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Crew chief rises above standard

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Crystal Charriere
  • 419th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah --  Tech. Sgt. Robert Scheifl, 419th Maintenance Squadron inspection technician, says he works in "one of the most specialized shops in aircraft maintenance."

While in his shop, the F-16s undergo extensive heavy maintenance. It is home to the wing's landing gear "gurus," and one of the numerous operations they perform is changing all the landing gear out after it has been used for six years. Many times, technicians will have jets completely taken apart and spread across their tables so they can examine each piece.

"After the planes come in, we send out a better product," Scheifl said. "It's pretty cool to rip the plane completely apart, put everything back together, and see it go do what it can do."

As a child, Scheifl says he took lots of things apart, starting with his first car, even if he didn't know what he was doing. He never worried about breaking anything or how to put it back together, he said.

"If you know the basic theory of how something works, you can fix it."

Scheifl's expertise and exceptional character earned him the Air Force Reserve's Chief Master Sergeant Thomas M. Barnes Crew Chief of the Year award for 2010.

"When I won at the command level, I was overwhelmed," he said. "I didn't think I deserved it because I was just doing my job."

Scheifl described his work ethic as highly motivated and said there's more to doing his job and thriving in the workplace than repairing things.

"You have to be well rounded in every field," he said. "I show up on time, I do what I'm asked, I try to excel in everything I do, and I have a good PT score."

Scheifl has volunteered for three deployments during his seven-year career. He has been to Iraq twice and has also spent seven months in Afghanistan - his longest deployment, where he says his primitive living conditions were less than desirable.

"Afghanistan was pretty challenging, but honestly, I learned so much from it that I have to say, that was probably the best deployment I've been on. You learn a lot about yourself after seven months in a deployed location."

Scheifl's supervisor, Master Sgt. Jeffery Bernard, 419th MXS inspection section chief, said he definitely deserves the honor of Crew Chief of the Year. Having been part of the shop for about a year, Scheifl has accomplished more than others usually do during his short time there, Bernard said.

"He steps up to any task. He'll deploy when he needs to, and he even sacrificed his first wedding anniversary to go on a six-month deployment," Bernard said. "It's hard to find a crew chief that isn't afraid to say he doesn't know the answer. He's not only able to lead, he's also able to follow if needed."

While Scheifl is honored by the prestigious award, he believes there are many people in his shop who deserve it just as much as he does.

"I don't look at it as an award just for myself; I look at it as an award for our phase dock, because without them, I wouldn't have gotten anywhere near that award," he said.

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