314 AW J flyers set to bring A-game

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Nestor Cruz
  • 19th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. --  The 314th Airlift Wing's C-130J RODEO team is bringing an all-star roster along with their A-game to the Air Mobility RODEO at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.

Team members were selected based on their job performance.

"We have people with proven performance in their daily job and that makes them the best," said Maj. Jacob Sheddan, 62nd Airlift Squadron assistant director of operations and 314th AW 2011 RODEO team chief. "The way we set up the team composition, we've got star performers on all three sides - aircrew, maintenance and joint airdrop inspection. We are set to win."

Other team members are excited and honored to join the team for the first time.

"I'm excited to be able to test my skills in a friendly competition with other aircrews and international partnerships," said Staff Sgt. Leilani McClain, a 48th Airlift Squadron instructor loadmaster. "Every mission is a combined team effort. As a loadmaster, it is nice to be the final step of the process."

No changes were made to the team's daily training, aside from syncing up team members schedules.

"The only thing we really had to do was look at scheduling ... try to get everybody together so they can start to build a cohesive team partnership in order to maximize our efforts," said Sheddan.

The C-130J team will have the chance to showcase their talents in various events including air land, air drop, assault zone and joint airdrop inspection.

"In addition to the flying events, we will compete for best C-130 aircrew and best AMC wing," said Sheddan with a smirk. "Even though we are [part of] Air Education and Training Command, we still anticipate on taking that trophy."

For the 314th AW C-130J team, the RODEO is more than winning trophies.

"Overall, the RODEO is a fantastic opportunity to build partnerships with international teams," said Sheddan. The RODEO is also an opportunity for local community leaders to see what Team Little Rock does for the country, he added.

This year's 314th AW C-130J team members are: Maj. Sterling Stewart, RODEO team chief, and Maj. John Agnew, both from the 314th Operations Group; Staff Sgt. Richard Hadley, Tech. Sgt. Charles Campbell, Maj. Daniel Courtright, and McClain, all from the 48th Airlift Squadron; and Maj. Jonathan Durham, 62nd Airlift Squadron.