Aircraft Maintenance Tech School

I was transferred from Basic Training to Aircraft Maintenance Technical (Tech) School at Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls, TX., in December 1969. I traveled by bus from San Antonio to Wichita Falls.

When we filled out paperwork to request a career field at Basic Training, I applied for Missile Maintenance. I thought missiles and rockets were the field to be in for the future. Also, I thought I’d get assigned somewhere up North as a missile maintenance guy. I wanted to be near Pennsylvania because that was where my girlfriend, Kathy Bozman, was. I was very disappointed when I was given aircraft maintenance. I knew I’d do well in any maintenance field because of my experience working on cars. Once I got the assignment to aircraft maintenance I resigned myself to it and put my heart into learning all I could.