This article was originally published in the Skywrighter, Friday, 7 Dec 2018, page A9
By Capt. Eydie Sakura, AFIT Education with Industry Fellow

Capt. Eydie Sakura (right) meets Jeff Bezos, Amazon CEO, at a Veterans Day event in Long Beach, Calif., Nov. 12, 2018. (Photo by Capt. John Radovan)

LONG BEACH, Calif. – A group of Air Force Education with Industry fellows were invited to attend the Amazon Veterans Day ceremony where Jeff Bezos, chief executive officer, introduced the newest Prime Air cargo aircraft named “Valor” to its fleet Nov. 12, 2018.

 “We are indebted to all Veterans and we will never forget your service,” Bezos said. “I am privileged to be here today with this group of Amazon Warriors. You have been critical at Amazon for a long time, not just your service to the country, but your service to Amazon customers. You have been bringing that passion to our customers--that’s our job and it’s a big deal. And we’re very grateful to this group for doing that.”

Amazon asked the “Warrior” group to suggest names for the new cargo plane, so they opened up the opportunity to submit ideas to the Veteran community at Amazon. Capt. Jeremy Buyer, Force Support Squadron officer and EWI fellow, suggested “Valor.” This name was submitted by two other Amazonians as well, and their names were announced during the unveiling ceremony, unbeknownst to them.

“EWI students contain a tremendous amount of knowledge and experience to share with the companies in which we are placed,” Buyer said. “I am hopeful and confident that our contributions will be valued beyond our 10 months in the program, but to know that a small piece of my time here at Amazon will by physically ingrained on the side of an aircraft delivering smiles across the country and world, that’s pretty special.”

“Valor” seemed to be the perfect word to capture this parallel between two worlds while also explicitly honoring the service of our Veterans, Buyer said.

“Amazon values brevity, so I wanted to focus in on a single word that exemplified both our military culture, as well as Amazon’s culture,” he added. “I settled on the word ‘Valor’ as the dictionary defines it to mean ‘courage in the face of the unknown.’ For Veterans, the unknown can often times be translated to mean a dangerous environment-how do military members react in the face of danger and what calculated risks do they take. It’s not a perfect parallel, but for Amazon the unknown can often times be translated to mean the unexplored horizons of industry-how does Amazon innovate into the future and what calculated risks do they take.”

 After the ceremony, Bezos did an unexpected and rare thing … he spent time face-to-face with his employees and met his Veteran workforce. He introduced himself and thanked people for their service and for being there.

“Valor” is the last of the 40 Amazon cargo aircraft in its inventory. Amazon employees make up more than 18,000 military veterans and spouses in the U.S.

EWI, a program sponsored by SAF/AQH and managed by the Air Force Institute of Technology, is a highly selective, competitive non-degree educational assignment within an industry related to the fellow’s career field. 

The program is designed to develop qualities and abilities in selected officers and civilians necessary for effective management, professional, and technical leadership; and to provide an understanding of organizational structure, management methods, and technologies of modern industry.  By studying the best practices of industry, students are able to bring new knowledge, understanding, and empathy back into the Air Force to improve its processes.  In turn, the company benefits by receiving the fellow’s experience and perspective.

Capt. Jeremy Buyer stands before “Valor” an aircraft he helped name, and it was unveiled by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Nov. 12, 2018. Buyer, along with two other Amazonians, submitted that name for selection. (Photo by Sarah Martin)