To tell their story: Air Force civil engineering historian completes milestone work

  • Published
  • By John Burt
  • AFCEC Public Affairs
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  Air Force civil engineers have a rich and proud history. Now, for the first time, that history is presented in one book, Leading the Way: The History of Air Force Civil Engineers. Written by Dr. Ronald Hartzer, Air Force civil engineer historian at the Air Force Civil Engineer Center, "Leading the Way" spans more than a century of CE history and culminates almost 30 years of research.

The book traces the history of Air Force civil engineers from their roots as aviation engineers in the Army Air Corps through World War II, Vietnam, Desert Storm and post 9-11 operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The impetus for the book began in 1985 when Maj. Gen. Clifton Wright, then director of Air Force Engineering and Services, called Hartzer for a meeting at the Pentagon. Hartzer was then base historian at Lowry Air Force Base, Colorado, and had authored To Great and Useful Purpose, A History of the Wilmington District, US Army Corps of Engineers a year earlier. Wright showed Hartzer a recent work on the Air Force's role in Southeast Asia and pointed out that the entire book only devoted two paragraphs to the work of civil engineers.

"He told me, 'we did quite a lot in Vietnam,'" Hartzer said. "General Wright wanted a book length history of Air Force civil engineering to tell their story."

Hartzer initially thought writing the book would be a simple process. He soon found out differently.

"There was not much to draw from," said Hartzer. "The one thing they did have was the Air Force Civil Engineer magazine which had been printed since 1960. It was history as it happened."

He spent a lot of time at the Air Force Historical Research Agency at Maxwell AFB, Alabama, doing research, copying files and piecing the past together, all while juggling the daily responsibilities in his new role as historian for civil engineering.

Over the years, Hartzer interviewed hundreds of CEs, cultivating a deeper respect and admiration for the men and women of Air Force civil engineering.

"They always seem to get the job done," said Hartzer. "They didn't necessarily have the right tools, materials or equipment but they knew what the mission was and they knew they had to get it done and somehow figured out how to do it. I guess it's in their DNA. That's why they became engineers in the first place - to take on challenges like that."

One example is how quickly and efficiently Air Force CEs set up expeditionary bases in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Oman to support Operations DESERT SHIELD and DESERT STORM. In most cases, that meant setting up new Harvest Falcon shelters as well as water distribution and power production systems with which they had little to no experience or training.

Hartzer has also gotten to know some of civil engineering's larger-than-life history makers, including Prime BEEF founder Brig. Gen. Tom Meredith and Brig. Gen. Archie Mayes.

"General Mayes enlisted in the Army in 1938 even before World War II," said Hartzer. "He participated in river crossings for General Patton's tanks. He later became an officer, an Air Force civil engineer and just did amazing things."

Mayes had oversight of Prime BEEF and RED HORSE when they were first established and deployed to Vietnam. As a base civil engineer in the 1950s, he helped develop basic concepts, ideas and Air Force regulations that are still being used as Air Force Instructions today.

Throughout the 800-page work, Hartzer said he tried to tell the human side of the career field's challenges and accomplishments.

"History is more than dates and facts. It's people," said Hartzer. "I wanted both the name and the emphasis of the book to be the history of Air Force civil engineers, not civil engineering. I wanted to keep the focus on the people."

Hartzer will retire on Jan. 2, ending a more than 31-year career chronicling civil engineers. His book is simply dedicated, "To the Air Force Civil Engineers who have 'Led the Way.'"

"The engineers have always seemed to appreciate that someone was tracking their history, so that has been very rewarding. It's been an enjoyable time."