Airmen of Team Minot- Airman 1st Class John Schmidt, Air Traffic Control apprentice Published Nov. 2, 2020 By Airman 1st Class Caleb S. Kimmell Minot Air Force Base Public Affairs MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. -- Airman 1st Class John Schmidt is an air traffic control apprentice with the 5th Operational Support Squadron. He works with his supervisors to learn how to effectively direct B-52s in their daily operations. Schmidt gathers information from instruments in the air traffic control tower and provides it to appropriate agencies such as base operations, the maintenance operations command center and even the 5th Medical Group. Additionally, he documents information from all aircraft that are within Team Minot airspace including the B-52s. He is capable of notating speed, altitude and other specific information specific to an aircraft. When Schmidt isn’t busy with hands on training, he spends his time reading through an extensive rulebook and studying the numerous procedures that air traffic control Airmen will need to know to become a 5-level professional. He says that at first he struggled but one day he decided he was going to turn that around. “Today I’m going to do it right,” said Schmidt. “I know I can do it, I just had to show it.” Schmidt remarked on how his job is important to the pilots and Team Minot because he serves as a second set of eyes to assist B-52 pilots in their daily operations. “We are essential,” said Schmidt. “You can’t see everything through a window on a BUFF.”