Rock Solid Warrior: Staff Sgt. Timothy Womble

Published July 20, 2013
386th Expeditionary Maintenance Group

SOUTHWEST ASIA -- Rank/First & Last Name: Staff Sgt. Timothy D. Womble

Deployed Unit: 386th Expeditionary Maintenance Group

Duty Title: Quality Assurance Inspector/ Technical Order Distribution Official (TODO)

Home unit/station: 437th Maintenance Group, Joint Base Charleston, S.C.

Family's military heritage: My maternal grandfather was in the United States Army in WWII. He served in the European theater. I have an uncle on each side of the family that served in the Army during the Vietnam War. I have a first cousin on my father's side that was in the Army National Guard and served here during Desert Storm/Desert Shield. I have another, Chief Petty Officer Marcus Womble, who currently serves at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla.

What is your mission here? I serve as the TODO for the maintenance group, ensuring the maintainers have the technical data they need available at all times to perform maintenance on the aircraft and subsystems. I also serve as an inspector, ensuring that quality maintenance is being performed safely and in accordance with that technical data.

What are some of the best parts of your mission? Working closely with the maintenance group and maintenance squadrons' leadership allows a glimpse of what it takes to keep the airfield running smoothly to safely support the mission assigned to us here at the 386th, whatever it may be or become in the future.

What are some of the challenges you face while conducting your mission, and how do you overcome them? It is always a challenge to take over a job from others and try to make it better. And with a mission that changes, the biggest challenge is to maintain a steady, calm, grit-your-teeth, and get-the-job-done attitude.

How does your job differ in a deployed environment vs. home base? There are fewer inspectors here, so we all take on more program-type opportunities within our flight than we probably would back home. Here I am basically the only TODO, whereas back at home station there are three of us. Then there is the obvious difference that we work longer hours, which is great because it allows opportunities to get involved in the base community or take college courses, which I am doing as much as possible. Also, it is VERY hot and windy!

How many times have you deployed? I deployed in 2008 to the 379th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron as an aerospace ground equipment mechanic. I then had the opportunity to deploy all over the area of responsibility as a member of the Air Force Tops in Blue team in 2009.

What makes this deployment unique? This is my first deployment as a quality assurance inspector. I have been fortunate in that all three of my deployments have been unique in the job that I performed while deployed. Also, this is the first time I've deployed for six months. I'm also impressed at how close-knit the community here at The Rock is and how many opportunities there are to get involved away from work. Finally, I have noticed on this deployment a sense of the host country enjoying and welcoming our presence here with them.

Why did you join the Air Force? Out of high school I had worked as a land surveyor for nine years. Though I had taken some college courses, I did not have a college degree. When discovering that I could not become a licensed land surveyor without a college degree, I initially joined to gain that degree and provide for my family. However, once I got into the Air Force, it seemed like a really good fit for me, and, nearing the end of my second enlistment, I knew that I had already decided to make a career of the Air Force. I will serve for as long as the Air Force will have me.