learning, but from interacting with my classmates. It gives me a broader understanding of what it is to be a noncommissioned officer and of how to apply what I've learned to my work center." A reoccurring theme Chief McCoy talked about was opportunity and involvement. "Take advantage of every opportunity that comes along and be involved not just during work, but with school and family as well," he said. After sharing his experiences and knowledge, he thanked Airmen for their continued commitment to the Air Force during a time of war. He gave words of advice and encouragement to Airmen about the importance of seeking out solutions to make the service stronger. "We're coming up on ten years since 9-11," said Chief McCoy."The things you are doing now just amaze me. There are so many great things I've witnessed as chief master sergeant of the Air Force and now I'm seeing young Airman everywhere perform duties on top of mountains and hot spots all over the world. Thank you for your service."