Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer AcademyIntroductionThere are many types of leaders not only in the military, but in every civilian business around the world . We rarely see a leader who possesses both vision and an ethical leadership style; however, CMSgt Paul W. Airey, the Air Force's first master sergeant, was that type of leader. Throughout this article, I will discuss his ability to be both a visionary and an ethical leader, leading to CMSgt Airey being called a “legend” (LaGrone, 2009, p.2). He was described by former Chief of Staff General Norton Schwartz as an “aviator and one of the service’s true pioneers” (LaGrone, 2009, p.2). CMSgt Airey left a legacy that will impact generations of Air Force aviators because of his traits of vision and ethics. A visionary leader, CMSgt Airey was raised during the Great Depression. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1942 after dropping out of high school (Lokovic, 2009). He was from a small naval town in Massachusetts and joined the Army Air Corps because a young Navy recruiter turned him down (Lokovic, 2009). CMSgt Airey completed basic training in Atlantic City, New Jersey (Lucas, 1997). He was selected as a radio operator on the B-24, which served double duty as a waist gunner (Lucas, 1997). Gen. John P. McConnell and House Armed Services Committee Chairman Rep. Mendel Rivers created the chief petty officer position. Sergeant in the Air Force in 1966 (Lucas, 1997). There were then 5,900 leaders in the Air Force and only 26 could be appointed to the position (Lucas, 1997). CMSgt Airey was selected and became the first Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force and served in this position from April 3...... middle of paper ....../ AF-legend-Airey-dies-85Lifetime Achievement Awards. (nd) Air Force Association. Retrieved from http://www.afa.org/informationfor/military/nataerospaceawards/lifetimeachievementawardsLokovic, J. (June 2009) The Impact of CMSAF Paul Wesley Airey. Retrieved from http://www.shaw.af.mil/news/story/asp?id=123151982Lucas, C. (September 1997) Chief Airey. Air Force Magazine, Vol 80. Retrieved from http://www.airforcemag.com/MagazineArchive/Pages/1997/September 1997/0997airey.aspxThomas N. Barnes Center for Enlisted Education (US) United States. Department of the Air Force, (2012a) Change Management (LM06), Maxwell-Gunter Annex, AL: Department of the Air ForceThomas N. Barnes Center for Enlisted Education (US) United States. Department of the Air Force, (2012a) Team Building (LM07), Maxwell-Gunter Annex, AL: Department of the Air Force