Warrior of the Week: Keeping the skies safe

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Zachiah Roberson
  • 319th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
GRAND FORKS AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. --  Senior Airman Trista Serra, a 319th Operations Support Squadron air traffic controller, said she didn't have any plans after graduating high school; it was either college or the Air Force.

"I didn't really know what to do, so I talked with a recruiter," she said. "He gave me the option to be an air traffic controller, which would have me leave for Basic Military Training in three months, so I took it. I never really knew why I wanted to be an air traffic controller, until I got to my first base and witnessed actual planes flying."

Having been in the Air Force for almost four years now, Serra said her motivation to work so hard comes from her love of her job. Serra said her job is very difficult, but that is why she is constantly striving to improve.

"When I went through technical training school for air traffic controllers, the wash-out rate was 80 percent," said Serra. "But it's still a fun job. I'm excited to come to work every day and the people I work with are amazing."

Serra said that her job entails providing accurate flight plans to pilots to prevent collisions between aircraft here on base, and even aircraft out of Grand Forks International Airport, about 13 miles away.

"We help them get the information necessary to assure they stay safe and complete the mission," she said.

Even with such preparation, Serra said she knows there is always a possibility of an incident occurring. Near the end of her deployment to Kuwait, she witnessed the crash-landing of an AC-130 gunship, a heavily armed ground attack aircraft variant of the C-130 Hercules transport plane.

"I knew that I needed to stay calm even though I was very nervous," said Serra. "There were some internal issues with the aircraft's gears causing the engines to fail. Luckily, no one was even injured in the incident."

Serra said one of her hobbies outside of work is music. She is a self-taught guitar player, and has been working on improving her sound for the past eight years.

"One of my uncles used to bring his guitar to family picnics, and that sort of inspired me to play," she said. "I guess that's the reason I like it so much. I like making music and listening to it, so it's good I know how to play guitar."

She named several bands that influence her sound, such as Blink 182, Sum 41, Everclear and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Serra said someday she hopes to open a music bar allowing other people to showcase their talents. For now, though, she is focusing on working to further herself in her Air Force career.