Stan/Eval Division celebrates 50th anniversary

  • Published
  • By Kevin Gaddie
  • Team Eglin Public Affairs
EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  The Air Force Material Command/A3V Flight Operations and Standardization/Evaluation Division celebrated 50 years of service at a ceremony here July 26.

"The Stan/Eval Division plays a critical role in ensuring that AFMC's flight operations run safely and smoothly," said Col. Michael Contratto, the division chief.

Stan/Eval personnel visit every division, center and range within AFMC that possesses aircraft, and evaluates compliance with flight publications, and tests and reviews their overall flying program. The division visits more than 30 flying units within AFMC within a two-year cycle, according to Col. (ret.) Bob Wood, who served as Stan/Eval's chief from 1999 to 2012.

Contratto said the division provides technical order waivers; policy management through numerous Air Force Instructions and AFMC supplements; serves as the functional manager for several enlisted career fields, and manages flight training allocations for AFMC. Staff Assistant Visits, aircrew and jumper performance evaluations, Aero-Club evaluations, and aircraft operations inspections of contractor flight facilities are also necessary for mission accomplishment.

Stan/Eval's 12-person office has a combined 273 years of military and civil service and its nine active flyers have accumulated some 37,000 hours of flight time, Contratto said.

"Standardization and Evaluation organizations are the foundation of excellence in the aviation community," said Brig. Gen. William Thornton, AFMC's director of Air, Space and Information Operations. "This AFMC Stan/Eval division was established 50 years ago this month in Air Force Systems Command to elevate aircrew proficiency and knowledge through flight evaluations and testing. What is not well known is the critical role they play in the command's flight testing. All waivers to exceed aircraft limits for testing are processed and approved by this team; training requirements for all aircrew and minimum currency requirements are established and tracked. There is no doubt this organization is a key pillar of the safe, effective and efficient operation that occur every day in the command."

The division was created at Eglin in 1963 as a tenant command, with its original headquarters at Andrews AFB, to establish a command standardization/evaluation function for Air Force Systems Command.

"Eglin was selected in 1963, because of the flying squadrons and units there, putting the Stan/Eval division close to their regular and recurring flight operations," Wood said.

Wood said through evaluations conducted by Stan/Eval, field units within AFMC have maintained an optimal level of performance over the 50-year time span.

"We structured, standardized, and evaluated field units and were able to motivate and raise their performance bar, from a flying operating standardization perspective," he said. "It's a necessary evil for a field unit to be evaluated, and it's a necessary check and balance to have offices such as Stan/Eval and Flight Operations in place to conduct those evaluations."

Contratto said Stan/Eval's core function of setting and enforcing standards for AFMC's extremely diverse and complex flight operations remains at the forefront, just as it was 50 years ago.

"We are very proud to have such a rich office heritage and are excited to carry on its mission and legacy into a sixth decade of service to the AFMC," he said.