Photo By Maj. John Stamm | The career path of Squadron Aviation Resource Management Section Chief, Master Sgt....... read more read more
The career path of Squadron Aviation Resource Management Section Chief, Master Sgt. Tracey Adams, with the 908th Flying Training Wing’s 703rd Helicopter Squadron, reads like a sight-seeing map of a touristy small town; there are twists and turns, and frequent pit stops, all within a limited geographic area.
Through two Air Force components, three Air Force Specialty Codes, and four different statuses in 18 years of service, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama, is the only permanent duty base she has ever been assigned to.
“I joined the [active duty] Air Force in 2007 as a young college student, to help pay for school and travel,” Adams said. “After basic [military training] and technical school I was assigned to the 42nd Security Forces Squadron.”
Adams spent six years on active duty, then seamlessly transferred to what was then the 908th Airlift Wing, an Air Force Reserve wing on the installation, in April 2013, taking a traditional reserve position as a pharmacy technician with the 908th Aeromedical Staging Squadron. However, the position had limitations on her career progression, and she felt that she had more to offer the military and desired to show that in a different way.
“We couldn’t work in the pharmacy on the unit training assembly weekends because we didn’t have a pharmacist,” she said. “I was performing a lot of extra duties to keep busy, but what I really wanted was a position where I could get more hands-on with the job itself.”
Fortunately, Adams came across a new opportunity to expand her military career. After crossing paths with an Airman she met when she was security forces, she was informed that there was a position available with the 908th Operations Support Squadron as squadron aviation resource management.
On July 17, 2023, Adams started a full-time civilian position at the 908th OSS while also serving in the same capacity as a traditional reservist. Approximately one year later, and just as the 908th AW was officially re-designating as the 908th Flying Training Wing, Adams was named as the 908th’s Civilian Category II of the Quarter for the second quarter of 2024.
Shortly after, Adams utilized her civilian and Reserve experience to gain an Active Guard and Reserve position with 703rd HS.
Adams said she loves her job and sees herself as a combination of mother, sister and teacher.
“The most satisfaction I get is when Airmen come into the career field and start learning the job,” she said. “Everything is new and challenging, but you get to watch them learn, expand their skills and knowledge. They begin to work independently, develop new ideas, naturally teach and lead others.”
| Date Taken: | 03.12.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 03.12.2025 17:25 |
| Story ID: | 492668 |
| Location: | MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA, US |
| Web Views: | 489 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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Maxwell Air Force Base
