Air Force selects 6 Cannon Chiefs for promotion Published Dec. 7, 2017 By Staff Sgt. Shelby Kay-Fantozzi 27th Special Operations Wing Public Affairs CANNON AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. -- The 27th Special Operations Wing’s Air Commandos celebrated the selection of six Senior Master Sergeants for promotion to Chief Master Sergeant Wednesday. In an Air Force tradition, established chiefs toured the base to congratulate each chief select in turn, inviting them to join in on the celebration that peaked when all present selects reached the Landing Zone. Chief Master Sgt. Christopher Payne, 27th Special Operations Mission Support Group chief enlisted manager, noted that 2017 was the second year that Cannon chiefs were selected at a rate almost double the Air Force-wide rate. “Those numbers are a reflection of Cannon’s development of senior non-commissioned officers,” Payne said. “The Air Force promotes on three things: performance, preparation and potential. We intentionally prepare our candidates to excel in all three.” Cannon’s system of moving senior enlisted leaders from flight, to squadron, to wing-level management--then back around again--gives candidates a wide range of experience, Payne explained. The wing documents the depth and breadth of top performers’ achievements through awards citations and enlisted performance reports. Though the chiefs gathered to celebrate, Payne also emphasized the gravity of pinning on the Air Force’s top enlisted rank. “Once you’re a chief, everyone from E-1 to O-6 has their eyes on you,” he said. “It’s time to go all in. Once you put on this rank, you wear it 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. You're in lockstep with leaders and missions from your home station all the way up to the Pentagon.” The expression that circulated among chiefs earned a ring of truth as they celebrated their six new peers’ success: “If you want to be a Chief, come to Cannon!”