SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --
Staff Sgt. Arthur Verchot
372nd Training Squadron Detachment 12 F-35 tactical aircraft maintenance
section instructor and native of Venice, Florida, has been in the Air Force for
nine and a half years and is the Instructor of the Week at Sheppard Air Force
Base, Texas, for the week of Sept. 13-19, 2016.
Most significant accomplishments:
“I pide myself on being a ‘go-to’ technician for the F-35
aircraft,” Verchot said. “I was handpicked at Eglin Air Force Base to be one of
the initial cadre for the F-35 program. After gaining extensive technical
knowledge out on the flight line, I was awarded the opportunity to become an
instructor for F-35 TAMS at Luke Air Force Base in the field training detachment.
Since becoming an instructor, I have earned my second Community Collage of the Air
Force degree, and am currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in the Science of
Aviation.”
Airman’s story:
“My original plan in life changed like many others,” he
said. “I was originally pursuing a college degree to become an instructor, but I
decided that I wanted to explore my options and dropped out of school to join
the Air Force. Since joining, I have been stationed at Royal Air Force
Lakenheath, Eglin Air Force Base, and Luke Air Force Base and I have been
deployed and TDY everywhere in between.”
“Eventually, my Air Force time has led me back to the
original calling of being an instructor,” Verchot said. “I love spending time
with my family, including my beautiful wife, four boys, and a girl on the way.
With a lot of responsibility, both on and off duty, I still try to find the
time to make an impact in the community by training service dogs that are
donated to families with disabilities. My short term goals include finishing my
degree from Embry Riddle and becoming debt free by the end of 2017.”
Supervisor’s
comments:
“Staff Sergeant Verchot teaches four F-35 maintenance
courses that award a total of 31 CCAF credit hours upon completion in the Air
Force’s largest fighter field training detachment,” said Master Sgt. Gabriel
Sistrunk, detachment chief. “Since becoming an instructor in April 2015, he has
amassed over 900 teaching hours and graduated more than 50 technicians to
support not only the 56th Fighter Wing, but other units across the Air Force.
Recently, Staff Sergeant Verchot was handpicked to lead the new F-35 Mission Ready
Airman program at Luke Air Force Base. The program is slated to produce more
than 200 crew chiefs annually to F-35 units.”
“He is the first F-35 initial and advanced skill
levels dual qualified instructor set to certify all newly hired detachment crew
chief instructors,” Sistrunk continued. “Along with his teaching duties he is also
responsible for submitting action requests to Lockheed Martin via the Autonomic
Logistics Information System for F-35 system integrity. Finally, he is the lead
on Detachment 12 F-35 curriculum program and charged with verifying joint
service courseware accuracy.”