Guardian of the Week: 1st Lt. Will Watson

CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, Fla. -- Name: 1st Lt. Will Watson

Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio

What is your primary role? As Flight Commander on day of launch, my responsibility is to lead the government's booster-related engineering and technical team. One primary role is to coordinate the anomaly resolution process throughout the count, and to conduct various readiness poles. I provide a booster GO/NO-GO status for items such as cryogenic load and final terminal count to senior leaders. The vehicle will not launch without concurrence from the FC's team. I will exercise these responsibilities during the simulated G PSIIF-01 Guardian Challenge Op.

What are you looking to gain from Guardian Challenge? Guardian Challenge affords competitors the opportunity to hone their skills by learning to quickly and effectively respond to any situation presented. It ultimately improves techniques and enhances job performance, and aids in creating a teamwork environment. I'm hoping to become a more proficient FC through study and practice!

Why is the 45th Space Wing going to win again? We process more vehicles, perform more critical mission assurance observations, and successfully place more EELV payloads on orbit in one year than the 30th Space Wing does in many. While we can never become complacent...it's all about experience.

Why is a Shark better than a ChickenHawk? While a 'shark' is definitely cooler than a 'chicken' I'd like to think we're all trying to accomplish the same mission.