PMA-260 Leader Awarded Again
Dennis Albrecht, left, the principal deputy for the Aviation Support Equipment Program Office, PMA-260, received his second Navy Meritorious Civilian Service Award from Dave Wooten, deputy assistant commander for acquisition, AIR-1.0A, during a surprise ceremony Sept. 20. (U.S. Navy photo by Rob Koon)
One of the Department of the Navy’s highest civilian service awards was awarded to the principal deputy for the Aviation Support Equipment Program Office, PMA-260, during a surprise ceremony Sept. 20.
Dennis Albrecht received his second Navy Meritorious Civilian Service Award because of his “outstanding performance and dedication to provide the fleet with the best common support equipment at the lowest possible ownership costs and Dennis’s efforts have had a significant and far reaching impact on achieving this goal throughout naval aviation,” said Capt. Fred Hepler, PMA-260 program manager.
A member of the NAVAIR Team for more than 30 years, and as the linchpin of the extended PMA-260 organization for the last 10 years, Albrecht has served as the lead civilian advisor to five program managers and has been a part of developing, enhancing, testing, delivering and sustaining more than 2,482 different pieces of common support equipment.
“Dennis epitomizes the role of civilian leadership in the competency aligned organization/integrated program team construct,” said Dave Wooten, deputy assistant commander for acquisition, AIR-1.0A. “He not only is the programmatic continuity in the office he also has ensured that the program adheres to the highest standards or program precision execution. “With quiet demeanor he buttresses the fleet leadership provided by the program manager with a long term program knowledge acumen that ensures the right product at the right time in an affordable manner.”
According to the citation, with Albrecht’s great initiative and foresight, he guided the concept for a Consolidated Automated Support System (CASS) modernization program that not only addressed obsolescence and introduced new technologies, but also achieved total ownership cost savings of $2 billion.
“CASS is used to diagnose and repair faulty avionics systems in the F/A-18, EA-6B, E-2, H-60, AV-8B, T-45, MV-22 and H-1 aircraft. More than 500 CASS stations are in use aboard every aircraft carrier, every tactical naval air station, every fixed wing United States Marine Corps (USMC) air base, every Fleet Readiness Center, many Naval Air Systems Command and Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) sites, and in eight foreign countries,” added Hepler.
During the award presentation, he was recognized for his leadership of the $400 million Reconfigurable Transportable CASS program through competitive contract award, development, operational test and production enabled PMA-260 to field this critical tester on-time and to satisfy the rapid deployment requirements of both the United States Marine Corps and United States Special Operations Command.
“I was truly humbled to receive this Meritorious Civilian Service award,” Albrecht said. “It is really a reflection of the outstanding work the PMA-260 Team has accomplished, and I am very grateful to have been given the opportunity to work with such a dedicated and talented group of folks.”
Albrecht led the way by briefing at countless warfighter-oriented conferences, meetings and symposiums the current planning for providing CSE to the users. Fleet-focused, he attends every Naval Aviation Executive Boots on Ground and Boots on Deck event, and uses those opportunities to get first-hand feedback from the sailors and Marines that use PMA-260 products. He won many accolades for his openness, honesty and eagerness to work together to address the hard challenges stated Hepler.
During his career at PMA-260, Albrecht was part of a team that received the Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Stan Arthur Award for Logistics Excellence in 1997. He received his first Navy Meritorious Civilian Service Award in 2002.
Source: AIR-1.0 Public Affairs
