Gonzalez is first WD Marine to get acquisition award

Gunnery Sgt. Benjamin Gonzalez, center, is joined by his wife, Jamie, and Maj. Jason Maddocks, AV-8B military deputy, at the Marine Corps Aviation Association John Glenn Squadron awards dinner in Patuxent River, Md. where he was presented the Joyce/Leader Acquisition Staff Non-Commissioned Officer (SNCO) of the Year Award. Photo by Sean Seremet.

Date: 20-Feb-08 (Updated 21-Nov-08 )
News Release Number: ECL200802201
By Staci Mathews NAWCWD Public Affairs

Gunnery Sgt. Benjamin Gonzalez, was presented the Marine Corps Aviation Association (MCAA) John Glenn Squadron Joyce/Leader Acquisition Staff Non-Commissioned Officer (SNCO) of the Year Award during a ceremony held in Patuxent River, Md. on Jan. 31.

"This is a noteworthy award and the first for a NAWC Weapons Division Marine," said Col. Kevin Gross, head of the NAWCWD Marine Aviation Detachment.

Every year the MCAA John Glenn Squadron at Patuxent River hands out acquisition awards for test pilot/naval flight officer of the year, acquisition officer of the year, and acquisition SNCO of the year. The Joyce/Leader acquisition award was named in honor of two SNCOs who lost their lives in a V-22 mishap in 1992. These awards feed into the MCAA National Aviation Acquisition Marine of the Year Award. Gonzalez and his wife, Jamie, were flown to Patuxent River to attend the awards dinner in where he was presented a permanent trophy sponsored by L3 Communications.

"I had no idea about the award, but am honored to have even been considered," Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez was nominated for the MCAA acquisition award for his work while serving as Marine fleet liaison for the AV-8B Joint Systems Support Activity (JSSA) Integrated Product Team (IPT) from January to December 2007.

"He distinguished himself as a leader and technical expert of the highest caliber," Gross said. "He was instrumental in the IPT's accomplishments, particularly in fielding upgrades to the AV-8B Harrier which significantly increase its combat capabilities."

From January to March 2007, Gonzalez was a key player in the design of the Harrier 5.0 (H5.0) Block Upgrade, which included multiple hardware and software changes to the aircraft. He provided a maintainer's perspective to the design and ensured a more reliable and maintainable product is ultimately fielded. He also discovered elusive flaws in the hardware design which were overlooked by others, thus preventing costly redesigns after fielding to the warfighter.

Gonzalez was crucial to the integration of the LITENING targeting pod on the aircraft centerline station, which is the major hardware change associated with the H5.0 Block Upgrade. This effort has been a fleet priority since the initial fielding of LITENING on the AV-8B, as it improves aircraft handling qualities and liberates a wing station for weapons carriage. He also coordinated and led a test effort to identify ground support equipment and necessary modifications to load the LITENING pod on the aircraft during shipboard operations, working with logistics engineers at Naval Air Warfare Center Lakehurst.

The JSSA also relied on the technical expertise of Gonzalez during the requirements definition and design of STRIKELINK A+ integration on the AV-8B.

"His work was invaluable to this project, as it will ultimately allow the AV-8B to communicate digitally with other U. S. Marine Corps platforms," said James Wojciehowski, advanced systems engineer for STRIKELINK A+.

In May 2007, Gonzalez traveled to Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Yuma, Ariz., where he developed, coordinated, and presented on-site formal training for the operational test and evaluation (OT&E) of the Harrier 4.0 (H4.0) Block Upgrade. The training was given to NAWCWD's Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 9 and Marine Attack Squadron 311 maintainers.

H4.0 OT&E was successfully completed and supported fielding the block upgrade to the Harrier fleet in October 2007. Gonzalez again coordinated and led all on-site formal maintenance training at MCAS Yuma and MCAS Cherry Point.

"A warfighter at heart, Gonzalez has made numerous contributions to the Harrier developmental test and evaluation effort, the acquisition community as a whole, and the AV-8B fleet," Gross said. "Most importantly, his diligent efforts have resulted in a tangible increase in combat capabilities for the warfighter."

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