RAF MILDENHALL, England --
Kneeling in the damp dirt, under a blistering hot sun with a
cool breeze to ease the humid air, he smooths out the dirt with a back and
forth motion, propping a stone border with a clump of dirt to ensure it’s set
in place.
This is one of many jobs Senior Airman Dishawn Harvey, 100th
Civil Engineer Squadron Horizontal Pavement and Construction Equipment operator,
along with other Airmen from the 100th CES Horizontal Pavement and Construction
Equipment, also known as “dirt boys”, complete on a daily basis. For them, no
two days are the same.
“We basically do anything from large-scale road construction
to actively laying asphalt,” said Harvey. “We also do little things like making
fences, maintaining the cleanliness of the airfield, and demolitions -anything
heavy-equipment wise is basically us.”
The Airmen and Ministry of Defence civilians work back-to-back
workorders rather than in a specific area of expertise. Next to the Heating, Ventilation and Air
Conditioning shop, they receive some of the most workorders on base.
“I know when we had funding there was a large number of jobs
and you could put people where they needed to be. At one point we had a crane
team, an asphalt team and a concrete team. Now we just work together from one
job to the next,” explained Harvey.
With the 100th Air Refueling Wing expected to deliver agile
and responsive global air refueling, and forward-based power projection, the “dirt
boys” are definitely an important component to the mission.
“Everybody in the Air Force has their own little thing to do
for the whole machine to work,” Harvey said. “Our job is definitely important
because without us there is no airfield.”
Being labelled a “dirt boy” is not much of an offensive word
in their book.
“I think it’s a big pride thing in the Air Force (being
called a dirt boy),” Harvey said. “Not everyone has their own brand or
nickname. People take really great pride in being a dirt boy and theres a
saying, ‘Once a dirt boy always a dirt boy’.”
In order to accomplish everyday jobs, these Airmen use a
variety of equipment including rollers, dump trucks, cranes, excavators,
tractors, and fork lifts to name a few.
“What I enjoy most about my job is being able to make things
from the ground up making what other people cannot make, and being able to
construct large-scale things into something that is kind of art form related.” said
Harvey.
These “boys” are one of many organizations on base that have
a huge impact on an everyday mission and will always be important with the needs of planes in the
air.