David Davidson, Class of 2009 (from Kaynor Tech) Luke Air Force Base, Glendale, Arizona
What are you up to? I am currently a Senior Airman (sew on Staff Sergeant) in the United States Air Force, stationed at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona. I'm a Aircraft Armament Systems Technician, which basically means Aircraft Weapons Load Crew member. I work on the F-16 Fighting Falcon. It's my responsibility to ensure that the weapons system on the aircraft works properly to ensure safe and successful weapons release. I also load the various bombs, missiles, and guns that are on the aircraft. I'm married with two kids, a 4-year-old and 9-month-old. I am also working on getting a certificate in Medical Billing and Coding.
How'd you get here? I did not graduate from Watertown High School, but I did go to school in Watertown up until 8th grade and spent a pretty good chunk of my life living there. I ended up going to Kaynor Tech for high school. I chose the electronics shop as my trade of choice.
I wasn't too sure what I wanted to do after high school. After graduation, I was denied a scholarship at NVCC, which lead me to work a year at CoCo Key Water Resort as a lifeguard.
I started to become really interested in the military, more specifically, the air force. I got the ball rolling on the process of getting into the air force and I finally left for basic training in November of 2010. I graduated from basic training in January of 2011. After spending 5 months in Texas, I graduated tech school. After tech school, it was onto Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho. During the four years spent in Idaho, many things happened. I started working on the F15E Strike Eagle. I was TDY (temporary duty assignment) to quite a few places (Louisiana, Las Vegas, Panama City, Salt Lake City) and had a seven month deployment overseas. Also, during this time, I met and got married to my wife. In July of 2015, I PCS'd (Permanent Change of Stations) to Luke Air Force Base.
What are your goals? Up until recently my goal was to make the next rank of Staff Sergeant. I found out a couple weeks ago that I'll be putting on Staff Sergeant on October 1st, and I can say that I achieved that goal. My next goal is to get back into school and start working on a degree to set myself up for my future outside of the air force.
Advice for WHS Students? Don't limit yourself for your plans after high school. I studied electronics for four years in high school and now I'm working in a labor intensive aircraft maintenance job where I rarely put my knowledge of electronics to use. There are countless career fields out there. If you try one and you like it you should stick with it. If not, then try something else. It's better to do something you like than to be miserable doing something you don't.
How did you start your day? My day typically starts the same. I wake up at 5 am, shower and put the uniform on, have a bowl of cereal and then I'm out the door for work.
