U.S. 5TH FLEET AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY -- U.S. 5TH FLEET AREA OF OPERATIONS – When you think of aircraft, the people behind the scenes, organizing and tracking maintenance rarely come to mind, but without them the aircraft on board amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5) would be unable to carry out the mission. One of these vital Sailors is Aviation Maintenance Administrationman (AZ) 3rd Class Kody Dinsdale, who is an integral part of the Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance Department.
Hailing from Reinbeck, Iowa, Dinsdale graduated from Gladbrook-Reinbeck high school in 2007. He followed up his schooling by earning college credits from Simpson College and the University of Northern Iowa until he found a higher calling to join the Navy when he was 24 years old.
“I joined to pay the dues I believe are owed to live in a country where we are given so much,” Dinsdale said. He also explained that he wanted an opportunity to see the world and what lies beyond his hometown, which is something that many people from his hometown rarely take the chance to do.
Dinsdale’s primary responsibility is to provide technical tracking of all maintenance and inspections performed on aircrafts and aircraft support equipment. These records keep all of the maintainers accountable and accredited for the work that has been signed off and to aid the controllers in noticing any reoccurring issues. Such issues could lead to the discovery of faulty maintenance or a problem that could be happening on a larger scale Navy-wide. If it is found that there is a larger issue the case would be addressed at the manufacturing level or with an updated instruction for performing the maintenance. In short, aviation maintenance begins and ends with an AZ.
Apart from this, Dinsdale has also been given added responsibility with an important collateral duty.
“One of my collateral duties is being part of the brig staff, fortunately, during this deployment, we have been lucky to avoid any trouble on board that would require the brig to take any occupants,” said Dinsdale.
He plans to return to his former career in bridge construction as a foreman with his own crew following his time in the Navy. He would also like to start a small side-business involving the designing and printing of shirts and other objects to sell online.
He went on to say that one of the most important lessons he has learned while in the Navy is to always work on and acquire qualifications or skills outside of your normal job to improve yourself and stand out from the crowd.
When he is off-the-clock, his artistic nature comes out. He has already put his skills to good use by producing multiple shirt designs for Bataan, including one for the upcoming Tiger Cruise.
“My main hobby is finding small projects dealing with construction and creating/drawing designs for t-shirts, posters, or anything that someone requests my help with.”
Dinsdale concluded by passing on advice to junior Sailors, saying “hit the ground running when it comes to getting your special qualifications and, more importantly, try not to take your work home with you.”
This Sailor’s dedication and commitment to going above and beyond is an example to all and he will leave the Bataan better than it was when he first arrived.