HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. -- Capt. Daniel Webber boasts a trait rarely associated with Air Force acquisitions officers – he’s lethal.
Since 2015, of the 150 Airmen who started the Army’s Ranger Course at Fort Benning, Georgia, only 84 graduated and earned the right to wear the coveted Ranger Tab. Webber joined the microcosm of Airmen who have earned that right, completing the 62-day course Jan. 24, 2025.
Ranger training is regarded as one of the most challenging courses within the Department of Defense. Each year, only half of all students who pass the initial prerequisites to attend actually graduate. Service members succumb to injuries, quit from mental exhaustion, or are peered out for failing to display suitable leadership skills. Often, they are sent back, or ‘recycled,’ to repeat portions of the training for a myriad of reasons. Few prevail from those setbacks.
Webber was recycled. Twice.
He said a combination of support from his loved ones, friends, and peers in the course helped him find the mental fortitude and stick-to-itiveness he needed to overcome the challenges he faced.
"Ranger Course teaches you that failure isn't the end, it's just a delay,” he said. “Getting recycled forced me to dig deeper, to push past what I thought were my limits. It made me realize that giving up wasn't an option.
“It felt like getting knocked down after you thought you'd won the fight,” he said.
The Airman endured.
The course is the Army’s premier small unit tactics and leadership event. It develops functional skills directly related to units whose mission is to engage the enemy in close combat and direct fire battle. Students become proficient in leading squad and platoon dismounted operations around the clock in all climates and terrain. Rangers are better trained, more capable, more resilient, and better prepared to serve and lead.
The Colleyville, Texas, native’s career hardly mirrors that of the Army infantry officers who primarily attend the course. Webber is an acquisition officer with Kessel Run, the largest software development and acquisition's unit within the DoD, and a division within the Department of the Air Force Program Executive Office for Command, Control, Communications and Battle Management.
At KR, Webber manages contracts and resources to support teams of developers, designers, and product managers. His job focuses on ensuring Kessel Runners are empowered to create software solutions that are user-centered and effective.
“My job is to make sure the software we build is as tough and reliable as the Airmen who use it,” he said. “We're developing the tools that give Airmen the edge they need, whether it's planning a mission or analyzing intelligence.”
While Webber isn’t your traditional Ranger candidate, the course is open to all service members who meet prerequisites and receive command approval. For Webber to attend the course, he said getting approval from his leadership was a challenging hurdle, but he was thankful to have their support.
“I couldn’t be the dude to tell him no; it was so awesome,” said Lt. Col. Jonathan Ng, the branch chief for Kessel Run’s All Domain Common Platform. “Airmen in general don’t often get to go to this course. Air Force officers normally don’t get to go … and acquisition officers ... it’s unheard of.
“This course embodies that warrior ethos we all strive to, the mission of what we do,” Ng said. “Webber attending not only makes him a better Airman, but it improves the Airmen around him.”
Once Webber had his command’s approval to attend, he began finalizing all the necessary paperwork to obtain a seat in the course.
"Getting that green light from my commander was a huge moment,” Webber said. “It meant they believed in me, and trusted that I could bring something back to the unit, even if it wasn't immediately obvious what that would be."
Webber was able to attend the course as a ‘walk on,’ after completing a preparation course. For him, earning a Ranger Tab was a dream he had for as long as he could remember.
"It might seem strange for a software guy to chase a Ranger Tab, but it was a dream I had since I was a kid,” he said. “It was about proving that even an Air Force acquisitions officer could answer that call to adventure."
He said he spent six months preparing for the course, and had to completely overhaul his lifestyle, dedicating every spare moment to rigorous physical training and immersing himself in Army tactical doctrine.
“I had to learn a whole new profession,” he said. “I spent all my time reading the Ranger Handbook front-to-back, listening to the audiobook on runs and while driving to work.”
Webber began a strict training regimen and diet to prepare for the course. He allocated all his free time to the single focus of preparing himself for the challenges ahead.
“It became my life,” he said. “Physically, I trained seven days a week, two-a-days, mixing weights, calisthenics, running, and rucking.
“I had to be in the best shape of my life," he said.
He was.
Webber was able to complete the course and earn the coveted tab. He returned to Kessel Run a more well-rounded Airman, with an experience that will forever make him lethal, a better leader, and above all – an asset to his fellow Airmen dedicated to delivering decisive decision advantage through software.
“It's a different kind of battlefield here at Kessel Run,” he said. “Instead of mountains and mud, we've got deadlines and data streams. But the mission is just as vital; supporting the Air Force with cutting edge software.
“And honestly, I kind of like having a roof over my head while I do it,” he said.