Airman finishes Marine NCO course with honors

  • Published
  • By Samuel King Jr.
  • Team Eglin Public Affairs
NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. --  More than 90 gunnery sergeants in pressed khaki shirts and green pants marched up individually to receive their Marine Corps Staff NCO Academy, Advanced Course certificates. During the ceremony, a lone Airman in blues stood up, walked to the front and received his certificate of training. Upon accepting, the master sergeant became one of only a few Airmen to ever complete the Marine leadership course.

On Dec. 14, the 53rd Wing's Master Sgt. Nathan Caldwell not only completed the Marine's seven-week leadership course, but also earned distinguished graduate. The professional military education course, held at Camp Pendleton, Calif., is similar to the Air Force's Senior NCO Academy, but focuses on Marine-specific topics such as combat operations, close air support, professional briefings, physical training and joint doctrine in a deployed environment.

"It was a unique challenge stepping into unfamiliar territory where every day I encountered something new to me," said Caldwell who completed the course with a 98 average. "I chose the Marine Academy for the challenge and to gain a new perspective on a sister-service. When given the opportunity, it's important we, as Airmen, should step out of our comfort zones in order to grow as leaders. This was the perfect opportunity to do just that."

The master sergeant said he'd known about the program for a while, but had never given it much thought. His superintendent approached him about it and motivated him to submit a package. This was the first time Airmen looking to attend a sister-service course had to go through a nomination process. Caldwell's nomination was selected by Air Combat Command and eventually approved by (then) Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James Roy.

Caldwell, a flight chief for the battle management division of the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron, here, described the initial experience as humbling. He compared the beginning to how he felt as a new Airman adapting to the Air Force way of life.

"I had to quickly adapt to Marine Corps customs, courtesies and traditions," said the 11-year veteran. "Some aspects of the course were easy to translate, while I was completely lost on others and depended heavily on my platoon."

Caldwell being in the course at all said a lot about him, according to former Marine NCO Academy instructor, Sgt. Maj. (ret.) Scott Standfast.

"The fact the Air Force would trust the Marine Corps in his professional training and development as a leader is a compliment," said Standfast. "He would be treated the same as any other and his fellow students would go out of their way to help him in all aspects of the school."

Marines would also learn from him, according to Standfast.

"Having a member of a sister-service provides a unique perspective due to his experiences and career," Standfast said. "Those comparisons can be used as teaching points and all can gain knowledge from them."

Caldwell said there was an initial curiosity and questions on why he was there, or what motivated him to want to be there.

"After a week, those questions evolved to wanting to know what I thought about specific aspects of the course and how it compared to the Air Force," said the 32-year-old Missouri native. "It's safe to say we were constantly evaluating each other for the duration of the course."

Caldwell said he expected the PT sessions to be intense and the school did not disappoint.

"All of our PT sessions were different - no session was repeated," he said. "The intent (which reinforced the USMC fitness culture) was to give us a multitude of ideas to take back to our units and apply them. I realized quickly there were no quarter-mile tracks, just trails and hills. The Marine Corps fitness culture was evident from day one."

Meeting the Marine Corps physical fitness standards and completing the combat fit test were required for graduation. The CFT is a combat obstacle course with various timed events simulating circumstances found in real-world combat situations.

Caldwell scored a "first class" on the CFT, scoring a 285 out of a maximum 300 points.
After adjusting to so many differences at the beginning, Caldwell said that at the services' foundations, they were quite similar.

"We deal with many of the same issues and strive to develop the same leadership attributes in ourselves and in our Airmen," he said. "Although this was an academic environment, I left with an infinite respect the sacrifices those Marines have made, and will continue to make, for their country."

The 422nd TES is a geographically separated unit of the 53rd Wing, headquartered at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla.