Family Secret - Altus Air Force base in Oklahoma

Altus is an important base in the strategic air mobility world, but life at this little base on the prairie is really a family treasure.

The closest mall is an hours drive away, and the biggest excitement is when the rodeo rolls into town. Concert and theater fans have to make a two-plus-hour trek to one of the "Big Cities" (Oklahoma City to the northeast and Dallas to the southeast). It's hot in the summer and cool in the winter. And that's just how most of the troops at Altus Air Force Base like it.

Granted, Altus takes some getting used to. But once newbies figure out the pace and pleasures of the plains, it's a lifestyle most don't like leaving.

"We always say folks come here kicking and screaming, and they leave the same way," said Holley Urbanski, president of the Altus chamber of commerce.

Altus, the base, gets its name from Altus, the town. Go figure! Altus is a farm community of about 20,000 souls, located an hours drive west of Lawton, Okla. The town is much what you would expect in a farm community -- except there's more than one traffic light, and it has a Super WalMart (yes, Wally World is a big deal). Altus, pronounced "Al-tus," not "All-tus" -- the locals will politely correct you -- is just four square miles. But, what it lacks in big city comforts, it makes up for in other ways.

Handshake deal

Tech. Sgt. Scott Hicking, an instructor with the 54th Airlift Squadron, has an example. When the noncommissioned officer got here last year, he and his wife needed new living room furniture. They went to a local store and found exactly what they wanted.

But, it was more than $2,000. They weren't sure they could afford it, and midway through husband-and-wife deliberations, a sales clerk came up and asked

them if they found something they liked. Hicking hesitantly admitted, "yes," fully expecting the full-court-press from the sales-shark.

"He shook my hand and asked if today was too early to deliver it," Hicking said. Still in shock, Hicking asked about payment. The salesman said, "pay us what you can, when you can."

"That was it. No contract, no credit check. Just a handshake," Hicking said. "That's what living here is like."

His isn't an isolated incident. The folks are just nice.

"We still lock our doors here, but we're proud of our town," said T.L. Gramling, Altus' mayor. "The people here are friendly, and family is important."

That family includes nearly 5,000 military and civilian people and their families at the base.

"This is the best military community I've ever seen -- bar none," said Brig. Gen. Quentin L. Peterson, 97th Air Mobility Wing commander.

As you might expect, the base is big business. It pumps more than $100 million a year into the local economy and is the largest employer in town. But, Peterson said, "the relationship is more than just money. The people here are patriots and genuinely appreciate having us here."

Takin' a break

The same is true for the military people. They appreciate being here, especially the instructors who have sought out this family haven. The majority of the people at Altus have roots in Air Mobility Command. Most come from Travis Air Force Base, Calif., McChord Air Force Base, Wash., Scott Air Force Base, Ill., Dover Air Force Base, Del., Charleston Air Force Base, S.C., or McGuire Air Force Base, N.J.

The mission at Altus is to train aircrew members for America's strategic air mobility aircraft -- the C-5, C-17, C-141 and KC-135 (See "Heavy Training," Page 20). Altus offers these instructors a break from the brutal pace of the airlift world.

Master Sgt. John Ashford, a C-5 flight engineer instructor who's logged 3,500 flying hours on the C-5, has been at Altus five years, and loves it. He started flying C-5s at the start of Desert Shield. "I had a three-month-old girl when I started flying, and she didn't know who I was the first two years of her life," he said. "I doubt I would still be married if I hadn't volunteered to come here."

Ashford's sentiments are echoed by almost everyone at Altus who wears a flight suit or who has a family.

Staff Sgt. Barbara F. Ricciotti is a C-17 loadmaster instructor. She spent 10 years at Charleston before seeking refuge at Altus. "Some years I spent more than 200 days on the road," Ricciotti said. "I was married, but that consisted of me coming home and leaving a note on the fridge saying, 'Hi, pay this bill. I'll be back in two weeks.'"

Ricciotti enjoys teaching people the C-17, but what she enjoys most about her assignment is going home to her son every night.

The nature of Altus' mission means a lot of "around-the-flagpole" flying. Staff Sgt. Chris Hennion, a C-5 instructor with the 56th Airlift Squadron explains what that means to the instructors. "If you miss breakfast here, you're sure to make dinner, and you will definitely sleep in your own bed at night."

Livin' the fun life

Family life. That's what draws people here. Once they get here, though, what amazes them is just how beautiful and modern the base is.

Altus has one of the best gyms in the Air Force, which is open 24-7. It has a brand new child development center, which actually has room for kids, without a three-year waiting list. It also has a double-flume water slide and pool that rivals some small amusement parks. But, base housing is probably the biggest shocker for newcomers.

The base has 980 units -- 184 of which are new. Most of the others have been recently renovated. Drive through the new housing and you think you're in an off-base subdivision. Better yet, no two-year waiting list.

"I had housing an hour after I got on base," said Capt. Dion Graham, a C-17 instructor pilot. "It's the best move I've had."

Life at Altus isn't all peaches-and-cream, especially for single folks. Base leaders realize the adjustment can be hard for single airmen and officers, so they put special emphasis on doing things to bring singles into the "family."

The base top-three organization sponsors at least one event a month, like a burger-burn or sports event.

"It's a small base and a small wing, but there's a lot of opportunities here," said Master Sgt. Renaldo Beatty, 97th Security Forces Squadron first sergeant. "We stress the need to get out, explore and take advantage of life here."

When Capt. Tiwana Wright, a lawyer, got orders to Altus she had to reach for a map just to find the place. She grew up in Baltimore, and admits being plenty worried about what she was getting into. Especially as she made her way to the base.

"I'd look left and look right and see nothing. Lots of nothing," Wright said about her drive across the plains. "At first I had a lot of Blockbuster nights."

After a while though she changed her attitude and decided to see what the plains had to offer. She was surprised.

"The key to staying entertained is trying new things," she said. In that attempt she went to her first rattlesnake round-up in August. "It was disgusting, but entertaining."

In addition to seeking entertainment, Wright has found an unexpected bonus at Altus -- her level of responsibility at work. As a junior captain at a large base she would've learned only one aspect of working in the judge advocate general office. At Altus, because it's small, she's learning everything.

This unexpected bonus overflows to just about every job on base. The folks also know their mission has impact. Without their product -- combat ready aircrews -- the vast Air Force mobility machine shuts down.

The bottom line on this little base on the prairie is it's a well kept "family secret." And, the folks here want to keep it that way.

COPYRIGHT 2001 U.S. Air Force, Air Force News Agency
COPYRIGHT 2001 Gale Group