AL UDEID AIR BASE, Qatar -- Chief Master Sgt. Christine Fallo credits being a first sergeant with her decision to stay in the military.
She joined an Air National Guard Base in Massachusetts and was working in the command post. With no aircraft at their base, she grew “bored with the career field.” Luckily for the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Command Post, she chose to stick with the Air Force and is currently deployed to Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar.
Command post functions as the information hub of the base. Any situation is filtered through it, and then assessed for relevancy – if a commander needs to be notified immediately, if it should be in a brief, if it is a base-wide alert or if another office should be alerted to respond. Additionally, they track all local aircraft from takeoff to landing.
“Following missions and tracking planes to make sure they are doing what they needed to do is the coolest part – seeing the results of part of your work,” Fallo said. “As command post, you’re behind the scenes and don't really get to talk to a lot of people other than on the phone. I tried to get out and meet the other agencies we've worked with because it makes it so much easier when you're talking to them on the phone later on.”
Fallo has been in the Air Force since 1992. She spent seven years as active duty then joined the Guard, with experiences as services and command post. She is currently an employee education instructor for Veteran’s Affairs during her civilian time. That, in turn with her first sergeant experience, shines through as she mentors the Airmen she works with.
“Our job is different at every base, so I let them know that you need to ask questions because none of us know everything that's going on, even though we may have been in the career field for a while,” she said. “I also ask them if they know what they’ll do, if they’ll stay in or pursue school. If they have time to work towards a degree, I highly recommend it.”
She is able to speak to Airmen from a perspective that spans both leaving active duty and being in the Air National Guard. This is the first deployment for many of her Airmen, but this is her last. Fallo encourages them to use the six months they’re deployed to make plans for their next step.
“Especially being a Guardsman, I kind of tell them what’s on the other side of the coin,” Fallo emphasized. “If you're going to do anything while you're in service, get your education because that's going to be the biggest thing people look for when you get out. They'll look at your job experience, but a lot of people like to see if we have education as well.”