PRESS RELEASE | Jan. 12, 2009
CSTC-A Airman presented with Major General L. Dean Fox Award
By None , U.S. Forces – Afghanistan

Press Release

United States Forces-Afghanistan

January 11, 2009

Release Number 20091101-02

CSTC-A Airman presented with Major General L. Dean Fox Award

KABUL, Afghanistan – For nearly a year, Air Force Major Kevin Mantovani, Combined Air Power Transition Force engineering director, provided the Afghan National Army Air Corps with the best engineering advice the Air Force has to offer. For this and his many accomplishments at his home duty station McGuire Air Force Base, N.J., he was awarded the Major General L. Dean Fox Award recognizing him for the outstanding senior military manager civil engineers for the Air Force.

When at his home duty station, Mantovani serves as the operations director for the 818th Global Mobility Readiness Squadron, one of two squadrons in a contingency response group, a team that builds air bases.While working at McGuire, Mantovani gained a great deal of experience by providing the Air Force with airfield surveys and contingency training with the contingency response group.

“A lot of their mission is unique and I think that’s what helps my work package stand out,” said Mantovani. “Building a foreign military is similar to what contingency response (group) does.”

Mantovani was assigned to the Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan in February 2008. Servicemembers assigned to CSTC-A train, advise, equip and mentor the Afghan National Security Forces. He is currently assigned to the Combined Air Power Transition Force / 438th Air Expeditionary Wing.

“My job in CAPTF, as the engineering director, is to develop and plan all the infrastructure for the Afghan National Army Air Corps,” said Mantovani. “When the award board sat down as a group and read the kind of things that I did here which is what all of us at CAPTF are doing, it seems very historical to be building an air force from the ground up.”

CAPTF trains, mentors and equips the Afghan National Army Air Corps to provide numerous services to include presidential airlift, battlefield mobility and airborne command and control.

“Being recognized as an engineer for the work we’re doing in CAPTF just gives great credit to the CSTC-A and CAPTF mission and how important it is to develop the Afghan National Security Forces,” said Mantovani.

“It’s exciting that I can take what I’ve learned here and continue to contribute.”

“This one-year assignment has been the highlight of my career,” he added. “I don’t know if I will have the opportunity to do this level of work again.”