Bud McKay has very thick skin.

There are some days when he comes to work and angry callers unleash their wrath on him over being awoken from a deep sleep by a noisy aircraft.

"They call me all kinds of names," McKay said.

As one of his responsibilities working in the 62nd Airlift Wing public affairs office, McKay handles all noise complaint calls for the wing that come into JBLM-McChord Field. It's something he's been doing for the last nine years and he's developed a tactful and patient process to deal with each one - no matter how heated or strange the call may be.

"A lot of times people just want to vent," he said. "I tell them that I'm just the messenger and I didn't actually fly the plane."

Once the initial vitriol is tempered, McKay goes to work documenting the incident, recording the time and location of the perceived aircraft noise.

"I have to treat it like a business call," he said. "I have an open mind, and they have a valid concern."

While the aircraft noise may or may not come from an aircraft assigned to JBLM McChord Field, McKay handles each call nevertheless with the same calm, collected demeanor. That's not to say his mettle hasn't been tested.

Once in a while, McKay will get a caller looking to report a UFO sighting.

"Those are fun calls to get - they're always surprising," he said. "I just try to remain professional with them and answer each question as it is asked."

If callers still aren't satisfied with the explanation McKay's offered up, he refers them to the local UFO hotline.

McKay, a former active duty airman and reservist, embraces his role as a spokesperson for the field and each chance he has to inform people about the mission.

"The common perception when people call in is that they think someone in the aircraft is up there hot dogging it," he said.

In reality that is far from the truth, he added.

"Our pilots that are going to fly into combat need to train in the nearest condition (to combat) as possible," McKay said.

Sometimes that means flying at lower altitudes with the aid of night vision goggles, similar to the type of missions pilots in the deployed locations are performing, he said.

And believe it or not, some callers even pick up the phone to express their gratitude to those flying the aircraft.

"People call to say they love the planes flying over their house ... that it's a thing of honor to have the Air Force defending their freedom,"McKay said.