Life's ‘gray’ areas are often black and white Published May 13, 2009 By Chief Master Sgt. William Sanders 305th Maintenance Squadron Superintendent JOINT BASE McGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST -- At some point in your life, you've probably heard someone say, "We'll have to play this one close to the vest, because it's a gray area." Instead of "vest," they may have used other terms, such as hip-pocket, toolbox, cockpit, or laboratory (fill in the blank for your work center). There are black and white answers to many of the questionable gray areas in life. However, people often choose not to do the required research for the correct answer; or they are so personally attached to the issue, it colors their objectivity. This metaphoric gray area can exist in both civilian and military work centers. When I think of gray areas, two examples come to mind. The first happened in 1986 when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded just 73 seconds after its launch from Cape Canaveral, Fla. That Jan. 28 morning at Tennessee's Ooltewah High School, instead of the Latin II class proceeding as normal, my teacher, Mrs. Rutledge, allowed us to watch history, because this was the first time a fellow educator, Christa McAuliffe, would travel into space. History was made, but not the type Mrs. Rutledge had hoped for. That morning the class of 30-plus students watched what seemed to be a bad B-rated movie. The investigation into the Challenger's explosion by a special commission, appointed by then President Ronald Reagan, revealed a faulty O-ring seal in the Challenger's right-side, solid rocket booster that, becoming inflexible in the cold, failed to seal the joint tightly. The booster rocket flames leaked through the ineffective seal, torched the external fuel tank and dislodged the booster, setting fire to the liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen fuels, causing the explosion. Further investigation revealed two of the four major organizations involved in the space launch, NASA and Morton Thiokol, knew of the O-ring problem, and the consequences of the launch at temperatures lower than the limit. Yes, our metaphoric gray area. The second example, and more personal one, happened in 1991, while I was assigned to the 960th Airborne Warning and Control Squadron at Keflavik Naval Air Station, Iceland. A good friend decided to test the boundaries of the base's curfew policy by showing up 10 minutes after midnight. The policy was that at midnight all residents must be back on base. This individual knew the rules, but thought the Naval Air Station's security team would interpret 10 minutes after midnight as a gray area and let him slide. The Iceland chapter of my friend's life didn't end well: After receiving an Article 15 and performing several hours on the base's self enhancement team, he realized there was no gray area when it came to Keflavik Naval Air Station's curfew. As U.S. Air Force members, both civilian and military, we know our leaders have taken great pains to spell out how we will conduct business. As a 21-year aircraft maintainer, I know the rules to getting aircraft into the air safely can be found in the 21 series Air Force Instructions and the double zero series technical orders...no gray area at all. Additionally, there are specific rules in your career field that tell you how to conduct business. If you allow yourself to think that maybe this is the one situation where it may be a gray area--because you have not taken the time to properly research the correct answer, or there is a personal attachment to the situation. The consequences of relegating a major decision to a "gray" area may not be as dire as the space shuttle explosion, or as personally grave as receiving an Article 15, but is your credibility worth it?