William Kyle HUNNICUTT^[1]

• Name	William Kyle HUNNICUTT  [2]
  Gender	Male
  HIST	Sumter policeman jumps into career as airborne paratrooper Pfc. William K. Hunnicutt secures his parachute before a jump with the 82nd Airborne Division. A former Sumter police officer, Hunnicutt left to pursue his dream of joining the military while completing his degree in criminal justice. After finishing his service as a paratrooper, Hunnicutt said he intends to join the U.S. Marshal Service. BY BRISTOW MARCHANT bmarchant@theitem.com (803) 774-1272 William K. Hunnicutt has gone from patrolling the streets of Sumter to jumping out of airplanes. A Sumter native, Hunnicutt served with the Sumter Police Department for two years before he decided to pursue his dream of joining the U.S. Army and, in the process, pick up some skills - and thrills - as an airborne paratrooper. Pfc. Hunnicutt, son of Jack and Charlene Hunnicutt, graduated from Thomas Sumter Academy in 2005. He attended the University of South Carolina to pursue a degree in criminal justice but left in 2009 to become a patrolman with Sumter Police Department. He later worked as a sheriff's deputy in Clarendon County before he signed up with the 82nd Airborne Division. "I joined because I wanted to finish school, and I'd always wanted to serve in the military," he said. Currently stationed at Fort Bragg with the 1st Brigade Combat Team, Hunnicutt works in between parachute jumps as a systems operative who coordinates between field artillery and air support during operations, including "de-conflicting" the base's airspace of "anything we might have to fly through." Hunnicutt met his wife, Amanda, while serving as a police officer, but the Sumter girl agreed to become a mobile military wife along with the couple's sons, Noah Flynn, 5, Aiden, 4, and Houston, 2. "She doesn't mind," Hunnicutt said. "She encouraged me, because she served in the Army herself in 2007 and 2008." HOW MUCH TRAINING IS INVOLVED IN BEING A PARATROOPER? I went through basic training at Fort Jackson, then AIT (advanced individual training) at Fort Sill, Okla., where they train you to do your job in battle defense systems operations. Mine was about 21 weeks long. Then I proceeded to airborne training at Fort Benning, Ga., where you qualified to go on parachute jumps. I started there in September 2012, and it took about three weeks. That was the first time (I'd jumped out of an airplane). WHY JOIN AN AIRBORNE DIVISION? I thought it would be unique. There's not a lot of jobs where you can get paid to jump out of an airplane. It's something I wanted to try, so I thought why not take the opportunity and get paid for it at the same time? And I enjoyed the history of the 82nd, too. It has an extensive history going all the way back to World War I. WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE TO JUMP OUT OF A PLANE 1,200 Feet OFF THE GROUND? Well, the first couple of jumps are just an adrenaline rush. But once you get into a mission, you're not up there enjoying the view. You're thinking about ground level and what you have to do when you get there. You have to jump at least once every three months to stay certified, pending missions that we have to jump for. But not every exercise involves a jump, so most of the time you're just jumping to stay current. WHAT'S NEXT? My dream is really to go into federal law enforcement. (While I'm serving) I'm pursuing a degree in criminal justice. Once my term in the Army is up, I want to go into the U.S. Marshal Service. A term for a paratrooper is usually a minimum of four years, but it all depends on the job you're selected to do. ANYTHING YOU WANT TO SAY TO THE FOLKS BACK IN SUMTER? I want to thank everybody who supported me joining the military. I got some big support in my transition from law enforcement to the military from Robert Singleton and Bill Hubble. They're both senior corporals in the patrol division, and we were on the same shift. They came to my basic training graduation too. They've been like brothers to me. Posted in Local news, News on Saturday, March 1, 2014  [2]
  HIST	Sumter policeman jumps into career as airborne paratrooper Pfc. William K. Hunnicutt secures his parachute before a jump with the 82nd Airborne Division. A former Sumter police officer, Hunnicutt left to pursue his dream of joining the military while completing his degree in criminal justice. After finishing his service as a paratrooper, Hunnicutt said he intends to join the U.S. Marshal Service. BY BRISTOW MARCHANT bmarchant@theitem.com (803) 774-1272 William K. Hunnicutt has gone from patrolling the streets of Sumter to jumping out of airplanes. A Sumter native, Hunnicutt served with the Sumter Police Department for two years before he decided to pursue his dream of joining the U.S. Army and, in the process, pick up some skills - and thrills - as an airborne paratrooper. Pfc. Hunnicutt, son of Jack and Charlene Hunnicutt, graduated from Thomas Sumter Academy in 2005. He attended the University of South Carolina to pursue a degree in criminal justice but left in 2009 to become a patrolman with Sumter Police Department. He later worked as a sheriff's deputy in Clarendon County before he signed up with the 82nd Airborne Division. "I joined because I wanted to finish school, and I'd always wanted to serve in the military," he said. Currently stationed at Fort Bragg with the 1st Brigade Combat Team, Hunnicutt works in between parachute jumps as a systems operative who coordinates between field artillery and air support during operations, including "de-conflicting" the base's airspace of "anything we might have to fly through." Hunnicutt met his wife, Amanda, while serving as a police officer, but the Sumter girl agreed to become a mobile military wife along with the couple's sons, Noah Flynn, 5, Aiden, 4, and Houston, 2. "She doesn't mind," Hunnicutt said. "She encouraged me, because she served in the Army herself in 2007 and 2008." HOW MUCH TRAINING IS INVOLVED IN BEING A PARATROOPER? I went through basic training at Fort Jackson, then AIT (advanced individual training) at Fort Sill, Okla., where they train you to do your job in battle defense systems operations. Mine was about 21 weeks long. Then I proceeded to airborne training at Fort Benning, Ga., where you qualified to go on parachute jumps. I started there in September 2012, and it took about three weeks. That was the first time (I'd jumped out of an airplane). WHY JOIN AN AIRBORNE DIVISION? I thought it would be unique. There's not a lot of jobs where you can get paid to jump out of an airplane. It's something I wanted to try, so I thought why not take the opportunity and get paid for it at the same time? And I enjoyed the history of the 82nd, too. It has an extensive history going all the way back to World War I. WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE TO JUMP OUT OF A PLANE 1,200 Feet OFF THE GROUND? Well, the first couple of jumps are just an adrenaline rush. But once you get into a mission, you're not up there enjoying the view. You're thinking about ground level and what you have to do when you get there. You have to jump at least once every three months to stay certified, pending missions that we have to jump for. But not every exercise involves a jump, so most of the time you're just jumping to stay current. WHAT'S NEXT? My dream is really to go into federal law enforcement. (While I'm serving) I'm pursuing a degree in criminal justice. Once my term in the Army is up, I want to go into the U.S. Marshal Service. A term for a paratrooper is usually a minimum of four years, but it all depends on the job you're selected to do. ANYTHING YOU WANT TO SAY TO THE FOLKS BACK IN SUMTER? I want to thank everybody who supported me joining the military. I got some big support in my transition from law enforcement to the military from Robert Singleton and Bill Hubble. They're both senior corporals in the patrol division, and we were on the same shift. They came to my basic training graduation too. They've been like brothers to me. Posted in Local news, News on Saturday, March 1, 2014
  _UID	E282314E80614BA4980A0A6980ECCC9F9F89
  _UID	E282314E80614BA4980A0A6980ECCC9F9F89
  Person ID	I291081	Singleton and Related Families
  Last Modified	27 Nov 2024

  
  

  Father	Jack HUNNICUTT
  Mother	Charlene FRANK
  _UID	E47977CB8D5E4CD0998BD734B1C24120A965
  _UID	E47977CB8D5E4CD0998BD734B1C24120A965
  Family ID	F195319	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Amanda
  _UID	8D5400BC16EF48F1843CF4F907A86253EC62
  _UID	8D5400BC16EF48F1843CF4F907A86253EC62
  Children	1. Living   2. Living   3. Living
  Family ID	F195317	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	5 Mar 2014

  
  

• Sources

  [S32256] William Frnk Jr. [S20679] Sumter policeman jumps into career as airborne paratrooper.