Air Force officials name 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year

  • Published
  • By Air Force Personnel Center
Air Force officials have selected the service's top enlisted members, naming the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2009. 

Two of those Airmen are from the Peterson complex. Senior Airman Alexander Royal is a Joint Terminal Attack Controller for the 13th Air Support Operations Squadron at Fort Carson, and Senior Master Sgt. Jeffery Steagall who is manager of communications information inspections for the Air Force Space Command Inspector General office.

An Air Force selection board at the Air Force Personnel Center here considered 33 nominees who represented major commands, direct reporting units, field operating agencies and Air Staff agencies. The board selected the 12 based on superior leadership, job performance and personal achievements. 

The nominees are authorized to wear the Outstanding Airman of the Year ribbon, while the 12 winners will wear the bronze service star device on the ribbon. The winners will also wear the Outstanding Airman of the Year Badge for one year from the date of formal presentation. 

The remaining winners include:
Staff Sgt. Johanna Aviles, Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif.
Senior Master Sgt. Mary Bechdel, Royal Air Force Molesworth, England
Master Sgt. Tyrone Bingham, Offutt AFB, Neb.
Senior Airman Channel Bolton-Scholl, McChord AFB, Wash.
Tech. Sgt. John Carter, RAF Mildenhall, England
Tech. Sgt. Manuel Herrera, Scott AFB, Ill.
Tech. Sgt. Benjamin Horton, Hill AFB, Utah
Tech. Sgt. Jennifer Laufer, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
Tech. Sgt. Marisol Lozada, Cannon AFB, N.M.
Master Sgt. Christopher Pollock, Kadena Air Base, Japan 

The Air Force Association will honor the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year during its Air and Space Conference and Technology Exposition in Washington, D.C., this September. The Airmen will also serve as members of the AFA's enlisted advisory council for the next year.