CSAF presents General Lew Allen Award to Nellis Airman Published Jan. 7, 2011 By Senior Airman Michael Charles Nellis Public Affairs NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. -- A Nellis maintenance Airman was selected as a recipient of the General Lew Allen Jr. Award by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz during an award ceremony at the Pentagon Jan. 4, exactly one year after General Allen's passing away. Senior Master Sgt. Anthony Smith, the 57th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron Viper Aircraft Maintenance Unit superintendent, was one of two individuals presented with the award which recognizes their work with aircraft during the sortie generation. The awards are given annually to honor a base-level officer and a senior NCO working in aircraft, munitions or missile maintenance. "This is about fixing machines and maintaining platforms, and doing it better than anyone else in our Air Force," General Schwartz said. "These individuals have excelled at performing and leading others to produce combat capability." General Lew Allen Jr. was commissioned upon his graduation from the U.S. Military Academy in 1946. He later went on to become the 10th Air Force Chief of Staff before retiring in 1982. He died Jan. 4, 2010. During the ceremony, Sergeant Smith spent most of his time giving credit for receiving such a prestigious award to the family, friends and Airmen with whom he works. "I have so many people to thank for helping me earn such an honor," Sergeant Smith said. "Nobody ever gets here without being allotted several opportunities to fail along the way, however, I always had somebody there to pick me up, dust me off and make me strive to be better." Sergeant Smith's award citation noted several accomplishments including leading his team to maintain a 99 percent weapons effectiveness rate during more than 1,900 live-drop sorties and reducing the aircraft cannibalization rate by 10 percent while maintaining an 86 percent mission-capable rate.
