Civilian fuels chief recognized with USAF award

Published May 26, 2011
By 2nd Lt. Matthew Chism
JBER Public Affairs

JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- You think your tank is tough to maintain? Try keeping up with a vehicle which stores and distributes more than 12.5 million gallons of fuel per year.

That's what Bill Wackerman, chosen as the 2010 John F. Lavin Fuels Civilian Leader of the Year, does every day.

Here on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, hearing the engines of aircraft is common place. From the perfect fishing days of summer to the white swathe layered ones of winter, JBER have planes in the air.

All the different units whose efforts make this possible are often acknowledged for their efforts, but the Air Force has recognized Wackerman, from JBER's fuel division, as one of the best for 2010.

Wackerman said, as the Fuels Fixed Facility manager for JBER, he and his team control all the aviation fuel, the military service stations, the aircraft de-icers, and theliquid oxygen on the base.

This responsibility encompasses a large geographic portion of JBER. When explaining how his team is able to meet its many daily requirements, he said, "It's the teamwork thing, you work with these guys and you can trust them. It's kind of like a little family."

He said about Lt. Col. Patricia Csank, 673d LRS Commander, "She is a very pro people and wants her personnel taken care of."

Wackerman explained this mentality about being a part of a team has trickled down throughout the squadron.

That team atmosphere is what he attributed to his personal success.

"I really appreciate (the award), but it's nothing I did individually," he said. "It's these guys taking care of me.

"We're blessed, because it's a very diverse mission," Wackerman continued. "A lot of stuff passes through JBER. It is good work for us. It helps the flight get recognition when we can take care of that stuff."

A retired Air Force master sergeant, Wackerman said after twenty six years of working in this field, this is his favorite job so far.

"After I retired, I spent a couple of years on the slope as the Operations and General Manager for Nana oil field services," he recalled. "In the military, you have that camaraderie, that atmosphere ... on the commercial side of the house you don't really have that like you do at the military level."

Wackerman said the structure and camaraderie shared across each service has helped the joint base merger seamless for his team. The main hurdle they have to overcome is the rough Alaskan climate.

"Six months a year we have snow on the ground," he said. "So unless these guys are trained during the summer and know specifically where everything is at, we would spend a lot of time looking for stuff."

In comparison, it would be like going outside in the dark wielding a shovel, to find a manhole in six inches of snow.

"It's a matter of having to pay attention and be proficient on stuff as we go into the winter," Wackerman said.

The expectation for the fuels shop to be flawless is as high as any unit on JBER, and Wackerman said his team has always met the challenge.