On March 10, 1984, 18-year-old John David Eaves raised his right hand, took the Oath of Enlistment and joined the Virginia Air National Guard.

Fast forward 40 years, four months, five days and two “almost” retirements, and the now Master Sgt. Eaves’ military career comes to an end. The 192nd Wing hosted his family, friends and coworkers who gathered to celebrate his retirement and four decades of service Aug. 3, 2024.

For the entirety of his career, Eaves served solely in the VaANG and the weapons career field. He served in a variety of roles including weapons system mechanic on the flightline with the 192nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, in backshop with the 192nd Maintenance Squadron, as a loading evaluator with the 192nd Maintenance Group and as 192nd AMXS weapons section chief.

“In my opinion, being a master sergeant in the Air Guard puts you in one of the most unusual positions in the U.S. military,” said Eaves. “It’s not unusual to do the work of an Airman, a shift lead (expeditor) and a flight chief – sometimes all in the same day.”

Eaves began his career with the VaANG when it was based out of Sandston. He experienced the re-designation of the unit three times, changing from the 192nd Tactical Fighter Group to the 192nd Fighter Group, then to the 192nd Fighter Wing and finally to the 192nd Wing.

The first aircraft he maintained weapons for was the Vought A-7D Corsair II, a subsonic jet designed primarily for close-air support. In 1991, he transitioned to his second aircraft when the VaANG became the first ANG unit to receive the Air Force’s upgraded Fighting Falcon, the F-16C/D.

“As far as weapons systems go – which is the only thing I can really speak on – it wasn’t that different as best I can remember,” commented Eaves on the transition. “The F-16 gun system was linkless but it was the same gun. We used pretty much the same launchers and bomb racks. There was one new missile launcher on the F-16 that we didn’t have on the A-7, but as far as weapons go, it wasn’t that dramatically different.”

In 2007, Eaves remained with the unit as its Sandston era came to an end and a new one began at Langley Air Force Base, now Joint Base Langley-Eustis. The then 192nd Fighter Wing’s relocation, more than 70 miles away from its original location, led to a reduction in its full-time force. However, Eaves and many others transitioned to the new location and continued to serve while new career opportunities became available and new members joined.

“The maintainers who came down to establish us here are indeed the VaANG’s greatest generation,” said Col. Matthew R. Hummel, 192nd Wing deputy commander. “These are the people who stayed, who came down when it was hard, fought for space and relevancy, and worked every day to make us the repository of F-22 [Raptor] excellence and expertise that the 192nd is today…It took people like John Eaves to show the way.”

The VaANG integrated with the 1st Fighter Wing as part of the U.S. Air Force’s Total Force Integration strategy and changed to yet another aircraft.

Eaves’ third and final aircraft to maintain weapons systems became the F-22A Raptor.

“That was literally life-changing,” said Eaves. “I can’t describe how big of a change that was. Not only was it a change of location and change of aircraft, it was basically an entire change of personnel. We lost around 70 percent of our full-time force. They did not want to come down to Langley, and that opened up a bunch of openings. And so there were a lot of people getting hired at the same time.”

For the first half of his career at Sandston, Eaves felt he was always the “new guy” compared to his quite older co-workers. Almost overnight, he said he became the “old guy.” With the VaANG’s move to Langley, many new Airmen began joining and continue to join.

“I think I’m kind of like a bridge between generations because when I joined, I literally got advice on how to get through basic training from a World War I veteran,” said Eaves. “And then when I got to the unit, there were still World War II veterans serving in uniform. They were the age I am now. And my first one-man was a Vietnam vet. It’s kind of weird being a bridge between those past generations and this new generation.”

Newly commissioned 2nd Lt. Jordan A. Spotswood, 192nd Wing public affairs officer, recalls his time as Airman 1st Class Spotswood, 192nd AMXS aircraft armament systems specialist, with Eaves as one of his supervisors.

“Eaves brought a different mindset and approach to the younger generation,” said Spotswood. “He didn’t want any Airman to be left behind or not fully understand their job and their role in the shop. Through long hours and staying late, he invested his time and effort into training the next generation of weapons systems mechanics in the VaANG.”

On two separate occasions, Eaves was faced with the choice – or lack of choice – to retire. 

The first “almost retirement” – with 26 years of service at the time, Eaves was notified he was being selected out and set to retire due to time in service and lack of available career options. During a deployment, his time was extended to allow him time to complete the mission and return home. But Eaves wasn’t ready to stop serving. Senior Master Sgt. Len Austin strongly encouraged Eaves to apply one more time for a full-time weapons loading position in the VaANG. He was selected for the role and therefore able to continue serving.

The second “almost retirement” – Eaves was prompted with the choice of retiring or reenlisting. At the time, he wasn’t sure which route he would go. He was advised to go ahead and “push the button,” and if he changed his mind later, they could reverse the decision. When Eaves decided he did want to continue serving, his supervisor, then Lt. Col. Timothy Strouse, non-concurred his retirement application in the computer system. Well, the system continued anyway. A confused Eaves started getting notifications of his upcoming retirement.

Thankfully, the glitch was resolved. The VaANG got to hold onto Eaves a bit longer – that is until Eaves decided it was time to hang up his boots.

“On the [deployment] last year, this one active duty Airman asked me when I joined, and I told him 1984,” said Eaves. “And he said that’s when his parents were born. That was stunning! I’m like, that means two people were born, raised to adulthood, got married, had a kid, raised that kid to adulthood and then he joined the military. And I’ve been in that whole time.

“That’s when I knew it was time to get out,” laughed Eaves.

After just over 40 years, all of which were spent serving in the weapons field in the VaANG, Eaves officially retired. For real this time.

“Like the craftsmen of old, you forged amazing and beautiful things that stand the test of time,” Hummel said to Eaves. “Except your products aren’t made of silver or gold, but something more important, you molded and improved people…you can go knowing you have left a positive and lasting legacy on the Virginia Guard.

“It’s been the biggest, most important thing I’ve done in my life,” reflected Eaves. “It’s been the centerpiece of my life – being in the Guard – all the experiences, deployments and all the people that I’ve been able to meet. The whole package, you know, it’s just been incredible. I wouldn’t trade it for anything. And it’s hard to leave, to be honest, but I know it’s time.”