ACC Intel official nabs top-level award

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  • Air Combat Command Public Affairs
LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. (ACCNS) --  White House officials recently selected an ACC senior executive here to receive the 2007 Presidential Rank Award for his exceptional long-term accomplishments.

Gary Harvey, ACC associate director for intelligence, was one of four Air Force senior executives to be selected for this award.

Winners of this prestigious award are strong leaders and professionals who achieve results and consistently demonstrate strength, integrity, industry, and a relentless commitment to excellence in public service.

According to Mr. Harvey, accomplishments that led to this award focused on transforming "the Air Force so it's prepared to dominate in tomorrow's battles, and to make sure our Airmen are well prepared."

He began his career in Intelligence in 1988. "However, I am no stranger to combat aircraft and air to ground operations. I actually began my active duty Airman's career at the end of the Vietnam War," said Mr. Harvey. It was there he worked as a radar navigator/bombardier on the B-52H deployed from Wurtsmith AFB, Mich. He was then a second lieutenant.

It is his work in intelligence that set Mr. Harvey up for this top-level award. But he attributes it to the people around him.

"I say the Airman team - military, civilians, and contractors of ACC - won the award. I just happened to run the right pattern to be in the right place to catch the winning pass from those thousands of Airmen working [in the U.S.] and deployed in the fight."

Award winners are chosen through a rigorous selection process. They are nominated by their agency heads, evaluated by boards of private citizens, and approved by the president. The evaluation criteria focused on leadership and results.

There are two categories of rank awards: Distinguished and meritorious.

Winners of the 2007 Presidential Rank Award for Career Intelligence Senior Executives include:

-- William Maikisch, the Space and Missile Systems Center executive director, won for the Distinguished Intelligence Executive.

-- John Kretzer, the Air Force Information Warfare Center technical director, was named the Distinguished Senior Professional.

-- Gary Harvey, the Air Combat Command associate director for intelligence, won at the Meritorious Executive level.

-- Gary O'Connell, the National Air and Space Intelligence Center chief scientist, was named the Meritorious Senior Professional.

The Air Force will honor these award winners during an official ceremony in spring 2008.