Airman helps save life, personifies wingmanship Published June 13, 2014 By Brian Shreve Robins Public Affairs ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. -- When Jarvis Jackson found himself shot and left for dead on a cold, murky Macon street, he probably had no idea he had a wingman. But fortunately, Senior Airman Taylor Turpin, who happened to be nearby at that grim moment, had been instilled with that concept. It was some time around 2:30 a.m. May 3 when Turpin, 78th Operations Support Squadron air traffic controller, was walking a couple of friends back to their car after a Saturday night out. Upon reaching Poplar Street, he and his friends heard a loud "pop," a noise some in the vicinity mistook as that of a firecracker. Turpin, 22, noticed a man lying on the pavement beside a car and his instincts - much of it attributed to being his squadron's Self-Aid Buddy Care monitor - took hold. "GET DOWN, GET DOWN," he yelled to his friends and others. "I (then) immediately ran over and saw this crowd forming around the guy while he was on the ground yelling. I looked around, and nobody was helping him out. It was crazy," he explained. Pulling up Jackson's shirt, Turpin discovered the man had been shot in the abdomen and was spewing blood. With nothing to cover his hands, he began squeezing Jackson's sides in an effort to control the bleeding, telling him to hold onto his arm. "I had to make sure he was staying conscious," said Turpin. "I kept asking him questions about himself - trying to keep him calm and the situation as light as possible." As Turpin pushed on the victim's wound, a bouncer from across the street - also with military experience it turned out - ran over and assisted him. Call Turpin a hero, a good Samaritan or even a guardian angel. But as a U.S. Airman, he simply refers to himself by another name and knows the notion behind the term is more than just words. "Wingmanship is very important," he said. "And it feels great to be a wingman. To this day, it feels good that I potentially saved someone's life, whether it's military or civilian." Turpin, originally from Buffalo, NY, has since been informed by his chief controller that he may be considered for the Airman's Medal due to his actions. "I'm just happy I was there. I guess all that training we're put through pays off," he said. "They ingrain that wingmanship inside of us, but you don't realize you have that inside of you already. The military just brings it out, teaches you to be aware of it, and embrace it. We're all here to look out for each other."