Comments (0) | |

Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2009

Air Force meets fiscal year 2009 recruiting goal

Tech Sgt. Damon Andrews, a recruiter at the Warner Robins Air Force recruiting office, quizzes any young man or woman who comes into his office.

Have you graduated high school? Have you been admitted to a hospital recently? Have you run into trouble with the law recently, including speeding and parking tickets? Are you allergic to any foods?

“A negative answer to any of these questions could be disqualifying,” he said.

He can afford to be selective, and with last week’s release of the past year’s recruiting totals, the Air Force won’t likely be relaxing its standards anytime soon.

In fiscal year 2009, which ended Sept. 30, the Air Force recruited 31,983 airmen into the ranks, three more than what it set as its recruiting goal for the year. About 6,000 recruits currently are waiting for jobs to open up in the Air Force before they can begin basic training, Andrews said.

The irony of Andrews’ office is that it is placed strategically in the Galleria Mall, where increasing recruiting tallies seem to correlate with decreasing commerce.

Andrews makes no bones about why recruiting numbers are up in each of the four services: The economy.

“There are no jobs in the demographic of people we recruit,” he said.

With unemployment in Georgia at 10.1 percent, enlisting in the military can be an attractive career option for young people looking for a stable living. But the economy places added demands on people looking to join.

“Not everybody who walks in is going to meet our eligibility requirements,” Andrews said.

While the Army relaxed age standards for enlistment in the past few years, the Air Force went the other direction, running credit checks on recruits and tightening restrictions on tattoos.

Recruits are given no illusions when they sign their next four years away to the military.

“I tell them, straight up, you’re going to deploy,” said Tech Sgt. Eric Reuter, the second member of the two-man Warner Robins recruiting shop. “It’s going to happen.”

That’s the prospect facing Warner Robins native Daniel Dunn, a 19-year-old recruit beaming with pride and idealism, ready to ship out in March to basic training. He enlisted to be a cyber systems operator, ready to serve in the Air Force for 20 years or more.

“I know there’s a chance,” Dunn said about deploying to Iraq or Afghanistan. That’s fine, he said, “as long as I know I’m protecting my family.”

Derek Crandall, also 19, enlisted as a space systems operator. He will be working with satellites. His plans are more short term than Dunn’s.

“Do my four years and see where it takes me,” he said.

In four years, the Air Force may be eager to keep him.

By fiscal year 2015, the Air Force wants to increase its ranks slightly to an end strength of 332,800, Lt. Gen. Richard Newton told the House Armed Services panel in May. Newton is the Air Force’s top personnel officer.

Andrews, the son of a career Navy non-commissioned officer, has worked at the Warner Robins Air Force recruiting office for three and a half years.

“The whole time I’ve been a recruiter, we’ve been in a recession,” he said.

To contact writer Thomas L. Day, call 744-4489.