The only thing that hasn't changed is the building

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Stephanie Morris
  • Minot Air Force Base Public Affairs
MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. --  In 1956, a boy was born in Bantry, North Dakota, who would spend most of his life working as a mechanic for the military. Growing up on a ranch afforded him many opportunities to learn the ins and outs of heavy equipment repair, and he ended many of his days covered in oil and dirt.

"I've always been a mechanic," Gary Kaylor, 5th Logistics Readiness Squadron superintendent of general purpose allied trades said. "I've been working on equipment and vehicles for almost 35 years now."

Kaylor originally served as a mechanic in the United States Army from 1974 to 1980. During this time, he was stationed in California, Virginia; Korea; Kentucky and Germany. He also deployed to Vietnam and worked to recover vehicles and helicopters.

While in the Army, Kaylor was able to work in remote environments and perform maintenance in places many people will never travel to.

"I keep an Army lithograph hung in my office all the time," Kaylor said, motioning to his office wall where artwork for several branches of the military hangs. "My boss tried to get me to take it down once, because it was hanging above the Air Force on the wall. The Army is where the Air Force came from and where I started. I'm not going to forget that."

In 1983, he came to Minot Air Force Base in an over-hire position. Since his arrival, he has been able to remain working here ever since. Kaylor worked as a mechanic in the heavy equipment shop for 25 years before he became the superintendent for LRS.

When he first began working in LRS at Minot, the shop still had fold open tool boxes that could be carried by hand and mechanics had to make different adjustments to their own tools to get the job done. Some maintenance work required specialized tools ranging from wrenches and cushions to kneel on and Kaylor explained that at times, his shop would have to get creative to make what they needed. They had to constantly come up with new ways to get the job done, whether that meant duct taping foam to boards to kneel on or fabricating wrenches out of extra materials.

The building, that rivaled a theater in terms of lighting, was once just an enormous bay with few lights suspended from the ceiling. This made it difficult for the mechanics to see what they were working on or to distinguish important variances in colors, Kaylor said.

Mechanics worked beneath vehicles held up by traditional jacks rather than powerful lifts. Extra steps often had to be taken to ensure the mechanics remained safe while they worked.

However, he explained that there have been vast improvements over the years, new lifts in the bay, new tool carts and vehicles. Everything has been upgraded from when he first started.

"The only thing that has stayed the same is the buildings," Kaylor said.

According to Kaylor, his shop is the main focus for both the 5th Bomb Wing and 91st Missile Wing in regards to humvee and bearcat maintenance. An average of 20 vehicles are in the shop undergoing maintenance every day. There are also approximately 92 vehicles being worked on, spread over 16 different shops across the base, in Kaylor's group daily.

"The Air Force can't do anything without vehicle mechanics," Kaylor said. "We keep the world running."

In addition to his experience and love for mechanical labor, Kaylor also enjoys passing on his knowledge to his shop and sharing his sense of humor.

"He's a great guy with a great heart and he's definitely one of the top civilians I've worked with," said Tech. Sgt. Garren Bartell, NCO in charge of general purpose maintenance. "He gets out on the shop floor and gives the mechanics advice. He challenges himself with something new every day."

Kaylor stated that his favorite part of the job is being able to interact with Airmen and teach them the things he knows best.

"This job lets me teach people all the time. I've trained young Airmen who are retired seniors now," Kaylor said. "It's a good feeling when they call me from Iraq or Afghanistan and say, 'Hey Mr. Kaylor, I need your help. What do you think I should do here.'"

Right now, Kaylor feels that he is exactly where he needs to be and has no intentions to retire anytime soon.

"No matter when I retire, I will always be a mechanic," Kaylor said.