Photo By Airman 1st Class Liberty Matthews | U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Luchia Warfield, 436th Communications Squadron Network...... read more read more
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DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. – "The way I changed my mindset when I became a senior noncommissioned officer was the mindset that I lived in a fishbowl," said Senior Master Sgt. John Thormann, 436th Aerial Port Squadron Air Freight superintendent. "When I walk through my warehouse or through the section, the Airmen naturally pause and watch."
Imagine my surprise when I realized how true those words were. I’ve witnessed people in leadership walk into an area full of Airmen, the room often comes to a standstill. Scrutinization, positive and negative, can be felt in the air. There’s more weight to the rank the higher it is, and I had to know: what makes that weight so impressionable to others?
For the enlisted force, a very respectable achievement in a military career can include becoming a SNCO. This milestone constitutes a deeper commitment to leadership and mentorship, but the core values remain the same.
In the U.S. Air Force, the SNCO ranks are made up of master sergeant (E-7), senior master sergeant (E-8) and chief master sergeant (E-9). Reaching any of these is an admirable accomplishment for an enlisted service member, and in 2024, only 5,500 technical sergeants were selected for promotion to master sergeant out of 29,497 eligible.
The transition to SNCO means you have mastered the techniques and abilities required of NCOs, and now are able to take on the responsibility of the care, guidance, advocacy and management of the junior enlisted force.
A personal goal of mine is to one day become a chief master sergeant. So naturally, as a Public Affairs airman, I take my questions to anyone who will answer. I sat down with four individuals out of these ranks and posed the question: what does being an SNCO mean to you?
“Accountability,” said Master Sgt. Markus Paugh, 436th Airlift Wing Executive Services superintendent. “It’s why we wear the rank, not only to be accountable for the people, we’re trying to train them to become the next leaders of the Air Force.”
For Paugh, it’s all about holding that integrity of making the right choice when no one is around and setting the bar for respect. They uphold the highest standards and set the example for the lower ranks.
As an SNCO, you’re entrusted with the care of everyone up and down the chain of command. You might be asked to fill any role or responsibility, ranging from senior enlisted leader to first sergeant, even to career field manager–like Chief Master Sgt. Shonta Simes, Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations senior enlisted leader.
“It takes a level of commitment because you have to know what you’re charged to do as an SNCO,” said Simes. “We take an SNCO charge when we first get promoted, and everything that comes with that is what is given to us – and it’s not optional.”
Simes takes pride in her time at AFMAO, raising up Airmen in the way she believes will set them up for success.
“When you put on SNCO, it will change you,” Simes said. “It will change your way of thinking and you’ll realize very quickly that a lot of people are looking for you to be that leader. My very first leader that I looked to was a master sergeant. I watched the relationship between my immediate supervisor and his supervisor, the master sergeant, and how he carried himself, and I knew right away that’s what I wanted to be.”
When it comes to leading Airmen, Simes taught me that it comes down to how you carry yourself and how you react to the circumstances around you.
“We’re being watched by the nation,” Simes said. “I think it’s important to always be a leader, in and out of uniform, because someone is always looking up to us to do the right thing.”
Between my interviews with Simes and Thormann, I realized that you cannot lead without service. And you cannot serve without also leading. There is not one without the other.
“Service,” said Thormann. “My service as a young Airman was more tactile in getting the job done and defending my country. My mindset has changed to serving the Airmen and empowering them to be able to do their job. That is my service.”
Whether it’s checking in on a wingman or volunteering to lead a project, there’s pride in service before self. It’s not just putting in hours or being present in a room, it’s showing up in ways that are meaningful to others and make an impact.
Rarely is there a case where a person can integrate these aspects of the Whole Airman Concept and be successful without the influence of a mentor. Their intent is to nourish and provide you with the necessary tools to reach your goals.
“Mentorship,” said Master Sgt. Luchia Warfield, 436th Communications Squadron Network Control Center section chief. “I wouldn’t have got to where I am now if I didn’t have the mentors I needed. Whether it’s educational or professional, you have to have a mentor.”
Mentorship doesn’t stop when you become an SNCO – it evolves. As an SNCO, you gain new mentors and take on the responsibility of guiding junior ranks to help them grow. It is not the role of an SNCO to climb the ranks but to lift up others as you go and build up a better generation of Airmen.
“Sometimes we’re our own worst enemies,” said Warfield. “If you’re constantly thinking negative thoughts all of the time, that will become the output you’re going to have. You need those people who are outside looking in, who will help push you in the right direction.”
From accountability to leadership, service to mentorship, SNCOs like Paugh, Simes, Thormann and Warfield display that leadership isn’t just a rank–it’s a call to action. A call to serve with integrity, to guide with purpose and to leave the Air Force stronger than they found it. The service is not about who you impress or how fast you can put on stripes–it’s about who you bring along the way.
Those in leadership can face pressure to be the example they want to see. But they are some of the very few who understand it’s an honor to uphold such scrutiny so that the next generation of Airmen might be better than the last.
| Date Taken: | 04.09.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 04.09.2025 09:57 |
| Story ID: | 494915 |
| Location: | DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, DELAWARE, US |
| Web Views: | 1,121 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, The SNCO: What does it mean to you?, by A1C Liberty Matthews, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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