AUGUSTA, Kan. (KSNW) - Native Kansan Dale Redding joined the Air Force in 1959 after completing the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) Program at Wichita State University. A case of vertigo kept him on the ground, and he became a very busy transportation officer. "We can handle the motor pool, which you've probably heard of. We've got vehicle operations. We've got vehicle mechanics. We've got commercial transportation. We've got trucking. We've got vehicle maintenance, the airport/airplane business. There's a little bit of everything you can do in transportation," he said. Redding worked many transportation jobs for the Air Force, including in combat zones in Vietnam, loading and unloading C-130 aircraft. He recalls a time when he and his team had to tend to a helicopter that was hit and fell onto the runway. "When I went out there to talk to the guys in the helicopter, the pilot was all shook up. He said he'd never get in a helicopter again. The gunner was dead, and the copilot was wounded, but we got those guys out, and then we picked up the helicopter and put it to the side of the field and got the flow of the C-130s back on the ramp and back up in the air," he said. Air Force veteran who ‘hates’ flying fell in love with the Air Capital During the Tet Offensive in 1968, Redding witnessed people shot at the American embassy in Saigon. "You do what you do in combat zones, just like it's in training or what you do every day in the airport," he said. Soon after, Redding returned to the States, where he trained personnel on how to load and unload C-130s. He went on to manage hundreds of employees at multiple airports. Redding retired from the Air Force as a lieutenant colonel and decided to further his education. "I went back to school. I got a master's degree, and I still didn't know what to do ... I just decided to retire. In about 1986, I was retired, and I'm still retired today," he said. Redding says his niece convinced him to return to the Air Capital to invest in her business. He did just that and then had thoughts about possibly leaving. "From that point on, the government wouldn't pay for my transportation, my household goods, and my move. So I was here, and I didn't want to spend another 10 grand to make another move, so I stayed here," he laughed. Redding says joining the Air Force and retiring in the Air Capital are two of the best decisions he's ever made. "Wichita is great. Wichita is a good city. If I had a choice again for a lot of places to be, Wichita is about as good as any of them," he said. If you want to nominate a veteran for our Veteran Salute, send an email to [email protected] or fill out our online contact form!