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Guardsman promoted during flight

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Joseph Kapinos
  • AFCENT Combat Camera Team
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  Very rarely do flight orders, which list the names and ranks of the aircrew, have to be altered in the middle of a mission. But on Sept. 25, an exception was made when Tech. Sgt. Nathan Neidhardt was promoted to master sergeant.

Instead of the standard pin-on ceremony normally done during their weekend training, the sergeant wanted to do something different.

"I wanted to make it memorable," said Master Sgt. Nathan Neidhardt. "Everybody gets promoted in front of their peers. I wanted to tell people how, for me, it was special and unique. There are not a lot of people who can say they took off as a technical sergeant and landed as a master sergeant."

Sergeant Neidhardt became that master sergeant during his pin-on ceremony tens of thousands of feet above the Afghan countryside. He had just completed refueling a Belgian F-16A Fighting Falcon and while they waited for the next plane to arrive, he stood proudly at attention in front of the American flag while the orders were read by the aircraft commander promoting him to his next rank.

Lt. Col. Ken Folger, acting deputy of operations for the 340th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron and Chief Master Sgt. Tim Treinen, chief boom operator, stood by with him and "tacked on" his new name tag. Lt. Col Folger is the squadron commander of the 117th Air Refueling Squadron at Forbes Field, Kan., where Sergeant Neidhardt is a member.

Once the ceremony was complete and congratulations given, it was time for a bit of levity as the pilots stated over the intercom that "snacks and refreshments were available on the veranda."

The moment over, it was back to business for Sergeant Neidhardt and the rest of the crew as there were more planes to be refueled.

A Kansas native, Sergeant Neidhardt was born just outside of Wichita. Calling himself a "Guard baby," he followed his father, Col. Hans Neidhardt, into the guard almost ten years ago.

"My father works at the state level for the adjutant general for the state of Kansas," said Sergeant Neidhardt. "Serving in the Air National Guard was always something I wanted to do. It's what my family does, it really is a tradition."

"Nate" originally wanted to become a pilot and saw serving in the Guard as a way to accomplish his goal. He initially looked at serving in the Guard unit at his home state's McConnell Air Force Base; his plans changed when the mission there switched from B-1 bombers to KC-135 tankers.

"I was close to finishing my degree when the (base realignment and closure list) changed the mission at McConnell," said Sergeant Neidhardt. "I saw becoming a boom operator was my way of getting my foot in the door. Before I started flying I was working in maintenance as a fulltime Guard member. Luckily my unit was able to keep me fulltime when I changed jobs."

But being a "boom" really got into his blood.

"Seven years later, I have my degree, and I have taken all the tests required to become an officer -- I just really find it hard to let go of this job," he said. "I truly enjoy what I get to do every day."

And flying everyday is just what this husband and father of two does, especially downrange, where the mission rate for the tanker aircrews is rigorous. The 340th EARS "Mighty Pythons" routinely fly more than 20 sorties a day, seven days a week flying missions in support of operations throughout the area.