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Airmen bid goodbye to first enlisted leader

Paul W. Airey mentored scores of enlisted airmen during his years as the first chief master sergeant of the Air Force. Those airmen turned out at Arlington National Cemetery on Thursday morning to pay their final respects to their former leader.

During a full military service complete with a low-flying B-52, Airey was described as “the most respected enlisted airman in the history of the Air Force” by Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Rodney McKinley.

Airey died March 11 in Panama City, Fla. He was 85.

Though he retired in 1970, he never lost touch with the Air Force enlisted community, said Pentagon first sergeant, Chief Master Sgt. Steve Haggett. The two met during Haggett’s stint at Hurlburt Field, Fla., not far from Airey’s Panama City home.

“Anytime we needed him, he would come up, almost on a weekly basis,” Haggett said. “He always found the time.”

Airey enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1942 and served as a gunner on B-24 bombers in World War II, flying missions over northern Africa, Italy, Germany and Austria. In 1944, he was shot down over German-held territory and was held prisoner for almost a year by the Luftwaffe.

While serving in Okinawa in the 1950s, Airey earned the Legion of Merit for developing a plan to control corrosion in radio parts.

He became the first chief master sergeant of the Air Force on April 3, 1967.

At his funeral service, Airey’s ashes were buried alongside those of his wife, Shirley Airey.

McKinley handed Airey’s son, former Chief Master Sgt. Dale Airey, the flag that had draped the coffin.