Photo By Senior Master Sgt. Jeremy Farson | Airman 1st Class Brady Cochran poses in front of a KC-135R at Sumpter Smith Joint...... read more read more
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Cochran comes from a long line of military service. His great-grandfather was a member of the U.S. Army and part of the initial wave to storm Omaha Beach, France, on D-Day of World War II. Both his grandfather and his father served in the Alabama Army National Guard. His brother, Dylan, is currently serving in the Alabama Army National Guard and another brother, Ethan, is set to join this June.
Cochran originally considered enlisting in the U.S. Navy but decided that there were better opportunities available here and enlisted in the 117th Maintenance Squadron in February 2023.
“The opportunities in the Air Force are more applicable to what I want to do and the proximity to my home was an added advantage,” he said. “I want to fly and become a test pilot. Right now I am working toward building up flight hours.”
Being part of a flying club in Huntsville fuels his ambition to fly. He has a goal to start flying at some point next year. He has found resources within the unit to get him in the air and behind the yoke of an aircraft. Cochran credits members within his shop for being a valuable resource to accomplish his aspirations of becoming a pilot. Some of them share his passion for flight.
“There are people here who also fly and have given me guidance on where to start, what to focus on and what resources are available in terms of aviation and how to fly,” Cochran said.
They have given resources to study for pre-flight and ground exams, given information on the flight physical and have extended an offer to go flying. Cochran has not been able to take advantage of the offer to go flying with his fellow members yet, but he plans to do so in the future and is thankful for all of their assistance.
As an aerospace propulsion apprentice his duties include fixing aircraft engines, auxiliary power units, perform flight-hour inspections and maintenance on pre-flight and post-flight faults. Besides the hands-on experience of working on aircraft Cochran appreciates the teamwork aspect within his unit.
“The camaraderie here is like being part of a family,” he said. “I always look forward to coming to drill every month and getting to serve is an awesome opportunity that I enjoy.”
He believes his supervision has been an active and positive influence in developing his career. In addition to the family-like atmosphere they have set standards that are clearly communicated.
“They have definitely helped facilitate my learning and give me objectives to hit so there is no confusion on what needs to be done,” Cochran said.
“They set clear expectations for me in completing my mission-related tasks and career development.”
His trainers outline tasks in technical orders, walk through tasks with him and provide hands-on instruction. They assist in planning tasks that need to be signed off and how to study to achieve 5-level in his career field. They look at what training is achievable in a drill period and set a reasonable plan to accomplish this plan within the given amount of time.
Cochran grew up and currently lives in northern Alabama. He is a graduate of the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) and is not short on ambition. In May 2023 he received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and is slated to enroll in UAH’s aerospace engineer master’s program in the Fall 2024 semester. Not intending to stop there Cochran has his eyes set on a doctorate degree in aerospace systems engineering.
“That degree is especially helpful in becoming a test pilot, but one of the things I wanted to work on is rocket propulsion,” he said. “I did work at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center at Redstone Arsenal and that’s where my love for that was fostered, so hopefully I can return to NASA at some point as a rocket engineer.”
| Date Taken: | 08.07.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 09.06.2024 17:58 |
| Story ID: | 480316 |
| Location: | BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA, US |
| Web Views: | 21 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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