GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASE, Ind. --
When the award was first presented in 1981, it was named in honor of the first U.S. Air Force Academy graduate to receive the Medal of Honor – Capt. Lance P. Sijan.
Sijan was shot down over Vietnam Nov. 9, 1967, and evaded capture for 45 days despite enduring serious injuries. He later died as a POW in Vietnam and was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism. Today, the Lance P. Sijan awarded is presented to individuals who have demonstrated outstanding leadership abilities across all Air Force Specialty Codes.
Senior Master Sgt. James Billing, 434th Maintenance Squadron production superintendent, recently received the Lance P. Sijan award for all of Air Force Reserve Command for his leadership excellence from June 2016 to June 2017.
“Senior Master Sgt. Billing's position as the Assistant Superintendent for the 434th Maintenance Squadron requires a high degree of maintenance discipline, teamwork, leadership and skill all of which he possess in spades,” said Maj. Nicole Fink, 434th Maintenance Squadron commander. His sound decision making and stellar work ethic made him the ideal nominee for the Lance P. Sijan award."
Billing was notified he received the Sijan award during a deployment to Turkey.
“It’s an honor to be nominated for it and to win for all of Air Force Reserve Command,” Billing said. “It just shows the great people that we have and are working with. Any leadership award comes down to the people that work for you – that do the job for you. They’re the ones that make my job easier. And our maintenance guys are outstanding; they do a great job and our planes are known to outdo active-duty and the Reserve for how well they fly and how they look. That all comes down to our maintenance guys.”
During the period which the award covers, Billing filled the role of multiple positions.
“When I was deployed to Turkey, I was the lead production superintendent there, covering all flightline maintenance,” Billing said. “We were able to set up Incirlik from bare bones; there was nothing there to support tankers; and we were able to fly missions within 24 hours. Then, here [at Grissom] I filled in for Chief Cassidy as the superintendent while he was deployed and maintained the day-today operations. In Chief Cassidy’s absence, I oversaw 10 maintenance back shops, coordinated with the flightline to make sure all planes flew and maintenance was done.”
Although Billing said he is unsure why he was nominated for the award, others disagree.
"Senior Master Sgt. Billing is a consummate professional who is very deserving of this award," said Lt. Col. Dwight Meese, 434th Maintenance Group commander. “Senior Master Sgt. Billing important in his management of the MXS Periodic Inspection (PE) process, ensuring inspections are completed in a safe and timely manner so that the aircraft can be put back in the flying rotation with minimal downtime."
The 434th ARW is the largest
KC-135R Stratotanker unit in the
Air Force Reserve Command. Men and women from the Hoosier Wing routinely deploy around the world in support of the Air Force mission.
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