Los Angeles Air Force Base Welcomes Newest Chief Master Sergeant

LOS ANGELES AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. — Joined by teammates, mentors and family, Senior Master Sgt. Kayleigh McAviney formally assumed the mantle of chief master sergeant during a promotion ceremony to celebrate the milestone on Sept. 30, 2026.

Col. Adam Klemens, commander of the 61st Medical Squadron, Space Base Delta 3, reflected on the significance of the promotion while noting that achieving the rank of chief master sergeant is far more than a recognition of past performance.

“This is more than just a celebration for Senior Master Sgt. McAviney,” Klemens said during his remarks. “This is actually a celebration for our corps ... This is how the Air Force gets better, by finding those individuals who are serving so strongly and giving them more opportunity to have a greater level of impact.”

Throughout a distinguished 20-year career, McAviney’s path included serving as an aerospace medical technician; an independent duty medical technician, a role requiring high autonomy and self-accountability in deployed environments; a military training instructor supervisor at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas; a first sergeant; and an instructor at the First Sergeant Academy, before culminating in her current role as Senior Enlisted Leader for the 61st Medical Squadron.

With the formal reading of the promotion orders and the pinning of the new chief master sergeant chevrons by her wife, Rebecca McAviney, Chief Master Sgt. Kayleigh McAviney reaffirmed her dedication to the nation and the Department of the Air Force.

Addressing the audience, McAviney delivered a poignant reflection on her path to the rank of chief. Through her speech, “Recipe for Lemon Bread,” she held the room in quiet attention as she unpacked the metaphor. Revealing how the painful and powerful “ingredients” of early struggle, steady resilience, and selfless mentorship baked into the foundation of her leadership today.

“I don't share this recipe because I'm unique, and certainly don't share it to make excuses,” McAviney said. “I share it because underneath every uniform, every rank, every title, every accomplishment, every mistake, every first impression, you're a human being with a story. We all have one. We all have our own recipe.”

Emphasizing the core tenets of servant leadership, Chief Master Sgt. McAviney challenged attendees to look beyond titles and invest in others.

“After 20 years, if I've learned anything, it's that the secret ingredient to success isn't rank, position, decorations, titles, or what is written on your biography. It is being a good human,” she said. “Because if you take care of people, treat them with dignity, make room for them at the table, and lead people with compassion, you'll find success however you choose to define it.”

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