Ridley alum named 2019 Airman of the Year by Air Force Association
A Ridley Township native has been named one of the top airmen for his service to the U.S. Air Force.
The non-profit Air Force Association named SMSgt. Philip McAlpin Jr. one of its 2019 Outstanding Airman of The Year. Philip was one of a dozen airmen and women to receive this honor for their superior leadership, job performance, community involvement, and personal achievement in the past year.
The citation honoring his service reads as follows: “Senior Master Sergeant Philip McAlpin Jr. led 28 multi-craft Airmen in the daily maintenance of Syria’s sole C-17A capable semi-prepared landing zone. His efforts delivered
7,900 warfighters, ensured
900 combat sorties, and the reception and deployment of 8,900 short tons of essential cargo supporting Operation INHERENT RESOLVE.
“He identified critical airfield deficiencies and established courses of action to ensure Air Line of Communications remained open throughout the region during the Battle of Ar Raqqa. His efforts and data led to him authoring the U.S. Air Force’s first Comprehensive Landing Zone Maintenance Plan, reducing down time from
12 to four hours daily, resulting in an increase of
90 sorties per month. “He also managed 32 projects valued at $3.7 million in support of the Special Operations Joint Task Force Syria.”
All honorees received their awards at a special ceremony in Washington D.C. last month which was attended by McAlpin, his parents, Maryanne and Philip, sister, Maryanne, and wife, Joanna.
“I’ve never been big on that recognition. It caught me off guard,” said McAlpin when reached for comment in early October. “It didn’t sink in how big it was until the event.”
Earning the award was a new height in his almost 20-year career in the Air Force which started out of uncertainty about what to do after high school. But, he admitted, being in the military was in the cards
McAlpin, 36, was raised in the Woodlyn section of Ridley Township. He graduated from Ridley High School in 2001 and had his parents sign off on the delay entry program for the Air Force. He began his basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas which coincided with the 9/11 attacks.
“During that time everything was on lockdown and we didn’t have a lot of exposure to it,” said McAlpin of that time during the worst terror attack on U.S. soil. “It was very limited movement so a lot of the basic training was conducting everything in a small area and a lot of time in the barracks, which was unfortunate.”
After finishing basic training he stayed on active duty right up to the present, serving on air bases around the world from Langley, Va., to Osan Air Base in Korea. He has had several deployments in his career which have included the conflicts in the Middle East from August 2017 to April 2018. He earned a Bronze Star Medal for that deployment.
It was at that time that McAlpin’s favorite football team, the Philadelphia Eagles of course, won their first Super Bowl.
He said hearing about their win got him through that period of deployment.
“I was in Syria and it helped me get through some through times there,” he said.
It was his work in Syria that, coincidentally, earned him the Air Force Association’s 2019 Airmen of the Year Award.
“I’m in awe, but I’m incredible grateful,” he said of the honor. “There are a lot of people I know who are just as deserving.”
McAlpin said the honor will allow him to travel and attend special events and go on public speaking engagements for the Air Force.
He is currently enrolled in the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy which will provide him with a professional military education to supplement his senior rank. McAlpin will complete this academy in June 2020.
After the academy and with the AOY award, McAlpin wasn’t sure what his next career move would be in the Air Force. He knows, however, that he will stay as long as he can.
“I will be the guy that ends up crying when I have to take off the uniform,” he said. It’s a far cry from any uncertainty about what he wanted to do after high school. “I honestly can say that if I could go back and change anything I don’t think I would. I had incredible experiences, good, bad or indifferent and I’m happy and proud of where I’ve come from and where I am now.”
To potential new recruits he says “that even if you’re hesitant at first at taking that step with the opportunity being presented, you never know what opportunity will be coming down the road. Career is one great opportunity after another. It’s the best decision I’ve ever made next to marrying my wife.”