Four decades of service come to a close for senior Air Force civilian

  • Published
  • By Margaret Breihan
  • Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs
WASHINGTON (AFNS) --  It's the wonderful people that he's worked with that have made 43 years in the Air Force such a great experience, said William Davidson.

Davidson, the administrative assistant to the secretary of the Air Force, will retire in a ceremony here Sept. 30.

"They always say you'll know when to leave." He said. "I want to leave when I'm at the top of my game, and I can make the transition as smooth as possible. My wife and I are high school sweethearts, and now I want to give back to her and the rest of the family by cheering at my grandchildren's games."

Looking back
Davidson said his love of the Air Force, and of the sky, began at an early age. His father was a veteran World War II flyer and a commercial pilot. Davidson said he also wanted to be a pilot in the Air Force, but his eyesight was too poor. The backup plan was to keep the Air Force in his future and integrate another of his interests: law enforcement.

"A position with (Air Force Office of Special Investigations) seemed to be the best of both worlds," he said.

Just seven days after graduating from Florida State University's ROTC program, he was offered a position as a polygrapher with AFOSI.

At AFOSI, Davidson worked his way into leadership positions, eventually becoming the chief of the Air Force Polygraph Program. He was also inducted into the AFOSI Hall of Fame.

Prior to retiring as a colonel in 1990, he served as the deputy for security and investigative programs with the Office of the Administrative Assistant. Entering the civilian service immediately after his military retirement, he first served as the deputy administrative assistant until 1994 when he assumed the administrative assistant position.

Among a multitude of responsibilities, the administrative assistant is also the senior career civilian adviser to the secretary of the Air Force.

A mentor
Throughout his career, 22 years in uniform then 21 as a senior executive service civilian, Davidson said he has worked hard to follow the examples of those who helped him find his way to success.

"When I was coming into the service there were a lot of World War II veterans who were still in the service who showed me the ropes, mentoring me," he said. "Mentorship has always been a part of my Air Force experience."

Davidson grew from mentee to mentor.

"He's the person people constantly seek out for advice," said Doug Thomas, the former National Counterintelligence principal deputy director, one of Davidson's mentees.

Tim Beyland, the Air Force assistant deputy chief of staff for manpower and personnel, said he is still learning from Davidson in preparation for taking over Davidson's duties. Beyland has been selected to be the next administrative assistant to the secretary.

Adaptation
Davidson said he not only helped his mentees and co-workers deal with security-related issues throughout his career, he also witnessed many social, technological and political changes that have caused the Air Force to evolve.

"In the beginning of my career, I saw the breaking down of racial barriers... then came the introduction of women into the service... and more recently the somewhat uneasy transition to pilotless flight," he said. "The Air Force needs to adjust more quickly to social and technological changes than other branches of service do, and we adjust well."

Davidson helped senior leaders in the Air Force and the Defense Department deal with the biggest security adjustments in recent history -- security issues in a post-9/11 world.

"(Davidson) has fundamentally changed the way the Defense Department looks at security," Beyland said. "He has changed it from dealing with an individual security incident to coming up with a concept that prevents the incident from happening."

"You watch how he navigates through so many technical areas and comes up with an ideal solution for whatever scenario you think of," said Robert Corsi, Davidson's deputy. "He has the ability to understand the dynamics of a situation and is able to assimilate all that and navigate a way ahead, no matter how complicated the issue. (Davidson) is such a revolutionary, evolutionary, thinker that instead of adjusting to change, he drives change."

Recognition
Throughout his career, Davidson has achieved an impressive collection of military and civilian service awards, to include two Distinguished Executive Presidential Rank Awards, which recognizes him as part of the top one percent of the most valued federal government career civilian leaders.

"(Davidson) actually had three careers in the Air Force: serving in uniform as a cop and investigator, serving as a staff officer, and finally serving as the senior civilian advisor to the secretary of the Air Force," said Michael Donley, the secretary of the Air Force. "With over 20 years working in the Office of the Administrative Assistant, (Davidson) has been the go-to person for anyone who wants to know how to get something done in the Air Force, in the Pentagon and beyond. His knowledge and experience have provided continuity to our Air Force, which is a critical contribution on a day-to-day basis, but absolutely essential in times of crisis and transition."

Davidson said he is confident in the abilities of those who will continue on after his retirement.

"Now people are talking a lot about my legacy, and as I see it, legacy is what you leave behind," he said. "As I look up and down these halls, I see people who I've mentored are now leading the Air Force, and who happen to be good friends. The Airmen coming in are really bright and smart."